Merchant Noble is out (1/3 chapters for today)
Execution of Saintess
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In just a few hours, Marie was recognized as a witch and sentenced to death by burning. She was immediately taken to a nearby hut in the town. The traditional method of executing witches was burning at the stake. In ancient times, witches were nailed to a cross and burned alive, but there was a legend that one witch flew away and escaped into the sky. Therefore, the current method of execution involves locking the witch in a hut so she cannot escape, and setting the hut on fire.
Since Marie was no longer considered the Saintess, the way she was treated drastically changed before and after her sentence. The holy knights roughly dragged Marie, who resisted, and threw her into a dimly lit hut on the outskirts. As she was thrown inside, Marie collided with an obstacle that felt like a chair, scraping her cheek. Since it was midnight, the inside of the hut was pitch black and she could see nothing. However, she soon heard the crackling of flames from outside, and gradually the room became brighter. The hut had been set on fire.
The hut wasn’t particularly large, but it still took a little time for the fire to spread throughout the building. That is what made it so terrifying. Trapped in the center of the hut, she would either burn to death with no place to escape or be crushed by the collapsing roof as it burned.
It was terrifying. The overwhelming fear that now gripped Marie was far greater than when Leo had shouted at her. Yet, in the darkness, her face, illuminated by the flames, had a certain look of resolution, as if she had come to terms with it.
“Ahh… Somehow, this feels like I’m really alive.” (Marie)
Taking advantage of the fact that no one could hear her over the sound of the fire, Marie muttered to herself. Since she had never spoken her thoughts aloud before, she felt a slight discomfort hearing her own voice.
Until now, as a royal princess and as the Saintess of the church, she had always considered how others saw her to be the most important thing and had been hyper-aware of it. She memorized the ideal answers others gave her and spoke appropriately in any situation, disregarding her own feelings.
For the first time, she had defied authority. She had freed herself from the chains of expectations from those around her and fought honestly as her true self. She expressed her feelings, and even though she was shouted at and disappointed, she never wavered from the belief that she was right.
“And this is the result.” (Marie)
She muttered again and smiled bitterly.
By shedding the burden of authority, she felt free at the end. This feeling reminded her of the time she had escaped the banquet with Baron Arc Warden and ran through the streets of the royal capital at night. The baron had seen her not as a princess, but as Marie. The happiness she felt back then was similar to what she was feeling now.
If she were to die with this feeling, it might not be such a bad end. But…
“I’m in trouble now. I remembered one regret… Arc-sama.” (Marie)
She nodded as if trying to convince herself, but a single tear ran down her cheek. The tear became two, then three, and began to overflow uncontrollably. At the end, she wanted to see him. She wanted to see Arc-sama. But it was no use now. He had appeared suddenly last time, but this time, it was hopeless. This was a battlefield unrelated to the Warden Household, after all.
The fire’s intensity grew stronger. The walls of the hut were already burning brightly, and the flames were reaching the roof. Smoke filled the hut, and her eyes started to sting. Marie was on the verge of losing consciousness.
“If I were to be reborn, I want to be born in Arc-sama’s territory. Then, I could study hard as a commoner and win Arc-sama’s favor and marry him. But if I were reborn now, there would still be a 20-year age difference… Could I… maybe… be reincarnated…?” (Marie)
Having been excommunicated, there was no next life for her. She would likely suffer in eternal hell. But, holding onto a wish as a fleeting hope, she passed out, praying for rebirth, while succumbing to unconsciousness.
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