Chapter 29
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: As Expected, Dia Likes Ganeghan (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"...What? Why are you like this?"
Abera asked Dia, who was crying so pitifully, without even realizing it.
Dia's tears were a rare sight, something she hadn't seen since they were kids.
"Hic... Uu... Waaah... Aang..."
Whether she hadn't noticed Abera had come in or just didn't care, Dia simply kept sitting there on the floor, shedding tears nonstop.
It was only natural to feel frustrated with no response.
'Did Ganeghan not give her the injection?'
"Didn't you get your shot?"
But even after saying that, there was still no reply.
"What's wrong with you? Do you want drugs? Or did you hate cleaning the room that much? I can't know unless you say something!"
Even when Abera tried scaring her or grabbed her shoulders and shook her hard, Dia just kept crying endlessly.
It was downright eerie, like a corpse weeping. And the more Abera saw it, the more frustrated and angry she got.
"What's wrong with her? She looks totally broken..."
Had she finally reached her limit and completely broken down?
Abera lifted one of Dia's limp arms and checked for needle marks.
There was a fresh mark that hadn't even scabbed over yet. So Ganeghan had given her the injection.
Then why was she acting like this?
Abera tilted her head in confusion, but suddenly her eyes lit up. A smile crept across her face.
"...No, actually, this works out even better, doesn't it?"
The more broken Dia became, the more certain Abera's inheritance was.
This fool would be remembered by the world as someone who'd thrown her life away to drug temptation, and the darker Dia's life got, the brighter Abera's would shine.
"You really live such a pitiful existence. Crying over how pathetic your life is now that you're back to your senses."
Abera muttered in satisfaction as she gazed at her utterly ruined little sister.
She stared at Dia's wretched state for a good long while, like observing an animal at the zoo, and was just turning to leave the room when she felt some inexplicable resistance against her feather-light footsteps.
What's this? Abera turned around to see Dia clutching the hem of her dress with her tiny hand.
"What? So you do want drugs after all?"
Abera let out a snicker.
"Yeah, I get it. So, how's it feel? You got the antidote, snapped back to reality... Isn't it way more brutal? Your big sis has always had your best interests at heart. The drug haze is better than facing this crap, right? Isn't it?"
"...Doctor."
"From now on, no more causing trouble. Just stay quiet and cry it out. When sis feels happy, I'll give you more drugs... Huh? What'd you say?"
Full of confidence, Abera kept talking until she finally processed what Dia had just said, and an invisible question mark popped up over her head.
"Doctor? Did you just say 'doctor'?"
"Hic... Doctor. My doctor..."
"Out of nowhere?"
"Ganeghan... Hic... Ganeeeghan..."
"Why Ganeghan?"
"Sob, uu-hic... Waaaaaah..."
But Dia just burst into tears again.
God, I wanna smack her. With that thought, Abera suddenly remembered something moments later.
'Oh right, I came here to pass on a message from Ganeghan.'
That's right. She'd almost forgotten why she'd come to this room in the first place—Dia's crying had been such a shock.
'Something about him visiting again soon.'
Before saying it, Abera took another look at her sister's condition.
Dia was utterly drained, nearly dehydrated, just endlessly weeping.
Dia hated Ganeghan to death. She probably couldn't break down much more than this, so maybe Abera could show a bit of mercy at the end.
With that simple judgment, Abera cleared her throat and spoke up.
"All right, all right. I know. I know you hate Ganeghan that much. I'll handle it somehow. Maybe I can make it so you never have to see him again. We can just get a new doctor to give the shots, right? So, poof~"
With that, Abera spun around, hiding her grin.
Perfect handling of the situation.
For Dia, who hated Ganeghan, it meant no more meetings with him—great for her. And naturally, that would simplify Ganeghan's schedule, leaving more time for Abera to spend with him—great for her too.
Sure, a doctor's job was to care for patients, but how many people in this world actually enjoyed their work?
From Ganeghan's perspective, dealing with her dangerous little sister had to be way worse than tending to Abera. Way worse!
What should they do first? Have coffee together? Stroll the gardens? Either sounded perfect! After she inherited, she'd have all the time in the world!
'This is seriously a way for all three of us to be happy!'
I'm so capable and smart. Who else could come up with something this thoughtful?
Abera suppressed a laugh that threatened to burst out loud as she slowly stepped out the door.
"Wha...? No, no. No...? No! That's not it!"
But Dia's reaction stopped Abera once more.
"Th-three... He said he'd visit me three times...? And eat meals with me too..."
"That's why your big sis just said she'd specially make even that go away, didn't she?"
"No... No. That's not it. He said outings too... Outings with me..."
'Ah... seriously.'
Abera strode right back toward Dia.
The moment she got close, she grabbed her sister's hair.
"Eek!"
"You only get it when you get hit, huh? Right?"
Smack, whack. Gripping Dia's hair, Abera bashed her helpless head several times.
After about five hits, Abera noticed something off and her expression went blank.
Normally, Dia would scream in pain or beg for mercy, but today's Dia showed none of that.
".........Huu."
She just let out a small sob, tears streaming down endlessly.
Seeing that pathetic reaction didn't calm Abera at all. A mix of disgust and horror—like beating a corpse—washed over her, and she backed away immediately.
"Why... why are you like this? What's wrong with you?"
She shook her hand as if she'd touched some cursed object.
There was no reason to play with a broken toy.
A toy's role was to entertain its owner. What value did a busted one have?
Even without fussing over Dia, there were plenty of other things to think about right now.
'...Who would've thought Asbidal was a woman.'
Yeah, she had a lot to mull over about Asbidal too.
Asbidal being a woman explained why she was always so bundled up. Probably that infamous witch from the southern forests, Abera figured.
Either way, no need to brood in this accursed room.
"...You cursed bitch."
With that, Abera stormed out.
"...I... I..."
Dia muttered, not even bothering to fix her disheveled hair.
"I messed up... I should've just waited quietly and asked him when we met again... I... sent him away with my own hands..."
At first, cold sweat had drenched her body, but now, from crying so much, even that had dried up.
Still, the tears kept flowing. She couldn't tell if what poured from her eyes was blood or tears.
She wiped and wiped, but they kept coming, until she didn't even feel like trying anymore.
How could she see Ganeghan again?
How could she...?
In her blurry vision, she pictured Ganeghan.
If she could just see him one more time, she'd never treat him so cruelly again.
'Cleaning.'
Then, those two words popped into her head.
Cleaning. The task Ganeghan had left her with the last time she'd seen him. Dia remembered it clearly—the promise of payment for cleaning the room.
"I'll do it... I-I'll do it, so please..."
The bucket the maids had left behind was still in the room. They'd probably rushed out without it, but even that was luck to Dia.
Like she was entranced, she crawled to the bucket and picked up the mop inside.
She didn't know how to wring it out or clean the floor properly, but she had to do it somehow.
Plagued by some obsession, Dia frantically started scrubbing the floor with the mop.
The water in the bucket, which the maids had used after finishing, wasn't clean at all. There was no way a mop soaked in that would make the floor spotless.
"It's my fault... Hic, I did wrong. I'm sorryyyy..."
Still, she kept scrubbing. Imagining how great it'd be if Ganeghan came back for his payment.
'Get out! I never wanna see you again! Trash! How dare a scum like you play doctor!'
The words she'd hurled at Ganeghan now choked her like a noose.
Why had she done that? Why on earth? When she hadn't even known him properly.
She regretted it so deeply, wanted to erase that action and those moments so badly, that she scrubbed harder and harder and harder still.
What the lady wanted to wipe away wasn't the grime on the floor—it was her past.
How much time had passed?
Her arms throbbed. Her mouth was parched and sticky, but she kept vigorously mopping every corner of the floor.
However, contrary to the lady's intentions, the floor only got dirtier. The clean surface the maids had left was now streaked with filthy water marks.
"Why... Why can't I even do something this simple...! It's just cleaning... Sob..."
In utter despair, she dropped the mop and burst into tears again.
As Dia crouched there sobbing, the sound of the door opening came from behind her.
It was probably just Hildia or Ia-seom again. She didn't care about that. If she could die, she wanted to.
"Good thing this room has the windows open—nice ventilation."
But what she heard was a low bass. A bass only a man could produce.
As if pulled by some force, Dia's head snapped up.
"You should stay in this room for the time being. If you go out now, you'll just pass out."
...There he was. The Ganeghan she'd longed for so desperately.