I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 238

I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 238

“Voreoti will never let me live.”
Ironically, Remus was fully aware of his own situation.
And Probo strongly agreed with that sentiment. He had seen firsthand, countless times, that his lord and the young lady were fully determined to eradicate the Olor bloodline.
He thought Remus should count himself lucky if he got to keep breathing at all.
Remus shrugged, as if to say “See?”
“No matter how crazy the Imperial family is, there’s no way they’ve been studying northern superstitions for centuries since the founding without some reason.”
They must’ve had some kind of certainty if they were willing to pursue such madness for hundreds of years.
And Remus knew that that ‘certainty’ came from the contents of Ardea Bosgruni’s thesis.
“Did you know? The Imperial family had actually half-given up on the Northern Mountains.”
Then Ardea appeared and rekindled their long-standing obsession.
“That was only a hypothesis.”
Probo retorted. What Ardea had published was nothing more than a scholarly analysis of some regional oral folklore.
“I used to think so too.”
Remus's scornful tone came from the absurdity of once dismissing it all as superstition, only to be committing this madness for its sake now.
But there was no turning back.
“So shut your mouth like your lady did.”
Remus gave a crooked smile and jerked his chin at Varia.
Ever since they crossed the wall, Varia hadn’t said a single word.
Her gaze was fixed in the direction they were heading—in other words, toward the northern Gate.
“My lady...”
Probo felt pity for her. He worried she might be blaming herself for how things had turned out.
But it was Remus who had taken the child hostage and threatened them. Varia had only stepped outside for a bit of air under the excuse of buying a book.
Probo took a step closer to comfort her—but suddenly froze.
'...Huh?'
Startled, Probo rubbed his eyes and looked at Varia again.
At that moment, Varia looked back at him. Their eyes met, and she gave a sweet smile and tilted her head as if asking what was wrong.
Probo shook his head as if it were nothing. Varia turned her head forward again.
'...Did I imagine it?'
Maybe it was just nerves.
But the chill he felt in that fleeting moment refused to fade.
“We’re here.”
Remus came to a stop.
They had finally arrived at the northern Gate. Ironically, it was quite close to the doghole.
After cutting through the forest near the outer wall and veering onto a hidden path, a wide clearing opened up.
The Gate, hidden for so long, looked no different from any other.
Two large, twisted pillars as if clenched tightly by some unseen force. Between them, the clearing and several distant buildings could be clearly seen.
“In the annals of the First Emperor...”
Remus’s voice trembled slightly at the end.
“It says that the fifth Gate in the Northern Mountains can only be used by a Voreoti.”
“...”
Probo no longer knew what to believe about this empire.
That such nonsense had been written in the records of the First Emperor left him not angry, but hollow. He could only sigh in disbelief.
The nation’s legitimacy had been swallowed by the very apex that was supposed to uphold it.
'Good thing we’re a federal system.'
If not, the empire might have already collapsed.
He suddenly felt a strange sympathy for all the regional lords, especially his own master, for having to put up with this lunatic.
“Well then, Lady Voreoti.”
Remus once again brought the knife to the hostage’s throat.
“I’ll be counting on you.”
“Do you really...”
For the first time since entering the palace, Varia spoke.
“...want to go ‘there’?”
“L-Lady?”
Probo looked at her in surprise.
Her tone was strange.
Her voice was the same as usual, but the cadence and way she spoke had turned childlike.
Like a spoiled little girl.
“...”
Remus also found her odd. He assumed she’d finally lost her mind after being consumed by fear.
“If you’re saying you’re backing out now—”
“If you want to go so badly, let’s go.”
Varia placed a hand at her waist. Her tone now bounced with an eerie cheerfulness.
Probo shivered, but for a very different reason now.
“The kitty cat saw, so now we have to go.”
“My lady!”
Probo finally shouted.
Varia’s odd speech patterns resembled Ferio’s when he jumbled up words and grammar.
“Will both of you shut up?!”
Remus yelled, and the hostage began to cry with a whimper.
“Enough! Get through the Gate! If we don’t arrive in the Northern Mountains, I’ll kill every one of you—”
Clang.
Remus stared blankly at his hand.
The hand that had just been threatening the hostage with a knife was now being held by Varia.
And the knife was already on the ground.
“W-Waaaaah!”
In that moment, Kea broke free and ran behind Probo, hiding.
“W-What the hell?!”
Coming to his senses too late, Remus tried to wrench his hand free.
“Let go of me!”
But it wouldn’t budge.
Probo stared in disbelief. Varia was subduing Remus without so much as changing expression.
In fact, she was smiling—as if she found Remus amusing.
“Those two aren’t the ones who need to go.”
Varia shoved Remus down as he tried to free himself.
He tumbled like a puppet with its strings cut.
“You are.”
You’re the one who killed. So you’re the one who has to go.
“So let’s go.”
Varia grabbed Remus’s hand and helped him up. She even placed the dagger back into his grip.
Then she stepped into the Gate.
As Probo stood frozen, watching in disbelief, a small voice whimpered below him.
“...It was black.”
“What?”
“Her eyes... They were black...”
Kea described what he’d seen just moments before.
Probo realized then that what he had seen hadn’t been a mistake.
'It was real!'
Varia’s green irises had turned pitch black.
***
When Ferio arrived at the Gate, Varia was already gone.
The Gate stood there like any other, and Probo was there trying to comfort a child on his back.
“My lord!”
Probo spotted him and rushed over.
“Waaaaah! Scary! Scary!”
As soon as Kea saw Ferio, he screamed in terror.
Startled, Probo stopped in his tracks.
“....”
Suppressing the urge to run through the Gate that very instant, Ferio stared at Probo with piercing eyes.
“T-The thing is...”
Now it was Probo who wanted to cry. One wrong move in front of Ferio, and he ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) might truly face death.
“I’ll explain.”
Unicia finally spoke, catching her breath.
She had used magic to keep up with Ferio’s terrifying pace and was now a little worn out.
“My mother told me to accompany her on this hunt.”
Of course, saying she was assisting her mother was just an excuse.
As soon as Marquis Ortio entered Kasus Palace, Unicia had started scouting the perimeter.
She needed to memorize the routes with her own eyes in order to fulfill her role.
“But I felt something strange.”
It was the first time she’d sensed something so bizarre.
It felt pure and clean. A child just past ten years old, Unicia thought it was bright and innocent.
And yet, it sent chills down her spine.
“It was terrifying—so clean it felt like it would suffocate me if it engulfed me.”
Ferio’s face darkened at her words.
'No way...'
A certain thought crossed his mind, and the very air around them grew sharper.
Now even Unicia looked like she was about to cry.
“Papa!”
The marquis’s daughter was truly about to burst into tears.
At that moment, the sound of hooves thundered in from the distance. Turning toward the noise, they saw Leonia galloping in on a black steed.
Thanks to her perfectly timed arrival, Unicia managed to hold back her tears.
“My lady!”
Probo called out with relief, like a puppy finally seeing its owner again.
“My lady!”
But as soon as he saw Leonia dismount, covered in blood on her white shirt and dark cloak, he gasped.
“Are you alright?! That blood—what is it?!”
“It’s not mine, so I’m fine!”
Leonia brushed off Probo’s concern and went straight to Ferio.
“I heard the rough summary from the knights, Dad.”
She gestured toward the knights who had followed her.
Meleis, Paavo, and Manus approached Probo to exchange information.
“Where’s Mom? She went through?”
“Yes.”
“That goddamn bastard!”
Leonia slammed her fist into one of the Gate’s pillars.
“Should’ve killed him earlier!”
“We’re going to the North immediately.”
“I’m going too!”
“My lord! My lady!”
Just as the Voreoti father and daughter were about to charge through the Gate, Meleis rushed over and stopped them.
“Probo has something important to say!”
“This isn’t the time!”
Leonia snapped, her voice sharp with frustration. She even forgot her usual respectful tone.
“You must listen. I’ll be brief.”
Probo composed himself as best as he could and quickly ed.
“My lady’s eyes turned black.”
Ferio and Leonia’s eyes widened.
Probo emphasized that he had not imagined it—the hostage child had seen it too.
“There was something strange about her as well.”
“In what way, exactly?”
Ferio asked, slightly hurried.
“She behaved...”
Probo glanced awkwardly at Leonia.
“...like the young lady when she was little.”
“Me?”
Leonia pointed at herself, incredulous.
“Her behavior was odd. As soon as she set foot in the palace, she changed. She murmured strange things, smiled for no reason...”
The Varia in Probo’s testimony didn’t sound like someone who had been dragged there under threat.
“Maybe she was so scared she snapped?”
Leonia, filled with filial concern, was visibly anxious.
If that really was the case, she swore to personally cut Remus into pieces and feed them to his father through that doghole.
Ferio, on the other hand, remained composed.
All signs of earlier agitation had vanished.
“...”
Ferio was deep in thought. His serious expression left everyone holding their breath.
Only Leonia wore a look of impatience.
Fortunately, Ferio’s contemplation ended quickly.
“We’re going to the North.”
“Knew it!”
Leonia clenched her fist and cheered.
“Y-You mustn’t!”
Unicia stepped in front of the Gate.
“My lord, you cannot go!”

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Chapter 238