It was then.
Someone came running with hurried footsteps. As the attic door burst open loudly, everyone’s gaze turned toward it.
“Th-the master just sent Sally to the capital to fetch a dress fit for a young lady.”
One maid spoke, panting for breath.
“You came at the right time. We were just talking about that…”
“That child… no, the young lady is being sent to the Grand Duchy of Valentine.”
At that moment, everyone fell silent.
As if by agreement, all chatter stopped at once.
“As the Grand Duke’s bride.”
The maids all turned to look at Aria.
Their faces were pale, almost pitifully so. It made sense. They had all stood by while the child was abused, and some had even taken part.
“But there hasn’t even been an official notice yet about seeking a bride.”
Still, they knew.
That among nobles, the marriageable age rarely passed fourteen.
The Grand Duke was fourteen this year.
“She’s going to die anyway.”
“Yeah, that’s right. She’ll be offered to the demon before she can even harm us.”
Originally, the Grand Duchy of Valentine opened its gates once every generation.
It was when they sought a bride for the heir.
But that position was, in truth, one of going there to bear a child and die.
Every wife who married the Grand Duke fell ill and died not long after giving birth.
There were many rumors, but no one knew the truth.
Once someone became the Grand Duke’s bride, they were cut off from all family and acquaintances for life.
‘No different from a sacrifice.’
No matter how prettily it was called “bride,” everyone referred to it that way.
“She can’t even speak. She’ll just be trapped there forever. What is there to be afraid of?”
Aria silently listened to the maids and recalled what had happened last night.
Brainwashing the Count without the Mermaid’s Tears had been easier than breathing.
She had simply slipped one command into her song—
To send her to the Grand Duchy immediately.
‘Should I do the same to them?’
No. There was no need.
Though the maids reassured themselves, saying there was nothing to fear, they all exchanged uneasy glances.
Aria rummaged through the small, worn bag slung over her shoulder.
It was a bag she had always carried when she couldn’t speak, to communicate.
Inside were an ink bottle, a quill, and numerous cards.
Aria quickly wrote something on a card and held it out.
[Bring it again. Something edible.]
Wide eyes filled with shock, expressions doubting their own sight.
“Y-you’re… ordering me right now…?”
Aria watched them with an indifferent face, then lightly kicked the bowl of soup at her feet, sending it crashing down.
[Right now.]
Aria looked up at the maid who brought tea, her face tense.
She had only firmly said to take away the inedible food, yet somehow a tea time had begun without her asking.
Lavish desserts she didn’t even know the names of.
The sweetness stung her nose.
‘This makes me look like a noble lady.’
How long had it been since she was treated like a human, not a bird in a cage?
Aria took a small sip of tea, then gestured for them to leave.
“I-if you need anything, please call us anytime.”
As if.
I won’t give you any chance to make amends.
Her gaze moved across the maids who had subtly abused her.
‘Spend your whole lives fearing that I’ll take revenge one day.’
Aria’s eyes curved.
Between her long pale pink lashes, her crimson eyes shimmered softly.
When she smiled, sweeter than the desserts on the table, the maids froze, mouths slightly open, entranced.
Then her petal-like lips parted.
—Leave.
Reading her lips, the maids startled as if burned and hurried out.
Their footsteps faded completely.
‘They definitely froze when they saw me smile.’
Is it that unsettling?
Aria touched her cheek, now free of scars.
When she had been a Siren, Count Cortez had often told her—
Those she would face were nobles of the capital, their aesthetic standards strict, unable to tolerate anything ugly.
Now, unlike before, she no longer had the large burn scar covering half her face.
‘Still… it’s better to hide it.’
She knew that expression—
The one people made when they saw something they never imagined.
It was the look nobles had given when her mask had once fallen off.
Wearing a mask had been her normal.
She decided to do the same again.
“Are we even going the right way?”
Count Cortez slammed his fist against the wall beside the driver’s seat, irritated.
The guide sitting outside replied in a trembling voice,
“I-I don’t know, sir. We’ve been following the path, but we haven’t even left the entrance of the mountain range…”
“If you don’t know, then who does?!”
It seemed he had reached his limit.
“Stop the carriage immediately!” the Count shouted.
They had arrived at the mountain range in the morning, yet now the sun was already setting.
After days of travel without rest, both the Count and Aria were exhausted.
“Damn those arrogant demon bastards… to think they dare act so high and mighty while being condemned worldwide…”
The Count muttered viciously through clenched teeth.
Valentine was an unknown land.
Surrounded by the Ingo Mountains and forests, completely isolated, entry strictly forbidden.
Even in diplomacy or trade, the Valentine family carefully vetted all outsiders.
Naturally, they had ignored the Count’s request to meet.
Aria watched him fume.
‘They didn’t even reply to his letter.’
The Cortez family had produced many musicians over generations.
Among them, the former head, “Maestro Cortez,” had been a genius conductor and composer.
Even now, he was called the father of music.
‘Even Cortez means nothing to Valentine.’
No wonder the Count, who couldn’t stand being ignored, was furious.
He had immediately hired a guide and was now attempting to force his way in.
“It would be best to turn back, my lord.”
The guide, hired from the adventurers’ guild, spoke up.
Earlier, he had confidently claimed to be the best in his field.
Now, he was visibly terrified.
“This job was impossible from the start. No one knows the path from the Ingo Mountains to Valentine Castle. No one has ever returned alive!”
The Count glared at him murderously.
“You accepted the job. If you won’t take responsibility after taking advance payment, you’ll pay with your life.”
“If you kill me, you’ll die here as well.”
The Count threw open the carriage door, drew his sword, and pressed it to the guide’s neck.
“Then decide whether you’ll die now or die trying to find the castle.”
“Hhk—”
While they argued meaninglessly—
Aria’s attention was elsewhere.
She reached her arm out the window.
Focusing her senses, her skin tingled.
‘This is… a barrier?’
The source of a Siren’s power was its energy.
A Siren’s power.
A mage’s mana.
A priest’s divine power.
A shaman’s magic.
Different in nature, yet all forms of energy.
If one mastered their own, they could sense others.
At the entrance of the Ingo Mountains lay a massive barrier, like a wall.
‘Most likely an illusion-type barrier.’
Such barriers made intruders believe they were endlessly circling the same place.
Some would even fight each other to death, or kill themselves.
‘As expected… they won’t let anyone in easily.’
Just then—
Darkness fell over the forest, and beastly growls echoed from all directions.
Grrr—
The ground seemed to tremble.
“Ah!”
“What is that?!”
The knights and mercenaries drew their swords.
They looked around in alarm.
“I told you we should turn back…”
The guide whimpered.
“So the rumors were true. Monsters in the Ingo Mountains…”
“Monsters?”
“Beasts… deformed ones. Several times larger than normal…”
“Why didn’t you say that earlier?!”
“You never listened!”
Aria had heard the rumors too.
That the Valentine family worshipped demons.
“It’s a demon’s curse…”
Someone muttered.
“Graaah!”
A scream rang out.
“S-save me—!”
Screams and horrifying sounds filled the air.
Aria never looked away, yet she couldn’t tell what had happened.
Only that something beyond sight had occurred.
‘Something began.’
And by the time she realized it—
It was already over.
Knights, mercenaries, the guide—
All were dead, brutally.
It was a one-sided slaughter.
At the center stood a man.
Dressed in a black hood from head to toe.
“How amusing.”
His voice was heavy enough to freeze the body.
His lips curled.
“When did Valentine’s prestige fall this low? That even pests dare intrude.”
This was beyond mere cruelty.
Aria recalled it instantly.
‘This method…’
Around him, beasts with glowing blue eyes growled.
The monsters the guide had described.
“Looks like the hounds will feast tonight.”
He called them “hounds.”
Creatures three times larger than wolves.
Aria met his gaze.
‘Faded gray eyes.’
He stepped forward through a mist of blood and pointed at her.
“Kill her.”
She had never felt so powerless.
Like facing a tidal wave, she collapsed.
The monsters slowly closed in.
She shut her eyes tightly.
“Whine—”
But no pain came.
She felt warm breath and a wet touch.
Opening her eyes—
“Hah, hah.”
The monster was licking her hand, wagging its tail like a dog.
