TSMMT Ch 108

Warning

He stroked her hair for a long time before breaking the silence.

[Guiscard] "I brought her here... so you could do as you pleased with her. Because you hated her."

What is he talking about? Do as I please?

As she opened her mouth to reply, he spoke first.

[Guiscard] "I know. I acted with a mindset not much different from your father's."

[Guiscard] "You were never that kind of person. You never crushed or trampled people just because you held a higher position."

The tension in her rigid body slowly thawed, making his touch feel strangely gentle. He took her other hand in his.

[Guiscard] "Dianna. Listen closely."

[Guiscard] "I will never harm you."

[Guiscard] "I hate seeing you hurt."

[Guiscard] "If you had told me you hated her and wanted her replaced, I would have swapped her out without hesitation. Whatever the outcome, it wouldn't have mattered."

Really? Would you have done that?

Dianna remembered vividly. In her past life, he had always turned his back on her, wearing a cold smile and trapping her beneath a cruel gaze. He had never once looked at her.

Yet she knew that was the Guiscard of her past. Back then, he never tried to explain himself or persuade her like this. The image of him from that previous life remained clear, threatening to color all her judgment.

Without those memories, things might have been simpler, but she still remembered those miserable years all too well. She couldn't forget. Thus, she couldn't bring herself to trust him. Her heart had been shredded, scarred deeply enough already.

Still, she knew better now. She couldn't measure everything by her past life, for she was living a different reality now.

She opened her mouth.

[Dianna] "You..."

She struggled to continue, appearing lost in thought as she searched for the right words. Their sharp exchanges had birthed a massive misunderstanding.

He spoke as if reading her mind.

[Guiscard] "You... saved me. If you can't trust me, trust your own actions."

He urged her to trust the choices she had made in seeking the right path. He said no more, refraining from anger, just as Leonie had predicted.

His hand slid away from her hair. Only then did she realize she had surrendered herself to his touch.

[Guiscard] "I plan to invite the people of Panborough."

Her eyes widened.

[Dianna] "Pardon?"

[Guiscard] "You may invite anyone you wish. Your friends, your acquaintances... even your family."

She flinched, searching his face. Was this a gift or a nightmare?

[Guiscard] "If you dislike the idea, just say so."

She shook her head. The mention of family troubled her, but the thought of seeing her friends brought genuine relief.

His expression softened.

Brushing aside thoughts of her family, she spoke.

[Dianna] "What will happen to Lady Levian and Mirva?"

His face hardened in an instant, the gentle atmosphere turning razor-sharp.

[Guiscard] "Do you want to know?"

A cruel smile returned to his lips—a look far more familiar to her. She nodded.

---

No decisive evidence linked Levian directly to Dianna's abduction. The problem lay in her discovering Mirva and bringing her in.

Compounding the issue, one of the accomplices Guiscard captured had previously worked at the Levian estate. Had there been an official letter or a draft guaranteed by House Levian, the charges would have held.

The veins in the Duke's neck bulged as he shouted.

[Duke] "To accuse my daughter and me because he worked for us years ago is preposterous!"

He couldn't tolerate such a stain on his daughter's name, and the nobility pushed back fiercely alongside him. Past employment alone was far too flimsy to serve as evidence.

The truth was obvious to Dianna. She had never expected Saruvia to remain imprisoned anyway. It would have been convenient had Saruvia been foolish enough to leave a clear trail, but she wasn't that stupid.

Dianna's original goal had merely been to expose Saruvia's double nature, forcing her resignation as a lady-in-waiting. She hadn't anticipated Guiscard taking such aggressive action.

A quiet sigh escaped her as she reviewed the situation.

With Guiscard's permission, she headed toward the cells. Though he had offered to accompany her, he stepped back easily when she declined, even clearing out the guards at her request.

Unlike Mirva, who was held in the dungeon, Saruvia was detained in the upper noble cells. Seeing the room—modest, yet equipped with a bed and a small window—Dianna offered a cold smile.

Saruvia burst into tears upon spotting her.

[Saruvia] "Your... Your Majesty!"

Watching her clutch the iron bars while weeping pathetically was almost laughable. A sharp streak of vengeance flared within Dianna. She wanted to trample that brazen face and demand whether Saruvia understood the gravity of her sins.

If she desired—or simply remained silent— House Levian could be pushed to the brink of ruin.

But what about the aftermath?

Powerful knight though Guiscard was, his strength had limits. What would happen if every noble turned against him?

[Dianna] "I came as soon as I woke."

[Saruvia] "Your Majesty..."

[Dianna] "It seems you have been framed absurdly."

If Saruvia were to fall into the abyss, it would need to be through something far more definitive than ambiguous evidence. That conviction allowed Dianna to smile at her enemy.

Saruvia wept upon hearing the word framed.

[Saruvia] "Oh, Your Majesty!"

Dianna let out a quiet breath before speaking.

[Dianna] "My father banished that woman long ago for reasons unknown. Yet I felt pity when she sought me out, so I took her in. It pained me to see her limping."

She pressed a hand to her chest as if wounded.

[Dianna] "To think she would betray the person who trusted and employed her, as well as her original master..."

Tears welled in her eyes.

Sensing an opportunity, Saruvia chimed in frantically.

[Saruvia] "I did nothing! It was all that woman's fault..."

She knew full well Saruvia was involved, but she wasn't foolish enough to show her cards.

[Dianna] "I believe you as well, Lady Levian. However, His Majesty is unyielding. You know how sensitive the King is regarding my safety."

Saruvia's eyes flashed with venom. Dianna continued slowly.

[Dianna] "Still, His Majesty will listen to me. He pays surprisingly close attention to his wife's wishes."

Saruvia's face twisted in resentment, clearly perceiving this as a boastful display of the King's favor.

[Dianna] "In return, however, I can no longer keep you as my lady-in-waiting."

Saruvia offered no response. Dianna scoffed softly.

[Dianna] "Furthermore, since your negligence in hiring such a servant led to this trap, you will be barred from high society for a year."

[Saruvia] "A whole year!"

[Dianna] "Lady Levian, I am granting you a privilege. I considered three years, but reduced it to one out of leniency."

Saruvia trembled uncontrollably as Dianna spoke gently.

Dianna smiled at the sight of her uncontainable rage. For someone as social as Saruvia, being banned from noble banquets was utter humiliation.

Three years would have been ideal, but it risked provoking severe backlash.

[Dianna] "So, Lady Levian..."

She gripped the iron bars and looked straight into Saruvia's eyes—a gaze she once wouldn't have dared meet. It was a beautiful, confident gaze that had once looked down upon her. Now, she met it head-on.

[Dianna] "This is my final mercy. So stop touching me with your filthy schemes. Otherwise, I will destroy everything you hold dear."

Her cold voice echoed through the cells, icy and commanding in a way that bore no trace of her usual gentleness. Her eyes, frost-cold like winter mist on stone walls, pinned Saruvia in place.

She turned her back on Saruvia's pale face.

She wondered if she would regret this choice. Guiscard was willing to shoulder the political burden to punish Saruvia, and he would have done so had she insisted.

But now was not the time.

While her current strategy wasn't flawless, it had backed her enemies into a corner. That meant once she established her position and seized true power, she could destroy them completely.

Pushing too hard with ambiguous evidence would poison both Guiscard's standing and her own.

Dianna knew that satisfying her rage in the future would taste far sweeter than indulging it now.

At the very least, it proved she was far wiser than Saruvia Levian.

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