Chapter 59

He glanced at Janobi.

"I heard that in the hunting grounds today, in front of His Majesty the King, all of San Carlo, and even foreigners, you defended Janobi, your cousin, more than Ariadne, who should have been your child and mine. It made me think a lot."

Cardinal de Mare dramatically waved his hand in the air.

"Isn't this what others see? 'Cardinal de Mare is a complete pushover. He treats his wife, who values her own family more than his, as a lady and doesn't even have a mistress, and he dotes on her.'"

Lucrezia was pale and trembling. Isabella, too, was frightened and had stifled her crying, while Janobi, the only one, was lost in his own misfortune, unable to grasp what was happening.

"I intend to cut off all assistance to the de Rossi family from now on."

Cardinal de Mare looked at Lucrezia with his deep green eyes.

"Are you thinking, 'He's talking nonsense, he already stopped her from sending money to her family,' right now?"

Lucrezia flinched as if hit where it hurt and looked at the floor again.

"I knew you were secretly sending money to the de Rossi family. I let it slide because it would have been embarrassing to dig into it. But now it's over. I find it a waste to give even one ducat, no, one florin to these ungrateful people."

Cardinal de Mare turned to Ariadne. Ariadne, who had been enjoying the situation as a non-participant, was startled and quickly bowed her head.

"Father."

"Ariadne."

He looked at his second daughter for a moment and then continued to Lucrezia.

"From now on, Ariadne will inspect your accounts. You will write the household accounts meticulously and bring them to Ariadne once a week for inspection."

"…!"

Lucrezia's expression twisted. This was not only humiliating but also meant that she would find it difficult to wield her unique power as the lady of the house. Ariadne would immediately inform Cardinal de Mare if any suspicious expenses were found, making it impossible for Lucrezia to spend money freely and requiring a legitimate 'reason' for any expenditure.

"Ariadne, you must not treat her as your mother. If you find anything suspicious in the accounts, confirm it and bring it to me. I cannot tolerate even a single potato or cabbage going to the de Rossi family."

He paused for a moment and added,

"I estimate that at least 20 ducats (about 20 million won) per month are going to the de Rossi family. Bring in that much every month. We need to stop it."

Ariadne bowed politely but firmly.

"Yes, Father."

Cardinal de Mare turned to Janobi, who was kneeling with his limbs bound in the corner.

"You must tell your parents and grandparents everything, word for word. Tell them that this happened because you, Janobi de Rossi, didn't know your place and shot a crossbow at the Cardinal de Mare's daughter. The de Rossi family will starve to death because of Janobi de Rossi."

As Janobi's limbs trembled, Cardinal de Mare gestured to the butler Niccolo.

"Take him away."

"Yes, Your Eminence!"

The men dragged Janobi away. They were taking him to the northern basement, where they would cut the tendons in his limbs. Janobi was dragged like a pig to the northern basement, and the servants of the de Mare family, whom he had considered beneath him, approached with large knives used for slaughtering animals, their eyes wide.

"No, don't come near me!"

Janobi, who had thought, "They wouldn't really cut them," even when Cardinal de Mare ordered it, finally realized the reality when he saw the slaughtering knives. But no matter how desperately he screamed, there was no response. Overwhelming force overwhelmed him, and the slaughtering knives tore through the tendons in his shoulders and Achilles tendons.

"Aaaaaah!"

This was the moment when the person who had clumsily tried to use personal violence submitted to the collective violence. His future ended under the oppression of a stronger force. * * *

As Janobi was dragged away, the regular, pig-like screams echoed four times from the basement. Lucrezia, hearing her nephew's screams, turned pale and could not speak. Cardinal de Mare spoke to her with a seemingly affectionate but indifferent tone.

"Dear, think of it as a good excuse to be free from leeches."

And he left Lucrezia's parlor. His not-so-comforting words did not seem to comfort her at all. Lucrezia, who could not believe what had happened, trembled like a leaf and hugged her knees with her arms. Ariadne, thinking she had seen enough and no longer needed to sit, bowed and stood up to leave. At that moment, Lucrezia screamed in a possessed, tearing voice.

"You! Possessed woman! Nothing has gone well since you came!"

If the previous Ariadne was a ghost, the current Ariadne was indeed a possessed woman. Lucrezia always had an animalistic sense that instinctively approached the truth. She replied expressionlessly.

"Mother, I'll start inspecting the accounts next week. It will take you some time to prepare, so I'll see you on Friday."

"Aaaaaah! You stay there! Corrupt woman! I'll tear you apart!"

Despite Lucrezia's commands, Ariadne did not hesitate at all. She held her head high and left Lucrezia's parlor. Isabella, sitting close to her mother, trembled and glared at Ariadne, but the mother and daughter could do nothing at that moment. Ariadne was smiling faintly. She no longer needed Lucrezia's permission to leave the room and no longer feared being beaten by her. Freedom, this was the sweetest taste that the harsh power could offer.

* * *

Ariadne, who had returned to her room, lay on the bed without changing her clothes. She had changed and washed after the hunt but was still in her indoor dress because she had been receiving Cardinal de Mare's ramblings.

"Miss! You need to change and wash your face before going to bed!"

Sancha, like a squirrel, ran over and tried to pull Ariadne. Ariadne, lying on the bed, waved her hand and made Sancha sit beside her.

"Father told me to inspect Lucrezia's household accounts."

"Oh, Miss! That's great! Now you can wield the knife! Let them taste it!"

Ariadne shook her head.

"I learned something important today."

"What is it?"

"No matter how insignificant a person may seem, they have one trick. You never know when they might go crazy, so you need to keep your cards hidden and stay out of sight."

Ariadne had provoked Janobi, thinking she was completely safe. But Janobi had a savage strength that Ariadne lacked. She thought that violence could not be used without going mad in a society with strict norms and laws, but a stupid and impatient person would swing what they had despite the threat of punishment. Social pressure was ultimately secondary. When conflict erupted, the most primitive solution was physical force. Sancha tilted her head.

"But when do you wield power?"

Sancha's words contained a certain truth. Ariadne's attitude in her previous life, always being kind, always being polite, and always considering the other person's position, was not much different from what she had decided now.

"By accumulating. Until you can strike a decisive blow."

Ariadne did not believe that Lucrezia would stop sending money to the de Rossi family. If she were going to stop, she would have done so long ago. It was about accumulating, accumulating, and then exploding at the right moment. And there was the 'iron hook' incident with Isabella. Isabella would eventually be caught, and she would not let it go. Based on today's lesson, Ariadne would become an even stronger and more dangerous person, avoiding mistakes and enduring unforeseen risks with resilience, never to be crushed by others again.

"I'm tired. Let's go to bed."

Ariadne took a step closer to the safety she had longed for. That night, she slept a long, sweet sleep for the first time in a while.

* * *

Lucrezia resisted Ariadne's inspection of the household accounts fiercely, but Cardinal de Mare was stubborn. When Ariadne reported her mother's lack of cooperation twice, Cardinal de Mare threatened to make