🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 44
The Pointing Fingers
“Don’t send a substitute for the duel. You’ll win.”
He hadn’t held a sword in over ten years. Not that he was proud of it—he had drunk so much that his belly had grown round, and his body had gone sluggish. How could he possibly win against Luanse in a duel? He doubted it.
But Lorencia was a monster. She could move and shatter objects at will right in front of him. Even if he couldn’t bring himself to believe her words, he had no choice but to follow them.
“On the day of the duel, a lot of bets will be placed in Lord Roryrolls’ name. Bet everything you have on your own victory.”
He was already standing on the edge of a cliff with nowhere else to retreat. It was do-or-die. Amid the jeers and mockery of the crowd, he wagered every secret fund and hidden jewel he had on his own victory.
“Lord Roryrolls has finally gone mad! He’s betting on himself to win?”
People pointed and laughed at him. But Roryrolls had already decided to let everything go. And now, seeing Luanse stumble twice already, he was sure of his victory. Lorencia had been right—he was glad he hadn’t sent a substitute.
“Your Highness Luanse, you seem rather light on your feet today—you keep falling.”
“Lord Roryrolls!”
“Your Highness, don’t tense up so much. You’ll trip again.”
Luanse roared in fury. The repeated falls had made him a spectacle. Every noble in the training arena seemed to be pointing fingers at him. But he couldn’t give up now.
He had to defeat Roryrolls somehow.
Luanse stepped back and steadied his stance again. He gripped his sword tightly, preparing for an all-out attack, then charged.
“Haaah!”
Watching his desperate rush, Lorencia murmured softly again:
“Slip. And sword—leave his hand.”
As he charged toward Roryrolls, Luanse’s feet gave way once more. With a loud thud, he fell face-first—and his sword slipped from his grasp.
The arena fell silent.
Roryrolls knew this was his chance. He sprinted forward faster than ever before. By the time Luanse looked up from the ground, the tip of Roryrolls’ sword was already touching his neck. Luanse’s face turned crimson.
Duke Rox, who had been judging the duel, stood frozen. Luanse wasn’t a brilliant swordsman, but compared to Roryrolls, his skill was far superior—and he was Rox’s own student.
“It seems I’ve won, Your Highness Luanse.”
With disbelief on his face, Duke Rox approached the two men and declared Roryrolls the victor.
At the announcement, Roryrolls burst into loud laughter. Luanse bowed his head and didn’t move. The crowd in the arena buzzed louder and louder in astonishment.
“Prince Luanse actually lost.”
“It’s hard to lose that badly.”
Teishar couldn’t hide his bewilderment. By all accounts, today’s duel should have been an easy win for Luanse. But he had fallen three times—and dropped his sword on the last.
Teishar didn’t even like Luanse, but each time he stumbled, Teishar had to close his eyes; the shame of it was painful to witness.
He glanced toward the imperial family’s seats. Only Adrian, head bowed with a hand pressed to his forehead, and the expressionless Princess Charlotte remained. Emperor Adolph had left quietly after Luanse’s second fall, and Empress Ines followed him out.
Luanse’s own mother, Concubine Pellena, stayed—until her son fell a third time and dropped his sword. Then, with a red face, she too fled the arena.
“Prince Luanse was expected to win, but he’s been defeated,” Lorencia said softly, her tone tinged with mock sympathy. But she was biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. If she didn’t, she might laugh out loud.
She possessed two powers: one was the ability to see the future, and the other—the ability to move objects.
In the past, she hadn’t been able to control the latter. But now she could.
She had used it to make Luanse stumble and drop his sword.
“Since he’s lost, people will surely point their fingers at him.”
“This isn’t just a loss,” Teishar replied. “It’s humiliation. He’s lost all his dignity as a royal.”
“Yes. Princess Charlotte once said royal duels of honor go down in history. I suppose this one will too.”
Lorencia was satisfied. For proud Luanse to lose to Roryrolls—a social disgrace with no swordsmanship—was the ultimate shame.
His humiliation would be doubled by the absurd reason for his defeat. Still, she worried a little—what if he hid himself away in seclusion, crushed by shame? But no, Luanse was too stubborn to do that.
Lorencia furrowed her brows deliberately, struggling not to smile. Teishar caught the faint curve of her lips and asked gently,
“Lady Lorencia, do you feel any better now?”
“No,” she said with a smile. “Not at all.”
A bit of public embarrassment for Luanse wasn’t enough to soothe her twisted resentment. His shame wasn’t revenge.
No matter what revenge she enacted, no matter how much suffering she inflicted, the tangled knot of pain within her wouldn’t unravel.
Even if Luanse were to die a miserable death, her heart wouldn’t truly be freed.
To loosen that knot, she would need immense courage.
“Losing just made him look ridiculous,” she said calmly.
He had to fall by his own desires, his own greed. This duel was merely the beginning.
“Yes, Prince Luanse’s duel was more laughable than a clown’s dance,” Teishar remarked.
“An apt comparison,” Lorencia replied.
Teishar’s gaze drifted past her, to the young tree behind her. The longer they spent together, the healthier that little tree grew—its branches thicker, its color brighter.
Over time, Teishar had learned that the tree reflected Lorencia’s emotions. When she suffered, it withered; when she felt joy, it flourished.
This morning, the tree had looked vibrant and full of life. But now, after the duel, it had twisted strangely, its branches tangling together like a spider weaving a trap.
He had never seen it take such a form before. Worry crept into his heart. Perhaps he had been arrogant to think he understood how to nurture it.
“Raising a tree is hard… but still…”
“Master!”
Teishar turned to see Evan running toward him.
“What is it, Evan?”
“Lord Magus has arrived!”
“My father?”
As Evan spoke, Lorencia tilted her head curiously toward Teishar—and then, in that instant, everything around her froze.
People and objects wavered like reflections on rippling water, then began to swirl in a vortex. She recognized the phenomenon—it was the same as when she had been shown Roryrolls’ dark past.
“What are you trying to show me this time?”
The vortex expanded as if to swallow everything, then stilled. Lorencia looked around.
This time was different. She was standing on a pristine white path, and before her floated a large violet crystal orb.
“A crystal…?”
The orb began to glow brilliantly, its light cascading down like a waterfall. Ripples of radiance spread across the white path like ink dispersing in water.
Lorencia was entranced.
“How beautiful…”
Drawn by the light, she stepped closer. The amethyst pendant around her neck began to glow in response.
As she reached toward the crystal, its glow intensified. The pendant and orb resonated, flooding the space with blinding light.
Lorencia closed her eyes, then opened them again—only to see an image appear within the orb.
[Teishar. You’ve found the child of the goddess Ella.]
An older man, strikingly similar to Teishar, paced the room nervously.
[It’s fortunate you discovered the young tree before it began to rot.]
[Father, I was shocked—no, astonished—when I saw Lady Lorencia. The moment I looked at her, I realized I am the Black Serpent.]
[Yes. We are the Black Serpents who guard the child of the goddess Ella.]
“The guardian serpent… of the goddess’s child?” Lorencia whispered.
[Yes. I will protect Lady Lorencia with my life.]
[Then be ready to lay it down.]
[I will risk it as many times as it takes.]
The older man opened a black jewel box. Inside were fragments of purple crystal—identical to her amethyst pendant.
“That’s…”
[I don’t know how to explain the shattered amethyst fragments to you, son…]
[She is strong-willed, Father. I can’t bear to see Lady Lorencia suffer any longer.]
[Even so, it can’t remain hidden. Teishar, the crystal is of utmost importance to the goddess Ella.]
Their voices faded like echoes, and the image within the orb dissolved.
“No—show me more! Please!”
Lorencia cried out, but the violet orb gave no answer. She clutched the amethyst pendant at her throat.
And at that moment, a long-forgotten fragment of her mother’s words returned to her memory.
