Salvation of the Fallen - Chapter 21
The desire within him was impure. It was that vulgar Arsena who had bewitched him. She was tempting him with her wicked writhing, urging him to trample and ravage her recklessly. He had almost done so. As if possessed by a demon.
Morpheus made a resolution.
To erase that filthy Arsena from his heart. To break free from the vicious temptation. Arsena was a fatal swamp and a sin. She was a desire that shouldn’t be harbored or embraced. She was an evil that enveloped him in impulses he couldn’t even handle. That’s why he had suddenly left for his service earlier than planned. To save himself from misery. To seek forgiveness from God.
But the feelings he thought would end once out of sight grew abundantly even as he traced the remnants left by God. Like weeds that grow endlessly even when cut.
Contrary to expectations, his misery grew with each passing day. No matter how hard he tried to ignore and pretend not to know, the anguish in his heart wouldn’t be erased.
When he closed his eyes, lying in bed with his body tired from the grueling service, all he could think of was Arsena.
Those teary blue eyes. That delicate body is like a swamp. And the hot temperature that wrapped around his hand. Even the vibration of her trembling lips.
God, save me. Watch over your servant so that he may not be led astray.
After tossing and turning for a long time, when he finally fell asleep, Arsena would approach him in the pitch-black darkness with her vulgar and coquettish body, whimpering and whispering. Saying it didn’t matter since they weren’t really siblings. Then Morpheus would pounce on Arsena like a beast. Trampling and crushing her recklessly, inhaling her scent. Terribly ecstatic and unpleasant.
When he heard the news that Duke Guineste had announced he would pass on his title to an adopted child, Morpheus headed to the Count’s mansion without hesitation. The service that had lost its original purpose was meaningless.
Arriving at the Count’s mansion after traveling day and night.
Arsena, who had led him to that abyss every day for the past five years, was just like in his dreams.
Hair as black as if obsidian had been spread out, and blue eyes like jewels. A slender body that seemed it would bend if grasped. Even the pale skin with veins clearly visible.
His father, who was away to inspect the territory, and his mother, who was staggering as if drunk. More than Rosalyn, who had grown considerably, these things caught Morpheus’s eye. Arsena’s beauty is just about to bloom.
“Brother, you’re going to the coming-of-age ceremony too, right? This time, sister is going together.”
“What?”
“I’m twenty now too! Brother should get married soon as well.”
Arsena at a coming-of-age ceremony? Morpheus’s face crumpled. That meant they intended to marry off Arsena. It was unexpected.
The woman who had ruined him slipped out of his grasp so easily. It was absurd. Morpheus’s brow furrowed deeply.
“Wouldn’t it just be a mockery? Who would propose to someone like that? Don’t you think?”
Arsena’s head bowed low at the sharp gaze directed at her. It was a satisfying response.
“But she can’t stay in this house forever. Sister needs to get married too.”
Rosalyn also raised her voice. It wasn’t that she particularly wanted Arsena to get married. She just didn’t like Morpheus opposing her opinion.
For the past five years since Morpheus left, Rosalyn had been the ruler of the Count’s household. Not Morpheus, who had been absent for a while. Moreover, after this coming-of-age ceremony, Rosalyn would receive a proposal from the Crown Prince. There was no reason for her, who would become Empress, to yield her opinion to a brother who had lost even his chance at the Duke title.
“Yes. That’s right. Go ahead. Morpheus. You should go too. You should also think about marriage now.”
“We can think about that slowly. There are more urgent matters now, aren’t there?”
With the Duke title gone, he needed to inherit the Count title as soon as possible. Moreover, the next owner of Felita, the holy relic of God, had not yet been decided. If he could gain Viareche’s approval and inherit Felita… If he could then gain power that even the Emperor couldn’t easily challenge… The Duke title wouldn’t matter. He could hide that unwanted person who wasn’t even married in his shadow and handle her as he pleased. Without having to mind anyone else. Just as he had dreamed countless times.
“Is that so?”
Was there such a thing? Viareche nodded with an indifferent expression. With a muddled mind, she couldn’t think properly. Viareche ignored the two intensely meeting gazes and chewed her lips with unfocused eyes.
“I’m tired now. Let’s talk later.”
As Viareche stood up, she staggered greatly. The meal, finely picked at, filled the plate. In the end, all she had emptied was the wine made from Felita.
***
After Rosalyn’s coming-of-age ceremony, which everyone had busily prepared for, a chilly air lingered in the Count’s mansion. As if walking on thin ice, the servants moved their hands busily while whispering in hushed tones.
“Why is the young lady rushing the wedding preparations even before the engagement announcement?”
“There was… that incident that day. She’s trying to get it over with quickly before rumors spread.”
“What rumors? Who in the Empire doesn’t know? Even the neighborhood dogs were gossiping about it.”
“It’s gone. Saira’s tears have disappeared.”
At the gathering of nobles of marriageable age, Rosalyn’s words turned the banquet hall dead silent.
Without a doubt, today’s protagonist was Rosalyn, daughter of Viareche, the owner of Felita, and the future Empress. The music that should have resonated throughout the night stopped, and everyone held their breath, looking around.
The blue sapphire that had been sold at an astronomical price years ago and became the talk of the town.
Everyone became frantic trying to find that beautiful and precious jewel. Even Arsena, who had been dragged to the coming-of-age ceremony against her will, was the same. While everyone was fidgeting and watching each other’s reactions, Rosalyn pointed to the daughter of a Viscount family as the culprit. It was an absurd reason that she had been looking at Saira’s tears around her neck gloomily.
“It wasn’t me. Really.”
“Your Majesty, please check!”
Despite the voice screaming like a shriek, Rosalyn’s attitude remained stern. It was as if she had seen the Viscount’s daughter stealing her jewel.
“Search her.”
“Right now, in front of me. She might hide it away otherwise.”
“Do as she says.”
The Emperor reluctantly nodded at Rosalyn’s bold request. And so, as everyone watched, the moment the skirt of the wailing woman was lifted.
“We found it.”
Soldiers who had rushed in urgently held out the beautifully shining blue sapphire in front of the Emperor’s eyes. The Emperor closed his eyes tightly and let out a long sigh.
Saira’s tears, which Rosalyn had insisted the Viscount’s daughter had taken, were found in Rosalyn’s waiting room. As she was using the waiting room alone, which had been prepared separately by the Emperor’s consideration, there was no room for excuses.
“That can’t be. Surely someone…”
Nevertheless, Rosalyn did not admit her fault. Rather, she claimed that someone had done this to frame her. Rosalyn, who was fuming that she would find the real culprit, looked like nothing more than an ill-mannered foal.
To harm the Emperor’s dignity along with the grand festival that happens only once a year. Even for Rosalyn, who had Viareche’s power behind her, there was no way to avoid the Emperor’s wrath.
The daughter of House Katarini shall return home and await her punishment.
As the majestic voice was uttered, the murmuring grew louder. The noise that engulfed the banquet hall quickly spread beyond the palace to the capital. Rosalyn’s reputation and Katarini’s honor plummeted simultaneously.
“Oh my. She was always like that. How did she end up doing that there? Isn’t that some kind of illness?”
“Hey, watch your words. If we get caught saying this…”
“Who’s going to come here? But really. Always throwing tantrums about perfectly fine jewelry going missing. Blaming innocent servants. Didn’t you find that incident a bit suspicious too? Even if she was strange, she didn’t seem like someone who would steal things.”
“Actually, that day… I thought I had seen wrong, but…”
