Salvation of the Fallen - Chapter 14
“What were you doing? I want to play with you, sister.”
“Ah… Just reading a book….”
“Huh? How do you know how to read, sister? Do you learn fast? I heard commoners were stupid.”
At the innocent question, Arsena’s eyes hardened into a pale watercolor. That dull look irritated Rosalyn. Why is she acting like this? Rosalyn rolled her round eyes and snatched the book Arsena was reading.
“Why are you looking at this? How boring.”
What Arsena had been reading was an old, worn-out book on herbs. She probably picked it up from the garden. Rosalyn couldn’t understand why Arsena would choose to read such a shabby book when the library was full of books.
“Sister. Isn’t this pretty?”
Rosalyn threw away the book Arsena was reading and pulled out the blue sapphire, Saira’s Tears, from her bosom. She thought seeing something beautiful would improve her mood. The jewel, meticulously crafted over a long period by the Empire’s finest artisan, shone brilliantly even in the dark garden.
“Ah….”
Arsena’s gaze, resembling the piercingly blue jewel, turned towards Rosalyn. Meeting that gaze, Rosalyn swallowed hard. Was it because of the contrast with that ebony-like hair color? Despite being the same blue as hers, something was different. Arsena’s eyes were like jewels. They had a strange sparkle that made it impossible to look away. It was something more desirable than any jewel.
“Do you want it, sister?”
Perhaps that’s why. She wished those blue eyes would look at her. Forever. Rosalyn asked impulsively as if entranced.
Arsena looked at Rosalyn with wide eyes. At that, Rosalyn realized her previous thought had been wrong. She had thought the color was similar to her own eyes, but Saira’s Tears resembled Arsena more.
“No. I can’t.”
Arsena’s jewel-like eyes turned back to the ground. Despite being much taller than her, Arsena’s gaze remained low. Rosalyn’s gaze, as if in resonance, also turned to the ground. Her eyes, fixed on the empty dirt floor, shook greatly. It was a strange feeling Rosalyn had never experienced before.
“Why?”
“Because it’s not something given to me.”
The answer to the question, which condensed complex emotions, was equally complex. Arsena’s gaze was still directed at the ground. What is there to see? Rosalyn couldn’t control the new emotion welling up inside her.
“Take it. I’ll give it to you.”
She abruptly held out the sparkling jewel to the end of Arsena’s gaze again. Arsena once more looked at Rosalyn with surprised eyes. The only difference from before was that the transparent blue eyes had hardened coldly.
“…No. I never wanted it. Please take it back.”
At the quiet but firm rejection, Rosalyn bit her lip. Saira’s Tears, which she had wanted so badly as a birthday gift, now felt useless. The excitement she felt when she secretly took it out of the safe to show Arsena had disappeared. What’s the big deal about this thing? She suddenly hated the very thing in her hand.
“Then do as you please.”
Rosalyn threw away the blue jewel and left the place as if fleeing. The first rejection she had ever faced in her life. And the unfamiliar emotion churning in her stomach was overwhelming.
“Rosalyn?”
“Brother….”
As Rosalyn was walking aimlessly like that, Morpheus called out to her. At the gentle voice, Rosalyn burrowed into Morpheus’s arms.
“What’s wrong?”
Unlike someone else, tears welled up at Morpheus’s kind voice filled with affection. Rosalyn opened her mouth, sobbing. She wanted to express this indescribable feeling to someone and be comforted.
“Sis, sister….”
“Who? Arsena?”
Just one word. At the mention of “sister,” Morpheus’s voice sank low. Looking up at Morpheus’s coldly hardened face, Rosalyn shuddered. Something was going wrong.
“Is she in the garden now?”
“Y-yes….”
Even though it was Rosalyn in his arms, Morpheus was looking with cold eyes towards where she had come from. For Morpheus to have such an expression. Rosalyn couldn’t continue speaking in this unfamiliar atmosphere.
“Wait here.”
At those firm words, Rosalyn stood still as if paralyzed. Like a fool. Only after Morpheus’s back disappeared into the garden did Rosalyn belatedly hurry after her brother. Her heart pounded as if she were standing in the eye of a storm.
“Ah….”
When Rosalyn finally arrived at the garden, she saw Morpheus panting, unable to suppress his anger. Arsena was sitting in the exact same spot as when Rosalyn had left, her watery blue eyes meeting directly. Not with her, but with Morpheus.
For a moment, a childish anger welled up. Why wouldn’t she look at me like that? Why?
“I asked if you made Rosalyn cry.”
At Morpheus’s low voice, a tear dropped from Arsena’s eye. Rosalyn was captivated by the sight, unable to come to her senses.
The black hair tucked behind her ears, flowed softly down to her waist. The roundly protruding forehead and long, moist eyelashes. The gently sloping nose bridge and rosy lips. The skin, so pale it seemed transparent, was flushed only at the tip of the nose. As if rose water had spread. And the vivid blue eyes contrasting with that color.
Saira’s Tears, indeed. It was just like the jewel she had thrown away. Rosalyn, who had merely thought it pretty without knowing its meaning, wondered. If the legendary Saira really existed, would she look like this?
Even the weeds sprouting wildly around the unkempt Arsena looked like a lush jungle at that moment. Rosalyn just watched in rapture as Arsena sobbed, unable to say a word. It was the most beautiful existence among all the things she had ever possessed. Everything felt surreal, as if in a dream.
“Huh? Sister. That….”
Suddenly, Rosalyn noticed what Arsena was holding. Saira’s Tears, which she had thrown into those bushes. She picked it up. Of course. A slight elation coursed through her like pleasure.
“Who’s your sister? That lowly thing.”
Suddenly, Morpheus’s thunderous voice was directed at Rosalyn. For Morpheus, who had always been gentle, to raise his voice at her. Sadness welled up.
Why are you angry at me? What did I do wrong?
Rosalyn cried out loud. Like a child who had lost a toy. Bitterly and sorrowfully.
At the commotion, servants gathered. Soon, Viareche also appeared. The once peaceful garden turned into chaos in an instant.
Viareche quickly hid the wailing Rosalyn in her arms and glared at Arsena. Though she didn’t know the exact situation, one thing was clear. That blue-eyed child was the cause of all this trouble. This fact was undeniable when she saw the blue jewel in Arsena’s hand.
“How dare you! You!”
In that moment, Viareche lost her reason. It wasn’t solely because Arsena had taken something that rightfully belonged to Rosalyn. The emotions she had been suppressing all this time burst out in an instant.
“You filthy wench!”
At Viareche’s shout, Rosalyn choked as if she couldn’t breathe. The whole situation was terrifying. For the first time in her life, Morpheus was angry at her, and her mother, who had always been gentle even to the servants, was shouting. As if possessed by a demon, everything was different from the family she knew. Rosalyn, unable to say anything, cried until she was exhausted and went limp.
“Rosalyn! Rosalyn! Doctor. Call a doctor!”
Holding the fainted Rosalyn in her arms, Viareche shouted urgently. At the sharp scream of the usually elegant and refined Countess, the servants moved in unison. Until the nurse came running breathlessly to take Rosalyn, Viareche’s gaze was fixed on Arsena like a blade. She simply couldn’t regain her composure.
Morpheus stared at Arsena, who was trembling while holding the blue jewel, not knowing what to do. Her chin quivering, pale as a sheet without a hint of color, she looked incredibly fragile. It was quite a sight, befitting her innate status.
“Bring the whip.”
