Of course, Daisy didn't trust her completely. It was difficult to believe that Kanna suddenly wasn't her real sister.
But doubts had haunted her for days.
She recalled Kanna's strange, illogical behavior—her joy at the sight of Donau dying. Perhaps she acted this way because she wasn't the real Kanna?
If Hena truly cared about her sister, she should have been disgusted by the thought of another person inhabiting her body. Just like Daisy, who despised Evangeline.
Her sister had been sick her entire life. And when she finally recovered, someone else had taken over her body? That should have been a source of rage.
"Even if Kanna has changed," Hena said quietly, "even if it's not her... looking at her smile, I'm ready to do anything for her." Her voice trembled. "I'm still weak before Kanna."
Daisy turned those words over in her mind dozens of times while waiting late into the night for Kanna, who hadn't returned. Finally, she admitted that Hena was right.
It didn't matter what form it took or who it truly was. The important thing was that "Kanna" was nearby.
Hena wept, feeling disgustingly selfish.
"Daisy, am I going crazy?" she asked, smiling through her tears.
"Hena..." Daisy's chest tightened with regret. She shouldn't have said Kanna wasn't her sister just because of a scar on her neck.
She had wanted to show kindness, compassion—to relieve herself of the burden of guilt. Instead, her words had shattered the girl.
While working at the estate, Daisy had heard that Hena earned money specifically for her sister's treatment. Kanna meant *everything* to her. And then Daisy had gone and implied this world was a fake. What a devastating blow.
"I think I understand you," Daisy said softly. "I was convinced Evangeline was a monster possessing the mistress's body. I fled the estate and even reported her to the Temple. But when I found myself in trouble, she was the only one who could help me."
She remembered Kanna's words, sharp as broken glass:
_"And you? Are you going to pretend you don't know how the lady helped you?"_
_"The Evangeline Rohanson you knew is already dead."_
Kanna had thrown those words at her. Now Daisy relayed them to Hena, who listened in silence.
"Evangeline helped me," Daisy continued. "Now I feel more gratitude toward her than fear or disgust. Hena... will you say I've gone crazy?"
Hena shook her head slowly. Thanks to the changes in Evangeline, Kanna had recovered. Now they both wanted for nothing. Hena feared Evangeline—but at the same time, she was grateful.
"And one more thing... I want to apologize." Daisy's voice dropped. "It seems I was wrong."
She had wanted to say this even before Hena arrived.
"Wrong?" Hena looked up.
"You know the demon who serves the mistress, right? Jelly. Everyone he brings back to life is left with a red mark on their neck."
She didn't mention that this was the mark of a severed and reattached head.
Those resurrected usually repeated the habits of their past lives like puppets. But Kanna was far more... *human* than Jelly's other resurrections. Although, after the incident with Evangeline, Daisy wasn't certain of anything.
She wanted to apologize, to say she was wrong, that Hena's sister remained the same... But it seemed too late.
"That's why I was wrong."
"Is it true?" Hope flickered in Hena's eyes.
"Yes. Your sister used holy water, didn't she? Sir Gabriel told me that the flesh of those risen from the dead is burned by it."
Seeing Hena's unchanged expression, Daisy hastened to add more evidence. She explained that Gabriel had learned this while interrogating Priest Berg, who had been resurrected by Jelly.
"Holy water..." Hena murmured.
Contrary to Daisy's expectations, these words only deepened her anxiety. Kanna had used holy water to cure her illness—but she'd refused to treat the wound on her neck. That was why the scar remained.
_But why did Kanna refuse treatment...?_
Hena wanted to punch herself. Evangeline had plenty of holy water. If Kanna suffered a serious wound that could only be healed by it... then she would finally know the truth.
"Sister, have you been waiting long?"
Kanna returned, having quickly completed her errand. She embraced Hena, who stroked her hair mechanically.
But Hena would never harm her sister. This meant she would have to live in eternal uncertainty—in eternal fear.
---
## — The Commander's Return —
Gabriel personally escorted the children to the orphanage before returning to knights' headquarters. The explanations and paperwork took longer than he'd anticipated.
Rafaella, who was preparing a report for the upcoming meeting, welcomed his return.
"You've done well, Commander. I could have handled it myself."
"No." Gabriel removed his gloves. "I promised the lady I would take care of this personally."
In truth, Rafaella or any other knight could have managed the task.
Gabriel went himself not out of responsibility for the children. He wasn't as righteous and pious as people believed.
He did it because of Evangeline—or rather, because of the wary expression on her face. Although, it was more bewilderment than wariness.
Perhaps due to her connection with Daisy, Evangeline had shown unusual care and gentleness toward the children. If she was concerned about them, Gabriel felt he should be too.
_"Thank you..."_ one of the children had said, their voice small and earnest.
Gabriel had witnessed the moment Evangeline's aristocratic façade cracked. He'd seen her mask of indifference shatter when she heard that simple, childish gratitude.
_"...Yes,"_ she had answered.
Gabriel had deliberately broken protocol—crossed the boundaries of propriety—to glimpse the real Evangeline. And now her defenses had been undone by the awkward thanks of a child.
_How could such clumsy words affect her so deeply?_
_Perhaps she likes children?_
No, it was hardly an act of tenderness. More likely simple condescension. But according to Daisy's account, Evangeline had truly saved them.
A memory surfaced unbidden: a speeding carriage, crimson traces of wheels against cobblestones...
If he, as an orphan, had encountered Evangeline in the past... would she have helped him? Would she have extended her pale, cold hand?
Gabriel pushed the thought aside. The past could not be returned.
"Of course, your request means far more to them than mine would have," Rafaella grumbled. The priest who ran the orphanage was an honest man—but so rigidly honest that he refused to humor greedy aristocrats. Everyone knew Rafaella came from nobility. She wouldn't be welcome there.
But the commander of the knights, who had risen from nothing, would be received with open arms.
_I didn't waste my money on bribes,_ Rafaella thought bitterly. Once she'd entered the Temple, her origins should have ceased to matter. Yet she was still treated like a pariah. Already considered an outcast by her family, this only deepened her resentment.
Her dislike of aristocrats intensified with each new revelation in the child trafficking case. And naturally, one of the implicated priests also happened to be a nobleman.
"What's happening with Merai?" Gabriel asked.
"She's being held in the basement."
Rafaella delivered her report efficiently. Merai had been taken into custody immediately, and the matter was escalated to their superiors. The case was considered serious due to the priest's involvement, so a meeting had been scheduled without delay.
"Commander, it seems the matter of Lady Rohanson will be raised at the meeting." Rafaella paused. "She wasn't mentioned in the Father Berg case, so she was overlooked. But circumstances have changed. Bishop Javnaia has shown interest in her. The matter will definitely be addressed."
"Will you tell them everything... about her true identity?"
The one potentially connected to the Donau case. The bearer of the mark. The one risen from the dead. The creature hiding behind an aristocrat's mask...
If the truth emerged, Evangeline Rohanson would die.
Or... the opposite.
"I don't know..." Gabriel closed his eyes. Somewhere in the distance, he heard a slow, steady heartbeat.
---
## — Morning After —
"Did you sleep well, madam?" Kanna asked brightly.
"No. Not at all," Evangeline replied.
She had been tormented all night by thoughts of her upcoming meeting with Gabriel.
In stark contrast, Kanna was radiant—practically glowing, as if flowers fluttered in her wake. Apparently, she had reconciled with Hena.
"Where is Hena?"
"She went to the butler with Daisy."
_So Hena wasn't upset because of Kanna—she was upset because of me._ Of course she was distressed to learn that the mistress she served had been possessed. Kanna mentioned she would speak with her...
"So, did you talk?"
"Yes! Thanks to you!"
After breakfast, Hena and Daisy came to join them.
_What's wrong with her now?_ Evangeline wondered, noticing that Hena still looked despondent. _Didn't she make peace with Kanna?_
"She doesn't seem very happy..." Jelly observed, studying Hena with confusion. "Her eyes are red. Probably cried all night. Must have been a touching reconciliation."
Daisy, on the other hand, looked as though she'd enjoyed a wonderful night's sleep.
_And I was tormented all night because of someone!_ Evangeline thought bitterly.
_Well, if I think about it, it's my own fault. Since I possessed the villain, I should have acted more suspiciously. I was too kind, and they found me out. But I'll die if I don't change! If I'd continued to do evil, I might not have died—but I certainly would have lost everything._
Yet no matter how hard she tried to change, death still awaited her. The force of the plot was inexorable. It pushed relentlessly to make her the villain!
_Now they'll say I'm not a witch, but possessed by a demon or a ghost!_
She took a steadying breath.
_Fine. My only hope is Gabriel's love. If he's disappointed in me... I'll die._