Chapter 20 Rose Festival 14
After solving the source of the curse, the next things, although trivial, were relatively simple.
The injured needed treatment, the frightened girls needed comfort, and the nobles, servants, and security guards involved were detained and investigated by the Inquisition one by one.
The city lord's fall from power is inevitable, and Anthony and other masterminds behind the scenes cannot escape punishment. The order of Beleriand City is gradually returning to normal.
By the time all the finishing work was basically completed, the sky had already brightened, and the first ray of sunlight peeked out from the horizon, slowly illuminating this disaster-stricken city.
All sins will be exposed to the light of day.
As expected, Mrs. Lucia's Rose Manor was completely sealed off.
Zhu Yu could only follow Isabella and Cecilia back to Colin Manor to rest.
She hadn't eaten since yesterday afternoon. Although she was tired, she didn't feel sleepy for the moment. However, her stomach was protesting honestly, so she simply went to the restaurant to have breakfast to fill her stomach first.
996 has already prepared food on the dining table.
Two perfectly fried soft-boiled eggs were sprinkled with chopped green onions and black pepper, served with soft toast, a glass of milk, and a plate of rose pudding.
Zhu Yu looked at the plate of rose pudding with a subtle expression.
After what happened last night, she has temporarily lost interest in any rose products.
She calmly nudged the plate of pudding with her elbow, trying to get it out of her sight.
She thought her movements were covert enough, but unexpectedly they were still captured accurately by 996.
He silently removed the rose pudding and replaced it with a chocolate pudding.
Zhu Yu picked up the fork and gently poked the soft-boiled egg. The golden and warm egg liquid slowly flowed out. She dipped a little with the bread and put it into her mouth.
The perfect taste made her sigh. It seemed that in this copy, as long as 996 existed, the chefs could probably leave work early.
On the other side, George had also pulled out a chair, ready to sit down and eat together, but when he saw that there was only one breakfast on the table and Zhu Yu had already started enjoying it, he paused and felt a little embarrassed for a moment.
He hesitated for a moment, then stood up unnaturally and paced back and forth in front of the dining table in a pretentious manner, looking as if he was thinking about something important.
No, what does "pretending" mean?
He is really thinking about the problem seriously!
George couldn't help but scratch his hair, his brows furrowed, and he looked extremely conflicted.
After hovering in front of Zhu Yu for a while, he suddenly leaned over, leaned close to Zhu Yu's ear, and asked in a low voice:
"Sister, you...are you really the Knight of Light?"
Zhu Yu glanced at him and leisurely drank a sip of milk:
"Didn't you see it with your own eyes?"
George murmured to himself: "But I still can't believe it..."
But soon, his expression changed from shock to ecstasy.
If my sister is really a Knight of Light, then the situation of the Draka family will be completely different!
Before, they had always been worried that their sister's suspicion of being a wizard would implicate the entire family, and they even went so far as to hunt her down.
But now it’s different, the Knight of Light symbolizes justice and purity, and is the most respected existence in the entire kingdom!
Not only will the family no longer be purged, but it will gain new status and glory because of the appearance of the Knight of Light!
"Oh my god..." George almost jumped up with excitement. He waved his fist and gave himself an uppercut. Then he said to Zhu Yu, "Sister, take your time eating. I have to go upstairs and write a letter to my family!"
Such great news must be notified to the family as soon as possible, lest they foolishly send people to encircle and suppress my sister and cause unnecessary misunderstandings.
He ran out excitedly, his steps anxious, as if he was afraid that if he wrote one minute late, his family would miss this great news.
Zhu Yu looked at his back as he left in a flash, the corners of his lips curled up slightly, and a smile appeared in his eyes.
In fact, George also helped a lot invisibly in this operation.
Not only did he help her stabilize the family's attitude, but she also inadvertently extracted a lot of valuable intelligence and information from him.
For example, when the Knight of Light casts the "Magic of Light", the magic power usually forms the shape of a weapon during the process of condensing.
It was for this reason that she had deliberately tried to use the power of purification to reshape herself last night, making herself look more like a "Knight of Light".
After eating and drinking, Zhu Yu yawned, and a strong feeling of sleepiness finally came over him.
She stood up and prepared to go upstairs to rest.
Before leaving, she casually reminded Betty:
"Keep an eye on the news at all times and notify me if there is any situation."
Betty nodded and left.
Zhu Yu turned and went upstairs. When he reached the corner of the stairs, his eyes unconsciously looked in the direction of Rose Manor.
I'm afraid Madam Lucia's current situation is not very good...
However, she was sure of at least one thing.
Based on Helena's prophecy, the other party would never betray her true identity.
*
"Shasha, do you think the choices I made over the years were really wrong?"
Lady Lucia stood at the window, looking at the burning Beleriand Mansion in the distance.
Her eyes were hidden in the shadows, as if she was trying to see her past clearly through the flames.
"If it is Madam's decision, then it must be correct."
Housekeeper Sasha squatted down and buttoned the last button on her lapel with her fingertips softly and delicately.
Her voice was as steady as usual, without the slightest ups and downs, just like it had been all these years, never wavering.
Mrs. Lucia couldn't laugh. Her eyes, which had been staring into the distance, finally moved slightly and her gaze fell on the figure in front of her who had been with her for many years.
"Shasha, do you still remember?" Her voice was very soft, like a gust of night wind. "When I rescued you, you were only six years old. At that time, you were locked in a cellar like a commodity by human traffickers. You were covered in wounds and dying..."
Sasha's movements faltered for a moment, but soon returned to normal. She whispered:
"I always remember that it was my wife who kept me alive."
"Yes, I saved you...but what happened next? How many people did I kill?"
Sasha had been one of the first wizards she had rescued. At that time, she did not have the status she has today, nor did she have enough power to protect everyone.
She just tried her best to save persecuted wizards one after another, giving them shelter and giving them a chance to survive.
And now?
Her hands are covered in blood. How many of the people she tried so hard to protect were sent to the experimental table by her own hands?
Mrs. Lucia touched the window frame with trembling fingertips, but her palms were cold.
"I always tell myself that this is for a stronger future, so that wizards can truly gain a foothold in this world."
"I thought that as long as we sacrificed some people, the rest would be able to survive..."
"I thought that by working with them, we could truly change the rules of the world..."
Her voice was low and hoarse: "But I never dared to think about it. Do those dead wizards hate me?"
She never dared to listen to the cries of the dead, and she didn't even dare to recall her dreams.
"lady."
Sasha called her softly and looked up at her without any reproach in her eyes.
"You never killed anyone. What really killed them was the world."
"This world?" Madam Lucia was stunned, then smiled bitterly, "But I also gave them a push myself..."
She slowly closed her eyes, and the figure of Dina appeared in front of her. That face, with whom she had had countless long conversations, had now turned into a cold ghost, and even her corpse could not rest in peace.
She thought of the wizards in the secret society who believed in her and regarded her as a leader they could rely on.
And what about her? She sacrificed them on the altar in exchange for the illusory "future".
The night wind blew in from the window, carrying with it a hint of the lingering scent of fire, mixed with the remaining fragrance of roses, making it hard to breathe.
"Sasha... I'm really scared sometimes." She finally admitted, "I'm afraid that everything I pursue... is a mistake."
Sasha was silent for a moment, then reached out and gently covered the back of her cold hand.
"Ma'am," she said softly, "If it happened again, would you make the same choice?"
Mrs. Lucia was silent.
Her throat seemed to be blocked by something, and even her breathing became heavy.
She looked at the burning fire and smiled softly.
There was irony, relief, and deep fatigue in the laughter.
"……I have no idea."
She really didn't know.
The two stood quietly in front of the window, staring silently at the fire in the distance gradually going out.
The ashes in the night flew in the wind, like a broken dream, peeling off piece by piece and finally falling into the dust.
"Madam, it's late, you should rest."
Sasha reminded softly.
Mrs. Lucia closed her eyes and suppressed all her surging thoughts.
After a moment, she regained her usual composure, but the tiredness could no longer be concealed.
All the beliefs she had once held firmly in place, like the burning Beleriand Palace tonight, collapsed in the raging flames and were burned to ashes.
Suddenly, there was a burst of hurried footsteps coming from downstairs, chaotic and heavy, with a sense of oppression that was difficult to ignore.
"Madam," Shasha's tone rarely fluctuated, with a hint of panic:
"I'll cover you, please leave here quickly."
However, Mrs. Lucia seemed not to hear her voice and continued walking deeper into the room.
Her fingertips lightly brushed across the table, sliding over a pile of neatly stacked letters, an old book that had been read many times, and finally stopped on a crystal ball.
That was the instrument she used for divination in the past. She had used it to peek into future destiny countless times, trying to find a way for the wizard to survive.
She once firmly believed that her destiny was in her own hands, but in the end, fate gave her the cruelest irony.
"…I still have some things to finish before I rest."
Her hand suddenly tightened and she pushed the crystal ball down.
“Bang!”
The crystal ball fell to the ground with a thud, smashing into pieces.
Transparent fragments flew everywhere, reflecting the dim candlelight, like a broken fate and a past that could not be reversed.
Mrs. Lucia stood in front of the broken wreckage with a relieved smile on her face, as if she had finally let go of all her burdens.
Then, she raised her head calmly and looked directly at the law enforcers who broke into the room. Her expression was calm and she showed no fear at all.
*
Lady Lucia was arrested along with the housekeeper and imprisoned in the Inquisition's prison.
Imprisoned with them in the narrow and cold cell were the city lord and his son, who were huddled in a corner, looking ashen and having long lost their former dignity, as well as Anthony Drake, whose face was filled with fear.
Unlike the three people who were accusing each other and arguing hysterically, Mrs. Lucia was surprisingly quiet.
She leaned against the corner of the cell. The side effects of the witch-removing potion made her feel weak all over. Her blood seemed to be frozen, her eyes were unfocused and her expression was dazed.
Her breathing was weak and her body almost completely collapsed in Sasha's arms. Only her eyes gradually focused on one point in the dim environment.
She saw the number on the cell door.
19.
She was placed in cell 19.
This is... where Dinah was imprisoned.
Mrs. Lucia opened her eyes wide and gradually regained consciousness.
She moved her body stiffly, turned over with difficulty and climbed up, groping the cold ground with her hands.
Her fingertips ran across the rough stone bricks and swept across the broken straw in the corner of the cell, trying to find any trace of her old friend.
Had Dinah ever sat here, ever touched the cold ground like this?
Mrs. Lucia's fingers paused, and her fingertips touched the dark red bloodstain on the ground that had long since dried.
"...Dina."
She murmured her best friend's name, her voice hoarse.
However, her friend could no longer respond to her.
*
It's time for the interrogation.
The warden dragged the five men out of their cells with chains and took them to the interrogation room.
The corridor was cold and dark, and the sound of the shackles dragging on the stone floor was like a death knell.
Along the way, Anthony was still struggling wildly and shouting hysterically.
"I'm innocent! You can't do this to me!"
He roared with almost all his strength, trying to make everyone around him believe him.
"You don't understand. These plans have been approved and supported by someone! I'm just an executor!"
His eyes flickered, and he turned his head sharply to look at Madam Lucia:
"And that girl! Where's the girl you were with?!"
"She too—"
Before she finished speaking, Mrs. Lucia tilted her head slightly and her lips moved slightly.
"Sasha."
Sasha lowered her head and listened quietly to her final order.
"Kill them."
Suddenly, a strange smell filled the air.
The cold chill quietly spread from the direction of the morgue.
The next second, in the prison morgue, the eyes of all the dead bodies opened at the same time.
The killing began.
The rotten corpse dragged its broken limbs and crawled out from the shadows in a hideous manner.
They climbed over the cold stone steps, passed through the dark cells, and rushed towards their target like a tide.
“Monster!!”
The city lord and his son screamed in fear and tried to retreat, but were blocked by the corpses behind them.
The city lord roared in despair, watching the undead pounce on him, his flesh and blood being torn and devoured bit by bit, and his miserable wails echoed throughout the prison.
Anthony tried to run away, but he tripped and fell to the ground.
He crawled frantically, desperately reaching out in the direction of Madam Lucia, screaming for help:
"Help, save me! We are allies! I can make amends! I..."
“Ahhhhhhhh! No!!”
The warden drew his sword and tried to resist, but more undead emerged from the darkness and devoured them.
Screams, tearing sounds, and the sounds of flesh being gnawn mixed together and filled the entire prison corridor.
Shasha stood in the center of the massacre, her face stained with fresh blood, her magic power burning wildly. She knew she had reached her limit.
But she didn't stop.
As her magic power was completely exhausted, blood flowed from the corners of her mouth and she fell down weakly.
At the last moment, her eyes passed over Lady Lucia, still as loyal and firm as they had been at the beginning.
By the time law enforcement officers arrived, the entire prison corridor had turned into a sea of blood.
The remains of the dead, the crumbling walls, the completely deformed cell door, everything exuded an atmosphere of death and despair.
And in the midst of the mess, only Mrs. Lucia was still standing.
She dragged her tired body and slowly walked to Sasha's side. She lowered her head and gently stroked her hair and helped her close her eyes.
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