ITBF 12

Chapter 12

“I’m not that smitten. I’m just saying she’s exceptionally talented.”

“You’re probably getting invested because she’s talented, and you sponsored her and got to see her succeed.”

“Well, that’s true. I’m also worried she might get involved with that Tener bastard. I thought I’d cut him off, but I never expected him to cause such a huge mess.”

At Radius’s answer, Anima’s face twisted.

“Just from the way you talk about Mina, I can get a pretty good idea.”

“What idea?”

“Are you seriously asking because you don’t know?”

“I really don’t.”

“I smell the scent of some seriously creepy obsession.”

“Ha! What? I’m working to create a clean and proper theater culture. What obsession are you talking about?”

Anima narrowed her eyes at Radius.

“…Haven’t you been without a girlfriend for a while?”

It was a completely unexpected question.

“Why are you asking that? With all these things happening with my business, my father, and everything else, when would I even have time to date someone?”

“Leave the actress as an actress. If you date Mina, it’ll only hurt both of you.”

“Date her? What are you talking about? I’ve never even met her privately! Mina doesn’t even know I exist.”

Radius had even restrained himself whenever he wanted to watch Mina rehearse. He hadn’t even written her so much as an ordinary fan letter.

“I hope Mina never finds out you exist.”

“That’s exactly what I intend to do.”

Radius genuinely planned to keep it that way.

There was no need to pay attention to Anima’s pointless concerns.

He didn’t like Mina as a woman. He liked her as a good actress, an outstanding talent in the arts.

At least, that was what he thought.

But then the Central Metropolitan Hospital contacted him.

“What? What happened to my mother?”

“She was shot while participating in the recent naval operation and was urgently transferred to Central General Hospital.”

Radius felt as though all the blood had drained from his body.

‘Mother isn’t going to die like this, is she?’

While waiting for the surgery to end, his body trembled from the terrifying thoughts running through his mind.

Fortunately, Talassa had only been shot in the leg.

Radius thanked God over and over when he learned that her life was not in danger.

He had always regarded religious practice as little more than a social ritual of high society, but when he thought he might lose his mother, he found himself praying without even realizing it.

The surgery had gone well, but he was told that the injury to her leg was severe and that rehabilitation would take a long time.

She would be able to walk, but there was a possibility that she might limp or suffer from other complications. Having already imagined his mother dying, Radius could only feel grateful that she was alive and safe.

“I thought I might die this time, but I survived anyway. I guess I’m pretty hard to kill.”

Talassa said it with a laugh, and Radius felt a little exasperated.

“Mother, you really almost died. Do you realize that?”

“I did hurt my leg badly enough that I might actually be discharged from the military. Whew. Still, you know what? Our navy won.”

Talassa looked excited as she winked at him.

Radius was speechless.

“Is that really what’s important to you right now?”

“Victory is the most important thing. What else matters? Today, the waters of Idalya are safe thanks to the navy!”

Talassa raised her hand in a salute as she spoke.

Radius shook his head.

“I know you’re happy with your military life, but after something like this, I really can’t tell you to go back to the military. Find another hobby. Please. Yes, date someone. I don’t even care if he’s young, handsome, and a con artist.”

“What are you talking about? Hahaha.”

Radius thought it would be better for his mother to get scammed a little than for her to die.

“More importantly, Radi, what happened to Kevin? Didn’t Kevin get caught up in some kind of scam too?”

“Ah…”

Radius answered with a bitter smile.

“It wasn’t exactly a major scam. It seems Libor was having an affair. Unfortunately, the man was a male actor at Ornamentum, so Uncle Ramus was put in a difficult position. That actor won’t be allowed to perform on the Ornamentum stage anymore.”

“What? Someone could cheat on Kevin Ventura? Just how handsome is the other man?”

“He’s nothing special. Handsome, my ass.”

At Radius’s sulky response, Talassa chuckled.

“Anyway, it’s unfortunate for Kevin that Libor cheated on him, but I find it rather satisfying. Let’s see if Kevin will forgive Libor.”

“…Father says he can’t forgive her.”

Talassa burst into laughter at Radius’s answer, even shedding tears.

“I think you should just focus on your recovery, Mother.”

Talassa nodded enthusiastically at Radius’s gentle words.

“I’m almost sorry I can’t personally send my regards to Kevin!”

Perhaps because his mother had been seriously injured, Radius began thinking about marriage.

‘Should I get married? Getting married young and having children wouldn’t be so bad.’

The thought that a family member could suddenly leave this world frightened him.

A world without his mother.

Of course, there were Uncle Ramus and Aunt Sophia, as well as his cousins Lux and Anima. There was also his unreliable father, Kevin, and his half-sister, Alea…

But aside from his mother, was there anyone in this world who would put Radius first and love him above all else?

Many thoughts crossed his mind.

His parents’ marriage had been shattered when their trust was broken.

But it had all happened because of his father’s affair, so perhaps if Radius did his best, his own marriage might not turn out badly.

‘A woman who is devoted to her life like Mina might be nice.’

Mina came to mind, and Radius smiled before shaking his head.

Marriage was reality. He needed to weigh and consider all sorts of things.

It was best to simply like Mina as an actress who could sing and act well.

Radius settled his thoughts and planned to start looking into potential marriage partners, but then he received an invitation through the owner of the Ornamentum Theater.

“?”

“Miss Martinez specifically asked me to make sure this was delivered to you, Patron.”

What could this suddenly be about?

Radius opened the invitation right there.

It contained the following message in elegant handwriting.

To all the fans who have always supported me with warm eyes, I have prepared a small gathering to express my gratitude.

●A Meeting with Mina Martinez●

[Location]

Ornamentum Intersection

Seaside Live Pub

[Time]

8:00 p.m., the last Thursday of November

[Message]

Cocktails and finger foods will be prepared, and the background music will be songs by Mina Martinez.

I sincerely hope to meet you.

Mina Martinez

Radius doubted his own eyes.

Mina had invited him to meet her?

Radius carefully read it again.

“Miss Martinez said that she wanted to thank her fans for supporting her now that she has been cast as the lead, so she’s inviting a few fans to spend some time talking together.”

The theater owner smiled as he explained.

“She specifically wanted to invite the patron who secretly supported her this time, so she asked me to deliver this invitation.”

“…She doesn’t know that I’m the patron, does she?”

“Of course not. She simply wishes to send an invitation to the patron who has quietly supported her as a gesture of gratitude. You could send your secretary in your place. Miss Martinez certainly won’t expect the owner himself to attend.”

Hearing the theater owner say that, Radius instead felt that he should accept Mina’s invitation.

‘She won’t know if I pretend to be my own secretary, right?’

Radius had heard of patrons who invited individual actors out to dinner, but this was the first time he had heard of an actress inviting several fans to spend time chatting together.

“Do actors normally do things like this?”

“I was surprised myself when Miss Martinez suddenly said she wanted to do this. It seems she even rented the venue with her own money. I’ve never seen an actor arrange something like this before, so I’m not really sure.”

Radius tried not to get his hopes up.

In other words, he was so excited that he didn’t know what to do with himself.

Looking at the date, it was about two weeks after the final performance of Duke Kusakov.

Radius deliberately let his bangs fall messily so that he would look like a secretary. He ordered a pair of thick-rimmed glasses and had a suit made that was as plain and understated as possible.