Chapter 196: Dragon's Eye, Human Heart (60)
Chapter 196: Dragon's Eye, Human Heart (60)
Cien had no proper retort for Elsie’s sharp words.
She simply averted her gaze, bit her lip, and then looked back at Elsie with hesitating eyes.
Even then, Elsie continued to glare at her in silence.
Though she didn't add another word, Cien knew. That cold gaze revealed emotions that a hundred words couldn't describe.
Cien felt as if her breath were being choked off again. A sharp, ragged gasp escaped her throat.
Fierce hostility spread through the pale mist.
The intensity of it made Cien want to recoil immediately.
But no matter how much she ran, the world wouldn't change.
Everywhere she went in the Academy, there were only people who hated her.
It wasn't just Elsie; everyone in the Academy felt the same. If that was the case, Cien finally resolved to atone, bowing her head.
"Miss Lainella… no, Senior Elsie."
Addressing someone by their surname was the proper etiquette among nobles. However, doing so now would make it seem like the Princess was using her status as a threat, so Cien quickly corrected herself to 'Senior.'
It wasn't particularly strange for a junior to apologize to a senior, after all.
"I'm sorry. I should have offered my apologies sooner… I've committed so many wrongs against, um, Senior Ian during this time……."
"……Ha, as long as you know."
Elsie snorted and whipped her head away.
Her attitude made it clear she didn't want to talk anymore. Because of that, Cien stood there for a while, rooted to the spot and fidgeting.
She wanted to apologize, and she wanted to be forgiven.
But the chances of that heart being reciprocated were slim.
That fact felt particularly sorrowful, so Cien dejectedly stole glances at Elsie.
Regardless, Elsie maintained a look of extreme displeasure. It was a blatant expression of refusal, signaling that she couldn't stand the sight of Cien.
When Cien didn't leave her side for a long time, Elsie, unable to bear it any longer, let out an irritated voice.
"What are you doing? Why haven't you gotten lost yet… did you eat your common sense for breakfast?"
It was a raw, verbal assault.
Cien shrank back even further. Being naturally timid, she couldn't help but feel frightened and flustered by this first-time experience.
This senior has such a lovely appearance, so how can she use such savage language?
Her pounding heart seemed to tell her to run away immediately. But Cien swallowed hard and steadied her resolve.
If she only ran away, she would be hated forever.
She didn't want that.
Even in that short amount of time, Cien's mental state had long since become exhausted. The thought of having to endure such fierce hostility every time she came to Ian's side in the future was horrifying.
Cien managed to steady her trembling voice. She tried her best to sound bright.
She had brought a piece of good news.
Hoping this news would at least slightly soften Elsie's anger, Cien spoke.
"So, what I mean is, I wanted to say I'm sorry… and, fortunately! The Imperial Household has decided to provide divine artifacts. I also heard that Sir Ian will be able to recover before long……."
However, that vain hope was soon shattered.
"……You fucking bitch, seriously."
Crackle!
Blue sparks of electricity snapped in the air.
Cien was startled by Elsie's unexpected reaction and took two steps back. It was the first time in her life she had been directly threatened like this by an Imperial noble.
There wasn't even a warning. Yet, the surrounding mana was already aligning.
If Elsie willed it, the electricity would spread in all directions through the falling rain. It took only a few seconds from the start of the chant to the concentration of mana.
It was the skill of a battle mage who ranked among the best in the Academy's senior class.
Cien might have been superior in terms of raw mana capacity or talent. But if Cien and Elsie were to clash right now, the outcome was obvious without even looking.
Cold sweat ran down the spine of the cornered Cien.
She was scared and miserable.
The Princess was a member of the Imperial family, carrying the noble blood of the dragon. Naturally, she had never been treated like this before.
Even Elsie, under normal circumstances, wouldn't have dared to think of threatening Cien.
But Elsie's rationality had evaporated long ago. Since Ian had collapsed, Elsie had been under extreme mental fatigue.
And Cien had just thrown a stone into a furnace that was already on the verge of overflowing.
Elsie didn't hold back anymore. With a deep scowl, she lowered her voice into a growl.
"Hey, do I look like a joke to you?"
"Uh, that… n-no……."
Cien hesitated and eventually let her words trail off.
Do I look like a joke?
Cien had always been in the position to say such things, never to hear them. Thus, she didn't even know how to respond when she heard something similar.
In Cien's eyes, as she stole glances at Elsie, an undeniable fear had taken root.
It looked as if she might burst into tears at any moment.
That sight only further provoked Elsie's ferocity.
It was the moment the internal violence she had suppressed for Ian's sake was reawakened.
"Then why are you acting so proud? You're just cleaning up the shit you caused, aren't you? That's something you're supposed to do… right?"
At the desperate tone leaking through Elsie's clenched teeth, Cien hurriedly bowed her head. Her politely folded hands trembled violently.
Elsie's voice, which had been steadily heating up, finally reached its peak and exploded into a roar.
"What are you going to do about the way you treated Master and tore his relationships to shreds?! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me back then?! And I heard you even messed with his family!"
At the shout filled with rage, Cien flinched, her body trembling as she lowered her gaze. Her light gray eyes were already clouded with moisture.
Fortunately, Elsie didn't particularly care about that.
It was a downpour, after all.
A drop or two of tears wouldn't be noticeable. Elsie herself, already soaked to the bone, might have already shed a few tears.
Even so, Cien didn't want to show weakness and held back her tears as best she could.
She was so distracted that she didn't even find the title 'Master' strange. Based on the context, the thought that it referred to Ian only briefly crossed her mind.
Elsie's verbal abuse continued.
"You've got some nerve… and it's scary. How could you even think of touching someone's family? Huh? Even I'm famous for having a shitty temper and living a fucked-up life… but even I didn't touch family."
"……I-I'll do something about it."
Unable to endure Elsie's anger any longer, Cien gasped out those words.
Elsie's mouth shut for a moment. But her burning blue eyes remained the same, conveying that she was ready to bite at the slightest opening.
Cien's light gray eyes were helplessly absorbing that wave of emotion. Like a shipwreck on a sea of rage, she hurriedly scrambled for excuses.
"I'll find a way to resolve it… the issue with Senior Ian's family……."
"Fuck off."
Boom!
A sphere of electricity was hurled and exploded right next to Cien.
As the electricity scattered in all directions with a thunderous roar, Cien let out a scream. But contrary to her expectations, she wasn't electrocuted.
It was thanks to the fact that Elsie still had a shred of reason left.
Cien's hem became slightly damp as she hurriedly stepped aside. She looked at Elsie with trembling eyes.
"Hey, if you stab someone with a knife and then apply medicine, does it make it like it never happened? What about all the pain and suffering in the meantime? And the scars? Do you know how hard I had to work because of you?! Master was so worried he'd be a burden to me that he……."
Elsie, who had been screaming in a fit of rage, eventually choked up and wiped her eyes. She did so even though she was already so drenched by the rain that tears were indistinguishable from it.
The sound of the rain muffled the space between Cien and Elsie.
Elsie turned away with a miserable look in her eyes. She faced the direction of the temple where Ian was.
Then, she spat out a weak warning.
"……Get lost. And don't let me see you again. Next time, I won't care if you're a princess or whatever."
It was a high-level remark bordering on insulting the Imperial family, but the dazed Cien didn't even think to take issue with it.
She only gathered the glass-shard-like words Elsie had spat out into her heart.
I see. Once you've already stabbed someone, there's nothing you can do.
It was irreversible. It couldn't be fixed; the only thing left to do was beg for forgiveness.
But if even the sight of her kneeling and begging for forgiveness was loathsome...
Then what should she do?
Am I... forever unforgivable?
The word 'shameless' pierced Cien's heart like an awl. If she had thought about it a little more, she might have realized.
In fact, given the circumstances, Cien's misunderstanding was justifiable. There were even aspects that Ian had intentionally led her to misunderstand.
But with her mind pushed to the limit and accusations raining down one after another, Cien couldn't maintain her rationality.
Mitram had mocked her, the members of the Academy who were once on her side had hung her up as a scapegoat, and even the Saintess and Elsie, who were close to Ian, condemned her.
Everything felt like her own sin.
Wasn't everyone around her saying so?
That she was the worst villainess who had misunderstood Ian's noble intentions and even touched his family.
Despite this, she couldn't bear to give up her obsession with Ian, making Cien increasingly anxious.
He was the only 'real' thing she had spent her whole life searching for. She had finally found him, and without Ian, she would only regress back to her lonely and painful past.
She didn't want that.
But to shamelessly hang around Ian, she had committed too many sins.
In her nervous state, Cien's thumb naturally moved toward her mouth. But at that moment, a bolt of lightning struck, and the Princess snapped back to her senses.
Her vision was momentarily bleached white, followed by the roar of thunder. Only then could the Princess compare her appearance with Elsie's.
Cien, holding a high-quality umbrella, was making a face because the hem of her cloak was wet.
And Elsie, already soaked to the bone, with water dripping from her.
Of course, it wasn't Cien's fault. But for some reason, Cien felt sorry. She hesitated before stepping toward Elsie with her umbrella.
She felt like she wanted to at least hand over the umbrella.
Naturally, Elsie had no intention of accepting that kindness.
"……I don't need it."
It was the same cold voice as before, and Cien ended up faltering again.
Murderous blue eyes were glaring at Cien. Elsie turned around once more and stumbled toward Cien.
"The only thing, the only thing I need……."
Is only one thing, and you.
At the humming, echoing murmur, Cien couldn't bring herself to brush off Elsie's hand.
Grip!
Elsie's hand grabbed Cien by the collar. Although there was a height difference, Elsie was a skilled mage.
While not as physically capable as a swordsman, her physical abilities were incomparable to an ordinary person's.
Ack, ack! Cien's breath was gradually cut off, and she brought her hands to her neck. Elsie's hand was slowly lifting Cien up.
Elsie, who had been looking down for a moment, raised her head again.
Those eyes were so wet with either rain or tears.
Cien, with a tearful face, couldn't say anything.
Even as a bleak voice pierced her ears.
"You, you took it away……!"
"……That's enough."
However, the person who restrained Elsie was someone unexpected.
A woman with brilliant golden hair was approaching with a dignified stride.
Her crimson eyes looked languid, as if soaked in blood. With her pale skin and slender jawline, she possessed all the qualities of a Northern beauty. She stopped a short distance away.
"Stop it, Lainella… have you lost your mind?"
It was Delphine Yurdina.