“What are you doing here?”
The butler of the mansion who had come out to greet Deborah was holding a candle and shining a light on her.
“I came out to drink tea, but I got lost. I thought there was someone in this room, so I was going to ask for directions...”
“There is no one staying there. I think you mistook the sound of the wind. I will show you to your room. Please follow me.”
"...Yes."
Deborah tilted her head at the butler's firm words and followed him.
It sounded more like a woman's voice than the sound of the wind, he said.
After the coronation of Carsis.
As the government, which had been halted due to the civil war, began to operate again, the country gradually regained stability.
And the person who contributed greatly to restoring stability to the empire was Bellona, who became the Duke of Jupiter.
She became the new mistress of the restored Duke of Jupiter's family after the Emperor's coronation and stayed by Carsis's side.
Today, too, she was dealing with the piling up of work in her office in the palace.
Isaac said, handing over the pile of papers he was holding.
“There are reports that the harvest is difficult due to opposition from the Bremen landowners.”
“Bremen region?”
The Bremen region was the fiefdom of the Cretian ducal family in the south and was also the most grain-producing region in the empire.
“If it gets delayed any longer, the people of the territory will also be in trouble. Why are you suddenly doing this? The Duchess of Cretian won’t just sit back and watch.”
The Duchess of Cretien, although of a weak disposition, was a woman of great discernment.
Even if she holds a grudge against the new Emperor, she will not let the people of the territory run wild like fools.
“I... The Duchess is not in Bremen at the moment.”
The nib of the pen that had been moving gracefully in response to Isaac's answer suddenly stopped as if it had lost its way.
“Not in Bremen? You clearly said with your own mouth that the Duchess left for her estate before the rebellion broke out.”
“Yes, I definitely confirmed that the carriage the Duchess was riding in entered Bremen, but what happened...”
He also looked at Bellona as if he was in a difficult situation.
That would be the case since Bellona, who had lost her memory, had strongly urged Isaac to protect the Duchess.
Bellona stopped what she was doing and looked at the papers Isaac had handed her.
It was a letter mixed with lament from the manager who was dispatched for the harvest.
“I won’t work until I know the Duchess is safe... How presumptuous of you.”
But unlike her sharp muttering, her eyes were shadowed.
Bellona knew the people of the Bremen estate well, having seen them since she was a child.
There is a strong bond between the Cretian family and the people of the estate.
However, she didn't know that he would go so far as to rebel against the royal family.
Bellona got up from her seat and looked out the window as if she had a headache.
Then her dark green hair was reflected in the clear glass window.
"Ellie, I so wanted that blond hair you and your father had."
When Elizabeth was little, the Duchess would brush her hair whenever she had the chance and say:
She envied her and the Duke's blond hair.
“I inherited the blood of Cretian, but I did not inherit the blond hair that was the symbol of the family.”
Hazel Cretian is the eldest daughter of the Cretian family.
She had light brown hair, which was unusual for a Cretian.
Although it occasionally took on a golden hue when exposed to sunlight, it was by no means a blonde color.
The previous Duke of Cretian was said to have been fond of Hazel's brown hair, which resembled her mother's, but it seemed that Hazel did not agree.
"So I fell in love with your father's hair at first sight. Of course, the detail played a part too."
Hazel was born with a weak constitution, unlike the other heirs of the family.
So, the previous Duke, who judged that she would not be able to fulfill the role of a real Duke, brought in his son-in-law to inherit the ducal title.
'So that's why my power worked...'
The power of the Cretian family was the ability to nullify all powers.
In the first place, Elizabeth's father could not stop the power of Jupiter, and Hazel was too weak to use the power.
Because of this, Bellona was able to easily brainwash the two into believing that she was Elizabeth.
But long-term brainwashing also took its toll on her body.
And the side effects were memory loss and hallucinations.
One day, unfamiliar memories began to fill the gaps in her memories that were slowly fading away, and they began to mess with her mind.
And when she couldn't even remember the face of the person she had just met and was starting to get confused about who she was, she realized.
If she continues like this, she will lose her purpose in life and end up living and dying as a noble lady who doesn't know anything about the world.
So, she asked Carsis.
If you find me an obstacle to the rebellion, then...
"Kill me."
Ask him to kill her.
In the end, Carsis couldn't do that.
Bellona suddenly looked down at her hair, which was curled around her waist.
She had dark ash-green hair, not the lovely blonde she was so proud of.
But Isaac's voice, heard soon after, woke her up from her old thoughts.
“We demand the safety of the Duchess. We will do whatever we are told as long as her safety is guaranteed. It seems they think we have the Duchess of Cretien with us.”
“...”
There was too much to lose to subdue them by force.
Bellona bit her lip as she recalled the face of the woman who always smiled kindly at her.
“First, let’s find the Duchess’s whereabouts, and then...”
“I don’t think there’s any need to look for the Duchess.”
Carsis, who had been there for some time, was leaning against the door and looking at the two.
Bellona said, knowing that the protagonist was Carsis by the voice.
“If you needed anything, you should have called me. Then I would have gone.”
The change in the way they spoke to each other indicated that their positions had now been switched.
He came into the room, tapping the letter in his hand.
He had an expression on his face as if he didn't like something.
“An anonymous complaint has arrived.”
Then Isaac approached Carsis to receive the letter.
“Then to me...”
However, Carsis, who had been glaring at Isaac, lightly ignored his hand and stood in front of Bellona.
“It seems like the Emperor is taking Duchess Cretian with him.”
Bellona, who didn't notice the strange atmosphere between the two people, opened the letter that Carsis had handed her.
At the same time, something fell to the floor with a thud.
“This is.. .”
Familiar light brown hair.
It belonged to the Duchess of Cretian.
Bellona, who had been playing with her hair for a while, began to read the enclosed letter.
“Let us exchange the Duchess of Cretian and the Riventia...”
Treating someone who had sworn loyalty to him like an object. It was truly an Emperor-worthy suggestion.
Bellona, who was reading the letter, let out a laugh without realizing it.
Then she stared quietly at the hair she was holding in her right hand.
'If you don't hand over Riventia, Duchess Cretian will die.'
It was certain that the Emperor had sent the Duchess' hair.
If you want to save the Duchess, hand over Riventia, that's what he was saying.
Bellona threw the letter she was holding onto the desk.
Then Isaac, who had finished understanding the situation, opened his mouth as if he was puzzled.
“They must have learned from this coronation that you are the successor to House Jupiter, so why are they taking Duchess Cretian as a hostage? Who knows better than anyone that the House of Cretian is also the enemy of House Jupiter?”
Graham was the one who had caused the Critean family to turn against the Jupiter family. Isaac tilted his head at the fact that such a man had made such a suggestion.
“They probably know that.”
Bellona, who had been staring at Isaac like that, answered.
“I lost my memory and tried to take Duke and Duchess Cretian away before the rebellion. That’s why they must have thought Duchess Cretian was my weak point.”
Bellona crossed her arms and snapped her fingers.
Her gaze wandered into space, as if lost in thought.
“Deborah hasn’t moved yet?”
“Yes, I don’t think she's found it yet.”
Tch.
Bellona clicked her tongue briefly at Isaac's words.
“The Emperor will probably use that necklace to achieve a complete resurrection. Even the power of the Philosykos family would have had its limits in reviving a dead body.”
“I guess so.”
“What are you going to do?”
"I am..."
At Isaac's question again, Bellona fiddled with the Riventia hanging around her neck.
Her power usage had already reached its limit.
Nevertheless, it was thanks to Riventia that she was able to freely use her power without any cost.
Reventia, because it was the object of the gods that gave them power.
Riventia was an item that unleashed the power of authority without demanding any price. In other words, it was an item that made the caster's body like a spring of never-ending strength.
She could not forget the moment when she first put Riventia around her neck.
That time, when her cold blood became hot, like pouring oil on a dying ember.
It was a power so powerful that it was hard to believe it was her own.
Now, Riventia was more than just a relic; it was Bellona's lifeline.
'If Riventia disappears, I...'
At that moment, Bellona's hand, which was holding the necklace, began to tighten.
Carsis recited in a firm voice.
“Of course we should ignore it.”
Carsis, who had been looking at the two with strange eyes, came closer.
“The lives of Riventia and the Duchess were not worth weighing in the first place.”
Carsis looked at Bellona and nodded to her as if to ask her to agree with his opinion.
"...Sure."
Carsis was right.
From the beginning, there was no comparison between Riventia and Duchess Cretian.
But.
An unknown emotion rose up like a stone on a flat ground and disturbed her.
The butler of the mansion who had come out to greet Deborah was holding a candle and shining a light on her.
“I came out to drink tea, but I got lost. I thought there was someone in this room, so I was going to ask for directions...”
“There is no one staying there. I think you mistook the sound of the wind. I will show you to your room. Please follow me.”
"...Yes."
Deborah tilted her head at the butler's firm words and followed him.
It sounded more like a woman's voice than the sound of the wind, he said.
***
After the coronation of Carsis.
As the government, which had been halted due to the civil war, began to operate again, the country gradually regained stability.
And the person who contributed greatly to restoring stability to the empire was Bellona, who became the Duke of Jupiter.
She became the new mistress of the restored Duke of Jupiter's family after the Emperor's coronation and stayed by Carsis's side.
Today, too, she was dealing with the piling up of work in her office in the palace.
Isaac said, handing over the pile of papers he was holding.
“There are reports that the harvest is difficult due to opposition from the Bremen landowners.”
“Bremen region?”
The Bremen region was the fiefdom of the Cretian ducal family in the south and was also the most grain-producing region in the empire.
“If it gets delayed any longer, the people of the territory will also be in trouble. Why are you suddenly doing this? The Duchess of Cretian won’t just sit back and watch.”
The Duchess of Cretien, although of a weak disposition, was a woman of great discernment.
Even if she holds a grudge against the new Emperor, she will not let the people of the territory run wild like fools.
“I... The Duchess is not in Bremen at the moment.”
The nib of the pen that had been moving gracefully in response to Isaac's answer suddenly stopped as if it had lost its way.
“Not in Bremen? You clearly said with your own mouth that the Duchess left for her estate before the rebellion broke out.”
“Yes, I definitely confirmed that the carriage the Duchess was riding in entered Bremen, but what happened...”
He also looked at Bellona as if he was in a difficult situation.
That would be the case since Bellona, who had lost her memory, had strongly urged Isaac to protect the Duchess.
Bellona stopped what she was doing and looked at the papers Isaac had handed her.
It was a letter mixed with lament from the manager who was dispatched for the harvest.
“I won’t work until I know the Duchess is safe... How presumptuous of you.”
But unlike her sharp muttering, her eyes were shadowed.
Bellona knew the people of the Bremen estate well, having seen them since she was a child.
There is a strong bond between the Cretian family and the people of the estate.
However, she didn't know that he would go so far as to rebel against the royal family.
Bellona got up from her seat and looked out the window as if she had a headache.
Then her dark green hair was reflected in the clear glass window.
"Ellie, I so wanted that blond hair you and your father had."
When Elizabeth was little, the Duchess would brush her hair whenever she had the chance and say:
She envied her and the Duke's blond hair.
“I inherited the blood of Cretian, but I did not inherit the blond hair that was the symbol of the family.”
Hazel Cretian is the eldest daughter of the Cretian family.
She had light brown hair, which was unusual for a Cretian.
Although it occasionally took on a golden hue when exposed to sunlight, it was by no means a blonde color.
The previous Duke of Cretian was said to have been fond of Hazel's brown hair, which resembled her mother's, but it seemed that Hazel did not agree.
"So I fell in love with your father's hair at first sight. Of course, the detail played a part too."
Hazel was born with a weak constitution, unlike the other heirs of the family.
So, the previous Duke, who judged that she would not be able to fulfill the role of a real Duke, brought in his son-in-law to inherit the ducal title.
'So that's why my power worked...'
The power of the Cretian family was the ability to nullify all powers.
In the first place, Elizabeth's father could not stop the power of Jupiter, and Hazel was too weak to use the power.
Because of this, Bellona was able to easily brainwash the two into believing that she was Elizabeth.
But long-term brainwashing also took its toll on her body.
And the side effects were memory loss and hallucinations.
One day, unfamiliar memories began to fill the gaps in her memories that were slowly fading away, and they began to mess with her mind.
And when she couldn't even remember the face of the person she had just met and was starting to get confused about who she was, she realized.
If she continues like this, she will lose her purpose in life and end up living and dying as a noble lady who doesn't know anything about the world.
So, she asked Carsis.
If you find me an obstacle to the rebellion, then...
"Kill me."
Ask him to kill her.
In the end, Carsis couldn't do that.
Bellona suddenly looked down at her hair, which was curled around her waist.
She had dark ash-green hair, not the lovely blonde she was so proud of.
But Isaac's voice, heard soon after, woke her up from her old thoughts.
“We demand the safety of the Duchess. We will do whatever we are told as long as her safety is guaranteed. It seems they think we have the Duchess of Cretien with us.”
“...”
There was too much to lose to subdue them by force.
Bellona bit her lip as she recalled the face of the woman who always smiled kindly at her.
“First, let’s find the Duchess’s whereabouts, and then...”
“I don’t think there’s any need to look for the Duchess.”
Carsis, who had been there for some time, was leaning against the door and looking at the two.
Bellona said, knowing that the protagonist was Carsis by the voice.
“If you needed anything, you should have called me. Then I would have gone.”
The change in the way they spoke to each other indicated that their positions had now been switched.
He came into the room, tapping the letter in his hand.
He had an expression on his face as if he didn't like something.
“An anonymous complaint has arrived.”
Then Isaac approached Carsis to receive the letter.
“Then to me...”
However, Carsis, who had been glaring at Isaac, lightly ignored his hand and stood in front of Bellona.
“It seems like the Emperor is taking Duchess Cretian with him.”
Bellona, who didn't notice the strange atmosphere between the two people, opened the letter that Carsis had handed her.
At the same time, something fell to the floor with a thud.
“This is.. .”
Familiar light brown hair.
It belonged to the Duchess of Cretian.
Bellona, who had been playing with her hair for a while, began to read the enclosed letter.
“Let us exchange the Duchess of Cretian and the Riventia...”
Treating someone who had sworn loyalty to him like an object. It was truly an Emperor-worthy suggestion.
Bellona, who was reading the letter, let out a laugh without realizing it.
Then she stared quietly at the hair she was holding in her right hand.
'If you don't hand over Riventia, Duchess Cretian will die.'
It was certain that the Emperor had sent the Duchess' hair.
If you want to save the Duchess, hand over Riventia, that's what he was saying.
Bellona threw the letter she was holding onto the desk.
Then Isaac, who had finished understanding the situation, opened his mouth as if he was puzzled.
“They must have learned from this coronation that you are the successor to House Jupiter, so why are they taking Duchess Cretian as a hostage? Who knows better than anyone that the House of Cretian is also the enemy of House Jupiter?”
Graham was the one who had caused the Critean family to turn against the Jupiter family. Isaac tilted his head at the fact that such a man had made such a suggestion.
“They probably know that.”
Bellona, who had been staring at Isaac like that, answered.
“I lost my memory and tried to take Duke and Duchess Cretian away before the rebellion. That’s why they must have thought Duchess Cretian was my weak point.”
Bellona crossed her arms and snapped her fingers.
Her gaze wandered into space, as if lost in thought.
“Deborah hasn’t moved yet?”
“Yes, I don’t think she's found it yet.”
Tch.
Bellona clicked her tongue briefly at Isaac's words.
“The Emperor will probably use that necklace to achieve a complete resurrection. Even the power of the Philosykos family would have had its limits in reviving a dead body.”
“I guess so.”
“What are you going to do?”
"I am..."
At Isaac's question again, Bellona fiddled with the Riventia hanging around her neck.
Her power usage had already reached its limit.
Nevertheless, it was thanks to Riventia that she was able to freely use her power without any cost.
Reventia, because it was the object of the gods that gave them power.
Riventia was an item that unleashed the power of authority without demanding any price. In other words, it was an item that made the caster's body like a spring of never-ending strength.
She could not forget the moment when she first put Riventia around her neck.
That time, when her cold blood became hot, like pouring oil on a dying ember.
It was a power so powerful that it was hard to believe it was her own.
Now, Riventia was more than just a relic; it was Bellona's lifeline.
'If Riventia disappears, I...'
At that moment, Bellona's hand, which was holding the necklace, began to tighten.
Carsis recited in a firm voice.
“Of course we should ignore it.”
Carsis, who had been looking at the two with strange eyes, came closer.
“The lives of Riventia and the Duchess were not worth weighing in the first place.”
Carsis looked at Bellona and nodded to her as if to ask her to agree with his opinion.
"...Sure."
Carsis was right.
From the beginning, there was no comparison between Riventia and Duchess Cretian.
But.
An unknown emotion rose up like a stone on a flat ground and disturbed her.
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