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Adopted Daughter Role Done Too Well Chapter 172

The person who entered through the door was none other than Viola.

“Nice to meet you, I am Viola Bellatu.”

Heron looked at Viola with a pleased expression, Salmon frowned, and Merisa stared at Viola with a blank face. Salmon was the first to speak gruffly.

“So, you’re saying that this great figure who led the secret meeting after reading God’s Will is Princess Viola?”

Nelak chuckled. “I understand your reaction, Duke Salmon.”

His eyes narrowed. “I was also curious how Princess Viola would persuade you all.”

“Wow.”

Salmon Brandia actually didn’t like Viola very much. After all, wasn’t Selbin’s runaway because of Viola?

Of course, it wasn’t something to blame Viola for, but parents’ feelings are complicated. “Princess Viola, you know I don’t particularly like you, right?”

“Is it because of Young Noblewoman Selbin’s runaway?”

“Well, not exactly, but…”

“You, of all people, know it’s not because of me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Be like your mother, your mother is your ideal, you need to have the strength like your mother.”

Salmon’s eyes widened. That was the very thing he’d drilled into Selbin since she was a baby.

“Of course, Lady Brandia is indeed a wonderful person. She rose up single-handedly, united the Western Continent, and ruled as the Martial Empress, only to betray the Western Continent for the greater good.”

Nelak, Heron, and Merisa’s eyes all turned to Duke Salmon simultaneously. Nelak was the first to ask.

“Could it be that the Duchess who was shrouded in mystery…”

Heron snickered, and Merisa picked up where Nelak left off. “Could it be the Martial Empress Aselda?”

There were hardly any residents of the continent who didn’t know the name ‘Aselda.’ Aselda.

Those three letters were the most outstanding expression of her name. People would often compare Aselda to the Sun King Khan.

Viola continued speaking.

“On the Central Continent, there was Sun King Khan.

Meanwhile, on the Western Continent, there was Martial Empress Aselda.”

“…….”

“If Sun King Khan is the hero of a legend, then Aselda is the reality of that legend.”

Salmon Brandia was rendered speechless. ‘Has the secret been leaked?’

The fact that his wife was Aselda was a closely guarded secret. Even his daughter Selbin didn’t know her mother was Aselda.

“My wife isn’t Aselda. I don’t know what nonsense you’re talking about.”

“Is that so?”

Viola smiled sweetly. “Duke, Aselda’s husband is you.”

At her words, Salmon’s face turned an icy shade. His angular jaw quivered. “Should I say more? The western edge, the Mailon reclamation area. The night the waning moon rose…”

“Stop!”

Salmon’s face burned crimson. That incident was something nobody knew about. The Mailon reclamation area was the day Salmon had “married” Aselda.

“The one who overcomes the opponent with bare hands shall take them as their wife, you see…”

“Stop!”

Salmon slammed the table down! The sound echoed as the table split in two, and the part that met Salmon’s fist crumbled to dust.

It was quite a brutal scene, but Nelak burst into laughter.

“So that was it. What a fascinating fact. Aselda was the Duke’s wife. No, or rather, the Duke was Aselda’s husband.”

Viola remarked. “Back to the point. The one who pressured the daughter to be like her mother was none other than her father, the Duke.”

……” “However, Selbin knew.

No matter how hard she tried, she could never surpass her mother. So that poor child made a choice. Since she couldn’t be a strong woman like her mother, she decided to respect and follow a strong woman like her mother.”

“Did that child say that herself?”

“No. She read it in writing.”

“Writing?”

Nelak explained. “God’s Will arrives in the form of words.”

“What a ridiculous statement.”

At that moment, Viola spoke up. “Mailon reclamation area. The night the waning moon rose.”

「Duke Salmon swung a powerful fist imbued with intense mana.

His punch held strength capable of splitting mountains and piercing the heavens. A fiery heat emanated from his body, coloring the surroundings in warmth.」

“Salmon called that strength Lava Power.”

「Aselda lightly smiled, watching the punch filled with power.」

“I suppose you must become my wife after all.”

Viola extended her left index finger and clenched her right fist. She placed her left index finger against her right fist.

“I found your fluff-like fist pleasant.”

「The heat inherited from the Lava Giant quickly dissipated, and the fiery blooms that swallowed the darkness cast by the waning moon faded helplessly in the breeze from the West.」

“He experienced the sky for the first time. He felt ashamed of himself and ultimately kneeled. The shoulder that met Salmon’s index finger was dislocated. Suffering through the pain, he said. You have won. And that day, they bound themselves in a hundred-year vow.”

Salmon’s eyes were filled with astonishment. It was as if he was reading the events of that night as if he had seen them with his own eyes.

‘It’s not fabricated.’

It was a tale that couldn’t be made up. Viola was indeed a child sent by the gods.

Upon acknowledging it, his heart instead calmed down.

“Is that what expressed God’s Will about me? Is that it?”

Viola shook her head. “There was one last expression. But I’m not sure if I can say it myself.”

“Go ahead.”

「Having experienced the sky, Salmon was certain.」

“Having experienced the sky, Salmon was sure he had fallen deeply in love.”

“What the hell. This is real.”

In the end, he made a decision. “I will join Princess Viola’s intention. No, I must do so.”

Curiosity arose about what God’s Will might entail.

*

Salmon walked down the hallway feeling lighthearted.

But then he ran into someone in the corridor. “Hey.”

It was a boy. A boy with rare black hair and black eyes for the Central Continent.

He was very tall and slender, but even a quick glance revealed he had a remarkably trained physique.

His face was quite small, and his shoulders were broad.

He was wearing a white shirt, making his figure stand out against the background. The style of the world and the boy’s figure felt different.

“Yes.”

“Are you a resident of this mansion?”

“Yes.”

That boy, with a different vibe, exuded a distinct spirit and elegance. He possessed a neat aura that could not be emitted unless he was a trained martial artist, and within his firm eyes, there was no trace of fear.

Even while looking up at his figure over two meters tall, there was no trace of intimidation.

“What’s your name?”

“Tundra.”

“Oh. You’re that Partner Sword?”

“Yes.”

“The rumors were distorted, after all.”

He’d heard tales about the excellence of the Partner Sword. Salmon thought it was just ‘quite remarkable for such a young age.’

“Seeing you reminds me of someone.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“It is indeed. We might meet again.”

Salmon strolled away. ‘I was wrong in my thoughts.’

If he were to get caught up in the schemes of the Heat Wind and things went wrong, or if his wife were to be contaminated, then the only person who could stop his wife was Heron. But it wasn’t that way. ‘They were both here.’

Salmon had already experienced the sky that is his wife. So he could feel it instantly. Just now, he witnessed another sky.

Not just an impressive sky for his age, a ‘real’ sky.

‘Someone like that is genuinely serving Viola?’

He felt his decision might not have been wrong. Meanwhile, Viola requested a private meeting with Merisa. “I know a great place to talk with Duke Merisa.”

“A private meeting can be held here, though.”

“I won’t take up much of your precious time. I’m sure you’ll be delighted. If you’re not pleased, I’ll kneel before the Duke and apologize.”

Upon Viola’s assertion, Merisa’s curiosity was piqued slightly. “If I say I don’t like it, wouldn’t that be the end of it?”

“I’ll leave that to your conscience, Duke.”

“Are you quite certain?”

“You’ll be pleased.”

Viola led Duke Merisa somewhere. They traveled by carriage.

Merisa’s body flinched and trembled when they got off the carriage.

“Where is this……?”

“You likely will find it satisfying.”

“I’ve heard the rumors. They say it’s a place where you typically have to wait in a long line to eat.”

Azulegia. One of the few famous places in Winter Castle.

Known for its strict gourmet reviews, Marquis Michelle had praised it highly.

Even Heron, the lord of Winter Castle, had to stand in line, and even then, he could only buy two celestial desserts a day.

“You like sweet things.”

“Are you trying to tempt me with dessert?”

What a childish line of thought. In fact, he had felt a bit tense due to Salmon Brandia’s reaction. ‘Has this child truly read God’s Will?’

If so, do I have to follow this child’s intentions? But he felt relieved now. “Though it’s surprising you know about Duke Salmon’s secrets, I won’t be fooled by such tales.

Of course, I won’t be swayed by mere desserts.” …said Merisa, who then devoured sixteen egg tarts right there. “Usually, one can only eat two egg tarts at a time here.”

“What a disaster.”

“However, I have rented the place today. I’m on very close terms with the owner.”

Under normal circumstances, Viola wouldn’t have wielded such power. Tasty things should be shared to be more delicious.

One should not monopolize them.

That was Viola’s thought, but today was exceptional.

“It’s amazing how you maintain such a beautiful figure while eating so many sweets.”

Viola’s eyes narrowed. “That’s also due to the Blood of the White Dragon.”

Merisa’s hand, which was reaching for the seventeenth egg tart, stopped. “It must be thanks to the family heirloom, ‘Mask of the Priestess’ of the Mariantu family.”