The Strongest Daughter-In-Law Of The Black Lion Family [EN]: Chapter 118

#118.

Page Castle in the North, inside Devon’s study.

Devon tapped the letter that had arrived this morning with his finger, his face creased with displeasure.

The letter contained only one word:

[Call.]

“Damn it…….”

Devon crumpled Zakari’s letter in his fist, furious at the blatant command.

Nevertheless, he couldn’t protest, as Zabišić had readily accepted his conditions.

Otherwise, he would have broken off negotiations long ago.

Devon barely managed to unclench his trembling fist and nervously swept his hair back.

It had been three years since Zabišić stirred up the entire continent under the pretext of finding the culprit behind the rampage.

As a result, the political landscape of the Amitaras continent was divided into north and south, locked in a precarious cold war.

Even Hebel, which had maintained neutrality, had long remained silent, offering no mediation.

Maintaining this stalemate was becoming a burden for Page as well.

At this rate, it was only a matter of time before the continental situation tipped in Zabišić’s favor.

Furthermore, with the looming threat of territorial wars, Devon had to make a decision.

At that moment, Heathcliff entered the study.

“I heard a letter came from Zabišić.”

“Yes. Zabišić is finally going to bring their treasure.”

“Treasure, you say…….”

“That white ferret they’ve been hiding for three years. They accepted the condition that she accompany this negotiation.”

Devon tossed the crumpled letter towards Heathcliff, who caught it easily and read the single word. Devon sneered.

“Look at this. This is how Zabišić operates. They treat everyone else like insects.”

“…….”

“That’s why we need to build our strength. You need power if you don’t want to be forced to ask for favors.”

Hearthcliff stared at the letter without a word. The crumpled paper conveyed his father’s barely contained anger.

His father’s envy and jealousy towards Zabišić had reached a fever pitch.

Ever since Zabišić forcibly broke the Hebel Treaty, his father had been consumed by resentment.

Perhaps it was due to the stagnant political situation and Zabišić’s continued dominance.

For the past three years, Zabišić, who had roamed the continent like an outlaw, remained a force to be reckoned with. This was thanks to Zakari, the head of Zabišić, who had somehow managed to control his madness.

Zabišić was the first to overcome madness, and the whole continent trembled at the mention of their name.

Moreover, since Zabišić even had a Saintess, Hebel couldn’t intervene, which only fueled Devon’s frustration.

Because of this, Heathcliff had endured even more difficult times than most.

Devon, unwilling to be outdone by Zabišić, subjected him to harsh training.

Hearthcliff, often pushed to the brink of exhaustion and forced to constantly prove his strength, had become hardened, a far cry from his former gentle self.

The sharp jawline and cold eyes had erased all traces of the amiable young master.

His expressionless face betrayed nothing of his thoughts. Even Devon, who was largely responsible for his transformation, found the change unsettling.

After a moment, Heathcliff asked,

“May I ask why you requested Chelisha Zabišić to accompany the negotiation?”

“I was going to talk about that anyway.”

Devon smirked and rose from his desk, sinking into the sofa.

It was such a bright smile that it was hard to believe he had been seething with anger moments before.

As Heathcliff watched him suspiciously, Devon gestured for him to sit down.

Just as Heathcliff was about to settle onto the sofa, Devon dropped the opening gambit.

“This negotiation isn’t just to stop the cold war.”

“I assumed as much. If it were only to end the cold war, we wouldn’t have been at odds for three years. Why drag it out this long?”

As expected, he had grasped Devon’s intentions.

Frankly, Devon’s sudden proposal for negotiations was unexpected.

In the past, Devon had ignored the elders’ repeated suggestions for negotiations, maintaining the confrontation.

It was a stark contrast to his usual cool-headed judgment in family matters.

It seemed there was more to it than his father’s inferiority complex towards Zabišić, so he had waited patiently for the negotiation to be brought up.

As Heathcliff waited, Devon finally spoke.

“Yes. You’ve probably already guessed it, but I’ve been looking into the white ferret’s family. There’s no way a Suin [a race of humanoids with animal features] with such extraordinary power could be just any Suin.”

“!”

“Oh my. It seems you haven’t guessed that far yet.”

Devon chuckled and placed a cigar in his mouth. As the hazy smoke filled the study, Heathcliff spoke.

“……So, did you find them?”

“Yes. I finally found them. It turns out they were quite close. All the better for us.”

“So, Chelisha Zabišić’s relatives are from the northern tribe?”

Hearthcliff asked sharply, noticeably agitated. If they were close to Page, they had to be from the northern tribe.

Devon glanced at him and replied,

“It seems she was an illegitimate child. You know how they treat illegitimate children in the north.”

He knew it all too well.

Hearthcliff couldn’t stop clenching his fist, even though his father was present.

The nobles of the north, living in the harsh cold, held deeply negative views on illegitimate children.

They avoided marrying those of humble origins to maintain strong pheromone lines [a measure of magical power and social standing].

Even if they did marry and a heir with weak pheromones was born, it was customary to abandon them in the snowy mountains without hesitation.

Being born as an illegitimate child in such a family was akin to receiving a death sentence at birth.

Usually, they were immediately disposed of to prevent pheromone leakage, but Chelisha seemed to have survived.

Hearthcliff’s silver eyes turned cold.

“Which family is it?”

Devon stared intently at Heathcliff, sensing an uncharacteristic curiosity and even a hint of anger in his son.

‘So, Rudy’s words were true.’

Devon already knew from Rudy that his son and Chelisha were acquainted.

They had only met briefly in Hebel, but he was so agitated. Devon pondered his son’s uncharacteristic emotional reaction.

Devon didn’t like the fact that someone who could elicit such a strong reaction from his usually calm son was a member of Zabišić.

He wished he had brought that white ferret into Page instead.

Of course, the white ferret Suin wasn’t as valuable as a hyena, but as a Saintess, she would have been a useful daughter-in-law.

Regretting that he hadn’t considered the possibility, Devon clicked his tongue, feeling a pang of self-pity.

“You’ll know as soon as you go there. The white ferret looks just like her mother.”

“Is her mother alive?”

“She’s said to be a child born before marriage. But they couldn’t kill her because of her bloodline, so they abandoned her in the south.”

Judging from the fact that she was pregnant before marriage, the biological father was likely of humble origins. If it had been an equal family, they would have considered marriage for the sake of succession.

Hearthcliff saw through this and pointed out sharply,

“To be exact, they abandoned her in the south to avoid being caught by other families.”

“Well, still, wasn’t it a benevolent act to let her live? She would have died on the spot otherwise.”

Devon shrugged and spoke ruthlessly.

Hearthcliff closed his mouth.

He hated this practice in the north more than anyone else, which only fueled his resentment.

Nevertheless, he couldn’t voice his opposition, as he was also a member of the northern tribe. He would be branded a reactionary for rebelling against such a deeply ingrained custom.

In fact, the mere fact that an unmarried noble family’s daughter had an affair with someone of humble origins and bore a child was enough to warrant severe punishment.

It seemed she had kept it hidden all along, but this time, her father had discovered the truth.

‘In the end, Chelisha was an abandoned Suin.’

Hearthcliff felt a pang of bitterness.

It was fortunate that she wasn’t abandoned because of weak pheromones, but it was still disheartening that she was abandoned due to her humble origins.

They must have gone all the way to the south to abandon her, ensuring they wouldn’t be discovered.

As the thought lingered, Hearthcliff frowned involuntarily, feeling a wave of depression.