"My brother is here?"
Iana asked, her face showing surprise.
In truth, she had expected surveillance. She had sensed that Marcell was watching her in the marquessate.
But she hadn't expected that Marcell would come after her directly.
"How did he manage to disguise his identity?"
Charles asked, and a senior knight cautiously replied.
"He tried to enter by pretending to be a resident of the territory with a fake travel pass, but he was caught. He then claimed to be Marcell Rethels, the Marquess."
Iana thought for a moment before speaking.
"Where is he now?"
"We've locked him in the tower's underground prison for now."
"I'll speak with the Countess, so be prepared."
Charles said.
"Yes, Your Highness."
The senior knight saluted and ran towards the tower entrance.
"It's definitely my brother. Before coming here, when I stayed at the marquessate, he was very suspicious of me."
"Does that mean...?"
Charles trailed off.
Iana, her eyes filled with sorrow, spoke.
"It seems my brother knew too. That I was cursed with dark magic."
A little while later, Iana followed Charles and Mule to the underground prison of the tower.
The dark corridor was lined with blue-glowing iron bars.
It seemed to be a prison designed with enchantments to prevent escape.
At that moment, a familiar voice echoed from ahead.
"How dare you treat me like this even after I've revealed my identity?"
As Iana got closer, she saw Marcell and four knights locked inside the cell.
"Welcome, Your Highness."
The guards stationed in front of the cell bowed their heads when they saw Charles.
Seeing Iana appear with the Grand Duke, Marcell hurriedly spoke with a relieved face.
"Iana, quickly! Tell these people who I am."
"First, greet His Highness the Grand Duke."
At Iana's words, Marcell finally bowed deeply and greeted respectfully.
"Marcell Rethels, greets Your Highness the Grand Duke."
"This is not the right place to say it's nice to meet you."
"I came here out of concern for my sister, and it seems there has been a misunderstanding."
Marcell spoke evasively, but Charles, with a cold gaze, spoke as if addressing a criminal.
"Entering the territory of the royal family under false pretenses is a misunderstanding?"
"What?"
"And bringing armed knights with you is a serious crime for which you could be executed immediately."
Only then did Marcell, realizing the gravity of the situation, kneel and plead for forgiveness.
"Please, forgive me. I never intended to harm Your Highness."
Seeing her brother kneeling, Iana felt the last bit of hope she had clung to disappear.
She had doubted but wanted to believe that her brother knew nothing.
But Marcell's sudden appearance revealed the truth more clearly than a hundred words.
"Your Highness, may I speak with my brother for a moment?"
Iana asked politely.
"Go ahead."
Charles gestured, and the guards opened the cell door. Mule then entered and cast a spell to restrain Marcell's magic.
"This way, please."
The guard led Iana and Marcell into a small reception room.
Bang-.
Once inside, the iron door of the reception room closed.
The two sat across from each other at a table, neither saying a word.
A heavy silence filled the room. Marcell broke the silence first.
"Iana, why did you lie and come to Ervin...?"
Iana cut him off with a question.
"Brother, you knew, didn't you? That I was cursed with dark magic."
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Marcell's eyes wavered greatly. But despite his eyes, he feigned ignorance with a surprised expression.
Seeing his brazen facade, Iana decided to push her brother harder.
"Was it Father who cursed me with dark magic?"
"Iana, how dare you insult Father? Our father, a respected Grand Mage, using dark magic!"
Marcell denied it, glaring at Iana. She retorted with a cold voice.
"Should I guess? You knew I was cursed with dark magic. But when I suddenly appeared healthy and mentioned magic, you became worried."
"..."
"Worried that my sealed magic might have been released."
Marcell turned his head to avoid her gaze.
"Your body ached, and now it seems your mind is not sound either."
"Brother!"
She stood up and shouted, and Marcell, standing as well, yelled back.
"Is that why you're spouting such nonsense?"
Iana, seeing her brother's persistent lies, felt a surge of anger.
"You had a chance. After Father passed away, your master, now the head of the Nine Grand Mages, surpassed Father's magic."
"..."
"He might have been able to break my dark magic curse, but you didn't even try. Why? Because the one to inherit the Rethels family's magic had to be you."
As she cornered him, Marcell sat down quietly. Then, with a face she had never seen before, he spoke.
"Don't make such a fuss. Everyone sacrifices for the family in their own way."
"What?"
"Think of the men of our family who risk their lives fighting monsters. Compared to those who died young on the battlefield, your sacrifice is not so significant."
"They equate the family's honor with their own. But I..."
Iana clutched her chest and continued.
"I sacrificed not for the family's honor but for your unworthy honor as a Grand Mage, suffering without knowing the reason."
"Dare you, Iana!"
"What if I go to the Nine Grand Mages and announce that the true inheritor of the Rethels family's magic is not you but me?"
"Do you think I'd let you do that?"
Her brother's threat was met with her furious response.
"What, are you going to curse me with dark magic again? Go ahead, try it!"
At that moment,
Boom! Boom!
The magic stones illuminating the room exploded one by one with loud noises.
"...!"
Marcell reflexively cowered, looking at Iana with a shocked expression.
Slam-.
The iron door opened, and Charles and Mule rushed in.
"Iana, calm down. If your emotions escalate further, your magic will grow beyond your control."
Mule tried to suppress Iana's magic with a binding spell.
Charles signaled the guards to take Marcell out of the room. The guards quickly escorted Marcell out.
"Countess, didn't you just regain your health? So please..."
As Charles approached Iana, Mule urgently stopped him.
"Your Highness, her magic is too strong to be restrained with a binding spell. We don't know how it might act, so please stay back."
Standing alone, Iana finally let out the pent-up frustration.
"I'm a child too..."
"..."
"I, I said I was so sick, so very sick. I was so envious of healthy Riel, I was so sick. Every time I said that, Father would carry me..."
She babbled incoherently, her voice mixed with sobs, like someone who had lost their mind.
"And Mother knew. That's why she didn't come to the villa the day Father cursed me with dark magic."
"Countess, please calm down. Just a little."
As Charles tried to soothe her, Iana let out words that had been like thorns in her heart.
"Everyone..."
"..."
"Abandoned me."
If a person's heart were a mountain, the small mountain Iana had built crumbled in an instant. Completely, without a trace.
Images of her father, mother, Carion, and Riel flashed through her mind.
"Sweetheart, shall I carry you?"
Her father's particularly kind voice lingered in her ears.
The enormous betrayal made her tremble with fear.
Iana covered her ears with both hands and mumbled incomprehensible words.
At that moment,
"Oh? Your Highness, don't..."
Before Mule could finish speaking, Charles grabbed Iana by the shoulders with both hands.
"Countess!"
"He's supposed to apologize, to say he was wrong..."
But she was still out of her mind.
Charles, realizing it wasn't working, cupped her face with both hands and shouted loudly.
"Iana, look at me!"
She seemed to regain some clarity and looked at Charles with blurry eyes. His firm and earnest gaze settled in her eyes.
Charles stared straight at Iana and spoke with terrifying determination.
"No one can abandon you. No one ever had you in the first place."
"..."
"It's not your fault."
"..."
"So Iana, don't collapse. Not for something that's not your fault."
At Charles's words, the voice of her father that had been echoing in her ears disappeared.
Iana cried out loud.
She let out the emotions that had been weighing down her heart, crying endlessly.
That afternoon, Iana asked Charles to arrange a private meal with Marcell.
She sat at the end of a long table.
A moment later, Marcell, looking tense, entered the dining room.
Iana spoke with a blank expression.
"Sit down."
"Why suddenly?"
"I want to have a last meal with you. Because I'm planning to abandon the Rethels family."
Marcell asked in a suspicious voice.
"How do you plan to abandon the family?"
Iana spoke calmly, almost indifferently.
"If I divorce, I'll be expelled from the family. The Rethels family doesn't tolerate divorce."
"What?"
Marcell looked shocked by the unexpected words.
Iana spoke with a fierce gaze.
"So help me divorce Carion."
"..."
"Use all the means and methods you can."
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