The banquet hall was buzzing with people. I was sitting in a secluded corner, observing Estelline.
Or more precisely, not Estelline, but the girl stuck to her side like a duckling—Eria.
“Oh, Lady Vetter! Thank you so much for coming.”
Estelline spotted someone and greeted them brightly. Her radiant smile made the faces of those around her collectively flush red.
“They really weren’t exaggerating with the whole ‘human cherry blossom’ thing…”
From where she stood, it almost felt like flower petals were fluttering in the air.
She was the epitome of a female lead, and I couldn’t help but shake my head at the sight.
Estelline wasn’t just beautiful—her personality was angelic too. Thanks to that, she was known throughout the capital as “the saint reborn after a thousand years.”
Though she herself didn’t know that.
She only found out after meeting the male lead, because no one had dared to tell her before. The nickname was just too cringeworthy.
…Anyway. Of course the female lead wouldn’t be just that.
Her father—who adored his daughters dearly—was the head of the famous Laurent family and one of the four great dukes supporting the empire, the so-called “Four Dukes.”
He was a gentle man with two daughters under his care: Estelline and Eria. And unbelievably, both of them were Manifested.
In this world, the Manifested were often referred to as “humans who resembled gods.”
They were, in a literal sense, lucky people granted “supernatural abilities” by the gods. These abilities varied greatly—from elemental powers like water, fire, and earth, to more specialized types like healing, attack, or defense.
Manifested individuals would often awe those around them and sometimes save the world from sudden catastrophes.
“Estelline was absolutely amazing in the original novel, too.”
And now, two Manifested had been born into the Laurent family.
Of course, in the original, Eria was poisoned today, leaving only Estelline behind.
“…I have to stop it no matter what.”
I clenched my fists.
If I wanted to survive in this world without getting executed, there was no other option.
My heart was pounding so loudly that I took a deep breath to calm myself. My heels had been stinging terribly just moments ago.
Frowning, I looked down at the wound oozing blood, then bit my lip hard.
Suddenly, a wave of injustice surged within me.
“Sure, it’s nice to be reborn, but why did it have to be this role? I was such a good person in my past life.”
I’d opened my eyes to this world only to be handed the mission of cleaning up a mess someone else—no, my past self—had left behind.
And it was one hell of a mess.
“Poisoning? Seriously, poisoning?!”
I glared at the floor with blazing eyes. When I looked up again, Estelline and Eria were chatting cheerfully.
But then, my eyes widened as I watched them closely.
I shot up from my seat.
In Estelline’s hand was a cup I hadn’t seen before. Eria was staring at it with sparkling eyes.
“Just one sip? Not even a tiny bit?”
Eria tugged at her sister’s sleeve, eyebrows drooped in pleading. But Estelline shook her head.
“Nope. You have juice, don’t you?”
“But sis…! Lady Sophie says she already tried wine ages ago!”
“You still can’t. If you want to drink, wait until you’re seventeen.”
Faced with her sister’s ironclad reply, disappointment spread across Eria’s face.
Estelline looked at her lovingly and laughed.
“Eria, don’t look so crushed.”
“But I’m the only one in our club who hasn’t tried wine!”
Eria pouted, her lips trembling. Estelline blinked in surprise at her sister’s words.
After a moment of hesitation and a slight furrowing of her smooth brow, she finally gave a resigned smile.
“Okay. But just one sip, alright?”
“Really?!”
Estelline nodded with a smile and offered the cup to Eria.
Eria’s face lit up with delight as she took what she wanted.
“Wow! Sis, it smells like grape juice!”
Eria brought the cup to her lips. Just as the red liquid was about to touch her lips—
Clack!
Eria flinched and opened her eyes wide in surprise.
Someone had forcefully snatched the cup from her hand. It was a figure with long, flowing platinum blonde hair, blue eyes gleaming dangerously—
“L-Lady Selenea…! What are you doing?!”
Everyone in the banquet hall turned to look at us in surprise. I kept my expression as calm as possible as my eyes darted around.
“Uh…”
“…”
“…I just suddenly had a craving for a drink?”
Estelline stared at me in disbelief, her lips parting slightly.
“What on earth do you mean…”
Her voice was thick with sorrow, and I swallowed nervously as I looked at her.
“I know you don’t like me, Lady Selenea… but…”
Her long lashes trembled. Soon, honey-colored eyes started to well with tears.
“Wait, is she seriously about to cry?”
I stared at her in disbelief. But Estelline continued in a heartbroken voice.
“I don’t care how you treat me… but doing this to young Eria…”
Murmurs erupted among the growing crowd around us.
“Oh my. What’s happening over there now?”
“Isn’t that the infamous Lady Tigris?”
“She’s even causing a scene at Estelline’s birthday party!”
“Well, it’s just like the rumors say. That the Tigris family has a total misfit.”
I let out an awkward cough as the crowd openly hurled harsh insults at me.
So this was the kind of reputation Selenea had in this world.
Granted, I was in the wrong here. But still, I hadn’t expected to be bashed like this.
With a quiet sigh, I finally opened my mouth.
“I… I’m sorry. There’s a reason I had to do this. But Eria can drink something else—”
I turned to Eria.
And froze.
The twelve-year-old was boldly holding out her tiny hand toward me.
“Return it at once, Lady Selenea.”
Eria was fuming, glaring as if she might charge at me any second.
When I tried to hide the glass behind my back, she raised her voice, clear and strong.
“What do you think you’re doing? My sister gave that to me! Return it now!”
“…”
This… wasn’t how I thought this would go.
Even Estelline looked stunned, staring at her sister.
I furrowed my brows and glanced at the red wine swirling in the glass.
“I get that you’re trying to protect your sweet sister’s pride, but…”
That’s poison!
I was so frustrated I almost groaned aloud.
Of course, I couldn’t just blurt out the truth. If I did, everything would spiral out of control.
Selenea was the one who had bribed a maid to poison the wine.
If I said something was in the drink, the Laurent family might launch an investigation, and then it’d be all over.
I wasn’t about to get executed less than a month into my new life.
“……Haa.”
I finally made my decision.
Rather than risking death right now, I’d take my chances fighting this feisty little girl.
And there was only one sure way to win this.
“It’s gross, but…”
Without hesitation, I downed the entire glass of wine.
Every last drop.
“Lady Selenea!”
Eria shouted. I quickly swallowed the wine I had just gulped.
The sweet flavor coated my mouth as the liquid slid down my throat.
I held up the now-empty glass for all to see. Faces around me turned pale in shock.
But there was no other choice.
“Because this isn’t poison—at least, not to me.”
The poison I’d slipped into Estelline’s cup was called Tears of the Gods.
A substance that amplified the abilities of Manifested individuals.
But there was a crucial detail to remember when ingesting it.
The safe dosage was only a few drops. Taking more than that could be fatal.
“And I gave her enough to drink a whole bottle.”
If a Manifested drank that much, it would cause an immediate mana overload.
A violent, explosive one—enough to kill depending on the situation.
Who knows where Selenea even got the stuff?
“But if Estelline or Eria—both Manifested—had drunk it, they’d be dead.”
Selenea, however, hadn’t awakened.
To ordinary people, Tears of the Gods was nothing more than flavored water.
So to me, drinking it had no effect.
I could feel the wine running down my throat as I handed the glass back to Eria.
“Oh dear, my apologies. I’ve already drunk the whole—”
And then it happened.
A strange sensation swirled deep inside my body.
Suddenly, my chest burned as if it were on fire, and a heavy pain slammed through me.
“Ah—!!”
Clutching my chest instinctively, I staggered. My grip loosened, and the glass fell to the floor.
Crash! The glass shattered, sending shards flying.
Screams erupted from all directions.
“Selenea!!”
I blinked at Estelline, who was running toward me.
My vision blurred, and the world turned white.
“This… this can’t be happening…”
I felt myself tipping sideways, as if I were sinking underwater. Sounds around me grew distant and muffled.
“Selenea! Someone call a doctor! Hurry!!”
Estelline’s scream was the last thing I heard before the world was swallowed by silence.
