Thanks to Dhamuzs_Jgc for the Ice Cola. Your gift helped me a lot in finishing this story.

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"YOU’RE LYING!"

Artur’s shout startled everyone in the room. Perry, the one being accused, turned red with anger.

"YOU—"

"Enough, Perry!" Zilya interjected.

"But—"

"He’s just angry. Artur didn’t mean to insult you. Please forgive him; he’s just carried away by his emotions," Zilya tried to calm Perry with her words.

Artur’s outburst, accusing Perry of lying, was extremely rude and disrespectful.

Perry was a Level 5 Constellation Mage, and although not a direct member of the Valya House, his power demanded respect.

The only reason he was willing to help Artur, who was just a Level 4 Constellation Mage, was because Zilya had asked him.

Zilya, as the prospective heir to the leadership of Valya House, had enough influence to be listened to by Perry. But Artur, being the son of a woman who had previously fled the Valya House, had no such standing.

There was no obligation for Perry to respect someone much weaker than himself.

Despite Zilya’s efforts to calm the situation, Artur was too consumed by his emotions.

"How can Anna not be brainwashed? She’s completely different from what I know! There’s no way the Anna I know would marry that ugly green creature!"

"Artur, what Perry meant by saying Nevare isn’t brainwashed is that there’s no spell affecting her mind. But brainwashing can also occur through psychological influence," Zilya explained.

As if finding a glimmer of hope in a dark tunnel, Artur grabbed Zilya’s shoulders tightly and shook her. His expression was filled with madness, causing Zilya to wince.

"You’re right! Anna must be influenced by that disgusting green monster! We need to snap her out of it quickly! Tell me how to free Anna from his influence!" 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Before Zilya could answer, the door suddenly opened, revealing Gilbert.

"What’s going on? Why are you shouting, Artur?" he asked.

Artur turned and hastily replied, "Father, you must help me! Anna has been brainwashed, but Mother believes her completely!"

"There’s no indication of any brainwashing spell on Nevare, but we can’t determine if she has been psychologically influenced," Zilya corrected Artur.

"What? What do you mean? Explain everything that was discussed here," Gilbert demanded.

Artur then recounted the recent events, adding his own assumptions. Despite this, Gilbert managed to grasp the essence of the conversation between Anna and Cila.

After a moment of silence, Gilbert nodded as if understanding something.

"I can understand why Cila sympathizes with Anna. What happened to your mother is the same thing happening to Anna now. Their love for their children made them forget their old families.

"That’s how women are; their love for their children surpasses any other love in the world," Gilbert said, smiling slightly as he remembered a young, stubborn Cila.

"But we can’t just leave it like this, Father! Mother left her family to marry you, but you were both humans, and the children you had were human too.

"Look at Anna; she’s married to a giant green-skinned creature, and her children are also green-skinned giants. You must help me bring her back to her human family!" Artur responded, frustrated.

"Anna holds great respect for Cila, so if Cila can’t change her mind, then I’m powerless. The only ones who can reach Anna are those close to her and who hold a special place in her heart," Gilbert suggested.

Artur shook his head. "I’ve tried to talk to her, but Anna just scolded me, saying I have no right to speak ill of her husband."

Hearing this, Gilbert turned to Artur with a peculiar expression.

"I’m sorry, Artur. Even though you love Anna deeply and are close to her, to Anna, you’re still just her little brother. She won’t listen to you because she always sees you as a clumsy and stubborn kid."

"What?" Artur was so shocked his eyes widened.

"Then who do you mean?" Zilya asked.

"Silvie. She’s Anna’s childhood friend, incredibly close to her. They’ve always been like sisters, even closer than that. Wherever Anna was, Silvie was right there with her. If you can bring Silvie into this, maybe she can talk to Anna," Gilbert explained.

"Where is Silvie now?" Zilya asked, momentarily forgetting Artur, who was still stunned by the revelation.

Gilbert paused, searching his memory.

"If I remember correctly, she was engaged to Otto two years ago. He’s the blacksmith’s son in this town, and his house is in the western district near the third tower. You’ll see the sign for his shop when you get there. There you will find Silvie with her new family."

"We should go find Silvie and ask for her help. If Anna is truly influenced by something, the sooner we know, the better," Zilya said to Perry and another mage named Rusto.

The three of them left the room, with Artur trailing behind, still bewildered by why he wasn’t Anna’s favorite.

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(Nevare’s POV)

"Mother, are you sure you don’t want to come to the banquet with me? You’ve regained your noble status, after all. And as my mother, you have every right to be there with me," Nevare pleaded with Cila to join her.

They had just finished a delightful tea conversation. Cila had grown very close to Nash, Kuja, and Acel.

She saw a strong resemblance between her three grandchildren and her daughter, especially Acel, who looked like a spitting image of her mother. If Nevare were male and green-skinned, she would be mistaken for Acel’s twin.

"Oh, my daughter, your mother is old now and can’t attend events filled with nobles. I prefer to stay home and tend to my flower garden. Let the young handle politics and the like," Cila said, her face full of smiles.

"If that’s what you wish, Mother. I’ll go there for a while and then come back to spend the night with you," Nevare replied, hugging her mother tightly.

"Goodbye, Grandma," said Nash, Kuja, and Acel, waving to Cila as they followed Nevare, who had already started walking.

"Goodbye, my grandchildren! Don’t drink too much while you’re there!" Cila called out, waving back.

On the way, the dragon prana within Acel suddenly surged, causing the surrounding Mana to tremble and form a dome around the four of them.

This was one of the spells Acel had developed herself. Following in Moku’s footsteps, Acel excelled in the Mantra Path and had created many new spells. This one she called Shade Conceal.

Using the dragon prana within her, Acel intimidated the surrounding Mana, creating a disruption that could obscure detection or eavesdropping spells used by mages.

Additionally, by compressing the air around the dome, Shade Conceal could blur the hearing and vision of those outside, preventing them from seeing or hearing clearly those within.

"Mother, it’s safe now," Acel signaled.

"Thank you, Acel," Nevare said.

As they continued walking, Nevare spoke in a commanding tone, "Inform everyone to leave my family alone. They are my concern, and I will determine their fate. Soon, Artur and the others will summon my good friend Silvie, and she is included in that list."

"Mother, Moku already stated that this operation is entirely under your command. You don’t need to seek permission from anyone else," Nash said.

"Hmm?" Nevare snorted. "Moku just wants to wash his hands of this matter and not worry about it. He doesn’t understand what I want; he just wants to be lazy!" she said, irritated.

"Mother, you’re just embarrassed. You know how much Moku spoils you," Kuja giggled.

"Hmm!" Nevare responded with a huff.

"But Mother, I don’t understand. Do we really have to do this? Won’t it be more dangerous if all the Mana Species on this continent become our enemies?" Nash asked, his face filled with worry.

Nevare’s pace slowed, and her brow furrowed.

"At first, I wanted to destroy humanity out of my disgust for them. But when Moku brought news of his meeting with Furfur and the message from Lucifer, I realized we had no other choice.

"If we don’t follow the demons’ orders, they will cease their attacks on the Mana Species on this continent and reveal our secrets to them.

"As a result, we would be attacked by all four Mana Species simultaneously, leaving us with little chance of survival.

"Therefore, we have no choice but to follow their orders, even if it means sacrificing our brothers and sisters in the upcoming war."

Nash, Kuja, and Acel hung their heads, their faces full of worry. Kuja clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white. Nevare could feel the helplessness and anger radiating from her three sons.

"If you feel powerless and angry, remember this feeling for the rest of your lives.

"This is the feeling of the weak. In this world, the weak are nothing but bait for the strong to lure in other strong beings.

"Right now, we are nothing more than victims of our own weakness. Imprint this feeling in your memory and use it as motivation to never be in a position of weakness again.

"Do you understand?" Nevare said firmly.

"We understand, Mother!" Nash, Kuja, and Acel responded in unison.