Chapter 84

Ariadne, wrapped in a thick robe, sat in the carriage heading to Campo de' Fiori, her mouth tightly shut, clutching the letter containing secrets given to her by her mother. They were almost at their destination. Beside her was Sancha, and across from her, Giada was fidgeting, trying to read her mood.

“Miss, do I really have to go in with you? I mean, it’s not like I’m necessary...”

“How will Miss know the evil black magician if you’re not there, Madam Giada?”

Sancha snapped irritably. This master and servant had the same points of anger.

“It’s not a black magician, but a fortune-teller...”

Giada, now reduced to a subordinate, shrank under Sancha’s gaze. - Hee-haw!

“We’ve arrived. Would you like to get out here?”

The coachman, Giuseppe, who had pulled his hat down, asked. Ariadne looked around and nodded.

“Giada, go ahead. Sancha, stay with Giuseppe and the carriage.”

Ariadne got out of the carriage and entered the old single-story house, leading Giada. - Creak. The old wooden floorboards groaned eerily. Giada flinched and hunched her shoulders. Not knowing where to go, Ariadne looked at Giada. Under Ariadne’s gaze, Giada reluctantly answered.

“It’s the room at the very back...”

- Thud, thud. Ariadne walked down the corridor quickly, ignoring the creaking of the floorboards. - Squeak. Amidst this, a noise not made by Ariadne echoed through the old house. It was the sound of rusty hinges as a door opened. Ariadne, gripping the dagger in her bosom, sharply turned to the source of the sound. At the door of the back room stood a gypsy woman, her luggage packed and a crystal ball cradled in her arms, seemingly about to leave. Giada shouted from the side.

“That’s the woman, Miss!”

Ariadne strode forward, cornering the gypsy woman in the narrow corridor. The gypsy woman, startled, took a step back.

“What is this...!”

Ariadne, blocking the gypsy woman with her body, asked firmly.

“Are you the fortune-teller of Lady Rubina, the Countess of Moor?”

The gypsy woman, cornered at the end of the corridor, tried to push past Ariadne and run. But Ariadne, without hesitation, tripped the gypsy woman. - Thud!

“Aah!”

The gypsy woman, burdened by her luggage and the crystal ball, lost her balance and fell. Amidst this, Ariadne realized that the crystal ball, which the gypsy woman clung to, could be a leverage for negotiation.

“Giada, take it.”

“...!”

“Hurry!”

Giada, hesitating out of fear of the black magician, lunged at the black magician at Ariadne’s command. While Giada was more afraid of the black magician, she was even more afraid of the young lady who held her leash. The gypsy woman resisted, thrashing about. Seeing Giada’s strength falter, Ariadne joined in from behind, pinning the gypsy woman’s arms. The gypsy woman, unable to resist any longer, had her crystal ball taken by Giada. Ariadne, now in control of the situation, asked the gypsy woman, who was lying on the floor, in a cold voice.

“Did you introduce the Cardinal de Mare’s mistress to a special black magic?”

Upon hearing this, the gypsy woman realized that the robe-wearing girl and the old maid who had suddenly appeared were a disaster. The gypsy woman, thrashing about, denied it.

“I... I’m not a black magician! You are one of Cardinal de Mare’s household, aren’t you?”

Recognizing Giada’s face late, the gypsy woman tried to bluff.

“I’m just a fraud who reads tarot cards.”

Being called a fraud was embarrassing, but it was a hundred times better than being labeled a witch who practices black magic and being pursued for a long time. The gypsy woman gently pleaded with Ariadne.

“I understand why you came. You’re from that noblewoman’s entourage. Pentagrams, frog blood, all that stuff is just a fraud. I just do love tarot readings.”

She twisted her body to make herself more comfortable.

“I’ll give you some money back. I’ve spent some, but I’ll give you what’s left. Give me back my crystal ball. It’s my livelihood.”

“A fraud?”

Ariadne stared directly at the fortune-teller.

‘She stood by Lady Rubina for 20 years; it can’t be a fraud! I need to hear about the regression!’

Ariadne, her head raised in anger, had her hood slip, revealing her face. Under the shadow of the robe, a distinct red mark under her left eye was visible.

“Eek!”

The fortune-teller, seeing Ariadne’s mark, trembled like a leaf and screamed.

“It’s you! That’s why the crystal ball exploded!”

The fortune-teller, looking flustered, started to speak. She seemed very confused.

“But why is the mark only half? What are you, carrying a spell of darkness and wandering the Etruscan land? Who put you on the ‘Judgment Seat’?”

The word ‘Judgment Seat’ made the fortune-teller shudder. At the same time, Giada, the housekeeper, also covered her ears and thrashed about. - Thud! Giada dropped the gypsy woman’s crystal ball on the floor. The crystal ball rolled and stopped against the wall. Ariadne, surprised by the situation but still in control, pressed the gypsy woman down even harder.

“What is the ‘Judgment Seat’? You know something, don’t you?! Why do I have this mark under my eye?”

The fortune-teller seemed flustered.

“You don’t know? You should know best! How can someone on the ‘Judgment Seat’ not know why they’re there? You must have put yourself there!”

Giada, reacting to the word ‘Judgment Seat,’ thrashed about in the corner. Ariadne, concerned about Giada’s state, asked the gypsy woman.

“Why is Giada like this?”

At this moment, the gypsy woman, who had been looking for an opportunity, suddenly lunged forward. She rolled on the floor and quickly grabbed the crystal ball. Ignoring her fallen luggage, she clutched the crystal ball and ran down the corridor, trying to escape the house.

“Stop!”

Ariadne chased after the gypsy woman, closing the distance in a few strides. Without hesitation, she threw herself at the gypsy woman’s back. - Crash! Ariadne, the gypsy woman, and the crystal ball tumbled together, hitting a decorative stand in the middle of the corridor. Decorative plates fell and hit them. The gypsy woman, once again pinned under Ariadne, couldn’t move.

Ariadne, realizing the gypsy woman could escape at any moment, pulled out a dagger and pressed it against the gypsy woman’s neck.

“Tell me everything you know. What is the ‘Judgment Seat’?”

“I can’t say...! I’ll pay the price if I reveal it!”

Ariadne sneered and pressed the dagger harder against the gypsy woman’s neck. A thin line of bright red blood trickled down.

“I don’t know what price you’ll pay, but is it greater than your life?”

She applied more pressure. The blade, which had only scratched the surface, cut deeper.

“I can kill you.”

The determination in the girl’s eyes, hidden under the robe, was evident. The gypsy woman thought this girl might really kill her.

“I’ll talk, I’ll talk...! Cough! Cough!”

The texture of the dagger against her skin terrified the gypsy woman. She didn’t want to die. It was time to comply with the other party’s demands.

“The Judgment Seat...”

Her voice, which had been sly and deceitful when talking about human affairs, became solemn and deep as she began to speak about celestial matters.

“...is the ‘Judgment Seat of the Golden Rule.’ Those who ascend the ‘Judgment Seat’ receive special abilities from the ‘Awakened Ones’!”

“Good, then what are these special abilities?”

Ariadne, in fact, thought she already knew. It would be ‘regression.’ She had been given a new life, a chance to reset everything and start over.

“Foresight!”

“What?”

The gypsy woman answered the confused Ariadne.

“You should know best! According to the records, those who ascend the ‘Judgment Seat’ see the future!”

Ariadne, wide-eyed, nodded. Indeed, it made sense. A regressed person would appear to have the ability to see the future to someone living in the real world and continuing their life.

The records the gypsy woman had were not directly from those who ascended the ‘Judgment Seat’ but from observations made by others.

“But if you use this power to change the predestined future and commit sins, you must pay the price to the ‘Cosmic Order’!”

“Is the ‘Cosmic Order’ a deity?”

“Yes, you people call it that. But does the ‘Cosmic Order’ have a personality? How foolish. How foolish, small humans...”

“Wait. Isn’t paying the price for sins something that applies to everyone who believes in deities? Why do those on the ‘Judgment Seat’ have to be especially careful?”

“Those not on the ‘Judgment Seat’ are mere mortals. Ordinary people can commit some sins, and the ‘Scales of Cause and Effect’ might overlook it. They don’t have the time to scrutinize every detail of human affairs.”

The gypsy woman’s eyes glinted strangely.

“But once you ascend the ‘Judgment Seat,’ the ‘Scales of Cause and Effect’ start watching you! If you succeed, you receive the highest reward a human can get, but one misstep and you fail!”

The gypsy woman’s eyes gleamed with greed at the thought of the reward. She shouted as if possessed.

“So only superhumans who approach the ‘Awakened Ones’ and heroes who can bear the consequences can ascend the ‘Judgment Seat’!”

- Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle

“Aaaaaah!”

Whatever the ‘price’ was, it seemed to be coming quickly. Smoke rose from the gypsy woman’s left fingertips and quickly spread up her left arm.

“Aaaaaah! ‘Awakened Ones’! This person already knows! Can’t you even let me tell this much?”

The life force was being drained from the gypsy woman’s left arm, which was shriveling like a mummy.

“No!”

The gypsy woman curled up and started chanting a spell desperately. - ‘Om Shubhakal, Ahim A Twim. Om Shubhakal, Ahim A Twim.’ Ariadne asked the gypsy woman, who was repeatedly chanting the spell.

“Who are the ‘Awakened Ones’?”

“I can’t say more!”

The gypsy woman looked at her shriveled left arm with tearful eyes. The chanting stopped the arm from shrinking further, but it didn’t seem to be enough to heal it completely.

“Even if you die, you can’t say more! Look at this! Look at what your companion has become!”

At the gypsy woman’s words, Ariadne turned to look at Giada.

“...!”

Giada lay on the floor, her tongue out, dead. Smoke rose from her ears. Suddenly, all her blood and flesh turned to dust and scattered, leaving only bones. In front of Giada’s skeleton lay the broken crystal ball.

“What is this?!”

“Blind human, I’ll tell you if you let me go.”

The gypsy woman, with a tear-streaked face, half-threatened and half-pleaded.

“I should have noticed from the single mark under your eye... You’re only half.”

The gypsy woman panted, out of breath.

“You seem to know nothing, but I’ll tell you one thing you need to know. If you don’t listen to this story, you’ll continue to hurt the people you love.”

Ariadne had no intention of letting the gypsy woman go, no matter what she said. The mysterious incident had cost Giada her life, but if the gypsy woman spoke out of turn, the de Mare family would be in danger.

“If I let you go here, you’ll go back to Lady Rubina and use special spells again, won’t you?”

The gypsy woman laughed loudly.

“I’m a poor soul! Look at my crystal ball. I’m going back to Etruscan land. I need to find a new crystal ball, and it will take ten years to heal my arm.”

The gypsy woman stroked her left arm.

“If you don’t believe me, come with me until I board the ship. I’m leaving this accursed Western land. Let me go. If you kill me here and don’t listen to the story, it will be your loss.”

If the gypsy woman was really leaving Etruscan land, there was room for negotiation. Ariadne nodded, and the gypsy woman straightened up. She took out gold powder from her pocket, sprinkled it around to create a barrier, and then spoke in a solemn voice.

“If you reveal spiritual matters, the listener will end up like this. The ‘Awakened Ones’ will punish both the revealer and those who learn without qualification!”

The gypsy woman pointed to Giada with her good hand.

“The moment you tell the secrets of what happened to you to someone who doesn’t deserve to know... that person will suffer or die, proportional to the magnitude of the secret!”

Ariadne took a short breath. She was glad she hadn’t told Sancha, Arabella, or Alfonso anything about the regression.

The gypsy woman, about to close her mouth, shook her head and added a word.

“Live a good life.”

“What?”

The gypsy woman clicked her tongue at the confused Ariadne.

“No matter how wrong