Transmigration: I Made A Deal With A Man in Yellow

After the Duke left, the dinner also came to an end.

Arnold and Ana clearly weren’t happy about the family head denying Arnold’s request, but neither of them dared say anything about it.

Every wife eventually left with her children, except for Lucélia, whose child wasn’t currently in the estate.

Since I didn’t really want to talk to Yves’ mother, I was the first to leave.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get very far.

As I walked through the corridor outside the dining room, I heard a voice behind me.

"Yves."

I ignored it and continued walking as if I hadn’t heard anything.

"I know you can hear me."

I stopped.

I sighed before turning around.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Mother?"

Her heels clicked loudly against the marble floor as she walked toward me.

Her entire figure was dressed in black, blending almost perfectly with the obsidian marble walls and floors of the mansion. Combined with her pale skin, black hair, and dark makeup, she looked like she had stepped straight out of some gothic painting.

She stopped right in front of me and looked down.

She was at least 1.9 meters tall.

Almost every awakened woman in this world was tall as hell, so it was actually rare to see one who was short.

We simply stood there, staring at each other.

Purple eyes staring into purple eyes.

Mine were filled with coldness.

Hers were filled with amusement.

"My son... how have you been?"

Why was she asking that?

If she knew how badly Yves had suffered alone in that mansion, why bother asking?

"I’m doing better than ever, actually. Thanks for asking."

I paused and touched my chin as if I were thinking deeply.

"I think the last time you actually asked about my wellbeing was two years ago."

I smiled faintly.

"That was quite some time ago."

"Are you angry?"

The amusement never left her eyes.

"Angry?"

I shook my head.

"Maybe in the past, but not anymore. The time I spent in that mansion made me realize that I don’t have anyone but myself."

I stared directly into her eyes.

"And it’s funny because you were the only person I had in the past..."

My eyes narrowed.

"...and then you abandoned me simply because I didn’t fulfill your wishes."

Yversa clasped her hands behind her back.

She didn’t reply.

So I continued.

"But I guess I understand."

I tilted my head slightly.

"Your love and obsession with Father are greater than your love for me."

I paused.

"That is... if you ever loved me in the first place."

Yversa tilted her head to the side.

Her eyes moved toward the ceiling for a moment before returning to me.

"You say abandonment."

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

"I call it strategic thinking."

"What are you talking about?"

"My son, in order for someone to awaken, their Story Vessel must resonate with the narrative of the world. For that to happen, one must experience strong emotions capable of triggering such an event."

She began walking around me, looking me up and down.

"Despite you failing to awaken, which was incredibly disappointing because I had such big plans for you, I still didn’t give up."

She stopped behind me.

"After all, a master cannot simply give up on a tool without trying to fix it."

A tool?

My fingers curled into fists.

Those words made hatred rise inside me.

But [Calm Mind] immediately suppressed it, keeping my thoughts focused.

"Hah."

I ran my fingers through my hair.

"You sicken me."

"What?"

She stopped beside me.

"Aren’t children supposed to obey their parents? It doesn’t sound completely wrong to call you a tool."

She smiled.

"The third wife does the same with her children."

This woman was crazy.

How could she casually call her own son a tool?

And the worst part?

She didn’t even feel remorse.

"So, where was I?"

She paused before continuing.

"Oh, right."

Her smile widened.

"I stopped talking to you on purpose. I ignored the letters you sent me, and since you couldn’t come to the estate to see me, everything worked out perfectly."

She looked at me.

"I made sure you became emotionally miserable and isolated."

My expression remained cold.

"I even paid some of the knights assigned to you to bully you."

She giggled softly.

"Maybe, just maybe, you would somehow awaken."

She raised her hand.

Her nails were painted black.

The back of her hand gently touched my left cheek.

Her skin was cold.

Far too cold.

"Ah."

I smiled sharply.

"So it was you who made those knights treat me like shit?"

"Yes."

She didn’t even hesitate.

"Even some of the maids."

Her expression remained completely calm.

"Unfortunately, not all the knights accepted my offer."

I could already guess which ones she had bribed.

Some of the knights I had killed after awakening were probably among them.

The more I listened to her, the more disgust I felt.

I was just glad...

Glad that the real Yves didn’t have to hear any of this.

I didn’t know what it would have done to him.

"I thought maybe my son wouldn’t be completely useless and would somehow awaken."

She pulled her hand away.

"But you disappointed me again."

Her voice remained calm.

"It was so frustrating, you know?"

Her calm aura suddenly shifted into something colder.

"All the other wives’ children were doing well. They were awakening amazing powers and becoming stronger."

Her eyes narrowed.

"But my son was the exception."

She stared directly into my eyes.

"Do you know how that made me feel?"

I frowned.

"I don’t care. You still didn’t have—"

"Shut up, son."

She placed one finger against my lips.

"Mommy is talking."

I resisted the urge to bite her finger off.

"I was already disliked for being a concubine."

Her expression became colder.

"And then I became even more disliked because I had given birth to the first child in Laurent family history who failed to awaken."

The anger in her eyes suddenly disappeared.

Her expression became calm again.

The way she switched between emotions with such precise control was disturbing.

I almost wondered if she was some kind of emotion manipulator herself.

"But I’m a strong woman."

She walked toward one of the enormous windows where the moonlight was shining the brightest and looked outside.

"So I got through it."

My eyes never left her.

"Since you wouldn’t awaken, I decided to give you one more chance."

"A chance?"

I asked with a frown.

"Yes."

She turned around.

"I decided to hire someone to kill you."

She smiled.

The moonlight illuminated her face, making her purple eyes glow.

Ah.

This woman was batshit crazy.

"Don’t..."

My voice became quieter.

"Don’t tell me you were the one who ordered the maid."

Amusement washed over her face.

Her smile widened.

"That’s correct, my son."

It suddenly made sense.

Yves’ death in the river.

At first, I thought the maid had simply grown tired of dealing with Yves and decided to mess with him because the servants didn’t respect him.

But that didn’t make sense.

No one was supposed to harm a Laurent child.

Which raised another question.

Why hadn’t Ezio saved Yves?

There were so many things that didn’t make sense.

But one thing was becoming painfully clear.

This woman wasn’t a mother.

She was a monster.

She probably thought her plan had worked.

But no.

She had killed her own child.

And I was the one who had taken his place.

It was sick.

I detested it.

I couldn’t help it.

My heart became even colder.

"Haha."

I laughed, but there wasn’t a trace of humor in my voice.

"So you were the one who ordered her to kill me."

I stared into her eyes.

"You’re a cruel mother."

"Sometimes the biggest sacrifices require the strongest choices."

I’m sorry, Yves.

But this woman never loved you.

You were just a tool to her.

"So what if I didn’t awaken?"

I asked.

"You would’ve died."

She answered instantly.

"And I would have simply made another child."

She shrugged.

"It’s not difficult."

God.

Whatever was stopping me from deactivating [Calm Mind] and attacking her right here and now deserved to be praised.

I wanted to kill her.

I genuinely wanted to.

"But thankfully, you’ve awakened."

She smiled.

"So I didn’t really have to modify my plans."

She sighed.

"The annoying thing was that I never heard from the maid or the knights afterward."

My eyes, which had been lowered, slowly lifted toward her.

"That’s because I killed them as soon as I awakened."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?"

Her smile returned.

"So you’ve killed someone before?"

She looked genuinely interested.

"How interesting."

She chuckled.

"I guess you’re really my son."

"No."

I replied coldly.

"I’m not your son."

She shrugged.

"A tool or a son."

She walked back toward me.

"It’s the same thing."

She reached out and brushed the white strands of hair away from my face, tucking them behind my ear with her cold fingers.

"So, what powers have you awakened?"

She smiled.

"I’m not telling you that."

She rolled her eyes.

"It’s not like I’m not going to see them tomorrow anyway."

Before I could react, her arms wrapped around me.

She pulled my head against her chest.

I immediately tried to pull away.

But she was stronger than me.

Instead of feeling warmth from her body, I felt only coldness.

It wasn’t the same cold as Sister Friede’s frost.

This was different.

A strange, unnatural coldness that made my skin crawl.

"I expect a lot of things from you."

She whispered directly into my ear.

Then she kissed my forehead.

She finally pulled away and released me.

"Have a great night, my son."

She turned around.

"Tomorrow is a big day."

I simply stood there.

I watched her back slowly disappear down the corridor.

The clicking of her heels gradually faded into the distance.

And the single thought that was going inside my head was that...

She was...

A monster.