Volume 1 part 2
Volume 1 part 2
[TL: I kinda mistook one of the heroes gender and name, it’s Rose. I just thought the name was giving it away, so I didn’t dig out much, but now I have changed his name to Luke as he turned out to be a male. Already fixed the previous chapter.( ◜‿◝ )♡]
As the door shut, I let out a small sigh.
‘Devaron didn’t come…’
No! I turned my head in surprise.
I frowned involuntarily, hating myself for instinctively searching for him. The habit of always following behind him had lingered over the past two years.
Perhaps thinking I had turned my head because of her, Feriel grasped my hand tightly, tears welling in her pale pink eyes.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Cornelia. Truly, I’m sorry.”
Feriel kept muttering apologies, and I slowly blinked as I looked at her.
‘Sorry for what?’
I couldn’t even guess what she was apologizing for.
“…I’m truly sorry I couldn’t be there for Lady Hibi’s passing, Cornelia. I received your letter, but I couldn’t go. Something really important came up.”
‘Ah, that. So that’s what this was about.’
“It’s fine.”
I smiled at Feriel and the others. The black veil swayed and blurred my vision.
“You were all busy.”
‘Busy with speeches at the Akteil Festival, standing in places of glory.’
At my answer, all three of them fell silent, their faces stiffening.
Kind-hearted Feriel bit her lip, and Leonif put down his teacup on the table.
Then, Luke, who was sitting next to Leonif, glared at me and snapped harshly.
“If you’re going to be sarcastic, why don’t you just say it straight? Say you were disappointed we didn’t come!”
“Luke!”
“…That was harsh, Luke.”
Everyone in the room looked at him in response to his words, but he only scoffed and continued to glare at me.
What on earth had upset him? I didn’t know.
“I wasn’t being sarcastic.”
I blinked.
‘Being sarcastic?’
Did I still hold feelings like that?
No, no matter how I thought about it, that wasn’t the answer. I didn’t even have the strength left to feel that way anymore.
I looked around at each of their faces and calmly, quietly spoke again.
“I wasn’t disappointed that you didn’t come.”
Since arriving in the capital, the small hope I had held in my heart had been chipped away every minute, every hour, every second.
I had told them many times that my grandmother wanted to see them, but every time, the only response I got was that they were too busy.
Feriel and Leonif sent small gifts with apologies, but those gifts, handed over as if in pity, only deepened my pain.
Over time, even when I sent letters, there was often no reply, and sometimes, they were returned unopened.
The maid who brought back the returned letters looked at me with pity, unsure how to console me.
And one day, when I ran into them by chance on the street…
‘I don’t know that person.’
They acted like they didn’t recognize me, even though I was carrying food for my grandmother.
Thinking of that moment, I gave a bitter smile.
The way they turned their heads, afraid of meeting my gaze, still lingered vividly behind my eyelids.
After being rejected over and over again, the words ‘please help me’ ended up stuck in my throat. There was no point in reaching out a hand only to have it slapped away.
Two years passed like that.
I hadn’t realized it before, but two years was more than enough time for a person to grow tired and wither.
So honestly—truly, honestly—I hadn’t expected the heroes to come when my grandmother was on her deathbed.
The letters I sent to tell them of her final moments held no hope.
…Except to Devaron.
“Is that all you wanted to say? Then we’re done here. I’ll be going, I’ve got a lot to do…”
“Cornelia.”
As I stood and walked toward the door, Leonif reached out and grabbed me.
“Wait a moment… we’re not finished talking yet. You’re not leaving just because of Luke’s attitude, are you?”
I looked down at Leonif, who was smiling as he held my wrist.
Perhaps thinking I’d shake him off, he quickly continued.
“Lady Hibi helped us so much. It took some time, but we’ve finally worked everything out. In the name of the heroes, Lady Hibi will be enshrined in the Central Temple.”
‘The Central Temple…’
My eyes widened at those words. Only nobles could be enshrined there.
And even then, not all nobles qualified. One needed great honor and a significant donation to even knock on the temple’s door.
It was a place ordinary people couldn’t even dream of. And now, they wanted to enshrine my grandmother there.
“We can at least do this much, Cornelia.”
“Yeah, we’ll cover the donation. Even if the priests or other nobles complain, we’ll deal with it. If the heroes are united, who could say no?” Leonif smiled with his eyes.
Behind him, Feriel nodded with a bright face, and Luke frowned, looking displeased.
Ha.
I looked at the three of them and laughed. Perhaps mistaking my reaction as positive, Feriel and Leonif’s faces brightened.
But only for a moment.
“No, it’s fine. I’m just a commoner.”
I truly meant it. Only nobles were allowed to visit the enshrined at the Central Temple.
If my grandmother were placed there, I would never be able to see her again.
‘Because I’m a commoner, it’s not allowed.’
‘Because I’m a commoner, I can’t.’
That was the kind of life I lived. Wasn’t this too excessive a favor? And it was they who had so carefully branded me with that label in the first place.
“My grandmother wanted to be buried in her hometown. So I’ll have to decline. This really is the end, isn’t it?”
With that, I slapped away Leonif’s hand from my wrist.
Whether it was because I refused their offer or because I pushed his hand away, Leonif’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Oh, and one more thing.”
Before leaving the drawing room, I turned around and looked at them all. Today was the last day of the Akteil Festival.
Perhaps they had come right after their final speech, because they were all dressed in those bright white uniforms.
Pristine, pure white uniforms made only for heroes. Standing in contrast to my mourning clothes, their uniforms shone even brighter.
“You all look good in your uniforms.”
For the first time since seeing them today, I lifted my black veil and smiled.
Only then did they seem to realize the contrast between their clothes and mine. Their eyelids trembled ever so slightly.
“I mean it.”
With that final word, the woman in black mourning attire exited the room full of people dressed in white uniforms.
***
By the time I left the marquis’ estate, the sky had already been painted red with the last light of the setting sun.
The sun had been high when I entered. I looked up at the sky and sighed softly.
“I have so much to do.”
What a waste of time. The meeting itself had been short, but the time I spent waiting for Leonif and the others had been long.
What I heard after waiting felt so useless, it made the wasted time even more frustrating. I wanted to return to Yorkven village quickly, but it felt like my feet were being held back.
Under the red-stained sky, I slowly started walking.
I had to return to the Astolphe estate and finish what I needed to do.
As the last sliver of sunset sank behind the towering castle walls, lanterns adorned with the banners of Akteil and the Heroes began to light up one by one.
People walking nearby hurried their pace.
Maybe because it was the final day of the Akteil Festival, the area near the market bustled with excitement, but the plaza I crossed felt a little lonely.
Only traces of the festival remained—an empty stage, scattered flowers, and fluttering banners that once decorated the streets.
I paid them no mind and quickened my pace. None of it concerned me, and my head was already busy sorting through the tasks I had completed and those still left to do.
‘Still, now that I’ve finished everything I had to do outside the mansion, I should be able to return to my hometown in a couple of days.’
I wondered how Aunt Percy was doing, and Aunt Maji too… she always brought us food. I missed Uncle Bill. I wondered how big Isaac had gotten.
He was so confident that he’d be taller than me next time we met. And what about Adele? She always wanted to come to the capital, but I never managed to invite her.
With each step, the faces of those villagers who had loved me and Grandma came to mind. I also remembered how genuinely happy they were the day I left for the capital.
‘That’s great! You became a Hero!’
Because the Heroes had stayed in the village for a long time, I couldn’t hide the truth from the villagers.
So when Grandma and I left for the capital, the whole village came to see us off. They called me a hero and celebrated with heartfelt smiles.
Adele, who had always followed me around, came to me in tears, holding flowers and a flower crown.
Just like I had done when the Heroes first arrived in our village, she had picked the flowers from the field and made them with her hands.
Seeing her fingers stained with grass, I could tell she had spent a long time carefully weaving the crown.
‘I’m really going to miss you, sis…’
Hearing Adele say that and seeing the villagers smile through their tears, I couldn’t bring myself to tell the truth.
‘Yeah, I’ll be back!’
Instead, I smiled brightly. That was all I could do.
“Huh?”
Lost in memories of the village, I was jolted back to reality by a drunkard.
The man, upon seeing me, rudely pointed his finger and stumbled toward me, swaying from the alcohol.
Once he got close enough, I realized who he was. He was one of the men who had sneered at me at the temple earlier.
‘His name… was it Simon?’
The unpleasant memory made my eyes narrow.
The closer he came, the stronger the stench of alcohol hit me, so pungent it seemed he had bathed in it rather than just drunk it.
“You… you’re that commoner, right?”
As I frowned and stepped back because of his rude demeanor, the man reached out and grabbed my wrist.
“Don’t go, talk to me. Huh? How did a commoner like you end up getting cozy with the Astolphe duchy? Tell me your secret!”
He grinned as he looked at me, clearly mocking me.
“Hic! The Duke of Astolphe is infamous for his pride. I’ve tried and failed too…”
Ah, so he was one of those who tried to cozy up to the Astolphe family and failed.
The Astolphe duchy was known even among nobles for keeping to themselves.
And suddenly, I had become a vulnerability in that flawless household, a stain on someone they admired, a weak point they wanted to drag down.
‘That’s why I was ridiculed even more.’
I felt my eyes twitch and bit my lip.
“Oh? Are you crying? Huh? Shall I see how a ‘noble commoner’ cries?”
When I didn’t respond, the man leaned in closer and reached to lift my veil with his thick hand.
“Let’s have a good look at the face that seduced the Duke…”
Smack!
The moment his hand touched the veil, I slapped his cheek with all my strength.
A sharp sound rang out as his body swayed. I wiped away the tears welling in my eyes and drove my heel into his shin.
A scream like the ones I’d heard when pigs were butchered during the Yorkven festival echoed through the plaza as the man rolled on the cold stone pavement.
He must not have expected me to fight back, or maybe he thought he’d win even if I did.
With the bit of self-defense and combat I’d picked up during my travels, it wasn’t hard to subdue a drunken fool who’d let his guard down.
“How dare you…! if I tell people—no! If I run to the Astolphe mansion and talk—!”
His words were cut off.
This time, I had grabbed his arm and twisted it sharply. Another pig-like scream burst out.
As he struggled to get up, I raised my foot and pressed down on him harder. The squishy feeling of flesh underfoot made my skin crawl.
“Aaaagh!! You commoner!”
“Go ahead, tell them.”
I glared at him through my veil and pointed toward the bustling boulevard still lit with festival lights.
“Run over there and yell, ‘I was beaten by a commoner! By that woman from the Astolphe house!’ See what happens.”
A Commoner. A Woman.
And if a crowd gathered, they’d see someone in mourning clothes, me, standing there.
“Then what kind of image do you think will form in their heads?”
A drunk harassing a woman, getting knocked over, screaming, then running off to tattle. That’s the story people would believe.
With the ongoing festival, the guards were already overwhelmed with drunkards, they’d definitely take my side.
Of course, I’d rough him up a bit more before that.
Only then did the man realize the situation. His eyes widened, and the redness in his face drained to pale white.
With the pain and shock sobering him up, his speech became clearer.
“I… I was just curious, that’s all…”
He twisted his body, trying to escape from under my foot, but I pressed down harder with my full weight.
“I-I won’t say anything. I swear I won’t tell the Astolphe duchy you hit me. I won’t tell anyone! So please let me go!”
“How many times do I have to say it?”
I looked down at him and gave a bitter smile.
“I no longer care about what the Astolphe Duke thinks.”
***
“What are you going to do?”
As Cornelia left the mansion, Luke looked at the people who were left behind with a distorted face.
“Are you all going to let Cornelia leave the capital?”
No one answered his words. Then, unable to contain his anger, Luke kicked the small chest of drawers next to him.
The vase that had been decorating the top of the dresser rolled across the floor with a loud noise.
Luke tousled his hair and shouted louder.
“Why is everyone so calm!! She kept her mouth shut because we were holding Grandma Hibi hostage, do you think she’ll stay quiet now? If we said we would place her in a safe place, she should comply. How dare she refuse, saying she was a commoner or something!”
“Grandma Hibi was being held hostage? That’s too harsh!”
Luke smiled with the corners of his lips raised at Feriel’s rebuttal.
“We took her hostage to keep that woman quiet, didn’t we? And honestly, Feriel, shouldn’t you be the one who’s the most anxious? If it’s discovered that Cornelia was our true guide, you’re the one who’s in the most danger. Do you want to lose the recognition you’ve barely earned?”
“…Well, that is.”
At those words, Feriel’s head dropped. Tears welled up again in her pale pink eyes.
Luke glared at her for a moment, then exhaled a rough breath.
“And me too… I’m in danger too! ***n it, I barely managed to surpass my sibling!! I did all that just to become a Hero… just to be chosen!”
He shouted almost like a scream, panting heavily.
His once neatly arranged blue hair was now wildly disheveled. Luke’s black eyes glistened with rage.
“Cornelia might not even say anything. Why do you hate her so much? Even if we don’t do anything, Cornelia…”
“Ha! You think Cornelia’s really going to stay silent? How stupid can you be.”
Luke cut off Feriel’s tear-filled words with a harsh tone, glaring at her. A crooked smile curled on his lips, as if mocking her naivety.
“She lost her place as Hero and lived like a beggar for two years. How many times did we ignore or reject her requests and letters?”
When Cornelia first arrived in the capital, she consistently sent letters to Feriel, Luke, and Leonif.
They weren’t filled with venom or resentment. On the contrary, they were painfully harmless.
[Grandmother wants to see you. I know you’re busy… but if you have time, please come see her. I miss you, too.]
At first, Cornelia had cried and been angry over losing her title as Hero, but over time, she seemed to come to terms with her circumstances and her grandmother’s gradual recovery. By the time she wrote those letters, it looked like she had let go of everything—except for one feeling.
Reading Cornelia’s letters, Luke had sneered, saying, ‘I knew it.’
Leonif handed them back to the servant wordlessly.
Feriel clenched the letters in her hands, lips tightly pressed.
None of them ever replied.
The letters dwindled over time. The content became sparse.
The very last one contained just a single line.
The memory of those letters cast a heavy silence over the parlor. Only Luke broke it, raising his voice for all to hear.
“If Cornelia speaks the truth, we’re all in danger. It’ll damage our reputation—His Majesty won’t let it go quietly!”
At Luke’s words and stare, Leonif, still seated on the sofa, played with his hair and let out a bitter chuckle.
“***n it… ****n it all. That moron Devaron’s the only one not in danger. He’s His Majesty’s favorite…”
Meanwhile, Luke’s breathing grew even more ragged. His anger so fierce it seemed he might explode any moment, the others instinctively stepped back.
“Luke, calm down.”
Rising from his seat, Leonif smiled gently and patted Luce’s shoulder. Then he looked between Feriel and Luke.
“We’ve neglected Cornelia for too long. It’s time we did something right for her.”
“You want me to grovel to a commoner?”
At that, Leonif shook his head, his face still full of smiles.
“Cornelia is our comrade. I’m saying we should treat her better. Whether she accepts it… that’s up to her.”
After saying that, Leonif brushed his bangs aside and sighed deeply.
“Still… the Yorkven village graveyard? That’s near the Granden Forest. Pretty dangerous area.”
It was a tiny whisper. So soft that Luke, standing closest, was probably the only one who heard it.
At those words, Luke’s lips slowly curled into a knowing smile, as if he had realized something.
***
By the time I returned to the ducal residence, night had fully fallen.
As I looked at the massive gates of House Astolph in the distance, I rubbed my eyes.
So much had happened today. I had only meant to visit the temple, but then I ran into my old comrades, and a drunken man…
‘’Still, at least I feel better now.’
Just thinking of that man fleeing in a panic made me chuckle.
Even as he ran, he kept yelling, ‘You’ll see! Just wait!’ As if he’d come storming back tomorrow for revenge.
But he wouldn’t dare admit he’d been hit by a commoner woman.
The moment he opened his mouth, his own reputation would shatter. And even if he spoke out, I’d be long gone by then, so it wouldn’t matter.
Before I knew it, I had reached the main gate. But instead of entering, I walked along the high wall that surrounded the mansion.
Eventually, through a patch of ivy, a small door came into view, the one used by the servants. It was the door I always used.
I inserted the key I borrowed from the steward, and the door opened silently. Well-used hinges moved without a sound.
Above, the moon shone clearly in the sky. I sighed softly as I looked up at it.
The day had grown far later than I expected. Bell was probably worried—she always looked after Grandmother and me. And Steward Steven, was probably still waiting for the key.
As soon as I thought of the steward, my mood soured.
‘I’ll wash up first… I can return the key tomorrow. It’s not like there’s only one of them.’
I already knew what kind of expression he’d have when I handed it back tomorrow. What kind of gaze he’d throw at me.
But I didn’t want to go all the way to the main mansion tonight. That place… was suffocating.
The moment I stepped inside, dozens of eyes would turn toward me.
They’d judge my posture, my gait—even my gaze. They wouldn’t say it aloud, but their contempt spoke volumes.
Whenever I walked through those halls, it felt like someone was strangling me. Just thinking about it drained me.
‘Not tonight.’
‘Yes, I’ll give it to the head maid in the morning. She looks at me the same way, but her gaze doesn’t cut quite as deeply.’
“Ah—”
Just as I turned around, I bumped into something, and my eyes widened.
Someone was standing there, in the dark, by the quiet servant’s entrance.
There was no need to guess who it was, I knew immediately from the silhouette alone.
It was Devaron.
He stepped forward, and the moonlight lit up his face.
I frowned in surprise.
Devaron was clearly angry. His tight lips and sharp gaze said it all.
Why?
I couldn’t understand. He knew I was going out today. I told the steward when I borrowed the key.
Even if the steward didn’t tell him, that wasn’t my fault.
Translator here!
I have noticed that 10 parts per volume is too much for me as it takes time and the chapters have a higher chance of mistakes, so I decided to make it 15 chapters per volume (*´ω｀*)
