Chapter 17

This is a dark and complex narrative, but I will translate it as requested:

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For the sake of deepening the taste of the "serves you right" that will come later, it was a necessary chapter to make the reader's heart heavy.

Amidst the cherry blossoms dancing in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of the promise written there.

"Riliann, what a terrible misunderstanding. I acknowledged you more than anyone else, and I loved you so much."

"Stepmother, please don't be sad. I know very well that you loved Riliann so much."

"Thank you, Nina..."

I gently placed my hand on the back of the beautiful woman who was shedding tears, as if to comfort her. Yes, I quickly realized that the youngest princess was being doted on. It was so obvious that it would be strange not to notice. I'm good at reading people's emotions, and I could tell that this mother, along with the entire family, was showering her with an almost dangerous amount of love.

After the princess ran away, the remaining family members lamented day and night. "That wasn't my intention," "Why such a sad misunderstanding," they would say.

It was a rash act by a sheltered young lady, so I thought she would be found by night. The duke had mobilized his private army, and it seemed that the infatuated prince was also involved.

Thus, Riliann, who had run away in a fit of pique to test her family's love, would be welcomed back with tears and her whims accepted, just as she had planned. I was so tired of the thought of being shown such a nauseatingly sweet "Riliann is the best" act.

However, my prediction did not come true, not even on the day of the incident or the next day. The following day, and the day after that, "Riliann hasn't been found," the duke, who had turned pale, looked increasingly serious, as did the rest of the family.

By the time a week had passed, the news was still being kept under wraps. The beloved daughter of the duke, Riliann, was said to be recuperating from an injury sustained during a hunting trip. A leave of absence was submitted to the academy, and it was announced that she was resting in the territory.

Even now, half a month after her disappearance, Riliann has not been found.

In my heart, I thought, "Maybe she's already dead." After all, if that were the case, it would explain why no news of her has come despite the extensive search. Or perhaps she was kidnapped and taken to a brothel before leaving the capital. Given her beauty, that seemed the most likely scenario.

Her flawless skin, lustrous silver hair, and the fact that she was born into a position where she was doted on, despite her rough hands from wielding a sword, all pointed to a life of privilege.

Yesterday, Wilfred and Cornelia went to a remote rural town, where it was reported that a powerful magic had been detected at the adventurer's guild, possibly belonging to Riliann.

The adventurer's guild is often visited by rough people and serves as an evacuation site, so it is always protected by a magical barrier. A mage of extraordinary power had used magic nearby, and the barrier had reacted.

Despite being such a powerful mage, the magic detected was not registered to any adventurer. I don't fully understand this, but since everyone's magic is unique, it can be determined whether it belongs to Riliann or not. However, they had to go to the site to confirm, and the two of them had gone to do just that.

What a waste of time. If she had run away, they should have just left her alone. "I hope it's not her," I thought, almost praying.

Please, God, I'll do better, so please let her be dead. I've finally found a place where I belong and can be happy. Don't ruin my life.

"Good morning, Nina."

"Good morning, Michelle."

I smiled brightly to appear friendly and returned the greeting. When the news of Riliann's leave of absence for recuperation in the duke's territory was announced, it was a big topic of conversation. I was glad it had calmed down. So many people kept asking me why, which was incredibly frustrating. They knew Riliann had been injured during the hunting trip, but they wondered why the light user who had taken her in didn't treat her.

I was tired of hearing from those girls who wanted to get close to Riliann through me, not even trying to hide their ulterior motives. They were rude, asking about Riliann instead of me, the valuable light user.

There was no one to treat her, of course. I had only superficially treated her injuries to make them last longer, hoping she wouldn't wake up. The doctors and other healers, who didn't trust my abilities, did their best to hinder me. But in the end, they couldn't heal her either, and she remained unconscious for days. It wasn't my fault.

But I was furious when they said it was because my power wasn't enough. "I wonder why. She should have stayed in the capital and continued to receive my treatment. Or did she hate being treated by me so much?" I cried, and no one dared to say anything openly.

After all, it was forbidden to tell anyone that Riliann was missing, as ordered by the duke, my stepfather. As an adopted child, I couldn't disobey him. Right?

I couldn't stand being mocked to hide the fact that she was missing. I had to become a renowned light user, invited everywhere and envied by all. I couldn't accept anything that would affect that.

"Hey, Nina. I want to talk to you. Can I?"

"O-Okay."

When I saw the person who called me during lunch break, I hid my exasperation and answered with a slightly frightened tone, for the benefit of those around us.

Oh well. I was planning to go comfort Lord Reynold today, but I guess I'll have to give up on that. I followed the two of them, who looked serious. They were the other two from the same group as Riliann and me that day. They were also on the "self-preservation" side, not wanting to take responsibility for the duke's daughter's severe injury and loss of consciousness.

"Is Riliann's condition really that bad, Nina?"

"Hasn't the duke's family said anything?"

Once we entered a private room reserved for lunch, they asked with concern. They had eagerly agreed to my suggestion, so why were they asking such a question now?

"Don't worry. No one else knows that the two of you, to avoid responsibility, pushed the cause of the accident onto Riliann without telling the truth for your own sake."

"! How dare you say such things..."

"It's all your fault, you—"

I wasn't afraid of anything they said. They knew that revealing the truth now would only lead to their own downfall. They had suggested that they "realized they were separated" to avoid responsibility for Riliann's unconscious state.

They probably thought the kind-hearted "Riliann" would forgive them if she recovered. After all, she was a naive and sweet girl. If her friends had cried to her about being punished for her injury, she would have taken the blame herself.

I had no intention of letting these accidental accomplices go. I knew they were relieved when it was decided that Riliann's condition was so bad that she couldn't even come to the academy for a while.

I admit, I made a mistake. It didn't go as planned and caused quite a stir. I need to reflect and do better next time.

It was all Aizel's fault. Oh, I shouldn't call him that anymore; I should call him "Mr. Amado."

When I first met him, he was being protected by the church after suddenly being called a mage. He seemed like a cool, reliable, and charming older man. I had eagerly helped with his research, but recently he looked like a middle-aged man with a scruffy beard and dark circles under his eyes. He was still in his early twenties.

Oh, I shouldn't have helped him. Riliann was right; he wasn't that useful. He struggled so much with a slightly larger slime. Wasn't he supposed to be there to help with something that didn't suit my powers?

But I was grateful to him for covering for me, saying it was Riliann's idea to avoid responsibility. That's what gave me the idea for this plan. So, it was worth helping with the research. Riliann thought it was a secret order from the country, and I playfully touched my lips, remembering his charming smile.

Why did I swoon over a man like that? If I had known there were more attractive people here, I wouldn't have gotten close to him. But it's good to have a teacher who can't defy me. He would be finished if I exposed him. I'll use him before the exams.

But I was so excited to show off my power to everyone. I was supposed to be a new mage with a great performance, and everyone was supposed to praise me. I went deep into the forest for that. Wasn't he supposed to provide a stage for me to shine? It was a complete failure.

It was all Riliann's fault. If she hadn't interfered, I would have noticed and handled it immediately. I was just surprised and couldn't use my full power. She did something unnecessary.

I want to go as far as I can. It's okay, I won't fail next time.

It was unfair from the start. I was the illegitimate child of a baron's affair. While Riliann was pampered by her family and lived a carefree life, the world was unfair.

That life wasn't suitable for me. I was taken in by them, and I endured for almost five years in that house before I was nine.

Suddenly thrown into a world of studies and etiquette, I never got what I wanted, and there was a nagging old lady who said, "You should be grateful to the lady who took in the illegitimate child left behind by your real mother and her lover." She was the duke's wife's foster sister.

I had no obligation to listen to her, and I didn't want to be ordered around, so I managed to get by. I didn't lie. I just called her "Lady" in public and acted scared, and said a few suggestive things. It was the others who misunderstood and thought I was being oppressed by my stepmother. I was "the brave Nina trying to adapt to the unfamiliar noble society."

I wonder if they're worried now. They should have been kinder to me. They'll regret it even more when I become a great mage. I'm looking forward to it.

I worked so hard, while Riliann had everything from the start. It made me so angry that she didn't even appreciate it. She acted cool even when praised and humbly said she still had a lot to learn. I was so irritated at first.

Worse, she said she wanted to be recognized by her family. I knew they all doted on the youngest princess and praised her to the point of making me sick. I always thought it was greedy and selfish of her to want more.

That's why I wanted to show her that she couldn't have the "talent for light magic" I had, to make her feel inferior. But it was funny to find out she didn't even know how much her family loved her.

No wonder she ran away, acting like a tragic heroine.

They don't want anyone to know how harshly they treated Riliann, despite boasting about her. They're afraid of being seen as the cruel family who never praised her. Even the prince, who knows she ran away, doesn't know why.

Of course, they can't say it was their fault for never praising her.

Fortunately, my lie hasn't been exposed yet. They have something to hide, so the investigation into the accident was quickly closed. With the testimony of the same group members and Mr. Amado, the family believes Riliann ran away because she wanted praise and tried to force a result, leading to the incident.

Only one servant woman, who was close to Riliann, argued, "Even if she wanted praise, she wouldn't cause such trouble." It was really for the best that Riliann was gone. For my sake, please don't come back.

I deeply regret what happened that day.

It was my first real combat. I had practiced killing monsters, but they were in cages, and I had never been so close to one. When a monster suddenly appeared in front of me, I panicked, and before I knew it, Riliann was severely injured.

I almost fainted from shock. I didn't want this to happen. I just wanted to show off my light magic, make Riliann feel inferior, and make the good girl realize she had a dirty heart.

At first, the doctor said she might not wake up. It wasn't a lie.

But the thought of being the cause of someone's death, and the fear of seeing the duke and his family mourn, terrified me.

If it came out that I was the cause of Riliann's severe injury and that I had lied to cover it up, what would happen to me? The duke, my stepmother, and everyone else would never forgive me. I would be expelled from the family, and worse, I would be charged with a crime. I have to keep this secret no matter what.

Riliann might have run away because of a misunderstanding, but the family's love for her is real. No one can know that I lied about the incident and was the cause of it.

So, please, I beg you, let Riliann never be found. May she never return or be dead somewhere far away.

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Ultimately, knowing what kind of fate she might face in my other works will help you read this with a sense of familiarity.