"Acares?"
Meanwhile, Medea looked at the mercenary who had closed his mouth like a clam at one point.
"..."
The eyes hidden behind the white half-mask could not be read to tell what they were saying.
'As expected, you're being selfish.'
Instead of being swayed by the mercenary's whims, Medea absentmindedly turned her gaze out the window.
'First Prince Cesare Dwisler Katzen... I never got to see his face in my previous life.'
When Jason set out on his expedition, the first Prince had already passed away.
'If the First Prince had been alive, I would have failed.'
In her previous life, Medea fought fiercely with the Emperor's children to give the throne to Jason.
Medea worked hard to defeat them one by one with tricks and traps, but luck was also on her side.
After the death of the first Prince, the empire was greatly shaken.
It was after the loss of his brave son that Perdiccas II became obsessed with the Philosopher's Stone.
If he were to live on and not die like in her last life, how would the continental map change?
Medea sat silently in thought, unaware that the man was sitting on the chair opposite her, their knees almost touching.
'Come to your senses. Now is not the time to worry about the First Prince. We should start by strangling Jason.'
To prevent Jason from even dreaming of the throne, the foundations on which he had relied had to be destroyed, one by one.
'Among all the things that Valdina has, the one you trust the most is the one that stands out the most.'
Medea was determined to shatter that firm hope.
***
Queen Valdina's Palace.
"Your Majesty the Queen, you must eat some food first."
"No work."
"You've been skipping meals. I'm sure Her Highness is worried."
At Madame Pinatelli's words, the Queen Dowager suppressed the emotions that were welling up in her.
"I've always treated her harshly. I haven't treated her well, and yet you're taking that child away from me so hastily."
The wrinkled corners of her mouth trembled with sadness.
"It seems the goddess is about to punish this foolish old woman."
Since she never did anything good for Medea, she only had memories of things she couldn't do for her.
If she loses Medea like this, she will regret it for the rest of her life.
"Your Majesty..."
When Madam Pinatelli was at a loss as to what to do, the door opened with a bang.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty the Queen! We have received a call from the Magic Tower!"
"You, what kind of rudeness is this!"
The maid shouted, not even bothering to listen to Madame Pinatelli's scolding.
"Her Highness the Princess is alive!"
The Queen dowager suddenly sat up.
***
In the distance, a carriage bearing the seal of the Magic Tower was visible.
"Your Majesty, hold fast. There is a carriage coming in."
The girl walking behind the thin man wearing glasses, supported by his arm, was clearly Medea.
Despite Madame Pinatelli's persuasion, the Queen Mother could no longer endure it.
She walked as fast as she could, dragging her uncomfortable body.
"Medea!"
"Grandma."
And she hugged her small body tightly.
"What the heck is this? How hard must it have been..."
The Queen dowager found the bandages wrapped around her delicate wrists and ankles as if telling of her granddaughter's suffering, and her eyes welled up with tears.
It was the first time that the Queen Dowager, who always maintained her dignity, shed tears in public.
They say a person's true heart comes out in times of crisis. Contrary to rumors, people could see how much she cared for her granddaughter.
"I am Terence. I am in charge of the Western Continent branch of the Magic Tower, and the Tower Lord is my teacher."
A young wizard wearing glasses introduced himself briefly.
"While on assignment from the Magic Tower, I was digging for stone at the foot of the Valdina Mountains when I discovered Her Highness the Princess injured. Her condition was so serious that I had to devote all my energy to treating her, so it took a while to find out Her Highness's identity and understand the situation."
"Medea's condition was so serious, how serious...?"
"It was a miracle that she survived the fall from the cliff. I don't know how many magic stones went into her."
Terence lied naturally.
"Oh. I will pay you everything. I will definitely compensate the Magic Tower even if it costs me my own money."
At that time, the people of Duke Claudio's family also came running out of breath when they heard the news.
"Where is my niece, Medea?"
The regent's eyes were filled with worry.
"Oh my goodness, Your Highness! What is going on?!"
Catherine also ran over urgently and tried to support Medea with her tears.
Because he ran a little late and caused a ruckus, people's faces hardened.
Last time, they remembered the regent's appearance when he pushed the Princess away to protect his son during the duel with General Katzen.
"Thank goodness! Hahaha, I'm so glad you came back alive!"
Even now, in their eyes, the regent's fuss was nothing more than a display of joy at his son's innocence being cleared.
"What a relief! How can you laugh when your child ends up like this!"
The Queen Dowager also seemed to think the same and shouted at the Regent. Catherine quickly stepped forward to protect her husband.
"You misunderstand, Mother. Her Highness's injuries seem rather minor, so..."
How can someone who fell off a cliff walk back up fine in just a few days?
Catherine had been suspicious from the beginning that this was not Medea's doing.
At that moment, Terence responded, as if he was displeased.
"It is only natural that several wizards have joined us to cure Her Highness. We will take it as a compliment to our skills."
The Regent's eyes lit up as if he had caught wind of Terence's words.
'Okay! Then that means there's no evidence!'
"Oh, it's really great that Medea has recovered, but it's also so sad. If that's the case, then all the clues to the culprit that remained on Dea's body must have disappeared."
But Terence did not let the Regent escape easily.
The young wizard pushed up his glasses with his third finger and looked surprised.
"So, you're saying that we should put treatment on the back burner and find the culprit first. Your Highness the Regent is truly amazing. I've never seen anyone this cold-blooded in the Magic Tower."
"..."
At that moment, Catherine poked her son, meaning to lighten the mood quickly.
Samon approached her with tears in his eyes.
"Medea! You are so lucky, it's all my brother's fault. I couldn't protect you-"
He spread his arms and tried to hug Medea like he usually did.
"Oh-!"
Medea absentmindedly took a step back to avoid Samon.
Her face showed a mixture of fear and puzzlement, as if she too was surprised by his actions.
"Medea?"
"I'm sorry, brother. I really... don't know why I'm like this..."
"Your Highness, the Princess lost her memories from the shock of the fall. Since it doesn't show on the outside, she's the only one suffering."
Catherine's face turned red as she was hit with Terence's addition.
The Queen Mother glared at her second son and his wife, then grabbed Medea's hand.
"Medea, do you really not remember anything? Not even the smallest thing?"
"I don't remember. I was chased by a pack of dogs, and when I opened my eyes, I was at the bottom of a cliff. It was so cold and scary..."
Medea shook her head with a look of mock confusion.
She said she would have probably died if it weren't for the dog that fell with her.
"I have no idea who targeted me... However, since my last memory was with me, there is no way that my brother, Samon, would want to hurt me. It must have been someone else. It could never have been Samon."
As she spoke, the Princess's body was moving backward as if she wanted to get farther away from Samon.
Samon was going crazy.
'If you do that here. I'll look more suspicious!
He almost shouted at Medea, who looked like a pitiful young animal trembling with fear, to grab her and push her off the cliff.
"I'm sorry for causing you any trouble."
Terence, who saw the Princess finally blaming herself with red eyes filled with tears, swallowed his inner shock.
'It was nothing special to hit Cesare on the shoulder.'
He almost doubted if she was the same girl who had been expressionless the whole time on the carriage. Somehow, goosebumps ran down my spine.
The Princess's protection made people even more suspicious. Wasn't she originally a Princess who had a close relationship with the Duke Claudio family?
She probably wouldn't want to believe it.
Her cousin, who had treated me like a real sister since she was little, tried to kill her.
"Don't worry. This grandmother will definitely find the evil spirit who tried to harm you."
The Queen Mother must have thought so too, as she glared at Claudio and made a promise to Medea.
"You can leave the palace now. Medea has returned, so there is no need to stay in the palace."
And then she turned coldly towards the Duke Claudio.
"Samon Claudius sentences his subject to twenty lashes for deserting the royal family and running away."
What!
People were surprised.
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