(126) For your self-destruction (1)
Helena's eyes fluttered. Victoria turned a cold gaze toward her immature sister.
Helena, who couldn't even control her emotions due to the mere appearance of the Northern Lord, seemed disgustingly stupid. Victoria couldn't understand why her parents cherished her so dearly.
Victoria resented her parents for turning a blind eye to everything Helena did just because they had to keep her birth a secret.
"I don't care what you think of me. But don't think I'll just be beaten by you like Ariana. I have no intention of being beaten by you, nor of taking all your anger out on me."
Helena's face hardened, as if she were fed up with her sister's cold words.
Victoria was disgusted by Helena's foolishness in harassing her younger sister simply for being acquainted with the Northern Lord, despite knowing nothing about it.
'Without even knowing what I've given up or how I'm living.'
Helena grew up receiving only love and was unable to read the situation, so she was swayed by her superficial mind and became jealous.
'Yeah, I should be grateful to Ariana. If it weren't for that girl, I'd be living a foolish life like Helena.'
Helena, who had come to her senses, cursed, “There’s nothing I can’t do to you, sister!”, but Victoria ignored her and looked out the carriage window.
Then Cyrus' face came to mind.
That perfect face, as beautiful as a painting, shining like the moon.
'It's clear that the Northern Lord has feelings for me.'
She observed Cyrus throughout the party. Many women were waiting for a chance to approach him, but he paid no attention to any of them.
He only smiled at Victoria.
-“I felt bad about it, so I couldn’t use it and put it in a drawer.”
Her conversation with him was brief but intense. Every time she heard his voice, her heart pounded.
'But I will never be associated with the Northern Lord.'
The Lord of the West planned to marry Victoria to the Third Prince and place him on the throne. Victoria, too, intended to become the most noble woman on the continent and trample on Ariana. She planned to completely destroy Ariana, ensuring she would never again smile sweetly.
'But...'
She felt sorry for Cyrus.
Neither the main character, the Crown Prince, nor the popular Third Prince, nor even the curious little Lord of the East, Geor, who was visiting the empire for the first time, could overcome Cyrus.
Becoming a Northern Lord's consort would be more likely to be the envy of all women than becoming an Empress.
"Why don't I marry the Northern Lord and make him the Emperor? It would be easier to make the Northern Lord the Emperor than the Third Prince..."
But the Western Lord wouldn't allow it. Victoria was not sure, but there was a deep-seated grudge between the Western Lord and the Northern Lord.
'Or, after I become Empress, it would be good to take the Northern Lord as my lover. So that no woman can touch the Northern Lord.'
In late 211 and early 212, a nightmare unfolded across the Empire and other countries.
The first outbreak occurred among commoners.
Cough and fever, severe skin rash, and coughing up blood.
Something was strange. Epidemics usually start in squalid slums, but this time, it was among the wealthy commoners. Furthermore, the source couldn't be traced. It was occurring simultaneously in multiple countries.
The outbreak of an unknown epidemic could have led to a major disaster. The government invested heavily in trying to identify the cause, but in the meantime, the disease began to appear among the nobility as well.
Many hospitals and temples began to provide relief to the sick. The cost of trying to treat incurable diseases was also high.
In March 212, a renowned doctor announced that the disease was not an infectious disease, but rather a symptom caused by the toxicity of the helon flower. He observed that long-term inhalation of the smoke produced by heated helon petals produced similar symptoms.
It was also revealed that the raw material for the popular perfumes 'Peonia' and 'Eribel' is the helon flower.
Those who paid a lot of money for the perfume wanted to deny it, but other professors also came forward and gave strength to the claim.
In April 212, the Emperor of the Cameria Empire announced that the cause of the disease that was shaking the continent was the damage caused by 'perfume made from Helon flowers'.
People threw away perfumes they cherished as if they were precious jewels.
Among them, many were so angry that they threw perfume bottles outside their homes, breaking them, causing secondary damage. The streets were filled with the scent of helon flowers.
“Count Gabion, take responsibility for all of this!”
“Investors in the perfume business, reveal your names and come up with appropriate measures!”
The common intellectuals who suffered the damage came forward to protest, but the investors remained silent. As soon as Count Gabion realized that his nostalgia was to blame for everything, he and his family disappeared.
In May 212, the bodies of the Count of Gabion and his family were discovered.
Meanwhile, an unknown doctor invented and began selling a medicine that would completely and quickly cure the symptoms caused by the perfume of the helon flower.
While the nobles freely purchased the expensive medicine, the commoners could not. The empire searched far and wide for a doctor who could manufacture and distribute the medicine, but they were unable to find one.
Those who could not be held accountable for the death of Count Gabion began to blame the investors who had made a fortune investing in the perfume business but were not held accountable.
At that time, someone published a list of investors in the newspaper.
The continent was once again in an uproar over investor information published on the front page of the newspaper.
This was because the names of Lord Count Rodian Oblen and Third Prince Harold Blenwitt were included in it.
Those who should have been at the forefront of mitigating the damage suffered by the people were instead shirking responsibility while simply taking what they could. Disappointment and resentment spread like wildfire in a dry forest.
The victims of the Empire protested loudly, holding the Third Prince responsible, while the victims of the West held the Western Lord responsible. Less well known, the victims of the East also blamed the Duke of Obelion and his son, the Eastern little Lord, Geor.
The Third Prince and the Western Lord were in a dilemma.
This incident occurred before half of the investment in the perfume business had been recovered, and once the investment was revealed, it drew widespread criticism. Furthermore, with no effective treatment available, there was nothing that could be done to mitigate the damage.
The Emperor was furious when he learned that the Third Prince had leaked information about the perfume to the Princess, thus further inciting a widespread epidemic. The Count of Xixia, fearing that the deteriorating public sentiment in Xixia would spark a revolution, requested imperial assistance by sending troops, but was refused.
In August 212, when the Third Prince and the Western Lord were losing their place.
Someone, who remains anonymous, has started selling a remedy that completely neutralizes perfume toxicity.
Its price was so exorbitant that only nobles or wealthy commoners could afford it. The Emperor tried to find the developer of the cure, but was unable to find one.
At that time, there was a rumor going around that Ariana White, a Princess of the East who had nothing to do with this incident, was purchasing a large quantity of the cure and distributing it to the victims of the same spirit for free.
The East was the first to escape the damage, and people praised Ariana White for her great distribution and envied the people of the East for having such a Princess.
Ariana generously purchased the remaining cure and distributed it to financially disadvantaged victims in other countries. The temple also stepped in to help victims, and when news spread that Ariana had helped purchase the cure used by the temple, Ariana's name once again resonated across the continent.
October 212, Ratan. Ariana, who once rocked the continent with her custody case, was reborn as a "saint" who helped victims without asking for anything in return. The temple refused to acknowledge the people's arbitrary calling of Ariana a "saint," remaining silent.
It was the moment when the name of Princess Ariana White, not the rascal Ariana Bronte, was imprinted on people's minds.
Thanks to the perfume incident, Ariana's position in the same class has also changed.
The family that had previously regarded Ariana as a fragile child began to recognize her as a proud adult, and the people of the East, who had only thought of the East as having a Princess, began to feel proud of their Princess.
In November 212, when the cold winds began to blow in the East, Ariana was having a private meeting with her eldest uncle, Duke Langster White.
"Ariana, thanks to your actions on behalf of the perfume victims, the East's reputation has improved significantly. I don't know if you know, but things were a bit awkward between you and the Emperor before. But the fact that the Emperor himself sent an envoy to us this time means that any lingering feelings between the Empire and the East will fade."
“I guess so.”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
“You’re welcome. Thanks to everyone for your help.”
Thanks to Isaac depositing all proceeds from the cure sales into Ariana's bank account, Ariana had a ton of money. It probably exceeded the East's annual operating expenses.
Ariana tried to help the victims with her own money, but later the White family also helped her.
It was Langster's idea to bring in the temple.
"Uncle, how are things in Duke Obelius's domain? Are the people still unhappy?"
“Oh, that...”
Langster's expression darkened.
"The Obelius family is a long-standing and prestigious family in the East. Using the estate's operating funds for personal gain is a crime worthy of revocation... but Duke Obelius has said he'll somehow resolve the situation, so for now, we're just watching."
"Is it so?"
Now was the time to strike down Duke Obelius.
Even when Duke Obelius was supposed to return to his fiefdom and assume his responsibilities, he remained in the capital, Ellis City. The one who suffered because of this was Geor.
Geor returned to the castle only the day before yesterday after going out to deal with the rebels that were rising throughout Duke Obelius's territory.
“It would be difficult to easily strip him of his position as Duke.”
“Yeah, it’s difficult as long as you don’t do anything that targets royalty.”
Duke Obelius had committed that "royalty-targeting act." Ariana now had ample evidence of this in her hands.
The moment she revealed that, the public sentiment towards Duke Obelius would completely turn against him, and he would lose not only his title but all his remaining wealth and would be forced to live as a commoner.
The reason she hesitated was because of what Sini had said.
-“If the little Lord is suffering, the master and his family will be sad too.”
It's been over a year and six months since Geor gave Ariana a bracelet as a birthday present and told her, "You're part of my family too." Since then, the two have lived like true siblings.
Sometimes they share mischievous jokes, and when problems arise, they think about them together.
'But that doesn't mean we can leave Duke Obelius alone like this.'
Ariana pretended to clean the vanity and stared at Catherine, who was leaning in to listen.
'I have to kick that kid out, too.'
Helena's eyes fluttered. Victoria turned a cold gaze toward her immature sister.
Helena, who couldn't even control her emotions due to the mere appearance of the Northern Lord, seemed disgustingly stupid. Victoria couldn't understand why her parents cherished her so dearly.
Victoria resented her parents for turning a blind eye to everything Helena did just because they had to keep her birth a secret.
"I don't care what you think of me. But don't think I'll just be beaten by you like Ariana. I have no intention of being beaten by you, nor of taking all your anger out on me."
Helena's face hardened, as if she were fed up with her sister's cold words.
Victoria was disgusted by Helena's foolishness in harassing her younger sister simply for being acquainted with the Northern Lord, despite knowing nothing about it.
'Without even knowing what I've given up or how I'm living.'
Helena grew up receiving only love and was unable to read the situation, so she was swayed by her superficial mind and became jealous.
'Yeah, I should be grateful to Ariana. If it weren't for that girl, I'd be living a foolish life like Helena.'
Helena, who had come to her senses, cursed, “There’s nothing I can’t do to you, sister!”, but Victoria ignored her and looked out the carriage window.
Then Cyrus' face came to mind.
That perfect face, as beautiful as a painting, shining like the moon.
'It's clear that the Northern Lord has feelings for me.'
She observed Cyrus throughout the party. Many women were waiting for a chance to approach him, but he paid no attention to any of them.
He only smiled at Victoria.
-“I felt bad about it, so I couldn’t use it and put it in a drawer.”
Her conversation with him was brief but intense. Every time she heard his voice, her heart pounded.
'But I will never be associated with the Northern Lord.'
The Lord of the West planned to marry Victoria to the Third Prince and place him on the throne. Victoria, too, intended to become the most noble woman on the continent and trample on Ariana. She planned to completely destroy Ariana, ensuring she would never again smile sweetly.
'But...'
She felt sorry for Cyrus.
Neither the main character, the Crown Prince, nor the popular Third Prince, nor even the curious little Lord of the East, Geor, who was visiting the empire for the first time, could overcome Cyrus.
Becoming a Northern Lord's consort would be more likely to be the envy of all women than becoming an Empress.
"Why don't I marry the Northern Lord and make him the Emperor? It would be easier to make the Northern Lord the Emperor than the Third Prince..."
But the Western Lord wouldn't allow it. Victoria was not sure, but there was a deep-seated grudge between the Western Lord and the Northern Lord.
'Or, after I become Empress, it would be good to take the Northern Lord as my lover. So that no woman can touch the Northern Lord.'
***
In late 211 and early 212, a nightmare unfolded across the Empire and other countries.
The first outbreak occurred among commoners.
Cough and fever, severe skin rash, and coughing up blood.
Something was strange. Epidemics usually start in squalid slums, but this time, it was among the wealthy commoners. Furthermore, the source couldn't be traced. It was occurring simultaneously in multiple countries.
The outbreak of an unknown epidemic could have led to a major disaster. The government invested heavily in trying to identify the cause, but in the meantime, the disease began to appear among the nobility as well.
Many hospitals and temples began to provide relief to the sick. The cost of trying to treat incurable diseases was also high.
In March 212, a renowned doctor announced that the disease was not an infectious disease, but rather a symptom caused by the toxicity of the helon flower. He observed that long-term inhalation of the smoke produced by heated helon petals produced similar symptoms.
It was also revealed that the raw material for the popular perfumes 'Peonia' and 'Eribel' is the helon flower.
Those who paid a lot of money for the perfume wanted to deny it, but other professors also came forward and gave strength to the claim.
In April 212, the Emperor of the Cameria Empire announced that the cause of the disease that was shaking the continent was the damage caused by 'perfume made from Helon flowers'.
People threw away perfumes they cherished as if they were precious jewels.
Among them, many were so angry that they threw perfume bottles outside their homes, breaking them, causing secondary damage. The streets were filled with the scent of helon flowers.
“Count Gabion, take responsibility for all of this!”
“Investors in the perfume business, reveal your names and come up with appropriate measures!”
The common intellectuals who suffered the damage came forward to protest, but the investors remained silent. As soon as Count Gabion realized that his nostalgia was to blame for everything, he and his family disappeared.
In May 212, the bodies of the Count of Gabion and his family were discovered.
Meanwhile, an unknown doctor invented and began selling a medicine that would completely and quickly cure the symptoms caused by the perfume of the helon flower.
While the nobles freely purchased the expensive medicine, the commoners could not. The empire searched far and wide for a doctor who could manufacture and distribute the medicine, but they were unable to find one.
Those who could not be held accountable for the death of Count Gabion began to blame the investors who had made a fortune investing in the perfume business but were not held accountable.
At that time, someone published a list of investors in the newspaper.
The continent was once again in an uproar over investor information published on the front page of the newspaper.
This was because the names of Lord Count Rodian Oblen and Third Prince Harold Blenwitt were included in it.
Those who should have been at the forefront of mitigating the damage suffered by the people were instead shirking responsibility while simply taking what they could. Disappointment and resentment spread like wildfire in a dry forest.
The victims of the Empire protested loudly, holding the Third Prince responsible, while the victims of the West held the Western Lord responsible. Less well known, the victims of the East also blamed the Duke of Obelion and his son, the Eastern little Lord, Geor.
The Third Prince and the Western Lord were in a dilemma.
This incident occurred before half of the investment in the perfume business had been recovered, and once the investment was revealed, it drew widespread criticism. Furthermore, with no effective treatment available, there was nothing that could be done to mitigate the damage.
The Emperor was furious when he learned that the Third Prince had leaked information about the perfume to the Princess, thus further inciting a widespread epidemic. The Count of Xixia, fearing that the deteriorating public sentiment in Xixia would spark a revolution, requested imperial assistance by sending troops, but was refused.
In August 212, when the Third Prince and the Western Lord were losing their place.
Someone, who remains anonymous, has started selling a remedy that completely neutralizes perfume toxicity.
Its price was so exorbitant that only nobles or wealthy commoners could afford it. The Emperor tried to find the developer of the cure, but was unable to find one.
At that time, there was a rumor going around that Ariana White, a Princess of the East who had nothing to do with this incident, was purchasing a large quantity of the cure and distributing it to the victims of the same spirit for free.
The East was the first to escape the damage, and people praised Ariana White for her great distribution and envied the people of the East for having such a Princess.
Ariana generously purchased the remaining cure and distributed it to financially disadvantaged victims in other countries. The temple also stepped in to help victims, and when news spread that Ariana had helped purchase the cure used by the temple, Ariana's name once again resonated across the continent.
October 212, Ratan. Ariana, who once rocked the continent with her custody case, was reborn as a "saint" who helped victims without asking for anything in return. The temple refused to acknowledge the people's arbitrary calling of Ariana a "saint," remaining silent.
It was the moment when the name of Princess Ariana White, not the rascal Ariana Bronte, was imprinted on people's minds.
***
Thanks to the perfume incident, Ariana's position in the same class has also changed.
The family that had previously regarded Ariana as a fragile child began to recognize her as a proud adult, and the people of the East, who had only thought of the East as having a Princess, began to feel proud of their Princess.
In November 212, when the cold winds began to blow in the East, Ariana was having a private meeting with her eldest uncle, Duke Langster White.
"Ariana, thanks to your actions on behalf of the perfume victims, the East's reputation has improved significantly. I don't know if you know, but things were a bit awkward between you and the Emperor before. But the fact that the Emperor himself sent an envoy to us this time means that any lingering feelings between the Empire and the East will fade."
“I guess so.”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
“You’re welcome. Thanks to everyone for your help.”
Thanks to Isaac depositing all proceeds from the cure sales into Ariana's bank account, Ariana had a ton of money. It probably exceeded the East's annual operating expenses.
Ariana tried to help the victims with her own money, but later the White family also helped her.
It was Langster's idea to bring in the temple.
"Uncle, how are things in Duke Obelius's domain? Are the people still unhappy?"
“Oh, that...”
Langster's expression darkened.
"The Obelius family is a long-standing and prestigious family in the East. Using the estate's operating funds for personal gain is a crime worthy of revocation... but Duke Obelius has said he'll somehow resolve the situation, so for now, we're just watching."
"Is it so?"
Now was the time to strike down Duke Obelius.
Even when Duke Obelius was supposed to return to his fiefdom and assume his responsibilities, he remained in the capital, Ellis City. The one who suffered because of this was Geor.
Geor returned to the castle only the day before yesterday after going out to deal with the rebels that were rising throughout Duke Obelius's territory.
“It would be difficult to easily strip him of his position as Duke.”
“Yeah, it’s difficult as long as you don’t do anything that targets royalty.”
Duke Obelius had committed that "royalty-targeting act." Ariana now had ample evidence of this in her hands.
The moment she revealed that, the public sentiment towards Duke Obelius would completely turn against him, and he would lose not only his title but all his remaining wealth and would be forced to live as a commoner.
The reason she hesitated was because of what Sini had said.
-“If the little Lord is suffering, the master and his family will be sad too.”
It's been over a year and six months since Geor gave Ariana a bracelet as a birthday present and told her, "You're part of my family too." Since then, the two have lived like true siblings.
Sometimes they share mischievous jokes, and when problems arise, they think about them together.
'But that doesn't mean we can leave Duke Obelius alone like this.'
Ariana pretended to clean the vanity and stared at Catherine, who was leaning in to listen.
'I have to kick that kid out, too.'
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