A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 316

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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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[…Camilla! Camilla!]
“…Damn it.”
[…! Are you coming to your senses?]
Camilla, who had been crouched on the floor, slowly opened her eyes. Silent tears streamed down her face. But they were not her own emotions.
The child’s emotions….
The child’s pain and sorrow that burrowed into my mind, along with resentment and venom, all flowed into me without restraint.
“….”
As I regained my senses and looked ahead, there was nothing left.
The child… had vanished.
Leaving behind only a lament of its own past….
‘Not even purification.’
The child was not something that could be called a ‘spirit.’ It was nothing more than a curse given form—a tool kneaded together from grudge and resentment.
“Sigh.”
Camilla exhaled a long breath. She felt filthy. This was the first time she’d seen a dead person’s past so vividly. Was this also the influence of the sacred power Arena had left behind?
Well, that wasn’t important right now.
‘That man….’
The man in the memories the child had left behind.
“I need to find him.”
Camilla’s gaze turned cold and sharp.
* * *
“…It’s gone.”
A man in his early thirties, who had been reading a book in the Library, clicked his tongue repeatedly. He closed the book he’d been reading and rose from his seat, approaching the window.
“It’s not easy after all.”
Was it Shinsu’s doing?
Click.
“Dad!”
Just then, the door opened and a Young Girl who appeared to be about five years old came running in.
Seeing the child rush over and cling to the man’s legs, a bright smile spread across his face.
“Anna, you’re already awake?”
“Yeah!”
“Your nap time is getting shorter.”
“Hehe, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
The man gently stroked the child’s head.
“Then shall we go for a walk with Dad?”
“Yeah, I want to!”
At the man’s words, the child threw her hands up and bounced excitedly. Finding her adorable, the man, his eyes crinkling warmly, picked her up and left the room.
“But Dad.”
“Hmm?”
The child, wrapping both arms around the man’s neck and burying her face in his shoulder, spoke with a slight whimper.
“Will I sleep all day again tomorrow when we go there?”
“….”
“When I sleep and wake up… it doesn’t hurt anymore, which is nice… but when I go there, my body gets cold, and I feel terrible. I’m scared.”
“But you have to go if you don’t want it to hurt. Being scared for a little while is better than being in pain, right?”
“Yeah….”
At the mention that she had to go to avoid pain, Anna nodded her head slightly. Yet her expression remained downcast, as if she still disliked the place.
“How about we take a walk and buy that cake Anna likes on the way back?”
“Yes! I want to go, I want to go!”
At the man’s coaxing suggestion, Anna’s face brightened instantly.
Only then did the man break into a warm smile again and slowly continue walking.
* * *
“What a despicable wretch! Is he betraying his friend right now? How could he possibly betray a friend he’s known since childhood!”
“My thoughts exactly.”
A new space had been created in one corner of Duke Sorpel’s Office. It was called the Screening Room.
Camilla had installed the items she’d given as gifts upon returning from this journey, claiming they were ancient relics.
She’d provided a large portable screen and strange, unfamiliar devices that could be connected to it to display images.
Duke Sorpel had started out watching the images out of curiosity, but soon found himself unable to resist the suspense of what came next, and now watched whenever he had free time.
Today, Duke Sefra and Duke Jebillen had joined Duke Sorpel in indulging this hobby.
‘How about watching it together with the two of you? These things are more fun when you watch them with acquaintances.’
‘Is that so?’
‘Yes! I’ll prepare some snacks for you as well.’
‘Then let’s do that.’
Camilla had actively recommended that they watch together.
‘What is all this?’
‘A gift from my daughter.’
‘From Camilla?’
‘She set it up so I wouldn’t get bored. I suppose that’s why everyone says daughters are better than sons.’
‘…That bastard, he’s just trying to brag about his daughter again. What about those of us without daughters! I have a daughter too. I have a daughter!’
‘I don’t have a daughter. Do I not belong here if I don’t have one?’
‘No, that’s not what I meant… Hey, hey! Where are you going!’
‘That guy’s sulking.’
Even without Camilla’s suggestion, I had planned to invite these two fools anyway, partly to show off.
“That guy, that guy! And he calls that a friend.”
“Exactly. He’s abandoning his friend and living the high life all by himself.”
Duke Jebillen and Duke Sorpel watched a drama about a man who betrayed his friend and climbed the ladder of success, shaking their heads in disapproval the entire time.
“Can someone actually do that?”
Yet there was one person—Duke Sefra—who actually sided with the friend who had done the betraying.
“What? You understand that?”
“A true friend is someone you share even a single bean with!”
“Of course. How could it make sense to abandon your friend like that just so you can live well by yourself! That guy isn’t a friend at all!”
At Duke Sefra’s calm response, the other two grew even more heated.
“….”
Duke Sefra gazed at the two of them intently.
“Then I suppose I’m not your friend either.”
They flinched.
‘…What is this?’
‘…What now?’
At Duke Sefra’s quiet, muttered words, both of them involuntarily tensed. Whenever he spoke in that tone, some forgotten transgression would inevitably surface.
Every time he started like this, they’d discover mistakes they didn’t even know they’d made.
“Thirty years ago, you see.”
…There it was.
‘…Thirty years?’
‘…Do we really have to go back that far?’
“You two broke a vase your father treasured dearly.”
It happened during a visit to Duke Jebillen’s estate. While Duke Sefra sat quietly reading, the other two raced through the mansion like children playing tag, and eventually shattered the vase that had been carefully displayed.
“You both fled immediately. I was in the corner reading, completely unaware of what happened, and you said nothing to me. In the end, I was the one left standing there, and your father scolded me for it.”
‘…Do you remember?’
‘…No.’
“And thirty-five years ago.”
…Thirty-five years? There’s more?
…Why is he going back even further?
“You said Duke Sorpel received a special Alerusan chocolate as a gift and asked us to share it together.”
Duke Sorpel had returned from his travels with a gift—a box of chocolate—and brought it to where the two of them were, asking them to enjoy it together.
“You said we’d eat it later after playing, so I waited. You two played with swords while I read under a tree and dozed off for a moment. When I woke up, it was gone. You’d eaten it all between yourselves.”
“….”
“….”
“Is sharing even a single bean what friendship means?”
“…Hey, turn this off.”
“Yeah! This is boring. Put something else on. Something else.”
Duke Sorpel and Duke Jebillen hastily switched off the drama that was still playing scenes of friends stabbing each other in the back.
“What should we watch? There’s a lot of interesting stuff here.”
“Let’s watch a movie. A movie!”
“What about that one?”
“Which one?”
“That one—the movie 【Friend】.”
“Yeah, that looks fun. The title itself is about friendship.”
To change the mood, Duke Sorpel immediately selected the film.
A moment later.
【Thwack! Crack!】
【”Thank you… my… you bastard….”】
“So that’s what friendship really is.”
“….”
“….”
The two of them quietly turned off the screen once more.
* * *
[Camilla, why did you call all of us?]
[Seriously. We shouldn’t be out in the open like this right now.]
[Right, right! It’s summer, so we’re supposed to stay dormant.]
Yellow, green, red—tiny dragons of every hue fluttered about the room in restless circles.
Despite their grumbling complaints, they seemed delighted to have been summoned, their excitement evident in every movement.
[Quiet, all of you. Stop your endless chatter. Camilla must have called us for a reason.]
[…What? Aislah came too?]
[Shh, shh! Aislah says you’re being too loud. Close your mouths.]
[Right, right! We need to be quiet!]
And then, a pristine white and dignified little dragon emerged—Aislah, the Spirit King of Winter.
[So these are the spirits they mentioned back then.]
[Our mistress truly has remarkable abilities. When did she manage to build such rapport with the Spirit Kings? It’s quite extraordinary, isn’t it?]
[Well, Camilla has always been blessed with good fortune. She’s surrounded by people wherever she goes!]
[…But calling us and those creatures examples of good fortune seems a bit off, doesn’t it? None of us are exactly human.]
Not only the spirits, but the ghosts who were acquainted with Camilla had gathered in one place as well.
Chef Ghost Perol and Butler Ghost Derin chatted leisurely with Amy and Zeno.
Clap, clap!
“Everyone, please pay attention.”
After confirming that everyone had assembled, Camilla gave a brief clap to draw their gazes toward her.
“I’ve gathered you all here because I have a favor to ask.”

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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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