Myths Reawakened

Veronica shook her head, remembering how she had misunderstood Wayne twice before being proven as the party at fault. She maintained her stance and refused to back off, urging Kristen to admit that this was a prank Vera had orchestrated.

Kristen clenched her teeth to stop herself from giving in, but not long after, Veronica’s pitiful attempt to hold her tears in made Kristen say, “It was a prank. I lied. Wayne and I didn’t... didn’t...”

She couldn’t finish the sentence.

Veronica felt like the sky was falling. Her fists clenched so hard that her fingers whitened. Remembering the trash can’s sweet words, she buried herself in her white moonlight’s embrace, hurt and helpless.

She wiped her tears on Kristen’s shirt, sounding upset as she said, “Why you, Senior? You’re incredible... I trusted you so much. Why did you betray me?”

She didn’t get violent or curse, simply speaking with sadness and hurt. That left Kristen at a loss for what to do. None of the explanations she had worked on would help. She hurriedly reassured Veronica, explaining how she had fallen for Wayne.

There was no betrayal. Everything could be explained!

Back then, she was kidnapped by her adoptive mother and a legendary mage of the Ministry of Magic. While she was on the verge of death, one step away from losing her life, it was Wayne who had dragged her to safety, fighting a legendary mage to the death to save her. After that, Kristen surrendered herself to him, unable to escape the thrall of his sweet words.

Hearing that Kristen almost died, Veronica got worried. She huffed and puffed before saying, “But Wayne is the Lando family’s heir. You should know his relationship with me then.”

“I thought you were his younger sister. Mr. Lando and Wayne look too much alike, and everyone says so.”

Veronica couldn’t believe it. “I only said that because I was angry. Mother and Mr. Lando have been treating him so well and ignoring my feelings. It upset me.”

“But you said it.”

“...”

“Veronica, I only learned that you were adopted recently. I was worried about upsetting you, so I hesitated if I should get to the bottom of it.”

“That was me being angry, too. I wasn’t adopted. Wayne was.”

“No way.”

“...” x2

Stunned, Veronica tried to prove that she was Silvia and Auston’s biological child. The couple had fallen in love and invented her together. Kristen wouldn’t believe her, insisting that Silvia and Auston had invented Wayne, that he was the biological child.

Even an eloquent man like Wayne had failed to correct Kristen’s misconception. It was even more difficult for Veronica to convince her. She said in resignation, “Fine, I am adopted, so Wayne and I are not siblings. You shouldn’t steal him from me!”

“Have you ever considered that you two have both stolen him from me?” Vera chimed in.

They ignored her. Veronica and Kristen argued about who had claimed Wayne first, ignoring the blonde loser subconsciously. No matter what Vera said, they never reacted.

“Damn it, I finally get it now! That bastard lied to you to relieve your guilt before pursuing you!” Veronica’s eyes blazed fiercely in Kristen’s soft embrace. Yes, Senior was too kind to steal something from her on purpose. The scumbag had fooled her.

“Um, he explained many times, insisting that you weren’t siblings, but I didn’t believe him,” Kristen said with guilt.

He had said those things; she didn’t want to shift the blame.

“He said that he and you...” Veronica paused. The scumbag had also admitted to cheating on her and messing around with Senior, claiming that he would return to Londan and marry her after the Holy Maiden selection. However, Veronica refused to believe him, even accusing him of slandering Kristen.

So he’s telling the truth! x2

Veronica looked up, meeting Kristen’s eyes. The scumbag had confessed everything, but they wouldn’t listen.

“Nah, Wayne’s using information disparity against you, exploiting your trust in each other and your aversion to reality to make you believe in your false truths,” Vera said slowly. “He mixed lies with truths so that when the cat got out of the bag, you would be the one at fault for not listening to him...”

“Then his only mistake would be not being able to turn away your feelings. He simply wants both of you to be happy.”

“Simply put, you’ve been playing into his hands. The two of you aren’t his match even if you band together!”

Vera advised her best friends to let go now. Wayne was too much of a bastard for them to devote their lives to.

Kristen lowered her head silently. Vera was making a lot of sense, so Veronica should give up now.

Veronica didn’t say anything, either. Vera was right, but the family needed an heir. Trash Sr. approved of Trash Jr., and a scumbag as terrible as Wayne was wouldn’t be easy to come by.

“Say something!”

“Say what? We’ll walk away so that you can replace us?!”

Veronica saw how pleased Vera was, offering false consolation while laughing at their misery. Irritated, she took her anger out on her.

Face being kneaded by Veronica like dough, poor Vera knew that resisting would only make Veronica more excited, so she started begging after a few attempts at struggling. It didn’t matter. She still got a beating.

On the sofa, Vera whined and asked for mercy as Veronica straddled her and rubbed her face. Kristen cocked her head at her two friends as they tussled.

It seemed no different from what they had been doing in the past, but...

Bastard! x3

***

“Achoo!”

In Auston’s study, Wayne sneezed three times as soon as he took a seat. He rubbed his nose, wondering what was happening.

Auston scoffed with his antique silver coin flitting between his fingers. “Why, which of your many lovers is thinking about you?”

“Veronica!”

Auston fell silent with a scowl. He had asked for that. He wouldn’t do it again.

Wayne refused to let this chance pass. While counting with his fingers, he said, “It’s said that one sneeze means someone’s thinking about me, two means someone’s talking behind my back, and three means that someone misses me. Either Veronica misses me, or three girls are thinking about me, one of them being Veronica for sure...”

Wayne went on and on, giving a long, drawn-out monologue to mock Auston. When Auston simply kept his eyes closed, he huffed and made the final move: “Besides, I have your written permission. Even if Veronica learns that other girls are thinking about me, I can blame you. You, Auston, a black-hearted father who only ever prioritizes family interest, have ordered me to pursue other girls as the head of the family.”

There being relationship drama? Impossible!

(눈_눈)

Megan stared at them. She had thought that Silvia was the master of bad judgment, but the new generation surpassed the old one, and Veronica turned out to be the grandmaster of bad judgment, crowned for how poor her judgment of people was.

After his monologue, Wayne got to business, explaining how the Sun Knight had encountered a crisis in the Frozen Land and needed to recover the power they had lost.

“I’ve been unable to transform into the Nature Knight recently, which means that Moula has encountered a crisis in the Frozen Land, too. The same is true of the Moonlight Knight. All three chosen knights have worked together but couldn’t deal with the trouble...”

After the analysis, Wayne asked, “What about you, Darkness Knight? Has the messenger of the Goddess of Darkness given you an oracle?”

Auston shook his head. Ever since he acquired the silver coin of Death, his connection with the Goddess of Darkness had been severed. Monica, the black cat suspected to be the goddess’s messenger, never spoke to him, much less gave him an oracle.

“I speculated that the Life Alliance once consisted of five faiths, and while the Goddess of Darkness and the Goddess of Death have pulled out, the connection between them remains. It seems that I’ve overthought it.”

Shrugging, Wayne said curiously, “Great trouble seems to be brewing in the Frozen Land, and the three chosen knights are likely unable to endure it. Are you going to join the party?”

Auston shook his head. He had limited power as the Darkness Knight and couldn’t rival the three chosen knights who had been doing their job for a long time. With the great disparity of power between them, he would be marching to his death if he went to the Frozen Land.

Still, he permitted Wayne to offer his help and gather the power of the Sun Knight, lest something did go wrong in the Frozen Land. At the end of the day, the three chosen knights were not only guarding the seal, but also the order in the Chosen Land. A stable order was more important than anything.

Wayne nodded. Auston made this trip seem much more meaningful, and his involvement would be a much more noble act.

“You better not die outside...”

Auston glanced at Wayne. Although he would rather not look at the eyesore ever again, Megan was right about one thing: not only had Silvia and Veronica made their choice, but he had chosen Wayne, too.

Even an ill-fitting shirt would feel like a good fit after it became well-worn. Changing into another shirt would require more time to get used to, and he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from making comparisons.

Auston had reason to suspect that he, just like Silvia and Veronica, wouldn’t be able to find a better shirt.

“That’s decided then. I’m in a hurry. After telling Veronica, I’ll head back home and pack up.”

Wayne walked out of the study and headed to the young lady’s mansion, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.