Slap-!
A sharp sound cuts through the air.
A vivid handprint remains on Viviana’s flushed cheek.
The owner of that hand is none other than Artasha. Her blue eyes are narrowed sharply as she glares at Viviana.
“Where is my daughter right now?”
“She is in Rachel Village, located on the eastern Kiraz front of the continent.”
“That’s still a place where remnants of defeated soldiers are hiding! Are you saying you abandoned my daughter in such a dangerous place?!”
Artasha’s face contorts with anger. Lillian, awkwardly standing between Viviana and Artasha, nervously glances between the two.
“Although it’s still called a front, Rachel Village is quite a distance from where the remnants are hiding, so nothing will happen. I’ve also assigned the strongest warrior I know to Tina’s side.”
Viviana’s gaze briefly flickers to Lillian.
“Moreover, it’s a place where Tina can freely move away from the rumors surrounding the Saintess’s execution.”
“I, I was planning to return her once the demon was removed from Tina!”
Lillian hurriedly explains, but Artasha’s furious expression shows no signs of softening.
Lillian’s intentions were simple. She wanted to create an environment where Tina would rely solely on her.
Even if her intention was to exorcise the demon within Tina, such actions would never look good in Artasha’s eyes.
“Princess Merdelia. Tina is not someone you can handle as you please. She is my daughter, and I will take her back to the mansion immediately.”
There is not a trace of mercy in Artasha’s eyes. Even though Viviana helped Artasha sort out her feelings for Tina, she could not forgive anyone who carelessly handled her daughter’s safety.
“…Mother.”
But at that moment, both Artasha and Lillian are stunned by Viviana’s unexpected action.
The arrogant swordswoman of Merdelia. Her knees had weakly hit the floor.
“…What is this, Princess?”
Artasha makes a troubled expression.
No matter what, there is an insurmountable wall of status between Artasha and Viviana.
Even if she is now called a princess, it is a well-known fact that she is the sole heir and successor of her family.
Thus, Artasha tries to lift Viviana up, but her knees show no sign of leaving the ground.
“I know this is shameless… but please trust me one more time, Mother.”
“Trust or not, I have no intention of leaving Tina there. So get up now.”
“Tina is in a precarious state, Mother.”
Viviana’s serious voice firmly grabs Artasha’s attention. As Artasha falls silent, Viviana continues more urgently.
“Tina called herself a sinner. When I last saw her, she was inflicting pain on herself, saying she would atone for her sins.”
“W-what?”
“She promised me she wouldn’t self-harm again, but who knows how she might change over time.”
Could there be anything more shocking to a family than hearing their daughter has self-harmed? At the thought of fragile Tina harming herself, Artasha’s fists tremble.
“Tina is lacking so much right now. Affection, achievement, pleasure, responsibility… the basic things a human should have, Tina doesn’t. She’s like a child who’s only grown in body.”
“…What exactly are you trying to say, Princess?”
“I want to give Tina the life of a human, and let her feel happiness.”
Viviana’s voice is incredibly serious. Her eyes, which have lived half a life for herself, now hold deeper affection than ever before.
“I want her to know the joy of achieving something on her own. The pride of holding something earned with her own money.”
“……”
“Even if there is no love from you or anyone else, I want to give her the strength to live on her own.”
At the end of her words, a faint resentment lingers in Viviana’s eyes.
“And… I want to make Tina a strong person so she no longer relies on that devilish woman.”
“……”
“Please… believe in me just one more time to help Tina.”
Viviana was already an unforgivable person who had once ruined Tina. There was no reason for Artasha to trust her again.
Nevertheless, Viviana’s voice was so serious, and the weight of her words made Artasha think it wouldn’t hurt to listen a bit more.
“…First, Saintess.”
Artasha suppresses the emotions boiling deep within her and looks at Lillian.
“Y-yes…?”
Lillian’s voice trembles, unable to hide her panic. As if her toes were tingling, she cautiously takes a step back.
“What kind of training did you give my daughter?”
※
“My, you sure go to the bathroom a lot.”
Grandma Miranda, sitting on a chair with her legs crossed and chin propped up. Her imposing presence alone makes her look threatening even when just sitting.
“My constitution is a bit unique.”
She couldn’t reveal the inscription on her lower abdomen. She decided to gloss over the situation with a vague excuse. Fortunately, Grandma Miranda didn’t press further.
But the real problem was elsewhere.
‘…It’s suffocating.’
Until now, Lillian would always show up whenever she felt the need to go to the bathroom. Several times a day.
Each time, she would press on her lower abdomen, helping her relieve herself, or order her to hold it in.
Perhaps because of that. Her body seemed to have accepted Lillian’s touch as part of her physiological process. Even though she’s been to the bathroom multiple times now, it hasn’t been properly resolved like before.
I know it’s vulgar and crude. But without Lillian pressing on her lower abdomen, the sensation down there isn’t properly resolved.
‘This, this isn’t my fault…!’
Isn’t that right?
I didn’t want to become like this, and there’s someone else who made me this way, so it’s strange that I have to bear the responsibility for it.
Of course, the wrongs I’ve done to Lillian are far greater. No amount of apologies would be enough.
But in this situation, it’s only natural to feel a bit unfairly treated.
‘I can’t ask Grandma Miranda to press on it…’
If she made such a request, she would surely be despised as a human being worse than a bug that can’t even relieve itself properly.
It’s better to live with this suffocating feeling.
“By the way, I’ve been curious for a while. What’s that thing around your neck?”
Grandma Miranda asks with a bored expression.
“Ah… this?”
“Yeah, what’s that? You’re not a dog, why are you wearing something like that around your neck?”
Grandma Miranda’s gaze shifts to the collar around her neck. A black leather strap with a dazzling golden gem in the center.
The collar Lillian gave her, a precious relic with the power to heal any wound. At the same time, it’s also a control device to suppress the woman within her.
If it weren’t for this collar, she probably wouldn’t be in this world by now. She would have disappeared without even paying for her sins.
“It’s a very precious item to me. But doesn’t it suit me well?”
In the modern world she lived in, this style of necklace was considered a fashion item.
“Well, you do look like a clueless puppy, so I guess it suits you.”
“Hehe, I’ll take that as a compliment?”
“…Damn it.”
She turns her head to me with an annoyed expression.
It’s been a week since I started working here. I’ve come to understand Grandma Miranda’s personality.
Her tone is rough and her actions are blunt, but she’s a good person.
“Ah, Grandma Miranda! I said I’d do the dishes!”
“Goodness gracious!”
For example, when there are too many dishes, she secretly helps from behind, showing her kind nature.
“Look at this! There’s sauce stuck on the edge of this plate!”
“Damn it! Even a goddess wouldn’t notice that!”
“Keeping the environment clean is a basic for a cook! If I saw a plate like this, I wouldn’t even look at it!”
“You’ve gotten cheeky in just a week! Fine, you’re so great. From now on, you can do all the dishes yourself!”
A good person who shouldn’t be tainted by someone like me, who must never be tainted.
So I won’t get too close to her.
Because I’m a sinner.
I will never forget.
Bearing all my sins, the place I must return to is hell.
Like my mother, I am a sinner who must never be happy.
Yes, that’s right.
That’s why I’m trying.
Until the day I earn the right to die.
