TPOTLPIM Chapter 10

The quiet Odik Castle was bustling with women's voices for the first time in a while.

The young ladies of the reading club that Cecilia was part of took turns hosting the meetings at their respective homes.

Today was Asen Odik's turn, so the young ladies had come to visit Odik Castle.

"Thank you all for coming."

Asen, wearing a plain navy dress without decorations, came out to the garden to greet the young ladies.

"So this is the famous Odik Castle we've only heard about."

As they entered the uniquely decorated garden, the young ladies looked around. Though courtesy demanded they compliment the beautiful place, no one could bring themselves to speak.

Sharp towers jutted up irregularly, and the overall architectural style was inconsistent and chaotic.

To put it nicely, it was the result of various architectural styles layered over many years; to put it harshly, it was simply a ghastly, eerie castle that gave off an unsettling feeling.

Creeak— With a heavy sound, the main castle door opened, and the young ladies began to hesitate at the entrance.

"Ugh... doesn't it look like ghosts might appear?"

Finally, someone whispered to the person next to her.

That small sound unfortunately echoed off the high ceilings and walls of Odik Castle, creating an eerie reverberation.

It surely reached the ears of Asen walking ahead. Cecilia, walking behind with the young ladies, quietly watched Asen's back as she clenched her fists tightly.

In high society, Asen was easy meat to chew on. The Odik family's image within the empire was poor, and Asen herself didn't mesh well with ordinary noble young ladies.

Those few with special powers were bound to face persecution if they failed to seize proper authority, and the Odik family was precisely such a case. Though they possessed mysterious powers, they lacked the cunning to wield those powers skillfully in the scramble for power, and so they lived their days crushed beneath the emperor's watchful eye and authority. The people of the empire both yearned for their magical abilities while simultaneously shunning them.

"Ghosts? Handsome men, perhaps."

In the dim interior of the castle, the magnificently dressed Hadel made his appearance. Gold thread embroidered on his shirt sleeves and jeweled cufflinks sparkled brilliantly.

"Oh my, Lord Hadel!"

The young ladies' faces brightened in an instant as they flocked to Hadel's side, and laughter began to echo eerily throughout the gloomy Odik Castle. Hadel, who had been renowned as a beautiful boy since childhood, had grown up with his pretty looks intact and enjoyed popularity among the young ladies.

"With such beautiful young ladies visiting, Odik Castle shines all the brighter."

When Hadel bowed his waist quite gentlemanly in greeting, the young ladies giggled as if they had witnessed a pretty doll's charming performance.

"Ha, such pretense. Pretense!"

Cecilia, who had been glaring at Hadel from a distance with her arms crossed, was startled when she accidentally voiced her inner thoughts and looked around frantically.

Unfortunately, Asen was standing right next to her.

"Ah, Miss Asen. Please pretend you didn't hear what I just said..."

"It is pretense, so what about it. My brother thinks the only beautiful thing in this world is himself. You'd think it's a joke? It's for real."

Asen pulled Cecilia's hand toward her and whispered rapidly.

"My brother hasn't caused you any trouble, has he? He said he would resolve the antidote matter himself and went running about here and there, then one day returned scared out of his wits. Both my brother and I are truly without face before Miss Cecilia."

Just then Hadel approached right up to Cecilia and offered his greeting.

"How do you do, young lady. I hope you rest comfortably at Odik Castle."

Cecilia stared at him with bewilderment as he greeted her like a complete stranger, but her heart gave a jolt when she spotted the long scar remaining on the back of his hand.

Then Hadel swiftly moved to Cecilia's side and whispered in secret.

"I have something to discuss, so come to the great library when the reading club ends. If you ask Asen for the location, she'll tell you."

Cecilia didn't need to go to the grand library after the reading club ended. Asen had originally decided to hold the reading club in the grand library anyway.

Following Asen's guidance, they crossed the corridor connecting to the main castle and opened the high-ceilinged door to reveal the grand library in all its historic glory.

Languid sunlight streamed in through one window of the library, warmly illuminating the spaces between the aged bookshelves.

Cecilia and the young ladies became part of that memory-like space, settling around the long table and beginning their discussion of books.

It truly was a peaceful weekend afternoon. Until one young lady who arrived later than the appointed time made her appearance in the great library.

"Miss Rosein!"

The young ladies greeted Rosein's late arrival in unison like a chorus.

Rosein entered with a confident bearing unbecoming of someone late to a gathering, wearing a brilliant smile.

"Have you all been well? Thank you so much for coming to our engagement ceremony!"

Rosein instantly became the center of attention. Today was the first time she had come to the reading club since sending out engagement invitations.

"Miss Rosein. Do you know how surprised we were when we heard you were engaged to Lord Dmitri?"

"Hoho, I'm truly sorry I couldn't tell you in advance."

"Oh my, is that ring your engagement ring?"

"Yes, we got matching designs to wear together."

Following Rosein's proudly extended left hand, their gazes moved to the ring on her fourth finger. A ruby as red as Rosein's hair sparkled teasingly at Cecilia.

While the young ladies made a fuss saying how pretty it was, Cecilia pouted her lips from one side.

'Hmph, so this is how you're coming out?'

There had been no opportunity to speak with Rosein even after the engagement ceremony. Rosein sitting across from her didn't seem like the person Cecilia used to know.

"By the way, Miss Cecilia. Is it true that you're meeting with Lord Teros? You two danced together at Miss Rosein's engagement ceremony."

At someone's sudden question, everyone's gazes turned to Cecilia as if they had been waiting for this. It felt like they had been wanting to ask this all along and seized upon Rosein's arrival as their chance.

"It's not like that! Dancing at a banquet is something everyone does."

Cecilia waved her hands in denial, but unable to endure all the stares pouring down on her, she eventually made an excuse about a headache and wanting some fresh air, then hurriedly fled outside.

She began walking frantically through the long, long corridor connecting the great library and the main castle.

"Did you really have to do that?"

A shrill voice from behind. When she turned around, Rosein was leaning slantwise against the wall with her arms crossed.

"What are you talking about."

"Lord Teros. You seduced his brother out of jealousy over me and my fiancé. I don't know how you managed to twist things so you could even dance with him, but Lord Teros will never fall for you."

"What?"

Cecilia's head went foggy at the unexpected words that tumbled from Rosein's mouth. Before she could gather her wits, Rosein continued speaking with her characteristic sharp tongue.

"You hold a grudge against me because of Dmitri, don't you? I'm sorry about that too. At first, I tried to help things work out well between you two, and later when I came to like him, I thought of giving up for your sake. But he loves me."

Despite her words of apology, Rosein's expression was leisurely, and her lips wore a victor's smile.

"You telling the reading club young ladies that I liked Lord Dmitri—that was also to help me?"

"Of course."

At the unhesitating answer, Cecilia could no longer bear it. She finally brought up the question she had wanted to ask but couldn't bring herself to.

"When did it start?"

"Hm?"

"When did you start meeting with Lord Dmitri? Even right up until you sent out the invitations, you were talking about Lord Dmitri with me. Not as your fiancé, but as the man I was enamored with!"

"I was always agonizing over when to tell you. When you were all excited talking about Dmitri, my mouth just wouldn't open. I wasn't deliberately trying to hide it—I simply couldn't speak out of feeling sorry."

"Because you felt sorry? Not because you were deceiving me?"

"That would be your sense of inferiority."

Cecilia's tightly clenched fists trembled violently. The Rosein before her eyes was not the person Cecilia had treasured from before.

"Rose, were you always this kind of person? Or have you changed? Did I do something wrong to you?"

"Cecil, I don't know what you're saying."

"If that's not it, then why are you doing this to me!!"

She finally let out a shout loud enough to reverberate through the entire corridor. At the same time, tears came streaming down from Cecilia's eyes.

Unlike Cecilia, who was angry and grieving, Rosein was composed. She showed no change in expression even at Cecilia's tears, maintaining her leisurely demeanor.

"I thought of you as a friend, Rose!"

"You seem quite innocent. You and I could never become true friends. From now on, even more so."

There wasn't even the presence of mind to ask what she meant by that. Cecilia glared at Rosein through eyes brimming with tears.

"Friends can only be friends when they're in equal positions. My fiancé is going to become the heir of the Jeminick house. With our positions now changed, do you think we can continue being friends? I'm saying this because I pity you, but we were never friends even before. It was a transactional relationship."

Past memories with Rosein flashed by in an instant like a revolving lantern. She seemed to hear the sound of their friendship crashing to pieces.

Rosein smiled with satisfaction as she watched Cecilia's shocked face.

"The Serin and DeNeuve houses were longtime business partners, weren't they. The relationship between you and me was exactly that level."

The Serin family managed weapons manufacturing, while the DeNeuve family handled weapons distribution. The trust built through long-term dealings between the two houses led to friendship between the two young ladies. Cecilia thought of Rosein as a friend, while Rosein regarded Cecilia as a connection necessary for the family business.

"Last year, the Serin family cut off dealings with our house. You should have been prepared to lose the friendship from then."

"That! Your side was responsible for that."

Last autumn, Count Otmin Serin declared he would suspend dealings with the DeNeuve family for one year. Weapons distributed by the DeNeuve side had been caught being circulated without certificates. Count Serin believed the DeNeuve side had manufactured fake products imitating Serin weapons and suspended the dealings.

Though called a suspension, it was only for one year, after which they could form a cooperative relationship again. For Count Serin, it was a generous decision considering the long partnership between the two houses.

"I! I thought our friendship was separate from such things."

To Cecilia's desperate cry, Rosein spoke in a voice so hard that not a drop of blood would come out if stabbed.

"Don't you know that in noble society, even friendships are formed according to interests?"

"Then was your love for Lord Dmitri also formed according to interests?"

"How presumptuous of you. I have no obligation to inform you about our relationship."

Rosein grasped her dress hem and turned her back toward the great library again.

"I'll go in first. Fix your face before you come."

In the reception room of Odik Castle, Hadel was receiving a guest.

The maid who brought the teapot saw Hadel and his guest sitting face to face and blushed slightly.

Her master Hadel was also a handsome man as if drawn with a brush, but the guest sitting across from him was giving off an aura that was no less impressive. In a completely different feel from Hadel.

"So then, researcher. When can I meet my fiancée?"

The guest crossed his long legs and hung a smile at the corner of his mouth.

"When the reading club is about to wrap up, Asen will come to let us know."

Hearing Hadel's answer, the guest smiled with satisfaction and savored the tea's fragrance.

The moment the maid left, Teros uncrossed his legs and leaned his body forward.

"Well then, since the waiting time is rather lonely, let's have a conversation that the researcher and I can get along with."

Hadel felt nervous for some reason and also leaned his body forward, lending his ear to the other's next words.

"Do you know about spirit magic?"

"Ha, are you talking about the magic that elves use? You can't possibly not know what era this is, Marquis... Did you perhaps momentarily forget? This is imperial year six hundred seventy..."

"Cut the small talk. Answer whether you know or don't know."

At the weighty single phrase that stripped away all pretense of respectful speech, Hadel shut his mouth and coughed unnecessarily.

"Ahem, Marquis. The mythical age is over. The elves have gone extinct, so there's no way their spirit magic could remain. How it's used, whether such magic even exists—everything has become a mystery. The elves were excessively noble and vanished without leaving behind a single book or even one character."

At such a commonsense answer that even a child would know, Teros furrowed his brow in disappointment.

The red-haired woman Cecilia said she saw at the lake. The woman who was submerged in the water, gazing at Cecilia before dragging her into the abyss.

She couldn't be seen as an ordinary person. The only thing that could explain it was the fairy called 'Daphne' from the legend tied to the lake.

Though he had brushed it off as nonsense in front of Cecilia, Teros found it quite unsettling to just let that matter slide.

He decided to push back once more against Hadel's dismissive reaction.

"There's no law saying elves can't appear again. Demon gods have been emerging for the past ten years too."

"Haha, that would be truly wonderful!"

Hadel burst into hearty laughter from deep in his belly.

"A revival of the mythical age. If our Odik family's magical power grew strong again too!"

Hadel, who had been excitedly chattering away, caught sight of the chillingly cold gaze boring into him and shrank back, letting his words trail off.

"Of course, such a thing won't happen... If magical power were to grow stronger, it would be a help to the empire, so I'd be pleased."

Just then the reception room door opened.

"Brother, the gathering is about to end soon."

Asen, who had been speaking drily while gripping the door handle, stiffened like a stone the moment her eyes met with Teros.

Her green eyes that resembled Hadel's shook as if struck by an earthquake, then regained their focus and glared at Hadel.

"Brother, is this what you meant when you asked me to let you know when the gathering was ending?"

"Miss Odik is treating me as an uninvited guest."

As Teros slowly raised his body from the sofa, Asen, who had been glaring at her brother, instantly showed frightened eyes.

"Asen! What kind of childish reaction is this when we're trying to bring together a well-suited pair? Do you think there's a husband prospect in the empire as fine as our marquis here? This is something Miss Cecilia should be thanking us a hundred times over for."

When Hadel stepped forward to sing Teros's praises, Asen knitted her brow.

She clamped her mouth shut and sank into thought for a moment, then approached Teros as if she had steeled herself for something.

"Lord Teros. It's fine that you want to try getting along with Miss Cecilia, but please take the young lady's tastes into consideration."

Asen barely managed to hold together her voice that was about to split like a goat's. Meeting those eyes like a cold night sea, it felt as though chill was seeping all the way into her heart.