episode_0003

“This is where I stake my life, and I will certainly protect it!”

After entrusting the bedroom to Glentino,

I secretly escaped from the prince’s palace.

Glentino Gerund.

Certainly, he was not a trustworthy person.

But no matter what kind of person he was, when faced with death, things change.

By any means necessary, I will keep the secret.

Leaving the prince’s palace behind, I headed towards the main gate.

My steps were light as feathers.

There wasn’t a single cloud in the blue sky.

The pond in front of the prince’s palace shimmered brilliantly with dazzling dew.

It had only been a week.

Just that alone.

It was enough time for spring to ripen.

The slightly cool breeze from just a few days ago now felt as warm as the breath of life.

The trees planted along the road had suddenly begun to dress in fresh greenery.

Even on the blossoming yellow flowers scattered everywhere,

bees buzzed busily, diligently sucking sweet nectar.

Everything around was alive with spring.

The refreshing scent lingering at the tip of my nose and the faint green covering the palace vividly depicted the traces of spring.

Of course, it was still early in the morning.

Apart from the soldiers guarding the palace,

there weren’t many people wandering around.

Then,

I came across two noisy maids walking leisurely.

“His Highness the Crown Prince seems really handsome.”

“Oh, come on, the exiled prince looks much better.”

“But his personality is in shambles over there.”

“I prefer that, you know? I mean, I’m more attracted to bad guys.”

“Oh, you crazy girl. Don’t go meeting those kinds of men and end up crying after getting slapped.”

They exchanged bold words back and forth,

and as I walked past them, I sang more cheerfully than a lark, smiling brightly.

Of course,

No one could recognize me since I had already made myself transparent.

Then, as I was about to step out of the main gate, captivated by the sight outside the palace, I unexpectedly ran into the captain of the palace knights.

I was so startled that for a moment, my heart seemed to stop.

A scream even rose in my throat, but thankfully, Aqua blocked the sound.

Just before colliding with the captain of the knights, I quickly sidestepped.

It was truly a close call.

He, too, was a person of the empress.

If his identity were exposed, it would have been troublesome.

His life might have been in danger.

Fortunately, he seemed to have relaxed and avoided getting caught, but still, I couldn’t even let out a sigh of relief.

“…!”

The crisis was still ongoing.

How vast this palace was.

Just by barely stepping outside the main gate, his mana was almost depleted.

If he had known, he should have hurried a bit more.

At this rate, before long, his mana would be completely exhausted.

It could be seen as a life-threatening crisis to faint right in front of the palace.

I quickly changed direction.

I had turned 180 degrees toward the center of the palace.

Then, I swiftly released my transparency.

Luckily, my identity wasn’t revealed due to the hood I had put on in advance.

However, the gaze of the guards who had discovered me late was filled with deep suspicion.

Considering my current appearance, it was a natural reaction.

Covered in a black cloak that enveloped my whole body, with the hood pulled down to shadow my face.

It was undoubtedly a suspicious sight.

Unbeknownst to me, I had rapidly approached them, so they were understandably on edge.

One thing was certain.

Among them, there would undoubtedly be the eyes of the empress.

Perhaps at the moment my identity is revealed, it will immediately reach the ears of the empress.

And if that happens.

In the end, there was no doubt that my life would be in imminent danger at some point.

But there’s no need to worry.

I am currently facing the palace.

“Hey, this isn’t a place just anyone can enter.”

“Stop your nonsense and leave at once.”

As expected.

It was the intended response.

They all thought I was trying to enter the palace.

“Hey, when I ask nicely, back off, okay?”

“Do you really want to die, punk?”

“Hey, get lost. Can’t you hear me?”

Unconsciously intimidated and hesitated, they were not ordinary-looking people.

Their fierce faces growled threateningly like a pack of wolves seeing an abandoned lion cub.

“You, you seem extremely suspicious.”

“Hey, take off your hood.”

It was the moment when the largest of them approached and reached out his hand. I swiftly turned around and, with all the strength I could muster, dashed madly towards the city.

“Get that guy! Don’t let him escape!”

It was my first outing, filled with excitement.

The soldiers’ pursuit was short-lived. It seemed certain that the distance between us would never diminish. It was due to my already good physical abilities that I managed to run for my life. My labored breath and pounding heart had now settled into a calm state.

“….”

I was now hunched over, pressed against the imposing wall of Lord Bart’s mansion. I lifted my head slightly and peered through the tightly spaced bars of the somber wall, gazing inside.

Saint Elaine. Meeting her was today’s purpose. And now, her figure was coming into focus before my eyes.

“….”

A strange sense of unease washed over me. It was because I was directly facing her dark past, hidden behind the dazzling title of saint. Elaine was the illegitimate child of Lord Bart. Born between him and a maid, she was denied her rightful status, much like most of the empire’s illegitimate children. That fact alone made it easy to surmise that her childhood was far from smooth. The scene before me spoke volumes about it.

“I really didn’t steal…,” Saint Elaine, dressed in a maid’s attire, was crying. She was kneeling in front of the mansion, tears streaming down her face, revealing flushed cheeks beneath her shining golden hair.

“Why would I… why would I steal anything, sister…?” She wiped away tears with the back of her hand, fiercely asserting her innocence.

Even so, she did not try to avoid the gaze of the person looking down at her. Anyone could see it – her unyielding, piercing blue eyes were inflicting an indelible wound on the pride of the one who looked down at her.

“Do you really think it makes sense to claim you didn’t steal, even though my ring was found in your room? Huh?”

It was a contemptuous gaze and an irritating voice.

“And so? Unni? Who’s your unni!!”

The woman couldn’t hold back and burst out with sharp words. She must be Elaine’s arrogant older sister.

“I really don’t know… Why would I do something to get caught anyway?”

“Then, am I supposed to be slandering you right now? You, who are nothing more than a mere servant, the illegitimate daughter of a viscount like me?”

With each word, she pushed Elaine’s forehead with her finger and spat out sharp words.

In fact, just by looking at the content, it seemed like a thief confessing in a fit of anger.

Of course, the fact that the thief was a significant figure made it quite audacious, which could be considered a difficult part to endure.

Anyway.

Judging from the blatant hatred on her face, it was almost certainly a false accusation.

The other servants around them seemed to vaguely guess at the whole story of the incident.

And perhaps.

The freckled servant standing behind the fuming woman seemed to be an accomplice.

Elaine, the holy maiden.

Living as a servant without even being acknowledged as a child, she was clearly despised.

It felt somewhat familiar, for some reason.

All because of my ill-fated possession of the notorious fallen prince.

After enduring all sorts of insults for a month, I ended up looking quite similar to myself, who had finally stopped caring about others’ opinions.

That’s why this situation.

Was unbearably uncomfortable.

I instructed Aqua to make it rain.

Of course, speaking of rain, I wasn’t actually manipulating the weather.

It was just a matter of sprinkling a bit more water into the air.

The range was limited to a few narrow areas above people’s heads.

But even that.

Was enough to make it feel like rain.

Pitter-patter, pitter-patter, swoosh—

Large water droplets suddenly began to fall on people’s heads, turning into a heavy downpour in no time.

Startled people scrambled to cover their heads with both hands, but it was not enough to block the pouring water.

It was merely blocking a little sunlight.

“Suddenly, why is it raining…”

“No, the weather is so clear…”

“Miss, please come inside quickly!”

Not a single exception was made.

Eleanor didn’t even glance back.

Everyone hurried into the mansion, only attending to Viscountess Yeongae.

***

“This ungrateful thief of a girl!”

Slap!

Accompanied by insulting words, the slap was delivered.

It was Katia Bart.

And the target of the insult was Eleanor.

Despite the severe disdain, Eleanor remained composed.

Even when slapped and forced to kneel.

Her mind was as calm as a windless lake.

It had become familiar now.

First it was earrings.

Then a necklace.

There were even expensive dresses.

And today, it was a ring.

She wasn’t naive.

She knew it was mockery.

Seeing how secretive she was about it with her father, the viscount.

It was unnecessary to confirm what she already knew.

Her step-sister, Katia, who despised her terribly, was behind these incidents, done with someone else.

And that someone was likely Anna, the maid, standing behind Katia, visibly unable to contain her amusement at the situation.

The torment from her worthless step-sister seemed endlessly childish.

It didn’t provoke anger and seemed not worth engaging with.

But in tormenting Eleanor, Katia displayed considerable intelligence.

She knew exactly how to unsettle Eleanor.

“Truly, like mother, like daughter.”

Even Eleanor, usually composed, couldn’t bear the insult towards her mother.

“Servant brat, your mother who steals others’ men, and you who steal my things. It’s all the same. Understand? You vulgar creatures.”

Upon hearing such words, Eleanor found herself inexplicably trying to justify.

Since she couldn’t defend her already ousted mother, she ended up defending herself.

It was a kind of instinct.

No different from a crushed worm wriggling.

It had always been this way, and it was no different now.

Even though she knew they wouldn’t listen anyway.

With a determination to catch even the smallest straw, she had no choice but to explain through tears. It wasn’t that she wanted to cry; it was simply unbearable. Once the pent-up injustice began to burst, stopping it was no easy task. No matter how much she wiped, the tears wouldn’t cease. Nonetheless, Elaine lamented her innocence with a choked voice. But what returned as always was forced hatred. Ultimately, until the viscount returned, she would have to remain in front of the mansion, unable to eat or work, silently kneeling until late into the night. If she had known this would happen, she should have followed her mother no matter what. The belated regret surged, intensifying the warmth of her tears. She missed her mother. All she wanted was to leave this place immediately. However, her departing mother’s tearful plea made even that impossible. It was unbearably sorrowful, enough to make her resent the blue sky endlessly. If only the rain would come down. If the rain could flow, covering her tears, it would provide some comfort. Of course, she didn’t really expect it to rain at all. She just entertained the thought. Suddenly, rain actually poured from the sky. Despite the unmistakably clear sky and bright sun, it was indeed raining. It was unbelievable. Anna, Katia, everyone was soaked, resembling drowned rats, while the whipping rain avoided only her. In a moment of despair, as she gazed at the large and small rainbows that emerged, Elaine smiled for the first time in a long while. It was like an endlessly happy afternoon from a spring day before her mother was driven away.