I Woke Up from Hibernation and Found a Husband - Chapter 65

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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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Chapter 65
Her childhood had been defined by the art of surrender.
‘Rozina, you must yield.’
A noble house reduced to nothing but a tattered name, impoverished beyond measure. Born as the eldest daughter, she was destined to shoulder her parents’ burdens without respite.
‘I never chose this.’
A fragile mother, a father devoid of practicality, thoughtless younger siblings—she had embroidered until her small hands became as rough as rags, simply to put food on the table. Her calloused palms seemed grotesquely coarse compared to the carefree farm children who played freely outdoors, and this shame clung to her relentlessly.
‘I’m so tired of this.’
It wasn’t that she resented her family. Even when life was unbearably harsh, they remained her family, and within the suffocating weight of responsibility that constricted her throat, love undeniably existed.
‘Must I live like this forever?’
Yet whenever she gazed upon those rough, calloused hands, an overwhelming sense of burden would wash over her, and there was nothing she could do about it.
‘Forever…?’
That was when her purification ability awakened. At twelve years old, Rozina had believed that if only she could escape this cage, she could accomplish anything.
Like a miracle, the ability manifested at her fingertips.
‘Hmm, not quite as powerful as Ian’s, but it will suffice.’
From that moment, Rozina’s life transformed completely.
As an adopted daughter of the Lloyd Family, she exchanged her ill-fitting, shabby clothes for tailored dresses and fell asleep on luxurious bedding.
Though she spent each day purifying those twisted by addiction and corruption to their limits, the vastly improved living standards and the stable allowance distributed to her family made everything bearable.
‘It’s no different from embroidery. If anything, using an ability is far more impressive.’
Pushing herself to the brink had always been second nature to her.
“Yes, we do resemble each other quite closely.”
Claire’s voice was measured, yet it carried a subtle longing. Rozina studied Claire’s hazel eyes intently. Those hazel eyes, so strikingly similar to her own, held not a trace of the dark psychology commonly called venom.
‘Why does she look at me like that?’
Rozina habitually stroked the back of her hand, concealed beneath pale pink silk gloves.
On Claire’s hand, which held the teacup, the scars—both large and small—were distinctly visible. Yet she tilted her cup with complete confidence, brazenly displaying those marks that high society would deem flaws.
‘Is it because of House Voltier? Because she has such a formidable family backing her?’
Yet the arrogant gleam characteristic of the powerful was entirely absent from her eyes.
Rozina’s hands clenched into fists beneath the table. Watching the affectionate light in Melissa’s and Ilya’s eyes as they gazed upon Claire, inferiority began to accumulate in the depths of her chest.
‘I don’t know how she grew up, but with so many people protecting you, you have nothing to worry about.’
One whim from Hector could cast her back onto the streets or sell her to the Market. While possessing an ability was undoubtedly a blessing, for those without backing, it was in some ways a curse.
Whether one possessed a healing ability was irrelevant. She simply envied that effortless confidence in displaying her scars, that composed gaze. She coveted it so desperately that she despised herself.
“I’ll step outside for some fresh air.”
Rozina offered a light smile while carefully concealing her increasingly warm eyes as she left the pavilion.
“Ah.”
Melissa instinctively caught Claire’s wrist as she moved to follow her.
“Where do you intend to go?”
As Melissa whispered quietly into her ear, Claire turned to regard her with a puzzled expression. The composed, experienced face gazed at Claire with unwavering attention.
“I’m already aware that she is the young lady of a house connected to yours. Which is precisely why you mustn’t go after her.”
High society was a place where even a mere glance could become fodder for gossip. How appetizing a subject Theodore’s fiancée was to the gossip-mongers was painfully obvious, given the attention she already commanded.
“But…”
Claire recalled Rozina’s eyes, which had begun to glisten with barely suppressed emotion.
‘I felt like I might cry.’
I had long known that Rozina’s gaze held no warmth. Yet the contempt flickering in her eyes differed starkly from the usual disdain.
‘Filthy beast-kin!’
Claire recalled the expressions of those around her when her true form was first exposed at House Voltier. Eyes twisted with scorn and derision.
‘But Rozina was different.’
The object of Rozina’s disgust seemed to be not Claire herself, but Rozina’s own reflection.
“I’ll return shortly.”
I couldn’t simply abandon her. Whether it was kinship with a distant relative or the resemblance to my father’s features, I couldn’t pretend not to notice and walk away.
“Sigh.”
Melissa, watching the now-empty seat where Claire had been, pressed her palm to her forehead and exhaled deeply. Ilya offered silent comfort with a knowing smile.
“In some respects, you’re quite perceptive, Miss.”
Melissa offered a bitter smile.
* * *
Rozina didn’t venture far from the pavilion. The heightened security measures implemented after the recent incident kept all attendees under strict supervision, preventing anyone from straying beyond the event venue.
‘I wanted to be alone.’
Outside, a considerable crowd had gathered to bask in the sunlight. Lacking the energy to engage with others, Rozina quietly settled onto a bench positioned as far from them as possible.
“But don’t you think there are things in this world more important than money? Grace and noble bearing, for instance?”
“Of course. What would distinguish someone who blinds themselves to mere coin and diminishes their own worth from a common street peddler?”
The words drifted from a group of young nobles conversing at a distant outdoor table. They cast sidelong glances toward Rozina, as if deliberately ensuring she would hear them.
‘I chose the wrong spot.’
Rozina suppressed a sigh and closed her eyes, feigning ignorance.
The children of the Central Nobility, raised in comfort and refinement their entire lives, believed there existed a hierarchy even among the aristocracy.
‘They consider themselves genuine because their hands have never touched soil, while I’m a fraud for peddling my abilities.’
She didn’t particularly dispute this assessment. Her own family had always been obscure, and the Lloyd Family itself, into which she’d been adopted, was an unconventional noble house that had risen to prominence through the healing arts.
“Utterly vulgar.”
Since they accepted anyone—commoner or criminal alike—provided sufficient payment, it was obvious what families that prided themselves on lineage thought of Rozina.
‘They couldn’t endure three days without food.’
The injustice of it stung.
The silk dresses they wore without thought, the expensive black tea they sipped for amusement—these were premium goods she could scarcely afford even after countless hours of embroidery. What came to them as daily routine required her to exhaust herself completely with her abilities just to obtain.
‘I want to go home.’
The thought drew a hollow laugh from her lips.
‘Home? Where would that be?’
The room in the Lloyd Mansion, furnished with elegant pieces, was where she resided, yet it was not hers to own. Like a swan gliding serenely while paddling frantically beneath the surface, she had to keep moving to remain there.
‘Does a place where I can truly rest even exist?’
Her eyes grew distant. Though suffocating, this place represented the gentlest abyss she had ever known.
‘This is happiness enough. I can wear fine clothes and I don’t go hungry.’
Thump.
Someone sat beside her then. Startled by this uninvited company, Rozina opened her eyes and turned her head.
‘Claire?’
Beside her sat Claire, blinking as she gazed down at her.
“Pardon me for a moment.”
“Shouldn’t you ask before sitting down?”
“…My apologies.”
Like a puppy caught in mischief, my eyes darted about nervously. Rozina let out an exasperated laugh at the sight.
“What on earth.”
As she turned to address me further, Rozina’s gaze caught the attention of a cluster of onlookers—the very same group who had been mocking her moments before.
Her lips, which had been trembling, suddenly spilled out words born of impulse.
“Just go inside. Your reputation will suffer if you remain with me.”
Startled by her own words, Rozina’s eyes widened. She must have lost her mind, worrying about Claire’s standing when her own was in shambles. Yet the response that followed swept away all her bewilderment in an instant.
“What? Do I possess a reputation to tarnish?”
At the genuine curiosity in that question, Rozina found herself at a loss for words.

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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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