Love Letter From The Future -
Chapter 274: Rinella’s Destiny is Her Own (67)
The girl's body came to a sudden halt.
Looking back, had Ian even once called her "Rinella"?
Many nobles, including Delphine, called her "Rinella."
For nobles, their Family name was akin to their identity. Thus, it was not an issue to address someone by their surname alone.
But Ian never once called Elsie "Rinella."
Only when reprimanding or addressing her formally did he ever use the surname..
From the beginning to the end.
Not even once.
Elsie's feverish mind suddenly cooled down.
"…Uncle Reynold."
It had been a long time since Elsie had uttered his name.
Just when Reynold thought he had finished persuading her and was about to turn his head, he had to look at Elsie again.
Elsie thought.
To her, Ian was the only one.
Her only master, her only love and the only person who saw her simply as "Elsie."
Reynold must have had such a person too.
"…Have you forgotten now? The one you said you loved."
Reynold seemed quite taken aback by that question.
He couldn't speak for a long time.
His lips parted and closed.
Over and over again.
Unable to continue speaking,Reynold lowered his gaze.
The answer he barely managed to squeeze out was just one word.
"…Yes."
But contrary to the content, his voice was filled with lingering regret.
"Pffft, ahahahaha…!"
Elsie couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Reynold remained silent in the face of her sudden change in demeanour.
Instead he just simply looked at her with slight surprise in his eyes.
In fact, it wasn't just Reynold, everyone who had been eavesdropping on their conversation did the same.
Elsie continued laughing regardless, even clutching her stomach now.
And as itsubsided, Elsie finally let out her specialty.
"Aha, haha... This fucking old fart, seriously!"
It was outright profanity.
The temperature seemed to drop several degrees around them.
It was a display of extreme rudeness.
No matter what, he was still an elder of the Family.
Her words were so outrageous that even Reynold furrowed his brow and asked,
"…What?"
"Didn't you hear? I called you an 'old fart,' uncle."
However, Elsie showed no signs of backing down.
Her tone now even overflowed with growling hostility.
It was an expression of her seething anger.
Unable to bear it any longer, Reynold tried to raise his voice for the first time.
"Elsie, what kind of disrespect...!"
"Or what?"
Elsie said, taking a step forward.
Reynold instinctively fell silent at her fierce demeanour.
His eyes were filled with bewilderment.
Yet, her voice did not falter.
"You're still filled with regret, you haven't even forgotten her...! And yet, you're telling your niece to make the same regretful mistake?!"
"…Elsie."
As if finding those words unbearable, Reynold heavily panted as he replied.
"It was just a folly of youth. In the end, we cannot escape our Family’s constraints. You know it too, Rinella’s destiny is determined by Rine…"
"Don't give me that crap!"
But Reynold's persuasion was in vain.
Elsie fumbled in her clothes and threw out a badge.
A gold badge engraved with two laurel trees intersected.
It was the symbol of direct lineage to the Rinella Family.
Reynold blankly stared at the gold badge.
Any noble would value the emblem of their Familygreatly.
Elsie knew exactly what it meant to cast it to the ground.
"I am Elsie! Not 'Rinella,' but 'Elsie Rinella!' I grew up getting beaten like a dog, and I have obeyed like one ever since..."
Her long-suppressed pain erupted into a boiling rage.
Faced with the torrent of her emotions, Reynold could only gape.
"And now… now you want me to abandon the one I love too?!"
"…Elsie."
It was a cry squeezed out with great difficulty.
Reynold's expression looked complex as he tried to maintain his voice solemn. l
He appeared sad, worried and even somewhat anguished.
It was an uncharacteristically rich display of emotion for him.
He quietly delivered his final warning.
"It will be a dog's death."
Pffft, Elsie let out a hollow laugh and took a step back.
A dog's death?
How laughable.
If I have to live and die like a dog, either way is a dog's death.
Whether living and dying as the Rinella Family's fighting dog or dying while saving Ian.
If either way it's a 'dog's death'.
Then Elsie's answer was completely clear.
"Woof woof!"
She barked, curling her hands like a puppy's paws.
Reynold wasn't stupid enough to not understand that this was meant as mockery.
The look in his eyes grew vacant as he watched Elsie.
Regardless, she simply declared with a playful smile,
"Elsie is a loyal pet serving Master Ian! So…"
Then, she added in the coldest tone,
"…it’s none of your business whether I die or not. This is the fate I've chosen."
That was the end.
Elsie immediately took off running after Celine.
After all, she was a mage. Even providing fire support from a distance wouldn't reduce her combat effectiveness.
Being a bit late wouldn't be a significant issue.
All that remained after the stormy exchange was Reynold standing dazed and the gold badge of the Rinella Familylying on the ground.
Everyone silently gauged his reaction.
Aside from the Saintess, he was the highest-ranking individual present. Moreover, he was the most skilled among the many forces gathered in the Percus territory.
For many reasons, they had no choice but to be mindful of his mood.
Reynold stood silently for a long time, finally taking a step forward after several minutes.
He walked with measured steps and bent down.
His hand reached for the ground.
To the spot where the gold badge had fallen.
As he carefully grasped the badge in his hand, he let out a dejected laugh.
"...Really, that temper of hers."
Reynold forced a bitter smile, remarking how much it reminded him of his older brother when they were young.
He was right, after all.
One couldn't deny the blood of the Family.
With the temper of Count Rinella and Reynold's wanderlust,
Anyone could see that Elsie was a true heir of Rinella.
Hestood there, endlessly gazing at Elsie's retreating figure as she ran off.
Until Arthur, the Imperial administrator, approached him.
“They're all crazy…”
Arthur shuddered as if he couldn’t take it anymore.
His face conveyed utter incomprehension.
At some point, the Saintess also shrugged Yuren off and was heading to the battlefield.
"H-How can they even think of charging at that monster?! This is mass hysteria! They all need counselling!"
He seemed on the brink of madness from fear and anxiety.
No matter how many escorts there were, it wasn't enough, and many of their key forces had already left.
It was not a positive sign at all.
As an ordinary citizen who valued his life above all else, Arthur addressed Reynold with a trembling voice.
"We should at least! At least we should evacuate quickly... There are still refugees left, and the corpses might rise..."
“We can’t do that.”
His tone was firm and left no room for argument.
The abrupt declaration left Arthur dumbfounded.
So he, in disbelief, had to ask again.
"We can't, you say?"
"Yes, we can’t do that."
However, Reynold’s answer remained unchanged no matter how many times he asked..
For Arthur, it felt like losing a steadfast ally out of the blue.
Finally, Arthur couldn't hold back and raised his voice in frustration.
"B-But… But you just said it would be a dog's death…!"
"Administrator."
Reyonold’s voice was unwavering.
In stark contrast to Arthur's trembling voice.
When his blue eyes glanced towards him, Arthur involuntarily flinched.
Those were the eyes of someone seasoned by countless battles.
Not the kind a timid scholar could confidently meet.
"Rinella's destiny is determined by Rinella. And now, our young Rinella has chosen her fate."
Though his speech became less formal, Arthur dared not complain.
In fact, it felt more natural for Reynold to speak down to him.
Even as an Imperial administrator, Arthur was a commoner while Reynold was a high-ranking noble.
He was grateful enough that Reynold had shown him any courtesy at all.
Instead, Arthur could only shake his head a few times in a pleading manner.
"Please, Sir Reynold… regain your senses. How can we defeat that monster!? Even Count Rinella ordered us to preserve our forces…!"
"So you're saying I should let my niece die like this?"
His tone was utterly cold.
At that cold retort, tinged with a faint hint of murderous intent, Arthur felt his heart nearly stop.
He immediately began sweating profusely and stepped back.
No matter how desperate he felt, he now had no choice but to realise.
That Reynold was not someone Arthur could handle from the start.
At last, as if he had lost interest, Reynold turned his gaze away from Arthur.
He then summoned the nearby mage corps.
"Attention everyone, we'll now begin preparations for a large-scale magic circle… Our primary focus is to bind that monster, and in the meantime, we will rescue Young Master Ian, Elsie, and the others."
In response to Reynold's command, the mage corps responded with a resounding voice.
Reynold himself did not believe they could defeat that monster.
However, if the mage corps exerted their full power, they might be able to restrain it for a while.
During that time, Reynold and a few skilled individuals would take actions to rescue Ian and Elsie.
As Reynold was about to start the operation in earnest, he suddenly glanced at the gold badge in his hand.
"…Fate, huh"
Could Ian and Elsie truly change the fate of the Percus territory?
Though he thought it was an absurd notion, Reynold couldn't help but smile faintly.
The Rinella Family's Mage Corps had decided to join the battle.
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