I Ended Up Saving the Duke Who Was Meant to Die - Chapter 8.2
‘Michaelo, who planned and orchestrated everything, is the worst person.’
I tried to compose myself. What’s important now is bringing Michaelo to justice. For that, I needed someone who could testify about what happened that day.
“Ariche, do you truly regret what happened that day?”
“Yes, yes! I truly regret it. If I could go back, I would never participate in such a terrible act. Really! I’ll tell you everything about that day without omission. So please show me mercy…”
“What if I don’t want to hear about that day?”
I needed to confirm how desperate she was and whether she would betray me. No sooner had I finished speaking than she prostrated herself on the floor, crying and begging.
“I will testify at the trial about what happened at the Edenberg mansion! If I remind them that he could do the same to other families whenever he wishes, they surely won’t let him live.”
Her words made sense. I frowned. To ensure he received punishment, I would have to give her something she wanted.
“Is what you want the healing of your body?”
“Yes, if only I could live like a normal person…”
She shed tears and bowed her head. Instead of making a deal, I decided to set one condition.
“You’ll also have to tell them that you’re a survivor from that day and that you participated in the arson. If you’ve committed a crime, you must be punished.”
***
“Rilke, are you alright?”
“I don’t know anymore. Whether I’m alright or not.”
I was exhausted. The desire to give up everything welled up inside me. But now that I knew everything, I had to reveal it. My family’s death, and Michaelo’s true nature.
Ariche said she would accept punishment if only she could live. Since she might change her mind, I healed only one of her hands. I promised to heal the other side after her testimony, and her face after she confessed all her sins.
“If you don’t want to, I can stop.”
“I will make him face punishment.”
I had to do this, if only for my family who died horribly without knowing anything. Though the act of holding her hand and healing her felt disgusting, I endured it.
Severus embraced and comforted me. In his arms, I cried like a child for the first time in a long while. The fact that I had lived forgetting my family. The years I had spent not being myself made me sad. If I hadn’t had Severus, I might not have endured.
“You can cry as much as you want. You’ve held back a lot until now. Let it all out.”
With his hand patting my back, I buried my face and sobbed. His kindness comforted me more than any words could. After saying that, Severus said nothing more, just rubbing my back and holding me tight until I stopped crying.
***
Severus looked at the sleeping Rilke. He carefully wiped her tear-stained face with a wet cloth. He had tried not to tell her, worried she would be hurt. He hadn’t welcomed the meeting because he knew what would be said.
He couldn’t express how heartbreaking it was to see her trying to hold back her tears. He heaved a deep sigh and began writing a letter. He wrote slowly, pressing each letter carefully so as not to wake her. After finally finishing the letter, he called for Albert.
“I will deliver it.”
“Don’t let Rilke know. She only needs to know the outcome, and I don’t care if you kill all the troublesome ones. If they show any signs of remorse, make them face punishment.”
“Understood.”
Albert asked no further questions and left the room with the letter. Severus carefully lifted her so she wouldn’t wake. He laid her on his bed and pulled the covers over her. The trial would begin tomorrow morning, and he hoped she would sleep well.
“Mmm. Severus.”
His body stiffened as she snuggled into his embrace, her eyelids red.
“I can’t… sleep… Help me sleep. In the way you know best, so I can fall asleep exhausted…”
“Rilke.”
“Your warmth, your touch comforts me.”
Rilke looked up and kissed him. Severus hesitated for a moment, but couldn’t push away Rilke, who was desperately clinging to him. He would simply do what he was good at, as she wished.
***
I didn’t want to get up. But today was an important day when I couldn’t be lazy. I had asked Severus for comfort, but I didn’t expect him to roll around with me as I truly desired until I fell asleep exhausted. I couldn’t even remember how I had fallen asleep.
I wore a dress that came up to my neck to cover the reddish marks all over my body.
“Please don’t ask for this kind of comfort again. I might try to resolve things physically even when I’ve done something wrong.”
Yet his hands caressing and touching various parts of my body, were tender.
‘How spiteful.’
But I didn’t feel bad. I had sought comfort, but all that remained was the aching sensation in my lower parts where his had entered repeatedly. Considering how just thinking of him made my lower region tingle, this was also a problem.
“Are you really alright?”
Eliza asked in a worried voice. It seemed everyone in the Blake mansion was worried about me. They all fidgeted anxiously whenever I passed by.
I smiled gently as if I was fine. Appearing as a witness was burdensome, but there would be no witness or evidence as certain as me.
Above all, I hoped that if I stood before everyone, perceptions about the color red might change. I hoped there would be no more accusations of being ominous or a witch just because someone was born with red.
“I’m fine. Through this incident, everyone will learn that possessing the color red doesn’t mean something ominous.”
“I’m sure they will. I hope everyone feels ashamed of themselves. And realizes how foolish it is to judge people based on prejudice.”
Eliza smiled after decorating my hair. It would take a long time to correct what was wrong, but they would surely be shocked by this incident.
I wondered what their expressions would be when they discovered that I, with the red color they considered ominous, was not a witch but a saint with the power to save people.
“Actually, I don’t have high expectations. Perhaps they will shamelessly change their minds and act as if they knew all along. They’ll treat Madam as if they had expected this from the beginning.”
“I know. I never expected anything, so I won’t be disappointed. I don’t want anything from other people. It’s enough just to correct what’s wrong.”
Then, at least there would be no unnecessary sacrifices. If they felt ashamed of themselves, they wouldn’t be the worst as humans, which wasn’t bad. Though I wasn’t sure how many such people there would be.
I also had no intention of blindly showing goodwill to them, so whatever attitude they took toward me, nothing would change.
