Chapter 107: She is My Daughter

I had thought about it once.

If someone like me, who had built a significant presence in society, suddenly went missing, it would at least stir up considerable gossip, even if it weren’t an urgent matter.

Yet, strangely enough, no news reached me. It was as if no one cared about my disappearance.

And today, I finally understood why.

“The main culprit who tried to poison the Saintess is none other than you, Tina!”

A young lady I didn’t even know glared at me sharply as she spat out those words. Her accusation, piercing like a dagger, lingered in my mind, refusing to leave.

“No, that’s not true! The one who poisoned the Saintess was Mardian…”

“Spare us your filthy excuses. Everything has already been revealed by Mardian and the Saintess’s testimonies. There’s even evidence.”

“W-What…?”

Mardian’s testimony?

I was certain Mardian had been dealt with by Viviana. Could it be… Viviana had deceived me?

If rumors that I poisoned the Saintess had spread, then everything that had happened made sense. The fact that no one cared about my disappearance, the beating I took from a commoner in an alley earlier, and even the hateful gaze this young lady now directed at me.

Poisoning the Saintess. That was a grave crime, one punishable by more than just execution. Lillian must have used it as leverage to claim control over my life—or perhaps to bind me in some other humiliating way.

If that’s the case, then standing here in the streets of this empire, I’m the target of universal scorn, from commoners to nobles alike.

My chest tightened, and anxiety made my eyes tremble. I stepped back a few paces, scanning my surroundings.

Until now, I hadn’t noticed, but the gazes of people passing by in the imperial streets were gradually fixing on me.

“Huh? Isn’t that young lady…”

“…Dear, isn’t she that woman?”

“She looks like it.”

Ordinarily, my striking appearance would draw attention. But at this moment, it was a curse.

The contemptuous stares closing in on me, carrying sharp judgment and disgust, weighed me down.

I shrank under their pressure, making myself as small as possible.

‘I need to run. I need to escape.’

It was the only thought that crossed my mind.

I was wrong.

Here in this empire, no one would help me anymore. Even Lady Charione and Lady Versha, who once cared for me, would not welcome me as I am now.

People were gathering one by one, looking at me as if I were some spectacle. Some stared at me with curiosity, as though witnessing something extraordinary, while others filled their eyes with disdain and hatred.

I had to escape.

I turned, ready to flee without hesitation, but even the path behind me was already blocked by people. They watched me, whispering among themselves, keeping their distance yet throwing unwanted attention my way.

Desperately, I glanced left and right, but by then, the crowd had completely encircled me. Their gazes ensnared me like the predatory eyes of beasts cornering their prey.

“Haah… huff…”

Surrounded by countless people, my breath grew increasingly labored.

A crushing sense of helplessness pressed against my chest. It was as if I had become a monkey in a zoo, suffocated by their gazes and mocking words.

“Hey, isn’t that really the murderer?”

“How can they walk around so shamelessly like that?”

“Isn’t this… an escape? Shouldn’t we report this to the guards?”

The more the accusations poured over me, the more violently my heart trembled.

I didn’t want to hear it. I wanted to block my ears immediately—no, rip them off if it meant I could escape this noise.

I desperately tried to find an answer in my mind, but only anger and resentment tangled together, fueling the flames in my chest.

‘In the past, these people would have been desperate to catch even a glance from me!’

The very people who had blindly believed the rumors I spread about Lillian and harshly criticized her as a saint were now exalting Lillian and working to drive me out.

Their ability to flip their stance as easily as turning a hand over disgusted me. The seething hatred rising within me made me feel like I might vomit at any moment.

But I held back. Watching someone fall from grace was likely the most entertaining spectacle for the masses. No matter how cornered I was, I refused to give these people the satisfaction of such a show.

“Excuse me.”

A rough voice cut through the crowd. A man who appeared to be a guard pushed his way through and approached me. His gaze was already filled with suspicion and wariness.

He stared at me intently before extending his hand and speaking.

“I’m sorry, but please come with me to the guard post—”

“Don’t touch me!”

I slapped the guard’s hand away violently and stumbled backward.

His eyes narrowed. A mixture of disdain and vigilance pierced through me. But it wasn’t just him. Everyone around me was glaring at me with faces full of disgust.

Standing at the edge of a cliff, they relentlessly pushed me further with their endless scorn.

“You… just NPCs in a damn game…!”

I couldn’t breathe.

Why did I have to endure this humiliation?

All I wanted was to see my mother. The only person who treated me as family, unlike these people, consumed by lust and desire.

Yes, maybe I should just ask them to kill me.

They seemed to hate me anyway, so if I asked them to release this leash and kill me, they’d probably be happy to oblige. Then, I wouldn’t have to endure this shame any longer—

Crash!

“Ugh?!”

A sharp pain accompanied by a metallic taste shot through my head. The next moment, I collapsed powerlessly, my body sprawling across the ground.

Something warm flowed from my head, soaking the ground. What fell in front of my crumbling vision was a fist-sized rock. I blinked blankly, staring at the pool of my blood gathering on the floor.

Who could have thrown it? Searching for the culprit among the crowd surrounding me felt meaningless.

“Ah… it hurts.”

I murmured softly, carefully pressing the spot where the blood was coming from. Strangely enough, the collar around my neck began to emit a faint glow, and in an instant, the wound on my head healed.

“You witch of a woman!”

“Take her away already. I can’t stand to look at her.”

“Stop resisting and come with us.”

The guard looked down at me with a mocking gaze.

Aren’t you supposed to be a protector of the Empire’s peace? Even though someone threw a rock at me, all you do is ridicule me.

“Hah… huh… huff…”

I struggled to breathe. It felt like the collar around my neck was tightening, refusing to let me take a single breath.

As oxygen became scarce, my mind began to numb. Beyond my blurring vision, the jeers and laughter of the crowd pierced my chest like icy daggers.

Even the thought of wanting to die vanished. All I wanted now was to escape this place.

“Don’t… don’t come closer! Stay away!”

I waved my hands desperately in the air, shouting at the void. It was the pitiful, final resistance of someone powerless and utterly helpless.

The guard looked at me with disdain and extended a hand. As the rough hand loomed closer, I instinctively closed my eyes tight and curled into myself.

Thud—

But what enveloped me wasn’t a cold, coarse touch. It wasn’t the rough hand of a man, but a warm embrace carrying a faint jasmine scent.

The soft sensation that cradled my face like a cushion made my eyes widen in shock. In my now open view, a familiar curve appeared.

“Are you all insane?!”

A sharp and resolute voice cut through the air, silencing the noisy crowd in an instant.

The voice that reached my ears made my heart pound instinctively.

It was a voice I couldn’t fail to recognize.

I hurriedly lifted my face buried in the warm chest to confirm its owner.

There stood a familiar face, one that had lingered only in my distant memories.

White hair gleaming like mine, a dignified figure unchanged by the passing years. So familiar, yet impossibly far away.

She had become much thinner than before. The moment I saw her haggard face, I instinctively grabbed her hand.

“Uh… Mom… Ah, Artasha…”

I couldn’t fathom how difficult it was to utter those few words.

“Do you think it’s acceptable to act this way in the heart of the Empire?”

Artasha pulled me even closer into her embrace and glared sharply at the people around us.

The guard, looking flustered, hurriedly spoke to her.

“Excuse me, are you perhaps a foreigner? That young lady is a criminal who has committed a grave sin. There’s no need for you, my lady, to involve yourself like this—”

“She is under the care of the Saintess. Regardless of the circumstances, she should not be treated so carelessly.”

Artasha’s cold voice cut off the guard mid-sentence. He furrowed his brows, scratched his head awkwardly, and took a step back.

“It’s true that she’s a criminal who deserves execution. I cannot understand why you would shield such a person.”

There were a few people in the crowd who nodded in agreement with his words.

“May I ask if you are acquainted with this criminal?”

It was a question that would gain nothing if answered. To admit association with a criminal accused of poisoning the Saintess would be more than enough to ruin one’s reputation.

Yet, Artasha showed no sign of wavering. Instead, she buried my face deeper into her chest, as if whispering for me to stop looking and stop listening to everything around me.

Then, with me still in her arms, she slowly stood and faced the crowd.

“She is my daughter.”

Her voice carried no hesitation, not even a sliver of doubt.

My heart began to race violently.

“So, all of you, step aside.”

Artasha’s blue eyes remained as breathtaking as ever.