Viola felt like the world around her was turning white.
Looking at the blood-soaked Tundra, memories from that time came flooding back.
Memories from the emergency room.
The memory of the car accident that caused Kang Han-Joon’s death was extremely traumatic for Viola.
Just before succumbing to panic, PomPom’s words followed.
“But, it’s fake blood, isn’t it?”
That sentence cleared her mind. It looked just like blood, but it was subtly different. She could smell blood on Tundra, but it didn’t make her feel anything. There was nothing primitive to stimulate Viola’s killing nature.
“Elaborately crafted fake blood?”
Why would someone use fake blood so elaborately? How many people in the world could make blood so refined?
“If you didn’t know it was fake when you smelled it, you would think this blood scent is real.”
If PomPom weren’t a water spirit, he wouldn’t have been able to distinguish it as fake blood. Even he momentarily mistook it for real blood.
Viola stood in front of the fallen Tundra.
“Tundra, raise your head.”
Tundra’s body trembled intermittently. It seemed like he was trying to lift his head.
“It’s as if… he’s being crushed by sleep paralysis.”
Tundra’s consciousness kept trying to move his body, but it seemed his body wouldn’t listen.
A muffled groan came from Tundra as if all of his strength was being squeezed out.
“Enough, relax.”
Tundra’s body relaxed.
Viola was sure now.
“Such elaborately crafted fake blood. Someone skilled enough to partially control Tundra’s body. Are there two people in the Duke’s Manor with this kind of skill?”
No, there was only one person in the Duke’s Manor who fit that description. Doll Sorcerer Sebastian Marcos.
“As far as I know, there’s only one. Sebastian.”
If it wasn’t Sebastian, no one could have done this.
“I don’t see Hickson.”
That meant Hickson implicitly agreed to whatever this was. But Hickson wouldn’t have allowed it without a reason or justification.
“Hickson doesn’t want me to be surprised.”
Hickson was like a father figure to Viola. Even though his behavior was reckless and his manners were impulsive, Hickson had always tried to be a good role model for her. Viola knew about those efforts and believed Hickson wouldn’t agree to something like this.
“Hickson’s implicit agreement means there must have been a plausible reason.”
Sebastian Marcos is a close associate of Duke Heron.
“Was it my father’s command?”
Knock, knock.
It was none other than Sebastian Marcos. His distinctive red suit and brown shoes were visible wherever he went. With his short hair and light makeup, he approached and politely bowed.
“Sixth Princess, I am honored to meet Miss Viola.”
“You received an order to shake me using my dog?”
Viola said, shivering despite herself.
“I let my guard down for a moment.”
She had momentarily forgotten that this was Bellato, a ruthless place where the test of heirs was ongoing.
What if they hadn’t realized it was fake blood and acted rashly or showed weakness?
“Eliminating external vulnerabilities that would weaken Bellato is the right thing to do.”
If he were the Heron Bellato Duke in the novel, he would have said that.
Tundra was currently Viola’s “dog,” so if Bellato were shaken by the dog topic, it should be eliminated.
Of course, it would be a major flaw for Viola too.
“Aren’t you going to answer?”
“Well, I apologize. I should answer, but I was wondering how honest I should be…”
Sebastian, who had been hesitating a little, finally spoke.
“Actually, it’s not the Duke’s orders. It’s Lady Isabella’s orders.”
“Mother?”
“Yes. The Lady asked me to check to see if you have special affection for your dog. She asked me to confirm.”
Although it was called confirmation, it ultimately meant they wanted to exploit a weakness.
Viola’s spine chilled again. She had never shown any special affection for Tundra in front of Isabella. And yet, she had manipulated Sebastian to do this to Tundra. It must be Isabella.
“I wasn’t shaken at all.”
Sebastian chuckled as if he found it amusing.
“Lady Isabella has never been wrong in her judgment, it’s amazing.”
“…”
Viola felt something was off. She had definitely been shaken. Before PomPom told her it was fake blood, she had almost panicked.
‘Sebastian can’t possibly not know.’
The current Sebastian had the skills to partially control Tundra’s consciousness. The current Tundra was growing into a warrior who could almost fight on par with the powerful 5th Prince, Vicen. In other words, Sebastian was intentionally pretending not to know to some extent.
‘PomPom seems to be invisible to Sebastian.’
Evidently, PomPom was invisible to Sebastian. Spirits were said to be able to hide from uncontracted humans, so it wasn’t so strange.
Viola turned her back and walked towards the chair. She walked gracefully and sat on the chair with her legs crossed.
“Sebastian, what do you really want to say?”
“Ahaha.”
Sebastian covered his mouth and laughed. He raised his right hand and brushed his hair back behind his ear. He squinted his eyes, looked at Viola, and began to speak.
“As expected, Lady Viola is quite sharp. Originally, I was supposed to keep the received orders a secret.”
Isabella’s secret test. The contents of the order were not supposed to be disclosed. However, Sebastian spilled everything to Viola, even revealing that Isabella was the one who gave the order.
“Go on.”
“But I’ve come to want Lady Viola’s trust more than Lady Isabella’s. Why, you ask? Just a feeling.”
Comparing the current Isabella with the current Viola was impossible. Isabella had grown her power and influence as the mistress of Bellato for a long time. Furthermore, she was from the Qualton family, a prestigious lineage of spear users.
“And just because.”
Viola was a bit puzzled. It was hard to determine whether Sebastian Marcos was speaking sincerely or just testing the waters.
“After all, the person who properly recognized me was seven-year-old Viola Bellato.”
* * *
Viola didn’t fully trust Sebastian. This was Bellato after all, and it was better to doubt everyone rather than trust anyone.
‘But… it seems that he likes me.’
She didn’t dislike it. As with most characters in “The Shadow of Bellato,” Sebastian Marcos was not a particularly happy character.
“How do you plan to pay the price for meddling with what’s mine?”
“Well…”
Tundra had come to his senses at some point. He was dizzy with joy at the sight of Viola, but he restrained himself for now.
‘I shouldn’t panic.’
Tundra had done strange things under Sebastian’s influence. Even though Sir Hickson had agreed to it, it didn’t sit right with him.
‘The other party was too strong… I was dominated.’
It was something that shouldn’t happen to a companion animal. Rather than being manipulated, he thought it would have been better to just die quietly.
‘She’ll probably reprimand me later.’
Tundra lowered his shoulders like a puppy with its tail between its legs and leaned against the wall, waiting.
“I only followed Lady Isabella’s orders.”
“That’s true. But it’s also true that you meddled with what’s mine.”
Viola got up from her chair. She stood upright with a dignified posture and looked up at Sebastian.
“In that case, I suppose I should go see Mother.”
“What are you going to do when you see her?”
“I need to officially complain about someone meddling with what’s mine.”
“But won’t that make me look bad?”
“Weren’t you prepared for that?”
As Viola walked towards the door, Sebastian hurriedly blocked her way.
“Princess, I’ll work hard to make amends.”
“How?”
Sebastian had covered his mouth to laugh at her earlier. Now, Viola’s eyes narrowed as she smiled at him.
Seeing her smile, Sebastian felt as if he had been hit in the head.
‘It seems like I’m caught in a White Bellato’s spider web.”
Judging by her expression, it seemed that Viola had never intended to go to Isabella in the first place. The mention of going to Isabella was just a bluff. With the threat of a trap that couldn’t be escaped in any direction, she had made Sebastian pay the price.
‘Ah, that relaxed expression. That attitude. This atmosphere.’
In Sebastian Marcos’s opinion, Viola was a girl who suited Bellato very well. As expected, the title of ‘Iron-Blooded Princess’ suited her perfectly.
“Since you’ll be entering society soon, would you entrust all matters related to society to me? I could even be your escort.”
“But that’s Zenon’s job.”
“Zenon might have trouble when he’s leading the carriage or escorting because of his missing finger. Besides… in society, there will surely be crazy people who criticize Zenon’s lack of a finger, right?”
Viola’s expression contorted slightly at the reminder.
The nobility’s backward thinking, considering a flaw as a disability, was very unpleasant to her. But at the same time, she recalled Zenon’s face, who had smiled when he reported to her. At that time, he even seemed a bit mischievous.
But no matter how much magic existed in this world, where even severed fingers could easily be reattached, the pain would not go away.
‘How much did it hurt?’
When Zenon first told her that he had cut his own finger off, Viola was both angry and heartbroken. Her head understood why Zenon had done it, but her heart did not.
“Anyway, don’t hurt yourself without my permission. Ever!”
“Are you angry?”
“Yes.”
“It seems like you’re both happy and sad at the same time.”
Viola had barely restrained herself from hitting the back of his head.
Sebastian’s voice interrupted her memories.
“Although it’s a private matter, Zenon could be considered a wanted criminal. Wouldn’t it be better for me to help? I am also the most outstanding makeup artist on the continent.”
Sebastian Marcos closed the door and left. A smile was hanging on his lips as he walked down the corridor, a blue moon visible in the black sky outside the window.
‘A Bellato that is more Bellato than anyone else. I’ll make you into that kind of Bellato. Yes, the most beautiful protagonist of the Forget-Me-Not Ball will be the young lady.’
* * *
Tundra knelt.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, it was like a natural disaster.”
Lady Isabella gave the order, which meant the Duke had allowed it. From Tundra’s perspective, Sebastian Marcos was an irresistible force.
“But I should have tried harder…”
Tundra was upset. It seemed like he needed some time to come to terms with everything.
“And thank you.”
“For what?”
“For saying that I belong to you… It made me happy.”
At that moment, Tundra seemed to be delighted. To be owned by Viola, to have it confirmed, made Tundra very happy.
“I’ll work harder to be a companion dog that suits the young lady.”
Then, suddenly, he ground his teeth and pulled out a piece of paper from his jacket. The fake blood didn’t seem to have any lingering magical effects or properties.
“What’s this?”
“Jeremy asked me to deliver it.”
It was a letter. Tundra seemed displeased with the fact that Jeremy had sent a letter to Viola.
Viola opened the letter.
[Is it okay if I escort you?]
Viola’s expression contorted. Escorted by Jeremy? She would make all the ladies in the world her enemy. Viola didn’t want a noisy debut.
‘In society, I should keep a low profile.’
In the original work, Viola did something terrible by cutting off the hair of all the ladies she didn’t like. As a result, she was completely rejected by society, but that’s what the original Viola wanted.
‘The original Viola completely distanced herself from society.’
So in the original work, there weren’t many scenes related to society.
‘But I have to do it differently.’
She chose to become the White Bellato to ensure her safety, and if she became the White Bellato, she had to enter society and accumulate political power. Viola tore the letter into pieces.
“Tundra.”
“Yes.”
For some reason, Tundra’s expression seemed to brighten.
“Get rid of it.”
Tundra’s expression became even brighter. It was a bright smile that Viola had never seen before. Viola found it difficult to look directly at that smile.
“Don’t smile like that.”
Kang Han-Joon used to smile brightly sometimes. It was also because of his bright smile that Han Arin began to like Kang Han-Joon.
“Go out.”
“Yes.”
Tundra turned and left with very light steps. The room became quiet.
‘Now I can finally rest.’
It was already midnight. For a twelve-year-old body, it was quite late. She sank into the soft bed.
‘Huh?’
She thought she could finally rest, but the world didn’t make things so easy.
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Translator Note:
This chapter was translated by Bree.
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