Episode 158. This Woman Pushed Me
“Isn’t that the Countess who went missing?”
“I thought she was dead...”
Beliana suddenly appeared.
Everyone looked as if they had seen a ghost.
Only two people weren’t surprised:
Rose and Beliana’s father is the Marquis of Dikar.
Rose couldn’t take her eyes off Beliana. She was a wild and unpredictable rascal with a personality that could easily be turned anywhere.
“Don’t do anything stupid, just follow the plan, Beliana.”
Rose knew what the Marquis of Dikar had done.
He had sent another woman to the Countess of Wence in place of his daughter.
Of course, she hadn’t known from the beginning.
While smuggling prisoners from Chicagor, she stumbled upon a fake Beliana who was hiding out.
Rose recalled meeting the fake Beliana.
She was on her way back after smuggling prisoners from Chicagor.
“Neruan, thank you for your hard work.”
Rose said softly to Neruan, who had just finished transporting the last prisoner.
The Grand Duke and Neruan had spent a long time digging underground passages.
To smuggle out the prisoners and soldiers of Chicagor, avoiding public attention.
Inside the tunnel, the Grand Duke had created a warp. The prisoners were transported to the quarantine facility via this warp.
“Why did you risk your life?”
“I came out because Neruan hadn’t been back for a while, so I was worried.”
This was a mountain behind the mansion, not far from the mansion.
“People might think it strange if you come out in the middle of the night.”
“It’s okay. No one will know.”
“Huh?”
“I came out through a hole.”
Rose, who was wearing a dress and speaking so casually about crawling through a small hole, was somehow curious.
'Still, she’s a well-raised noblewoman. How interesting.'
Neruan glanced at Rose next to him.
Rose looked as if she had never been through anything. The sight of Rose crawling along the floor felt out of place.
Neruan imagined Rose struggling to squeeze through the narrow hole.
'...It might be a little cute.'
A smile escaped his lips as he imagined Rose struggling.
The dawn breeze blew gently. The tree branches swayed as if dancing, and a leaf fell in the wind onto Neruan's head.
Rose turned to look at Neruan's laughter, Pfft. She reached out to brush the leaf off Neruan's head.
"Neruan, wait a minute."
"What, what is it?"
Neruan froze stiffly at Rose's sudden approach.
He took a step back with a red face, then exclaimed,
"Ugh, ugh!"
He slipped and fell.
"Yes, Neruan!!"
Rose hurriedly climbed down. Fortunately, Neruan was not seriously injured.
The impact seemed to have been absorbed thanks to the fall onto the old hut. However, Neruan had ripped a large hole in the hut.
Rose, who had rushed over, opened her eyes wide at the unexpected sight.
"... Beliana de Wencw?"
It was Beliana, Eric's wife.
"...Why are you here?"
Deep in the mountains, a shabby hut.
The daughter of the wealthy Marquis of Dikar was living in a place like this...?
The fake Beliana, her face pale, tried to run away. However, Rose quickly caught her.
"Don't run. I won't do anything."
Even without hearing a word, she seemed to have a general idea of the situation.
This woman wasn't the real Beliana.
There was no reason for the Marquis's daughter to pretend to be dead and stay in a shabby hut.
Rose provided the terrified woman with a suitable place to stay.
At first, she didn't ask any questions. She offered her warm words and food to help her find peace.
She was the first to speak.
Revealing that her real name was 'Emily,' she continued,
"I was a slave. Then, I caught the eye of the Marquis of Dikar... and was given the role of a fake Countess in place of his daughter. He said that if I did well, I could meet my younger sister..."
Emily confessed everything to Rose, except for one thing: the incident involving Doana.
"What happened at the Count's house? Did Doana push you?"
Emily's eyes shook like an aspen leaf at Rose's words.
Emily tried to hide her trembling eyes and opened her parched lips.
"Doana... pushed me off the cliff,"
She lied to Rose.
"I barely survived and tried to return to the mansion... but everyone thought I was dead. So... I ran away. I wanted to live my life..."
“If you wish, I will come back and offer her head. However, I think she has already become food for wild beasts... If you don’t mind a tattered body, I...”
“Enough!”
Marquis Dikar cut Rose off.
He had a weak stomach. Just hearing Rose’s words made his stomach churn.
“I need your help, Marquis of Dikar.”
“Wh-what do you want me to do?”
Rose’s soft voice sounded threatening.
“I’m preparing Doana’s trial, and I’d like you to join me, Marquis.”
Rose’s request wasn’t too unreasonable.
“I’ll combine the lawsuit I’m preparing with your daughter’s disappearance case. Isn’t the Marquis angry? A commoner’s government would try to kill the daughter of the Marquis of Dikar. This is unacceptable. It’s a clear disregard for the Marquis of Dikar.”
“Isn’t that the Countess who went missing?”
“I thought she was dead...”
Beliana suddenly appeared.
Everyone looked as if they had seen a ghost.
Only two people weren’t surprised:
Rose and Beliana’s father is the Marquis of Dikar.
Rose couldn’t take her eyes off Beliana. She was a wild and unpredictable rascal with a personality that could easily be turned anywhere.
“Don’t do anything stupid, just follow the plan, Beliana.”
Rose knew what the Marquis of Dikar had done.
He had sent another woman to the Countess of Wence in place of his daughter.
Of course, she hadn’t known from the beginning.
While smuggling prisoners from Chicagor, she stumbled upon a fake Beliana who was hiding out.
Rose recalled meeting the fake Beliana.
***
She was on her way back after smuggling prisoners from Chicagor.
“Neruan, thank you for your hard work.”
Rose said softly to Neruan, who had just finished transporting the last prisoner.
The Grand Duke and Neruan had spent a long time digging underground passages.
To smuggle out the prisoners and soldiers of Chicagor, avoiding public attention.
Inside the tunnel, the Grand Duke had created a warp. The prisoners were transported to the quarantine facility via this warp.
“Why did you risk your life?”
“I came out because Neruan hadn’t been back for a while, so I was worried.”
This was a mountain behind the mansion, not far from the mansion.
“People might think it strange if you come out in the middle of the night.”
“It’s okay. No one will know.”
“Huh?”
“I came out through a hole.”
Rose, who was wearing a dress and speaking so casually about crawling through a small hole, was somehow curious.
'Still, she’s a well-raised noblewoman. How interesting.'
Neruan glanced at Rose next to him.
Rose looked as if she had never been through anything. The sight of Rose crawling along the floor felt out of place.
Neruan imagined Rose struggling to squeeze through the narrow hole.
'...It might be a little cute.'
A smile escaped his lips as he imagined Rose struggling.
The dawn breeze blew gently. The tree branches swayed as if dancing, and a leaf fell in the wind onto Neruan's head.
Rose turned to look at Neruan's laughter, Pfft. She reached out to brush the leaf off Neruan's head.
"Neruan, wait a minute."
"What, what is it?"
Neruan froze stiffly at Rose's sudden approach.
He took a step back with a red face, then exclaimed,
"Ugh, ugh!"
He slipped and fell.
"Yes, Neruan!!"
Rose hurriedly climbed down. Fortunately, Neruan was not seriously injured.
The impact seemed to have been absorbed thanks to the fall onto the old hut. However, Neruan had ripped a large hole in the hut.
Rose, who had rushed over, opened her eyes wide at the unexpected sight.
"... Beliana de Wencw?"
It was Beliana, Eric's wife.
"...Why are you here?"
Deep in the mountains, a shabby hut.
The daughter of the wealthy Marquis of Dikar was living in a place like this...?
The fake Beliana, her face pale, tried to run away. However, Rose quickly caught her.
"Don't run. I won't do anything."
Even without hearing a word, she seemed to have a general idea of the situation.
This woman wasn't the real Beliana.
There was no reason for the Marquis's daughter to pretend to be dead and stay in a shabby hut.
Rose provided the terrified woman with a suitable place to stay.
At first, she didn't ask any questions. She offered her warm words and food to help her find peace.
She was the first to speak.
Revealing that her real name was 'Emily,' she continued,
"I was a slave. Then, I caught the eye of the Marquis of Dikar... and was given the role of a fake Countess in place of his daughter. He said that if I did well, I could meet my younger sister..."
Emily confessed everything to Rose, except for one thing: the incident involving Doana.
"What happened at the Count's house? Did Doana push you?"
Emily's eyes shook like an aspen leaf at Rose's words.
Emily tried to hide her trembling eyes and opened her parched lips.
"Doana... pushed me off the cliff,"
She lied to Rose.
"I barely survived and tried to return to the mansion... but everyone thought I was dead. So... I ran away. I wanted to live my life..."
She didn't want to tell the truth.
She didn't want to seem like a bad person. She nervously bit her fingernails, watching Rose's reaction. However, Rose didn't notice Emily's lie.
Doana was a person who would do something like that. She didn't doubt her words.
Rose secretly protected Emily and approached the Marquis of Dikar's household.
"What brings you here? I don't think we should be sitting face to face like this."
Rose was Eric's ex-wife, and his daughter was Eric's current wife.
So it was quite absurd that they were all in this one place.
“The Marquis seems so relaxed, even though your daughter has gone missing.”
“Hmm, hmm. What do you know about that! She’s withering away day by day.”
Just looking at his chubby cheeks and belly, she could tell he was lying.
“Well, I guess you don’t care if your daughter is alive or dead.”
Rose made a meaningful remark and lifted her teacup. Then, after taking a sip, she smiled faintly.
“Because the missing countess isn’t your real daughter.”
“!”
She didn't want to seem like a bad person. She nervously bit her fingernails, watching Rose's reaction. However, Rose didn't notice Emily's lie.
Doana was a person who would do something like that. She didn't doubt her words.
Rose secretly protected Emily and approached the Marquis of Dikar's household.
"What brings you here? I don't think we should be sitting face to face like this."
Rose was Eric's ex-wife, and his daughter was Eric's current wife.
So it was quite absurd that they were all in this one place.
“The Marquis seems so relaxed, even though your daughter has gone missing.”
“Hmm, hmm. What do you know about that! She’s withering away day by day.”
Just looking at his chubby cheeks and belly, she could tell he was lying.
“Well, I guess you don’t care if your daughter is alive or dead.”
Rose made a meaningful remark and lifted her teacup. Then, after taking a sip, she smiled faintly.
“Because the missing countess isn’t your real daughter.”
“!”
The Marquis, who had been leaning back in his chair with a cold expression, suddenly sat upright in shock.
His flustered eyes lost focus and shook. The sound of his swallowing was so perplexing that even Rose could hear it.
Rose leisurely put down her teacup and looked at the Marquis.
“Wh-what are you talking about?”
“I know everything. Your real daughter is in the Kingdom of Mokok.”
“!”
The Marquis flinched again at Rose’s words.
This wasn’t just a provocation. She even knew that his daughter was in the Kingdom of Mokok.
The Marquis, frozen stiff, let out a deep sigh. Trying to argue here seemed pointless.
“...How did you know?”
Rose ignored the Marquis and got back to the main point.
“Bring your daughter back to the Empire. She can’t keep living abroad in hiding, can she?”
“No, what if this gets discovered! My daughter won’t return to the Empire until we find and kill that fake guy.”
If he wasn’t careful, his actions could be exposed.
If it were revealed that he had sent a fake bride to the Wence family, he would become a laughing stock among all the nobles.
He absolutely could not tolerate the damage to his family’s reputation.
“Don’t worry. That slave is already dead.”
Rose lied, concealing the fact that she was hiding the fake Beliana.
“Dead?”
“Yes.”
“How did you know that?”
“The Grand Duke’s dog brought something back, and no matter how I looked at it, it looked like a pair of expensive shoes. So I followed the dog, and there was a dead person. Your fake daughter, Beliana.”
Rose continued in a low voice.
“She was found in the Artaeum territory, quite far from the capital, so it seemed like she was fleeing due to a life threat. She came from a strong family, and seeing her flee all the way to the Artaeum territory, I thought something was wrong.”
“...The body?”
His flustered eyes lost focus and shook. The sound of his swallowing was so perplexing that even Rose could hear it.
Rose leisurely put down her teacup and looked at the Marquis.
“Wh-what are you talking about?”
“I know everything. Your real daughter is in the Kingdom of Mokok.”
“!”
The Marquis flinched again at Rose’s words.
This wasn’t just a provocation. She even knew that his daughter was in the Kingdom of Mokok.
The Marquis, frozen stiff, let out a deep sigh. Trying to argue here seemed pointless.
“...How did you know?”
Rose ignored the Marquis and got back to the main point.
“Bring your daughter back to the Empire. She can’t keep living abroad in hiding, can she?”
“No, what if this gets discovered! My daughter won’t return to the Empire until we find and kill that fake guy.”
If he wasn’t careful, his actions could be exposed.
If it were revealed that he had sent a fake bride to the Wence family, he would become a laughing stock among all the nobles.
He absolutely could not tolerate the damage to his family’s reputation.
“Don’t worry. That slave is already dead.”
Rose lied, concealing the fact that she was hiding the fake Beliana.
“Dead?”
“Yes.”
“How did you know that?”
“The Grand Duke’s dog brought something back, and no matter how I looked at it, it looked like a pair of expensive shoes. So I followed the dog, and there was a dead person. Your fake daughter, Beliana.”
Rose continued in a low voice.
“She was found in the Artaeum territory, quite far from the capital, so it seemed like she was fleeing due to a life threat. She came from a strong family, and seeing her flee all the way to the Artaeum territory, I thought something was wrong.”
“...The body?”
“If you wish, I will come back and offer her head. However, I think she has already become food for wild beasts... If you don’t mind a tattered body, I...”
“Enough!”
Marquis Dikar cut Rose off.
He had a weak stomach. Just hearing Rose’s words made his stomach churn.
“I need your help, Marquis of Dikar.”
“Wh-what do you want me to do?”
Rose’s soft voice sounded threatening.
“I’m preparing Doana’s trial, and I’d like you to join me, Marquis.”
Rose’s request wasn’t too unreasonable.
“I’ll combine the lawsuit I’m preparing with your daughter’s disappearance case. Isn’t the Marquis angry? A commoner’s government would try to kill the daughter of the Marquis of Dikar. This is unacceptable. It’s a clear disregard for the Marquis of Dikar.”
She was right.
How dare she push the daughter of the noble Marquis of Dikar off a cliff!
Even if she was a fake daughter, she was still the Marquis's daughter to the public.
The Marquis of Dikar asked, his heart trembling,
"So, what should I do?"
"Bring Beliana as a witness. And then, tell her the truth about what happened."
To secure a heavier sentence, she needed solid evidence.
At the moment, there was no concrete evidence that Doana had attempted to harm Beliana. There was only third-party testimony.
If Beljana were to appear and speak under these circumstances, Doana would inevitably face attempted murder charges. With those words, Rose stood up. Then she added,
"Oh, you better not think about backstabbing me after I'm done. I have quite a few people watching over you."
In reality, there weren't any, but who cares?
All he had to do was scare the Marquis.
Rose left the Marquis's residence with a relaxed smile on his face.
Back to the present.
Rose stared blankly at Beliana.
Beliana looked around, her lips curling up. She seemed quite amused by the surprise of people at her sudden appearance.
Beliana, who loved the spotlight, thoroughly enjoyed being the star of the show.
The courtroom was chaotic.
Doana dragged her heavy body toward Beliana.
Doana's cry cut through the commotion.
"Countess, where on earth have you been?"
She lifted her roped hands and grabbed Beliana's hand.
In an instant, Beljana's gaze cooled.
She swatted Doana's hand away as if it were a dirty insect.
"How dare..."
A mere commoner grabs her hand like this? She couldn't tolerate it.
Doana flinched at Beliana's aura.
It felt strangely different from the Beliana she knew.
However, Doana had no time to dwell on such details. She raised her voice once more, pleading her innocence.
"Now, look! I didn't do anything to the Countess."
The judge glanced at Doana with bleary eyes, then turned to Beliana.
Her presence made his expression quite complicated.
Doana urged Beliana,
"Madam, please clear my name quickly. I really didn't do anything!"
Beliana's lips lifted at Doana's urgent voice.
Everyone was looking at Beliana. A high-pitched voice flowed from between her tightly closed, crimson lips.
"This woman pushed me."
How dare she push the daughter of the noble Marquis of Dikar off a cliff!
Even if she was a fake daughter, she was still the Marquis's daughter to the public.
The Marquis of Dikar asked, his heart trembling,
"So, what should I do?"
"Bring Beliana as a witness. And then, tell her the truth about what happened."
To secure a heavier sentence, she needed solid evidence.
At the moment, there was no concrete evidence that Doana had attempted to harm Beliana. There was only third-party testimony.
If Beljana were to appear and speak under these circumstances, Doana would inevitably face attempted murder charges. With those words, Rose stood up. Then she added,
"Oh, you better not think about backstabbing me after I'm done. I have quite a few people watching over you."
In reality, there weren't any, but who cares?
All he had to do was scare the Marquis.
Rose left the Marquis's residence with a relaxed smile on his face.
***
Back to the present.
Rose stared blankly at Beliana.
Beliana looked around, her lips curling up. She seemed quite amused by the surprise of people at her sudden appearance.
Beliana, who loved the spotlight, thoroughly enjoyed being the star of the show.
The courtroom was chaotic.
Doana dragged her heavy body toward Beliana.
Doana's cry cut through the commotion.
"Countess, where on earth have you been?"
She lifted her roped hands and grabbed Beliana's hand.
In an instant, Beljana's gaze cooled.
She swatted Doana's hand away as if it were a dirty insect.
"How dare..."
A mere commoner grabs her hand like this? She couldn't tolerate it.
Doana flinched at Beliana's aura.
It felt strangely different from the Beliana she knew.
However, Doana had no time to dwell on such details. She raised her voice once more, pleading her innocence.
"Now, look! I didn't do anything to the Countess."
The judge glanced at Doana with bleary eyes, then turned to Beliana.
Her presence made his expression quite complicated.
Doana urged Beliana,
"Madam, please clear my name quickly. I really didn't do anything!"
Beliana's lips lifted at Doana's urgent voice.
Everyone was looking at Beliana. A high-pitched voice flowed from between her tightly closed, crimson lips.
"This woman pushed me."
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