Chapter 48
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Violet's First Words - Episode 48
"Stop it! Enough of this! Fine, let's sever ties. I'll give up everything—just let me go, you wretched thing!"
Marigold screamed.
It was strange. Before, Marigold had seemed like a princess.
Violet found her desperate thrashing pitiful and contemptible.
"Get up now. You should be able to move."
Marigold remained rigid, unaware that her paralysis had lifted.
Perhaps she was cowering in fear of being attacked by Sylphir.
Marigold staggered to her feet.
"Are you leaving?"
Violet spoke quietly.
"Yes. I never want to breathe the same air as you again. And don't you dare go around telling people I'm your sister!"
Violet nodded.
Then came a knock at the door—tap, tap.
Both Violet and Marigold's gazes turned toward it simultaneously.
"You have a visitor, Violet. Shall I open the door?"
The door swung open and Cyril spoke.
Violet replied with a composed gaze.
"Yes, please show them in."
In that moment, the door opened wide.
Standing beyond the threshold was none other than the Crown Princess, Hueria. She was accompanied by an entourage of female attendants.
"Ah...."
Marigold froze mid-stride, her momentum shattered.
"So you are Marigold Everdin."
Hueria's eyes swept over her from head to toe.
"Y-Your Highness, the Crown Princess...."
Marigold trembled as she looked at her, sweat pouring down her forehead like rain.
At Hueria's gesture, her attendants swiftly encircled Marigold.
"P-Please spare me. I, that is...."
"In our homeland, those who commit adultery have their limbs rendered useless, then are abandoned in the heart of the Desert."
Hueria spoke with arrogant authority, her pronunciation unusually crisp today.
"Where shall we begin?"
One of Hueria's attendants twisted Marigold's arm and seized her, then spoke.
Marigold lifted her head and cried out.
"H-Help me! Violet!"
Violet remained silent.
"Violet, for the people of the Sien Empire, that is the rule. They will fight anyone who disrupts it."
Cyril approached and spoke softly.
"Yes."
Violet was composed.
Marigold was facing the consequences of her own sins. It would be strange for me to interfere in such matters.
After all, she was a stranger. An enemy, even.
Hueria watched with satisfaction as Marigold was subdued by her subordinates.
Then Hueria noticed something that had fallen at her feet.
It was the salve that Marigold had tried to use on Violet but failed.
At Hueria's gesture, a subordinate beside her picked up the jar and handed it to her.
"What is this?"
"Be careful, Your Highness. It's a dangerous substance. It disfigures the skin upon contact."
Violet said.
"Why is something like this here?"
Hueria asked softly.
"Marigold attempted to use that salve on me. Though she was subdued in the attempt."
"Since you're my friend, Violet, I'm adding this to the revenge. Right now."
Hueria gestured with her chin.
"No, please!"
Marigold cried out.
One of Hueria's subordinates approached. She wore gloves on her hands.
She smiled cruelly and began applying the salve to Marigold's face.
"I don't want this!"
Marigold tried to resist, but Hueria's subordinates held her firmly, leaving her unable to move at all.
"Don't get involved and leave. This is no longer our concern."
Cyril whispered.
"No, I want you to bear witness. A witness to this deed. Only you stay, Violet."
Hueria said.
Violet looked at Cyril.
"Will you stay?"
"Yes, since I'm involved in this matter as well. And I need to at least appear to attend the Ball."
"We have no interest in the Ball, so we'll wait nearby. Let's go, Olive."
"Yes."
Olive replied.
As Cyril and Olive departed, Violet stood in the doorway and quietly observed the room.
"No, no... I don't want to become a monster. I, I..."
Once released from Hueria's subordinates, Marigold scratched herself frantically and looked into the mirror.
Marigold's face was unmarred.
"Oh, thank goodness! Thank goodness indeed..."
Tears streamed down Marigold's cheeks in torrents.
'Is the salve counterfeit? Or does it simply take time to manifest its effects?'
I furrowed my brow. Hueria seized Marigold by the hair and whispered to her.
"Run. Flee and ask the Crown Prince himself—are you truly his Royal Mistress? Then he'll spare your life."
Hueria spoke.
Royal Mistress.
The official concubine of the Royal Family. One who receives treatment equivalent to a spouse.
"Y-yes! I understand!"
Marigold stammered her response.
"Put it on her."
Hueria commanded. Her subordinates fastened something around Marigold's neck.
It was a small necklace. At first glance, it bore a pendant shaped like a grotesquely ugly magical circle.
"Go to your man."
Hueria pushed her from behind.
Marigold fled in blind panic.
'Where exactly is Marigold heading now?'
I furrowed my brow.
"What was that just now?"
"It's a pair of necklaces—a common magical tool in our country."
Click, click-click—
Soon, the necklace around Hueria's neck crackled with static before a voice began to emerge.
[Edgar, Your Highness. Please save me. You do love me, don't you?]
[Marigold? What's this about all of a sudden?]
[I'm your concubine, aren't I? Aren't I? You said you'd make me your Royal Mistress and later your Crown Princess.]
[Don't talk nonsense. Just lie down on top of Saint Carita's coffin here. I'd hoped our first time would be in this place, you know?]
[That's not it—it's true, isn't it? It is, right? That mad woman said she'd kill me!]
[If you need words of oath, just say so. You are my Royal Mistress and my future Crown Princess. Now, look at this mysterious light enveloping Carita's coffin....]
Thud.
The voice cut off abruptly.
[Ahhh, damn it! What is this! That monstrous face...!]
[She did this to me. This salve was originally mine, but it...!]
I clicked my tongue.
It seemed the salve Hueria had applied was only now beginning to take effect.
[Get away, you monster!]
A dull thud echoed through the space as something collided with an object.
The interior of the room materialized vividly in my mind's eye.
'Carita's coffin...?'
In that same moment, I considered the implications.
Naturally, after witnessing that future vision, I had investigated Saint Carita's Archive thoroughly.
Saint Carita's Archive had been constructed directly above the spot where the saint had perished.
Which meant that beneath this very place lay Carita's remains.
'But how could a coffin exist where the Crown Prince is? Could the records be mistaken?'
Judging by how quickly Marigold had located the Crown Prince, he couldn't be far from here.
"True love is overrated. You're far superior to your Younger Sister—in heart and in skill alike."
Hueria spoke with characteristic bluntness.
"I've just severed ties with her. I have no Younger Sister anymore."
I responded to Hueria's words with complete sincerity. She let out a short laugh.
"But why would you do such a thing...?"
"This is a recording. A contract."
"...A contract, you say?"
"Before coming here, Lady Hueria executed a marriage contract accompanied by a substantial dowry. The most critical clause stipulated that within five years of marriage, the Crown Prince would never take a Royal Mistress—a concubine with recognized rights."
"Then that means...?"
Marigold had just admitted with her own lips that she was indeed a Royal Mistress. The Crown Prince had confirmed it as well.
This would serve as grounds for divorce.
Hueria smiled with quiet satisfaction.
"Lady Hueria states that you provided her with what she needed. She will return to her homeland shortly—but only after punishing that vile creature and confronting her husband directly."
One of Hueria's attendants conveyed her intentions.
"Safe travels."
I offered my farewell.
"I won't forget this. Another debt of gratitude."
Hueria spoke, and I returned her bow lightly before departing the Powder Room.
'I promised to meet Ash at the Ball.'
The corridor beyond the Powder Room opened directly into the Hall.
From beyond the Hall, the cheerful murmur of guests and the strains of music drifted toward me.
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org