Chapter 2
It was when Richetti, the empire’s sole Saint, began to grow frail that the capital of the Nodlen Empire first became shrouded in fog.
Richetti’s health showed no sign of improvement, and the Temple began searching for a new Saint for the sake of both the empire and Richetti. She personally greeted the candidates and met with each of them face-to-face. Three women were selected in this manner, and one of them was Jisenberia Burnett.
The Saint that Jisen met in private had her face covered with a white veil.
“Ask me a question.”
Instead of asking Jisen a question, Richetti invited Jisen to question her.
“Am I truly qualified to be the next Saint?”
“I believe so.”
“Ah…”
“What do you see?”
“Ah…!”
Richetti smiled. Only then did Jisen realize her own ability. The blue and red lights that had flickered before her eyes until then were signals telling her truth from lies.
“A blue light.”
The answer Richetti knew came from Jisen’s lips.
The ability to discern lies was one of a Saint’s powers.
Having passed the test, Jisen alone set foot in the deepest sanctuary of the Temple, a place not just anyone could enter. It was a space filled only with darkness. Jisen felt both human fear and a personal sense of liberation at the same time. Thinking that she could see nothing and that no one was there made her unafraid of the dark.
And then, a voice echoed from within the darkness. It did not touch her sense of hearing. It clearly resonated inside her head, from deep within.
“Child who knows no answer for lack of asking. It is too early, for you have not become master..”
Unable to comprehend the enigmatic response, she remained lost in thought until she followed the light back out. Richetti was waiting for Jisen.
The Saint looked sad.
“May I ask one more question?”
“Yes.”
“Is your health alright, Your Holiness?”
“Yes.”
Red light.
“I suppose I won’t be able to see you anymore, will I?”
“We will inevitably meet again. By the will of God. Please remember that.”
Blue light.
Richetti had foretold their reunion with such certainty. Yet the Temple announced that none of the candidates were suitable to become the next Saint.
Jisen took it as only natural that she had not been chosen as the next Saint. She herself believed she was unqualified. She thought even the Saint could make a mistake. But it seemed the Count thought otherwise.
That day, the Count beat Jisen as if he intended to strike her dead. Before, he had berated and insulted her or used her to vent his anger, but this was the first time she felt genuine murderous intent.
“I was completely fooled. Keeping around such a useless thing!”
Jisen collapsed, her battered face split and bleeding in places. Seeing his adopted daughter sitting there with an unfocused gaze, the Count could not contain his rage. He grabbed Jisen by the hair, shaking her as he spewed curses.
The Count beating someone or spouting verbal abuse was a familiar sight even to the servants. Nevertheless, on that day, everyone sensed the gravity of the Count’s violence.
“You fraud. You rat. I told you to lie low as if you were dead. You’re not even the Saint, yet you go around entangling a duke, of all people.”
The Count was extremely averse to Jisen coming into contact with outsiders. He wanted her to exist solely as a ‘leading Saint candidate’ who obeyed only his will. Nobles who approached Jisen out of curiosity or friendliness withdrew due to her extremely passive demeanor and the Count’s interference.
Among them, one person in particular persisted in approaching Jisen. Duke Dieren Spear. The Duke expressed a desire for political cooperation with Count Burnett and an interest in Jisen, causing many nobles to envy the Count.
Yet for some reason, the Count tried to keep the Duke at a distance. Nor did he tolerate Jisen interacting with the Duke.
His outbursts went on for quite some time. Jisen was dragged around by her hair and was too exhausted to dodge the objects and fists flying indiscriminately at her. She merely stayed still, as if she had become a doll, fitting her nickname.
Two evenings later, Jisen was put into a carriage again. The Count’s final words to Jisen were calm and full of hope.
“You are heading to the Melkin Empire. Be grateful that there is a prince willing to become engaged to you.”
At the word ‘engagement’, Jisen thought of Duke Dieren Spear.
Dieren had said he would formally propose to Jisen once the Saint selection was concluded. Upon hearing those words, Jisen’s first thought had been, ‘Will the Count allow it?’ When she failed to readily show a positive response, Dieren said he did not want to burden her and asked her to give her answer when he proposed. In return, he wanted to hear Jisen’s true feelings, not the Count’s will. He was a man cautious in every matter and thoughtful of Jisen’s position.
If he learns that I am engaged, he will feel betrayed.
Perhaps it was better to leave without seeing him.
The carriage traveling down the road moved deeper and deeper into the forest. Jisen began to sense something amiss. Black tree shadows slanted across the forest path, and thick fog hung in the air. Though dark like the depths of the Temple, unlike then, Jisen felt only terror.
Suddenly, the carriage stopped. Without even asking what was happening, the Count stepped out. From the beginning, the carriage’s destination had not been the Melkin Empire, but the deep forest.
“Get out.”
Jisen shook her head and held onto the door. But her slender, powerless arms could not hold on for even a moment. The Count grabbed Jisen by the hair and dragged her out of the carriage.
She was dragged into the dense thicket of trees.
The forest at night was silent and cold. Lacking the strength to even stand, Jisen looked up at the Count while slumping on the ground. Shrouded in shadow, his face was barely visible.
A blade flashed in the moonlight, drawing a clean line. Blood gushed from Jisen’s neck and stomach.
The Count had called Jisen useless, a ‘thing’ rather than a human being. He killed Jisen as if discarding an object. He treated her not as a daughter, nor even as a human.
As she collapsed bleeding, Jisen felt the thundering sound of horse hooves echoing through the ground with her entire body.
“Jisen!”
And then, she clearly heard his voice calling out to her.
“Del…”
Jisen opened her eyes, whispering that nostalgic name. The tears pooling in her violet eyes were steeped in resentment she could never forget.
So this was no simple dream. It was the future Jisen had already suffered, her very end.
It had been a life so exhausting she could not even bring herself to feel anger.
After death, while floating in the darkness, Jisen had felt countless emotions. She cycled through burning anger that made her boil and endless self-loathing that made her depressed. But as time passed, she became one with the calm of the dark. And when she opened her eyes again, she had returned to a year in the past.
Jisen, lying in bed and lost in recollections of the past, snapped out of it upon hearing a loud click. Still lying down, she looked toward the door. The lock was unlatching.
When Jisen got out of bed, the maid who entered recoiled in surprise. In her hands were a pitcher of water and biscuits. Jisen deliberately hardened her expression and snapped at the maid.
“Hello, Susan.”
“…Miss Jisen. You’re awake.”
The maid quickly greeted her with a cautious bow. Unlike Lynn, there was no sign of reluctance.
The Susan that Jisen remembered was someone who blended quietly into any background. Yet Jisen knew her secrets. Susan knew how to get upset, how to talk back, and loved to have fun. Above all, she was someone who recognized kindness and cherished her only family.
Jisen’s mind was filled with information she had recalled about Susan. And winning Susan over was the most crucial task for finishing today’s list in her will.
“Let’s talk.”
Susan was startled by the fact that Jisen had spoken to her, and soon approached Jisen with an uncomfortable expression. Jisen stared silently at Susan. Feeling uncomfortable under her gaze, Susan cast her eyes down to the floor.
Susan had been thrown out after being falsely accused of having an affair with Chamberlain Hatton and of stealing the Count’s money. When Susan refused his advances, a vengeful Hatton had plotted against her. In the end, Susan had to leave the mansion without even receiving her final pay.
On the day she left the Count’s estate, Susan had told Jisen, “I pity you, Miss. But I pity myself even more.” Even after Susan had left the Count’s estate, she remained a subject of gossip among the servants.
These were events that would happen a few months from now.
“Susan.”
When her name was called again, Susan’s body stiffened. Eyes wide, Susan soon gathered her senses and slightly lifted her head. Jisen was looking straight at her.
“You know I’ve gone mad, don’t you?”
“Gone mad, Miss…? What do you mean…?”
“But I’m going to keep acting like this.”
She had known. The maids had been whispering that the young lady had finally gone mad from being mistreated. The Count had fits of temper often enough to make all the servants cower, but they were worst when he dealt with Jisen, reaching the level of hysteria. And while the maids felt sorry for Jisen, they often blamed her when sparks flew onto them. Susan’s mouth went dry, feeling as though the guilt she had ignored all this time was being laid bare.
“Hatton’s hitting on you, isn’t he? Relentlessly.”
“Uh…”
“And your aunt is ill.”
“How did you…”
“Everyone treats me like a ghost. They say a lot of things in front of me without thinking.”
Susan’s eyes widened even further. She couldn’t believe it. These didn’t seem like words that could come from Jisen’s mouth. The young lady she knew was a woman locked in her room like a helpless doll. This woman was not the young lady she had known.
“I’ll help you. So you help me.”
Jisen took Susan’s hand. Jisen’s bony hand held hers with an astonishing amount of force.
“Join me. We’ll even find a way to cure your aunt’s illness.”
“Are you really Miss Jisen? How can a person suddenly…”
“It’s me. Do you need time to think?”
“Yes… I don’t know what you’ll have me do, but if the Count finds out, it will be disastrous.”
Blue light.
Jisen nodded. Since Susan had to make a choice that might mean going against her employer, the Count, Jisen fully understood why she hesitated.
“If you are going to join me, bring back whatever is inside the third piece of pottery in the drawing room cabinet. If you aren’t coming back, well, you can just keep it all for yourself. Oh, and I’d like you to get me a newspaper.”
Susan bowed absentmindedly before leaving the room. Her footsteps receded, only for her to return moments later to lock the door.
Jisen offered a faint smile, her cheeks puffing up as it widened. Unused to smiling, the corners of her mouth still trembled.
“This is fun…!”
Susan’s dazed reaction at having her name called was intriguing. Being in a position to know things in advance and offer choices was even more entertaining. Jisen opened her notebook and set her pen to paper.
V Talk with Susan
V Handle the money in the pottery
V Set a secret task
She felt like a protagonist executing a brilliant plan. She wondered when Susan would return and with what answer.
Jisen closed her eyes and reviewed her current reality. Knowing Susan’s future was merely a fraction of what was to come. After all, she was now in a day from the past she had already lived through.
Jisen placed her hands on her neck and stomach. It felt as though she still had those massive scars.