Chapter 63: The Dead Girl’s Replacement

It was almost dinner time when Lydia returned to the Valendorf mansion. The atmosphere inside the estate was noticeably tense.

The upcoming Imperial Hunting Competition and Vincent’s impending military deployment to Luanna made everyone grow nervous.

Lydia had barely stepped into her room and changed into her nightdress when Vincent knocked on the door.

She opened it, only for him to barge straight inside with a stern expression.

"Don’t make a fuss again like you did at last year’s Hunting Competition," he warned.

Lydia’s eye twitched.

There he goes again. Is he on his period or what?

"Don’t burden Sylvain and Father with your awful behavior. Especially when it comes to Count Lagart’s daughter. Because of you, Father had to hand over one of his star fleet as compensation for last year’s incident."

Oh, that.

Now that Vincent had mentioned it, Lydia remembered what had happened during the previous year’s competition.

"That was because Lady Agnes mocked me because I was an F-Rank Guide. At least my rapier changed her mind!"

"See? This is what I meant! You’re bringing disgrace to House Valendorf, Lydia!"

"Lady Agnes deserved it. Especially after what she did to me."

Vincent’s expression darkened.

"No sane Guide would dare to provoke a B-Rank Sentinel!"

"I have no regret for my behavior. Especially after she melted my rapier and nearly spat a poisonous blob at me."

Although raising weapons and Resonance against other nobles in the hunting ground were highly prohibited, Lydia did that on purpose.

Too bad her rapier had missed Lady Lagart’s cheek by a few inches! What a waste of a perfectly good stab. Still, Lydia had no regrets.

"Try to behave like your age. Was it that difficult? Just accept the fact that you’re a weak F-Rank Guide."

"I am at C-Rank already! If you don’t like me here, just say yes." Lydia snarled. "Stop beating around the bush and just say anything you want to say. Do it right now."

Hawk wings manifested on Vincent’s back as he got furious by Lydia’s words.

"Don’t you have any conscience? You were brought here as a replacement for Nathalie. You should do better at mimicking her."

Out of all things he could say, Vincent always knew where to hurt Lydia the most. Just like he always did.

That was what she had been to them from the beginning, wasn’t it? A replacement for Nathalie Valendorf.

Nathalie, the Duke’s only daughter, had died from miasma poisoning about a year before Lydia was adopted into House Valendorf. Had she lived, she and Lydia would have been the same age.

The late Duchess was heartbroken by Nathalie’s death. She died not long after her daughter.

"Did you ever even see me as Nathalie’s replacement? You hate me so much you can’t even do that, can you?"

Still, the question slipped out before she could stop herself. Her voice grew sharper with every word.

"Can you be nice to me at least once? You know what? If I feel good, I’ll give you a copy of your dead sister."

"You—!"

Lydia could feel Vincent’s Resonance was swirling like a gust in her room with every passing second. The air growing colder as his anger intensified.

But by this point, Lydia was already used to hearing it.

"Be careful of what you say, Lydia. Don’t be so rude. How dare you."

"Why? Because we’re on this topic, it’s just better to speak up. Just deliver the killing blow already."

"Lydia."

Her antlers and tail burst out as Lydia got angry at her brother.

"You think you’re the only one who hates me, right?"

The question hung between them.

"So am I. If I had known how rude Sentinels could be, I would never have come no matter how much Father asked me."

"Stop right there."

Vincent’s voice rang through the room, but Lydia didn’t bother to listen to him.

"I’ve been starving for days and days when my birth mother just died in the slum. I couldn’t even afford a single loaf of bread, and one day your father called me ’my daughter’ and asked me to go with him."

Those haunting memories of her past were as fresh as yesterday.

Even after coming to House Valendorf, Lydia had never forgotten what it felt like to go hungry.

She had promised herself she would never return to those days again.

"Have you ever tried the rainwater falling next to a decaying corpse? What about the leftovers of someone else’s?"

Lydia could still remember everything vividly.

"The best way to get food was to fight my way over a trash can for a scrap of miasma infected rotten meat. But I wasn’t as strong as other kids in the slums, so I rarely ever get any."

"But miasma! Infected rotten meat—!"

Of course, he knew how dangerous miasma could be. Eating foods contaminated with miasma could have serious effects.

"Have you ever had to eat moldy bread and leftover food from other people’s plates just to survive?"

Vincent tried to argue back, but he couldn’t find the words.

"Lydia..."

"You always said that I was always happy that your sister was dead and I was lucky to be able to replace her. Perhaps, perhaps I do. I’m afraid I’ll go back to that time."

Something about Lydia’s words and expression made Vincent’s wings folded back neatly behind him.

"...Lydia. Tell me more about your past. I’m listening."

Lydia took a handkerchief from her bracelet and turned away from Vincent to wipe her tears.

He had really gotten under her skin, and now she was too upset to hold back her words.

"I’m afraid I’ll have to go back to my old life, wandering the streets all day and begging for food."

"I didn’t know you had such a hard time."

Vincent had never imagined Lydia going through anything like that.

"Of course you didn’t. It’s not like you ever cared, so why bother asking now?"

For several seconds, Vincent stood there without saying anything.