Chapter 44

“You seem very excited . Am I bothering you?”

Slip . An ominous shadow appeared from behind the tree, and my heart dropped in my chest with a thunk .

I recognized her existence before I neared her .

“How dare you . I have asked you a question, mother . ”

“……Lania . ”

After all, there was no way another person could exist in this world that harassed other people as arrogantly as she did .

“You should call me Lady Lania, if you know your place . ”

“……”

“I really doubted it, but to think I would meet you here of all places . ”

She made an expression as if she was both very surprised and yet not surprised at all .

Like she had predicted that I would reappear here again, she leisurely stepped closer to me .

“After the cocky way you acted last time, I never thought you would be going around however you want like this again . ”

“So you’re here because… . . ”

When I looked past her, my expression fell in futility .

A wire fence rose behind her, seemingly encompassing the entire boundary of the Dukedom’s territory, and the side road was completely blocked by it .

It was so tightly enclosed that I strained my eyes trying to find a gap in it .

“Why? What’s with your disappointed expression?”

“……”

“Don’t tell me—were you really going to escape or something?”

Her laughter ridiculing me went past my ears, and her eyes landed on the basket I held in my hands .

Pfft . Her lips seemed to say ‘I thought as much,’ and the corners of her mouth relaxed as if she was playing with a mouse that was already caught in the trap .

“I don’t know if you developed some nerves, but I didn’t know you would be this reckless . Did you think that since you made it out once, you’d be able to do it again?”

“Stop being so rude . ”

T/N: Starting from when she told her to call her “Lady,” Lania has been using informal speech with her, which is probably what Catherine is talking about by calling her rude .

“It’s you, mother, who should stop doing whatever you want and making things difficult . When I think of how big your head became just because you spoke a few words with the Emperor, you should be grateful I’m keeping you alive . ”

“Hah… . So that was it?”

A bitter sneer burst out of me before I could stop it .

I had suspected as much from when she had started being sarcastic, but once she revealed herself that clearly, I couldn’t hide how drained I felt .

“Look here, Miss eldest daughter . Were you feeling that jealous because His Highness said he would view the lake with me? Enough to cut down a completely fine tree and anxiously block out a road like this?”

“What did you say?”

“Lania, I understand very well that you don’t treat people’s lives as worth any more than a bug’s, but at the very least it’s so impolite for you to use that as a way to take out your frustrations about your unrequited love . No, isn’t that just embarrassing to that dignity of yours as an oh-so-important princess?”

“Shut up, Catherine . ”

“……”

She grit her teeth so hard that her cheeks were trembling .

Seeing how the girl who barely got worked up over almost anything beside herself this much, her heart towards that man must have been actually sincere .

“You better hold that tongue of yours well if you want to stay alive . It will be troubling if you plan to escape with your leash loose just because you got to do what you wanted that one time . ”

“… . who’s escaping!”

But I was the same, getting angry because she hit the nail on the head .

Especially when the aura around Lania sharpened fearfully, which felt like she would smash my basket to pieces at any given moment .

“Then what, were you going on a picnic all dressed up? One might think you managed to catch a fine enough man . If I didn’t know you were a cursed black swan, mother, you might have convinced me, too . ”

“……”

“I don’t know what other plausible excuse you’re trying to make up, but I’ve already warned you . Your life, Catherine, will start and end at this lake from now on . ”

Lania’s arrogant voice enclosed me as tightly as the wire fence around us .

A very delighted tone of voice .

She specialized in cornering people and throwing them under the bus, so there was probably no other time she would be this delighted apart from now .

“Open that right now . ”

“Why should I!”

“… . my, it seems like my foolish mother still hasn’t realized what situation she is in . ”

Her arms crossed, Lania haughtily lifted an eyebrow . She really reminded me of your common female bully that could be found in alleyways anywhere, who had done this kind of thing many times before .

“Please don’t act as if I would try to take what little you have from you . I only want to compensate you according to what comes out of there . ”

“You think I would have tried to steal your family’s things?”

“So, you’re not?”

If she was any different from those female bullies, it was that Lania had the actual power to crush a person’s life underfoot .

“My magician will be coming to see me soon . You should know them well too . ”

“… . Don’t tell me… . ”

“That’s right . It’s the very same person who generously gifted you with the feathers all over your body, mother . ”

She intentionally hit my shoulder, as if asking me if I could not remember .

The truth was that when I had opened my eyes, I had already been cursed, so I had never met this magician personally . But there was no doubt whatsoever that whoever he/she was, he/she was not a good person .

“I’ve already been cursed, what more are you trying to do? Turn me into a black swan completely?”

“No . As if I could . I do still need my mother as a human from time to time . ”

“… . . ”

She lifted her chin out, laughing ominously in a way that concealed her intentions . .

“But if I think about it, does it really need to be an intact human?”

“So what are you going to do?”

“You are likely mentally unsound already . I’m just saying, it would be much more fitting if your body was just as unsound as your mind was . ”

“… . . ”

It was a low and dirty threat that suited her very well, but as someone hearing that threat, a chill ran up my spine unbidden .