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Dana placed her hand over his chest. She could feel his heart beating.
If he had stepped on the rotten land and gotten contaminated three months ago… by now his whole body should have rotted away and fallen apart, dead.His body should have cracked open, crumbled into dust, and died. That was always the fate of those contaminated by stepping on the rotten land. But how is he still alive?
Dana took a deep breath and focused her mind on the hands she had placed on the count’s chest. For now, she’ll know once she tries to purify him.
That’s when it happened.
“It’s true! I saw a woman with silver hair climbing the walls with my own eyes!”
The noise echoed from the hallway.
“She must be somewhere around here!”
“Are you certain?”
It was Mark Kurs’s voice! And it wasn’t just him.
“Have you really seen Sister Dana secretly climbing the wall?” Allice’s voice followed.
They found out!Dana quickly signaled Rumie with her eyes. “Brother Rumie, block them from coming in.”
Dana then returned her gaze to Count Kurs. First, let’s focus on purifying him.
It’s been a long time since I used this power…Fortunately, the power of purification flowed immediately as she concentrated. A pure white light burst from Dana’s palm and immediately wrapped around Count Kur’s body.
“There’s no one in this room!”
“Search the other rooms!”
Damn it.Dana frowned. She was losing concentration.Focus, focus. I must concentrate.
“Sister!” Allice’s tearful voice sharply cut through her focus. “Sister Dana, where are you hiding? Please stop this now, Sister!”
“Yes, Lady Danae! Come out! Hiding in the castle like a rat, it’s dishonorable!”
“That’s right, Lady Danae Windsor! Come out! Hiding in the castle like a rat is not honorable!”
“Yes, Sister! Sneaking into someone else’s house is incredibly rude. So please come out!”
What do you mean ‘someone else’s house’?!Rage surged up in her for a moment.How could she call Windsor Castle someone else’s house? That crazy girl!But Dana forced herself to concentrate on purifying the count.
As expected, the count was contaminated. The black spots on his body were slowly fading.
Just then—Bang!The door shook. But fortunately, Rumie was blocking it, so it didn’t open.
“You’re hiding in this room, Lady Danae Windsor! This is my father’s room!”
“Oh my gosh, Sister! Don’t tell me you’re thinking of threatening the sick Count Kurs as a hostage!”
Just, please, be quiet, a bit!She was struggling so hard to concentrate that her eyelids trembled. Cold sweat beaded on Dana’s forehead.
“Sister, please!”
“Your actions are a disgrace to the Windsor family! You’re lowering our dignity! How could you do something so cowardly!”
“Sister, if you open the door now, I’ll find a way to solve this. So please!”
“Allice, why don’t you be quiet?” Rumie, who could no longer bear it, sighed and spoke. “I never knew my sister’s pretty voice could be so hard to listen to.”
“B-Brother Rumie?”
“Yes, it’s me. So please, just keep your mouth shut.”
“T-That’s so mean. Do you think I’m shouting because I like it?” Allice whimpered outside the door.
Brother Rumie and Sister Dana. Why is everyone acting like this? If they had left things alone, I could have solved everything!
Might Kurs is my friend now.After getting closer to him, Allice was planning to tell him to apologize to Dana. Then surely he would have listened to her!Yeah, so all she had to do was trust me.But Dana couldn’t wait, and snuck in instead!
Allice anxiously watched Mark’s reaction. He was now holding an axe brought by a servant.
“Step aside, Lady Allice. I’m going to break this door down!”
W-What should I do?Allice panicked. Mark seemed angry again when she had barely managed to calm him down!
Bang!Mark struck the door with the axe.
“Kyaa!” Allice screamed and covered her face with her hands. She just couldn’t bear to see such violence!
Sob.Tears began to fall.Why did things turn out this way? Everything was going well.
But Sister Dana ruined it all.
Her sister was always like this. She just couldn’t stand to see Allice succeed!
Is she jealous of me? Is she really that envious of me?
She can’t stand to see me succeed, can’t stand to see me praised, so that’s why!
Allice sobbed.But what is it?The thunderous banging on the door stopped. No more shouts from Mark, no more voices from the servants, nothing at all.What’s going on…?She lowered her hands and cautiously opened her eyes. Then,gasp, she stopped breathing.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
The door was open before Allice had realized it. A man stood there, leaning on a cane. And Mark Kurs…
Thud.The axe fell from his trembling hand. Allice clearly saw Mark’s fingertips trembling.
“Mark Kurs, you…” The man, Count Kurs, spoke hoarsely. “I asked what you’re doing.” His body was emaciated, his voice cracked, his complexion haggard. But his eyes burned fiercely, like flames in the darkness.
“I asked you what you’re doing!”
His booming voice made Allice instinctively step back. Mark’s face had gone completely pale, like a blank sheet.
How? Wasn’t Father on the brink of death? How could he suddenly wake up like this! No, get it together! No, get it together!Mark clenched his sweat-soaked fists. “I-I was just, that woman, she snuck into Father’s bedroom.”
At the explosive roar, Mark nearly wet himself. He felt like a scolded seven-year-old by his father!
“That woman! Did you just call her ‘that woman’?!”
“How dare you address a noble daughter of the Windsor family like that!”
“Apologize immediately, Mark Kurs!”
Mark’s lips trembled. Fear of his father overpowered everything else. His father always spoke of the many favors the Windsor family had bestowed upon the Kurs family.
“B-But…”But am I still a child?Mark mustered his courage. “But Father,
“But Father, please hear me out first. The noble daughter of the Windsor family broke into your room without permission!”
At that moment, Allice realized it was time for her to step in. “Mark is right.”
Count Kurs’s gaze sharply turned to Allice. It was so sharp that she shrank back. “And who are you, young lady?”
“I-I am Allice Windsor. A direct member of the Windsor family. Carl Windsor is my father.”
Carl Windsor. At that name, Count Kurs’s eyes softened slightly.
So he does know Father! He’ll listen to me now.Relieved, Allice sighed before speaking again. “Don’t blame Mark. This is all Sister Dana’s fault. She climbed the castle wall and snuck into someone else’s house without permission.”
“…What did you just say?”
“Did you just say ‘snuck into someone else’s house’ and ‘without permission’?”
Why is he getting angry?Allice stepped back in confusion. Count Kurs was so furious, even his cheeks were trembling.