Medea adjusted the fan's handle, feeling the cool weight of iron settle into her palm.
It had been so long since the expedition.
The weapon felt unfamiliar—yet muscle memory stirred beneath her skin.
In her past life, the expedition warriors had been merciless.
"She can't even handle a single low-level demon. Princess, why did you even come along?"
"Valdina's reputation was all bluff. Even their 'best cavalrymen' are worthless."
"Wouldn't it be better if she just went home? Did our expedition gather just to babysit a useless woman?"
They never treated Medea kindly.
Since she had no formal relationship with Jason, she wasn't respected as a Grand Duchess—only resented as dead weight.
And Jason, her lover, never protected her.
"Medea, you know I need them. The day I become Emperor, I'll make all your suffering known. I promise."
It had hurt—that even the man she loved refused to stand by her side.
Even at night, when he turned his back to her in bed, she would quietly weep into her pillow case.
"I can't keep living like this."
And then she realized.
The only one who can truly protect me is myself.
If she didn't prove her worth somehow, she might be abandoned in the middle of that brutal expedition.
So Medea began observing the warriors as they fought the demonic beasts.
"We cannot surpass them in raw power."
"So we must compete with speed and technique."
"How can I strike decisively—just once?"
She practiced in secret, drawing imaginary arcs with her fan.
"I want to prove it. I didn't make the wrong choice."
The fan snapped open, then closed in a deadly arc.
It struck the bandit leader's throat with surgical precision.
The unique weight of Damascus steel transmitted through the point of impact.
"Ugh! W-what...?"
"I wanted to work hard and return proudly—so everyone could see."
"Jason... I really thought that if I just worked hard enough, everything would be fine."
"Our love. My child's future."
"My dream of returning home with dignity someday."
A person's heart is as deep and endless as the abyss.
You shouldn't trust even the man you spent half your life with.
But Medea didn't know that then.
"Ugh—!"
After the strike to his larynx, Medea followed through mercilessly, driving the fan's weighted base into his solar plexus.
The leader collapsed to the ground from the crushing impact.
Crack!
The edge of Medea's fan struck vertically—just beside the leader's rounded ear.
If it had been a little more to the left, it would have pierced straight through his neck.
"Uh... uh..."
The leader trembled.
A foul stench wafted from his lower body as a dark stain spread across his pants.
Fwip! Fwip! Fwip!
Several throwing knives screamed through the air, accompanied by the fierce whistle of wind.
"Your Highness, watch out!"
Neril shouted.
Medea deflected two.
But she missed the third.
Saya is behind me.
For a split second, Medea considered her options.
Instead of dodging completely, she twisted her body slightly—just enough to avoid a fatal wound.
She braced for the pain, biting her lip—
But it never came.
The knife struck something mid-flight and ricocheted harmlessly away.
"Are you all right?"
Neril rushed to her side.
"I'm fine."
"That was incredibly dangerous. Why didn't you dodge?"
Medea didn't answer.
Neril quickly understood when she saw Saya trembling behind the Princess.
"What if there had been poison on that blade?"
Neril's face had gone pale.
Medea scanned the forest, ignoring the reprimand.
Someone blocked that last knife for me.
"Who's there? Where did it come from?"
Silence.
Only the quiet rustle of leaves answered her.
Normally, she would have investigated the source.
But the sun was setting. The palace gates would close soon.
Priorities set, she put away her weapon and straightened her appearance.
After finishing off the remaining bandits, Neril approached.
She paused when she saw the unconscious leader.
As I suspected—you've been hiding your skills from everyone, Your Highness.
"Should I finish them all off?"
Neril asked, glancing at the groaning men.
"Is there any need to dirty my hands further?"
These were bodies that would no longer function properly anyway.
In times when people had nothing to eat, would hungry animals be any different?
Even if they were lucky enough to survive the starving beasts and crawl back to the streets, there would be others eager to settle old scores.
"Tell your master something when he wakes."
Medea looked down at the trembling bandits.
"Next time we meet, survival won't be an option."
The soldiers nodded frantically, their fear palpable.
Behind the Trees
"That's the Princess of Valdina, right?"
Gallo whispered.
The Princess's carriage departed, and Cesare's group emerged from behind the trees.
Gallo, who had been stunned by the shaman's death earlier, rubbed his eyes as if unable to believe what he'd just witnessed.
"The Princess knows martial arts?"
Even Terence, who had remained calm throughout, tilted his head in surprise.
"That strike she used—it was elegant, but deadly. And boss, that last deflection... that was you, wasn't it?"
Cesare didn't answer.
His eyes remained locked on the spot where the Princess had disappeared.
He recalled the image he'd seen moments ago.
A nobility that didn't collapse even among vicious thieves.
Delicate, youthful features—clear even from a distance.
A strange atmosphere where calm and vitality coexisted.
She seemed more suited to nature than to a bloodstained royal palace.
But that peace had been fleeting.
She'd struck the bandit's throat more viciously than anyone.
In the forest at sunset, the Princess's flowing silver hair had sparkled with golden light.
"Venus of Valdina..."
At once, the old woman's words echoed in his mind.
"Poor Black Star, may the Venus of Valdina save your fate from being entangled in something evil."
Cesare's eyes flashed gold—just like the Princess's had moments before.
Could the Venus the old woman spoke of be a person?
If that's the case, what are the odds that Princess is Valdina's Venus?
Could she find the Dawn's Droplet—the cure for my curse?
"Learn everything about the Princess of Valdina."
"Suddenly? Everything?"
"Everything."
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Cesare's heart began to beat rapidly at the faint possibility.
Valdina Palace
"Starting today, you'll serve here. Be mindful of your conduct."
Saya, who had followed Medea to the palace, adapted to her new environment with surprising speed.
"Was there any territorial resistance from the other maids?"
Medea asked later.
"It would be a lie to say there wasn't any. But the child was quick-witted and eloquent. She won over the courtiers' hearts quickly."
Neril reported.
A street child brought home by the Princess herself.
In a royal palace where status meant everything, Saya should have been a thorn in everyone's side.
But having survived alone on the streets, she didn't surrender to petty territoriality.
How could an outsider expect to be loved from the start?
She had a gift for winning sympathy.
"My birthday is the anniversary of my mother's death."
Saya revealed her shame without hesitation—the kind that could be fatal to an adolescent girl's pride.
"My father injured his leg in the war and could barely move. But before he passed, he always bought me white bread on my birthday—no matter how poor we were."
No one stays angry at someone who struggles even for basic food, clothing, and shelter.
Even among servants, people measure and compete with one another over small things.
"That day, I went to gather medicinal herbs. I never imagined I'd be caught by human traffickers. Everything went dark."
With her bright, earnest eyes sparkling, she recounted the events of that day—a careful blend of truth and embellishment.
"The traffickers said they already owned my eyes and organs. I ran frantically and crashed into a carriage. When I saw the precious young lady inside, I clung to her and begged for my life."
"Oh my... oh, how pitiful..."
The maids gasped, completely absorbed.
"If Her Highness hadn't saved me, I would've been sold off without a trace. I think my deceased parents must have been watching over me somehow."
Saya bravely wiped away the tears streaming down her cheeks with her fist.
The maids, deeply moved, wiped their own eyes.
"Oh, child... how heartbreaking..."
"I may be young, but I understand duty. I came here to repay Her Highness for saving my life. It was only later I learned she was a Princess—and that I'd caused such trouble for all of you."
Saya stood and bowed deeply.
"You are all my teachers. I haven't learned much, so please scold me as harshly as you like. I'll accept your guidance like heaven's decree."
"Oh my, listen to what she's saying!"
The maids burst into warm laughter.
A fan conceals a warrior.
An orphan weaves her net.
And a Black Star begins to hope.
Chapter 42 Complete
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