“Everyone’s being too much…”
As usual, Cedric was being tossed back and forth between the two won. It was true that before I instilled so will to live into him, he lived a pretty ssy life, so he deserved this. He had no right to complain, even if he was criticised for a few more decades.
He seed to have realised that I was the only one here he could communicate with, so he looked at and asked:
"So, why did you call ?"
I glanced at the grandfather clock in the drawing room. Felix's return ti was after 12 p.m., so there was still so ti left.
"Umm, I invited you to have lunch.”
"Aha. So it was an invitation for lunch. And you called over from the morning for that?”
Cedric asked, clearly mocking my words. It must have been absurd for him to drop everything and rush over after receiving an urgent ssage from at the break of dawn, only to find out it was about lunch.
He mouthed at , out of the other’s sight, ‘Aren’t you going to do it properly?’ Ugh, no. It’s just that the situation unfolded all too suddenly, I couldn’t think of a plausible excuse.
Hearing that, Claudia raised her eyebrows and said:
"It’s natural for soone to think about lunch from dawn if they’re hungry, so why is Your Excellency trying to crush our Rin’s spirit?”
Although she was using honorifics, her tone implied ‘How dare you question Irene’s words?’ At that mont, Erica, who only ever tead up with Claudia in monts like this, shot Cedric a frosty glare and chid in.
"She’s the type of child who thinks about snacks even while having a al. So it’s understandable."
Was she even defending or was it a backhanded remark? I suddenly felt the urge to justify myself with a la excuse that I had a separate stomach for als and snacks, but I decided against it.
Besides, even without properly explaining myself, weren’t they automatically interpreting my nonsense perfectly in the best possible way? This must be why people should build virtue and earn a good reputation. anwhile, Cedric, whose virtue and reputation had hit rock bottom, seed to be experiencing an existential crisis. That's all his own karma.
I felt sowhat conflicted, but in any case, I was glad I called both Cedric and Erica. If I had only called one of them, it would have been difficult to bicker and divert the conversation like this.
Perfect. Let’s keep the topic buried. Keep the chatter bustling so no one even considers bringing up anything related to Walter!
"But Rin, your leg movents seem a little strange. Does your leg hurt?”
No sooner had I wished to avoid the subject, Claudia slightly lifted the hem of my dress, which was dragging on the floor, trailing below my ankles.
How did the topic change so suddenly? I thought she’d be too busy keeping an eye on Cedric, who was infamous for his complicated relationships with won, to even notice this.
"Where did you even find a dress as long as a curtain? You usually prefer ones that sit above your ankles.”
"Kyaa, i-it’s embarrassing!”
Everyone’s watching! I desperately tried to cover my legs, awkwardly pretending to be shy.
"What's this?!" You’re injured!"
Of course, it was pointless.
Cedric, who had secretly coordinated with beforehand and was playing along with my story in his own way, shot a look of disbelief. His reaction underscored the absurdity of soone who typically sprawls out anywhere suddenly feeling embarrassed over a little bit of exposed ankle.
"How did this happen?"
Claudia pressed my shoulders firmly, pushing down onto the sofa. Then she examined my ankle which was wrapped in bandages and supported by a splint. Her face went pale as she questioned .
'So… so powerful.' I lay on the sofa with Claudia holding onto my ankle and blinked at her.
"I just sprained it.”
"Don't lie! How could a simple sprain lead to this?”
It seed this excuse wouldn’t work at all. I fell silent, half proud that Claudia had grown so perceptive compared to before, and half troubled that she wasn’t going to be easily fooled anymore.
"Um... If you contact Liam, you’ll find out, but I actually fell off the terrace."
"I can't believe that either!? How on earth did you fall off the terrace?”
"Chloe always called an angel without wings, so I wondered if I could actually fly…”
Cedric shook his head, clearly unable to listen any longer, and said to :
"Irene, stop with these ridiculous excuses, it’ll be easier to just confess already.”
Yeah, even I had to admit that was a pretty nonsensical explanation.
"What do you an by that?”
While I was sighing, wondering how to even begin to explain, Claudia suddenly whipped around to face Cedric with a terrifying expression and asked in a chilling voice.
"Did Your Excellency secretly order Rin to do sothing strange behind my back?”
No way… How on earth did she find that out?! It was almost like she could read minds.
"Otherwise, there’s no way Rin would voluntarily go to sothing like a victory party without telling , right?”
As the saying goes, after three years at a village schoolhouse, even a dog could recite a poem. Cedric, who had loosely coordinated his story with beforehand, shrugged and responded nonchalantly.
"I heard the war hero was truly impressive, so I asked Irene to confirm just how remarkable he really was."
"I suspected as much, so I roughly asked around and heard so things. Was his na Walter? I heard people call him a rciless killer who sweeps away his enemies like fallen leaves.”
At Claudia's scathing evaluation, I briefly pursed my lips in surprise.
"So you made her face such a dangerous killer? No matter how irresistibly charming Rin is to the point she’s capable of making anyone fall for her, she's still just an ordinary person."
"Uh, no..."
Cedric, who already knew about Walter’s true identity, glanced at while responding vaguely to Claudia’s remark.
"First of all, he’s a hero, right?”
"If you take one’s life, you're a killer, but if you take countless lives, you're called a hero. Titles are aningless.”
"Um... hey, Claudia? Didn't you once say that you never truly know soone until you et them in person? I think I heard you say that before from Irene.”
"That may be true, but it’s a fact, not a rumour, that he has repeatedly committed mass slaughter. It’s fortunate that he was granted a title and will be sent back to the battlefield. Just imagine if he had fallen for our Rin — the re thought is terrifying.
“...”
O-oh, no. What kind of tragedy was this? I was at a loss for words. My mind suddenly went completely blank, leaving unable to think. My face darkened as if I were mourning, and I beca as still as a statue.
"So, you’re saying the injury happened at the victory party? You’re not suggesting that guy, Walter, did this to Rin’s ankle, are you?"
She even guessed the truth.
Of course, Felix didn’t an to hurt , but in the end, he was still the one responsible…
Given the situation, there was no point in dragging this out any longer. I would have to tell Claudia eventually, so covering it up with lies now would only upset her. Besides, if this continued, she would end up hurting herself with her own words later.
Steadying my heart, which had dropped like a stone, I asked while trying to conceal my anxiety:
"Chloe. What would you do if I gained power and ended up killing tens of thousands of people?"
“Then those tens of thousands of people must have done sothing wrong.”
Her response ca imdiately, without hesitation.
"What if those tens of thousands of people didn’t do anything wrong?”
Claudia seed to have no idea what the point of my question was, but she answered sincerely.
"I'm not criticising Walter for being a killer. I don’t care if he’s killed countless people or not. I’m just worried that Rin might get hurt if you got involved with him.”
And then she added as if it were the most obvious thing in the world:
“It’d be unfortunate for those people, but to , Rin is the most precious. Just as the handkerchief you gave is more valuable than the thousands or millions of things I could buy with money."
"Chloe..."
Her words moved to tears, but part of desperately wished she would discard that handkerchief. It was adorned with a crudely embroidered stick figure, stitched in black thread. Claudia had begged for it, so I made it for her, but I likely left behind a few bloodstains from pricking my fingers along the way.
Right, I was worried for no reason. Claudia had grown stronger. Sotis I couldn’t believe she was the sa person as the heroine in the novel.
"You know… Chloe."
"Yes?"
"Felix has returned."
As I lay on the sofa, I reached out and gently tucked a strand of Claudia’s hair behind her ear as I spoke. For the first ti today, her jewel-like eyes wavered slightly, showing signs of unease.
“He’s under the curse of the devil so he can only regain consciousness at noon.”
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