The king, enduring a headache with a deeply furrowed face, opened his eyes.

“A scapegoat?”

“Yes. Due to the cult spreading false rumors, many people think all the calamities are the fault of the royal family.”

It wasn’t solely because of the cult’s false rumors, but he phrased it that way.

The temple wasn’t fulfilling its role. That was the only reason things were in such disarray.

Even the royal family had relied on the temple and priests whenever problems arose.

Now that downfall was becoming apparent, revisiting long-established patterns would only cause meaningless discomfort.

Instead, he proposed a simple and effective solution.

“The kingdom is enveloped in negative energy. What if we appease the people’s anxieties by resolving that?”

“Be more specific.”

“Isn’t there someone suitable to cleanse the negative energy?”
The king’s expression displeased him. The shrewd courtier, realizing that the king did not understand, tactfully refrained from explaining and mentioned that name.

“Recently, didn’t you dethrone Princess Eigrain Lorenst?”

“And?”

“How about utilizing her?”

“Utilize her?”

“If any tainted matter seeps in, it can bring significant trouble to the household.”

Hermanon, not a king who delved into studies, understood the meaning of those words.

“By putting a misguided princess in place, negative energy has enveloped the royal family.”

He mumbled as he twirled his mustache.

“That sounds acceptable.”

For once, a satisfying smile appeared on the king’s lips.

“For a moment, let her enjoy the benefits of being a princess for the kingdom’s sake.”

“…”

“How did you come up with such a clever idea?”

Upon closer inspection, he was the one who suggested putting forward a new princess to avoid an imperial marriage.

Among the nobles who were not trustworthy and only sought their own gain, he was truly a useful individual. The king thought so.

“If this matter is resolved well, I will reward greatly.”

The king, solemnly stating, gave the order.

“Capture the criminal Eigrain Lorenst.”

The bars of the prisoner transport carriage were tighter than those in the prison.

“I never thought I’d be grateful for that.”

Thump!

A broken egg dripped down through the bars. Egg white seeped through the gaps and barely reached the vicinity of the legs.

Not long after.

Splatter!

This time, it was a tomato. With less viscosity than an egg, water splashed from the crushed tomato, staining the white clothes with red.

Rather than throwing tomatoes, he thought they should throw something like potatoes. That was when a small potato came through the bars and hit his forehead.

A throbbing pain shook his brain. When he looked at the boy with an axe-like gaze, the boy flinched. Was he around ten years old?

Then, he grumbled loudly, seemingly offended.

“You witch! Don’t even dream of cursing me! I’ll find you and kill you!”

“You’ll probably die of fright.”

He muttered irritably. Perhaps due to the commotion around, the boy’s face showed fear.

“What did you say! You cursed me!”

The boy’s loud voice made the people around murmur.

“What? A curse? Soldier, put a hood on him! What if this witch pulls some strange trick on the kingdom again?”

“We need to beat her to death before she does anything strange!”

“Calm down, everyone! Didn’t the royal family say they were preparing a way to cleanse the curse? The witch is caught, so it will be resolved soon.”

“It’s a frightening situation. Even deceiving a good duke. From Amtein, you say?”

“She must have learned all sorts of strange tricks there.”

They continued to murmur among themselves for a few minutes. Amid the ominous silence, only the sound of wheels rolling was heard.

Drrr, drrr, drrr.
The carriage passed through the tense square. Each time it passed through the crowded area, various glances were directed at me.

I was well aware that people’s gazes could be as sharp as a dagger. I didn’t expect to feel it again.

“I should have left earlier.”

I gritted my teeth inwardly. I shouldn’t have trusted or expected anything from the royal family!

When the soldiers arrived in the kingdom, I finally thought the expulsion order would be lifted.

As it was the awaited moment, I confidently followed them. However, upon entering the kingdom’s border, there was a high-ranking priest waiting.

Observing the citizens surrounding him, I realized something was wrong.

The priest, who caught everyone’s attention, looked at me and shivered as if he had seen something terribly evil and dreadful.

When I pondered what might be wrong with this priest…

[What the high-ranking priests expected is correct. It’s ominous! Extremely ominous! Just being close to it makes the blood boil and the skin itch. The evil energy has undoubtedly penetrated the soul. We must quickly escort her to the royal palace!]

The guards who came to take me became the escorts of the convoy at that moment.

“I never thought about this.”

I took in the sights beyond the bars.

The uneasy atmosphere of the city. The stiff faces of the citizens who had lost their smiles. I sensed lurking danger behind the crowd that was branding me as a witch.

“What on earth happened while I was in the desert?”