Chapter 150
Chapter 150
Translation: godsn
The moment she reflexively raised her hand to touch her belly, Mariyu had to choke back a pain so intense it pierced through her skull.
"Agh—!"
Cold skin. An oddly hollow feeling inside her abdomen. Then, a foreboding premonition, sharper than the pain itself, seized Mariyu's mind.
She reached out and grabbed the arm of a middle-aged woman.
"My baby, my baby is here. Save it. Please, my baby...!"
"...It's too late. The poison was too strong. It's a miracle you survived, miss."
The middle-aged woman shook her head.
"You're still young, don't take it too hard. You can always have another child."
But that was no comfort to Mariyu.
"Aaaaah! No! That's a lie!"
Mariyu screamed.
"My baby! My baby isn't dead! You're lying! I don't believe it! I won't believe it!"
She grabbed whatever was within reach, throwing things wildly, tearing at the sheets in a frenzy.
"No. We barely managed to save your dying self, and now you're taking it out on us for no reason?!"
"Honestly, what can we do about a child that's already gone?"
People shook their heads at her as if she were insane, then left.
"Tsk, what a shame for someone so young. Call us when you've come to your senses, miss."
Still, a kind-hearted woman took Mariyu's hand once before leaving, likely thinking she was distraught from the shock of losing her child.
"Aah! Aaaaah!"
Mariyu clawed at her hair, thrashing in despair.
It felt as though the child that was no longer in her womb was screaming. No matter how much she denied it, she knew the truth better than anyone.
"What nonsense, it was your side that sent you to die."
The mocking laughter of the assailant still rang vividly in her ears. Tears streamed down her face.
"Samon! How could you do this to me! How could you treat me like this! How could you discard me like a worn-out shoe—"
A sharp cry burst forth.
Betrayal and despair seeped into her ragged breaths.
"Ugh! There they go! Over there!"
"Ugh, those filthy bastards!"
Then, commotion erupted outside.
Jeers and loud curses drifted through the open window, reaching Mariyu where she lay.
"Did you hear? Young Lord Claudio, that rebel scum, is marrying the Kazen Empire's princess?"
"Yes! How on earth did he manage that? He even avoided execution! It's infuriating that he's slipping away like this! A rebel who turned the country upside down deserves nothing but death!"
"Is the Fourth Imperial Princess blind? How could she marry such a shameless man?!"
The voices of the people carried through the wide-open window.
"Because of those Kazen bastards, we have to let rebels walk free with our own eyes wide open! Damn it! Those filthy imperial scum!"
Mariyu's mouth fell open.
Forgetting her pain, she scrambled to her feet and dashed out the door.
She grabbed the first passerby she saw.
"Wh-who? Who is Young Lord Claudio marrying?"
"Huh? What?"
"Miss, are you alright?"
The passerby startled as a ghostly pale woman with disheveled hair suddenly appeared and clutched his arm.
"Tell me! Tell me now!"
At her hysterical scream, the passerby frowned but kindly answered.
"Who else? The Fourth Imperial Princess of Kazen. That woman who came with the Empire's diplomatic mission."
"Ha... haha..."
Her grip loosened, and Mariyu slid limply to the ground.
Now, it all made sense.
The reason Samon's face had twisted when he learned of her pregnancy.
"You wanted to live..."
So you killed the child. You rushed to drive me away, afraid the Fourth Princess would find out and call off the marriage.
You went so far as to erase us, your own blood. You, a father, killed your own child with your own hands.
You, Samon, you utterly destroyed that innocent life before it could even see the light.
"Aaaaah!"
Mariyu clawed at her cheeks, howling. She didn't care that her sharp nails dug into her flesh, leaving bloody marks.
It felt like a rusty sword slowly tearing her heart apart.
I truly gave everything. My body, my heart—I gave it all to Samon.
I even stood against the Princess, running around desperately to save him.
But what returned to Mariyu was a betrayal that cut to the bone.
All that remained for her now was an empty womb and a hatred so vivid she could grasp it.
A chilling sense of loss seeped deep into her lungs.
"Samon Claudio..."
Mariyu's lips twitched. Her crimson eyes gleamed with madness. Blood droplets dripped from her bitten lips as they split open.
"I will never... forgive... you."
They say love and hate are separated by a single thread.
The affection that had deepened without limit had long since turned crimson like bloody tears, submerged in the abyss.
Princess Valdina's Palace.
Beneath the sunlight streaming through the window, Medeia idly toyed with a small wooden doll.
One by one, she took out dolls shaped like adorable little girls from a box.
Then she placed them on the bedside table—where she could see them the moment she woke.
A rare warmth flickered in Medeia's usually indifferent eyes as she gazed down at the dolls.
"Your Highness, Mariyu has regained consciousness. The treatment is complete, and there should be no lasting effects."
Neril approached to deliver her report.
The assassins Samon had sent through Count Laju had disposed of Mariyu near a secluded wall of the royal castle.
That she had barely survived to open her eyes in a cabin at the Charity House, that a kind middle-aged woman had nursed her back—all of it was Medeia's doing.
Upon hearing Neril's report, Medeia slid open a table drawer with a clatter. She retrieved a pouch of gold coins and held it out.
"Give this to Mariyu."
Medeia neither pitied nor mocked Mariyu's plight—a woman devoted to Samon only to be discarded.
She merely intended to use her.
The chessboard on the table was crowded with black and white pieces.
Tap. Medeia resurrected a white pawn that had been taken by the black knight.
The pawn returned to the board.
Yet the revived pawn immediately dulled its presence, hiding among the other actively moving pieces.
"Tell her to wait until I summon her when the time comes."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Mariyu would remain unseen until the perfect moment to strike at Samon arrived.
But I can't let this opportunity slip by entirely.
Medeia moved the white bishop across the board.
For now, it would serve as Mariyu's replacement—a tool to corner Samon.
Her calm voice echoed.
"Today's the execution, isn't it? I should get up now if I don't want to be late."
The square before Valdina's Royal Palace, where the execution was to take place.
A crowd had gathered.
Rebels were dragged out in lines, bound by ropes. The guillotine's blade flashed under the sunlight, stabbing at their eyes with its glare.
"Aaah, spare me! I don't want to die! I don't—!"
Clang—!
With each sentencing, with each silenced scream from prisoners facing death, the square fell quiet.
The citizens felt satisfaction, yet they also trembled at the King's ruthlessness—his refusal to grant the rebels even a sliver of mercy.
When the executions were halfway through, the square erupted in chaos.
"You filthy bastards!"
The Claudios had appeared.
Though Regent Claudio, his wife, and Samon's siblings all looked gaunt and pale, unlike the filthy prison garb of the rebels, they wore clean clothes and were neatly groomed.
Samon, in particular, was dressed in an immaculate white ceremonial robe.
His sunken eyes and sickly pallor clashed starkly with the opulent attire.
"Brother, the day of the execution is the perfect time to release Uncle's family. And Samon's betrothal should be held then too."
Following Medeia's orders, the four Claudios were brought before the square as if dragged by knights, forced to endure the crowd's dagger-like glares.
Even the prisoners awaiting execution could see the Regent's family clearly.
The blood from the scaffold hadn't even been washed away yet.
When the rebels realized only the Claudios would escape the guillotine's blade, their eyes twisted with fury.
"Claudio! You dragged us into this, and now you slither out alone?!"
They lunged as if to tear the Claudios apart with their teeth. So violent were their struggles that the ropes binding them strained taut.
"You maggots! Even in death, we'll curse your family! We'll haunt you as vengeful spirits, clinging to you with misery and suffering for as long as you breathe!"
The prisoners' families also burned with hatred for the Claudios.
Samon's face contorted as he glared at the distant royal podium.
Pelleus, Medeia, you vicious siblings—! You won't even let us leave in peace!
By placing the Claudios here, they had seared the rebels' and the crowd's hatred deep into their minds.
Ensuring the Claudios could never rise again in this kingdom.
His fists clenched.
Beneath the fluttering sleeves of his ceremonial robe, his arms were covered in bruises—as if someone had beaten him black and blue.