– Prologue –

“Bring the sinner out!”

At the executioner’s order, two soldiers pulled Raphia’s arms roughly. Helpless, she followed with dragging feet.

“Walk faster! How much longer must you keep the nobles waiting!”

The soldiers forced her to step forward with swords pointed at her back. Soon, they entered the imposing gallows where many spectators came.

The Emperor, the Crown Prince, and the person who ‘those people’ hated, Duke Soleia.

Black hair that reflected a blue tint and the bright golden-yellow eyes of a beast.

Standing atop the platform of the gallows where a lone noose swayed in the air, Raphia directed her gaze towards the Duke.

The crowd that gathered to watch began hurling curses.

“The most despicable wench in the whole country!”

“How dare you harm the Imperial Family!”

Harsh voices mixed together and deafened her ears.

“You have one last chance. How did you sneak into the victory banquet? What was your reason for attempting to assassinate the Crown Prince?!”

None of these allegations were true, but Raphia uttered not one protest.

Before she was brought out here, she had tried countless times to prove her innocence until she lost her voice, but no one believed her. This time, too, her efforts would be fruitless.

Despite her actions, she certainly stayed silent not because she wanted to protect ‘that person’ who fled and abandoned her that day.

It’s just that she realized it was easier to bear the brunt of the burden so she’d be able to leave this world even faster.

“Answer now, sinner!”

When Raphia continued to keep her mouth shut despite the continuous roars, disapproval filled the eyes of everyone around her.

It was only Duke Soleia who did not betray his inner thoughts.

“That—that impudent little . . .”

As the Emperor jumped out of his seat in disbelief, the people on the stands beneath him started hurling stones.

Raphia burst into laughter.

‘How ironic to feel relieved that those stones won’t reach me while I’m about to die.’

The executioner’s eyes were set ablaze.

“You even dare smile on the verge of death!”

Raphia bit her lower lip.

‘It’s just that I must look so hilarious right now.’

‘I just wish for it all to end right now.’

Raphia was tired of living.

So now, although the verdict was unjust, Raphia was inclined to accept.

“I do not dare to weigh the atrocious sin of attempting to assassinate the Crown Prince! Let her have it, Your Majesty! Let that wench taste the miserable end she deserves!”

The Emperor cleared his throat briefly before he spoke.

“I have graciously given you many opportunities, yet it is apparent that you don’t feel any remorse.”

The crowd howled. Within its walls, madness thundered throughout the plaza.

“I hereby sentence the sinner to death by hanging! Your body shall be left to rot! Even in death, your disgrace shall be for all to see, and so you shall set an example against anyone else who dares challenge the Imperial Family’s eminence!”

“We heed His Majesty’s command!”

Soon enough, they placed a stepladder before Raphia. Calmly, she climbed the steps and eyed the noose.

‘I wonder how much it’ll hurt.’

As Raphia bit her lower lip once more, she strove to swallow her fear.

‘Be that as it may, this will be the last time I’ll feel any pain.’

She had already experienced all kinds of agony while those people exploited her.

While thinking about how she would no longer suffer if she could endure just one last time, then she’d be able to withstand anything.

The soldiers readied the ropes that would bind her.

Then the executioner asked, “Any last words?”

She simply shook her head.

“It wouldn’t help.”

Scowling, the executioner cursed at her as if he’d had enough of her detached and calm demeanor until the end.

“Withdraw the stepladder!”

Though she was unperturbed by her own death, her body instinctively reacted differently.

“Die! Just die already!”

The more her body struggled on the noose, the more the crowd jeered.

“I won’t let you go that easily.”

A cold, low-pitched voice rose above the frenzy.

It was that man, Duke Soleia.

‘You’re alive . . . so it’s a relief.”

That day, she saw how deeply the monster’s horns stabbed him, so just to see him move freely like this was truly fortunate.

From behind the Imperial Family, he stepped forward.

The Duke looked up to glance upon Raphia’s unsightly, distorted, tear-filled face.

“Do we really need to go this far?”

He drew his sword and cut the rope without any hesitation.

Thud! Raphia’s body plummeted to the ground. Curling up on the floor, she immediately opened her mouth to fill her deprived lungs.

“Duke Soleia! What do you think you’re doing right now!”

“Are you going against His Majesty’s orders?!”

The Emperor and the executioner raised their flustered voices one after another.

The Duke turned around, blocking anyone’s sight upon Raphia as if he were defending her.

“Not at all, I have no intention of doing so. I merely thought it was too hideous.”

The Duke glanced behind him, only to see Raphia lying on her stomach.

“If you’re to be killed anyway . . .”

Why was he acting this way?

It might be her imagination, but she could trace a hint of reluctance in the Duke’s voice.

‘I must be going mad.’

Letting out a sudden, uncontrollable cackle, she struggled to raise her body and promptly went down on her knees. As if fulfilling a promise, he turned once more toward her.

“Wouldn’t it be better for you to die neatly?”

But contrary to his words, his golden eyes now seemed to waver. Raphia donned a smile as if to encourage him, but a vein on the Duke’s lower jaw throbbed.

The hesitation was for but a moment.

In a blink of an eye, he rammed his sword into Raphia’s chest.

No one could stop him.

Raphia raised her head with great difficulty.

“Th—anks. For . . . killing me,” she said as blood poured from her lips.

Then, she looked up with a grueling smile.

“You’re actually a good person, right? You.”

At those words, the Duke’s brows furrowed.

“You think you know me?”

“. . . Not really.”

Quickly losing strength, the light in her eyes dimmed and her vision blurred.

Crackle!

Beneath her feet, a blue flame blazed. Startled by the sudden appearance of fire, everyone stepped back.

“Your Majesty, please vacate your seat! We don’t know what else that wench has up her sleeve!”

The Emperor, the Crown Prince, and everyone in the plaza fled. However, Duke Soleia remained motionless, as if he intended to protect her until the bitter end.

“Even for a little bit, I hope you feel comfortable.”

As the corners of her lips rose, she calmly met his golden gaze.

“Really. Thank you.”

If it were him instead of those people who took her that day, Raphia wondered what her life would have been like.

Without the need for words, there was a tranquil smile on her face as the flame curled up like a lotus petal and engulfed the entirety of her body.

In no time, Raphia was devoured by the flames.

She closed her eyes.

Finally, she was now in the embrace of eternal rest.

* * *

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