The north cellar was called a basement, but it was more like a dungeon. The basement was completely equipped with iron bars and was filled with various instruments of torture to torment people. This was also the place where Zanobi had his limbs severed.
Lucrezia shivered from the seeping cold. There was no doubt that things were not going well outside. Lucrezia felt uneasy when her husband did not ask her a single question about the chaos outside. However, she was afraid that he would stir up the quiet stove for no reason, so she stayed still. She should have run and done something then.
'It's okay, it'll be okay.'
Lucrezia had a proud son and a smart daughter. Her grown children would take care of their mother. Lucrezia would touch the crucifix on her rosary with her fingers, which she had never paid attention to all her life, and pray silently inwardly. All she could do was pray.
'May the Lord give strength to the children and bring me out of this terrible prison quickly.'
'It's okay, it'll be okay.'
Lucrezia had a proud son and a smart daughter. Her grown children would take care of their mother. Lucrezia would touch the crucifix on her rosary with her fingers, which she had never paid attention to all her life, and pray silently inwardly. All she could do was pray.
'May the Lord give strength to the children and bring me out of this terrible prison quickly.'
***
Contrary to Lucrezia's wishes, none of her grown children took their mother's side. On the contrary, the only one who made any effort to save her was her husband, who seemed to have completely abandoned her. Cardinal de Mare, in a panic, asked the other person cautiously.
“Mr. Scampa. How could exile not be an option? She is also the children’s mother... The children’s mother lost her youngest child not long ago...”
But Cardinal de Mare's efforts were coldly rejected.
“If it hadn’t been that long since she lost her youngest child, wouldn’t she have known how precious another’s daughter is?”
Mr. Scampa shouted, his blood boiling in his throat. Be wondered if he would ever have the chance to meet such a high-ranking person as the Cardinal while he was alive, but my goodness, he could even shout when he was so angry.
“My daughter! My poor daughter who never became a mother and died! My poor baby who didn’t even have a complete body left... I can’t leave this place until I see that woman’s head with my own eyes!”
Cardinal de Mare had to step down without even finding the principal. The demands of the bereaved families who had lost their children were in some ways reasonable and in some ways overly emotional. Among the demands put forward by Mr. Scampa and the two local cooperatives, there were obvious demands such as “make a sincere apology,” but there were also demands that Cardinal de Mare could not possibly accept, such as “hang Lucrezia immediately and cut off her head and walk around the city of San Carlo.”
“Mr. Scampa. How could exile not be an option? She is also the children’s mother... The children’s mother lost her youngest child not long ago...”
But Cardinal de Mare's efforts were coldly rejected.
“If it hadn’t been that long since she lost her youngest child, wouldn’t she have known how precious another’s daughter is?”
Mr. Scampa shouted, his blood boiling in his throat. Be wondered if he would ever have the chance to meet such a high-ranking person as the Cardinal while he was alive, but my goodness, he could even shout when he was so angry.
“My daughter! My poor daughter who never became a mother and died! My poor baby who didn’t even have a complete body left... I can’t leave this place until I see that woman’s head with my own eyes!”
Cardinal de Mare had to step down without even finding the principal. The demands of the bereaved families who had lost their children were in some ways reasonable and in some ways overly emotional. Among the demands put forward by Mr. Scampa and the two local cooperatives, there were obvious demands such as “make a sincere apology,” but there were also demands that Cardinal de Mare could not possibly accept, such as “hang Lucrezia immediately and cut off her head and walk around the city of San Carlo.”
Among them, there was also the delicate suggestion of the local representative of the Comunale Nuova, who said, “I will stop the bereaved families who are brain dead from anger, so please donate 1,000 ducats to the local cooperative.” It was late at night, just after midnight, that they finally reached an agreement.
“Show the guests the way.”
The tired cardinal motioned to his butler, Nicolo. The other party, drunk on sweat, triumph, and a little anger, also left the cardinal's study and headed toward the entrance. He sent his butler, Nicolo, to see off the guest and said to Sancha, the housemaid.
“You prepare the poison.”
He spoke in a weary tone.
“The kind that will kill you instantly if you drink it. I’ll send it to Lucrezia when the rooster crows first thing tomorrow morning.”
Sancha bowed her head deeply and answered the Cardinal in a somewhat reserved manner.
“I will handle it accordingly, Your Eminence.”
And as soon as Cardinal de Mare disappeared from sight, he ran as if flying and told Miss Ariadne. Sancha burst open the door of Ariadne's room, went in, whispered in the ear of the Miss who was already in bed, and then shouted somewhat loudly. Her voice could not hide her excitement.
“My lady! His Eminence the Cardinal has ordered the poison to be prepared! He will give it to Madame Lucrezia early tomorrow morning!”
“!”
Even though it was late at night, Ariadne's green eyes sparkled. She sat up straight on the bed, pulling the silk quilt off her. Now, the memory of her own mother being whipped by Lucrezia was vague. The memory of Lucrezia kicking her mother who hid little Ariadne behind her body and grabbing Ariadne's hair. Lucrezia, who had brought her up to San Carlo, saying she had no daughter to throw to Cesare, and who had been thrifty and tormenting Ariadne in various ways since then.
“If only you weren’t here, my life would be better than this! Better than this!”
And the last memory of Arabella, as shown by the Golden Rule. The time of revenge has come.
“There’s no need to prepare poison or anything like that. There’s probably a lot of that out in the open.”
“There are several bottles in the kitchen pantry. They are all used by Madame Lucrezia.”
Under Lucrezia, it was common for one or two servants to die. This time, it was only a problem for them to touch the children of a good family, but a few poor people disappeared and no one came looking for them. There was no such thing as aftereffects. Lucrezia chose to buy poison and store it away, taking one bottle at a time, rather than buying new ones.
“Bring it out right now. I’ll take it down myself.”
“Yes? Miss?”
“Yeah. Don’t let anyone come into the basement.”
Sancha took a bottle of belladonna from the kitchen. The purple liquid inside the thick, translucent glass bottle reflected a light. Ariadne placed the corked glass bottle on a silver tray with her own hands and headed to the northern cellar.
“Show the guests the way.”
The tired cardinal motioned to his butler, Nicolo. The other party, drunk on sweat, triumph, and a little anger, also left the cardinal's study and headed toward the entrance. He sent his butler, Nicolo, to see off the guest and said to Sancha, the housemaid.
“You prepare the poison.”
He spoke in a weary tone.
“The kind that will kill you instantly if you drink it. I’ll send it to Lucrezia when the rooster crows first thing tomorrow morning.”
Sancha bowed her head deeply and answered the Cardinal in a somewhat reserved manner.
“I will handle it accordingly, Your Eminence.”
And as soon as Cardinal de Mare disappeared from sight, he ran as if flying and told Miss Ariadne. Sancha burst open the door of Ariadne's room, went in, whispered in the ear of the Miss who was already in bed, and then shouted somewhat loudly. Her voice could not hide her excitement.
“My lady! His Eminence the Cardinal has ordered the poison to be prepared! He will give it to Madame Lucrezia early tomorrow morning!”
“!”
Even though it was late at night, Ariadne's green eyes sparkled. She sat up straight on the bed, pulling the silk quilt off her. Now, the memory of her own mother being whipped by Lucrezia was vague. The memory of Lucrezia kicking her mother who hid little Ariadne behind her body and grabbing Ariadne's hair. Lucrezia, who had brought her up to San Carlo, saying she had no daughter to throw to Cesare, and who had been thrifty and tormenting Ariadne in various ways since then.
“If only you weren’t here, my life would be better than this! Better than this!”
And the last memory of Arabella, as shown by the Golden Rule. The time of revenge has come.
“There’s no need to prepare poison or anything like that. There’s probably a lot of that out in the open.”
“There are several bottles in the kitchen pantry. They are all used by Madame Lucrezia.”
Under Lucrezia, it was common for one or two servants to die. This time, it was only a problem for them to touch the children of a good family, but a few poor people disappeared and no one came looking for them. There was no such thing as aftereffects. Lucrezia chose to buy poison and store it away, taking one bottle at a time, rather than buying new ones.
“Bring it out right now. I’ll take it down myself.”
“Yes? Miss?”
“Yeah. Don’t let anyone come into the basement.”
Sancha took a bottle of belladonna from the kitchen. The purple liquid inside the thick, translucent glass bottle reflected a light. Ariadne placed the corked glass bottle on a silver tray with her own hands and headed to the northern cellar.
***
Lucrezia went back and forth between heaven and hell in the northern cellar, where it was so cold that she could not sleep.
'There's no way my kids will leave me alone.'
'No, but why doesn't anyone come looking for me?'
'What power do the kids have? They can only stop him from going.'
The ups and downs of emotions alone were driving people crazy. That was when.
'There's no way my kids will leave me alone.'
'No, but why doesn't anyone come looking for me?'
'What power do the kids have? They can only stop him from going.'
The ups and downs of emotions alone were driving people crazy. That was when.
Creak.
The sound of the oak door opening on the hallway side rang out. Someone had come in.
“Ippolito?!”
Lucrezia sat up in the corner and then suddenly stood up. But the person who came in made no reply.
“Isabella?”
Ippolito walks with a stomp. The person who came in came in quietly, making almost no sound. It wasn't like Isabella, but Isabella walked more quietly than Ippolito. But even when she called her daughter's name, the person who came in didn't say anything.
"Honey?"
Lucrezia cautiously called the name of the person who was least likely to come.
“Ippolito?!”
Lucrezia sat up in the corner and then suddenly stood up. But the person who came in made no reply.
“Isabella?”
Ippolito walks with a stomp. The person who came in came in quietly, making almost no sound. It wasn't like Isabella, but Isabella walked more quietly than Ippolito. But even when she called her daughter's name, the person who came in didn't say anything.
"Honey?"
Lucrezia cautiously called the name of the person who was least likely to come.
Click.
The sound of a key opening the door to the room where Lucrezia was locked was heard. The woman stepped inside. She calmly locked the door again and turned to Lucrezia.
“I’m sorry I’m not the person you were looking for.”
"You!"
Lucrezia was astonished at the sight of the person who had entered. It was Ariadne. She was dressed as if she were the mistress of a great noble family, or rather, a member of a monarchy. She wore expensive, well-tailored silk, her hair was braided, and she wore large pearl earrings in her ears. She had no artificial adornment, but her every action and movement seemed to exude elegance. Her long, slender hand bore the golden seal of the mistress.
As soon as Lucrezia saw the mistress's golden seal, she lost her senses and screamed.
“You! You rotten thing! You damn thing! Why did you come down! Where is our Ippolito, Isabella?”
“You’re so arrogant.”
Ariadne put the silver platter she had brought down on the black table. The clanking sound echoed through the cellar. The courtesy had ended here. It was time for strength to clash with strength, tears to tears, blood to blood.
“My father abandoned my mother.”
"What?!"
“Today, the family of Paola Scampa and representatives of the local cooperative visited the mansion. They just left. My father decided to give my mother’s body instead of saving the 300 ducats of condolence money.”
In fact, the consolation money of 300 ducats was still paid, and only Lucrezia's head was placed on it. The slight distortion of the facts was Ariadne's venting of her anger.
“That can’t be... that can’t be!”
“I guess you’re sick of all the gold you send to the de Rossis. If you don’t believe me, try a sip.”
Ariadne pointed to a glass bottle on a wooden table.
“Are you familiar with it?”
Lucrezia took a deep breath as she watched the purple liquid inside the vial glow. It was impossible not to recognize it.
“It’s belladonna extract. It’s so effective. Of course, my mother knows best.”
Ariadne smiled. Lucrezia was so shocked that she could not even breathe properly. She cried out in a sobbing voice.
“Ippolito, my son!”
“Mother’s precious son sold you out. It was father who first came up with the idea of kicking you out, but I heard it didn’t even take 15 minutes to convince brother.”
Lucrezia was breathing hard.
“No way, that can’t be!”
“I’ll also tell you about your beloved daughter. Sister Isabella is really good at imitating fools.”
Ariadne kindly relayed the news from outside to Lucrezia, who was grumbling.
“My brother Ippolito told Isabella that ‘Father has decided to kill Mother.’ But isn’t it better to have a daughter than a son? Isabella tried to stop him once.”
A slight sense of relief appeared on Lucrezia's face. She seemed to have anticipated what would come next. 'But what right does Isabella have to say? Everything went according to our father's will.' However, Ariadne's story crushed Lucrezia's expectations.
“Then Ippolito asked me back, ‘Are you sure you can marry as a murderer’s daughter?’”
Lucrezia's face turned pale. Lucrezia knew her children's personalities best. She seemed to have an idea of what was to come next.
“After that, Sister Isabella kept her mouth shut and didn’t say anything!”
Lucrezia just sat down on the stone floor of the basement.
“No... It’s all lies...”
“Mother, Mother, our mother. You raised your children with such devotion, what can we do about this?”
Lucrezia was lying on the floor, sobbing. A mother knows her child. The things Ariadne was talking about right in front of her were things her children would do. But she couldn’t admit it. She didn’t want to admit it. If she admitted it, her entire life would be a waste.
“Did Mother do all this because of my brother?”
Ariadne smiled. It was a somewhat distorted smile.
“Maleta said just before she died. Ippolito has a different father!”
Lucrezia looked up in shock and looked at Ariadne.
“What horrible nonsense is this!”
“I’ve been asking around. You came to Cardinal de Mare on a full stomach, huh?”
After hearing the above story from Maleta, Ariadne made inquiries mainly among the old servants who had come up from Taranto. Although she was not able to hear the intimate details, she was able to hear some of the circumstances when Madame Lucrezia first came to live with Cardinal de Mare.
“Ippolito, he was born prematurely? Your first child was born prematurely?”
Ariadne snorted and laughed loudly.
“Is it more likely that a baby born after seven months of pregnancy will be healthy like Ippolito’s, or is it more likely that the teenage mother lied about the time of her pregnancy by two months?”
"No!"
Lucrezia screamed with all her might.
“Everything you say is just speculation, like ‘it might have been like this.’ Where’s the evidence? There’s no evidence!”
“Maleta is the proof! You killed her and got rid of her!”
“That’s all just hearsay! How can that be evidence?”
Ignoring Lucrezia's shrieks, Ariadne strode toward Lucrezia and grabbed her shoulder.
“Stop your pointless resistance. Your son has abandoned you. Are you going to die alone? You’re going to have to go to hell with him!”
Ariadne shook Lucrezia's shoulder roughly.
“Why on earth! You treat Arabella like that! When did I ask you to be nice to me?! Why are you such a terrible parent to your own children!”
“...She ruined my life.”
"What?"
“I could have left San Carlo. I could have left San Carlo with Ippolito’s father. With Arabella... Arabella ruined everything! If only that bitch hadn’t existed!”
Thud!
“I’m sorry I’m not the person you were looking for.”
"You!"
Lucrezia was astonished at the sight of the person who had entered. It was Ariadne. She was dressed as if she were the mistress of a great noble family, or rather, a member of a monarchy. She wore expensive, well-tailored silk, her hair was braided, and she wore large pearl earrings in her ears. She had no artificial adornment, but her every action and movement seemed to exude elegance. Her long, slender hand bore the golden seal of the mistress.
As soon as Lucrezia saw the mistress's golden seal, she lost her senses and screamed.
“You! You rotten thing! You damn thing! Why did you come down! Where is our Ippolito, Isabella?”
“You’re so arrogant.”
Ariadne put the silver platter she had brought down on the black table. The clanking sound echoed through the cellar. The courtesy had ended here. It was time for strength to clash with strength, tears to tears, blood to blood.
“My father abandoned my mother.”
"What?!"
“Today, the family of Paola Scampa and representatives of the local cooperative visited the mansion. They just left. My father decided to give my mother’s body instead of saving the 300 ducats of condolence money.”
In fact, the consolation money of 300 ducats was still paid, and only Lucrezia's head was placed on it. The slight distortion of the facts was Ariadne's venting of her anger.
“That can’t be... that can’t be!”
“I guess you’re sick of all the gold you send to the de Rossis. If you don’t believe me, try a sip.”
Ariadne pointed to a glass bottle on a wooden table.
“Are you familiar with it?”
Lucrezia took a deep breath as she watched the purple liquid inside the vial glow. It was impossible not to recognize it.
“It’s belladonna extract. It’s so effective. Of course, my mother knows best.”
Ariadne smiled. Lucrezia was so shocked that she could not even breathe properly. She cried out in a sobbing voice.
“Ippolito, my son!”
“Mother’s precious son sold you out. It was father who first came up with the idea of kicking you out, but I heard it didn’t even take 15 minutes to convince brother.”
Lucrezia was breathing hard.
“No way, that can’t be!”
“I’ll also tell you about your beloved daughter. Sister Isabella is really good at imitating fools.”
Ariadne kindly relayed the news from outside to Lucrezia, who was grumbling.
“My brother Ippolito told Isabella that ‘Father has decided to kill Mother.’ But isn’t it better to have a daughter than a son? Isabella tried to stop him once.”
A slight sense of relief appeared on Lucrezia's face. She seemed to have anticipated what would come next. 'But what right does Isabella have to say? Everything went according to our father's will.' However, Ariadne's story crushed Lucrezia's expectations.
“Then Ippolito asked me back, ‘Are you sure you can marry as a murderer’s daughter?’”
Lucrezia's face turned pale. Lucrezia knew her children's personalities best. She seemed to have an idea of what was to come next.
“After that, Sister Isabella kept her mouth shut and didn’t say anything!”
Lucrezia just sat down on the stone floor of the basement.
“No... It’s all lies...”
“Mother, Mother, our mother. You raised your children with such devotion, what can we do about this?”
Lucrezia was lying on the floor, sobbing. A mother knows her child. The things Ariadne was talking about right in front of her were things her children would do. But she couldn’t admit it. She didn’t want to admit it. If she admitted it, her entire life would be a waste.
“Did Mother do all this because of my brother?”
Ariadne smiled. It was a somewhat distorted smile.
“Maleta said just before she died. Ippolito has a different father!”
Lucrezia looked up in shock and looked at Ariadne.
“What horrible nonsense is this!”
“I’ve been asking around. You came to Cardinal de Mare on a full stomach, huh?”
After hearing the above story from Maleta, Ariadne made inquiries mainly among the old servants who had come up from Taranto. Although she was not able to hear the intimate details, she was able to hear some of the circumstances when Madame Lucrezia first came to live with Cardinal de Mare.
“Ippolito, he was born prematurely? Your first child was born prematurely?”
Ariadne snorted and laughed loudly.
“Is it more likely that a baby born after seven months of pregnancy will be healthy like Ippolito’s, or is it more likely that the teenage mother lied about the time of her pregnancy by two months?”
"No!"
Lucrezia screamed with all her might.
“Everything you say is just speculation, like ‘it might have been like this.’ Where’s the evidence? There’s no evidence!”
“Maleta is the proof! You killed her and got rid of her!”
“That’s all just hearsay! How can that be evidence?”
Ignoring Lucrezia's shrieks, Ariadne strode toward Lucrezia and grabbed her shoulder.
“Stop your pointless resistance. Your son has abandoned you. Are you going to die alone? You’re going to have to go to hell with him!”
Ariadne shook Lucrezia's shoulder roughly.
“Why on earth! You treat Arabella like that! When did I ask you to be nice to me?! Why are you such a terrible parent to your own children!”
“...She ruined my life.”
"What?"
“I could have left San Carlo. I could have left San Carlo with Ippolito’s father. With Arabella... Arabella ruined everything! If only that bitch hadn’t existed!”
Thud!
Ariadne slapped Lucrezia across the face.
“And you’re still a mother after doing that?”
“You don’t know anything, little girl!”
Lucrezia fell to the floor, crying and screaming.
“When a woman gives birth, she thinks, ‘Oh, I’m a mother now. My life as a woman is over. Do you think I can just give up like this?’”
Lucrezia lay sprawled on the stone floor, howling.
“I just made the choices I needed to make at the time in the life that was given to me. But it’s tightening my noose!”
Lucrezia was so wet with tears that she looked like no human being. The words were garbled and barely understandable. Now Lucrezia was sobbing and half-eating the words.
“I lived with Simon because I had to support Ippolito and my family. I had more children while living with Simon. But because of that, I can’t leave my love! Why! Why on earth! What did I do wrong?”
Ariadne looked down at Lucrezia with cold eyes.
“Usually, people live without committing sins. Who would crawl into another bird’s nest and play the role of a cuckoo? If you had raised Ippolito on your own, you could have proudly followed Ippolito’s father!”
Lucrezia lifted her tear-stained face and glared at Ariadne.
“You’re so great! Do you think life can go that smoothly?!”
“If you hadn’t killed another person, another family’s precious daughter, to protect your son, you wouldn’t be locked up in the dungeon today and being given poisoned drinks!”
“Someone else’s precious daughter? What’s the big deal about killing a maid or a commoner for my precious son? It was just bad luck. It wouldn’t have been a problem if one or two commoners were killed!”
“If you live like this, your life will end like this!”
Lucrezia gritted her teeth.
“You should have a daughter like me and hear the same thing!”
She shouted at Ariadne.
“You think that when you’re young, life will go your way? As you live, you’ll have to do dirty things and just go with the flow!”
There is only a little over ten years difference between Lucrezia's current age and Ariadne's age when she died.
“I have seen and experienced much more than you can imagine, Lucrezia.”
Ariadne looked at her stepmother with disgust.
“I did a lot of dirty things. I admit it. I made a lot of mistakes. I admit it. But I wasn’t as bad as you.”
Lucrezia looked at Ariadne with fearful eyes as she approached. Ariadne whispered softly.
“Your son abandoned you. Ungratefully. To find his own way of life. To the mother who cared so much for him. While he’s at it, I’ll take revenge.”
Ariadne asked Lucrezia.
“Who is Ippolito’s father?”
Lucrezia slowly pursed her lips, then opened them.
“And you’re still a mother after doing that?”
“You don’t know anything, little girl!”
Lucrezia fell to the floor, crying and screaming.
“When a woman gives birth, she thinks, ‘Oh, I’m a mother now. My life as a woman is over. Do you think I can just give up like this?’”
Lucrezia lay sprawled on the stone floor, howling.
“I just made the choices I needed to make at the time in the life that was given to me. But it’s tightening my noose!”
Lucrezia was so wet with tears that she looked like no human being. The words were garbled and barely understandable. Now Lucrezia was sobbing and half-eating the words.
“I lived with Simon because I had to support Ippolito and my family. I had more children while living with Simon. But because of that, I can’t leave my love! Why! Why on earth! What did I do wrong?”
Ariadne looked down at Lucrezia with cold eyes.
“Usually, people live without committing sins. Who would crawl into another bird’s nest and play the role of a cuckoo? If you had raised Ippolito on your own, you could have proudly followed Ippolito’s father!”
Lucrezia lifted her tear-stained face and glared at Ariadne.
“You’re so great! Do you think life can go that smoothly?!”
“If you hadn’t killed another person, another family’s precious daughter, to protect your son, you wouldn’t be locked up in the dungeon today and being given poisoned drinks!”
“Someone else’s precious daughter? What’s the big deal about killing a maid or a commoner for my precious son? It was just bad luck. It wouldn’t have been a problem if one or two commoners were killed!”
“If you live like this, your life will end like this!”
Lucrezia gritted her teeth.
“You should have a daughter like me and hear the same thing!”
She shouted at Ariadne.
“You think that when you’re young, life will go your way? As you live, you’ll have to do dirty things and just go with the flow!”
There is only a little over ten years difference between Lucrezia's current age and Ariadne's age when she died.
“I have seen and experienced much more than you can imagine, Lucrezia.”
Ariadne looked at her stepmother with disgust.
“I did a lot of dirty things. I admit it. I made a lot of mistakes. I admit it. But I wasn’t as bad as you.”
Lucrezia looked at Ariadne with fearful eyes as she approached. Ariadne whispered softly.
“Your son abandoned you. Ungratefully. To find his own way of life. To the mother who cared so much for him. While he’s at it, I’ll take revenge.”
Ariadne asked Lucrezia.
“Who is Ippolito’s father?”
Lucrezia slowly pursed her lips, then opened them.
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