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Chapter 50
The Reason That Villainess Took the Sword
The Erin who would have walked into the banquet hall with the rustic, timid expression she had imagined was nowhere to be seen.
All eyes were fixed on the doors of the hall.
Was it because Ferdin was a handsome prince?
No, that wasn’t it. Everyone was watching Erin, walking confidently beside him.
Charlotte, who was behind Corelia, murmured in a voice low enough for only her to hear:
“Erin Lissus has definitely… changed.”
“She has, hasn’t she? It’s like… she’s a different person.”
Corelia twisted her lips at Charlotte’s words. Her heart thumped with interest.
How long had it been since she’d felt this way? When had she last witnessed something new that surpassed her expectations?
Corelia recalled memories from over a decade ago—the very moment Erin first drew a sword.
“So it was you… not Karon Lissus.”
And now, watching Erin appear, Corelia couldn’t help but feel the same astonishment.
“She looks so beautiful and confident… and she even dares to defy me.”
“….”
“It’s amazing. Quite intriguing, Charlotte. Erin… seems to know how to handle a sword. Can you feel her formidable presence?”
“Yes, it seems so.”
“Annoying…”
The dress Erin wore had not been sent by Corelia.
The fact that Erin hadn’t followed her orders hit her with a fresh shock.
But more than that, what truly unsettled Corelia was that Erin didn’t flinch upon meeting her gaze.
Ferdin and Erin slowly approached Dietrion and Corelia as they entered the hall. Erin, as always, lowered her head but did not avoid Corelia’s eyes.
They greeted Dietrion, the host of the banquet.
And until that moment, Dietrion had not fully recovered from the shock.
‘That person… is Erin Lissus?’
Erin was beautiful, but there were plenty of beautiful people in the hall.
Yet she had an aura that drew people in—an aura that Dietrion didn’t realize came from Erin being a Sword Master.
The feeling he experienced was the kind of awe one could feel before someone who wielded a sword—precisely, a sense of reverence.
Unconsciously, Dietrion gripped the armrest of his chair.
Their eyes met. Unlike when looking at Ferdin, her gaze was cold and unyielding.
But Dietrion was so overwhelmed by her beauty and suffocating aura that he had no time to worry about that glare.
He simply thought as he looked at her:
‘I want her.’
To him, Erin Lissus was no different from a useless insect.
Dietrion remembered how, in the distant past, Erin had looked at him with awe.
Back then, her gaze had made him feel insignificant… so why did he now feel this intense desire?
‘Because she belongs to Ferdin?’
Perhaps that was it.
A strange longing flickered in Dietrion’s eyes as he smirked.
With the appearance of the main attraction, the energy of the party surged.
As Ferdin scanned the hall, he noticed Dietrion’s gaze completely change.
It was the same expression he had often seen since Dietrion’s youth. Seeing it now, Ferdin’s eyes darkened.
Ferdin realized that Erin had caught Dietrion’s attention.
It was inevitable. Erin was shining brighter than anyone else. Surely, it wasn’t only his eyes that would see her this way.
Anyone would covet Erin.
But what if, as before, Erin wanted to approach Dietrion?
Ferdin had never tried to stop anyone from leaving his side.
“I will become Dietrion’s lady-in-waiting from tomorrow.”
“I had no choice, Prince, as Dietrion lacked knights.”
Every time he saw those he cared for walk away, his feelings were complicated. Yet Ferdin had learned, through repeated experience, to sacrifice for their protection.
After all, if they stayed by his side, they could be harmed by Dietrion’s dukedom.
So Ferdin sent them off with a smile—and saved their lives.
Then Erin grasped his hand. He felt the firm, knightly strength of her grip.
Ferdin turned to look at her. He saw her smiling beautifully.
“Sir Ferdin.”
“….”
“Would you dance with me?”
Seeing Erin like that, Ferdin felt something twist deep within him.
‘Even if she wants to leave, I want to stay with her.’
Dancing, Erin was unbearably beautiful. The hand he held tingled, and goosebumps rose wherever her gaze landed.
Yet Ferdin found it difficult to concentrate on the dance.
In his mind lingered Dietrion’s lecherous smirk.
He couldn’t let him look at Erin that way.
‘Now is not the time to provoke Dietrion.’
Ferdin knew when to stay silent. It was not yet time to antagonize him.
Yet Dietrion regarded Erin merely as an amusing, intriguing toy.
‘She doesn’t deserve that treatment.’
If someone like Dietrion treated Erin carelessly, he would no longer tolerate it.
Ferdin recalled a conversation he had had with the princess not long ago:
“Fate has changed. And at the center of that change is Sir Erin.”
After the princess said this, she added:
“This is, if… just hypothetically… she might know a future that hasn’t yet come to pass.”
“What does that mean, Princess?”
“Never mind… consider it unheard. I received the prophecy for the first time, so I don’t know much.”
If what the princess said was true…
It would explain how someone who had never wielded a sword could reach the rank of Sword Master in an instant.
Ferdin’s expression grew complicated as he watched Erin.
What future could she know that allowed an ordinary lady to grasp the essence of the sword?
If Erin was bearing all the burden alone to change a predetermined fate, the weight on her small shoulders would be heavier than he could ever imagine.
His hand trembled slightly.
He couldn’t bear the thought of her suffering. His chest tightened painfully.
Erin elegantly turned and asked:
“Sir Ferdin, what have you been thinking about all this time?”
“Ah… I’m sorry, Sir Erin.”
She had been puzzled by Ferdin, who seemed distracted since earlier.
‘Was it shocking that I didn’t tell her in advance?’
Erin thought this as she scanned her surroundings.
Upon entering the hall, she had finally released the aura she had kept hidden.
The effect was immediate. Duke Asily’s face stiffened in fear as he looked at her; Corelia and Dietrion were the same.
Some of the nobles in the hall also stared at her in astonishment.
‘But they won’t guess I’m a Sword Master.’
Yet anyone who had even briefly held a sword could sense her exceptional talent.
And they would realize that it was Erin Lissus, not Karon Lissus, chosen by the sword.
Today, Erin had thrown herself into the fray as bait.
‘I need certainty.’
She needed confirmation of what she had doubted until now. That’s why she had boldly stepped forward.
Through this action, she had to observe how Corelia, Dietrion, and the others would act.
After the dance, Erin and Ferdin moved away from the center. Derek approached Ferdin and spoke:
“Ferdin, His Highness Dietrion is calling you.”
It was time for Dietrion’s speech on behalf of the emperor.
As Ferdin left, Erin moved toward the balcony to catch her breath during the speech.
She thought of Karon. Even from a brief glance at the banquet, he still looked confused, struggling to make a firm choice.
Seeing the tacky dress sent by Corelia, he probably had an idea of how she had tormented Erin. But Karon had spent too many years with the Marchioness.
Erin did not feel resentment toward Karon. She had never expected a single word from her to solve everything.
‘If you can’t believe, then make him believe.’
Erin sensed someone approaching the balcony. It was a presence she knew very well.
In three lives, there had never been anyone she had forgotten. And now that person was approaching the balcony.
Even after her gruesome death and reincarnation, Erin had nightmares of Corelia coming for her.
Those nightmares were not much different from the current situation.
Thinking this, Erin slowly turned.
Corelia was entering through the balcony door.
