LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 3
TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 3
In this world, there exist five Absolutes.
Transcendents who, in their fragile human forms, have reached the realm of “Heaven Beyond Heaven,” capable of standing against the world alone.
Among them, four divided the continent into quarters, firmly guarding their respective territories and positions.
To the east of the continent, in the martial nation of Hwan, reigns the “Twin Ghosts.”
To the west of the continent, in the Magic Kingdom of Elemental, reigns the “Demon Lord.”
To the south of the continent, in the great wilderness of Yggdrasil, reigns the “Empress.”
To the north of the continent, in the icy tundra of Tyrving, reigns the “Ice Queen.”
“Hehehe.”
Among them, the capital city of Raymond, where the Demon Lord resides in the Magic Kingdom of Elemental.
From the kitchen of an otherwise unremarkable apartment, a girl’s cheerful humming could be heard.
On the frying pan, eggs sizzled as they cooked.
Beside it, a pot of soybean paste stew began to bubble, and in the distance, an electric rice cooker hissed as it released a puff of white steam, signaling that the rice was ready.
A girl, who appeared to be about 12 or 13 years old, busily moved around as she set a hearty breakfast table.
“Uncle! Time to eat!”
The girl called out as she scooped fluffy white rice into a porcelain bowl adorned with delicate floral patterns.
However, when there was no response from the room, she tilted her head in curiosity.
“Didn’t he hear me?”
Strange. Uncle has unusually sharp hearing, so by now, he should be scratching his belly and coming out of his room.
Setting down the rice paddle for a moment, the girl walked toward her uncle’s room.
“Uncle!”
She knocked lightly on the door and turned the doorknob.
What came into view was the interior of the room.
Rather than tidy, the room evoked a sense of desolation.
A single bookshelf covering one wall was all there was.
There wasn’t even a desk or chair to read those books.
Perhaps it was because she knew he loved books so much that he even converted another room into a study, yet he always read either standing in place or sitting on the floor.
Finding nothing unusual about this, the girl turned her gaze to her uncle, who finally stirred from beneath the blanket at the sound of her presence.
“Yaaawn.”
A long yawn escaped him.
As soon as he got up, he reached for his thick-rimmed glasses and scratched the back of his head, which was slightly flattened from sleep.
“Did you not sleep well last night?”
Was it because he looked even more tired than usual?
Seeing her worried expression, the man shook his head as if to say there was no need to worry.
“No, I just had a dream for the first time in a while.”
“A dream?”
Yeah, a dream.
It wasn’t a particularly pleasant memory, though.
It was a dream of the day he first met the girl standing before him.
More precisely, it was the memory of meeting his sister and her husband—though he still couldn’t quite bring himself to call that bastard by such a title—for the first time.
To be exact, it wasn’t even a proper meeting with the husband’s family, nor was it a formal introduction. They had simply shared a casual meal.
In the dream, his sister, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, was as always nagging him while still holding a deep happiness in her eyes.
“Never mind. Anyway, is breakfast ready?”
“Yes!”
“I told you not to go through so much trouble. Just order delivery. What’s a kid doing all this for?”
“If you keep eating delivery food all the time, it’ll ruin your health.”
“These days, even delivery food has healthy options.”
“It’s also expensive.”
“I have plenty of money.”
If there’s one thing I have in excess, it’s money.
Perhaps it was the memories of his impoverished childhood.
He wasn’t exactly stingy, but he couldn’t tolerate being destitute anymore.
That’s why, until a few years ago, he had been obsessively hoarding money.
Though he had eased up a bit now.
Back then, it was so extreme that “Greed” himself would sarcastically call him “Boss” all the time.
“Well, I do prefer your cooking, so I guess it’s fine.”
Just as she was about to get upset at his suggestion to order delivery despite her efforts, his casual remark diffused her irritation.
Switching between stick and carrot like that, he left her unable to find the right moment to get angry.
“I’ll just wash up quickly and come out. Wait for me.”
With another long yawn, he walked past her and out of the room, leaving Arina to slowly close the door behind him.
That’s when her eyes caught something.
In the room, which contained only a bookshelf and books, there was one other item.
Beneath the fluttering curtain, on the windowsill, sat a small picture frame.
Reflecting the sunlight, it displayed an image of her younger self, looking even smaller and just as stoic as she was now, standing beside her uncle.
Next to them stood her late stepmother, appearing far younger than Arina remembered.
It was the one item in the room her uncle cherished most.
Arina stared at it quietly for a moment before gently closing the door.
***
Two years ago.
With Cain’s approval, Cayenne and Hughes’ wedding proceeded without a hitch.
“What?”
On the day of the wedding.
Did Hughes spend a fair amount of money?
Watching him hold the ceremony in a seemingly expensive venue, much like the high-end restaurant they dined at during their first meeting, Cain clicked his tongue lightly and headed straight to the buffet to eat.
After the wedding, his sister came to scold him for leaving midway, but her next words made him look up in disbelief.
“So, could you take care of Arina while we’re on our honeymoon?”
Hearing the same request again, he confirmed he hadn’t misheard and frowned deeply.
Adjusting his slipping glasses, he asked her again.
“Why me?”
“Why not? You said you’re done with your busy work and settling down now, right? You’re planning to live in Raymond? Arina’s never been to the capital before, so she’d love it.”
“That’s not a good enough reason.”
Why should he be the one to take care of a little kid?
There wasn’t a single convincing reason for it.
Sure, she was only ten years old and needed a guardian, but why did it have to be him?
“Leave her with his family.”
Hughes Grant.
As his surname suggested, he was a direct descendant of the Grant Association.
Although the successor role was taken by his younger brother, Hughes held a decent position while supporting his sibling.
Wouldn’t leaving her with his family be a much more reliable option?
“Well, you see, there are some… complications.”
Cayenne gave a subtle, awkward smile as she said this.
Arina was the child of his ex-wife, who had cheated and run away.
Naturally, the Grant Association members harbored mixed feelings about her.
After all, she was the daughter of someone who had tarnished their family’s reputation.
Out of consideration for Hughes, they treated her no differently than before, but children are sensitive to such things.
The unspoken tension in the atmosphere only made her withdraw further.
“That’s no different for me, though.”
“Yeah, I thought so too, but it turns out it’s not.”
Cain was different.
Arina had already realized that while Cain wasn’t particularly warm toward her, he wasn’t hostile either.
In fact, she had chosen to stay with Cain over the Grant Association.
“What?”
Cain’s face filled with disbelief upon hearing those words.
He turned his head toward Arina, who was walking hand in hand with Hughes Grant in the distance.
“…….”
Then their eyes met, and she blushed as if embarrassed by his gaze, waving her hand.
Ignoring her greeting, he turned his attention back to Cayenne.
“No way.”
He rejected her request outright.
Then, while bringing a piece of some unidentified sashimi from his plate to his mouth,
“Find someone else.”
“Please. I’m asking you like this.”
“…….”
Damn it, I told you not to bow your head and beg like that.
Seeing Cayenne like that, Cain ground his teeth in secret.
She knows exactly what she’s doing.
She knows that Cain is weak when it comes to her requests.
She’s acting like this because she knows he won’t be able to refuse.
Her behavior was infuriating, but what annoyed him even more was his own inability to immediately say no, just as she had predicted.
“……Why do you care so much?”
By now, his curiosity was piqued.
Why was she taking care of that little brat, who wasn’t even related to her by blood, to this extent?
Even going so far as to make this ridiculous request of him.
“Hmm.”
At his question, Cayenne slightly turned her head.
Then, scratching her cheek as if embarrassed,
“Well, it’s not really a big deal.”
“…….”
“She just seems pitiful, that’s all.”
She’s still so young.
Despite having done nothing wrong, she bears the brunt of adult circumstances and the hatred of those around her.
Doesn’t it feel like looking at a reflection of their own childhood?
Of course, the situations and environments were entirely different.
But having lost her parents and experienced the malice of the adults around her, Cayenne naturally felt compassion for Arina.
That’s why she treated her like a real daughter, ensuring she wouldn’t feel lonely.
“Arina is my daughter.”
No, by now, she was already no different from her actual daughter.
The family she cherished most, next to Cain and Hughes.
“……Hah.”
After a long silence, a sigh finally escaped Cain’s lips.
“Thank you, Cain.”
Did she realize that his sigh was an unspoken agreement?
Cayenne looked at him with a bright smile.
“You know, the reason I’m asking you like this is because I trust you that much, right?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Even though Arina is young, she’s mature, unlike you, and she doesn’t cause trouble, so it won’t be too hard.”
“Who are you comparing to a child right now?”
Cain let out a hollow laugh, as if incredulous.
Cayenne, as if recalling something, spoke playfully while looking at him.
“Why? Remember when you used to sneak off to the cemetery on nights I was late coming home from work?”
“That was because you said you’d be back in the morning but showed up at dawn instead.”
“And you broke every smartphone you had.”
“If you hadn’t startled me by suddenly calling out in the dark, asking where I’d been, I wouldn’t have dropped it and gotten caught.”
“The issue isn’t whether you got caught or not.”
How could she not compare him to Arina?
At least Arina never caused that kind of trouble.
Clearly, she was much better than Cain in that regard.
Perhaps annoyed by this, Cain clamped his mouth shut and focused solely on eating the food on his plate.
His habit of clamming up when frustrated or when losing an argument hadn’t changed from childhood to now.
Seeing that endearing habit, which reminded her of his younger self, Cayenne reached out and patted his grown-up head, just as she used to.
“Take good care of my daughter.”
“…….”
Cain didn’t reject her hand.
If anyone who knew him had seen this scene, they would have been utterly shocked.
If anyone else had touched him, their hand would have rotted away on the spot.
That’s how pathologically averse Cain was to being touched by others.
The fact that he was fine with touching others but couldn’t stand being touched himself was truly ironic.
“Just make sure you come back safely.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“And if that bastard tries anything funny at night, let me know.”
“Haha! How could it be a honeymoon if nothing happens at night?”
At that absurdly serious remark, Cayenne couldn’t hold back her laughter any longer.
Meanwhile, Hughes, who seemed to have overheard the comment, broke into a nervous sweat.
Arina, tilting her head in confusion as she felt her father’s suddenly clammy hand, added to the scene. Cain, taking in the sight, pushed his empty plate aside and stood to get more food.
‘Family… huh.’
New people were entering a world that had always been just him and his sister.
The thought felt unfamiliar, yet seeing his sister so happy didn’t seem so bad.
He hoped her happiness would last.
For the first time in his life, Cain prayed earnestly to God.
But perhaps because he was someone God had long abandoned,
God, as always, ignored and crushed his wish.
Exactly five days later, the news reached him.
During their honeymoon, Hughes Grant and his sister, Cayenne Grant, were killed in an airship accident.