Chapter 7
After finishing her preparations, Eliza boarded the carriage. The closer they got to their destination, the more the various carriages converged toward a single place.
‘It certainly seems to be famous.’
When it seemed they had nearly arrived at their destination, Eliza withdrew her gaze from outside and drew the curtains over the window.
Then she put on a black cat-like half-mask. Lady Graham’s charity party was held in the form of a masquerade ball.
Even so, it was merely a formal affair where one could still recognize everyone because their hair and lower faces were left uncovered.
“Please show me your invitation.”
“Here.”
“Welcome to the event. May this be a place where you may freely demonstrate your benevolence.”
Upon entering, Eliza suddenly stopped at the sight of sparkling lights floating through the air.
The sparkles, visible but impossible to grasp, were clearly created using magical tools.
Fresh flowers filled every place her eyes fell upon, every candlestick on the tables was made of silver embossed with angels, and the stream of sparkles gathering and flowing across the ceiling created an atmosphere as though she had stepped into a fantastical fairy tale.
‘She must be desperate to show off her wealth.’
Even if all this lavish decoration were removed, it would be enough to feed an entire village for quite some time.
Eliza scoffed and headed toward the second floor. In any case, she had only one purpose.
The fourth balcony on the left corridor. Assuming there would naturally be no one there, she opened the curtain and stepped inside, only to find an unexpected guest.
“……You arrived first.”
Eliza bent her knees in greeting. Immediately afterward, the man removed his mask, which was difficult to tell whether it depicted a dragon or a snake.
“It is an honor to have you here, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
“It is my pleasure to meet you again, Lady Eliza.”
The man’s voice was calm, but despite saying that he was pleased, there was not the slightest trace of emotion in it.
For some reason, that struck Eliza as amusing. When she raised her head, as expected, Magnus had a completely expressionless face.
“I apologize for my rudeness last time.”
“There is no need. I found it sufficiently interesting.”
Magnus briefly raised his glass toward her. It was an invitation to drink wine.
When Eliza nodded, the man himself poured wine into her glass.
Meanwhile, Eliza secured the door again and approached Magnus a little more closely.
“It is an honor to receive a glass from Your Highness.”
“You are welcome.”
The sound of clinking glasses echoed through the night air.
Eliza merely moistened her lips. Although Magnus was the one who had handed her the glass, he seemed to have no intention of drinking, merely staring at her.
“You must be curious whether I truly know about the Saintess.”
“You truly have no hesitation.”
As she immediately got to the point, one of Magnus’s eyebrows slowly rose.
Eliza hid her gaze beneath her mask and spoke.
“I really do know who the Saintess is. Of course, I also know about the divine revelation.”
“Lady Waluer.”
The man’s voice dropped low. Magnus set his glass down with a sharp sound.
That divine revelation belonged to the royal family. How could an ordinary woman possibly know information that must never be leaked to the outside?
“You should understand the weight of the words you have uttered.”
“That’s not what matters to Your Highness, is it? You want to have the Saintess. Even though you are the Crown Prince, the divine revelation carries considerable weight.”
It was clearly a statement that could only be made by someone who knew the contents of the divine revelation.
Magnus now folded his arms and waited for Eliza’s next words. He was gradually becoming curious about what she would say next.
Eliza swallowed a sip of wine, moistening her mouth, which had been drying from nervousness.
“The Saintess appears only when the time comes for someone to reclaim what they have lost.”
The heroine of the original work was the lost daughter of the Duke of Dominique. The novel begins when the heroine, unaware that she is the true duchess, enters the ducal family.
However, to someone who did not know the exact details, Eliza’s words could only sound like vague nonsense.
“If I were to demand that you provide a statement based on precise evidence, would that be too much to ask of you?”
“Of course, I could tell Your Highness more precisely. But please forgive me for saying that the time has not yet come.”
“If there is something you want, tell me.”
“I am not choosing my words because I dare to propose a transaction with Your Highness.”
Eliza drained the remaining wine in one go. The rich scent of grapes warmed her mouth.
Eliza raised her eyes, burning with an even greater intensity, and pleaded.
“I have always wanted only one thing, and I chose Your Highness simply because I believed that your benevolent nature would surely understand.”
Like red grapes carefully selected with the utmost care, violet eyes flashed from behind the mask.
The audacity of claiming that she had dared to choose a member of the royal family should have been insolent, but because it did not feel that way, Magnus decided to let it pass this once.
Eliza did not hide the desperation gradually overtaking her.
“I want to live.”
She paused for a moment and removed her half-mask. As though only then would her sincerity reach him, she met the man’s eyes once again.
Moonlight slipped across her lightly made-up face. Her adornment was merely enough to complete her appearance, with no intention whatsoever of seducing anyone or making herself shine.
Among the ladies Magnus had seen until now, she was practically the most modest. Her upright posture made her appear elegant, but her simple dress had very few decorations.
“To live, I wish to make an accusation. And this will surely benefit Your Highness as well.”
“How will it benefit me?”
“Someone, daringly, is plotting a scheme tantamount to treason.”
Magnus’s face stiffened. This woman had been spouting nothing but unbelievable stories from the beginning.
Even so, why did he keep wanting to listen? Was it because she knew the divine revelation that no one was supposed to know? Or because she was the first clue concerning the Saintess he had been searching for?
“There are those plotting a scheme to seize control of this country’s military power, using sinister sorcery and even offering sacrifices.”
Magnus saw the back of Eliza’s hand trembling slightly.
It was the first sign of wavering shown by the woman who had thrown herself forward like lightning, then displayed herself as delicate as glass yet strong.
With nothing more than a slight tremor, the woman gave off an astonishingly fragile air. If this was acting, it would have been worthy of being a textbook example of social maneuvering.
“I brought myself before Your Highness all the way here to tell you this. Please hear my desperate plea and punish them.”
“Who is it?”
Eliza clenched her teeth for a moment. Now that she was finally considering standing on the opposite side from Hagen, hesitation clouded her heart.
“……The Hagen Marquessate.”
Even so, Eliza clearly uttered the words of betrayal.
Magnus’s red eyes took in Hagen’s fiancée and her closest friend.
***
“Gasp!”
“W-what is that…….”
“Isn’t that the young master of Hagen?”
“I heard he was supposed to duel with the Charles family today…….”
An uninvited guest appeared at the party that had been proceeding smoothly. Whispers spread among the ladies and gentlemen who saw the man stride across the banquet hall where the auction was in full swing.
He had roughly covered his disheveled shirt with a coat, but there was no mistaking the dark red stains that had soaked the white shirt.
Moreover, because he had swept back his splendid blond hair, the blood smeared all over his face was impossible to miss.
“I heard the rumors, but I never imagined it was this bad…….”
“Has he truly lost his mind completely now?”
“You clearly don’t know him. The young master of Hagen has always been like that.”
The fainthearted turned their eyes away from him.
Of course, the blood covering Leopold did not belong to him. Except for the single wound running across his cheek.
When the gatekeeper stopped him from entering, saying that he needed a mask, Leopold had reopened the wound and roughly smeared the blood across his forehead and around his eyes as a makeshift mask.
“Who will be the next sacrifice today?”
“……It seems he has already sacrificed one person.”
Leopold was looking around for someone, his eyes flashing with a vivid blue flame.
No one approached him.
Everyone had already learned that touching Leopold when he looked this unhinged would lead to disaster.
“Where are you? My lady.”
His gaze was somewhat clouded, and his muttering voice was eerie.
After searching the entire area, Leopold turned toward the second floor.
Only after he had gone farther away did the people in the hall breathe a sigh of relief.
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
