Chapter 72
Fortunately, he seemed to realize that Rosia had been rude, as he quickly took her out of the room.
“Whew.”
Eila let out a quiet sigh of relief and looked at Cedric with anxious eyes.
By now, he would’ve fallen deeply under the influence of the emotional manipulation spell.
Thinking back to how serious Zerat’s condition had been, she was sure Cedric’s case wasn’t much different.
But at that moment—
Tears fell from Cedric’s eyes. One drop, then another.
“Rosia always said you ignored her and bullied her.”
Eila blinked in shock, startled to see him cry — someone who rarely ever shed tears.
If he had yelled at her or gotten angry, she might have expected that. But crying?
And his eyes… they seemed clearer than before.
‘No way… Has the emotional manipulation spell been broken?’
It was unbelievable.
In the original story, he only regretted everything after his death.
And yet now, like Irene, he had overcome Rosia’s spell on his own?
It made no sense — and yet, watching him now, Eila felt her heart waver.
Before Rosia appeared, they had truly been a close, loving pair of siblings.
If he had really broken free of Rosia’s brainwashing and regained his genuine feelings for her…
Her heart began to pound rapidly.
Cedric bowed his head deeply.
In a trembling voice, he whispered to her.
“I know it’s shameless to say this now. But… when you left the estate, I couldn’t stop thinking about how I failed to help you.”
“…”
“I want to apologize, even now… and fix our relationship.”
For a foolish moment, Eila felt the urge to accept his kind words.
She wanted to take his hand again, to restore what they once had.
But then Cedric continued.
“So… would you consider returning to the family? I’ll make sure Rosia behaves herself. I’ll make sure you feel comfortable adjusting back among us.”
Cedric still believed Rosia was his sister without question.
A bitter smile formed on Eila’s lips.
‘So the brainwashing hasn’t completely worn off. Still… this is a big change.’
She tried to remain rational.
She couldn’t let anyone know Cedric had partially regained his self-awareness — not yet.
‘Rosia probably suspects something based on his behavior, but if she knew exactly how much he’s recovered, who knows what she might do to him.’
It wouldn’t be difficult to completely break Rosia’s control.
All she had to do was reveal who Rosia truly was.
But if she did that now, Cedric would no longer be able to hide his growing hatred for Rosia.
And Cedric had always been the type to wear his heart on his sleeve.
‘I still haven’t figured out how to expose Rosia publicly as a fraud.’
Revealing her secret too soon would only create more danger.
Her father and Zerat were still under suggestion spells as well.
If Rosia realized she was cornered, there was no telling what she might do.
There was only one conclusion.
Until she had a perfect plan to corner Rosia completely, she couldn’t accept Cedric’s apology.
Eila pressed her lips into a firm line.
Then, in a voice devoid of emotion, she spoke.
“Isn’t this all in the past?”
“Eila, I…”
“If you truly wanted to stop me, you should’ve done it before I left House Blanche.”
Cedric closed his eyes tightly at her cold voice.
He understood her anger.
If he were in her place, he would’ve found his own words detestable too.
Still, that didn’t stop the pain from piercing his chest at her frigid tone.
“I don’t want to talk anymore. I’ll be going.”
“…”
Eila stood and silently turned her back to him.
But after a few steps, she paused and looked back.
In a firm voice, she said,
“Please don’t lash out at Rosia because of this. The more she feels cornered, the more she’ll hate me.”
“…”
“That’s the only way you can help me, Cedric.”
Cedric felt as if his heart was sinking into the earth.
But he didn’t try to stop her again.
He understood — clinging to her now would only cause her more pain.
Outside in the corridor, Cadin looked at Rosia with a cold gaze.
Though she stared back at him with pitiful eyes, he found it repulsive.
He tried his best to hold back his anger.
He wanted to shout — Is this how you always treated Eila?
But Rosia was still supposed to be his future wife.
If he wanted to avoid unnecessary drama, he had to maintain some distance and composure.
Cadin spoke to her patiently.
“While I was waiting outside, I happened to hear you raising your voice.”
“Yes…”
“I also heard that you’re the one who reported Eila. I’m not blaming you for that. If she really was raising a monster’s egg, she should be punished.”
“…”
“But did you really have to go as far as slapping someone who claims to be innocent?”
At that, Rosia covered her face with both hands.
Her shoulders trembled, and tears began to fall.
A pitiful sight — one that would stir sympathy in most.
“Sniff… It hurts so much…”
Cadin looked at her, slightly startled.
“I’m your fiancée… Why are you always defending Eila instead?”
Rosia had started crying to gain Cadin’s sympathy.
He wasn’t the type to neglect his duty, after all.
If she acted like she was truly hurt, he would surely try to console her.
And since they were to be married in the future, surely he wouldn’t want to be at odds with her.
Rosia was confident Cadin would eventually side with her.
“I didn’t want things to be like this either. But I just hated Eila too much.”
Tears streamed down Rosia’s cheeks like a flood.
“I tried to understand… I really did. Even though I was out on the streets, and she lived comfortably as a noble lady…”
“…”
“But then she stole your attention… and even took the top spot unfairly. I just couldn’t bear it anymore.”
She glanced at Cadin, expecting him to finally comfort her.
‘Why is he still so silent?’
Even the act of crying was becoming difficult now.
To squeeze out tears, she had stimulated her tear ducts with mana — it was painful.
But Rosia didn’t realize something very important.
The more someone tried to manipulate Cadin emotionally, the more it repelled him.
Soon, a cold voice reached her ears.
“I understand how you feel, but it’s not your place to determine the truth, Rosia.”
Cadin could see right through her.
She was pretending to cry, expecting sympathy.
She thought that because they were engaged, he would play along.
Because they would be married eventually, she assumed he’d just let it go.
But instead of feeling pity, Cadin felt deeply irritated.
Far from pitiful — she just seemed despicable.
He looked her straight in the eye and said firmly,
“And my feelings… are not something you can control. I’ll probably marry you eventually, yes. But if you keep laying hands on Eila like this, I might just change my mind.”
