TVIOWHFW 78

Petti Morrison is right in front of me.

“Don’t hesitate?”

The lethargic voice of John echoed in my ears, ringing deep into my chest. A ripple spread across the calm lake, as if a water droplet had fallen.

“To do what?”

Petti Morrison was trembling, tied to a chair.

“Please, save me. Have mercy…”

Fear was evident in his ordinary, brown eyes.

“Fear?”

That’s a gaze I’m not used to.

Usually, the looks directed at me are filled with malice, contempt, or sometimes anger and hatred. And most of those looks are reserved for the weak.

“Is there any reason I should forgive you?”

Because John was behind me, I gained the power to control a life with just a word.

“So this is how it feels.”

Looking down from above at someone, judging them as I please from a position of authority.

“John must have always watched me from this place.”

I met Petti Morrison’s eyes with a calm gaze. His trembling brown eyes met mine, shimmering with fear.

“I’m sorry. I was wrong. I had to write provocative articles because of my family circumstances…”

He looked away, unsure of how to behave, avoiding my gaze.

“Is there anything else you want to say?”

From this vantage point, the pleading or desperate expressions below seemed merely pathetic.

Petti Morrison had already committed sins against me, and regardless of what he said, I was harmed. With just a single decision of mine, I could easily erase him.

And then, a strange feeling arose.

You unjustly tore down, criticized, and hurt someone who had nothing to do with it. Thanks to that, I became an innocent villainess, judged by everyone.

“I… I didn’t expect it to go that far.”

“Your few lines of fabricated stories—those lies—cost me my entire life’s prospects.”

The rumor that I was the villainess of Libertan.

If it hadn’t been for that, I wouldn’t have suffered such humiliation.

“At least I would have had a chance to do something.”

But because of the rumor about me being the villainess of Libertan, I was imprisoned in a mansion, unable even to dream of escaping Libertan.

Petti Morrison, who couldn’t even meet my eyes properly, hesitated and begged.

“Please, just once, forgive me. If you forgive me just this once, I promise this will never happen again.”

“Do you believe those words?”

John sneered in a cynical tone.

“It’s just an excuse to get out of the situation.”

“No, that’s not it! I genuinely regret it, and if you forgive me this time, I’ll do my best to make it right…”

“So then, what are you going to do?”

John playfully kicked the chair Petti Morrison was tied to. The slight movement of the chair made Petti Morrison look as if he’d been stabbed.

“I’m sorry!”

“You should know your sins and die. Why are you trying to make excuses?”

John chuckled mockingly at Petti Morrison’s reaction, then placed his arm around my shoulder. His thumb pressed against my nape.

“Estelle, it’s good that you think of others, but if you do it that way, you’ll only hurt yourself.”

“Is that so?”

“Think only of your wounds. Isn’t that the most important thing?”

At first glance, John’s words seemed correct.

‘Anyway, nobody paid attention to my situation.’

I lifted my head and made eye contact with John. He pulled out a dagger from his robe and handed it to me. It felt as if the dagger had become a part of my body, pounding in my chest.

Maybe I was simply so excited that it made me feel this way.

“I care more about the wounds you’ve received than about this insignificant person’s sins. And I want to make you feel more comfortable.”

John kindly indicated the position where I should stab with the dagger.

“Stab as much as you want.”

His large hand grabbed mine holding the dagger and guided it so the blade touched Petti Morrison’s neck. I could feel Petti Morrison tremble with fear at the tip of the blade.

“Isn’t it unfair that you’ve only ever been the one who suffered?”

~·~·*· . ·*· . ·*· . ·*·~·~

John narrowed his eyes and looked at Estelle.

Estelle brought the dagger close to Petti Morrison’s neck. A thin line of blood trickled from his slightly scratched neck.

“Exactly.”

Estelle’s long, white eyelashes fluttered downward.

“I’m frustrated and annoyed that I just keep taking it.”

“Yeah, that’s understandable.”

“I thought there was a reason for why he did this to me, but there wasn’t.”

John patted her shoulder in empathetic understanding. His voice alone conveyed the inner pain Estelle was feeling.

Though kind-hearted, Estelle hesitated, but this time, she wouldn’t hold back.

‘Just like I did.’

Thus, Estelle entered the same world as him.

John felt a strange satisfaction as he activated his dark magic. Petti Morrison, terrified, struggled but couldn’t resist as his body was consumed by the dark magic.

‘Now’s the time.’

Within John’s crimson eyes, a strange magic circle appeared as dark magic was cast.

All that remained was for Estelle to do was to kill this foolish, sinful man.

“Mr. Petti Morrison.”

Estelle held the dagger as if she was about to stab, then turned the blade.

“Do you have anything you want to say one last time?”

“Well… I, I don’t know…”

“I thought so. Then, when you die, there’ll be no regrets, right? Because it’s your own fault that you’re dying?”

Estelle swung the dagger at Petti Morrison. He closed his eyes tightly, looking pale.

But at that very moment, the dagger stopped right before Petti Morrison’s eyes, at that exact spot.

Estelle let out a snicker and casually tossed the dagger onto the ground. John raised an eyebrow at her actions.

‘Aren’t you going to kill him?’

Estelle’s actions didn’t match John’s expectations.

“Estelle, are you planning to revenge in a different way?”

Estelle didn’t answer John. Instead, she moved past Petti Morrison to another person nearby, asking them a similar question.

“Why do you hate me so much? Honestly, I’ll give you a chance.”

Of course, her answer was not satisfying.

“I—I thought it was okay. I’m sorry!”

Estelle put the muzzle back on that person’s mouth and covered their eyes before stepping aside. It seemed she wanted to ask everyone present.

‘But it’s probably pointless anyway.’

John had a reason for kidnapping and tying them up as sacrifices.

All these people gathered here are trash.

If their crimes had been somewhat serious, Estelle would have cared when she found out later. But still, John didn’t understand her.

‘She was genuinely furious just now.’

Estelle’s reaction, full of anger, was sincere. That’s why John was convinced she would seek revenge.

“I needed money urgently…”

“Our publishing house is small, so to draw the Empire’s attention quickly—”

But Estelle, seemingly unbothered, listened calmly to their excuses.

‘Why isn’t she avenging?’

It’s not due to lack of hatred. Anyone in her situation could be angry. She had prepared all the evidence so she could understand.

‘Why is this woman…’

Moving in a completely different way from John.

“Don’t you understand that excuses are pointless?”

“…”

“You wouldn’t have to if you didn’t have to. I’ve been through that too.”

After hearing the last person, Estelle took a slow breath. John gently stroked her cheek and asked.

“If you’re having a hard time avenging, should I do it for you?”

Thinking about it, revenge might be an overwhelmingly heavy emotion for the well-bred Estelle. Then, she looked at him with her clear blue eyes.

“No. There’s no need for that.”

“…Why?”

John involuntarily leaned closer. His hand tightened around her jaw.

“You’re saying you won’t avenge?”

“Who would?”

Estelle chuckled softly.

“This is my way of revenge.”

“…”

“I hope those people don’t get away with their crimes. They should have a chance to reflect on what they’ve done and correct themselves.”

Estelle was nobler than anyone among these terrible human trash. John twisted his lips.

“You don’t really believe they’ll change, do you?”

“I just want to believe it.”

“…”

“I’ve thought about it a lot, and this is ultimately what I want.”

John felt a terrible thirst.

He could not understand Estelle at all. No matter how much he suffered, he needed to pay back several times over to feel satisfied.

He was a monster striving to plunge himself into an even greater hell, tormenting himself because he wanted to hurt her more.

‘I want to defile you.’

Despite the deep wounds and traumas in his heart, she was a woman with a shimmer of light.

‘No, I want her just as she is.’

John wanted to drag Estelle into the hell she was in and make her fall. But instead, she reminded him of the heart he had forgotten, which he thought was the filthiest within himself.

His perfect plan to punish those who tormented Estelle, to eliminate them and use them as sacrifices to cure her.

‘It’s completely failed.’

Estelle again denied his plan.

~·~·*· . ·*· . ·*· . ·*·~·~

I glanced at the dagger discarded on the floor.

‘I almost killed him.’

Honestly, I wanted to kill them all. No, I didn’t want to do it myself—I wanted John to do it and face a terrible end.

If only that fleeting thought hadn’t crossed my mind.

‘Then what’s the difference between me and John?’

I understand John’s actions, but I don’t want to become like him.

‘That would be too sad.’

Just as John’s plan, which seemed perfect, involved an innocent victim like me, even now, someone like me could exist.

‘At least I hope someone like me never appears.’

So I deliberately listened to each of their stories, even if they didn’t realize their sins.

In the end, only unacceptable excuses came out, just as I expected, but I wanted to give them a chance.

“I’m sorry if I seemed frustrating.”

John’s gaze darkened as if about to devour me.

The intense heat engraved in his glaring red eyes, the prickling tension as if I had become prey at his mercy.

“So, what kind of opportunity do you want to give them?”

“At least, make them admit their sins and write a correction article. So they can confess what they did. Anyway, if they go back now, public opinion will have changed a lot, so it won’t be difficult.”

“And if it’s still the same?”

“Then, do I even need to say more?”

I have no intention of taking responsibility for those fools digging their own graves.

“John, just handle it in the most brutal way possible. As they’ve squandered their chance, they should pay the price.”

“That’s strange.”

John suddenly embraced me tightly, as if he couldn’t bear it. He rubbed his face against my neck. A shiver ran down my spine from his breath on my skin.

“When I see you, I feel like I’m doing something wrong. I haven’t done anything wrong.”

“It’s because of John that I can do this.”

Just as I could easily deal with them, I could also punish them again when they sinned once more.

‘From John’s perspective, I might be annoying.’

Honestly, John and I are in entirely different positions. I wouldn’t be threatened even if I didn’t punish them.

“And I’m also grateful for one thing regarding those people, which made me think a little more kindly of you.”

“What’s that?”

“They spread bad rumors about me, which allowed me to meet John.”

I grabbed John’s neck and gave him a gentle smile.

“So I’m okay.”

And I pressed my lips to John’s beautiful mouth.

John took a deep breath, filled with heat, and pulled my cheeks closer.

“I really can’t beat you.”

At that moment, the dolls trembling with the bit in their mouths distorted terribly and exploded like fireworks. But what came after wasn’t some disgusting spray of blood.

“This…”

Sparkling star dust and flower petals fluttered wildly. As I gazed at this breathtaking scene, my eyes met John’s.

He folded his eyes, smiling.

“I wouldn’t do something as terrible as revenge on you.”

~·~·*· . ·**##^^##**· . ·*·~·~

Hey there, It’s Green Rose 😉

Since I human I might have make some mistakes while translating so please if you find them let me know here in the comments or in the Discord group so I can correct them and be careful in the future so they do not repeat.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

~~~Next Chapter~~~

Next chapter will be released Tomorrow.

See you then!!