Has he lost his mind? Really?
From Aries' perspective, Raymund was undoubtedly insane. Even conspiring with Count Estarote to overthrow the royal family would have been preferable to this madness.
Raymund often dismissed Aries as impulsive and crude, but in truth, her nature was cold and composed. It was only after she'd grown to harbor resentment toward the world that she'd abandoned restraint, acting recklessly while feigning ignorance.
In her estimation, someone must have goaded Raymund into believing he could live an ordinary life, leading to this catastrophe.
He speaks as if addressing a friend.
Aries, who had reread the letter multiple times, turned to the still-trembling valet.
"Does Count Estarote have children?"
"Th-that… Yes, he does.”
"Tell me who they are."
"I don't know exactly... but I believe they have two sons and one daughter."
"More details."
"The eldest son is an adult, while the second son and eldest daughter are minors. As for the eldest daughter... she's quite famous."
"Famous?"
"...Yes. I remember there was a grand celebration when she was born—the first girl born to the Estarote family in a hundred years. They also hold lavish birthday parties for her every year."
Ah… Upon hearing that, Aries also recalled. The talk of a child who was loved as much as an imperial princess, in jest.
<Haha, should we celebrate our Aries’s birthday like that too? No matter how precious a child from another family is, she can't be more precious than our daughter.>
<Hoho, dear, you’re so funny.>
As old memories naturally resurfaced, Aries felt her mood sour. This was because those memories were unfortunately linked to her family.
“Hmph.”
As if to shake off the unpleasant feeling, Aries intentionally let out a cold, cynical laugh.
“It seems she wasn’t as loved a child as people thought.”
To be offered to a monster by her own parents.
That was Aries’s judgment. No matter how cunning a child was, they wouldn’t approach a monster like them. It was clear what the Count was aiming for by having his daughter approach Raymund.
‘He’s trying to get involved with the imperial family using his daughter as bait. For an imperial family member who was cast out by their parents at a young age, how easy would it be to manipulate them if you just win their heart?’
The more Aries imagined it, the more unpleasant she felt. Both the Count, who was using his daughter, and Raymund, who was falling for such foolish tricks, were repulsive.
However, one question remained: how did the child manage to calm down in front of Raymund?
The only possible guesses were that perhaps they used a drug to muddle her mind, or perhaps the child had a problem with her head and her mind wasn’t sound? That was about the extent of her speculation.
Aries, who had been deep in thought, asked the valet.
“Does the Estarotte young lady often participate in social gatherings?”
“...Yes? W-well?”
“Haven’t you heard anything about her outside activities?”
“That… No. I haven’t seen it myself. B-but I heard she often goes to the shopping district…”
Halo, who was fond of his younger sister, often boasted about her to his peers whenever he went out with her, so news spread indirectly.
Remembering that, the valet replied, and Aries tapped her cheek with her finger, lost in thought.
‘Doing outside activities properly means it’s not the latter, so they must have used a drug.’
Aries’s eyes gleamed. As if a good idea had come to her, the corners of her lips curled up, and she let out a snicker.
"Very well, you may go."
With that, she returned the letter. The envelope remained unopened, perfectly preserved in its original state.
The valet bowed hastily with a relieved expression before retreating from the room.
Two days later, Aries intercepted Seiana’s reply from the same valet and found out that she would be participating in a gathering.
***
Visiting without an invitation from the host was an extremely impolite action, but Aries didn’t care. Since she was treated like a monster anyway, she no longer tolerated anything.
Still, she didn’t want to cause a commotion by showing herself, so Aries hid and observed the gathering. Unlike the adults, the children’s gathering, where her target Seiana was, was out in the garden, making it a good place to conceal herself.
‘Hmph.’
The silver-haired child in the distance was as lovely and beautiful as her name suggested. Her expression, devoid of any darkness, showed how much she had been loved.
But she's just a sacrifice offered to a monster.
As Aries mocked Seiana's situation, her heart burned with envy. She was jealous of the girl who still possessed the innocence Aries had lost.
The peaceful moments with her family, the lighthearted chats with friends, the daily life of peacefully strolling and looking at the streets…
Aries was consumed with jealousy to the point of feeling black inside, seeing Seiana enjoying the things that were now filled only with fear and screams whenever she appeared.
The fact that they were both the same age further fueled her jealousy. Raymund also unexpectedly became an ability user, but Aries’s case was even more unfortunate.
Raymund became the next ability user because the time for a generational change had arrived and the timing wasn’t right, but Aries’s case was truly an accident.
The previous ability user was her young uncle, and he was young. Originally, the next generation of ability users should have been her children’s generation, not Aries herself, but due to the sudden untimely death of the previous one, she inherited it without any preparation.
Aries recalled that day.
It was a peaceful day, just like today. She was out in the garden with her family that day.
Her mother was drinking tea and watching Aries and her siblings play, and the knights were also guarding them, looking at them warmly.
That's when Aries felt something strange in her body and collapsed. It was as if she had swallowed a ball of fire, or a ball of ice; her body felt hot and cold and strange. Even as her hands and feet trembled uncontrollably and a sensation of something boiling deep within her body made her mind hazy, the gasps of horror and screams she heard from around her were still unforgettable.
The knights left her, who had collapsed, and hugged the siblings who were playing around Aries and ran away.
She wanted to shout for them to take her too, but she had no strength in her body, so she barely managed to raise her head to look at her mother, and just as she was about to ask for help.
<Monster.>
Her mother’s lips didn’t move, but Aries heard it clearly. Her expression, the look in her eyes filled with revulsion, no longer saw Aries as her daughter.
Recalling that moment, Aries became even more angry. She wanted to hurt Seiana somehow, who possessed what she had lost.
Unlike Aries, Seiana had everything, yet she was a demon who was even trying to steal her only remaining understanding person in the world.
‘She’s not meeting Raymund today, so she probably didn’t take any medicine or anything like that.’
What would happen if she saw her with a clear mind? Would she go mad? Aries snickered.
What if, instead of just showing herself, she even grabbed her hand? Her father had trembled at just the brush of her fingertips, but what if she firmly grasped her hand as if to shake it?
She would suffer something worse than going mad, but Aries only found the thought amusing. It was punishment for daring to try to grasp and shake a monster without knowing her place.
Aries continued to observe them, waiting for Seiana to be alone.
It was boring listening to them talk nonsense about fairies, but fortunately, the time she was waiting for came quickly. Moreover, it was even unexpected that she went to a secluded place by herself.
Aries followed behind Seiana, who walked into the maze. She didn’t forget to use her ability to suppress her presence by floating her body, in case footsteps would alert her and make her run away.
Seiana, unaware that a monster was behind her, went deep into the maze and sat on a bench. For some reason, her face looked very tired, but Aries didn’t care.
How should she make her appearance?
If she revealed herself all at once, Seiana would scream, and people would rush over, so there was a high possibility that she wouldn’t be able to properly scold her. Therefore, Aries decided to slowly engulf Seiana in fear.
“Do you believe in fairies?”
She hid in the shadows, revealing herself slightly, and let her voice be heard.
Seeing Seiana’s startled look, as if she was terrified, Aries smiled.
Right, this is the kind of monster you've been dealing with so far.
Since you fearlessly stuck your head into the beast's jaws, you can't complain if it gets bitten off. With this thought, Aries took a step closer.
She expected Seiana to be trembling with tears by now, but instead, her blank eyes made her look almost vacant... The strange reaction made Aries wonder if Seiana might be blind.
"Tell me. Do you really believe in fairies?"
Aries asked to draw her attention. But Seiana remained silent, showing no sign of fear. She simply stared back with a vacant expression, as if asking who this person was.
Huh? This isn't right. This isn't what Aries wanted to see.
Did she take the medicine when I wasn't looking?
Is that why she's wearing such a stupid expression? Did she eat it because she sensed me approaching?
Aries' anger surged at Seiana's thorough cunning. If she could take the medicine proactively, it meant she wasn't being unknowingly manipulated by her father - she was an accomplice.
At that moment, Seiana's expression shifted. Rather than fear, she appeared to be pondering something, but Aries dismissed this possibility.
How could anyone not feel terror in the presence of an ability user? Convinced the situation was finally unfolding as intended, Aries let out a derisive snort.
“Are you so scared you can’t answer?” she demanded, her gaze burning with hostility.
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