episode_0030

Inside the warm, sun-drenched world of painting.

As soon as Asher regained consciousness, he groaned reflexively.

“Ugh!”

He grabbed his side urgently. The wound he had received from Mirelda was painful. However, no matter how much he fumbled, his soft, bare skin was clean.

Asher realizes that the momentary pain is a kind of phantom pain. She immediately takes action.

“What’s wrong, you? Why are you acting like this instead of doing laundry?”

Ellen, the palace maid who looked down on Sally, does not hide her feelings of pity. Asher took care of Ellen roughly and spent her time doing laundry.

After that, after half a day had passed.

The large man called out to them in a commanding tone, just like when they had first been drawn to Sally’s portrait.

“Hey you guys.”

The man simply pointed to Ashe and Ellen and called them out.

“I’ll go.”

Asher raised her hand and volunteered before the man could even finish speaking. Ellen was surprised by this, and the somewhat overbearing man chose Asher in a bewildered manner.

As the man led Ashe away, he gave her a brief introduction about the lady she would be serving.

… to be exact, I tried to do it.

“The person you will be serving is…”

“Mirelda Neterto, the companion of the Holy See, who is called the brightest star.”

“Huh? Oh, oh… Yeah, that’s right. Your eyesight is pretty good. I can’t believe you recognized your wife from this distance…”

“No problem.”

The conversation that was proceeding along the rapids soon froze over. Asher and the man stopped in front of Mirelda, savoring the quiet atmosphere.

“I brought it, ma’am. Please use it as you wish.”

“Oh, thank you. You can go away.”

“Yes, I understand, ma’am!”

The man walked away with the most restrained movements possible. He seemed to be very disciplined as he was dealing with the companion of the Emperor’s personal guard.

But Mirelda spoke to her casually, as if she didn’t care.

“It was difficult because there was no attendant, but thank you.”

“It is an honor just to be able to serve you, Madam.”

“Oh my, she’s more graceful than the most beautiful young ladies? Are all the palace maids like this…”

“If you see any shortcomings in the future, please feel free to point them out.”

“Oh my god…”

“…”

As a princess, Ashe elegantly showed off her polished curtsy. Then Mirelda looked at Ashe with a warm face.

“Madame Netherto.”

It’s a repetition of the same routine as before. There’s nothing difficult about it.

“If you would let me be your errand boy or companion, I would be happy as if I had received a birthday present.”

Let’s stay true to the role of Sally that we played last time. No, rather, we should live as Mirelda’s maid even more perfectly.

When Mirelda turned around, Ashe was watching her from behind with a challenging gaze.

◇

It’s been about two weeks since I started working as Mirelda’s exclusive maid.

Mirelda’s sad life is slowly coming to an end.

Asher called her ‘Mirelda’ as before. It was the result of building intimacy by answering all kinds of questions.

Of course, since it was the second time, it was as easy as choosing a game option.

“Lady Mirelda, how long do you plan to stay at the palace?”

“Well, he won’t tell me the exact date.”

“Really? That’s weird…”

“They all have meaning.”

“Hmm.”

Asher let it slide. Even if he tries to argue now, it will only end up as empty words.

“Mirelda trusts you very much.”

“That’s how it should be.”

Mirelda answered almost automatically, as if even a moment of thought was unnecessary.

After they had exchanged a few more words of jolly conversation, Mirelda gave the order to evacuate.

“Oh, it’s already late at night. Sally, you should hurry up and go to bed too.”

“Then excuse me, Mirelda. Good night.”

Ash quietly left Mirelda’s room. Then, he returned to the room right next to Mirelda’s assigned room and headed straight to the terrace.

The stars twinkle brightly enough to brighten the dark night. The stars shine brightly as if they were fate’s arrangement to kindly guide the night guest.

At that moment, a very small landing sound rang out over Jeongsu-ri.

“… If you get hit twice, you’re an idiot.”

Shhh!

The assassin immediately jumped down from the upper railing and attempted to strike Asher’s skull with the tip of his sword. However, Asher dodged with ease and twisted the assassin’s wrist in a clever way.

Crunch!

There was no time to waste. Asher quickly cut off the assassin’s head with the sword he had captured.

Mirelda’s room was right next door, so it was easy to infiltrate. With Ashe’s physical ability, she could easily reach the terrace on the other side with just a slight jump.

The passage connecting the terrace and Mirelda’s room is already open.

WHEEK!

Ashe quickly went over there and personally created a new hole in the assassin’s chest as he tried to stab Mirelda in the chest.

“Cough…”

The assassin died without even being able to scream properly due to the unexpected attack. Ashe sprinkled the blood on her sword blade on the floor and straightened her dirty maid’s uniform.

At the same time, he turned his gaze to the bed where Mirelda was lying.

“…”

“…”

Mirelda’s eyes met mine.

She wasn’t asleep. She didn’t even wake up in a hurry to the slightest commotion. She just had a blank expression on her face, nonverbally revealing the truth that she had never been asleep in the first place.

“… You knew it.”

“That’s right.”

Mirelda responded dryly, her voice losing its pitch. She showed no emotion at all about the death of a person before her eyes.

He slowly blinked his green eyes, which contained only a sad light.

“I thought it was strange. A prosecutor of your caliber could be killed by an assassin like this. It’s impossible, in common sense.”

“That’s right.”

“The Holy See, who knew that better than anyone, sent you this piece of crap.”

“That was the case too.”

“You gave up on life.”

“That’s what happened.”

The predictable play has failed.

Mirelda slowly got up from the bed. Meanwhile, Ashe blinked once, and was shocked by the change in her opponent’s appearance the next moment.

The Madame de Saint, who had seemed so delicate just a moment ago, was gone, and a vengeful spirit with an eerie hatred that made its edge sharper was in her place.

“… I was half sincere when I said it was beautiful. What a pity.”

“…”

The world of conversation in this episode was a huge play in which there were only deceivers and no one was deceived.

From the beginning, I knew that Mirelda was not a shell like last time, but the real Mirelda.

Asher possessed Celie, the owner of the portrait. Then, who would Mirelda, who was brought along with her, possess?

It would have to be me.

From her first appearance, she emerged from a painting. There would be no reason for her, who could become a resident of the painting world, to insist on a different body.

And, knowing that Asher will possess Celie, there would be no reason to choose another character.

“No one shows up.”

Originally, someone had to open the door on purpose and scream at the sight of Mirelda’s body.

The world of painting seems to have been greatly disturbed by Mirelda’s return to life.

“Well, there’s no need to argue. If it were a normal picture world, it wouldn’t have been acceptable for me to save you.”

It was clear that Mirelda had intervened.

Well, the intention is.

I guess I was curious about how this play would turn things around.

Ash slowly turned around and headed towards the table in the center of Mirelda’s room. Then he leaned back on the soft sofa and put away the sword he had used to kill the assassin.

Shake!

As if responding to that strange behavior, Mirelda also sat across the table from Ashe.

Then Asher asked.

“Since when did you know that you were destined to die?”

“It’s been a long time.”

“How did you know?”

“… I’m not stupid.”

It wasn’t something I noticed from a very early age. When my husband suddenly lost interest, I honestly thought it was my fault.

It was also true that because of this, he became increasingly passive and was ignored by his family.

When Mirelda changed like that, even the Holy See of Neterto let his guard down. Even if she was treated with contempt, as the Holy See’s wife, she could easily get her hands on various information.

As a result of doing that, I got a clue.

I ended up reading the note that came into Jeonseo-gu before my husband did.

“That’s when I realized. My husband was trying to kill me.”

I vividly remember wanting to ask her out of anger, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

Her husband was the brightest star in the empire, and she was a shadow that benefited from his overwhelming brilliance.

Therefore, the wife’s family will most likely support her husband.

It is a conspiracy involving the imperial family, the center of power, so who would dare to protect their daughter?

Even if they fought together, just finding out about the conspiracy could lead to the destruction of the family.

“For a while, it felt like I was stepping into an endless swamp. It was a natural disaster that a woman with only a little bit of swordsmanship could not handle.”

Then one day, her husband notified her that he had to stay in the palace. She said that the old story of wanting to live in the palace on her honeymoon days was now on her mind.

It sounded like they were going to give him a big, fancy prison life before his execution.

In a bleak situation where she could not escape and had no one to truly confide in, Mirelda finally gave up on life.

I pretended like I didn’t know anything.

Even though she knew all the details, she acted as if she knew nothing about her husband, for fear that the maid might infer useless facts and bring misfortune upon him.

After that, it was the 15th day since I started staying at the palace.

She accepted death, hiding her resentment, her sense of betrayal, and leaving behind only despair.

“… I found out the truth after I died.”

“The truth…?”

“Sacrificing the cow for the sake of the world. It’s a reasonable thing to say, but how many people would accept it if they were that cow themselves? At least I couldn’t do that.”

Mirelda then spewed out her boiling hatred.

“For the survival of the royal family. For the future of the empire. For countless lives…! An innocent woman had to be trampled beneath that comfort without even knowing what was happening. That is why I have the right to take legitimate revenge on those who benefited from it. Don’t you think so too? Sally. No, you are a child of original sin. ”

“I don’t know.”

Asher answered coldly.

The bright red eyes of the Imperial Family. The moment those hateful eyes projected onto Mirelda, the table that separated them split in half in an instant.

bang!

Immediately afterwards, Mirelda’s grip tightened around Ashe’s neck.

“Don’t you know? I don’t know…! No…!!!”

The terrifying face of the vengeful Mirelda pressed hard against Ashe.

“You must know. The sins of your ancestors, the original sin you inherited, the people of this land who dare to live in peace…! Since you are the beneficiaries of my dog’s death, you, you guys…! You must know this…!!!”

“Oh, oh, oh…!”

“Even if they die in the name of a just cause, they are not even recorded in the corners of history books. Everyone knows the great man called Saint Nefertto, but his companion is unknown even to scholars. Moreover, the more terrible sins they committed have sunk deep into an abyss with no end in sight. This absurdity… this absurdity…! Do you not know this, you who bear the original sin…?! None other than the abominable lump of imperial blood…!!!”

“Oh my, ugh… I didn’t even want to have this kind of blood!”

I would rather be a lower-class noble than a member of the royal family.

As Ashe was ostracized by her family who shared the same blood as her, she was given the right to shout that she wanted to drain all that blood and make it new.

“And… see, you too… keuhep, you know… right.”

“What…?”

“S, actually… I hope someone remembers you, huh,! You want… the horrible truth you want, the fateful revenge the royal family received… everything…!!!”

Shudder.

Mirelda’s grip weakened, and Ash’s breathing became easier. Taking advantage of this, Ash’s breathless words continued.

“You know what? You tried to kill me outside… But when you were criticizing me just now, you didn’t say anything to me to die.”

At this point, Asher was sure.

Bernacien’s guess was certainly correct.

“You actually wanted someone to remember you and the truth of history, right? But even so, when you actually faced me, a descendant of the royal family, you couldn’t control your anger and tried to kill us. Knowing that the end would be a meaningless ending where no one would remember you…!!!”

“…”

Bam.

The hand that had been weakly holding Asher’s neck fell limply.

It was a de facto admission.

Mirelda just stood there, unable to do anything.

“Oh, phew… You, sit down in the seat where we were talking.”

Ashe gently urged Mirelda, who was unable to make a decision.

“Come on.”

“…”

Slap.

Mirelda completely centered her weight on the sofa. Although Mirelda’s face was as hideous as a ghost, her feelings of futility were clearly conveyed.

Asher stood up silently and picked up the crater.

The empire of 500 years ago was a golden age of civilization and art. It was a time when even artists, who would be considered vulgar in modern times, earned titles for their artistic activities.

Therefore, canvases and painting supplies were essential decorations in the room of any nobleman.

“Smile…”

Asher cleared away the broken tables and placed his canvases and paint supplies between them.

“I will remember you.”

Artistic activities are the exclusive domain of the common people. And the privileged class is the only one who evaluates art.

So, originally, it was a flight that Asher could not indulge in as he pleased.

But now, Ashe is on the verge of creating what will be her first official work of art.

“If I leave the mansion safely, I will hang your portrait in the Emperor’s office. So that those who sit on the throne will know the sins of their predecessors for generations to come.”

She held the sharpened pencil lightly.

“Of course, I will disclose and record all the truth that has been revealed. I will give light to the darkness that has obscured the truth.”

Draw the outline. Fill in the light outlines in detail on a pure white canvas.

I reminisce about the days when I used to imitate the painter I admired. I release the joy that I used to hide from others.

Ironically, it was in this mansion where freedom was restricted that I finally found freedom. For this moment, I could truly realize what I had dreamed of without anyone interfering with me.

When I close my eyes, the face of the beautiful lady Mirelda comes into my mind vividly.

The opponent in front of me was a hideous spirit, but on the flat surface of the canvas, a beautiful woman with green eyes was gradually taking shape.

Strangely enough, I didn’t feel the passage of time.

My concentration was not depleted.

There was little resistance to portraying a difficult opponent.

Is this what it feels like to burn your soul?

Asher gave it her all and put her best effort into a blank canvas.

A woman with her brown hair, sparsely curled, tied up neatly, places her hands modestly on her knees.

Gentle green eyes look straight ahead.

Meanwhile, a silver sword rested gently on the woman’s shoulder. It was a symbol that hinted at a side of the noblewoman that no one knew about.

Finally, when she finished painting the elegant sage green dress, Ashe etched a phrase into the corner of the canvas with a dragon’s dot.

[For unforgettableMirelda Netelrto]

It was a portrait that looked like it could walk straight out of the painting.

I felt possessed.

When I came to my senses, the result that far surpassed my abilities was reflected in Ashe’s red eyes.

“Haa… Haa… It’s done. Finally…”

I’m out of breath.

It seemed like he had been holding his breath for a long time.

I barely managed to keep my body still, as I felt like I was going to collapse.

Asher wanted to turn the canvas and show it to Mirelda.

“Huh…?”

…

……

There was nothing beyond the flipped canvas.

The landscape of the painting world that had been Mirelda’s room had been completely erased, and instead had been transformed into a space of pale lime green.

Suddenly, I felt extremely tired.

Asher’s eyes, which had become too heavy to resist the water any longer, slowly closed.

=====

I lived a worthless life.

A life trampled by the world’s peace and justice.

A life where nothing is left behind, and no one remembers it.

A life where you have to bury your betrayed heart with blood and tears.

Ah, fortunately, the noble lady gave me a chance.

He also informed me.

We, who have been toyed with under countless happinesses and enduring eras, have the right to revenge.

I hope that at the end of revenge, there will be someone who remembers us…

-Reward: Gift Box

-Special Reward: Star Fragment

=====

[I drew the memories of the forgotten victims.]

[Compensation will be paid.]