My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage Chapter 129
Translated by d6y (ko-fi)
Chapter 129
"...Father?"
"Oh, Skyla!" Pacing at the foot of the stairs was Father, the head of this household. A man of higher and more powerful authority than anyone else in this residence. "I was just playing hide and seek with your mother!"
I can hear the Duke of Kaerun's authority crackle.
"...." I shut up and cast my gaze behind him, at a statue of an angelic figure. And there Mother stands next to it, clutching the hem of her skirt.
"...."
What the hell. She's not even trying. Or, more accurately, it's hard for her to. The angel statue was carved from ivory, so it was transparent. it was easy to see whoever was standing behind it.
‘Shh.’
Mother makes eye contact with me and puts a finger against her mouth.
"....." Father… Mother is right behind you.
"I wonder where Mommy is hiding? Oh, my sweet baby deer!" She's right behind you.
"Should I look behind the curtain?" He turns around and starts searching the curtains right next to the statue.
"Oh my, it's the Duke and Duchess."
"Why is the lady standing behind the statue?"
The servants passing by whisper to each other.
"...Did Mother get hurt playing hide-and-seek the other day?" I ask, concerned by the stares of the servants.
"Haha, don't worry. She'll be fine this time."
I'm not worried about that, I'm just worried that if she falls down the stairs again, she won't be able to hold her head up in front of the servants.
Father, who has no idea what I'm thinking, chuckles and clenches his fists. "Because Mommy has already taken the elixir today!"
So she used the elixir after all!
"No, why are you abusing an heirloom like that just because Mother cried from pepper!" I shout in frustration.
Father tilts his head. "What? Pepper?"
"Oh, my God, Skyla!"
‘Skyla, why are you telling the Duke about that!’
Mother pokes her head out from her hiding place by the statue, right behind Father.
Father gasps and sucks in a breath. "Duchess, where on earth have you been? I've been looking for you for ages!"
"Hoho, I was hiding by this statue." Buried in his arms, she laughs heartily.
"Aha, I see, just when I was wondering why there were two angel statues here. I never thought one of them was my lovely wife!" He wraps her in his arms and laughs.
"Oh dear, Duke…." She blushes and buries her face in his arms.
"...."
Dang.
I hope they retire soon.
"By the way, Skyla. You're just in time. Mommy has something to tell you!" Breaking free of Father's embrace, Mother storms toward me and throws her arms around me.
"Are you busy now? Of course not, come with me to my room."
"Oh, alright…." Unsure of what to say, I nod.
Father interrupts. "What's going on? As Skyla's father, I'm going to have to listen in…."
"This is a mother-daughter conversation, Duke. Please leave yourself out of this." She flashes a wink at him as he sulks.
"I'll see you in the bedroom later, my dear Duke." With that, she blows him an air kiss.
"...."
Dang.
The retirement villa my parents are going to have is going to be the one furthest away from the Duchy.
* * *
"Skyla, why didn't you want to get engaged to the Crown Prince in the winter?" Mother asks me as soon as we enter the room.
"Because I didn't want to." I cross my arms and scan her room with my eyes for the first time in a long while.
"You don't like His Highness?"
"No."
"Then you must prefer the Second Prince…."
"I like Lancer." I interrupt.
"...What?" Her mouth hangs open like a goldfish in a fishbowl. She looks like she's trying to say something, but I can't hear what she's saying.
I maintain my nonchalant attitude and tuck my hair behind my ear. "It's exactly what it sounds like, I like Lancer."
"...." She clamps one hand over her mouth as her eyes begin to gloss. "Did you… get into an accident?"
"Is that the kind of question you ask your biological daughter!" I frown and glare at her.
"But, Skyla, didn't you say the other day when me and your dad asked you what you thought of marrying him?"
Well, come to think of it, they did ask that once.
"People change." I say, without a care in the world. That's in the past. Since I couldn't change what had already happened, I should just try harder in the present.
She clasps her hands together. "Yes, you're right!"
Stepping in front of me, she places her hands on my shoulders. "Speaking of which, I'll see Duke and Duchess Soli right away tomorrow to talk to them about your wedding! You'll be going to the South for your honeymoon, right?"
"What, tomorrow?"
"Yes. Otherwise, the Crown Prince will keep asking to be engaged to you, won't he?" She says as if it's natural.
"Mommy acted like a religious fanatic and somehow managed to send the Crown Prince back, but what will you do if he comes back tomorrow? You might as well do it this quickly and drive the nail right in the coffin."
At this rate, she would be out in the street, grabbing passersby and handing out wedding invitations of me and Lancer.
"Wait a minute, Mother," I say. "As you know, Mother, the Crown Prince wants me to be his fiancée."
"And?"
"Wouldn't it be quite troublesome for His Highness if I told him the very next day that I was marrying another man?"
"What's the trouble? His Highness is not charming enough to win your heart."
Mother is always on my side.
I'm both relieved and frustrated. She's pushing hard for me, but it's also a little worrying. I feel like a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment.
"I'll see what I can say to him."
"What do you mean?" Mother grips my shoulders, her face serious. "My dear daughter, Skyla, listen carefully. You have absolutely no reason to feel sorry for the man you dumped."
"Mother…."
"The problem is that girls are taught from a young age to be nice and obedient. If you rejected a man because you didn't like him, why should you feel guilty about it? Just because you were born a girl doesn't mean you have to reciprocate a man's feelings."
"Yeah..." Cold sweat trickles down my back. That's obviously true, but… things are more complicated than realised. "Well, I'll take care of this, but I'd like you and Father to step back from the front lines for a while."
She stares at me blankly. Her hands on my shoulders slipped away. "And if His Highness comes to visit again next week and wishes to pursue an engagement with you, what is this mother of yours gonna do?"
"That won't happen." I reply as if I've been expecting it. "Because His Highness has said that he will accompany me and Lancer on our travels next week."
"Is that true?" She gasps. "So you've decided to use Mommy’s advice!"
Mother's eyes sparkle. She was the one to suggest the three of us, the Crown Prince, me, and Lancee, to travel together.
At the time, I didn't know what she was thinking. And I still don't.
"I'm curious, Mother. Why did you think it would be a good idea for the three of us to go travelling together?"
"Hmm? Are you really asking because you don't know?"
‘I thought you knew all along….’
I shake my head.
"No, I didn't even think about inviting the Crown Prince, he just decided to come on his own accord."
"Really? He's so clueless." Mother chuckles. "Think about it, Skyla. This is the best opportunity you could ever have."
"Why?"
"I want you to make it clear to everyone who your final choice is." A small smile tug at the corners of her mouth, but her eyes remain steadfast. "Isn't it about time? Make sure this trip shows the Crown Prince that there is no room for him to come between you and Lancer."
"...." Her advice stuns me into silence.
How… does that work? Am I supposed to just blurt it out in front of everyone?
