Magdalin Ruche's Point Of View

Both my mother and father are blessed by earth faeries, and so are all my grandparents. As expected from a noble family, although lesser noble, there is a certain pride in specializing in a single element like the dukes and marquesses.

A lot of political deals end up going into breeding children with the best mana quality for us lesser nobles. It is first and foremost a fad for lesser nobles. After all, they don't go to war so they don't need to ensure that their child will be able to learn the secret family spells that some nobles have.

I never talked with Lily-sama about this. From what I know, her mother had forced herself into a marriage with her father, and I imagine that is the only reason her mother is not a water blessed person.

You may already know... but I am blessed by the element of wind. I don't just mean that I am blessed by a wind fairy, but that my mana is quite potent in its wind attributes... which made part of my hair discolor. It's nothing as big as Lily's watery silky hair, Eric's dark blue one, Gilbert's red one... William Aerielle's bright and clear teal eyes or Soleil's sunshine colored hair and pale yellow eyes.

If your hair and eyes take on the colors of the element you have, then you usually get the blessing of a medium ranked fairy or better since it means your mana is potent enough to draw interest from the faeries... but for me it ended up being a curse.

Your mana is determined by your parents' mana... as such, you can imagine the disaster it was when the locks of teal hair revealed potent air magic rather than earth... since everyone in my family were blessed by earth. It was a problem from the moment I was born.

Even as I grew up I would hear the constant accusations that my mother had been cheating on my father with one of the northern marquesses, which she obviously denied. In turn she would accuse the maids for switching me out with the real child...

In the end even my two older brothers started believing my mother... they still do...

Because of this unconfirmed suspicion my parents were always... strict... especially in studies. They started beating my hands with a cane long before I turned five. The first time was probably for 'studies' or not memorizing words and etiquette, but it ended up being used whenever I did something they disliked. On a bad day... I could do nothing right.

They made me wear gloves to hide my failures from everyone else, and I still hear them compare how well everyone else is doing since they've no scars on their hands... but scarring ruins the prospects of being married... and I know that they know this since I've heard them argue about how to use their false daughter when she's too old to marry.

I heard this the first time when I was nine... I stopped talking with Millet Greenhall after that even though I had liked him.

I think a lot of the other people noticed that something was wrong. At least the adults... but no one ever said anything. Probably to let my parents save face... or perhaps just because they didn't care. I was just a possibly bastard or non-noble child.

Perhaps because of this... I began to crush on the crown prince when I was small. He always appeared so kind and sweet. He was like a ray of sunlight in my suffocating darkness. I... approached Lily-sama because of her engagement, but I realized pretty quickly that she, like me, was putting up a smiling proud surface. We ended up talking about the crown prince for many, many countless hours on end. I think he was a light to both of us... no... perhaps not a light... just a fake hope to cling to.

The first one to ever truly bring me light was Lily-sama. After she got the prophecy she changed. She became confident and noticed a lot of little things, my... troubles... as well. Back then the back of my hands had been ripped to blood under the white gloves and the injuries were covered with scabs that were almost black. Yet... when she took my hands and whispered the prayer the pain disappeared. I was pretty surprised, but probably not as much as when I took off the gloves and rubbed over the scabs that fell off. The skin was still scarred, but it was fully healed. Not even irritated.

When I asked why she kept it a secret a while later, she told me of the prophecy.

Because of the crown prince's reaction at the tea party when Bridgette attempted to poison her, I no longer had a crush on him. I couldn't. Not after finding out he didn't seem to care for Lily-sama's well being... and perhaps that is why I accepted Lily-sama's words quite easily.

In truth, the more I looked, the more right she seemed to be about crown prince Alstair. I... I tried convincing Bridgette to see this too, but she never did. Even now she remains as she was. She has not grown much... or at least, not in her outwards manners.

—-*—-

The condition for peace from Headal reached the capital, and it was as though any sense of unity split and shattered like a glass necklace.

At first no one knew what to think. It was a weird demand, ridiculous even... but this was just the start.

The accusations towards house Celeste began shortly after, and the main culprits of this was William Aerielle and Bridgette. At first they only accused Augustus, saying that he must have made a deal with the enemy to overthrow our kind royal family... but despite people near house Celeste saying such a thing was not true, the rumors and accusations spread. Rapidly beginning to include the rest of house Celeste as well.

Any old grudges towards Lily's mother were dug up and added to the piles of 'proof'.

Bridgette didn't really have power of her own, but as she stuck to William Aerielle, the son of the prime minister, she started gaining influence.

I... was powerless. I was the possible bastard daughter of a viscount, and all influence I had was because of Lily-sama who was now also being accused since she wasn't there to defend herself.

I tried to support Lily-sama and advocated the truth... but my voice fell on deaf ears. It wasn't even about the matter if they should give in or not, it was just accusations doubting honor and loyalty to the country... and I think Bridgette was the first one to whisper the word 'Traitors'.

I went to my family for help. We enjoyed the attention from house Celeste for so long that I thought they would agree to support House Celeste through this... but... that day I was forbidden from leaving the house... together with the strict orders that I was not to get near house Celeste again.

We abandoned them to the accusations.

—-*—-

"Uuuggghhhiee," I groan out as I try to crawl over our garden wall. I'd dragged a table through the garden just to get up far enough to reach the top of the wall.

I'd tossed my bag of food and clothes over the wall already, so the only thing missing was me. I somehow managed to pull myself up to the elbows, and from there grab the opposite edge of the wall. Now I just needed to get my legs over the wall and I would be free from this prison like 'home' of mine.

That's right. I'm running away from home. They've been hitting my hands repeatedly for a week now and locked me in my room. Usually I wouldn't mind this. It's happened since I was small... but at this rate Lady Lily is going to be in trouble and in danger.

If the suspicions of the nobles are like this, then they may try to kill Lily-same while she's masquerading as Augustus.

I know about her cross dressing as well. I even know her training schedule from the academy. She always played it risky, and in the end I used illusion to keep her hidden away from curious eyes when she was training.

"Just... a bit..."

Why am I so weak! I should have done those up-sits with Lily-sama! I can't get my leg over the wall!

"What are you doing?"

I... hear a voice that makes a chill go through my body and make my legs drop limp. The icy and angry voice of my second brother had sounded from behind me.

"...I'm getting out of your way... you should be happy, Michael..."

I never got along well with Michael... then again... I... didn't get along with any of them.

"After everything we've done for you? Let you be a part of our family though you were switched in the cradle."

His words are cold. I assume this is one of the curses that physical effects in mana causes. I... actually mostly look like my parents... they just insist because of that stripe... and because of my silvery grey eyes that I'm not a part of the family.

I look over my shoulder at him. Our brown hair is the same except for the stripes in mine... and even in the faint moonlight I can see his narrowed brown eyes piercing me like I was committing a crime.

"You never treated me as family, and I know you never will. I'm not going to abandon Lily-sama, no matter what any of you say. I've never been more than a tool to you."

I see his eyes widen at my words... just for a moment... and then vivid anger... I saw chunks of ground rise around him... and then everything went black for a while.

When I woke up again my body hurt everywhere... like my hands usually did, but just all over instead. My clothes were a mess... dirty and had several cuts and places where the fabric had been scraped off.

"Now stay there and cool down."

I heard him step away though his voice was already distant... but even if he said so... I wouldn't stay.

As I say up I realize that breathing is difficult... and as I stumble to my feet my body quakes and drops to the ground again. I'm not as tough as Lily-sama. Even though it's probably just bruises... getting up hurts and it feels as though I've no control over my body... and yet, I still needs to go...

My brother dragged me back and left me in my room. Thankfully it's on the ground floor...

I guess Michael didn't think I would get up, because I get out without being stopped. Out of breath and grunting to hold in screams I cross the wall quaking and trembling. My cheeks were cold and clammy from tears of pain, but this was more important than the pain. I begin my own journey east to find Lily-sama on wobbly legs covered in scrapes. Lily-sama should still be at the front line in House Tepet's territory. No matter what, I will make it to her side. I can only grit my teeth and pray that I make it in time.