Mad Rosetta - Chapter 16

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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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Rosetta Gone Mad

Episode 16

Even Discarded Trash Deserves a Second Look (6)

【Her temperament remains unchanged. She’s always ready to sacrifice her subordinates at a moment’s notice.】

Sharp criticism poured from Sing as though he had expected nothing less from Cessia.

I nodded once in agreement.

Cessia intended to use one of Odette’s chosen subordinates as a scapegoat, allowing both himself and her to escape responsibility.

‘Well, if one of Odette’s limbs is severed, it’s not an unfavorable outcome for me either.’

I observed Odette, now truly cornered.

I wondered—how would she preserve her noble position?

As if to satisfy my curiosity, Odette’s lips parted slowly.

“…What fault could the attendants possibly bear? They acted out of concern for Rosetta’s health, just as I did.”

Her answer was entirely contrary to my expectations.

Shocked, I failed to conceal my astonishment.

I had assumed that no matter how saintly she appeared, the moment her own safety was threatened, she would abandon even her allies without hesitation.

Yet she was shielding others?

“So I don’t wish to blame them too harshly….”

Odette smiled somewhat awkwardly, as if asking for leniency, and spoke again.

But she did not finish.

The moment I glimpsed the irritated twist of Cessia’s nose bridge, her lips sealed shut.

“Surely you’re not defending her out of genuine ignorance, Bonita.”

“….”

“You would do well to distinguish between kindness and naïveté.”

His gaze was precisely that of someone looking down upon a pet that refuses to obey—cold, dismissive, utterly condescending.

An authoritarian.

That was the true essence of Fordicus Cessia Montague.

Perhaps Odette was seeing this side of him for the first time.

“The mere act of intercepting correspondence that belongs to another is a grave matter requiring stern discipline. And yet you overlook the Attendant who aided the unknowing Bonita in managing Rosetta’s letters without reproach….”

“….”

“Do you not realize that people will speak of Benatra’s discipline having grown lax?”

…This bastard. Give him an inch and he takes a mile.

Never mind reproaching Odette—he dares to speak carelessly of our household’s internal affairs.

If I do not check Cessia now, it will give the impression that our House bends to the will of the Montague Marquessate.

I was about to silence his presumptuous demands when—

“It was because I asked her to.”

Odette’s confession, spilling forth like a bitter truth, stole my initiative.

“…What do you mean?”

“I asked her to give me my sister’s letters so I could manage them myself. The child is innocent—please, let this matter rest.”

“…Your Highness. I would advise you to choose your words with greater care.”

His eyes held a reproach—as though he were scolding me for failing to seize the escape route he had so carefully constructed for me.

I too found myself frowning at her response.

‘Is this even remotely reasonable?’

Unable to discern Odette’s true intentions, I spent considerable time studying her expression, searching for any hint of her thoughts.

Yet she merely scrunched her face like a child forced to apologize for something she absolutely refused to regret, repeating the same words over and over.

“But Cessia. The Attendant merely followed the master’s orders. If she’s punished for that, wouldn’t it also disrupt the household’s order?”

“Hmph… If one’s master walks down a misguided path, it is the duty of those beneath to offer honest counsel without reservation. That Attendant, merely by lending her strength—”

“Fordicus, enough.”

“….”

“…I understand your eagerness to clear up this misunderstanding. But don’t you think it’s overstepping, even for my betrothed? Since it appears to be Bonita’s fault, I would prefer you leave this matter to our household to handle.”

I spoke while glancing at Odette, who seemed half-resigned.

It was a warning not to meddle excessively in Benitra’s affairs any longer.

Creating a rift between the two of them, sowing discord among the servants—it seemed my plan was succeeding.

Yet the wounded look in Odette’s eyes left me feeling strangely unsettled.

“…Of course, Rosette. I was merely concerned you might harbor some strange misunderstanding.”

Sing scoffed, saying it wasn’t a misunderstanding at all—he’d clearly witnessed Cessia displaying affection at the Marquis Estate day after day.

I too offered a forced smile in response to Cessia, unable to fathom what change of heart had made him so insufferably kind.

“There’s nothing for me to misunderstand. I know you cherish Bonita like a true sister.”

“I appreciate you seeing it that way, but perhaps protecting her too much isn’t what’s best for my sister either.”

Irritated that Odette hadn’t bent to his will, Cessia ended his words with a sidelong glance at her.

“I think it best we end this gathering here.”

I rose from my seat to bring the increasingly chaotic refreshment hour to a close.

Cessia followed suit, standing as well with apparent agreement.

“I shall visit again soon. I’m delighted to see that Rosetta has recovered somewhat in my absence.”

I nearly recoiled, catching myself just in time before my body could betray my revulsion.

As Cessia smiled softly and reached for my hand, nausea washed over me as though I were drowning in filth.

He was drawing closer.

I wanted nothing more than to tear him apart as he slowly bowed his head to press those vile lips against the back of my hand.

“Next time, I shall bring a gift that Rosetta would surely appreciate.”

How repugnant.

Chills raced down my spine, and cold sweat began to bead on my skin.

Every fiber of my being screamed at me to curse him out and demand he withdraw.

Those lips that had been so eager to match Odette’s—keep them away from me.

Those filthy lips that had been so preoccupied with cursing me—remove them at once.

I understood well enough that I could not reveal my true emotions if I were to utterly destroy Cessia’s future.

Yet the reality of having to endure such humiliation was nothing short of horrifying.

‘He was always so eager to curse alongside me before….’

Sing’s conspicuous silence as he observed the scene only deepened my shame.

I forced myself to offer the back of my hand, my other hand clenching the fabric of my dress to prevent it from reaching for Cessia’s throat.

* * *

“Ugh! How vile, you deranged bastard!”

The moment I dismissed the attendants and returned to my room, I scrubbed the backs of my hands until the skin threatened to wear away.

My hands grew red, and soon enough, blood began to seep through.

【Rosette, stop.】

“You wretched bastard! You filthy vermin, how dare you. Ugh, how dare you….”

It stung. It ached.

The sensation Cessia left behind clung to me with unbearable vividness.

It felt as though a long, writhing creature was crawling slowly across the back of my hand.

As I scrubbed desperately, nearly weeping, Sing—who had been standing beside me watching in silence—suddenly seized both my hands with exasperation.

【I told you to stop.】

Blood mixed with water dripped steadily from the hands he held captive.

Perhaps I had been mistaken about us always moving as one. Intellectually, I knew Sing bore no fault in this.

Yet I resented him all the same—resented that he did not, as he usually would, voice my fury, did not urge me to claw that madman’s face to shreds, did not speak for the rage consuming my heart.

“Get away from me! Ugh, what could you possibly understand…! Even now, I can still feel his touch crawling across my skin!”

I screamed, overcome with rage.

Ah, this pathetic display is not who I wish to be.

Tears, snot—imagining myself pouring forth such indignity only deepened my sorrow, and I wept anew.

Sing would not release my hands, not even to let me wipe away the moisture. Nothing was going as I desired.

I wept openly, my shoulders heaving with each sob.

It continued until he, who had remained silent and watchful all this while, gently caressed the torn skin on the back of my hand.

【How could I ever fully comprehend your wounds? I can only imagine how much you must be suffering.】

“….”

【Why do you torment yourself like this? Hmm? Are these not the precious hands that will one day punish those who made you suffer?】

Sing took my hand to his lips and kissed it, just as Cessia had done.

Strangely, the sensation against my wound was cool and soft, and in that moment I realized—he didn’t lack a face; I simply couldn’t see it.

The thought startled me enough to make my chest flutter unexpectedly.

【Now, strike me as hard as you wish.】

“….”

【Why that expression? I’m ready to be hit, truly.】

What was I to do with this creature, prattling on playfully about how I could do far worse if I desired?

He taught patience in pursuit of the future, yet never turned away from a wounded heart.

To learn, to compose oneself. Even one who wielded the whip against their own soul—I knew better than anyone that such things were not easily accomplished.

What manner of life had you lived?

That you suppress yourself with such tenderness.

I gazed down at my hand, held so carefully as though I might shatter, then turned my gaze toward Sing’s invisible face.

“Striking alone won’t suffice.”

【Eh? Hm? What?】

“Violence, after all, is meant to be inflicted to witness the other’s anguish, is it not? What use is there in striking a creature without a face? I’d only exhaust myself.”

【Oh…. My darling has rather exquisite tastes, it seems.】

Sing chattered on about not knowing I harbored such refined preferences, saying he’d need to prepare himself mentally—and I stepped closer to him.

“What are you?”

He stood mere inches away—close enough that I need only bow my head to reach him.

The creature instinctively retreated, only to halt as his gaze flickered toward the wall behind him.

From this proximity, I realized just how difficult it was to look up at him—his stature was truly imposing.

Indulging in these idle observations, I made my request once more, my voice soft and measured.

“Show me your face, Sing.”

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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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