EIITAB - Chapter 129 < She's Not a Person >
Even if it is Trampled and Broken
Aslan's sharp gaze turned to Dean.
"What are the conditions?"
"She said she would reveal it in front of His Excellency, not me."
Dean looked very sorry. The moment Dulcinea's name reached his ears, Aslan's brows narrowed.
"Tsk. I guess she still hasn't come to her senses."
In the meantime, he had left the interrogation of Dulcinea entirely to Dean. He already knew that because of her stubbornness, he was making little progress in his investigation. Dean said it would be easier for him if Aslan stepped forward, but he didn't.
This was because he did not want to give Dulcinea even the slightest expectations of him. Above all, he was unable to pay any attention to other things because he had to protect Hestia, who was losing her mind. So, all Dean found out during that time was that the person who rescued Dulcinea from the silphium and gave it to her was the Saintess, Anette.
Everyone had guessed that his opponent would be a powerful person, but they couldn't help but be surprised again by the fact that the opponent was a bigger player than expected.
But Anette had long since disappeared from the world of Kalathi. Aslan was lost in thought for a moment. Is it right for him to meet Dulcinea?
Even though he was reluctant, there was one reason why he continued to worry.
'There is so little information about Saintess Anette.'
Aslan told Dean and Martin that he had already interrogated the men from the south several times. But they also knew very little about Anette. It was the same with the High Priestess. It was hard to believe that he was keeping his mouth shut out of loyalty to protect Anette.
Surprisingly, the person who knew more deeply than others was Stephan Ceretto.
"One day, she appeared at our family's estate and asked for help. She is said to have divine powers and made grass and flowers bloom. Then her kite arrived, and after that, she helped me settle down in the capital."
As he hesitated to explain his relationship with Anette, each Southerner present looked astonished.
"So Sir Ceretto's benefactor was Saintess Anette? Oh my God... I couldn't have guessed."
This was the moment when the question of how Stephan Cerreto, who had no ties to the capital, was able to appear at the parties and social events of such powerful families was finally resolved. But Sphefan Cerreto didn't know much about Anette.
That's all, Aslan felt the need to trace Anette's past further. This was because Hestia also added words about Anette.
"She won't be a Saintess. Because El Rafa said that I am His only representative. And yet it melts snow and makes plants grow... How can she use that power?"
"It seemed like it lasted for a short time."
"That's right. Even in my memory, when she first appeared at the temple...Even then, the flowers and grass withered quickly."
Aslan also clearly saw the green grass and wildflowers blooming when Anette first crossed the gate. But he didn't think it looked like divine power.
'It wasn't pious at all.'
Regardless of my feelings about Hestia, it was an impression that came to mind based solely on objective facts.
Currently, the only person who knows about Anette's past is Dulcinea. However, she does not reveal to Dean at all where and how she found out about Anette.
As Aslan's silence became longer, Dean opened his mouth again, showing that he was embarrassed.
"I know that it is the right procedure for me to resolve it, as Your Excellency has trusted and entrusted it to me, but since it is the easiest way to open Miss Dulcinea's mouth... First of all, I think I should post a report."
"Hmm."
Aslan
thought for a moment more and soon made a decision. He had no intention of ever seeing Dulcinea's face again, but since there was so little information about the Saintess, Anette, he had no choice.
"Good. Let's go see her now."
Then Dean and Martin looked at him in surprise.
"Are you okay?"
"Is there any reason not to be okay?"
Aslan, who answered in a cold voice as if he had no feelings left, stood up.
As he left the study, the generals quietly followed him with his mouth shut.
"Aslan!"
Dulcinea, whom he met for the first time in a few days, looked very different from before. Because she looked very unsightly.
Her once plump and glossy cheeks became bony, revealing cheekbones, and her face, which had not been washed for a long time, showed a shabbiness that could not be hidden.
As soon as Dulcinea saw Aslan's face, she jumped up from her seat and clung to his arm. But Aslan frowned and lightly shook off her female body with one hand.
Dulcinea, who seemed to have lost all strength, was helpless and rolled around on the cold stone floor.
"It hurts......."
Dulcinea looked up at Aslan with tears welling up in her eyes. However, he only let out a long sigh with an expression of boredom.
"Just the main point."
Dulcinea trembled at the cold voice.
"You know better than anyone that I didn't come here to hear useless stories, right?"
At his cold words, Dulcinea curled her lips and hurriedly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. She wondered if it was possible, but in a short moment, she knew that he would no longer accept her foolish behavior. She couldn't waste time stretching out like she did with Dean.
Since she is no longer the person Aslan must protect, she will not be given a second chance. With the feeling of letting go of everything, she opened her trembling lips, shaking away her last tears.
Now that Aslan had come, it was time for her to keep her promise.
"I don't know the details. That's all I heard from my father. The name Anette was also given to me by my father."
Aslan's brows narrowed.
"Are you saying that when Count Penlot was alive, she lived on the Kalathi estate? But there is no record anywhere that she lived on my land. She doesn't know anyone."
Dulcinea nodded slowly.
"You have no choice but to not know. Anette is a child who lives in a snowy mountain, not a village. But I'm not sure if she's the kid."
"What does that mean?"
She kept sticking out her tongue and licking her lips as if her mouth was dry.
"People... I think no."
"What kind of nonsense...."
"But is it true? Anette looks just like us, but she's not a real person. How could someone do something like that?"
If he were to summarize the story Dulcinea told after that, it went roughly like this.
Count Penlot was by nature a very compassionate person. He was especially shy towards those who were smaller and younger than him.
It all started 13 years ago. It was the first time there were signs of winter starting in the Duchy of Kalathi. Count Penlot, who climbed the mountain to find out why the weather had suddenly become cold, said that he met a child whose behavior was very mischievous. Not only was she naked in the cold weather, but her hair was also disheveled.
She appears to be about the same age as his daughter, Dulcinea, but is said to have been unable to speak human language and was wary of Count Penlot by walking and running around like a four-legged animal.
At first, he thought she was an orphan who had lost her parents. First, he gave Anette something to eat because she seemed to be starving. Then she started devouring it at an insane speed, and from then on, she was said to have been on guard but complied.
"Father said it didn't cause any harm at the time."
Therefore, Count Penlot did not report the matter to his Lord, Duke Wayne Kalathi. At that time, the momentum of winter had only just begun to spread, so he had not yet thought of the connection between the cold wave and children.
Count Penlot brought Anette to his mansion and tried to take care of her, but he failed every time. This was because Anette hovered by his side but inevitably refused to be touched. Therefore, it is said that Count Penlot made the cabin on the snowy mountain her residence and sometimes went up alone to get her food and look after her life.
What felt strange was when the child spoke for the first time. It is said that she had never been taught letters, but one day she suddenly spoke fluent sentences.
However, those were not words that came out of her own head, but were more like a parrot-like imitation of what Count Penlot had said to her so far.
"How have you been? Are you hungry? What did you do today? Do you have a favorite? I have a daughter who is about the same age as you."
The way Anette spoke was almost absorbing like dry bread retaining water. After she got rid of her words like that, it seemed like she began to speak the thoughts in her head in human language.
It is said that it was only when he began to feel distant from Anette that something else strange appeared in Count Penlot's eyes. The point was that the area near Anette's residence was as quiet as ever. There was not the slightest sign of life in her. It is said that there were times when she encountered animals such as rabbits or deer, and each time, the animals threatened Anette by baring their teeth, and even trembling and fainting.
"My father realized it too late. Anette may not be human."
But even so, he failed to report to Wayne Kalathi. That was because he had already become attached to her. Anette was always alone in the snowy mountains. Count Penlot seemed to feel deep pity at the sight of her always wanting to touch someone's warmth, even if she did not completely give up his side.
"The bad relationship that I thought was meant to be, continued like that."
It is said that one day, due to heavy snow that lasted for over 15 days, Count Penlot was unable to erase his worries about Anette. So, even though the Countess and Dulcinea tried to stop him, he put on hjz fur and climbed to the cabin on the snowy mountain.
That day, Dulcinea followed in her father's footsteps. As she tumbled down her memories and recited the stories she heard from her father, she soon burst into wild laughter.
"Take away anything alive. As if it were her food."
Aslan's face hardened even more and he asked her in a serious voice as if confirming.
"What do you mean? Are you saying she takes away vitality?"
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