166 - Pieces of the Broken Glass Slipper
Shattered Glass Slipper Shards Episode 166
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Entrusting the preparations for going to the temple to Roena turned out to be more extravagant than I could have imagined.
Perhaps because she had spread the word that we were going to pray for Father, she had brought along not only maids but even many knights.
The butler watched us with a pleased expression, and Mother, regretting that she couldn't come with us, repeatedly asked us to pray sincerely. Her expression, constantly stroking her belly as if anxious, looked very gloomy.
Although there were several knights escorting us, only Lustewin Halberd was able to stay close.
As he was considered the strongest knight in the empire, it seemed that escorting two people at once was not difficult for him, and he volunteered to look after not only Roena but also me.
It was a moment that rendered Margo's persistent claim that Sir Halberd should escort Roena meaningless.
"You don't look well."
Throughout the carriage ride to the temple, Roena kept checking my complexion. Perhaps worried that my face looked even paler with makeup, she was constantly fidgeting. Was it because of the nightmare? My body felt heavy and limp like waterlogged cotton.
"Is it because you're worried about Father?"
"What?"
"I heard it from the butler. You were very worried."
"Yes."
"Sis, I don't know if you know this, but Father has been traveling by ship since I was little. Of course, this voyage is a bit rough, but it's not that difficult. So he'll be fine."
Unable to overcome her worried heart, Roena, who was going to the temple to pray, was trying to soothe me, putting on a rather calm voice. The sight was so absurd and laughable that I almost burst out laughing. Who was comforting whom?
Nevertheless, when I nodded as if to agree, her face softened in an instant.
"Yes. You're probably right."
Roena muttered as if adding to my words.
"Yes. That's really going to be the case."
As if they had been contacted in advance, the priests who had come out to greet us were standing at the temple.
They smiled broadly at the offerings Roena had prepared, then put on solemn expressions. And they said kindly that they had prepared a prayer room for us and that we could use it at any time.
"Pray first. I'll go in a little later."
I sent Roena into the prayer room first. I didn't have the confidence to pray with her, so I wanted to shorten the time even a little.
Roena looked at my unusually pale face, then nodded as if she couldn't help it. And she disappeared down the hallway, guided by the priest.
Of the people who came with us, only Margo, Marie, and Sir Halberd entered the temple.
Margo and Marie kept their distance as if they didn't even want to breathe the same air, not even looking at each other, and Sir Halberd glanced at the disappeared Roena before moving closer to me.
His face, which I hadn't seen in a long time, was still shining brightly. He was the Bishvarts Family's sword that everyone loved.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Does my condition look so bad that people around me are saying something? Strangely, I couldn't answer as before, so I blurted out the words, and a chilly voice came out that made my body flinch. I even felt sorry for saying it.
"But..."
"I'm really fine, Sir Halberd."
Being near him makes me nervous. At the same time, I felt uncomfortable because I kept thinking of the insurmountable wall or Roena.
It was also strange that Sir Ayres, who had crossed swords with him, kept coming to mind. It wasn't bad, but I wanted to stay away. What should I call this? It was a very strange feeling, different from before when I had run away because I didn't want to lose my heart to him.
So, without realizing it, I took a step back. Something kept changing after the rematch that took place in the Bishvarts Family's training ground.
Is it because I equate Sir Halberd with Roena? Or...?
I felt like he was becoming more difficult to approach with a different feeling than before. It was strange that I wasn't simply happy even though I was receiving the attention I had so desperately wanted. What on earth was the problem?
It felt like my head was getting more dizzy because he was near me, so I asked the priest to guide me to the prayer room. Sir Halberd's gaze was fixed on my back, but I diligently moved my feet without turning my head even once.
Roena had already taken her place in the prayer room and was praying in a reverent posture. Around her, the priest slowly circled, sprinkling what looked like holy water.
When he saw me enter the prayer room, he looked down at the cushion that had been laid out in advance, as if telling me to sit next to her.
How many hours will I have to pray here?
I swallowed the rising sigh and took a seat next to Roena. And I closed my eyes with my hands clasped together.
The posture looked like I was praying for Father, but my mind was filled with thoughts about the letter I had received in the morning.
From who brought the letter to my bedroom to what the meaning of the contents was, my head was so complicated that it felt like it was about to explode.
When I asked casually while changing clothes, they said that no maid had brought the letter. So someone had broken in, and it was also a problem that the security was so lax.
No, more than that, the question of who Sir Halberd's true master was was subtle.
No one didn't know that his lord was Father, so I couldn't understand why they were asking such a thing.
That's why I felt like something might happen to Father. The very act of asking who the master was implied that there was a possibility of change. Given his upright character, he would never leave the Bishvarts Family to find a new lord.
In the end, it meant that something bad would happen to Father, and I couldn't help but feel anxious because he had just set out on the sea route. The Crown Prince suddenly asking about Sir Halberd was also like that.
Wait, didn't he say he would give me the Bishvarts Family before? I bit my lip and swallowed an uneasy sigh.
No way, it can't be?
But what if asking if I knew Sir Halberd well was a question about whether I could embrace him?
The reason I didn't refuse when the Crown Prince said he would give me the Bishvarts Family was because I knew that Father would die someday.
So, I nodded silently with the intention of taking control of the Bishvarts Family after he died.
But if that answer determined Father's fate, what should I do? My whole body felt frozen with fear.
No. I can't conclude that this is the Crown Prince's doing. He wouldn't send a letter like this to shake me up.
Rather, he would hide his sinister intentions and test me by probing me. ...But did I know him well enough to be so sure?
"...Sissae, Sis!"
Someone gently grabs my shoulder and shakes me back and forth. Coming out of my thoughts, I blinked my eyes and opened them calmly, and Roena, with a smile on her face, was visible.
"How hard were you praying that you didn't even hear my voice?"
"Are you already finishing your prayer?"
"Already? Quite some time has passed. The sun is setting. You really prayed hard."
Come to think of it, my legs felt numb. My head, which had been spinning non-stop, was now even dazed. My stomach was churning and I felt dizzy. I carefully got up from my seat with the help of the priest.
"Since we prayed so hard, Father will definitely return safely."
Roena was chattering beside me. I pressed my thumb against my temple and answered in an insincere voice.
"Let's go back."
"Okay."
As I came out of the hallway with the priest's guidance, I could see the maids and Sir Halberd standing and waiting for us.
Despite the long time, he didn't seem tired and was standing as usual.
But the gaze that suddenly met mine was not the same as usual, so I turned my head away from his eyes without realizing it.
『Who is the true master that the Bishvarts Family's sword serves?』
If, just if, something happened to Father and I got the Bishvarts Family, would that person choose me instead of Roena?
If it were the old me, I would have said 'no' without hesitation. If it were me who received the book from him before the rematch at the Bishvarts Family's training ground, I would have thought 'you never know'. But the current me...
"I'll come at the same time tomorrow, so please take care of me."
Roena smiles brightly at the priest. And she takes my hand and starts walking towards the carriage. I could feel Sir Halberd's gaze on my back, but I still didn't feel like turning my head.
...When he can no longer serve both of us, whose hand will he take?
Suddenly, my throat felt parched. I stuck out my tongue and moistened my dry lips. The hand held by Roena was becoming as heavy as iron. In a sticky feeling as if my whole body was flowing down, I had a strange conviction.
Father will die. I don't know who's doing it, but he'll die and come back.
Suddenly, my stomach churned. At the same time, my vision blurred. My feet were collapsing and my body was falling to the floor. Someone shouts sharply, "Sissae!" Before my head hit the ground, I suddenly remembered the end of the nightmare I had this morning.
The owner of the precarious body that was swaying as if it was about to fall from the terrace was Roena.
