Chapter 1

***

Lestia pulled her small body close to the corner of the cottage, looking nervously at the struggling adults.

“You mean, you can’t pay back the money?”

“Sorry, I’m sorry.”

Her uncle kept his head down against the vicious-looking thugs.

Apparently, her uncle borrowed money again and could not pay it back. It had happened often, but this was the first time the gangs had come to their house to collect money like this. The sight of them threatening him made Lestia’s legs shake, unsure of what to do.

“Please. My house is in ruins, and I don’t have any money.”

“If you can’t pay back the money, you’ll have to do it with your body. One silver for each finger. That’s a total of twenty silvers, if you add up your toes. That way you’ll pay back everything.”

The thug chuckled and pulled out a bright blue dagger, threatening her uncle.

“Ahhh!”

“Please! No!

Lestia shouted in surprise as her uncle screamed loudly as the gangsters grabbed him. That was the only way an 11-year-old child could protect her uncle. Suddenly, her uncle seemed to have noticed something and pointed at Lestia and said.

“Oh! How about my niece instead of me, then the money…..?”

Only then did the thugs confirm Lestia’s existence and look at her in unison. Lestia’s breath seemed to catch in her throat at the calculating glances of the adults who seemed to be putting a price on her.

“She will be useful. Even that girl’s mother sold herself.”

Only then could Lestia understand what her uncle was saying.

Now her uncle was trying to sell her in exchange for paying off his debt.

“Uncle Sa….!”

“Oh, yes. This girl is worth the money. She’ll be quite a beauty when she grows up. Well, it looks like I can sell her before then.”

The thug who was holding the dagger smirked and walked over to Lestia.

“Ah….no!”

Lestia shuddered and squirmed in fear.

Living in a dump or not, even a 3 year old knew what being sold was. Lestia didn’t want to go to such a place where she would have to live an inhuman life until she died, even if it meant living one day at a time with her drunken uncle, getting beaten every day.

“Uncle! Uncle! I’ll work harder to sell flowers. I won’t be lazy anymore. Please.”

Lestia begged aloud, expressing her usefulness to her uncle who was her only protector.

But her uncle was more than a little annoyed.

“Shut up! Follow me quietly. If I’ve fed you and put you to bed, you must return the favor.”

“Uncle…!”

In the end, Lestia was grabbed by the gangsters and helplessly led out of the cottage.

It was a dark night, even the moon was obscured by clouds. There was a blizzard blowing so fiercely that she could not see an inch of the world outside. The little girl, who was driven outside by the will of others, was sorrowfully cold and horribly afraid of everything.

But that didn’t mean she wanted to give up on her life.

‘No. I don’t want to be sold like this.’

Lestia ended up biting the back of the thug’s hand that was holding her, like a young beast in distress.

“Ah! This d*mn girl!”

The thug got angry and threw Lestia straight into the snowfield.

“Ugh!”

Lestia’s skinny little body rolled on the floor, wretched with cold and pain.

“She’s stubborn. I’ll have to teach her how to be obedient.”

“Hey, that girl is a commodity from now on. Take it easy.”

“Easy? I’ll teach her exactly what will happen if she messes up again. Only then will she be easy to handle from now on.”

The thug with a bitten hand approached Lestia, threatening her.

“Ah…!”

Lestia was terrified and stood up, gritting her teeth to escape. But she couldn’t get up. It seemed that she had sprained her ankle in defiance, and her body was not moving as it should. There was no escape. Lestia’s gray eyes were hopelessly stained with a feeling of intense helplessness.

The thought of not being able to do anything on her own made her give up everything. It was a familiar thing, but facing that familiarity was sickeningly painful every time. Lestia sat helplessly, staring at the thug as he crept closer and closer to her. That was when it happened. An unidentified boy suddenly appeared and blocked the hand that threatened Lestia.

“Hey, get your hands off of her.”

The boy’s low voice that rang through the snowstorm was like a warning from a raging beast. The thugs gulped and looked at the boy. The figure hidden by the long robe was clearly that of a boy who had just entered puberty. Nevertheless, everyone in the position was overwhelmed and hardened by the words the boy uttered.

“Step away.”

Once more the warning was given, and a fierce gust of wind ripped off the cloth covering the boy’s face. Black hair, darker than the night sky, fluttered with snowflakes, revealing vivid golden eyes.

Lestia thought her breathing ceased for a moment, because the boy’s two beautiful eyes were staring at her. For the first time in her life, she saw the noble color of their eyes. The straight and clear gaze became a ray of light that pierced Lestia’s murky and cloudy silver-gray eyes like an arrow.

“What is this? If you don’t want to get hurt, child, don’t interfere with the adult’s business.”

The bully, who had slowed down by the boy’s spirit, threatened the boy with a bulging vein on his forehead as if he had finally come to his senses. The boy, however, was not the least bit shaken by the threat.

“I can’t understand a word you’re saying.”

It was at that very moment that flames rose from the boy’s hands.

Fire!

A blazing ball of fire struck the thug, drawing a brilliant and beautiful reciprocal under the pitch black night sky.

“Ahhhh!”

The thug who was hit directly by the fireball grabbed his arm and fell to the snowfield, screaming. Then he rolled around on the floor to put out the fire on his body.

“Hey! Is he a wizard? Why is there a wizard here?”

Lestia stared in amazement at the boy standing in front of her. The boy was a wizard. Wizards who were not very common on the continent. The boy, who had revealed his tremendous identity, threatened the stone-hardened thug.

“If you touch her one more time, I will burn you alive.”

At the boy’s warning, the thugs all scurried back in unison, and finally they all dashed away.

“Oh my god, Lysian. Gerard told you to bring your sister back quietly.”

When did he show up? A graceful young man with a slender stature approached the boy called Lysian.

“No one is dead, is there? That’s fine.”

The young man shook his head and moved closer to Lestia as Lysian crossed his arms with a slight twist of his lips. Lestia thought that the young man’s short, neat lemon colored hair and emerald eyes made her feel strangely warm in the cold.

“I’m sorry, you must have been frightened.”

He said in a gentle voice as he bent down, keeping eye level with Lestia.

“It’s all right. It was just magic earlier.”

“Huh…?”

It was just magic.

Lestia had never seen anything like this before in her life. But the young man said something increasingly unbelievable in a gentle tone, as if it was insignificant.

“I didn’t expect to meet you in this way, but I’m glad I did. We finally met, my sister. I’m your brother.”

“What? My brother?”

Lestia blinked her big eyes with a confused expression.

“Yes, that’s right. I’m your second brother Joel, and this is Lysian, the youngest in my family. Well, you’re the youngest now.”

It was unbelievable. Lestia was the daughter of a guest house **********. A drunkard located in the slums, she barely survived by selling flowers in her uncle’s hut. Such a lowly girl like her could not be the sister of the noblemen in front of her.

“Um…..I think you’ve misunderstood something. I can’t possibly have brothers.”

“No, Lestia. It’s you. You have silver-gray irises and creamy white hair. I’m sure you’re the youngest we’re looking for.”

Lestia was surprised to hear her name come out of Joel’s mouth. It was a name that not even her only blood uncle could call her properly.

“How do you know my name?”

“Your brother needs to know your name, doesn’t he?”

Joel smiled and gently reached out to touch Restia’s crumpled white hair. Then a pleasant gust of wind blew and lightly brushed away the snowflakes from Lestia’s body.

Lestia looked at her body in surprise. Everything that was cold and wet from rolling around in the snowfield was gone.

“This is magic too.” Lestia spoke.

“My sister, you’re smart. Lysian can make fire, I can create wind.”

Two noble wizards. They claimed to be her brothers. Lestia could not believe the claim of the nobles in front of her. However, Joel continued speaking with conviction in his voice.

“We can talk about the details at home. There’s a lot to talk about.”

“Home?”

“Yes. We are going to our home, Lestia.”

Joel said so, carefully reaching out his big hands and lifted Lestia, who was sitting in the snow.

“Oh, you are too light. How old are you now? Aren’t you eleven?”

An involuntary groan escaped from Lestia’s mouth instead of a reply. At this small moan, Joel’s gentle eyes, which had been gently watching Lestia, darkened and sank.

“Lestia, excuse me for a moment,” Joel said as he quickly pulled up the sleeves of Lestia’s dress.

Her clothes, too thin and saggy to wear in the middle of winter, showed her skin too easily. Then there were the blue bruises that grew like fungus on her pale skin. They were bruises from the beating her uncle had given her daily. Joel’s eyebrows instantly crumpled.

“This… Who did this to you?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Lestia hastily pulled down the sleeves of her dress. For her body, it looked like a rag that this beautiful and elegant person should not have touched.

Joel said, comforting Lestia, who was as sharp as a hedgehog.

“I see. Lestia. You don’t have to say it if you don’t want to. But your ankle hurts now too, doesn’t it?”

Lestia blushed. She had managed to stand, but her posture seemed to have been discovered.

“Let’s get you home and get you fixed up.” Joel emphasized gently again.

“But my house….” Lestia’s lips quivered.

She closed it quickly and tightly. There was no way she could verbally say that the cottage where her uncle had sold her off was her home. Just then, she heard her uncle’s voice from the back.

“Look! You guys! She’s my niece! Where do you think you are taking her without my permission!”

Chapter 2

***

“Uncle?”

“Yes, It’s your uncle! This is your home! So you can’t go anywhere without my permission!”

Lestia blinked her eyes and looked at her uncle. Earlier, he was the one who had coldly sold her to the thugs. Now he was also the one who jumped out of the cottage and started claiming that he was her family. Lestia smiled bitterly. She knew that her uncle would have no one to sell to pay off his debts if she left.

“Family?”

Lysian, who was silently standing with his arms folded, asked a question.

“Then you must know why this girl was being beaten by gangsters in front of her house?”

“That’s……!”

The uncle, who was speechless, started rattling off excuses.

“It’s because she’s been causing trouble. Can’t adults discipline the troubled child?”

“Discipline? Is that why you left such a small, skinny girl alone with a big man?”

Lysian stepped forward, unable to hide his displeasure. It was as if he was once again on the verge of creating the flames that had set the gang ablaze.

However, Joel blocked Lysian with one hand.

“Be patient, Lysian!”

“D*mn it!”

Then, Joel stood in front of the enraged Lysian and staring at Lestia’s uncle said in a cold voice,

“Did you say you’re Lestia’s uncle?”

“Um,…yes.”

Feeling intimidated by Joel and Lysian, the uncle stuttered.

“Well, that’s strange. I did hear that my father provided you with enough child support. Why are you living in a corner of the slum?

“What? Your father?”

“There must be someone who entrusted Lestia to you ten years ago, along with child support. It was my father’s order.”

“Oh…!”

Uncle opened his eyes wide as if he remembered something.

“Child support….?”

Lestia had never heard of this. Her uncle always told her that her parents left her to him without giving a penny and that Lestia had to pay back the debt. Therefore, Lestia had to go into town every night to sell flowers to make ends meet without complaining.

“That’s…..because raising a child is expensive!”

The uncle, who hesitated for a while, shouted loudly as if he had just found an excuse.

“You know how much money I spent to raise this child! The 1,000 gold I got then is considerably insufficient for child support! Now, you’re taking the child I raised for free!”

“Uncle! What …!”

One thousand gold was enough money for an ordinary family of four to live for ten years. If he had that kind of money, they should be living in a clean and spacious house with no worries.

“You’re so loud! What kind of habit is that, interrupting when the adults are talking!”

The uncle yelled at her. Lestia freaked out. Her uncle was even more violent when she argued with him about righting his wrongs.

“Oh, I see. So you need more money.”

Joel’s eyes narrowed, and he glared at the uncle coldly, as if he was going to commit murder. The uncle, however, didn’t hide his face full of anticipation when the word money was mentioned.

“Well…yes. Raising a child is an expensive affair.”

“Then it is simple.”

Joel took out a notebook from his pocket and wrote something in it, then tossed it absentmindedly in front of the uncle.

“I’ll give you a thousand more gold.”

It was a check. The uncle took it with trembling hands, “Oh.”

“But this is not child support, it is the price for giving up parenting. Never refer to my sister as your niece again. Do not appear in front of this child.”

“Yes…yes!”

The uncle who received the money was now curious and strained his nerves at Lestia. The sight of him, completely different from the one who had been shouting with horrible vigor, seemed to make Lestia’s body relax. It was a moment that made her feel ridiculous, for she lived her whole life relying on people like this as family.

“Come on, Lestia. Let’s go home,” Joel said, smiling sweetly again.

“Well, but my…”

‘The house… the family,’ just because she was disappointed in her uncle didn’t mean she could accept the men in front of her as a family right away. She suddenly realized that these were people who would buy her for 1,000 gold when she was about to be sold for 20 silver. If they were such great men, they couldn’t be her brothers.

“We’re your real family, Lestia,” Joel said softly.

His words penetrated her heart. How nice it would be if they were really her family, she thought. She couldn’t help but doubt. It would be more miserable if it turned out that she wasn’t their sister.

What should she choose that will ease the pain and alleviate the suffering? Lestia was confused.

“Hey.”

Lysian grumbled as he approached and stood in front of Lestia. Lestia couldn’t see either Joel or her uncle in front of her. She just stared at him blankly, transfixed by the golden eyes that shone so clearly.

“You have to make a choice. Do you want to follow us or do you want to stay here? You decide who you want to have as your family.”

The tone and expression on his face were cold and indifferent.

‘Can I really go with these fearful and mysterious people?’

“Tell me quickly. Aren’t you cold, standing here in light clothing?”

Lysian grumbled, took off his robe, and wrapped Lestia’s body. But as if it wasn’t enough, he opened his hands and created a small flame next to her.

It was, indeed, warm. However, it was strange. Fire blooming from within his hands. Lestia thought she should be scared to see such strange things. Strangely enough, she felt warm as tears welled up in her eyes. She wondered if this was how fire moths feel like. Jumping into the burning flames knowing it was dangerous.

“I….”

Lestia finally replied in a tiny voice.

“I’ll go with you.”

It was an impulsive choice. But it didn’t matter if they were really her brothers or not. She just didn’t want to miss out on the warmth that warmed her cold body. Joel smiled as he carefully picked up Lestia in his arms and walked with her in the direction of their carriage. Lysian followed quietly behind them. Then Lestia’s uncle turned to Lysian and asked in an urgent voice.

“Oh, hey, by the way, who’s Lestia’s father? Who has so much money?”

Lysian looked back at him and answered in a cold voice.

“The Duke of Verchester.”

“Ver….Verchester? Duke Verchester?”

The uncle stuttered in surprise.

The Duke of Verchester. No matter who you were, no matter what status, there was no one on the continent who didn’t know about the family. It was a powerful family that produced wizards for generations.

“So, don’t try to do anything stupid. I can get rid of you without anyone noticing.”

After the stern warning, Lysian did not hesitate to use his magic on the cottage. The old wooden house began to burn vigorously, creating blazing flames.

“Oh my god!”

Lestia’s uncle turned white and scampered away on all fours across the snowfield. Lysian shrugged his shoulders and followed the two as they moved forward.

***

Lestia got to the carriage in Joel’s arms. She insisted that she could walk on her own, but the two men said that they couldn’t make her walk because of her injured ankle and that she couldn’t even put her feet on the floor.

“Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. It’s only natural for a brother to escort his sister,” Joel smiled graciously.

Lestia thought that his smile was like that of an angel in a famous painting. She felt that if she ever did wrong, he would forgive her no matter what.

However, as soon as Lestia got into the carriage, she felt that she should not be allowed here. Because her old shoes and tattered clothes were defiling the luxurious carriage.

‘I thought my clothes didn’t look bad but now….’

If you’re so close to shining, you can’t hide the ugliness. Lestia realized it for the first time. She felt as if she was becoming endlessly smaller. In the end, Lestia could not even look at Joel and Lysian, who were sitting across the carriage from her, and stared only at their toes.

“Lestia, did you leave anything behind?”

Joel asked in a gentle voice.

“No, sir. I didn’t have anything, in particular, to take with me.”

Lestia shook her head. In fact, she didn’t have anything at all. She picked flowers, and the sparkling pebbles that had long ago been thrown away like garbage by her uncle, and the clothes on her were all she had.

“Don’t worry about what you left behind, we’ll buy you all new ones,” Joel said softly, gently blinking his long, pale lemon-colored eyelashes.

Once again, she was afraid of kindness. Never in her life had she received kindness without a reason. Her uncle only smiled at her kindly when she bought him alcohol. So now she needed to ask these people what their intentions were.

“Why…. Why did you come to visit me all of a sudden?”

If they were right and she was indeed their real sister, why didn’t they visit her before?

“Have you read the newspaper lately?”

Lysian, who had been looking out the window indifferently with his head resting on his cheek, handed Lestia a newspaper. She took the newspaper without a second thought.

“If you read it you will have a rough idea. The news of the death of the Duke of Verchester caused quite a stir for a while.”

It was a kind gesture on Lysian’s part. But Lestia had never learned to read.

The words crammed into the newspaper just looked like a black and white picture.

“Um, I’m sorry. I don’t know how to read….”

There was silence in the carriage. Lestia was afraid of the silence. Her uncle raised his hand at her if she didn’t know the answer to his questions. The violence would be over only if Lestia fell flat on her face and apologized.

“I’m sorry I’m stupid…”

Lestia bowed down and apologized as she always did. But after hearing Lestia’s apology, Joel and Lysian instantly hardened their faces.

***

Chapter 3

‘What should I do? I apologized, but he can’t seem to get over his anger.’

Lestia was so wrapped up in the idea that something was wrong that she couldn’t look up.

The first person to break the silence was Lysian.

”I knew it, I’ll kill him.”

“Lysian!”

Joel yelled and grabbed Lysian’s arm just as he was about to jump out of the carriage.

“Please don’t make things too big. Gerard instructed us to bring Lestia in as quietly as possible.”

“Darn it, that’s a lot to ask for.”

Lysian eventually suppressed his impatience and sat back down in his seat.

Joel hastily grabbed onto both of Lestia’s shoulders and raised her up.

“Lestia, you’re not stupid in any way. You didn’t do anything wrong. Do you understand?

“Yes? There is nothing wrong…….?”

“Nothing at all.”

“Hey, it’s okay. What’s wrong with not being able to read? If you can read, you’ll have more headaches.”

Lysian tried to patch up the situation caused by his actions. However, the situation did not get any better.

Lestia still would not dare bring her head up and was shrinking even more than before.

Finally, Joel sighed and took up the newspaper in Lestia’s hand. Then he pointed to the picture of a man that was prominently featured on the front page of the newspaper.

“Um, look at this, Lestia,” he said, “You just have to meet him first in the picture. This is Gerard Verchester, your oldest brother.”

He was a beautiful man with intelligent eyes and a deep and robust nose that even a cheap printing machine could not destroy his image.

His lips were tightly closed, but the look of silence and sternness was somewhat intimidating.

“My brother has just gone to the Imperial Palace for title succession. He told us to bring you with us.

“Title……. succession…?”

“You see. Our father passed away. Gerard became the head of the family. Then, we’ve finally learned about you.”

“Father….?”

“Yes, he’s your father, too.”

At these words, Lestia hastened to continue.

“I’ve never heard of him. What was father like?”

Indeed, Lestia never heard about her father. Her uncle only told her that mother was a woman who sold her body. Who rolled around in her body without shame, until she unintentionally gave birth to Lestia and died. He made a fuss, saying that her father must not even know she existed.

“Well, how can I explain this? The former Duke of Verchester was a foolish man.”

Joel spoke in a stiff voice. It was strange to see the soft and elegant appearance disappear for a moment. Suddenly, Joel immediately erased the look from his face.

“Yeah, he was stupid. How could he have left a child as lovely as you alone? I’m sorry I came so late.”

Joel said apologetically and neatly folded the newspaper, then placed it where it was originally.

“Anyway, Lestia. Father doesn’t matter anymore. It doesn’t change the fact that you have your brothers. Even if we are half-brothers, we still share the same blood. That’s how it is.”

Then he smiled mischievously and said, “Well, what do you think? Why don’t you call me brother?”

“Huh?” Lestia gazed at Joel in surprise.

“Come on, come on.” Joel smiled as he urged her on.

But, the word “brother” stuck in her throat and was hard to get out.

‘Can I really call him that..?’

While Lestia hesitating, Lysian, who stayed silent, clicked his tongue and asked,

“Why don’t you try?”

“What?”

”Because you have two other brothers besides us. I’ll let you know the details slowly.”

Joel smiled harmlessly.

Lestia didn’t know she had any family besides her uncle. There were several questions she wanted to ask. However, she feared that if she kept asking, she might eventually come to the conclusion that she wasn’t their sister. That fact overwhelmed her.

Lestia bit her lips and remained silent.

“Oh, we’re almost there.”

Before she knew it, the carriage had finally arrived at Verchester mansion.

Lestia’s eyes widened and gasped in surprise as she watched the world outside from the carriage’s windows turn even more gorgeous.

The mansion was enormous in comparison to the dinky hut she lived in, a large garden lined with the pure white surrogate stone statues of the well-kept God figure.

All of those things were illuminated by the faint light that further added to the atmosphere.

These unfamiliar beauties made Lestia feel even smaller.

“Lestia, let’s get off.”

The carriage stopped and Joel held out his hand.

Lestia took his hand but as she tried to step out, Joel quickly stopped her.

“Whoa, no. Lestia, your ankle hurts.”

In the end, Lestia had no choice but to get out of the carriage with Joel carrying her in his arms.

“I see you’re back, Young Masters.”

The servants bowed and greeted them.

Lestia turned to observe the people watching her. She felt uncomfortable at the sight of the servants bowing their heads.

“Master Joel, Master Lysian, I have prepared the young lady’s room as you instructed.”

An elderly gentleman wearing silver glasses and a suit, who stood at the very front of the servants, approached them.

Lestia involuntarily tugged at Joel’s shirt. It was because the old gentleman gave the impression of being meticulous, not tolerating even the slightest dirt.

Perhaps sensing that Lestia was afraid of him, Joel put his hand on Lestia’s small shoulder and said,

“Lestia, this is Butler Halo. He has been aiding the Duke of Verchester for quite some time now.”

“Oh…hello.”

Lestia, still in Joel’s arms, peeked out and warily said hello.

Halo bent gracefully and quietly.

He observed her for a moment, then moved closer to her.

“Oh, dear…”

“What is it?”

“What attribute of magic does the Young Lady deal with? Be ready for it, right away.”

“I….I have no idea what you’re talking about. What magic?”

Halo twitched his fingers in frustration.

“The descendants of the Duke of Verchester are born with the ability to handle magic. They can use the powers of water, fire, wind, and earth as if they were their own limbs. Have you ever felt anything strange?”

Was she born with the ability to handle magic power?

Was that why Lysian and Joel were both wizards?

They were Verchesters.

But Lestia had never used magic before.

Coincidentally, she never had that experience either.

Lestia held her breath. Halo’s stern face seemed like it was saying, ‘You’re a fake.’

“I’m ……”

She didn’t know what to say and bowed her head. She didn’t expect the fact that she wasn’t their sister to be revealed so easily. Yet, why did she want it to be revealed later? She felt stupid and ashamed.

“Oh, I see.”

Halo seemed a little surprised, but he didn’t make a big deal of it and stepped back.

“Um…I think I’d better go home. I’m not a Verchester.” Lestia said with her eyes closed.

“Hey, what are you talking about?”

Lysian ruffled Lestia’s hair.

“You are Verchester, no matter what. It doesn’t matter if you can use magic or not.”

“But…”

Joel interrupted Lestia.

“Yes. You’re our sister, Lestia Verchester. There’s nothing to be concerned about.”

Lestia was terrified. Why would he still call her his sister when he knew she couldn’t use magic? They said that if one had Verchester blood, they were supposed to know magic. What really were their intentions?

“Don’t worry, I’ll explain it to you slowly.”

Joel smiled and looked at Lestia, as if he understood what she was thinking about.

Then, he held out his left wrist to Lestia and asked,

“Lestia, would you mind rolling up my left arm’s sleeve?”

Lestia carefully tugged on Joel’s sleeve at the request. Then, a bangle on his wrist was revealed. It was made of pure gold, thin and twisted like a vine, but it was adorned with grains of bright red stone that looked like pomegranate seeds.

“This is the magic neutralization stone, Lestia. As you know, we are wizards. In order to use property magic, you have to use the reverse property magic neutralization stone at regular intervals.”

“It’s beautiful,” Lestia exclaimed, admiring the bright colors of the magic stone.

“Yes, it is.”

Joel chuckled.

“This is a fire neutralizing stone that can neutralize the magic of wind. Without it, I might die, torn to shreds by the wind I’m using.”

“What?”

The word “might die” made Lestia hardened.

Joel casually tapped the bracelet lightly.

The bright red light of the stone was absorbed into Joel’s palm.

At the same time, the stone immediately turned gray.

“But Restia wouldn’t need these distractions in the first place. Since you were born perfect.”

“…..perfect?”

Perfect.

She didn’t understand.

If she had used magic like Joel and Lysian, she wouldn’t have doubted the word ‘Verchester’…

But Joel had said it as if not being able to use magic was a blessing in disguise.

“Halo just didn’t know that you were perfect. Isn’t that right?”

“I’m sorry, Young Lady, I’ve been presumptuous. Please forgive me.”

Halo quickly bowed deeply towards Lestia and apologized.

Lestia cried out in surprise.

“Forgive? No! You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I’m so proud of my little sister. You have a generous heart.”

Joel hugged Lestia affectionately.

Lestia froze like a stone.

It was the first time anyone had hugged her so long.

And the unbelievable fact was that it was Joel.

How could such a graceful and beautiful person hug her tattered self like this?

Lestia said, fearing that Joel might get as dirty as the carriage she had ridden in.

“Joel, if you keep holding me tightly like this, you might get dirty.”

“No, I will not, Lestia. You are not dirty at all, and call me “Brother,”

Joel wasn’t even afraid of dropping her and gently patted Lestia on the back with his big hand.

Lestia’s cheeks flushed as she asked cautiously.

“Can you tell me more about …… our parents?

Lestia wanted to know more about her unknown parents so that she could have a little more faith that she was a Verchester.