Chapter 108
Chapter 108
Translation: godsn
"Acares?"
Meanwhile, Medeia studied the mercenary who had abruptly clammed up like a tightly shut clam.
"......"
She couldn't read what his eyes, hidden behind the white half-mask, were trying to convey.
'As expected, he's as capricious as ever.'
Rather than being swayed by the mercenary's whims, Medeia indifferently turned her gaze out the window.
'The First Prince... Cesare Deisler Kazen... In my past life, I never had the chance to see his face.'
By the time she had accompanied Iason on his expedition, the First Prince had already passed away.
'If the First Prince had been alive, I would have failed.'
In her previous life, to secure the throne for Iason, Medeia had waged a fierce battle against the Emperor's children.
Though her schemes and traps had brought them down one by one, luck had also been on her side—because the empire had been thrown into turmoil after the First Prince's death.
It was only after losing his valiant son that Perdiccas II became obsessed with the Philosopher's Stone.
If, unlike her past life, he hadn't died and was still alive—how would the continent's power dynamics shift?
Unaware that the very man in question was sitting across from her, close enough for their knees to touch, Medeia quietly sank into her thoughts.
'Snap out of it. Now isn't the time to worry about the First Prince. First, I must tighten the noose around Iason's neck.'
To ensure Iason never even dreamed of the throne, she had to shatter every foothold he relied on, one by one.
'And among all those footholds, Valdina is the biggest one you're counting on.'
Medeia was determined to crush that unshakable hope of his.
Queen Mother's Palace, Valdina.
"Your Majesty, you must eat something first."
"I'm fine."
"You've been skipping meals repeatedly. Her Highness the Princess would be worried."
At Lady Pinatelli's words, the Queen Mother suppressed the surge of emotions rising within her.
"She was always so cold to me. I never treated her well, and now they've taken her away from me in such haste—"
Her wrinkled lips, pressed tightly together, trembled with sorrow.
"Perhaps the goddess is punishing this foolish old woman."
Because she had never been kind, all that remained were regrets—regrets that now weighed heavily on her.
If she lost Medeia like this, it would haunt her for the rest of her life.
"Your Majesty...?"
Just as Lady Pinatelli was at a loss, the door burst open.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty the Queen Mother! We've received word from the Magic Tower!"
"Such impertinence—!"
Ignoring Lady Pinatelli's scolding, the maid cried out,
"Her Highness the Princess—she's alive!"
The Queen Mother shot to her feet.
In the distance, a carriage bearing the Magic Tower's seal came into view.
"Your Majesty, please remain calm. The carriage is approaching."
Behind the lanky, bespectacled man, a girl being supported as she walked forward was unmistakably Medeia.
Despite Lady Pinatelli's attempts to restrain her, the Queen Mother could wait no longer.
Dragging her ailing body, she walked as fast as she could.
"Medeia!"
"Grandmother."
And then, she pulled the small figure into a tight embrace.
"What in the world... What kind of state have you been in? How much did you suffer...?"
The Queen Mother's eyes welled up as she noticed the bandages wrapped around her granddaughter's slender wrists and ankles—proof of her ordeal.
It was the first time the Queen Mother, who had always maintained a dignified composure, had ever shed tears in public.
As they say, true sincerity emerges in times of crisis. Contrary to rumors, everyone now saw just how much she cherished her granddaughter.
"I am Terence. A member of the Magic Tower, overseeing the Western Continent branch. The Tower Master is my master."
The young mage in glasses introduced himself lightly.
"While on an excavation mission in the mountains beneath Valdina, we discovered Her Highness the Princess, injured. Her condition was critical, so we devoted all our efforts to her treatment. It took time to confirm her identity and assess the situation."
"You say Medeia's condition was critical... How bad was it—?"
"Falling off a cliff and surviving was nothing short of a miracle. I can't even count how many magic stones were used."
Terence lied effortlessly.
"I—I will compensate for everything. I'll pay the Magic Tower back from my own coffers if I must."
Just then, people from Duke Claudio's household came running in a fluster.
"Where is my niece, Medeia?"
The Regent wore a face full of concern.
"Good heavens, Your Highness! What in the world happened?!"
Catherine also rushed over in a panic, tearfully trying to support Medeia.
Their belated arrival and exaggerated fuss made the onlookers stiffen in discomfort.
They recalled the Regent's ruthless act of pushing the Princess aside under the pretense of protecting his own son during the duel with General Kazen.
"What a relief! Hahaha, I'm so glad you've returned alive!"
Even now, to their eyes, the Regent's exaggerated fussing appeared only as the joy of a father whose son had been cleared of false charges.
"What do you mean, relief? How can you laugh when the child has suffered like this!"
The Queen Dowager, likely sharing the same thought, shouted angrily at the Regent. Catherine hastily stepped forward to defend her husband.
"You misunderstand, Mother. Considering the injuries, Her Highness's wounds appear relatively minor, so surely—"
How could someone who fell off a cliff walk back so unscathed after just a few days?
Catherine couldn't help but suspect this entire incident might have been staged by Medeia from the beginning.
At that moment, Terence responded with evident displeasure.
"Of course. Several mages worked tirelessly to heal Her Highness. I'll take that as praise for our skills."
The Regent's eyes gleamed as if he'd caught the tail of something in Terence's words.
'Perfect! That means there's no evidence left!'
"My, while Medeia's full recovery is truly joyous, this is also deeply unfortunate. Then all traces of the culprit on Dea's body must have vanished."
But Terence didn't let the Regent slip away so easily.
The young mage pushed up his glasses with his middle finger and widened his eyes in mock surprise.
"So you're saying we should have prioritized finding the culprit over treatment... Truly remarkable, Your Grace. Even at the Magic Tower, we've never encountered someone so... coldly logical."
"......"
At that moment, Catherine subtly nudged her son. It was a signal to quickly change the mood.
Samon approached Medeia with tears in his eyes.
"Medeia! Thank goodness you're safe. It's all this older brother's fault for failing to protect you—"
He spread his arms wide, intending to embrace her as usual, when—
"Ah—!"
Medeia instinctively stepped back, avoiding Samon's touch.
Her face showed a mix of fear and confusion, as if she herself was startled by her own reaction.
"...Medeia?"
"I'm sorry, Brother. I don't know why I... I truly don't understand..."
"Her Highness has lost her memories of the incident due to the shock of the fall. Though outwardly unharmed, she alone suffers the torment," Terence added.
Catherine's face flushed red at having her earlier words turned against her.
The Queen Dowager glared at her second son and his wife while holding Medeia's hand.
"Medeia, do you truly remember nothing at all? Not even the smallest detail?"
"Nothing. I only remember waking up at the bottom of the cliff after being chased by the wolves... It was so cold and terrifying..."
Medeia shook her head with an intentionally bewildered expression.
She explained that had it not been for the wolf that fell with her, she likely would have died.
"I have no idea who targeted me. But Brother Samon was with me until my last memory—he would never harm me. It must have been someone else. Absolutely... it couldn't have been Samon."
Yet even as she spoke, the Princess continued stepping backward, as if wanting to keep her distance from Samon.
Samon was on the verge of losing his mind.
'If you act like that here, I'll look even more suspicious!'
Her pitiful trembling, like a frightened young animal, nearly made him scream at her—whether she wanted to push him off the cliff next.
"I'm sorry for causing concern."
Terence watched as the Princess punctuated her words with self-reproach, her eyes reddening with unshed tears, and inwardly swallowed his shock.
'Compared to this, punching Cesare's shoulder was nothing.'
He could hardly believe this was the same indifferent girl who had shown no expression throughout the carriage ride. An inexplicable chill ran down his spine.
The Princess's defense only deepened people's suspicions. This wasn't the same Princess who had always been close to the Duke Claudio's household.
She must find it impossible to believe—
That the cousin brother who had cherished her like a real sibling since childhood would try to kill her.
"Rest assured. This grandmother will find the villain who tried to harm you," the Queen Dowager promised Medeia while glaring at Claudio, likely sharing the same thought.
"You may leave the palace now. With Medeia's return, there's no need for you to remain here any longer."
Then she turned her cold gaze toward the Duke Claudio's family.
"Samon Claudio shall receive twenty strokes of the cane for the crime of abandoning royalty and fleeing as a subject."
Cane strokes! The crowd gasped in shock.