A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 266

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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‘So this is what they were like.’
They were so… incredibly kind.
And a deep wave of regret crashed over me.
‘It wasn’t just the soul swap.’
Was my tragic end truly only because my soul had been exchanged?
At first, I thought so.
‘But…’
Living in the Modern World and witnessing the tremendous achievements Camilla had accomplished, I found myself asking the same question over and over.
Why couldn’t I be like this? Why couldn’t I be as confident as Camilla, as she was?
What did it matter if others disliked me or not…
If only I had found what I wanted to do and lived as steadfastly as she did. Why did I crave my family’s affection so desperately? Why did I stake my entire life on others’ gazes? What was the point of all that?
Facing these kind people, another wave of deep regret washed over me.
If only I had realized this truth sooner, perhaps I wouldn’t have met such a tragic end.
“Older Brother.”
“Hmm?”
“This.”
Sia quietly extended what she had been clutching in her hand. It was a small ribbon pin.
The one Ravi had given to Camilla when she was younger.
“Why that?”
Ravi cast a puzzled look at her. It was something that no longer suited her now that her body had grown.
“Did you know?”
“Know what? But why are you talking like that? Is there something you need? You seem off, so if you want something, just—”
“Ravi, Older Brother.”
“No, why are you doing something you’ve never done before… Ugh, really! Why are you like this!”
Sia gripped the ribbon pin tightly in her hand again. She met Ravi’s gaze directly without flinching.
“Did you know how much I wanted to have this?”
When I was very young, there was one hair pin that caught my eye in particular.
It was displayed in a shop near Home, and every time I passed by, I would stop for a long while and stare at it endlessly.
It was just a hair pin, yet I couldn’t bring myself to say a single word to anyone about wanting it.
What made it so difficult to say?
‘How foolish…’
The moment I saw this hair pin in Camilla’s jewelry box, the childhood memory came flooding back.
It wasn’t exactly the same as the one I had seen long ago, but it was similar enough to catch my interest. Later, I learned from Dorman that it was Ravi who had given this pin as a gift.
“That…!”
Ravi’s words caught in his throat, and his gaze wavered for a moment.
What should he say here? That he knew? That he simply ignored it anyway?
“…”
Sia stared at Ravi for a moment as he struggled to continue, then a faint smile crossed her face. She thought she understood the heart with which he had bought this for her.
“Thank you.”
“…What?”
Ravi’s eyes widened. Not a reproach, but… gratitude?
“I really wanted this.”
It was a terribly late gift, but what did that matter?
What mattered was that he hadn’t forgotten something I had taken notice of.
That alone was enough.
“I’m so happy to have it now.”
Sia clutched the ribbon pin tightly in her hand and broke into a radiant smile once more.
“I’ll treasure it.”
“….”
Watching Sia like this, Ravi found himself unable to speak. Without realizing it, he clenched his jaw.
Guilt surged through him again… and regret.
A child who could smile so brightly over just a single hair pin….
“…I’ll buy you something better later.”
“Okay.”
Sia nodded enthusiastically and finally began eating the food laid out before her. The three of them watched her in silence.
She had no way of knowing.
That day, every hair ornament in the market had been sold out because of Duke Sorpel and Ludvil.
* * *
“Hey, King?”
[Purr?]
“Can I touch you just once?”
Sia found herself speaking to King, who lay stretched out leisurely before the fireplace.
She wanted to stroke that pristine white, fluffy-looking fur just once.
[Grrr….]
“Sorry, I won’t touch you.”
But as expected, all that came back was a ferocious growl.
“King.”
Dorman, who had been watching from the side, called out to King in a reproachful tone. King turned an indifferent gaze toward Dorman as if asking why he was being called.
“Did you forget what Camilla said last time?”
[Purr?]
“She told you to treat the one who will be staying here for a while as you would treat her.”
[Purr~?]
King turned away from Dorman as if he had never heard such a thing.
“Camilla will find out when she returns.”
[Grrr….]
But at those words, the small body flinched.
With a heavy sigh, the baby tiger made no attempt to hide its displeasure as it approached Sia.
Then it settled down in front of her, its eyes gleaming with an utterly arrogant expression—as if granting her permission to touch it just once.
“Pfft…!”
Far from looking aloof, it was so adorable that Sia had to quickly cover her mouth with both hands to stifle her bursting laughter.
[Meow?]
“Oh, no. I’m just so grateful.”
Watching King’s bright, sparkling eyes tilt with curiosity, I shook my head and carefully stroked the baby White Tiger’s head and back.
At my touch, King purred as if he’d never been upset at all, letting out a pleased rumbling sound.
“Oh? It’s snowing again.”
“Snow? Really?”
At Dorman’s words, I rose from my seat and headed toward the window. Just as he said, the sky was pouring down white snow in thick flakes.
“Wow.”
I’d loved snow ever since childhood—perhaps more than most people. Despite my constitution making me particularly sensitive to the cold, I couldn’t help but adore it when it snowed.
“I want to go outside.”
“Now? It’s quite cold out there.”
“I still want to go.”
Dorman watched me with concern for a moment, then quickly retrieved the thickest coat and handed it to me.
Once I’d put on the coat, I headed straight outside. Seeing the snow piled thickly on the ground, I broke into a broad, unguarded smile.
[Does she really not see me?]
There was a presence lingering around me—none other than Aislah, the Spirit King of Winter.
[So it was actually true?]
[Their souls were switched?]
[Something did seem off from the beginning.]
It wasn’t just Aislah. There were countless ghosts hovering around me.
From Ghost Zeno the prosecutor to Ghost Derin the butler and Ghost Perol the chef.
They couldn’t hide their astonishment watching me, unaware of their very existence.
[If we hadn’t been told beforehand, we would’ve been truly shocked.]
[Indeed.]
[We might have thought she was deliberately ignoring us.]
Camilla had revealed everything to them before summoning me back here—that another person would temporarily inhabit this body.
And she’d told them all her secrets: the story surrounding the Mirror of Truth, and how she’d had to live with her soul switched with someone in another world.
[That girl really…]
[Both of you must have suffered greatly.]
[So when exactly is Camilla coming back? This girl can’t see or hear us, which is quite inconvenient.]
[She said she’d return after a fortnight, so there aren’t many days left now.]
Watching me walk carefully through the pristine snow, they all let out quiet sighs.
While sympathetic to the tragic fate of the two girls, they all hoped Camilla would return as soon as possible.
“Wow.”
Meanwhile, I was spending leisurely time for the first time in ages. How long had it been since I’d experienced such unhurried moments?
‘Acting is fulfilling, I suppose.’
Living as an actress was enjoyable and rewarding. That much was undeniable.
But the relentless schedule that didn’t allow even a single day of rest certainly exhausted both body and spirit.
“This is nice.”
Who could have imagined I’d feel this way in this world, in this house?
I was always anxious, trapped within a tangle of thorns.
“Haah.”
I drew in a deep breath of air so cold it seemed to freeze my lungs.
I would never encounter this air again, nor this landscape—not after today.
A soft rustle.
“…?”
How much time had passed? Something settled across my shoulders, and I flinched, turning my head sharply.
“…”
Cold black eyes gazed down at me with quiet intensity.
“Arsian?”
It was Arsian who had draped his outer garment across my shoulders. At his appearance, my eyes wavered ceaselessly.
‘I’m… terrified.’
When I awoke here again and saw Arsian standing before me, I couldn’t begin to express my shock.
Why was he at Camilla’s side?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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