Episode 55. It's my turn to fight back?
"I'll prove that everything that Stone said is a lie."
She was wearing a corset over a thin chemise and grabbed the hem of her shoulder.
Everyone murmured as her smooth white back was revealed in the darkness.
There really was a tattoo in the middle of her back.
But that was...
"Christine?"
Jan slowly read the tattoo on her back.
The letters engraved along both shoulder blades, centered on the straight spine, were clearly 'CRISTINE'.
His name covered her back like wings.
***
The woman named Allie who had come to see Christine a while ago was a gypsy woman with a red face.
This gypsy woman was said to be popular with soldiers on the battlefield because she was so good at tattooing.
In this place, most of the people who got tattoos were slaves or prostitutes, but on the battlefield, they found their own identity.
To strengthen their resolve to fight, they tattooed the names of their beloved lovers, parents, or siblings on their bodies, or they tattooed phrases asking how their bodies should be disposed of if they died. For soldiers, it was an expression of desperation and tragedy.
That’s why Christine asked Allie. She must have known how to erase it.
“Can you do it?”
But Allie shook her head as she looked at Adele’s tattoo.
“It’s so deeply engraved that it would be difficult to erase.”
“Then, is it possible to change it to something else?”
Allie looked puzzled at Adele’s question.
“Change it?”
Christine sighed softly and traced letters on Adele’s back with her finger.
She added three letters on each side of ST, making it ‘CRISTINE.’
However, he looked very reluctant.
“Are you really going to do that?”
Adele didn’t hesitate.
“Of course. Right now.”
“There’s still time, so I’ll think about it some more and then...”
“Chris, I want to get rid of this as soon as possible. Now, this is your name, not his. And this time, I’m doing it of my own free will.”
“You’re really stubborn!”
When Christine clicked his tongue, Adele smiled with a determined face.
“I’m as desperate as a soldier on the battlefield right now.”
In the end, Christine had no choice but to agree.
***
“What happened?”
At Jan’s question, Adele looked around the people filling the stadium and smiled faintly.
“Do you still believe Stone, what that guy made up?”
When the evidence Stone had been bragging about turned out to be false, his words lost credibility.
Moreover, since it was in front of everyone, no matter how much of an Emperor he was, he couldn’t take Stone’s side.
Adele calmly pulled up her chemise and walked through the guards.
Jan was so flustered that he couldn’t give any orders, and the guards didn’t stop her anymore and just let her pass.
“Miss!”
Tanya, who had been watching while crying, quickly picked up Adele’s dress and cape and followed her.
Adele didn’t seem to notice anything about the situation. She just walked busily towards the palace forest in her thin chemise.
“I have to... find him.”
That was all she could think about. She didn’t think Christine was dead. That didn’t make sense. But if he was injured and couldn’t move, if he were going to freeze to death in this cold weather...
Once she thought about that, she couldn’t waste any time. That was when.
Aww! Aww!
The howling of wolves could be heard from afar. After a while, the inside of the palace forest began to shake violently.
The guards drew their swords and surrounded Jan, escorting him. Soon, a pack of dozens of wolves appeared in the pitch black from inside the forest. What was surprising was that a man was standing in the middle of the pack. Was it because it was dark? It seemed as if he was leading the wolves. Adele, who was walking toward the forest, stopped dead in her tracks when she encountered the man.
“Chris...?”
Just calling his name made her green eyes sparkle.
Meanwhile, Christine’s forehead wrinkled slightly when he saw her in her thin chemise. He calmly took off his cape and wrapped Adele around it.
Even then, Adele couldn’t believe it and caressed his face.
“Chris... is it really you...?”
“Yeah.”
“Haa... I knew it... I knew it... Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s really fortunate...”
Adele grabbed his shoulder with her trembling hands and swallowed her tears. Her shoulder shook as if she were sobbing. He held Adele in his arms and whispered quietly as if he were soothing a child.
“I have something urgent to take care of. Can you step aside for a moment?”
“Ugh...”
Adele nodded and let go of the hand she was holding.
“Thank you.”
After lightly kissing her white forehead, Christine walked towards Jan and Stone.
At that moment, his gentle and kind face disappeared as if it were a lie. His clouded blue-gray eyes looked like a hungry beast. It was a rough and fierce demeanor, as if he was going to rush in and bite. The dozens of wolves following him as if they were escorting him added to the intimidation.
“What happened to my fiancée, Your Majesty?”
The tone was polite, but it was enough to intimidate Jan.
“Don’t misunderstand. I was asking her a few questions because I thought she was wrong. I think Miss Adele got a little excited.”
Jan clenched his trembling hands and smiled gently.
For a moment, he forgot. How terrible and formidable the bastard was!
“Is that so? It seemed to me that several people were threatening her. And you seem quite close to the Marquis.”
Jan seemed to be shaking to the bone with fear.
Did he notice that he was holding hands with Stone?
However, he answered with a face full of the majesty of an Emperor.
“Of course. Isn’t the Marquis the winner of the competition?”
Christine nodded sarcastically.
“The winner... Well, bribery is also a way to win.”
“What, bribery?”
Ignoring Jan’s angry voice, Christine approached Stone.
At that moment, an unexpected sight unfolded. The wolves surrounding him hesitated and retreated.
‘As expected!’
Christine’s face was filled with confidence.
Wolves instinctively obey their wolf clan. So if they were afraid of Stone, it meant that he was also a member of the wolf clan.
Of course, if the hierarchy between Christine and Stone was clear, the wolves would follow the orders of the one with the upper hand. In any case, Stone was confirmed to be the brown wolf that had appeared in Wolf Valley. Christine, who was surprised by the sudden appearance of his clan, was attacked without even being able to fight back and fell into the valley. He flew up the moment he fell to minimize the impact, but he almost got into big trouble.
“Beep!”
Christine, who confirmed Stone’s identity, put his finger on his lips and whistled briefly.
Then, the wolves all turned around and returned to the palace forest. The wild beasts looked like trained military dogs.
Meanwhile, Stone’s expression hardened upon seeing them. An ordinary person couldn't handle wild wolves so freely.
‘Could it be that guy...?’
Stone’s eyes were also filled with suspicion.
He had definitely thrown Christine down the valley of wolves. He saw with his own eyes that dozens of wolves gathered at Stone’s call and rushed at the guy who had fallen. No matter how heroic a hero may be on the battlefield, he would not be able to survive as a human.
But wasn’t he fine and using those wolves like subordinates?
If Christine weren’t a member of the wolf clan, he couldn’t explain this situation.
‘If he really is a member of the wolf clan...?’
Meanwhile, Christine’s forehead wrinkled slightly when he saw her in her thin chemise. He calmly took off his cape and wrapped Adele around it.
Even then, Adele couldn’t believe it and caressed his face.
“Chris... is it really you...?”
“Yeah.”
“Haa... I knew it... I knew it... Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s really fortunate...”
Adele grabbed his shoulder with her trembling hands and swallowed her tears. Her shoulder shook as if she were sobbing. He held Adele in his arms and whispered quietly as if he were soothing a child.
“I have something urgent to take care of. Can you step aside for a moment?”
“Ugh...”
Adele nodded and let go of the hand she was holding.
“Thank you.”
After lightly kissing her white forehead, Christine walked towards Jan and Stone.
At that moment, his gentle and kind face disappeared as if it were a lie. His clouded blue-gray eyes looked like a hungry beast. It was a rough and fierce demeanor, as if he was going to rush in and bite. The dozens of wolves following him as if they were escorting him added to the intimidation.
“What happened to my fiancée, Your Majesty?”
The tone was polite, but it was enough to intimidate Jan.
“Don’t misunderstand. I was asking her a few questions because I thought she was wrong. I think Miss Adele got a little excited.”
Jan clenched his trembling hands and smiled gently.
For a moment, he forgot. How terrible and formidable the bastard was!
“Is that so? It seemed to me that several people were threatening her. And you seem quite close to the Marquis.”
Jan seemed to be shaking to the bone with fear.
Did he notice that he was holding hands with Stone?
However, he answered with a face full of the majesty of an Emperor.
“Of course. Isn’t the Marquis the winner of the competition?”
Christine nodded sarcastically.
“The winner... Well, bribery is also a way to win.”
“What, bribery?”
Ignoring Jan’s angry voice, Christine approached Stone.
At that moment, an unexpected sight unfolded. The wolves surrounding him hesitated and retreated.
‘As expected!’
Christine’s face was filled with confidence.
Wolves instinctively obey their wolf clan. So if they were afraid of Stone, it meant that he was also a member of the wolf clan.
Of course, if the hierarchy between Christine and Stone was clear, the wolves would follow the orders of the one with the upper hand. In any case, Stone was confirmed to be the brown wolf that had appeared in Wolf Valley. Christine, who was surprised by the sudden appearance of his clan, was attacked without even being able to fight back and fell into the valley. He flew up the moment he fell to minimize the impact, but he almost got into big trouble.
“Beep!”
Christine, who confirmed Stone’s identity, put his finger on his lips and whistled briefly.
Then, the wolves all turned around and returned to the palace forest. The wild beasts looked like trained military dogs.
Meanwhile, Stone’s expression hardened upon seeing them. An ordinary person couldn't handle wild wolves so freely.
‘Could it be that guy...?’
Stone’s eyes were also filled with suspicion.
He had definitely thrown Christine down the valley of wolves. He saw with his own eyes that dozens of wolves gathered at Stone’s call and rushed at the guy who had fallen. No matter how heroic a hero may be on the battlefield, he would not be able to survive as a human.
But wasn’t he fine and using those wolves like subordinates?
If Christine weren’t a member of the wolf clan, he couldn’t explain this situation.
‘If he really is a member of the wolf clan...?’
Christine stopped in front of Stone and said,
“I learned a thing or two today, Your Majesty, the Marquis.”
“No way.”
“Then it’s my turn to counterattack this time?”
“What?”
Christine turned back to Jan.
“Your Majesty, I accuse Stone Oswald of murdering Marquis Oswald.”
At the unexpected words, Jan’s mind became complicated as he calculated again.
“This is a sensitive matter, and we must be very careful. Do you have any evidence?”
Christine winked at Zimmer. Then, Zimmer, who had disappeared throughout the game, suddenly approached behind him. He was with two people wearing hoods pulled down deeply.
“We have a witness.”
At Christine’s words, the two hooded people stepped forward. They slowly took off their hoods and bowed politely to the Emperor. One was a young woman, and the other was Marvin, the imperial doctor.
The young woman spoke first.
“My name is Vanessa. I worked as a maid for the Oswald family until the day the former Marquis passed away.”
“Your Majesty, Count Weiss bribed witnesses with lies for the sake of his fiancée! Don’t be fooled by that cheap trick!”
Stone shouted in embarrassment and tried to rush at Vanessa.
“Ouch!”
Vanessa flinched and screamed in surprise, and Christine blocked her way.
“You watched the Marquis’ boring play a little while ago, so please listen to what I have prepared this time. It will be more interesting than you think, Your Majesty.”
Stone’s face twisted at that sarcastic expression.
Christine and Stone.
They glared at each other, shoulder to shoulder, as if they were about to fight.
Jan pressed his temples because his head was throbbing.
If they were to fight each other again, it would be quite a headache.
“Both of you, take three steps back.”
Jan decided that it was not yet time to let go of Christine. However, what became clearer from today was that he had to get rid of that bastard someday. Otherwise, he would bite off his own neck.
“Vanessa, keep talking.”
When the Emperor gave permission, Vanessa glared at Stone, and her lips trembled. Then she pointed her finger at him clearly.
“It is indeed Stone Oswald who murdered the former Marquis!”
As the story took a new turn, the people began to murmur with interest.
Vanessa was afraid of Stone’s venomous gaze, so she checked Christine again next to her. When she saw that he was holding firm, she gathered her courage again.
“Oswald’s people locked up Miss Adele, who was their young stepmother, in the basement and treated her like a maid. Even the maids called her the cellar lady. Stone was particularly cruel to her. The Marquis was seriously ill, so he didn’t know about this.”
The unexpected story made many people hold their breath.
“That day, Stone called Miss Adele to the bedroom late at night. I don’t know how he knew that day, but the Marquis told me to go to Stone’s bedroom. And the moment I opened the door... he was about to do something bad to Miss Adele.”
Vanessa told her story with a little lie. Since Stone had falsely framed Adele, she couldn’t deal with him with only the truth. Of course, Christine had also allowed it.
“The enraged Marquis said he couldn’t give Stone a single penny of his inheritance. So the next day, he poisoned the tea Miss Adele was giving the Marquis. Unaware of this, she gave the tea to the Marquis as is. I, who had witnessed all this, told the investigator the truth. However, they were in cahoots, and they kidnapped me and sold me to a brothel. Your Majesty, Stone is a traitor who killed his father, and a cunning devil!”
Vanessa, her emotions rising, glared at Stone and cried.
“I learned a thing or two today, Your Majesty, the Marquis.”
“No way.”
“Then it’s my turn to counterattack this time?”
“What?”
Christine turned back to Jan.
“Your Majesty, I accuse Stone Oswald of murdering Marquis Oswald.”
At the unexpected words, Jan’s mind became complicated as he calculated again.
“This is a sensitive matter, and we must be very careful. Do you have any evidence?”
Christine winked at Zimmer. Then, Zimmer, who had disappeared throughout the game, suddenly approached behind him. He was with two people wearing hoods pulled down deeply.
“We have a witness.”
At Christine’s words, the two hooded people stepped forward. They slowly took off their hoods and bowed politely to the Emperor. One was a young woman, and the other was Marvin, the imperial doctor.
The young woman spoke first.
“My name is Vanessa. I worked as a maid for the Oswald family until the day the former Marquis passed away.”
***
“Your Majesty, Count Weiss bribed witnesses with lies for the sake of his fiancée! Don’t be fooled by that cheap trick!”
Stone shouted in embarrassment and tried to rush at Vanessa.
“Ouch!”
Vanessa flinched and screamed in surprise, and Christine blocked her way.
“You watched the Marquis’ boring play a little while ago, so please listen to what I have prepared this time. It will be more interesting than you think, Your Majesty.”
Stone’s face twisted at that sarcastic expression.
Christine and Stone.
They glared at each other, shoulder to shoulder, as if they were about to fight.
Jan pressed his temples because his head was throbbing.
If they were to fight each other again, it would be quite a headache.
“Both of you, take three steps back.”
Jan decided that it was not yet time to let go of Christine. However, what became clearer from today was that he had to get rid of that bastard someday. Otherwise, he would bite off his own neck.
“Vanessa, keep talking.”
When the Emperor gave permission, Vanessa glared at Stone, and her lips trembled. Then she pointed her finger at him clearly.
“It is indeed Stone Oswald who murdered the former Marquis!”
As the story took a new turn, the people began to murmur with interest.
Vanessa was afraid of Stone’s venomous gaze, so she checked Christine again next to her. When she saw that he was holding firm, she gathered her courage again.
“Oswald’s people locked up Miss Adele, who was their young stepmother, in the basement and treated her like a maid. Even the maids called her the cellar lady. Stone was particularly cruel to her. The Marquis was seriously ill, so he didn’t know about this.”
The unexpected story made many people hold their breath.
“That day, Stone called Miss Adele to the bedroom late at night. I don’t know how he knew that day, but the Marquis told me to go to Stone’s bedroom. And the moment I opened the door... he was about to do something bad to Miss Adele.”
Vanessa told her story with a little lie. Since Stone had falsely framed Adele, she couldn’t deal with him with only the truth. Of course, Christine had also allowed it.
“The enraged Marquis said he couldn’t give Stone a single penny of his inheritance. So the next day, he poisoned the tea Miss Adele was giving the Marquis. Unaware of this, she gave the tea to the Marquis as is. I, who had witnessed all this, told the investigator the truth. However, they were in cahoots, and they kidnapped me and sold me to a brothel. Your Majesty, Stone is a traitor who killed his father, and a cunning devil!”
Vanessa, her emotions rising, glared at Stone and cried.
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