"What do you mean, you sold the family fortune? What right do you have to sell them?”
“Why don’t I have any rights? The seal of the family and all the authority belongs to me. My grandfather handed it over to me before he passed away, saying that if I left it to my incompetent father who only knew how to spend money on luxury, it would be ruined within three years.”
When I answered with my eyes wide open, his face turned pale.
It seemed that he had only just realized that all he had was a title.
“So, you’re saying you sold them all? Why on earth!”
“Of course it’s revenge. I was pushed to my death by my father’s hands, and my father wants to play family games with those bastards and live happily ever after. That’s just so unreasonable. Don’t you think so?”
"Ha!"
The trash let out a breathy laugh.
Even though I would have pretended to obey when he told me to go, it was understandable that I would have changed and gone out like this.
But now that I have a mortal body, what can't I do?
So, I planned to say everything I wanted to say before I left.
“What on earth, how much did you sell? Where did you start and where did you end up?”
“What and where? Everything from the house where my father lives to the mine and the business. Oh, but I didn’t touch the ornaments of my father and your belongings.”
“Is that true?”
His face brightened slightly.
The three of them thought that if they combined the jewels they owned, it would amount to a considerable amount of money, so they could use that to increase their wealth again...
'Yeah, wake up.'
I had no intention of giving any hope to the trash who left me to my own devices.
“I’m talking about the gambling debt collection notice that came to my father a while ago. I roughly calculated it and it seems like it’ll be around that much. If you sell it and pay it off, you won’t have to pay the debt.”
“You! You, you damn bitch!”
The garbage was now almost on the verge of suffocation.
I thought that if I was not careful, I might end up going from being a funeral attendee to a party involved, but well, that's none of my business.
“If you’ve satisfied all your curiosity, then you should just wash off that dirty face. I’ve said everything I wanted to say and I’m going to die feeling relieved, but I feel like shit because I keep looking at that disgusting face.”
I waved my hands as if shooing away flies, then hugged my nanny one last time and whispered secretly.
“You won’t get any better if you stay here any longer, so go back, Nanny. Take good care of what I gave you. Don’t let those scumbags steal it from you, okay?”
She had been blankly listening to my conversation with Trash but soon nodded with a determined expression.
It was as if she would rather die than let them take it away from her.
I watched with pleasure as the nanny spread out the hem of her dress to hide the box that had been thrown on the sofa, and then I quickly pulled back the curtain of the barracks.
Then I smiled brightly and spoke to the knight guarding in front of me.
“Yes, let’s go and die now.”
“Yes, that’s right... Yes? Are you going to leave already? There’s still some time before the ceremony, so I want you to talk to your family a little more...”
“What’s the point of hesitating when you’re going to die anyway? And talking to people like that is just going to hurt your mouth.”
“No, but it’s the last one...”
“Oh, stop talking nonsense, hurry up, and take the lead!”
I hastened my steps to Sajiro, nagging at the knight that was making me sick.
With each step I took toward the altar, I could hear the murmurs of the onlookers.
“How did the noble Princess of the Veloce family end up in such a state?”
“It’s a shame that a legitimate daughter is offered as a sacrifice instead of an illegitimate child.”
“What’s so hard about it? It’s obvious.”
“That’s right, all the common women who have been offered as sacrifices up until now were also someone’s precious daughters!”
“But that woman was born a noblewoman and lived a life of luxury before dying.”
“Yes, my nephew was born into a poor family and suffered all his life before he died! That’s a happy life.”
“That’s right. Many women die as sacrifices. There’s no need to pity them.”
“Well, isn’t that too cold? But unlike other nobles, she has shown many favors to us commoners.”
“Yes, who hasn’t tried the relief food provided by the Duke’s family?”
“Huh, how could that be for us? They’re all just trying to save face for their own families.”
“Yes, that woman’s death is a symbol of the abolition of class. It shows that even the nobles can no longer avoid responsibility in the face of this disaster!”
Some people sympathized with me, but most reacted cynically.
It seemed that they were delighted to see someone they normally would not dare to look at die a miserable death.
'Okay, laugh all you want.'
It was a death that even my biological father, who had given me flesh and blood, did not mourn.
I never expected to be comforted by them, complete strangers.
I walked with my back straight, not caring what people were saying around me.
The place where I, who was walking so proudly, stopped was an altar set up at the bottom of a cliff far away.
“Applicants for the abolition of the temple must pay homage to the goddess.”
I knelt at the altar as instructed by the priest.
Then, the priest who had been praying alone sprinkled holy water on my head and made a solemn declaration.
“I hereby declare that Princess Shayne Veloce has become the Goddess’s Discipline.”
My death, that is... execution.
Even though I had already prepared for everything, all kinds of emotions were swirling inside me.
Anger at the disaster that came out of nowhere and turned the empire into hell.
Resentment toward the empire that chose the inhumane method of human sacrifice to cover up the disaster.
And the hatred towards my father who abandoned me to save his illegitimate child.
All those negative emotions came together and overwhelmed me.
But what can I do?
Now there is no turning back.
As I was getting up in despair, a knight approached me and held out his hand.
“I will take you to the cave entrance.”
I was about to grab his hand without thinking, but then I felt something strange and quickly raised my head.
The dark brown hair blowing in the wind and the dark brown eyes were very familiar.
“Sir Arthur? Why are you here...?”
Arthur Jaden.
He was no ordinary knight.
He was the bodyguard of Crown Prince Declan Garnazzo and the second son of Count Jaden. In short, he was the Crown Prince's closest aide.
'Why is someone like that doing something like this here?'
Despite my gaze demanding an explanation, he only waved his hand as if telling me to hurry and grab him.
'Well, it's not like it's a conversation that needs to be had while receiving other people's attention.'
Once I took his hand, I slowly climbed the cliff and asked.
“Why are you here, Sir?”
“His Highness the Crown Prince sent me.”
“...His Highness?”
“Yes, he told us to treat the Princess with the utmost courtesy on her final journey.”
'This is crazy.'
What the hell are you treating people who die as human sacrifices? Are you kidding me?
As I looked on in astonishment, the knight added as if making excuses.
“His Highness is very sorry about what happened to the Princess. He is very sorry.”
“Well, if that’s really what he wanted, I think he should at least come here in person and show his face.”
That was the least they could do for the imperial people who were dying in vain because of the cruel ritual they had created.
'It's just cowardly to send his knight like this and have them spit out empty apologies instead.'
That's when I snorted.
“That’s what he wanted to do.”
“...?”
“His Highness wanted to do the same. He wanted to see the Princess in person and apologize. He simply sent me because he was unable to do so.”
“Why couldn’t that be?”
Did all the horses in the country die? Or was the road blocked by a landslide? Or did the Crown Prince's leg break?
'What on earth is the big deal that you can't even see your nose?'
When I stared at him as if telling him to say something, he let out a low sigh and with difficulty moved his lips apart.
“His Highness is imprisoned.”
“...What did you say?”
I couldn't help but feel embarrassed for a moment.
Imprisonment? Why is the Crown Prince of the empire being imprisoned? What crime did he commit? No, more than that, who would dare to imprison the Crown Prince?
'I misunderstood the meaning of confinement... Oh, by the way, I think the Crown Prince was against the abolition of the system.'
I once heard a rumor that the sound of the Emperor arguing with him could be heard all the way down the hallway, asking if it was right to sacrifice innocent citizens of the empire for such ridiculous superstitions.
'Could that be why?'
Arthur nodded heavily as if he had read my gaze.
“His Highness feels a great sense of guilt for not being able to prevent this terrible event, which also resulted in the tragic sacrifice of the Princess.”
“...”
“Although he was unable to prevent the Princess’s death, he said he would find a solution as soon as possible...”
“Are you kidding me? What good will it do if a solution is found after I’m dead?”
I cut him off and scolded him curtly.
I know that neither the speaker nor the person who relayed the message was at fault, but I couldn't help it.
Who would say, 'Oh my, so that's how it is! I don't know where to put myself thanks to Your Highness's grace!' when they are being dragged to their deaths?
'Still, it's fortunate that there is at least one person in the royal family who is in his right mind.'
I took a deep breath and walked forward, and before I knew it, I had arrived at my destination.
To my grave, a cave so deep that I cannot see even an inch ahead, reminiscent of the jaws of a wild beast.
I stared blankly at the entrance and then slowly closed my eyes.
Relationships from this life flashed through my mind one by one.
My mother, whom I always miss and long for.
The nanny who filled that void.
The butler and servants were like family to me.
And...
'Oh, I should have stepped on that trash more thoroughly!'
Even though I gave away all my wealth and made him a beggar, my anger was not appeased.
I clenched my fists to calm my bubbling stomach.
Arthur spoke in a pitiful voice, perhaps misunderstanding my actions as fear.
“I am sorry, Princess. As an imperial male who is not subject to the abolition of the throne, if there is an afterlife, I will definitely repay this debt...”
“You’re talking about the afterlife.”
What good could there be in being reborn into this fucking world?
'In that case, it would be a hundred times better to remain a ghost and see the world without a care... Huh?'
That's kind of appealing, isn't it?
How great would it be if I could become a ghost and stick to those scumbags and harass them to my heart's content?
If only I could watch them wither away day by day, tormented by a non-existent me.
'But are there really ghosts?'
I can't be sure since I've never seen it myself, but it was something I never knew about.
There are countless horror stories about ghosts.
‘What the heck, this makes me want to die quickly.’
When I couldn't avoid death, I quickly made a decision as if my mind was going crazy and I was looking for hope in strange places.
I decided to die as soon as possible.
So, if possible, definitely! Definitely become a ghost.
Feeling anxious, I hurriedly greeted Arthur.
“Thank you for your hard work, Sir Arthur. Now, you may as well go. I think I must go and die soon.”
Then I snatched the torch from his hand and ran into the cave.
“Huh? Wait, Princess. Why are you rushing to such a nice place...!”
Arthur looked at me like I was crazy, but I didn't care.
Actually, I was a crazy bitch.
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