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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: I Wanted to Live. (7)
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Ariana had considered giving up on saving the girl, but then she changed her mind.
‘If I can’t even save this one life, it means I’m ultimately useless. And I need to see how far Father will go when I make such an inconvenient request.’
Ariana was certain that life in the Eastern Territory wouldn't be entirely smooth sailing. Therefore, she needed to know in advance how much Eastern Duke Russell would tolerate for her sake.
“Is it really impossible, Father?”
“Ariana. The Eastern Territory harbors strong ill will towards the Paganus. People are still dying in the northeastern border regions from attacks by Paganus remnants.”
“……”
“If you take that child in, there will be people who won’t look kindly upon you, her owner. Your life could be unsettled.”
“Would that unsettling be greater than the unsettling I felt within the Bronte family?”
Ariana said with a faint smile.
“I’m accustomed to criticism. I’ve even received criticism for things I *didn’t* do, so criticism for something I *chose* won’t faze me. Father, I want to keep that child by my side. Whatever happens because of it, I will bear the consequences.”
Ariana’s voice was soft but unwavering. Her blue eyes were the same.
For some reason, Russell looked down at Ariana, a surge of emotion welling within him.
‘Is this what it’s like?’
A daughter making her father’s life difficult. Yet, so utterly lovable he couldn’t bear to deny her.
-“I don’t know why that brat is always causing such headaches, brother. Honestly, who does she take after?”
His youngest sibling, Pelos White, seemed to enjoy himself, grumbling every time Isabel caused trouble. He envied that. He’d always thought it was a daily life he could never experience.
It was the same after Ariana returned.
Ariana had drawn a thick line between herself and Russell, refusing to cross it. She believed it was appropriate, so she never overstepped.
But now, Ariana was making things difficult for Russell, saying there was something she wanted to do.
‘Good.’
It was troublesome, yet good.
“If you’re that determined, I will find a way to save that child. However, Ariana, if anything happens, I will handle it, so don’t hide it and suffer in silence.”
At Russell’s words, Ariana’s eyes widened.
Every time Russell spoke like a true father, Ariana reacted that way, and the sight pained his heart. It vividly painted a picture of Ariana’s life, one where she had never once heard such words.
Soon, Ariana gave a bright smile.
“Thank you, Father. I will take good care of that child.”
Those words made Russell swell with pride.
Ariana believes I’ll surely find a way to save that child. Then I must find a splendid way to prove her right.
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
When Russell’s order to find the girl came down, Lanster put aside his worries.
If his lord had decided to take in the Paganus girl, there was no need to worry about any problems that might arise from it.
Lanster had already confirmed the girl’s whereabouts last night.
“Last night, the Princess seemed particularly concerned about that girl, so after escorting her, I went to ascertain the girl’s whereabouts.”
At Lanster’s words, Ariana smiled, visibly pleased. Lanster swelled with pride.
‘I’ve pleased the Princess.’
Lanster continued.
“A merchant named Hibeon bought the girl for 120 gold. From what he was saying, as soon as a buyer is determined, he intends to pluck out the girl’s eyeballs…”
Russell raised his index finger, stopping Lanster’s words. He didn’t want Ariana to hear such terrible things.
“What’s the average transaction price for golden eyes?”
“Processed ones are traded for around 500 gold.”
500 gold was equivalent to 500 million Ente, an amount Ariana had never even seen in her life. Since a single horse cost about 5 gold, one could buy a hundred horses with that much.
“That’s not a very large sum.”
Ariana was even more surprised by Russell’s muttered words.
500 gold isn’t a large sum? How wealthy is the Eastern Territory, really?
“Don’t worry about the amount, just make the deal with Hibeon.”
“Is it alright to reveal our identity?”
Russell looked back at Ariana. Ariana nodded.
“It will be known anyway. In that case, it’s better to openly declare that she is *my* person from now on. I want to be present at the scene where the child is being rescued, too.”
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
She was confined in a cage, loaded onto a cargo cart, and transported to a warehouse where no sunlight could enter. The people who moved her spoke:
“They say the eyes become clearer if sunlight doesn’t touch them.”
“Will a buyer be decided soon? I don’t want to be around *that* for long. I heard some noble who bought *that* had his house burn down, and all his servants died. Only *that* survived there.”
“She’s a terrifying girl. But soon, such incidents will cease. Our master has been searching for a buyer ever since he received information that *this one* would be on the slave market. About five people showed interest.”
“How much will it sell for?”
“The highest bid was 450 gold, it seems.”
“Heh. Who on earth would spend such a large sum?”
“I think I heard it was the owner of a major merchant guild…”
The people didn’t care whether she heard or not. To them, she was nothing more than an unpleasant object they wanted to get rid of quickly.
Even after the people left, she remained huddled in the cage.
‘She was beautiful.’
The small girl she had seen at the slave market came to mind.
It was the first time she had ever seen such a young girl. Only adults came to the slave market, and after being sold, she was always confined to warehouses like this.
‘Blue sky……’
Words she had once heard from another slave came to mind.
-“When I see the blue sky, I think of my hometown. The weather there was usually good, so the sky was always a brilliant blue. Not a single cloud. Just lying down and gazing at the sky would make me feel good.”
Within the small girl’s large eyes, there was a sky. She had never seen the sky before, yet she guessed that was what it was. Because the moment she saw it, an incredible feeling of joy washed over her.
So she pleaded. To be saved, to be helped to see good weather again.
But the girl, as if scared, ran away.
It was still alright. Thanks to the girl, she had seen the sky in that gloomy slave market. She had seen good weather.
She buried her face between her knees.
‘I wish *that person* would be my master. Because then, it would be good weather every day.’
How long had she been confined like that?
A man came in with food. The food on the large tray was of a kind she had never eaten before.
She stared blankly at the colorful dishes arranged on clean plates.
“You’ve never eaten anything like this, so you don’t even know how to eat it?”
She had always eaten only the food her masters discarded. Food scraps roughly mixed in a large bowl.
“Just eat as usual. I put some effort into this since it’s your last meal. The owner of your eyeballs has been decided.”
The owner of my eyes.
She instinctively knew her life was over, but she wasn’t afraid. Would she be able to see good weather if she died?
As always, she prostrated herself and ate the food from the plate with her mouth, like an animal. She chewed and swallowed, slowly savoring each bite.
The aroma and taste spreading in her mouth were wondrous, and she felt a little better. It felt like she was seeing the sky.
After the meal, she crouched down again and buried her face in her knees. Not long after, a sinister-looking man entered the warehouse.
The man carried a collection of strange instruments. She caught the coppery scent of blood emanating from him.
“I’ve lived long enough to see the day I’m plucking out golden eyeballs, indeed.”
The man seemed pleased.
“You won’t curse me for just plucking out your eyeballs, will you? I heard you ate something delicious today, right? Feeling good?”
She nodded.
“Yes, yes. Keep that grateful feeling. Understood?”
The men dragged her out of the cage. It was the first time she had been outside the cage.
Her back was permanently bent from being hunched over for so long; she couldn’t straighten it. Walking was impossible.
The men grabbed her arms from both sides, lifted her onto a chair, and tightly bound her body with ropes.
“It would be better to take an anesthetic, but then your eyeballs would become cloudy. Try to bear it well, understood?”
The man brought a spoon-like round instrument to her eye. A sharp blade grazed her eyelid.
She waited for the man to finish his work, her eyes wide.
Just as the man put force into his hand.
Bang-!
The door burst open violently, and a man rushed in.
Clang-
The man, startled, dropped the instrument he was holding.
The man who had just entered looked down at the fellow with ash-gray eyes, and spoke.
“The buyer has changed. Get out.”
At the man’s stern voice, the fellow swallowed hard. Seeing the seal engraved on the man’s uniform, the fellow gave a pathetic smile and said:
“Yes, yes. I’ll leave. I was merely following orders, you know? I’m just someone who’ll do anything for money…”
“Get out.”
The fellow, hastily gathering his instruments and leaving, encountered the girl who was just entering. She was a dazzlingly beautiful girl with sky-blue hair.
At the innate elegance emanating from the girl, the fellow bowed his head and quickly slipped out the door.
She watched all of it as if in a dream.
The sky entered the warehouse and stopped in front of her.
“You poor thing. Were you scared?”
A gentle voice penetrated her ears. She had never heard such a warm voice before.
“I am Ariana. Ariana White.”
She realized that the ‘sky’s’ name was Ariana.
The sky contained in Ariana’s eyes was so incredibly clean and clear that she already felt as if she was enveloped by the sky.
“Lanster.”
At Ariana’s call, a sturdy man approached. She realized that the massive man’s name was ‘Lanster’.
“Lend me your sword. To cut these ropes.”
“I will do it, Princess.”
“I’ll do it.”
Lanster drew his sword and handed it to Ariana. Ariana cut the ropes tightly binding her body with a longsword as long as her own height, the blade slicing with a crisp sound.
Soon, the ropes were loosened, but she couldn’t move.
Always having been huddled or prostrate, she didn’t know how to stand.
Ariana’s expression darkened.
“Poor thing… you can’t stand up, can you?”
Ariana crouched in front of her, meeting her gaze. A small hand settled gently on her own.
It was the first time she had ever felt such a warm touch.
Her heart felt like it would burst. For some reason, hot water streamed down her cheeks. She didn’t know those were called tears.
“You probably don’t even have a name.”
Ariana’s hand wiped away the water flowing down her cheek.
“Your eyes are as beautiful as the sun, so from now on, I’ll call you Sini. Sini meant sun a long time ago.”
She didn’t understand what Ariana was saying, but she knew that she had a name now.
Ariana said.
“Let’s get out of this terrible place. From now on, you are mine.”
