The Villain’S Daughter-In-Law Is Inherently Powerful [EN]: Chapter 131

Goodness, it’s all the alcohol’s fault.

‘I haven’t even met Ian as an adult, so what? I can only guess what he looks like, so how could I possibly…’

After a long silence, I leaned my head against the railing, then pouted.

‘It’s too much. I thought he would come today.’

How could he not even show his face like this? Doesn’t he miss me?

‘I miss him.’

It seems like I’m the only one.

Come to think of it, the letter Canary brought me last time said, ‘Let’s meet soon,’ but it didn’t say, ‘I miss you.’

‘Right, just because Yuri is obsessed with me and Dante likes me doesn’t mean Ian has to be the same.’

I felt a bit sad, but I tried to soothe my heart.

But since you can’t soothe it with just words, I scanned my surroundings.

Terraces usually have small tables and drinks prepared for the guests who come out here.

I grabbed a glass of high-proof champagne and downed it in one go. The sweet, almost cloying, strawberry flavor spread through my mouth.

‘Okay, let’s not be upset. It’s not like I’ve given Ian my whole heart, and it’s not like we’ve made firm promises for the future.’

Of course, when we were young, Ian said he would try to make me choose him, but that was already in the past.

He might think differently now. Or maybe he has someone he likes.

There’s no rule that says that can’t happen, right?

Feeling a bit choked up, I emptied the remaining alcohol.

There’s no one to stop me, no Dante to nag me. I should drink as much as I want on this occasion.

But strangely, the more I drank, the clearer my head became.

‘No, but this is too much!’

Does he really not think of me at all?

When he didn’t come to the welcome banquet, I thought it was because he was busy. And the whole family atmosphere was pushing Dante more than Ian, so I figured Ian was reluctant to come. I did.

But even after that! Even after that!

Couldn’t he come to say hello?

I need to know where he is so I can go find him!

‘…No. I have no right to resent him. I was the one who chose Dante in the first place.’

So what am I resenting?

‘…But why am I so upset?’

I made that choice because there were good reasons, but in the end, it seems it wasn’t a choice for ‘me’ myself.

I finally sighed and rubbed my eyes.

A little tear welled up.

This is probably just the alcohol playing tricks on me.

‘It’s okay. It’s okay… Even if Ian likes someone else, it’s… okay.’

But it felt different from imagining Dante liking someone else.

It felt like someone had stuck a thorn deep in my heart.

“I wish I could just see his face…”

“Beep-!”

That’s when it happened.

A canary flew from somewhere and landed on the back of my hand, which was hanging limply.

Thinking it was a lost bird, I raised my gaze loosely, then was so startled that I almost fell on my butt.

‘I, it’s Ian’s canary?!’

No, how did he know I was thinking about him and send it?

My heart pounded as if I’d been caught doing something bad. My mouth felt dry and my stomach tickled, so I took a deep breath.

The canary pecked my hand with its beak, not painfully, as if telling me to follow it, then spread its wings wide.

“Little bird. Where should I go?”

Where is Ian waiting for me?

Did he come here? If he did, why didn’t he come straight to me?

‘Does he really have someone he likes?’

So he doesn’t want to see me anymore?

Has he forgotten about me because he’s with that person?

All sorts of thoughts confused me.

It was even more so because I had never made such an assumption before.

‘If Ian says he wants to marry another woman… what should I do?’

I think I’d be a little, just a little, resentful.

Even though I don’t have the right to resent him.

‘Bad me.’

The thought that Dante might be worried about me flashed for a moment and then disappeared like a bubble.

I finally grabbed my skirt and put my foot on the railing to follow the canary. Then, I took off the shoes I was wearing and threw them down. It wasn’t that high, so I didn’t think I’d get hurt.

“Ugh!”

Huh? But why is it so soft?

Besides, ugh? That’s not a scream from my mouth.

The impact of the ground should be coming straight up, but it was soft. It was as if I was using someone as a cushion.

‘Wait a minute! I jumped because there was no one underneath!’

It feels like I’m sobering up.

I didn’t want to face reality, so I squeezed my eyes shut, but when I heard a groan from below, I had no choice but to open them.

And as soon as I checked who was under me, my mouth dropped open.

‘A, a priest from the Holy Empire!’

He’s wearing a pure white robe!

My mind went blank for a moment, and I didn’t even know how to fix this.

The priest was crushed under me like a frog, but fortunately, I was sitting on his back.

Unfortunately?

The weight of the jewels on what I’m wearing is quite heavy.

Feeling dizzy, I first checked if the priest was alive or dead.

Fortunately, he coughed and breathed heavily as soon as I moved, so it seemed he was alive.

It’s a good thing the height I jumped from wasn’t that high…!

“A-Are you okay? I’m sorry, Priest!”

“Ouch. I think I hit my head…”

“Oh no. I’ll call the palace doctor!”

I need to get out of here before that priest clearly sees my face.

I didn’t want to be called ‘the lady who crushed a priest at the debutante ball’ even if I died.

I’ll have that label for the rest of my life!

“Wait, just a moment, Princess.”

Aren’t all the priests in the banquet hall?

Feeling unfairly wronged, I ran with a face mixed with apology and embarrassment.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

But the priest, limping, followed me well and grabbed me.

Unable to shake off the victim’s hand, I had no choice but to stop and nod.

“I’m… I’m okay.”

“But you don’t look well. I won’t tell anyone about what just happened, so don’t worry, Princess. I swear to God.”

I’d really appreciate it if you did…

‘But why is he calling me Princess?’

I have more than one or two titles. I could choose the appropriate one, but I don’t know why he’s calling me by the highest title.

It’s a bit embarrassing.

“Oh my, your eyes… Use this.”

Then, the priest fumbled and took out a handkerchief from his arms and held it out. I was about to accept it without thinking, but I paused and clenched my hand.

‘This handkerchief.’

I can feel Rahin’s energy.

No matter how I look at it, I don’t think I’m mistaken.

“Princess?”

When I looked up, I saw worried eyes looking at me.

He looked to be in his late thirties. A man with kind eyes, a gentle impression, and long hair, like a priest.

To be exact, he had a face that could be seen anywhere?

The only unusual thing about his face was his pure eyes, as if they had never been touched by a speck of dust, like a newborn calf.

But I was very uneasy.

It was because I knew Hwairan, who had the ability to change her face as she pleased.

‘Should I just take it?’

No matter how I think about it, it seems more comfortable to pretend that I don’t have divine power than to have it.

This might be a test.

If you have divine power, you wouldn’t accept this item knowing the curse on it.

Besides, the energy in that handkerchief wasn’t a big deal.

I’ve seen dozens more items with Rahin’s energy left on them. Among the curses I’ve lifted, there were some with much stronger power than that handkerchief, so it didn’t seem very dangerous.

However, the only minor problem was that I didn’t know ‘what kind of curse’ was on it.

It was usually just a severe prank… but sometimes it went too far.

“Do you know me?”

I asked calmly first.

Then the priest made an innocent expression and widened his eyes.

“How could I not know you? You have silver hair and red eyes. Aren’t you the one who revealed that albinos are actually a characteristic of the Arkalik country? In addition, you are the Saintess of the Magic Empire.”

“I didn’t expect people from the Holy Empire to be so friendly to me. There were many things that happened [referring to past conflicts or tensions between the two empires]. ”

“Those are things of the past. Now, our empire has a Saintess who has awakened. Oh, my name is Roxanne.”

The priest, Roxanne, scratched the back of his head and smiled innocently.

“Roxanne?”

I’ve heard it somewhere.

But no matter how hard I thought about it, there was no one named Roxanne among the famous high-ranking priests. His age was too young to become a high-ranking priest.

Is he really just a minor priest? Did he come to attend to a high-ranking priest?

“Um, but…”

“?”

“I’m really worried about you. Um… your eyes are smudged.”

Ah, my makeup must have been smudged because tears welled up earlier and I rubbed them.

I didn’t want to meet Ian in that state, so I decided to accept the handkerchief that Roxanne was holding out.

And at the very moment I wiped my eyes with it.

Roxanne’s eyes sparkled.

The moment I recognized the glittering light, like that of a bat that had been waiting for an opportunity in the dark-

‘Huh?’

Something’s wrong.

I felt like my body was being sucked somewhere, and the handkerchief escaped from my grasp and flew up.