Chapter 11
“Give me a room.”
After being rejected by Amelia, I barely managed to find an inn.
The innkeeper looked me up and down with wary curiosity.
“How many nights will you be staying?”
“Just one night for now.”
“Payment is up front.”
“Here. Will this cover it?”
When I handed over a few coins, the innkeeper nodded and took them. After receiving the key, I headed to the room.
It was my first time at an inn, and it was even damper and more rundown than I’d imagined. But I didn’t have the luxury to be picky right now.
I had no money, no place to go. My body and heart were in ruins, and I needed to figure out what to do next.
“Haa…”
I collapsed onto the bed. A musty smell rose from the damp sheets, but I was too exhausted to care.
I’d been abandoned by my father and brother, and I had seen Amelia’s true colors. I had nowhere to go, and I hadn’t even brought any money with me.
It was too soon to worry about how I would survive… I was simply too worn out.
‘Just one hour… I’ll rest for just one hour. Then I’ll make a plan.’
With that thought, I flopped down on the bed. I was so drained that my eyes closed on their own—but I couldn’t fall asleep.
Instead, my mind grew sharper with each passing moment.
What had gone wrong? Where had things started to twist? And what did Selena’s words even mean…?
My thoughts spiraled, becoming a tangled mess. I eventually got up and rummaged through my bag. I didn’t want to be lost in my head right now.
‘I need to send a letter. I have to tell someone what’s happening.’
I slapped my cheeks. The more dire the situation, the clearer my mind needed to be. I didn’t want to collapse from it.
I took out paper and a pen and slowly began to write.
[Hereis, it’s me. Selena.
How have you been? Something happened. I can’t explain it all right now, but I’ll tell you everything once things settle down.
For now, until I figure out my situation, don’t send anything to the Estarion County. No reports, nothing.
Anyway… (abridged)… Please take care of that.
I hope you stay safe and well.
—Selena of House Estarion.]
Out of habit, I signed as Selena of House Estarion—then I scratched it out violently.
‘I’m not Estarion anymore.’
Not because I lacked their blood, but because they no longer saw me as family.
That truth hurt so deeply it made me want to cry. I widened my eyes to stop the tears.
“Ugh.”
My head throbbed. Not just a dull pain—it felt like someone was splitting my skull with an axe.
Screeeeeam!
There it was again. That scream.
Who are you? What happened to make you scream like that?
The relentless, throat-tearing cry made my head feel like it would burst. My breath caught.
Run!
A boy’s desperate voice rang out.
Run? From what? Why?
“Ahhh!”
It felt like my skull was shattering. The pain was so intense I gagged. Ugh! I covered my mouth as a memory flashed through my mind.
“Father’s going to punish me…”
The younger me was nervously holding my hands.
“What do I do? If Father finds out, he’ll hate me.”
The “mistake” I made wasn’t something trivial.
And I wasn’t strong enough to believe I could be forgiven for a serious wrongdoing.
I had only recently been found and brought home, so my trust and confidence in my family were fragile.
That’s why… I drank it. The water inside the Estarion’s Treasure.
After that, I lost consciousness.
The Estarion’s Treasure, commonly known as Krucus, was a sacred relic passed down through our family since the founding of the Empire.
It wasn’t just called the “Treasure of Estarion” because our family stored it.
Krucus responded only to the bloodline of the House of Estarion.
When it resonated with the family’s blood, it created holy water with remarkable healing powers.
And ten years ago, when I first came to the Count’s household, Krucus had clearly resonated with me.
‘Even if my memories are hazy, how could I forget something like this?’
I had just been rescued after being kidnapped and was in a daze, but forgetting something so important… I felt utterly foolish.
‘If I’m a fake… if I’m not truly Father’s daughter… how could the Treasure respond to me?’
My hands trembled. I let out a dry laugh at my own stupidity.
‘It definitely resonated with me.’
It was right after I had been taken in by the family.
Wandering through the halls, lost in the unfamiliar mansion, I stumbled into a forbidden chamber.
And there, I touched the Treasure on display.
‘I had forgotten all this until now…’
Whatever happened in my childhood must’ve caused my memories to become a mess.
I can’t remember anything before age ten, and even up to eleven or twelve, there are still many blank spots.
Even now, I have to dig deep into my mind to recall anything from that time.
And now—suddenly—those memories, buried in dust in some forgotten corner of my mind, were coming back.
‘Testing with the Treasure is the surest way. I should have used Krucus first.’
Krucus was hidden deep underground, known only to the direct line of the family.
It wasn’t something you touched or even looked at casually. So in the chaos, it made sense it hadn’t been considered.
Still, when Sienna arrived, Father should’ve verified with Krucus just once.
Even if my brother and I forgot about it… Father couldn’t have. He wouldn’t have.
‘He’s been using Krucus himself…’
The fact that he didn’t verify with it must mean… he didn’t trust me.
I chewed my nails nervously in the carriage. My heart pounded.
Hope surged at the thought that this might prove I was real.
‘I am his daughter.’
The Treasure only responded to Estarion blood. If it resonated with me, then I must be real.
‘Then who is Sienna?’
If I’m real… then who is she? All her memories were genuine.
My mind spun. Excitement and anxiety surged around my racing heart.
I didn’t care about the power or prestige of the noble house.
I just needed a family. My father and brother were precious to me—I didn’t want to go back to being nothing to them.
So I waited impatiently to arrive at the Count’s estate. The carriage felt unbearably slow.
At last, the estate came into view.
“Here’s your fare.”
I gave the driver the last of my money. I had nothing left to get back to the inn.
I bit my lower lip. I was nervous—breathless.
“L-Lady Selena?”
“I didn’t expect to see you again so soon… Have you been well?”
The butler couldn’t hide his surprise at my appearance.
A disgraced woman, expelled from the family, showing up without notice—it was enough to shock anyone.
But I didn’t have the time or luxury to send word ahead.
“Where are Father and my brother?”
“If you would kindly tell me why you need to see them first—”
“That’s not something to tell you. Just inform Father that I have something important to say.”
“They’re both quite busy. If you explain it to me—”
I didn’t wait for him to finish and walked past.
I knew well from ten years of seeing him that he wasn’t going to listen to me.
“L-Lady!”
He reached to stop me, but I shrugged him off and marched inside.
As I entered the hallway, I heard laughter.
“Ahaha! Yes, you can suck the nectar from salvia flowers. But I didn’t think Father had tried it himself!”
The voice was clear, cheerful.
She hadn’t been with the family for long, but her sociable nature had already let her fit right in.
I used to envy that about Sienna—and I still do.
‘You’re like a swan.’
The Crown Prince once said that.
It sounded random, but I wasn’t too foolish to miss its meaning.
‘And too high above us.’
Her emotionless tone, serene gaze, impenetrable nature—she was so elegant, it made others wary.
I always tried to be careful around her, but one’s nature doesn’t easily change.
My introversion and lack of self-confidence often made me hesitate and withdraw. To others, it probably looked cold.
‘Selena, it’s okay to act like other children. You can be spoiled. You can be at ease with your family.’
That’s what my brother always told me.
But I could only repeat the same answer like a parrot.
‘I am being casual with you, Brother.’
He once said I used to be cheerful and bright before the kidnapping. He missed that version of me.
I wanted to be that way, but…
‘I was scared.’
I had no memory of being Selena Estarion, yet everyone insisted I was her.
But the real Selena seemed like someone entirely different.
‘You used to be such a happy child.’
Everyone said so. But pretending to be cheerful felt awkward to me.
Always anxious, always nervous—I couldn’t become the Selena they remembered.
So I decided to become the perfect Selena instead.
If people thought I was cold, it was because I was trying so hard to be flawless.
‘No. Focus. That’s not important right now.’
I raised my clenched fist and knocked. The butler fidgeted beside me, clearly unsure if he should try stopping me again.
“What is it?”
It was my brother’s voice.
I gripped the doorknob, trying not to let my hand tremble.
“It’s me.”
“You… you…!”
My brother’s face twisted in shock when he saw me.
