Chapter 125………………………………………..
“Enemy…?”
Idel looked at her in disbelief.
“Is that what you say to the friend who stole your adoption opportunity?”
“I’m sorry about that. But you would have refused Father’s offer anyway, right?”
Rieanna defended herself desperately.
“I only grabbed it in your place. Besides, I tried to make it up to you with Brother’s marriage.”
Yes. That was it. She had done all she could.
Repeating this to herself, the guilt she had felt toward Idel gradually began to fade.
“You just judged my happiness as you saw fit and forced it onto me. That’s neither compensation nor anything else.”
Because of that, everything Idel said now sounded like an attack against her.
“Think whatever you want. I tried my best to treat you well in my own way.”
“When did you?”
“I included you in family trips, invited you shopping, showed you myself in dresses…”
“Wait. That thing about the dress… you mean… when we were choosing my wedding dress?”
“Yes.”
“How was that being nice to me? I was just a mere stand-in that day.”
Hearing Idel’s rebuke, Rieanna felt a sting in her chest.
“So that’s why you held a grudge? That’s cruel. I tried to make you happy by showing you all sorts of cute sides of me.”
“You really thought I would be happy?”
“Of course! Didn’t you see Father and Brother’s reactions when they saw me?”
“No, they’re your family…”
“The staff and my friends liked it too.”
Even now, she could vividly picture their reactions.
“My goodness! Milady! You’re so cute!”
“Is this really human cuteness? Are you hiding wings on your back?”
“Wow! Wearing riding clothes, you look like a noble knight!”
“Cute, lovely, adorable, and now even splendid? What could the Cassius daughter possibly lack?”
Rieanna wanted to make Idel as happy as they were.
That was why, upon hearing that Idel was choosing a wedding dress with Leandro, she had run to them.
‘Now that I think about it, that was the moment Idel’s attitude started subtly changing.’
Until then, Idel had been fairly friendly toward Rieanna, but soon after, she began keeping her distance.
It was frustrating. Why couldn’t she recognize her goodwill?
If only Idel had been affected by her blessing…
“Blessing?”
Suddenly, Rieanna remembered that Idel might also have memories from a previous life.
She didn’t really want to admit it, but if Idel was also a returning chosen one of the goddess…
Rieanna had returned and gained a blessing.
Then what about Idel? Did she have a blessing too?
Rieanna studied Idel’s bewildered face.
“Rieanna, first I’ve realized your common sense is far from ordinary. There’s no point in continuing this conversation—”
“You! You also have a blessing?”
Idel fell silent.
“Tell me. Do you have a blessing like mine, one that allows you to be loved by others?”
“No. I don’t have that ability.”
She didn’t seem to be lying.
Thinking back, Idel truly had not been loved much in this life.
She had suffered at the hands of the Wallis family for over ten years and had been neglected even at Cassius.
Rieanna secretly exhaled in relief.
‘Of course. As expected, I’m the special one.’
That had been Rieanna’s unshakable belief ever since her return.
Chosen by the goddess, she was special. Her blessing was a unique power that no one else could possess.
Moreover, Idel’s situation was vastly different from hers.
Unlike Rieanna, who had full memories from her past life and had changed her life, Idel’s memories were returning only bit by bit.
Even in the mining village, the memories Rieanna saw in Idel were incomplete.
It remained uncertain whether her memories were fully restored now.
‘Better not leak any info from my side.’
Rieanna cooled her mind and judged that it was best to step back for now.
Now that Idel had become her enemy, she would have to act only after careful planning.
“I’ll leave now, Idel.”
Rising to her feet, Rieanna spoke with quiet sadness.
“It’s truly heartbreaking. That a friend I once cherished has become my enemy. But no matter what, I will never let anyone take my precious family from me.”
“Just to be clear, I have no intention of taking Cassius. I left that place on my own.”
“Then why did Uncle Kaiden take him?”
She recalled the butler who had doted on her as a child. He had changed because of Idel.
“Have you forgotten what your family did to Joshua back then? Mr. Kaiden left Cassius of his own accord.”
“That was an accident that couldn’t be helped. And until you became a witness, he hadn’t changed.”
“…You really only think of yourself and care nothing for others.”
“And you even took Elliot and Cecil from me.”
“Do I need to say more? You only hear what you want to hear anyway.”
“Just you wait. I will never let my family be taken.”
Rieanna hurriedly left the villa and returned to the palace where she was staying with Mihail.
“Rieanna, did you meet that woman well?”
Mihail was already back.
“Thanks to you arranging the meeting, I realized something. As you said… my sister-in-law…”
Rieanna corrected herself deliberately.
“No, Idel is my enemy. I won’t show mercy for old ties that once made us family.”
“Good decision. You’re far too kind.”
“By the way, have you contacted the temple?”
“I secretly sent a letter, though I’m not sure if it was the right thing to do.”
Mihail’s expression darkened slightly.
“The temple has long enjoyed privilege and corruption. I know you dislike them too.”
“But to defeat a greater evil, we must work with them for now.”
“True. Terrence… we absolutely cannot let that man take the Empire.”
“Don’t worry. We’re only using the temple. Letting evil fight evil—it’s a clever strategy, right?”
Mihail looked at his cunningly smiling lover with fond eyes.
“You’re always right.”
“Oh, I have a favor to ask.”
“Anything. Just say it.”
“I want to bring my people from home. Can you let them stay here?”
“Sure. Though it’s a pity—I could have monopolized you until now.”
“Ha ha, acting like a child.”
Rieanna buried her face on Mihail’s shoulder, and finding him adorable, she stroked his head.
“So, who will you bring?”
“My guard Mathis, the maid, and Tara.”
“Tara? Didn’t you intentionally keep her at a distance?”
“That’s true, but it seems I was mistaken.”
Rieanna had been wary of Tara recently because Elliot had once claimed that Tara had some kind of connection to Idel.
‘Until now, I didn’t fully trust Tara because I wasn’t sure if Elliot had betrayed me…’
Now that she confirmed Idel had memories from her previous life, it was clear Elliot had been a traitor.
The missing piece connecting Terrence and Elliot had been Idel.
Elliot had been close to Idel in his previous life.
Since Rieanna knew him well, it wouldn’t be difficult to sway him to her side.
The same went for Cecil, the master of the Iver Trading Company.
Thus, Rieanna decided to trust the talents she personally discovered, rather than those who had connections to Idel in a previous life, like Elliot and Cecil.
Especially Tara, skilled at gathering information, could be highly effective even within the royal palace.
‘Idel, if you’re hiding anything from me, I’ll find out, no matter what it is.’
After Rieanna left, I (Idel) slumped into the sofa, my tension released.
I had been scolded for pretending to be fine.
‘What did I just see?’
Earlier, when I pressured Rieanna to tell the truth, she had stayed silent for quite some time.
She seemed lost in some other thought.
Then, a strange memory flowed into my mind.
At first, I thought it was the real Idel’s memory surfacing again.
But in fleeting glimpses, the Idel in the memory existed separately, and she called me “Rieanna.”
In other words, what I saw was Rieanna’s memory.
“Divine Beast!”
I summoned the divine beast and recounted the strange experience I had just gone through.
Unless the goddess appeared to explain, the divine beast was the only one around who could understand such things.
“Now that you mention it, I felt something strange too.”
With no one else in the room, the divine beast spoke aloud.
“As master and servant, we are spiritually linked. But just now, it felt as if you were also connected to another being besides me.”
“Another being… could it be Rieanna?”
“If you saw her memory, then yes.”
“Are we still connected now?”
“No, now everything is normal. The link was temporary and very faint.”
“A sudden connection… what could it mean?”
“I don’t know that far. But we can consider this possibility.”
“How?”
“You and she are both humans blessed by the goddess. Moreover, having close ties in both past and present lives, your souls may have momentarily resonated.”
I mulled over the divine beast’s words but felt unsettled.
“But she isn’t the real Idel. Her soul isn’t Idel’s soul.”
“What does that mean?”
I briefly explained my situation to the divine beast.
Perhaps because I was a mysterious being myself, the divine beast accepted my words without objection.
“Well, it’s only my hypothesis…”
We brainstormed various other possibilities together.
Suddenly, the divine beast proposed a new theory.
“Perhaps the reason you came to this world originates from Rieanna, from her.”
