Elena froze. Unlike her who was violently agitated, Ariana had an eerily calm expression. A calm voice flowed out of Ariana's mouth.
"Unlike you, my brother was born and raised as a nobleman, so why didn't you feel inferior to him? Why did you only hate me, Elena?"
Elena's eyes shook violently.
"Of course, it's because my sister secretly ignored me-."
"No, Elena. I know the real answer."
Ariana smiled faintly.
"It must have been because I was easy."
Elena took a deep breath for a moment. Ariana's voice continued.
"You were just weak to the strong and strong to the weak. With your quick wit, there was no way you didn't know that I was the weakest person in the house after my mother and grandfather passed away."
"Ha! I, I..."
"Don't wrap it up with human emotions like inferiority complex, Elena. You just targeted me because I was weak, and hunted me for fun. You felt a base pleasure in deceiving and mocking me. And you're such a bad girl."
Ariana took a deep breath and finished her words. As if talking to herself firmly.
"It's not my fault."
"... Ha, haha."
Elena lifted the corners of her trembling lips.
"So, in the end, it wasn't your fault at all? As always, you're the only one who's proud and good. Brother is right. Your very existence was a disaster to our family."
Ariana furrowed her eyebrows slightly.
"What are you talking about?"
"Brother said. My father tried to get rid of you. Oh my God, does that make sense?"
"Elena!"
Edward hurriedly rushed in and tried to cover Elena's mouth. However, Elena forcefully shook Edward off and continued speaking. Elena said with a bizarrely trembling laugh.
"Even my blood- related family hated seeing my sister. Isn't that horrible? Look at that. I wasn't the only one who found my sister annoying. It's proof that my sister is that horrible-."
"Your tongue is so dirty."
At that moment, a huge presence suddenly appeared in front of Elena.
"I can't take it anymore, but that's enough. Unlike my wife, I'm not the type to tolerate petty things crawling up."
Dante clearly showed his displeasure. Elena gasped as the air around her seemed to expand. Dante silently nodded somewhere. Then as if he had been waiting, the palace soldiers approached and took Elena and Edward away. Elena finally came to her senses and twisted her body in shock.
"T- Take this. I have more to say to you!"
"Ariana! Let's talk. Okay? I was wrong, listen to what your brother has to say!"
Elena and Edward took turns swearing at each other, but Ariana didn't even blink. Edward lashed out as he was dragged out of the banquet hall.
"Ariana! I asked for your forgiveness! Are you really going to come out like this?!"
The voices gradually faded away and soon could not be heard. The two would never enter the palace again. The nobles watched the two siblings leave, throwing out a word each.
"What should I say, this is really miserable."
"How can you be so ugly, tsk tsk."
The two were kicked out of the palace under the contemptuous gazes of the nobles. In the timeline that no longer exists, the woman who was the most glamorous lady in society and the flower of the opera, and the man who was called the "descendant of a music master" were never able to set foot in the palace again after that day.
***
I came out onto the terrace and slowly took in the night air.
"Ariana Lopez Heigenberg."
A low voice called my name. I took a deep breath. Of course, the Empire had no history of women holding titles, so the title was not completely revoked. To be exact, it was still just a certificate of title. Nevertheless, when Dante called me by my name, Lopez, my nose felt a little tingly.
"How do you feel?"
I reflected on my feelings at that. Everything was perfect. People said my music was good, and Edward bowed his head in front of everyone and forcibly admitted his guilt. Elena and Lucas also left the stage in shame.
Yes. It was definitely a moment that should have been extremely satisfying and a night that should have been intoxicated with a sense of victory. But I kept feeling a strange sense of unease.
"Your existence itself was the seed of disaster."
"My father once tried to get rid of you."
The last thing Elena said was. It might have been just a joke to provoke me out of spite, but somehow I had a feeling that it wasn't something I could just ignore.
"What did she mean?"
As I pondered this, a deep sense of fatigue turned into an awl and stabbed my temple.
"... Ugh."
I groaned softly and slowly blinked my eyes. I had been suffering from a mild headache for several weeks. It wasn't surprising, really. Since returning to time, especially as the founding of the nation approached, I could count the number of nights I had slept properly on one hand. It was an inevitable side effect of the fatigue that had piled up.
"But today, the pain is persistent."
It might be because all the tension had been released at once. As I thought that, my vision tilted, slowly.
"Ariana!"
I saw Dante reaching out his arm to me with a puzzled expression. That was the last thing I saw as I lost consciousness.
***
"She's overworked."
The doctor lifted his head as he removed the examination device. He said in a serious voice.
"It seems like she's been working your body too hard. It seems like she hasn't slept properly... Above all, her fingertips are extremely cold, and it seems like her blood circulation is not working properly. Has she been overly stressed out recently?"
All the servants in the room made complicated expressions at those words. Everyone knew that since Ariana entered the ducal residence, she had not slept properly even for a single day and had been working late into the night.
"It's my fault, ugh, I should have made sure you ate properly and slept properly...!"
Sophie sobbed. He regretted every single day that she had not been able to firmly stop Ariana, who had skipped breakfast and was working hard. Dante quietly looked down. She saw a face that was even whiter than her platinum hair. Her neck was thin enough to fit in one hand, her collarbone protruded, and her fingers looked like they would break with just the slightest force.
"What should I do, sob, my lady..."
As Sophie began to sob, the doctor quickly added.
"But there's nothing seriously wrong with her health, so don't worry too much. You can think of it as a kind of deep sleep right now."
The doctor said as he finished the diagnosis.
"When she wakes up, eat well and sleep well. If she doesn't continue to overwork herself, she'll get better soon."
"Don't forget."
The doctor nodded at Dante's short answer.
"Then call me again anytime."
The doctor bowed politely and left the bedroom. The butler Oren, who had been watching from a step back, finally felt relieved.
Just this morning, Ariana had left the mansion dressed perfectly from head to toe. The sight of Dante escorting her onto the carriage and Ariana elegantly receiving him looked so perfect together like a masterpiece, Oren's heart swelled with pride. When Ariana was brought in collapsed, he was so shocked that he almost fainted...
How fortunate that it wasn't a serious illness.
'The master seems relieved, too.'
At first glance, his cold eyes seemed to be betraying no emotion, but Oren could sense it. Without taking his eyes off Ariana, Dante moved his lips.
"Go out. Everyone."
"Yes, master."
Oren nodded to the servants and led everyone out. Sophie sniffled and looked back at Dante and Ariana before leaving the bedroom. Silence fell in the bedroom, where no one had come near like the ebb tide. Dante looked down at the bed without saying a word.
"..."
He knew that Ariana was burning her life force as fuel. It was like watching a moth collide with a flame while its wings burned in the light. The reason he didn't stop her was because he knew that she would never stop until she reached the light. Just like he had long ago.
"Are you satisfied?"
Dante slowly reached out his hand to the bed. As he grasped the hair that was disheveled on the pillow, the silver-like hair slipped between his fingers. An old memory suddenly came to mind and overlapped the scene. As if dreaming with his eyes open. Hazy and yet vivid.
"Don't go..."
The small hand that was excited by the fever grabbed his collar. The hand that was soaked with the river water was cold, and the child's breath was too hot. She's going to die soon. It was an obvious conclusion. Her body, which was radiating heat due to severe hypothermia, had no hope of survival. The reason he didn't shake her hand off, even though he thought that way, was...
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment