Teren didn't try to hide from his son and daughter.
"Son, remember this day. Today, someone dared to poison Sarina and the head maid, right in front of our noses. We must engrave this humiliation in our hearts—they are simply not putting our Fang family in their eyes."
Lily's face contorted with worry as she looked towards her dad. "Dad, is Sarina going to be okay?"
Teren smiled slightly and said, "Of course, honey. Our trusty doctor, Meso, is here. With him here, Sarina will recover in no time."
Jinto's eyes widened as wrinkles grew on his forehead. He was in shock; he simply couldn't believe that someone was capable of such evil. His heart grew heavy as he looked at his father, then back at Sarina, whom he had known since childhood.
His hands slightly tensed up from the emotional waves that hit him, prompting Lily, who was holding his left arm, to cry out: "Ouch, Jinto, it hurts."
Jinto snapped back to his senses and looked down to see his cute sister's face, with a guilty look. "Sorry about that."
"Big brother, you'll have to make it up… Ahh!"
Before the cheeky girl could finish her sentence, Jinto let go of the hand holding her and lifted her up with both of his hands in a swift motion, prompting her to exclaim in shock.
Holding her in his arms, he smiled and approached Teren and the rest. Getting closer, he saw as a black thick liquid flowed out of Sarina's arm and into a bucket placed on the floor.
"Good morning, father, uncle, and cousin. I apologize for suddenly intruding in."
Ralliere gathered his hands at his lower back. "There's no need to. This matter concerns the whole family."
Marleo responded to Jinto's greeting with a slight nod.
"I guess he's still a man of few words…" Jinto thought playfully.
With the feeling of being wronged, Jinto looked towards his father's direction. "Do we know who committed this?"
"You probably know who."
Jinto gritted his teeth, his face growing bitter by the second. "But why do this?"
As a young lad, Jinto hadn't experienced the harshness and coldness of the world. As of now, he was a delicate plant in a greenhouse, one that hadn't seen how harsh the winds could be. He didn't understand why somebody would go through such extreme means to hurt someone.
Teren knew of this; the reason he didn't sugarcoat the situation was because he wanted his son and daughter to experience firsthand how cruel the world could be. The same was going to be said to his niece and nephew.
"Son, the world isn't as colorful as one may think. I too once didn't understand the need to commit such deeds. There are those who are willing to harm others if it means to accomplish their goals. Today you've seen it firsthand, and it won't be the last."
Jinto's eyes dropped. He felt that Sarina was heavily wronged. He couldn't imagine what she was going through as of now.
"Father, I still can't comprehend it. What have the head maid and Sarina done to go through this?"
Teren placed his hand on Jinto's shoulder. "They didn't do anything, Jinto. You're right to feel wronged. What they've done is simply inexcusable. It is important to recognize these feelings of injustice, but also to know how the world works."
"Those scoundrels should pay!" Lily blurted out her unfiltered thoughts.
Teren smiled whilst looking at his daughter. "One day, karma will implicate them for this day."
Lily nodded enthusiastically. Her play partner, who she had played with, and the matron who had looked over her ever since she could remember, fell ill due to evildoers. And for that, they must pay!
"Father, does the clan know about this? We should seek justice!"
Teren truly let out a sigh deep within his heart. Jinto was too young and clueless. The clan? What about the clan? They wouldn't even bat an eye at this incident.
"Nephew, the clan wouldn't expend their resources after this case." Ralliere joined in the conversation in order to teach his ignorant nephew.
Jinto raised his eyebrows in confusion. "Why?"
Ralliere closed his eyes and explained sternly. "For good or for bad, our Spring clan status is too distinct to a mortal's status. Only affairs that affect clan members would gather the interest of the clan. Regretfully, we can only watch as the Jotos do as they wish."
This dump of information attacked both Lily's and Jinto's moods.
Jinto's eyes lowered even further. "Oh, I see…"
He had always known that mortals and Spring clan members were of different status. He had always known about it, but never had given it much thought until today. He didn't know that their statuses would be so vastly different, so much so that they were overlooked by the clan as if they weren't human.
From his uncle's words, he understood that even if they found the perpetrator, there was no way to persecute the person. Jinto was quite astute, and without it needing to be said, he understood that making this incident public or clinging to it would make the family look bad in the eyes of the clan.
Jinto muttered mentally. "But still… I cannot accept it."
It would take some time for Jinto to swallow this reality of the world.
Teren looked in front, seeing Sarina's sorry state. His commanding voice resounded: "Even if the clan won't do anything, it doesn't mean that we don't have our own means and ways. As long as a righteous excuse exists, we can take them down! We shall remember this moment when they had chosen to look down at us and play with us right in front of our eyes. Jinto, Lily, this is just a small glimpse of the world. Remember the injustice, frustration, and apprehension of today in order to pay it back tenfold!"
The son and daughter pair exclaimed simultaneously. "Yes, father!"
Finally, the black thick-like consistency in Sarina's arm fully reached its end. The bucket was now filled with a little mixture mixture of scarlet blood and blackening liquid, creating quite a contrast between the two.
Sarina was now fully alleviated from all her pain. As of now, she felt a wave of tiredness wash over her; what she needed now was to rest and restore her body to its optimal state.
She opened her eyes slowly to see to her right an old gentleman with a severely receding hairline sitting next to her.
"Good, your treatment has been concluded. All you should do now is rest your body until you feel like your usual self." While he talked, he lightly pressed on Sarina's arm, where he had made the incision and healed her, so that blood no longer flowed.
Sarina looked around hazily for a moment before nodding solemnly. "Yes, Master Doctor."
With that said, Meso got up from his seat, grabbed the bucket, and said, "This one here is done. I shall excuse myself to heal the other patient."
Ralliere: "Alright."
Before he could go any further, Ralliere, with a flick of his hand, made a pouch full of mana stones appear out of thin air. He then threw it at Meso.
With his free hand, Meso caught the bag, before it disappeared again in his hands, having it stored in his ring. Meso then headed towards the matron's room, which connected to the hall.
He had paid him his fill for the job on the spot.
The Fang family and Meso had close collaboration throughout the years, it was fine for him to hear their conversation. He was quite trustworthy, and held some value within the family itself. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been called here at all.
Seeing Sarina regaining a bit of her strength, Teren was the first to speak up: "Sarina, how are you shaping up?"
Sarina tried to sit up straight to face her master. With her low mobility, she barely sat up on the sofa and said, "Master Teren, I'm feeling just fine… I feel exhausted as of now." She replied sincerely.
"No need for you to take on your duties. Rest first and take a break. When you feel ready, you can resume your duties." Teren was lenient towards Sarina, for it wasn't her fault she was implicated in a poisoning accident.
If only he knew that Sarina was the mastermind behind this ordeal and had twistily made herself appear like a pitiful victim. His face would turn extremely ugly.
Sarina gave a genuine smile whilst she expressed her thanks. "Thank you, master."
He continued: "It was a grave mistake on our part for letting you get to this state. We will compensate you as an apology."
She was ready to accept the gift with a smile on her face. It wouldn't fit someone who was just poisoned to resist any compensation; resisting in this case would come off as abnormal.
With a slight bow of the head, she responded: "If master wants to, I'll be glad to accept the gift."
"Can you move on your own?" Teren asked her not because he didn't know if she could, but because he wanted her to go to her private quarters.
Sarina tried to move her body; her body felt like she was stuck in glue. She could only move at a slow, disoriented pace.
Sarina gave a helpless smile as she looked at the group in front of her. "Haha, it seems I may need some help."
Lily spoke with enthusiasm. "I'll help you too, big sister Sarina."
She then looked at her brother, who was holding as in to say to help her too.
Jinto understood what his little sister gave him and approached Sarina, letting go of Lily from his hands.
"Let me offer some help."
He wrapped her left arm onto his shoulder and helped her get up.
As he did this, Lily picked up the heated towel Sarina had on her forehead, which was now on her lap due to her sitting up, and held her right hand once she was standing with the help of Jinto.
…
Meso had finished treating the matron. Once he finished, he inspected the other two maids, Lisa and Kylina, to see if there were any issues. Once he confirmed that there weren't, he made his way back.
It took him about twenty minutes to heal the two patients.
But before he could leave, he turned towards Ralliere and Marleo, who were present. "I'll keep an eye out for that seller to see if there are any underlying issues. With my forces, it should be fine." Meso was a member of the medical hall of the clan. The forces themselves, having no connection to the Fangs, he could command his subordinates to interrogate the target if he suspected the seller of selling malicious goods.
Ralliere quipped with slight amusement. "Bastard, is this why you charged so much for healing just mortals?"
Meso: "Hehe."
"Great, I'll be counting on you then." Teren expressed his thanks.
Meso nodded, turned back, and left through the main door.
…
After conversing for a while, Marleo decided to leave as well.
…
The Fang household had seen their two guests out.
Ralliere and Teren decided it was best to wake up the children. They were going to wake up soon enough, and they had their own business to get back to. They gathered them and retold what had happened whilst they were resting.
"How dare they do this right out in the open like this!" Paul clenched his fist as he thought of the danger that Sarina and the matron could've possibly been in if help wasn't reached promptly.
Melissa sighed regretfully. "Even more, we can't do anything about it."
This piece of news was quite a thorn in her heart. For a good chunk of her life, she had known Lisa and the rest, and seeing them being harmed didn't sit well with her. She wanted the culprit to suffer the same fate.
Paul's brows furrowed even deeper.
"Those bastards are truly heartless. I swear I won't forget this moment!" Paul thought to himself.
These two, for the first time in their lives, felt impotent. They felt wronged, but they couldn't do anything about it. For the first time, they thought critically about their Spring bloodline status and how cruel the clan could be to abandon the mortals under them.
All in all, Teren thought that this incident came with its benefits. The young generation of the family saw how clan politics incurred schemes against benefits, and the lengths people could go to in order for it. If used well, the trio can use this as a learning opportunity to adapt to the harsh environment of the world.
"When fierce winds grow to ravage a plant, only then can it grow roots in order to further increase its foundation and grow stronger as a result." Teren muttered internally.
With the situation at its end, Teren and Ralliere bid farewell to the children. They had business and discussions to be held.
As they left, they discussed possible measures to prevent another situation like this from happening. Hiring guards? Strengthening the array? An investigative array designed for food? The two failed to find a way. They realized that as long as the maids were tied with the Fang family, enemies would implicate them in one way or another. Killing them outright was an option that could be taken, so no matter what they did, the maids' fate was bound to the family. They were just glad that this time it didn't result in such a drastic measure committed by the culprit.
As for their own safety and the children, they weren't worried. Throughout history, the number of times murder was committed inside the estate could be counted on one hand. No one would dare harm another Spring clan member right in front of the council of elders.
…
The young Fang trio found themselves at the dinner table. After getting the side of the story from the maids, they felt their agitation rise. Lisa's and Kylina's point of view brought forth all the emotions of desperation and fear they felt at the moment. The trio truly pitied the maids for being mortals almost at the claws of death. They gave them their condolences and sat at the table to eat what was prepared before their day at the academy.
Lisa and Kylina, despite the situation, still completed their duties, but the trio had lost their appetite due to the solemn mood they found themselves in.
Nobody talked in the room; only silence plagued the table. They stared at their full plates. Jinto tried to pick food with his utensil but ultimately couldn't, placing the utensil down on the plate, causing a ting sound that strongly reverberated across the empty, silent room.
After a while, Jinto grew tired of the silence of the room, proposing: "So… should we find out firsthand if it had anything to do with that sorry bastard?"