Chapter 05
It would have been nice if the count had made a huge fuss—calling not only physicians, but also mages and priests.
With his insufficient magical power, the curse could not be cast at full strength. So if skilled mages or priests attempted treatment, the blisters would soon subside.
And then, the moment the count let his guard down and returned to the ducal estate…
The incomplete curse would reactivate, covering his entire body in new blisters.
“Fufufu… the most important things in a curse are secrecy and persistence!”
Mariella let out a laugh that looked unmistakably villainous, thoroughly enjoying herself.
There were two ways to undo the curse she had placed on Count Rihito.
First—kill the caster.
But identifying the caster in the first place was nearly impossible, making this method impractical.
Second—have someone with exceptional skill undo it, someone comparable to the caster, if not equal.
And who was she?
‘I was once a Great Witch who made people tremble just by name alone!’
Even though her available mana had drastically diminished, her control and mental precision remained intact.
Even archmages—and the witches hiding somewhere in obscurity—there were fewer than five beings in the world capable of dispelling this curse.
‘Well, that arrogant lizard I once had as a familiar could probably break it easily.’
But that creature, who despised witches—and indeed all living beings—would never help a branch family of a duke’s household.
Come to think of it, aside from that traitor, the one most pleased by Shyloy’s death was probably the White Dragon Herais.
A dragon by nature should never have become a witch’s familiar.
Yet because his life had been so thoroughly twisted, he had been forcibly bound to her.
“You insane witch!”
“What a shame! Which familiar dares speak so rudely to its master? Perhaps I’ve been too merciful.”
He was so proud that every time she stepped on his pride, it was oddly satisfying.
‘The way his eye corners turned red when he was angry… it was kind of beautiful.’
Now that she thought she would never see it again, it almost felt a little disappointing.
But Mariella had no intention of ever seeing him again.
‘Because I’m no longer Shyloy. I’m a delicate young lady of a ducal house.’
If that mad creature even slightly misbehaved, both she and the entire ducal family would be finished.
‘That lizard really was the most ill-tempered one of all.’
It would be better for her body and mind to never even glimpse his shadow in this life.
In any case, on the night she placed the curse on Count Rihito, Mariella finally slept peacefully with her legs stretched out for the first time in a while.
The count, however, was not an ordinary man either. He summoned physicians, mages, and treated the condition within a single day.
Then, under the pretense of comforting his nephew who must have been terrified by what looked like sudden hives, he returned to the ducal estate the next day.
And the moment he arrived—
“Gah!”
The exact same red blisters erupted across his entire body.
“Who is responsible for this?!”
The count shouted furiously.
Since only he, and not his entire party, was affected, it was impossible not to suspect deliberate targeting.
A mage who had secretly accompanied him searched the area with detection spells, but found nothing.
In the end, the count left the estate in rage.
“That’s no ordinary rash. It’s impossible.”
“Maybe the ancestral spirits of the ducal house are punishing him for coveting the heir’s position?”
Whispers spread among servants of both households.
Yet Count Rihito did not give up.
He returned again and again, day after day.
On the seventh day, the moment he approached the gates—
“Ughhh!”
He collapsed before even entering, screaming in fear.
His body had already learned terror.
The nobles and servants watching could only feel their long-suppressed frustration ease.
However, the Marchioness of Terso was not among those laughing.
She had experienced something equally dreadful.
Like the count, she had visited the estate daily under a different pretext. She had once fled in fear after witnessing his condition—but when nothing happened to her, she returned the next day even more arrogant.
And then—
“What… what is this taste?! Blegh!”
After sipping tea and refreshments served by the ducal house, she screamed and fled as if she had encountered a monster.
‘Tch. I should’ve placed a curse on her too.’
Mariella clicked her tongue in regret.
She had already exhausted most of her mana on Count Rihito, so she had resorted to indirect methods for the marchioness.
She had deliberately joined a tea gathering between her brother Morsen and the Marchioness Terso, sprinkling powdered geminus into both their cups.
Geminus was known as “the painkiller of mages.”
For those with mana, it tasted slightly sweet. For ordinary people, it was unbearably bitter.
The marchioness, having no mana, screamed the moment she drank it as though she had swallowed poison.
“What did you do to my tea?!”
Mariella pretended innocence while Betty sampled the remaining tea, neutralizing the bitterness by subtly infusing mana into it.
And when the marchioness inspected the other cups suspiciously, Mariella quickly swapped hers in.
“The only one who tastes bitterness is you, my lady.”
“This is a curse…!”
“What?”
“The carriage accident… Edwin’s blisters… it’s the curse of that damned Great Witch! And now it’s even affecting me, a married woman from another house!”
A curse from the Great Witch, indeed.
If not for the incident with Count Rihito, it would have been nothing more than a flimsy trick.
Watching the marchioness panic as if she had been truly cursed was almost too entertaining.
Eventually, her instinct for self-preservation kicked in, and she stopped visiting the estate altogether.
‘Maybe I should’ve used a paralysis herb next time… what a pity.’
A rather fortunate outcome for everyone else.
With the two central instigators withdrawing, those who had aimed to seize power from Morsen also quieted down.
Morsen seemed relieved, though Mariella did not anticipate an unintended consequence.
<The enduring curse of the Great Witch lives on!>
<Tragedy of House Esteban! From carriage accidents to endless misfortunes!>
“What the hell?!”
Mariella’s shoulders trembled as she read the newspaper brought by her brothers.
It was absurd beyond belief.
“Logically speaking, shouldn’t people think this is ancestral punishment for internal power struggles rather than a century-old witch’s curse?!”
As rumors of Count Rihito and the marchioness spread, the world once again began whispering that House Esteban was a family cursed by the Great Witch.
Not entirely wrong—since the one responsible for the curse on Rihito was, technically, Shyloy’s reincarnation…
But still!
It felt like removing one bump only to gain another.
Even though she had silenced greedy elders, the family’s reputation had taken a severe blow.
One of their trading partners even severed ties due to the rumors.
If Mariella had still possessed enough mana, that merchant might have become her next target.
“Fine! In the end, the world is ruled by power and money!”
She crushed the newspaper and threw it against the wall.
Reputation could be rebuilt with wealth and influence.
“First, I just need to make money…”
She needed to ease Morsen’s financial burden and build an environment where she could grow her magical abilities.
Mariella’s violet eyes burned with determination.
‘I was never supposed to be some herb collector!’
Why had her life turned into climbing mountains and picking plants right after regaining her past memories?
‘Because you were reborn as a powerless human with a broken noble house, obviously.’
She answered herself while continuing to gather herbs diligently.
Even Betty, the only helper, was amazed at her speed.
“My lady, you handle herbs like someone who’s done this for years.”
“I used to do it a lot when I was young.”
No one in the household knew she had once been a street orphan, so the excuse worked well.
“Ah—this part is the root. Hold the leaves and pull.”
“Eek, it’s gross! Are you sure this is good for beauty?”
Betty muttered skeptically.
“Of course!”
Mariella nodded firmly.
Of course, it was a lie.
