Chapter 118
Broken
“Sigh, I really don’t understand why everyone is so eager to know about me, even though there’s nothing to tell.” Ellie spoke as if she were chatting with a close friend, someone she had no need to hide anything from. The girl’s demeanor showed not the slightest hint of caution. Consequently, the image she projected made her words seem all the more believable.
“Don’t you think it’s strange? Such a prominent family is interested in only you.”
“Well...do you know that I’m from Set City, which is governed by the Setter family?”
“Of course we know that, and so does everyone else.” Warfil nodded, but her brows remained furrowed. Ellie’s claim of being a citizen of Set City did not help clarify the nature of their relationship. And it was clear that Ellie had no intention of implying that her familiarity with the Setter family was simply because she came from Set City.
The young girl observed Warfil’s reaction before continuing her story.
“Well, I’ve lived in Set City since I was born. My family is there too. One fine day, a young noble from the Setter family went hunting. Because he was still young, he was attacked by a beast. It turned out that my family, my late father, saved his life. Since then, the Setter family has been very kind to us.”
“They helped by buying our crops at slightly higher prices than elsewhere. My father was an honest man who didn’t seek profit from saving someone’s life. Still, that little bit of extra money allowed my father to buy farming land and a plot for a small house. My life was very happy, if only my father hadn’t passed away so soon.” Ellie spoke this part with regret, but Warfil didn’t back down. She continued to probe.
“If they truly wanted to repay you, why did they let your mother die, and why didn’t they help you get an education from the beginning?”
“You know how it is...after the eldest young lord of the Setter family fell ill, would they still care about a commoner like me? If I hadn’t awakened my powers and met them again, which it was a coincidence that I helped Lord Koross find something important, they probably would’ve forgotten I was the daughter of their benefactor.”
Ellie spun her fabricated story convincingly, despite its many flaws. Overall, it seemed plausible enough.
This story, which had never actually happened, was concocted by Ellie and the Setter family together, taking advantage of various events that few people knew about to create a believable narrative. The part about the Setter family buying a game from Ellie’s father was true, but not out of gratitude. It was simply because their steward saw that his games were fresh. Who would have thought that such transactions could be woven into a tale like this?
Because Owen’s recovery coincided perfectly with Ellie becoming an important individual to the Setter family, they mixed truth with lies. A lie interwoven with truth was much harder to expose.
At the very least...the claim that Ellie was a benefactor was true. In the future, if the eldest young lord of the Setter family showed favor to Ellie as well, it wouldn’t be surprising since the boy who had been saved was him!
“Can...Can it really be like that? Your fortune is too good. If you told this story to others, no one would believe it. After all, it sounds like a made-up tale,” Warfil laughed heartily, but Ellie didn’t fall for it or show any sign of distress.
“I think a made-up tale would be me being skilled enough to take on Professor Maxim, haha. If I had such skills, I’d sign up to be a hunter for the Setter family one day. I’ve heard that the hunters have a pretty good life. The Setter family doesn’t let them do hard work without proper compensation.”
“Besides...the events that took place happened during my father’s time with the Setter family. I’m somewhat grateful that they’re good to me, but I have no reason to lie. Nor do I have a reason to explain the truth to others. Let people think and believe what they want. The truth will always be the truth. Why should I say more? Those who want to believe will believe what they want anyway.
“Moreover, I don’t think the Setter family would leave me in danger. Since my father saved their young lord’s life, I should be protected as well. Therefore, I’m not afraid...If I were the one who dealt with Professor Maxim, wouldn’t it be better for me to reveal the truth to everyone and attract more attention from the Setter family?
“And I would also earn extra points, sparing me the effort of growing herbs. Who would be foolish enough to throw away such extra points?”
Ellie sighed as if she were tired of talking to fools. Every word she spoke was logical, which made the elder hidden behind clench his fists and leave. He no longer cared to listen to such nonsense, feeling only anger at being deceived.
Initially, he wondered how a first-year student could deal with an institute professor. Even if the student was from the Setter family, the chances of handling Professor Maxim were still too slim. The opponent was not a mere beast but a seasoned professor with many years of experience. If she weren’t exceptionally skilled, could she have earned the title of Shield Master?
However, this fallen lady, Warfil, was extremely confident, even provoking him to follow and investigate such nonsense! After hearing Ellie’s words, he felt like he was the victim.
Just because Warfil wanted a large sum of money, she had schemed to deceive him with Ellie as the pawn! What would happen if he spread this news and it was proven to be a lie? He would be the one punished! Or if the Cherine family decided to handle this girl first, would the Setter family stand by idly? Especially when hearing that the other party wasn’t useful, just a family with past meritorious ties. Was it worth taking action like this?
Acting against a worthless girl to anger the Setter family versus letting the Setter family take this worthless girl just to repay an old favor, causing them to lose future benefits like finding a powerful woman as a partner—wasn’t this more advantageous?
Even though today he felt immensely angry with Warfil, the benefits for the future were still there. Maybe the Cherine family would increase protection for this girl because her existence was a burden to the Setter family!
After seeing the old man leave, Ellie deliberately smiled, her once clear eyes turning into the eyes of a cunning woman in an instant.
"And now, how is Lady Warfil? It seems living in the Cherine family isn’t as good as it should be, is it? Do you need to find other ways to survive like this?" Ellie asked, causing a slight spark in Warfil’s eyes.
"What do you mean? What exactly are you talking about?"
“You don’t need to shout like that. Your excited demeanor, as if you’ve been given another chance, is truly...laughable.”
“You! So, you’ve been this malicious all along? Then, the story you told me about the Setter family was...”
“Oh, that? It was just a tale. You should know how skilled I am by now. You were there when I dealt with Professor Maxim, weren’t you?”
“So, you admit you were the one who acted? Then you...”
“I told you not to get excited. Because the person you wanted to hear this...he has just left. It means he didn’t hear any of what we’re talking about now.”
“Y-You!”
“It’s really a shame. He only heard the previous part and probably believes that the deceiver isn’t me, but...you.” Ellie pointed to Warfil’s chest.
Having given her a chance, letting her go since she realized that day, in the end, this venomous snake...No! This foolish creature wanted to jump into the pit she dug herself and leaped right in.
If she wanted to die so badly, why didn’t she just do it? Instead, she made others find ways to handle her, wasting effort and words...
“Y-You. You’re the most vile, despicable person ever!”
“Yes, and you must be a very good person. Not only did you have an affair, but you also planned to harm those who saved you and your child. Not repaying kindness is one thing, but scheming to use me for your benefit—that’s not despicable at all, is it?”
“You think I should thank you for what you’ve done? You’re vile! Why didn’t you just let me die back then!? Do you think living like this is happiness!? You just want the Cherine family to have problems and the Fernal family to be humiliated. You’re the one who caused all this!”
“Oh, I see...Now I understand why Young Lord Carter didn’t want to take responsibility after finding out you were pregnant.”
"What do you mean? How is this related to that vile man!?"
"Eh, a vile man, you say? Isn’t that the very man who held you in his arms at night? Isn’t he the one who gave you the child you have today? Now he’s become a vile man...Sigh. At first, I pitied you because I saw you as a victim. But now I understand. You’re not a victim at all. You’re just a wretched woman who never blames herself for anything. Always saying this person is wrong, that person is evil, this person is bad. What about when you cheated on your fiancé? When you gave yourself to another man? When you plotted against me first? What do you call that?"
"I think it would be better if you spent your time raising your child properly from now on. Don’t let your child grow up knowing what kind of woman their mother is. I truly pity that child."
Ellie continued, eyes full of undisguised disgust directed at the other woman. Only the two of them were there. The woman who still sought to harm others even as she paid for her own sins now, Ellie didn’t know if her harsh words would bring Warfil to her senses or not. Her duty now was to be a good mother. Wouldn’t it be better to live with her guilt rather than seeking more trouble...
"You don’t understand anything! You don’t understand anything at all!!"
"............" Seeing Warfil scream with tears streaming down her face, Ellie chose not to retort. She had already said everything she wanted to. The rest was for the woman in front of her to reflect on.
"You don’t understand anything! Do you think you have everything under control? Yes! You’re just as foolish as I am, thinking you can control everything. I thought that by letting myself get pregnant by my lover, the engagement would be called off. Even if Carter and I had to run away to live somewhere else, it wouldn’t matter. But in the end, what happened!? The person I trusted the most, he...waah, he didn’t choose me at all!"
"Originally, I thought that as long as I had a child, nothing else would matter. My heart should be able to survive because of my child. But I had no idea how hard life would be after that! The child I thought was born for me turned out to be just a curse! Crying all day, causing trouble all day!"
"Since birth, there has been nothing but trouble for me. I...I don’t want it anymore. If I could turn back time, I would get rid of it. I would trust Carter. Maybe we would still be lovers! He loved me, but he had to stop loving me because of this hellish child!!"
Tears streamed down the broken woman’s face. Ellie frowned upon hearing such heart-wrenching words from a mother. She didn’t know what Warfil had been through since then, but...wasn’t all this her own responsibility?
Wasn’t it her choice to bring this child into the world? Why blame everything on a child born without any say in the matter?
Before, Ellie never thought a mother could call her own child a "hellish child." But now she knew. It was her first time hearing it, and she hoped it would be the last time, too.
"Don’t speak about your child that way."
"Why! Why can’t I talk about it like this? Isn’t it because of it that everything fell apart!? Because of it!! Waah."
"Lady Warfil! Do you really feel happy speaking like this? Don’t hurt others just because you are in pain. Don’t make this child suffer the way you do. Remember, half of this child is you."
Ellie tried to bring her back to her senses, but how could a broken girl be restored? If this were her previous world...perhaps she would have sent the other to see a psychiatrist by now, to prevent any tragic incidents. However, in this world, there was no such thing...Most of the time, people had to rely on their families, but...the family of the Cherine family couldn’t be a source of support for her at all.
Previously, Ellie didn’t care what would happen to the other woman. She had started trouble with Ellie first, so she had to face the consequences of her actions. But...after witnessing this complete breakdown, Ellie realized she knew nothing.
Perhaps this woman was desperately struggling for the last chance to survive, no matter how ruthless she had to be...
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