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Chapter 01
Ariadne said that, then stared silently at the Count.
The Count immediately frowned deeply and spoke in a sharp voice.
“You are not to go anywhere from now on. Stay inside your room.”
As if driving the point in, he added coldly,
“Do not even think about leaving until I give permission.”
In other words, until she apologized to her younger sister, she would be allowed to do nothing.
Without replying, Ariadne immediately left the Count’s office.
“Y-You! As if you’ve done anything right!”
The Count’s furious shout echoed behind her, but she ignored it completely.
Originally, she had planned to go check on Ashley’s condition, but since her sister was demanding an apology from her, she felt there was nothing left to say and decided to return straight to her room instead.
As soon as Ariadne stepped out of the office, the servants stationed outside glanced at her furtively.
It seemed the rumors had already spread.
That she had bullied Ashley badly enough to drive her to attempted suicide.
If those rumors were true, then Ariadne was nothing less than a wicked villainess.
But they weren’t true.
“Ha…”
She deliberately met the gazes of the servants staring at her. Only then did they flinch and lower their heads.
Even though it was nothing but a false rumor, and she had no reason to feel intimidated, being looked down upon by so many people still made her shrink inside.
She couldn’t possibly go around explaining to everyone that it was all a misunderstanding. And even if she did, they would believe Ashley—the Saintess—far more readily than they would believe her.
Even if she had decided to live as the villainess…
It was not easy enduring the hostile eyes of countless people.
She hurried away and returned to her room.
The moment she entered, she shut the door behind her and leaned against it.
For some reason, her heart ached.
Just because of a rumor that might not even be true, everyone had turned against her.
She had always known the Saintess held immense influence, but she never imagined things would change this drastically overnight.
“Ha…”
Ashley’s influence was so great partly because of the Emperor’s long-standing illness.
The Emperor of the Empire, already past middle age, had suddenly begun suffering from an unknown disease several years ago. No physician, no matter how skilled, had been able to cure him.
The only thing that had shown any real effect was the healing power of the Saintess.
Though her divine power could not completely cure the illness, it eased his pain and weakened the symptoms enough for him to live normally. Because of that, Ashley was regularly summoned to the Imperial Palace to care for the Emperor.
It would not be an exaggeration to say the Emperor depended heavily on her.
So perhaps the Count’s fury was understandable.
Ever since Ashley began alleviating the Emperor’s illness, the Count’s influence among the nobility had grown enormously—so much that his power now surpassed even that of marquises and dukes.
“If something really happened to Ashley…”
If she became unable to care for the Emperor, it would be a devastating loss in every sense.
Fine. Even if she understood it a hundred times over…
Everything about the situation felt far too perfectly orchestrated, and Ariadne still felt bitter inside.
Still, she had no intention of running away from reality.
“I have nothing to be ashamed of.”
Taking a small breath, she straightened herself away from the door.
She had no time to wallow.
Since remaining near Ashley would only worsen public opinion, she quickly began planning to leave the Count’s estate.
No matter what others said, as long as she herself knew the truth, that was enough.
Though it might seem sudden, it was actually a very rational decision.
After all, how could she continue living comfortably in the Count’s household while falsely accused of nearly killing the Saintess?
Her family, the servants, the nobles who worshipped the Saintess—they would all continue treating her like a criminal.
If that was the case, then perhaps she truly should live as the villainess they wanted her to be.
She thought about what lay ahead.
“Leaving is the right choice. They can insult me all they want once I’m gone.”
Even as she thought that, the cheek her father had struck burned painfully.
Unable to bear it any longer, she slowly walked toward the mirror.
Her reflection looked awful.
“Goodness…”
Her cheek was so swollen and red that it looked pitiful.
It was not merely swollen.
A distinct handprint was visible across one side of her face.
“He could’ve at least hit me a little more gently. Ugh, it stings.”
She touched it with her hand, only to recoil immediately from the pain.
“This is going to last for days.”
Even while staring into the mirror, she continued thinking about the future.
She had no desire to remain here, being ignored and despised under the false accusation of driving Ashley to attempt suicide.
‘When should I leave?’
She began choosing the day she would depart the estate.
Judging by the Count’s attitude, the sooner she left, the better.
“Come to think of it… isn’t tomorrow the day Ashley goes to the Imperial Palace to see His Majesty?”
Tomorrow happened to be one of Ashley’s regular visits to the palace.
“And Father will go with her.”
Whenever Ashley went to tend to the Emperor’s illness, the Count’s estate usually became silent as the grave. All the important members of the family would leave for the palace together.
Normally, Ariadne would have accompanied them as well.
But under the current circumstances, she doubted they would bring her along.
Ashley needed to remain in perfect condition when treating the Emperor. If Ariadne were beside her, the Count would surely see her as nothing but a disturbance.
In that case, she decided, she would escape while everyone else was gone.
“Still, if I’m going to live on my own, I’ll need money. Maybe I should take some jewelry.”
Muttering that she needed a more concrete plan, Ariadne picked up a quill and sat at her desk.
‘Money… and a place to stay. Hmm.’
As she pondered, the pain from the slap made her mouth twitch awkwardly.
“Ahh…”
Just then, urgent knocking rattled the room.
“Miss! It’s me! Florin!”
“Yes. Come in.”
Ariadne answered with a grimace, her cheek throbbing painfully.
Florin was her personal maid and the only person in the estate who genuinely seemed to consider Ariadne’s side.
Florin hurried inside in a fluster, then gasped the moment she saw Ariadne’s face.
“Good heavens. The Count went too far.”
Apparently already informed of everything, Florin brought over an assortment of medicines and lined them up across the table.
“Come here. Let me put some medicine on it.”
Without protest, Ariadne sat before her.
“Goodness… tsk.”
Florin pressed a cloth soaked in cold water against Ariadne’s cheek and sighed heavily.
“Ah!”
“Keep it there. The pain will ease soon.”
“Thank you…”
“No need to thank me. Honestly… this will take days to heal. No—days? More like half a month. Even after the swelling goes down, it’ll bruise. Really… why hit your face of all places…”
Florin shook her head repeatedly in disbelief.
“It’s fine.”
When Ariadne replied casually, Florin became even angrier instead.
“The problem is that neither the Count nor anyone else has any intention of listening to you! To them, only Lady Ashley matters. Our poor young lady…”
While ranting, Florin eventually began wiping tears from her eyes.
Ariadne was grateful someone was angry on her behalf. She tried to smile, only to wince again from the pain.
Because Florin was completely right.
“I don’t think Father sees me as his daughter.”
At those words, Florin, who had been sniffling, looked startled.
Ariadne rarely voiced such complaints aloud.
“W-Well…”
Now that Ariadne had said it outright, Florin looked troubled.
Even to an outsider, the Count clearly treated the two daughters differently.
Yet aside from not being the Saintess, Ariadne was practically the perfect daughter—someone worthy of love.
“What exactly do I have to do to earn Father’s approval?”
Ariadne had never realized loving and being loved by one’s parents could be this difficult.
Seeing Florin’s uncomfortable expression, she quickly changed her tone.
“It doesn’t matter. Let them think whatever they want.”
Holding the cloth against her cheek, she spoke calmly.
After all, she would soon leave the Count’s estate anyway. She felt sorry for Florin, but it was the best choice for herself.
“Honestly, how did things end up like this? The second young lady went too far too! I heard everything that day!”
“Don’t say things like that elsewhere, Florin. You’ll only get yourself into trouble.”
Instead of defending herself, Ariadne worried for her maid instead, making Florin frown.
“Ugh! You’re way too kind-hearted. Please just rest. I’ll make sure no one comes in.”
“Alright. Thank you. I’m just going to sleep until tomorrow.”
“Then… you’re not going to the Imperial Palace tomorrow?”
“No. Wouldn’t it be better for both of them if I stayed away?”
With that, she slipped beneath the blankets.
Since they would all remain at the palace for several days anyway, she figured she could refine her plans little by little.
Having continuously cared for Ashley while enduring emotional exhaustion herself, Ariadne quickly drifted into deep sleep.
“Mmm…”
Bright light filtered through her eyelids. It seemed to be morning.
But that wasn’t what woke her.
From dawn onward, loud commotion had seeped through the door, disturbing her nerves.
Finally unable to ignore it any longer, she sat up.
“Ugh… what now?”
The estate, which should have been silent this morning, was instead in complete chaos.
Whenever they left for the Imperial Palace, they departed before sunrise, leaving the mansion deathly quiet.
But today was different.
Bang!
Right then, the door burst open.
It was Florin, apparently in too much of a hurry even to knock.
Breathing heavily, she practically shouted,
“S-Something terrible has happened!”
Looking frantic and pale, she continued anxiously,
“What is it? Why is the entire estate in an uproar this early?”
The atmosphere felt eerily similar to the chaos after Ashley’s suicide attempt several days ago.
Ariadne immediately sensed that something was terribly wrong.
“T-Today, just like usual, Lady Ashley was preparing to leave for the Imperial Palace, and—”
Florin looked so rushed she could barely speak properly.
“Yes. And?”
“She tested her holy power before leaving.”
“And?”
Before entering the palace, Ashley always checked her healing ability to avoid any mistakes. It was a simple procedure, and there had never been any problems before.
“My goodness… Lady Ashley’s healing power—no, her divine power…”
Florin lowered her voice and cautiously stepped closer.
“It’s completely disappeared!”
Despite her hushed voice, the seriousness on her face was unmistakable.
Ariadne blinked several times, unable to process the words.
“What?”
Impossible.
The Empire’s one and only Saintess—
Ashley’s healing powers had vanished?
