Chapter 76
Standing barefoot atop the scattered shards of broken glass, she looked strangely serene—too calm and beautiful for the blood that dripped from her feet.
The fresh wounds on her soles were already healing.
Though the glass had sliced into her skin and drawn blood, the pain didn’t linger long.
“So it’s true… Hehe. I knew it was you all along.”
Like a child who had finally gotten their hands on a long-desired toy, Liviere’s voice brimmed with uncontainable joy.
With her eyes barely open, she stepped onto the glass and whispered,
“It’s a bit late… but I’ll have to prepare a truly grand welcome.”
Recalling the face of Erdia she had first seen at the ball, Liviere slowly curved her lips into a smile—one so enchanting, it bordered on rapture.
“We’ll meet again soon, Erdia.”
The air was heavier than Maersen, drier than Bellaniv.
Though it was late at night, the streets were brightly lit and teeming with people bustling through the night market, making it hard to even call it “nighttime.”
The air, the landscape—it was all so distinctly different from Maersen and Bellaniv that I finally felt the reality of being back in Rajan.
The carriage passed through the thorough inspection of the knights stationed at the gate and slowly entered the mansion grounds.
It came to a halt, and the door opened quietly.
As the cold midnight breeze brushed against my eyelids, I carefully stepped down from the carriage.
After passing the newly refurbished, fragrant garden, I reached the entrance—where a familiar face awaited me.
“Erdia.”
The moment I saw him, the tension I hadn’t even realized I was holding onto melted away, replaced by a wave of relief.
The Marquis looked at me with the same calm expression as always, his gaze warm and steady.
I had so much I wanted to say to him right then, but since the servants were present, I simply lowered my head.
“I’m back, Father.”
His hand gently rested on my shoulder.
It was a firm yet comforting touch, as if he already knew everything without needing a single word.
“I’m glad you returned safely.”
He seemed to have already guessed what might’ve happened.
I wanted to speak, but there was too much built up—it left me only mouthing the words, unable to say them aloud.
The Marquis patted my shoulder, then quietly turned.
“You must’ve gone through a lot. Let’s head inside. This is too long a story to be told standing.”
Once again, he sensed my condition before I could say anything and gently led the way.
With my lips tightly sealed, I followed behind, my footsteps heavy.
When had I started calling this place “home”? As the familiar air embraced me, all the exhaustion I had ignored suddenly surged forth.
Though I hadn’t shown it, I was already deeply worn out.
Hiding my emotions in front of Khalid had been more suffocating and painful than I had expected.
But not every moment had been painful.
Even though I had to stay hyper-aware every day to keep my feelings from slipping, simply being near him had felt good. I had thought I made the right decision by staying by his side.
“You should rest well tonight.”
Seeing how worn I looked, the Marquis spoke gently.
That warm concern made my throat tighten unexpectedly. It finally hit me that I was back in a space where I didn’t have to hide anything.
“No. Let’s go to the study. There’s a lot I need to tell you.”
There was no time to rest. I had even rushed the journey back to Rajan to arrive earlier than planned—just to have this conversation.
Just thinking about it made my fingertips tremble slightly.
The Marquis seemed to notice, his expression briefly hardening before giving a quiet nod.
Once inside the study, he personally poured a cup of warm tea for me before turning around.
“I heard the matter in Bellaniv was resolved well… but was there something else?”
I took a sip of the tea he offered and drew a deep breath.
The words I needed to say lingered in my mouth, hesitant. But I had to say them.
Especially to Marquis Valandier, who knew my true identity—this was something I could never hide.
“Liviere… I think she’s figured out who I am.”
I had tried to deny it over and over during the carriage ride—but in the end, I couldn’t ignore the ominous feeling.
The subtle scent of tea floated around us, but there was no time to savor it.
“Are you certain?”
The Marquis quietly asked in response.
“Yes. There are things that can’t be explained otherwise.”
I had been thinking it through nonstop on the ride back.
It all began with the Marquis’s letter—about the riot in Bellaniv. From that alone, I could piece together a rough picture of the situation there.
Bellaniv was a painful place for me. I still felt guilty for not taking responsibility until the end, but it was also where I had first used my holy power to save many people.
“To Liviere, Bellaniv was a source of money, but also a stage for revenge against me. She even left behind a research log for an experiment I never conducted—just so I’d find it.”
“You mean… she wanted you to see it?”
I set the teacup down and slowly spoke, gathering my breath.
“Yes. She knew that portraying herself as the one who stopped the great flood and saved the people would shake me.”
Just as I knew Liviere, she likely understood the personality of the soul that once inhabited her body. That’s how such a revenge was possible.
Besides, she must’ve been curious about my identity—curious enough to risk losing Bellaniv.
“She hates me more than I expected.”
I knew we could never be on good terms.
It wasn’t like I had chosen to possess her body, either.
The unfairness of it all rose in my throat, but at the same time, I could understand her. If someone had used my body for years and reshaped my entire life—I’d be furious, too.
“I understand why she hates me… but I can’t forgive what she’s done to those around me.”
She had manipulated Khalid countless times and left deep wounds on people I cared about.
Liviere acted like she was trying to destroy everything I ever held dear, one piece at a time.
“At the very least… she shouldn’t have touched innocent people.”
When I discovered that she had redeveloped ‘Adam’ while inspecting the ship, I fainted on the spot.
And it wasn’t just that. After arriving in Bellaniv, I was emotionally unstable at every turn. I tried to remain calm, but there were moments where emotions took over.
If Bellaniv had been a trap set by Liviere… then she must’ve already found me out. She was probably watching me the whole time.
“In a way, maybe it’s better. Instead of just destroying what I love, now she’ll come after me directly.”
“That could put you in danger, my lady.”
“Better that than watching everyone around me fall apart. I’ll just have to keep getting stronger.”
I understood the Marquis’s concern. I was well aware of my own powerlessness. I had returned determined to grow strong enough to protect myself in moments of crisis.
Then I recalled that strange power that had surged within me in Bellaniv.
“Something strange happened in Bellaniv. It was a really dangerous moment… but something protected me. Some unknown power.”
“Unknown power…?”
The Marquis’s eyes narrowed sharply.
“Yes. I felt something slip out from within me. I couldn’t see it, but it felt like I was being enveloped by something… like a mage’s shield.”
“Hmm… Were there any other symptoms?”
“It happened so quickly, and the situation was so urgent, I couldn’t examine it in detail. But I’m sure that power protected me.”
He set down his teacup and leaned forward. His expression turned serious, like something had come to mind, and I tensed up along with him.
A long silence followed before he cautiously spoke.
“That power… Could it have been holy power?”
“I did consider that… but is that even possible? How could I have holy power?”
It felt like the solid framework of what I believed was starting to crack.
“But power that protects someone regardless of will… aside from a mage’s magic, holy power is the only explanation.”
His tone was cautious but firm.
His eyes moved slowly from my hands to my face, and finally to my eyes—as if trying to confirm something.
“Holy power is undoubtedly a blessing from the gods. A power one is born with—something you can’t gain through effort. But you… you’ve used that power before, haven’t you?”
“That’s because… I was Liviere. I was in a body blessed by the gods…”
“Yes. But what if the possession left something behind?”
