Episode 33

 Veronica smiled as smoothly as if drawn like a painting at Dietrich's blunt words. 

Most people could not speak properly because of her sugar-sweet appearance. The same was true no matter how young the boys were.

“Hm. I like cats more than dogs though.”

She was the only candidate for successor officially adopted by Lagrange solely for her dazzling appearance, and the poison Liatris carefully raised.

“Get rid of Alphonse.”

But even with Veronica’s pretty voice, like marbles rolling on the floor, Dietrich only reacted sourly. [T/N: Uhm, I guess the sound of marbles rolling on the floor sounds enchanting? Isn’t that like a shrill sound? I would also react sourly like Detrie. Lol.]

He always turned his back on her beauty, showing no emotion.

Veronica, while staring at Dietrich’s back disappearing without saying any farewells, wrinkled her nose and turned her head.

“Did you look into that child Anissa?”

Her pride was hurt by the fact that Lagrange had a child who wouldn’t move according to her wishes. A few days ago, she planted a little devil in the shadow of Anissa, who was supposed to be the only thing precious to Dietrich. 

“Is she really the child treasured by him?”

The summoned little devil nodded, rubbing his small paws. Veronica snorted at the excessive affirmation.

She couldn't believe the rumors that ‘that’ Dietrich was kind to someone. 

According to the little devil’s report, Anissa was a little kid who didn’t have anything special. 

'Maybe there is something you haven't seen properly?'

Veronica clapped her hands gracefully as if she remembered something while trying to find Anissa. 

"But I'll have to run an errand first."

After confirming that Alphonse, thrown by Yuric, fell into the neglected forest in Liatris’s Palace, she climbed on the back of Zagan to carry out Dietrich's command.

“Kuhk.”

Alphonse was charred here and there by the fire that Amon unleashed.

Veronica chuckled and kicked Alphonse's head on the floor. 

“Aak!”

“Oh my, did that hurt?”

With her obvious question, Alphonse screamed. 

“Uhk, aren’t you Veronica! Why are you attacking me!”

Alphonse was quite favorable to Veronica even within Liatris. 

He reminded her of the fact, but she had no qualms about stepping on his burned back with her feet.

“Because you’re weak. That’s all, Alphonse.”

“Aaaak!!!”

“I only follow the strongest person. Flowers attract both good and evil."

Attacking a child who couldn't even stand up to the waist, Alphonse was resentful at the morality which couldn't be found even as small as a fingernail.

“You, how dare you! Are you betraying Liatris?!”

It was his mother, Liatris, who brought Veronica, the daughter of a poor peasant, to Lagrange and raised her in the peerage.

No one in her family, including herself, had ever asked for her to be adopted, but if she was given an opportunity, she would have obliged.

‘Betrayal, you say. Can you even call this betrayal?’

Even though Veronica was not her real daughter, she resembled his mother and was quite adored by Liatris. 

‘Even if it’s betrayal, what about it?’

Veronica shrugged her shoulders and hit Alphonse’s neck. 

“Are you saying I betrayed mother because I attacked you? Why? You’re not even mother.”

“I’m mother’s favorite child!”

“So what? I’m still loyal to mother, and I still love her to an extent.” 

“Uh, urk.”

"It's just that no matter how much Derek Lagrange helps, I just think you have a slim chance of becoming the family head.” 

“What?!”

“If the stupid you don’t become the family head, then I’ll be in danger, too, right?”

As Alphonse continued to listen to her words, he lost his consciousness. The body hanging under the twisted neck was drooping.

He'd already signed a contract with the Shadow Devil, so he won't die, but he won't be able to move for a while.

‘Is this enough?’

He's weak enough to be beaten by her, but even if he's got Derek Lagrange on his back, there’s no way he would be able to beat Dietrich to become the family head. 

Alphonse was just lucky to be able to contract a powerful demon, so everyone was just under the illusion that he and Dietrich have abilities of equal footing.

'Originally, people only believe in what they see.'

Veronica, with an indifferent eye, looked down at him like a dead body, and turned away. 

‘Hm. Now, I will see for myself that girl named Anissa.’

Just in time, she saw Yuric jumping over the wall from afar.

Dietrich had been busy taming new demons because he signed with the demons all at once to fight Derek, so the child must be alone.

Veronica lowered herself and flew into the gardens of the Dahlia Palace.

A withered garden of roses. 

The garden, also called the Tomb of Flowers, was desolate without a single living grass, as its name suggests.

‘As expected, she’s alone.’

Veronica's predictions were right. In the middle of the garden, a small child was sitting on the platform of a broken marble fountain that might have glowed white at one time.

The pale child shone brightly as if the blazing sun poured all of its color on her. 

Her face and atmosphere contrasted with Veronica, whose eyes were darker than the eyes of Dietrich and dark blond hair that seemed to be melted honey.

‘Hm. It’s like cotton candy melted in water.’

Veronica approached, sneering at the hazy impression of Anissa.

Although her eyes, nose, and mouth were cute with a small face, Veronica already had a radiant appearance at that age. 

‘I was looking forward to it because she’s Dietrich’s younger sister.’

Dietrich was the only one she thought could rival herself in Lagrange when it came to beauty.

‘As I thought, she’s ugly.’

Veronica was disappointed by Anissa, who was far off from her expectations. As she shrugged her shoulders and tried to turn around, there was a rustling sound from the side of Anissa.

“Whosh there?”

Veronica remained in the shadows. Even though the naked eye would never be able to recognize her presence, Anissa looked straight at her and mumbled again.

“Who ish it? Baa?”

“.....”

“No itsh not. It’sh not Baal’s schent.”

Anissa got up from her seat and ran out with the sound of her stamping feet going ‘dadada’ and stood exactly in front of Veronica. 

‘What is she? A dog?’

She panicked at Anissa’s excellent sense of smell. Perhaps because a person popped out from a place where no one was present, the surprised child fell backwards.

“Heek!”

“Hello?”

Veronica laughed bitterly instead of reaching for Anissa who fell.

“Who, who are you?”

The child with bright red round eyes as if it had a star in it, asked.

“Veronica Lagrange.”

She wasn't on the high list of candidates, but thanks to her extraordinary beauty, there was no child of Lagrange who didn't know her name. 

Veronica, expecting Anissa to be hostile to her because she was a child from Dahlia, opened her mouth to explain her relationship with Dietrich.

“Wow…”

But Anissa clasped her hand before she could say anything more.

“Pwetty…..”

“Uh, huh?”

“Swo pwetty…. Lyke the moon.”

Not a rose or a jewel, but like the moon. It was the first time she had ever heard such an analogy, and Veronica hesitated in confusion. 

“Sister, do you know abowt Ingkanto's Moon?”

“What?”

“Look at thish.”

Anissa ran back with the sound of her feet going ‘dududu’ to the fountain where she was sitting. A fairy tale book was in the hand of a child who had just returned.

The cover depicted a little rabbit sleeping on the moon, and a blonde woman sitting next to the rabbit.

“Here, you look lyke the moon.”

“Hmm.”

Veronica looked down at the child who was laughing with a ‘hehe’ as she held a fairy tale book to her.

Although she looked like she got along a little with Yuric, Yuric was a child who was not even treated as a person in Liatris.

'So he wanted to get along with a child in Dahlia instead.'

“You can’t even see the face, so how can you say I look the same?”

Even with Veronica’s sour question, Anissa was not disappointed. She soon answered with a clear and bright voice.

"Because the moon smells lyke sad grass flowers."

"How can you smell sad?"

Veronica snorted at Anissa’s words.

“And you say I smell like grass flowers? It’s not grass flowers, it should be the smell of roses.”

Veronica wore a terrible rose oil to match her nickname of poison. The child tilted her head at her explanation.

“It’sh not like that though?”

"Do you mean it’s not the smell of the poisonous flowers?" 

“It’sh not poisonous at all… it’s the schent of sadness.”

Anissa sniffed around with her nose. Veronica, who didn’t know that the child was smelling the aura, crossed her arms with a coy face.

“Sister, do you want to eath thish?”

Whether the girl knew that she was staring down at her or not, the child took out a piece of bread from her bosom.

‘I was wondering since earlier what she had been hugging so much.’

Veronica thought it would be a jewel because Anissa cherished the bread so much. The child carefully touched the bread as if it was really a jewel, and then tore it apart and left it in half.

“When you’re sad, you just hab to eat something gyod. You can eat delicyous bread. I’m jealous.” 

“.....”

“You can’th hab all!”

Annisa seemed dumbfounded and thought Veronica wanted all of her bread. The child's distinct eyes shook lightly.

“Should, should I gibb you all….?”

As soon as she was about to say she didn't need it, Anissa pushed both slices of bread.

Veronica shook her head adamantly, as it seemed to be all the bread the child had with her.