TSMMT Ch 170

Damn You, Dianna

She stared at his receding back for a long moment, then buried her face in her hands.

She lowered her arms and quietly composed herself. All expression faded from her face, leaving a fragile mask on the verge of crumbling.

[Dianna] "Very well."

She resolved not to betray her emotions, even as her heart lay in ruins. Humiliation, resentment toward the man who had unilaterally cut her off, and a crushing sense of betrayal tore through her.

[Dianna] "Guiscard."

Yet as she watched his retreating back, she called his name, clinging to the faint hope that he might turn around. Guiscard Lodbrog had always answered her calls in the past.

[Dianna] "Guiscard!"

She shouted his name one last time. Perhaps, in the end, nothing had changed between her past life and her present one.

---

Dianna returned to her bedchamber after the confrontation without uttering a single word.

She packed her belongings in silence. Her bag contained nothing of great value, no jewels or lavish gowns, only a few coins, a handful of simple garments, and a traveling cloak.

She stared at her meager luggage, lost in thought.

Freedom. Yet was freedom granted by another actually freedom at all? In truth, they were driving her out.

In the end, Dianna was forced to vanish. This was not freedom. It was an unjust banishment.

Even in death, Lady Levian had woven a curse around her. The woman's lies had transformed into accepted truth, reducing Dianna to this miserable state.

Dianna sat dazed, staring out the window. As night deepened, stars flickered across the dark expanse. A quiet longing to look up at the sky took hold of her.

When she stepped quietly out of her room, no one stopped her. Even the knights who had guarded her door were gone. As if the play had drawn to a close, the cast had exited, leaving only a solitary chamber behind.

As if entranced, she wandered into the garden. Though the freezing weather called for a heavy cloak, she didn't notice the cold. Only when the chilling wind penetrated deep into her lungs did clarity return to her senses.

She walked aimlessly and stopped before a backless bench in the center of the garden. She looked down and leaned over to brush its surface gently. The moment she bent forward, tears welled in her eyes once more.

Why so suddenly?

Such questions were futile. What was done was done, leaving Dianna with no choice but to abide by his decision.

It was her own fault to begin with, a consequence born of dragging past grievances into the present. Perhaps her failure to promise Guiscard an eternity together was her mistake as well.

After a moment's hesitation, Dianna lay down carefully on the bench. Above, stars scattered across the sky like delicate jewels pinned upon a black velvet curtain.

She stared blankly at the sight as the cool breeze gradually dried her tear-stained cheeks.

To think you remembered even this... While I had forgotten the night sky and the stars, you remembered.

Had Guiscard ever turned his back on her like this before? Never once. This was the end.

In truth, the thought crossed her mind that Guiscard might have made the optimal choice for her sake. Perhaps he had agreed to marry a noblewoman on the condition that Dianna, a branded criminal, faced no execution or punishment.

So what?

She curled her lips into a cold smile.

Once he mentioned a "new Queen," she could no longer remain at his side. That very possibility was why she had chosen death in her past life. The worst-case scenario her past self had dreaded had now transpired, yet here she remained, alive.

Dianna looked up at the stars. They were beautiful, forming rivers of light across a sky where black and violet blended into a canvas bearing an uncanny resemblance to his eyes.

A faint laugh escaped her lips, only for fresh tears to pool and spill over once more. She sobbed softly in silence.

The cool breeze felt pleasant, and the stars shone with exquisite beauty. A beautiful sky, a beautiful place, and a once-beautiful time.

And so, she wept quietly throughout the night.

---

Only Mable and the maids arrived to see her off. Though Dianna looked for Lady Kragel this time, she was nowhere to be seen.

For a fleeting moment, she wondered if Lady Kragel was the person chosen to stand beside Guiscard, but she quickly shook her head.

None of it matters anymore.

[Dianna] "Farewell."

She offered them a final smile. They accepted her farewell with awkward expressions and said nothing more.

Having stripped away her extravagant gowns, she wore simple attire. Strangely, the modest clothing felt light and comforting.

Bathed in the crisp morning breeze, Dianna looked upon the people who had served her with fond affection.

A few knights hesitated before bowing to her. Though their expressions remained stiff, she recognized the genuine concern they harbored for her.

Free of heavy ornaments, her hair felt light. Dianna tied her cascading locks into a simple tail and walked forward.

Then she spotted Guiscard. He watched her in silence.

Will he speak to me? Is he coming to stop me?

A futile hope flickered in her heart before vanishing completely. Guiscard merely stared at her, as if ensuring she properly departed.

The faint smile on her lips faded. With a stiff expression, she offered him a formal curtsy and turned her back on him.

In that moment, she spotted someone waiting for her. It was Tarascus.

[Taras] "Come here."

He whispered. Dianna hesitated briefly, then gave a subtle nod and took his hand, letting him guide her forward.

[Taras] "Let us go together."

A faint smile touched her lips as she suppressed the sudden surge of emotion welling in her chest.

[Dianna] "Should you not remain here... to eliminate Fafnir alongside Adelheit...?"

[Taras] "Since she is targeting you anyway, I prefer to stay by your side."

She bit her lip tightly. Though he intended no comfort, his blunt words somehow soothed her wounded heart. Her heart felt as though it were tearing apart in miserable heartbreak, yet she could now swallow the pain and move forward.

Tarascus led Dianna to the training grounds before transforming into his true dragon form. Once she climbed onto his back, the dragon took flight.

The dragon soared into the sky, flushed crimson by the rising sun. Its shimmering form gradually shrank in the distance until it faded away entirely.

Guiscard stared blankly at the receding dragon. His cold face contorted sharply. Involuntarily, he took a step forward.

Revius and the surrounding knights wore tragic expressions as they looked at him.

The dragon carrying his wife, his woman, vanished farther and farther into the distance. As he watched them recede, he cried out in agony.

[Guiscard] "Ann! Ann! Ann!"

He sprinted in the direction of the dragon.

Revius released a sigh and shook his head, while Logaple and the knights closed their eyes tightly.

Guiscard halted mid-stride as he gave chase, then collapsed to his knees, crumbling entirely.

His eyes turned toward the sky as it turned bright blue. He stared at the woman diminishing into a mere speck and spoke.

[Guiscard] "Revius... look at that damn woman."

[Revius] "..."

[Guiscard] "She was a damn lady from the very beginning. Look... she asks for nothing, nor does she even look at me properly."

[Revius] "..."

[Guiscard] "She could have tried to stop me. Now... this is the end. It is the end, yet she didn't even meet my eyes! Look at that cold woman! Damn you, Dianna! Damn you, Ann!"

Tears streamed from his eyes. Revius watched him and spoke in a low voice.

[Revius] "You were the one who abandoned her. You said yourself there was no other way."

[Guiscard] "..."

[Revius] "If you chose this path, push forward with it."

Guiscard gave a subtle nod. Though he was the one who had discarded Dianna, he raised an empty face toward the heavens like a man abandoned.

[Guiscard] "She didn't even beg. Her crying face... her receding back... that is all I have! That is everything!"

He broke down completely, weeping and sobbing hysterically.

He was a man who had slain a dragon with his blade, a man whose sword could cleave through anything. Yet a warrior so formidable crumbled with pitiful ease before Dianna's receding back.

Reverting to a fragile boy, he wept freely. He refused to act as a pillar for anyone and surrendered to his raw emotion, weeping endlessly out of sheer resentment toward the woman vanishing atop the dragon.

Why did you not cling to me a little more? Why did you not beg me to stay?

I was wavering…

Had you crumbled, I would have abandoned everything to cling to you. I could have done it.

Still, this is better. I hope I become the worst man in your memory.

He stared up at the sky that had swallowed his wife. Thus, his hell began.

---

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