She thanked heaven for giving her Corte. She's never doubted that for a moment.
Even in tense situations where her head could be cut off at any moment, Rosentine kept thinking about Corte and Violetta's faces. Even Heimt's smile.
Any human being would want to protect something precious to them.
But those who know the hunger of body and mind better than anyone else, like Rosentine, are the ones who treasure that precious thing better than anyone else.
She had to desperately protect it.
This happened when Corte was ten. And perhaps that's where things went wrong. Perhaps it was fortunate that she had known about it beforehand.
“Haaam.”
The yawn that came out naturally was languid. It was peaceful.
In a garden filled with beautiful roses and hydrangeas, Rosentine was picking a grape and eating it. She loved the sweet aroma that filled her nostrils with each burst of juice.
Certainly, life as a Princess was incredibly comfortable. Perhaps she had endured so much hardship in her past life to earn this life.
With a face as languid as a full cat, Rosentine picked up a dessert fork and cut a piece of cake.
The desserts made by the palace baker are so exquisite that they cannot be compared anywhere in the world. So, it must be the palace baker,
“Sister, sister!”
“Yes, Corte.”
As she grew older, Rosentine began to develop a bit of a ladylike air, and her figure gradually blossomed like a flower.
It was a delight to hear that she resembled my mother, Violetta, as she grew up. Her flowing blond hair was tinged with the light of the setting sun.
As she spoke, Corte brushed off Rosentine's hair, which was a little more colorful than her own.
The young lady, who had not yet had her debutante, gradually made a name for herself by going to and from the palace.
That is why there is a widespread rumor that Arzen's daughter was intelligent and studied from a young age.
It was a state.
"I want to see the palace."
How cute it was to hear that little thing lick her lips as it spoke. Corte was Rosentine's favorite person in the world.
The moment Corte was born, and her eyes met, Rosentine knew her life would take a different turn. For the first time, she encountered someone she wanted to protect.
The little baby, who would not stop crying even when Violetta held her, would stop crying and smile whenever Rosentine shook the toy.
She had blonde hair and deep blue eyes. In Korea, she had been crying alone in a drafty room.
It's a world of difference. Back then, no one even listened to her cries.
'Family is a wonderful thing.
Rosentine thought so. And she, feeling delighted, hugged Corte tightly. A clear "Hey!" rang out.
Sunlight poured down on the outdoor table where she sat.
***
They were now in the palace. Rosentine had originally been reluctant to come, but Corte's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help it.
Just like Rosentine, when Corte was nine years old, her father, Heimdt, began taking Corte to the palace as well. The intention was to make her acquainted with people in the political world and show her around the splendid palace.
Even though he knew that since both were women, they would be unusable as subjects, he continued to educate Rosentine and Corte, following Violetta's wishes. It was a stroke of luck for Rosentine.
“Where is the imperial palace?”
The little Corte hesitated for a moment, then chuckled and hugged Rosentine. Rosentine swayed under the weight of the weight hanging from her waist, but smiled.
"I don't know! I want to go where my sister tells me to go."
“Shall we go to the garden?”
"You've seen the garden, so I want to see inside."
- Excellent choice
- The inside is much more magnificent than the outside.
So, this was the perfect time, except for the ghosts chattering around here.
Rosentine pretended not to hear the ghost's words, rubbing her head against Corte's blond hair, then covered her ears and stared into the air.
“Shut up.”
When Rosentine was nine, she was discovered by a ghost, and whenever she entered the palace, ghosts would swarm her.
Whether it was because he wanted to convey his voice to the living or because he was so annoying, Rosentine, who originally hated this ability, hesitated to come to the palace.
“Sister?”
"Yes, Corte?"
"What did you just say?"
"No, then I guess I'll go to the library."
"Only the library's language department..."
Corte buried her face in Rosentine's arms and muttered. Rosentine smiled at the lack of an immediate answer.
She said it was a quiet library with no people around, but what a boring place for a child to be in a library.
In fact, it wasn't a place she had even bothered to seek out. The history of the New World was somewhat interesting, though.
“You don’t like it?”
"No! I like it when I'm with my sister! I want to go to the library!"
A buried head suddenly lifted. Rosentine couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Corte's hair fluttering in a mess. It was incredibly cute how she reacted exactly as expected.
Rosentine, still smiling, bent down and rubbed her cheek against Corte's. Corte's face was like a happy puppy. It seemed like she was in the best mood, hugging her neck so tightly.
"Then, instead of the library, should we take a look around the banquet hall?"
"Banquet hall?"
"Yeah, Corte said you'd come back later wearing a nice dress. Let's ask for a fruit cake on the way back."
"Yeah. Good! Great!"
- The banquet hall in the palace is a very beautiful place.
- I ordered you to build it.
- The best blueprint, executed by the best craftsman. Its production date is 200 years ago.
The dead don't speak; that's all nonsense. Rosentine listened to the chattering from the sidelines, her expression utterly cynical.
The ghosts who had been speaking flinched at the indifference and dismissiveness on her face. They were so annoying, all these ghosts wanted was to converse with the living, and they were nothing more than well-bred nobles.
So you have no idea how much swearing she learned while living in South Korea.
Rosentine took Corte's hand and headed toward the palace, leaving behind the dessert he'd eaten after two bites. He didn't forget to look back and mouth to the ghosts.
‘Chatterers’
- Pfft!
- Whoa, that’s rude.
***
"Sister! Sister Rosen! I'm scared!"
"Corte, Corte!"
The words swirled around in her dizziness. Rosentine couldn't even scream, so she just stamped her feet with her young body.
This can't be happening. To be honest, she couldn't even tell what was happening.
Rosentine's heart burned as she watched Corte's eyes turn black, not knowing what to do.
It was just a moment.
While looking around the banquet hall, Corte was drawn, as if possessed, to a closed door. No matter how many times she called, Cort would always respond with, "Yes, sir," and it was Rosentine who grabbed him and opened the door.
Maybe she should have just hugged Corte and run away. She was frozen in the room, yes.
They were usually harmless ghosts. They just wandered around without speaking or talking.
But it was different for Corte.
The ten-year-old child just stared blankly at the ghost, and the ghost rushed at the child like a lion smelling blood.
It was a speed that couldn't be stopped. No, even if it had been slow, it would have been impossible to stop something so formless.
Rosentine screamed, then covered her own mouth and stopped breathing.
The ghost was entering Corte's body. At the same time, the tips of her blond hair began to turn black.
Rosentine's eyes widened in a flash of realization.
If anyone came now, Corte would be mistaken for a witch.
No one could call her. Above all, she was the only one who knew that the palace was haunted by ghosts. How could she explain this phenomenon?
The ghost entered Corte's body, and the child was shaking.
Corte's face instantly turned pale. The child, whose eyes were now darkened, twisted her body as if in pain.
"Oh, you... Uh..."
Corte was calling out to Rosentine. She seemed to be losing sight of her surroundings. She reached out and waved her hand, searching for Rosentine, who was standing right in front of her.
Rosentine's face paled. She'd seen many ghosts, but this was the first time she'd been possessed.
She was not a shaman, so she could not perform the rite of rebirth.
It was then that Rosentine first regretted not having learned the ritual of exorcism.
Even though it was an ability she had been avoiding her entire life.
"Corte, stay here. I'm here."
"...Un krur... urn... Ugh, hurt..."
"Just wait a minute, just a minute. Corte, yes? I'll try to do something, somehow!"
Something must be done. With those words left, Rosentine pursed her lips and headed outside.
A priest? A wizard? She didn't know who to call.
Still, she thought it might be better than keeping her to herself. The execution methods for witches, as she once read in illustrations, lined up in jer head. It was too much for Cort to endure.
Maybe she could say that it was her fault that Corte ended up like that, and then maybe Corte would at least be safe no matter what happened to her.
With that thought in mind, Rosentine ran without thinking. It was an inappropriate action for a sixteen-year-old lady, but it didn't matter.
A long corridor stretched out. The path along Corte was longer than she'd expected, and at its end she encountered a ghost with dazzling, platinum-blonde hair. It seemed as if the ghost had been waiting for her.
At the entrance to the old corridor of the palace, where no one entered, the man stopped her with the most transparent body bark of any living being.
For a moment, Rosentine thought he was a living person.
A gentle smile on a calm face, the atmosphere calmed Rosentine for a moment, but the moment he realized that he was a ghost, Rosentine's expression became sharp.
“Get out of the way, no time.”
- Who are you looking for? Fuze? A wizard? You'll both die.
"Did you see it? Did you see it? Damn it! Then who the hell am I looking for!"
- Even if you leave them alone or go find them, your sister will die.
"Corte won't die!"
Rosentine screamed. Now, she didn't care who came. She just had to turn herself inside out. That was her thought.
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