C193: Rosen's Secret (1)
"What?"
Sedina looked stunned when she heard that he would receive all of them.
Normally Sedina would have shouted "As expected of Sir First Order! You have great aspirations!" but now she just looked at him in a way that asked why.
"Oh, no, that's. Is it all right to accept all the gifts?"
"I don't care."
"There might be a problem."
"Were you worried about that?"
Rudger nodded as if he fully understood.
"Sedina, why do you think they sent me a present?"
"…They gave it in order to attract you to their side."
"That's not the reason."
Rudger said flatly.
"There is still a lot of time left before the Mysterious Night starts in the first place. Nevertheless, they argued with each other and sent me an invitation. Why do you think they did so?"
"It's a way to preoccupy people in advance……."
"The invitation was enough, they didn't even have to send a gift but they did. Why do you think so?"
"I think it's to attract Sir First Order."
The author knows that the rhetoric written in the letter cannot lead people's hearts. Therefore, it was necessary to show more material compensation than that.
"The gift they sent doesn't mean I can get this if you hold hands with them, but it is more of a tribute to me to be with them."
"Ah."
Sedina opened her mouth as if she had realized something.
What Rudger said seemed similar but completely different.
Sedina thought that the giver and the receiver were on equal terms with each other, but Rudger said that he was in a superior position.
"It wouldn't matter if it came from only one place. Rather, it's a relief that it came from three places at the same time."
"Who are you going to choose after you get it all?"
"I won't choose anyone."
"What?"
"I won't choose anyone."
He said it twice because she didn't seem to understand.
Sedina's head tilted slightly to the side.
"Anyway, the gifts were given to make them look good. It is my right to receive them all."
In addition, it is also my right to decide whether to make a choice or not after receiving the gift.
"Then Should I send a reply first?"
"No, you don't have to reply. If I don't say anything, they'll be nervous on their own."
"What? Then……."
"If they have ears to listen and eyes to see, they will know I haven't chosen anything yet. What do you think will happen?"
If he chooses either side neatly, they can shake off their lingering feelings without hesitation but if he can't reach a conclusion here and put his choice on hold.
"The Tower and the Association will naturally be impatient!"
"Yes, their impatience will soar as the Mysterious Night approaches."
Of course, they wouldn't be very sad that they didn't have Rudger.
'They'll pretend.'
He could guess what they think of him since they have already sent him gifts.
'I must have looked like an attractive prey.'
His [source code] and coordinate designation magic were bound to turn the eyes of those exploring magic upside down.
Rudger has no choice but to hold it in and not be impatient. Since they sent him an invitation it meant that they valued his special magic.
"So we just have to take the gifts from them and shut up."
"I didn't recognize that kind of wisdom. I'm sorry!"
Sedina bowed her head guiltily.
In the past, he would have told her to do it appropriately, but now that he has known her for a long time, even this behavior has been accepted as a daily routine.
'More than that, she is still loyal to me.'
Rudger had a plan since he made Sedina Rosen his assistant and put her close to him.
Sedina Rosen is a superficial presence within the Black Dawn Society. Nevertheless, she is loyal to the organization and has excellent ability.
'If I could turn that loyalty to myself, not to the Black Dawn Society.'
Sedina will be a great double agent who can get the information of the Black Dawn Society better than anyone else.
'The problem is that I don't know what she's thinking at all.'
He couldn't tell what the source of the respect he was receiving now was.
Was it the respect given by the First Order position? Or was it the respect she felt purely as an individual?
'I can't rule out the possibility that if I reveal my cards she might turn on me.'
[Actually, I'm not the First Order you know.]
If he said this there is a possibility that Sedina would fight me to death while shouting "You've deceived me!"
'It hasn't been long since Zero Order appeared in Theon, and I can't take a risk when I don't know the outcome.'
Still, looking at Sedina's behavior these days, her excited behavior has decreased compared to before.
Before she tried hard to keep looking good to me, but now she doesn't. It's probably because she's mentally stable.
Until recently she was not recognized within the organization and was being ostracized but that alone is not enough. Unless I know and solve the fundamental problem of Sedina Rosen our current relationship cannot develop any further.
'I need to know the fundamental problem of Sedina Rosen.'
While thinking about it for a while, someone knocked on the door of the office. There won't be any students coming to his office at this early hour so Rudger opened his mouth in wonder.
"Come in."
The door opened when permission was given and the person that entered surprised Rudger.
"Teacher Vierano?"
Vierano Dentis, an elf teacher in charge of Theon's fourth-grade spiritual studies.
Although he has the appearance of a young boy, his unique calm and pessimistic atmosphere shows that he has considerable experience.
"Oh, you are here Mr. Rudger."
"What are you doing here?"
After the attack at the banquet hall that day, they didn't see each other in particular.
Vierano answered Rudger's question.
"I'm here because I want to see your assistant, not exactly Mr. Rudger."
"You mean Assistant Sedina?"
Rudger stared at Sedina with a curious stare. Sedina, on the other hand, seemed a little embarrassed to have experienced a similar situation before.
"What's wrong with my assistant?"
"No, it's not because of work. I just came because of personal reasons."
What did he mean by personal reasons?
Even if Vierano looks like this, he is an elf with considerable knowledge so it was a little strange that he would visit Sedina, who is a freshman.
"If you don't mind, may I talk to Sedina?"
"……Yes, by all means."
"Miss Sedina, have you answered what I asked before?"
Vierano asked but Sedina hesitated to answer his question.
'Is it a confession of love?'
Rudger thought so unknowingly, but immediately denied it.
In terms of appearance alone, Sedina, who is small, and Vierano, with his young boy's appearance, are a good pair but their age difference is huge.
It was then that Sedina opened her mouth.
"I'm sorry, but I'm fine as I am."
"……I see. I'm sorry. Maybe I shouldn't have bothered you."
"Oh, no."
Sedina bowed her head and showed a rare courtesy. She rushed into the assistant office under the pretext that she had not finished organizing the data, as if she was uncomfortable.
"Oh, no. I'm afraid I'm hated."
As Sedina left as if she were running away, Vierano muttered in a sad voice.
"I don't think she hates you, but she's probably doing that because she's shy."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"It's more surprising than that. Teacher Vierano was interested in Assistant Sedina."
"Are you amazed at my behavior?"
"To be honest, yes."
Vierano scratched his cheek in embarrassment.
"It is not unreasonable to think so because I am fully aware of what kind of elf I am but I would rather ask Mr. Rudger."
"What do you mean?"
"Sedina Rosen. Didn't you really know she was unusual?"
Rudger had to think about what the intention behind the question was.
He was not asking because he knew she was a member of the Black Dawn Society. Rather, he pointed out that Sedina was hiding something.
'Come to think of it.'
Sedina seemed to have a lot to hide. She hated her family, and even seemed to be associated with Julia Plumhart, the first-year top student.
He didn't ask because he didn't think it was necessary, but was there anything else?
"Looking at the reaction, I guess you didn't know. I thought Mr. Rudger recognized Miss Sedina's peculiarity and hired her as his assistant."
"I chose her purely based on ability."
"I see. Besides, looking at Miss Sedina's reaction, I think it's fun to work with Mr. Rudger."
She's having fun?
Rudger wanted to refute that it was not to that extent but he was going to listen to Vierano's story for now.
"So what is the peculiarity of Assistant Sedina?"
"It's weird to say this where she's not present."
Vierano, who had hesitated a little, sighed slightly.
"It doesn't matter if you know Mr. Rudger. There must be a good reason for her to trust and follow you."
When he said that, Rudger got interested and listened to Vierano without saying a word.
"Didn't you ever feel that it's strange? Why weren't there any rumors about such an outstanding child so far?"
"It's just."
Didn't she hide on purpose because she was a member of the Black Dawn Society?
"Then I'll ask you something else. Why do you think Miss Sedina is hiding her ears while growing her hair like that?"
"……."
An act of deliberately concealing oneself, a hostile disposition against her family and the contact with Vierano, an elf. He felt like the pieces of the puzzle scattered in his head were being put together in an instant.
"Don't tell me…"
Vierano nodded.
"Yes, Sedina Rosen has the blood of an elf. More exactly she's half elf."
* * *
Rudger nodded slowly at Vierano's explanation.
"That's amazing."
"……I don't think you're very surprised. Did you happen to know that?"
"……."
'What are you talking about? I was really surprised.'
To be honest, he thought he was confident that he could accept anything, but he was a little surprised that Sedina was a half-elf, although Vierano didn't seem to believe him.
'But if she really has elf blood then her behavior makes sense.'
Her hairstyle that covers her ears and her unusual magic derived from plant attributes like paper magic make sense now.
"Half-Elf."
A Half-Elf is literally a mixture of humans and elves. Considering that Rosen is her last name, her father is human and her mother is an elf.
However, if Sedina would be asked if she was born because her parents loved each other her answer would be no. In this day and age, it's hard to accept the existence of 'mixed-race' in a positive way.
"Is that why Mr. Vierano asked Assistant Sedina to work for him?"
"Yes. She has elf blood like me and if she were caught and brought somewhere, I would come forward and help her."
"What do you mean?"
"I was going to get her out of the Rosen family and show her where our elves live."
It was amazing that he considered bringing a half-elf to the elves' village.
"You look surprised. It's been a long time since the war ended, but not for a long-lived race like the Elves and the Suins."
Rudger nodded, too.
It was almost half a century ago that science developed and many things appeared in this world. In fact, from the perspective of modern people in the 21st century, there were still many human rights issues.
It's still like that now but it was worse in the past.
The race war that took place during the days humans were enslaving and capturing other races was a long time ago.
Now, a long time after the war, people don't remember that time and the main culprits of the war were gone but will it be the same for other races?
There are still many races who hate humans because they cannot forget the scars of war. As a result, a mixed race being cannot naturally be seen as good because it reminded them of the war.
''Considering that the Rosen family is not a place where good rumors are heard. The birth of Sedina could be…….'
From a slave and the humans desire to make a better bloodline.
'This is difficult.'
He just discovered that his assistant was a half-elf.
"I'm sure Mr. Rudger knows about the persecution of mixed blood in history."
"Yes."
"So I'll ask Mr. Rudger for help, shamelessly. Would you please persuade Miss Sedina?"
Vierano seriously asked for help and Rudger felt his pure goodwill towards Sedina.
He agonized over the answer but in the end he said.
"I'm sorry, but that's not possible."