episode_0128

The sun rises.

As I stared blankly at the dawn coming through the window, I rested my forehead against my pounding head and sighed.

Changing my mindset didn’t make my worries go away, so I ended up spending the night with my eyes wide open.

“Phew… … .”

The good news was that, like yesterday, today was the weekend, so there were no classes.

If today were a weekday, I probably would have been distracted throughout class.

I sighed softly, looked at Hermel who was still sleeping, and quietly stood up.

It’s going to be busy today. You can’t sit around just because you’re tired.

“… … .”

I took the letter out of my pocket, put it on the desk, and stood in front of the closet to go out.

The clothes I spent the night before still had a faint trace of yesterday’s heat, but I changed my clothes without hesitation.

After changing into appropriate clothes, I sat down at my desk, slightly melted the sealing wax sealing the letter, and then tore it off leaving no trace.

[Dear Priscilla]

The first thing I saw when I took it out of the envelope was Priscilla’s name written in her mother’s elegant handwriting.

After confirming that it was a letter from my mother to Priscilla, I immediately took out the letter and checked its contents.

The content of the letter started with a light greeting, then the main body of the letter along with the reason for sending the letter, and finally ended with an apology for sending the letter so unexpectedly.

What was important here was, of course, the main topic.

[He seems to be very sick these days. Without having to say which one it is, the body and mind are everything.]

[Recently, the frequency of him looking for wine has increased a lot. I felt like he was drinking too much than I thought, so I suggested he cut down on his drinking, but he only said he would find out on the spot.]

[So, when I went out for a night walk with him and we were alone, we talked about it one more time. For the sake of your health, it would be a good idea to refrain from drinking alcohol. He looked at me quietly, and I thought he meant it in the affirmative, but… … . It was my mistake. He spewed out incomprehensible words and struck with his hands for the first time. And I… … . no. This story would be too long to write in a letter.]

[And a few days after that day, he collapsed. I… … . I hid my alcohol. I vaguely knew that drinking was a problem, but I didn’t know it would be to the point of collapsing. I was so surprised that I gave the drink back… … . I wrote this letter because I didn’t think it should stay like this.]

[I know what you will say when you receive this letter. It’s okay if you mock me and call me stupid. It’s okay to laugh at me for being ugly. So, let me ask you a favor. Can’t you help me just this once? Out of consideration for the sisterly bond, I ask you to help me just this once.]

It was written in detail and at length, but that was the conclusion.

My husband seems crazy, please help me. Is it too much of a leap? Well, it’s not exact, but it’s similar so it’s okay.

This is the main point, but what caught my attention the most in this long letter was the following content.

[If you are willing to help me, dig under the tree where you and I had a picnic that day. Because I buried the same wine that he drinks there.]

I buried the same wine he was drinking――ra.

There is no way my mother came to the academy. Of course, it means that someone was asked to do it. If so, who ordered it?

“Ha.”

It’s obvious even if you don’t look at it.

okay. There is no way for a traumatized person to end up just shrugging their shoulders in front of the cause of the trauma.

I thought there might be something to believe in the fact that he looked more normal than I expected, but I never would have guessed that he was doing such a shameful thing behind my back.

“Umm… … .”

I shivered at the sound of Hermel talking in his sleep from behind me, so I decided to take care of the letter first and picked up the pen and put it down again.

“… … Just a little bit of work will be enough.”

When I thought about it, it was something I didn’t really need to touch, so I dropped a few drops of water on the letter, folded it again, and sealed it with new sealing wax.

Then he put the letter in his arms and got up. The sun had not yet risen over the ridge, but I decided to hurry up a bit since I had a place to stop by before handing Priscilla the letter.

Before going out, I stopped in front of the door for a moment. I quietly looked at the door, opened it, and came out.

Because now there was no reason to look back anymore.

* * *

Again, again.

Early moning. As I was walking down the empty hallway to wake up Mia, I suddenly looked out the window.

After looking at the early morning sunlight illuminating the entire world evenly as dawn rose, I let out a small sigh and started walking again.

‘If this thing goes well, we’ll definitely be able to go back to how it was before… … . Things may become more difficult than they are now, but at least you won’t have to worry about living like you do now.’

I hoped for too much. I wanted something that was more than enough.

At that time, I thought that if I just persevered for a few years, I would be able to rise to a higher level. Because I’ve already done enough dirty things.

But it didn’t take long to realize that it was all an illusion.

‘Why are you bothering me? Umm… … . just?’

A sickening level of malice despite having lived in a slum. I ended up seeing pure evil that was completely different from what I had seen while living in a brothel.

By the time I caught sight of it, it was already too late to pull out. As a result, I came to live with the fear of not knowing when I would die.

I shuddered at the sight of red hair fluttering before my eyes and shook my head.

“It’s okay… … . It will be fine… … .”

There is no perfection in the world. I can say this with confidence because I have seen many people. Everyone has a ‘gap’, no matter how big or small.

Charlotte, even that evil woman has her flaws. His relationship with the princess he saw recently, his vulnerable appearance from time to time, etc. Even though she is purely crazy, she is also a human being who cannot help it.

And this engraving serves as proof of that.

‘――If you betray me, lie to me, or spread my secret to others, you will automatically find out, your internal organs will slowly twist, and then you will explode.’

The standard for betrayal is extremely subjective. After observing for a long time, I realized that although I am not sure exactly what the standard for betrayal is for this imprint, it is quite lenient.

That’s why I was able to do what the Duchess asked me to do.

As I walked down the hallway, I recalled the contents of the letter the Duchess had separately given me.

[Mel. Do not show this letter to anyone, and burn it the moment you read it. And please be sure to keep the contents of this letter confidential no matter what happens.]

[I really, really don’t want to believe it, but… … . Not long ago, I realized that he started acting weird after drinking the wine Charles sent him.]

[If you were a competent servant in another family and were evaluated as such, you would have understood what I meant by just saying this.]

[Please bury the wine sent with this letter under the largest tree inside the academy’s female dormitory. and–]

After continuing to think for a while, I let out a small sigh and walked back down the long hallway.

The fact that the imprint is not activated even though I have completed what the Duchess asked me to do is not considered a betrayal if I am doing it with someone else’s will rather than my own.

And the lie was too simple. All you had to do was literally not lie.

of course… … . The moment I change my mind, she notices it like a ghost and starts questioning me. At least it’s been fine so far, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

‘More than anything, if this ends well, we will definitely be able to go back to how it was before… … . Things may become more difficult than they are now, but at least you won’t have to worry about living like you do now.’

After stopping for a moment, I started walking down the long hallway again.

Telling that evil woman’s secret to someone? Just thinking about it makes me shiver, but I can’t believe I’m telling it to someone. This is nonsense.

Above all, saying that in itself is the same as going around bragging about my evil deeds, but would I be crazy enough to do such a thing?

“Ha… … .”

After finishing my long thought, I looked down at the laundry basket in my hand.

Inside the laundry basket were Mia’s maid uniform and bedding.

‘First, let’s get out of this kingdom. Since we have quite a bit of money saved up until now, there is enough money for three people to ride in the carriage. And from there, forget everything and start anew. Just like now, let go of all useless greed for power. With Mia――’

for a moment… … .

‘Laundry basket?’

I was definitely going to wake up Mia… … ?

As I looked down at the laundry basket, I blinked blankly.

In the split second I closed my eyes and opened them, there was nothing in my hands. When I looked up, there was no long hallway.

I was standing blankly in the same place from the beginning, not moving a single step from where I was looking out the window.

“Ah… … ?”

The eunuch lowered his head in a daze, and what he saw beyond the window was――

Under the shade of the tree on the first floor, it was the face of Lady Charlotte, looking directly in my direction and smiling.