Chapter 177

* * *

Near the Imperial Palace, a dense, lush forest.

In the midst of the forest, a sleek, handsome man with blonde hair and purple eyes stood quietly.

Whisk.

The wind rustled gently, sweeping the fallen leaves by his feet.

As a result, a gold ingot that had been buried under his feet was revealed.

The ‘Snake’ muttered quietly.

“Too easy.”

It was all the gold rolling in from selling the ‘suspicious potion’ to humans in the capital over the last few days.

“…How terribly weak to desire they are. Pitiful to a degree.”

The ‘Snake’ was now being called Count Jermang.

Deceiving humans blinded by desire was a very easy task for him.

It was as natural as breathing.

However, the snake no longer found any pleasure in using his abilities to exploit and deceive the foolish humans.

Perhaps because he had lived for too long.

When was the last time he felt pleasure?

‘Ah, that was the time.’

Ah, poor Juliet.

The corners of the snake’s mouth curled up automatically.

The descendants of Eleanor, who betrayed him.

It was a fun sight watching a prideful family resembling Eleanor struggle in despair and pain, but by that time the snake was slowly losing interest.

Escaping and getting caught, over and over again, the relationship between the Carlyle family and the snake was nothing short of a game of endless tag.

And then, Juliet Monad caught his eye by chance.

He remembered the first time he saw Juliet Monad.

-Are you the lady of the eastern tower?

Although a usually sensitive disposition was a rich source of magic power, in her case, it acted as poison.

Juliet Monad back then was terrified, out of her mind.

Young, anxious, a human woman with a child, she moved easily to his manipulation.

All the snake did was fan her anxieties from the side, and that was enough.

Juliet, with her moist blue eyes, was a lovely prey. It was easy to deceive a foolish, blindly faithful, and timid woman like a herbivore.

The snake decided then.

He’d gamble using this woman.

Lennox Carlyle. The Duke of Carlyle this time was no common foe. Although the Carlyle lineage was always unfortunate, the snake had a desperate reason to ruin him.

‘Using this foolish woman…’

It was a very faint possibility, but if successful, it could put an end to this long and tedious revenge play.

“…This time it will succeed, Eleanor.”

This time we can meet.

However, for that to happen, Juliet Monad had to die.

That was the prerequisite.

Lennox Carlyle’s Juliet Monad had to die in the most horrific way.

“Count Jermang!”

A human man with an insolent face interrupted his contemplation.

The human man, named Ansel Hauser, who ran breathlessly, was the aide to the Second Prince Cloff.

Ansel Hauser was as shrewd as he looked.

He did anything as per the Second Prince’s instructions but ever since the Second Prince was imprisoned, he was practically loyal to ‘Count Jermang’.

“Just received a call from Ronda.”

Ronda was Ansel’s younger sister.

“It seems Juliet Monad has been fooled.”

By now, Juliet would have heard the rumors about the ‘love potion that worked on anyone with three drops’, and noticed that a maid at the mansion was using an expensive perfume.

The snake smiled faintly.

He was curious if Juliet Monad of this life was as easily fooled as in her previous life.

“Oh, and Ronda says there’s a strangely shaped beast roaming around inside the Duke’s residence.”

A strange beast?

“It’s black all over, nimble like a squirrel, but looks like a winged cat.”

The moment he heard the description, the snake realized.

“A dragon.”

That would explain how Juliet of this life managed to escape the curse of the spiritual entity.

The snake’s expression soured.

“I thought the seed had dried up long ago.”

Dragons were troublesome.

A creature possessing a strong magical power capable of twisting causality. It always brought variables.

He thought she was just lucky each time, but it seemed there was something more formidable attached to her.

“Well, it doesn’t matter.”

The snake had already made all the preparations.

He had prepared a stage to deliver a painful death to Juliet Monad, and there was no room for a little dragon to interfere.

Juliet would fall into the trap, and, just like in her previous life, she would face a horrible death right in front of Lennox Carlye.

“I can’t wait to meet her soon.”

The snake smiled in a wily manner. It was genuine.

Juliet Monad was the most adorable bait in the world.

This year’s Yuno Purification Festival had a change in venue.

To a mansion near the beach.

* * *

Juliet arrived at the mansion a bit later than others, deliberately.

As soon as she got off the carriage and approached the entrance of the banquet hall, an attendant approached her.

“Please choose a mask.”

Juliet glanced momentarily at the attendant who presented the masks on a cushion.

The tall blonde attendant also wore a bland mask in accordance with the masquerade theme, so his face wasn’t visible.

The mask worn by the blonde attendant was a plain white mask that all the attendants were to wear.

The brief attention Juliet gave to the attendant wasn’t because of his attire.

It was because the attendant’s voice was as memorable as velvet.

Juliet shifted her gaze to the mask the attendant extended towards her, pretending to be unfazed.

Even though she was to choose.

Due to her late arrival, the variety of remaining masks was limited.

Juliet picked up a suitable one from among the masks left behind by other ladies.

It was a black butterfly mask.

Apparently, it wasn’t very popular due to its dreary color.

“Please follow me.”

The attendant escorted her to the outdoor banquet hall.

During the short walk to the banquet hall, Juliet fiddled with the gloved wrist. A butterfly-shaped charm, part of the set with the mask, dangled from Juliet’s wrist.

‘Will it be okay…?’

Juliet recalled the story she heard last night.

(Having one’s name taken away, and even the trace of one’s existence vanished.)

(If no one remembers, it completely disappears.)

Only then could Juliet vaguely guess.

The strange symbiotic relationship where butterflies desperately tried to protect her.

It was said that in the state of being connected to a contractor, if one side dies, the existence of the evil spirit also becomes precarious.

‘On the other hand, since I still remember, it means the butterflies haven’t vanished either…’

Juliet decided to think as positively as possible.

If they were still alive, she would be able to meet them.

Juliet stepped into the banquet hall illuminated with dazzling lighting.

* * *

“Oh my, look at that.”

The mansion of Alkaron had decorated the open outdoor area as a banquet hall.

Special lights placed here and there emitted bright light rivaling chandeliers.

However, what captivated people’s attention was not the mundane lighting.

“How much do you think that cost…?”

The protagonist was Juliet Monad, dressed in a dress so glamorous it was luxurious.

Considering Juliet’s known preference for modesty, this was a significantly unexpected choice of attire.

Today, Juliet was wearing a black dress that accentuated her waistline.

In a typical banquet hall, a black dress wouldn’t have been anything special. It might have even been seen as gloomy, rather than modest.

However, in the banquet hall of the Yuno Purification banquet, filled with lovely colored dresses like pink, red, and yellow, the black dress caught everyone’s attention without any special effort.

Moreover, Juliet Monad’s black dress wasn’t just an ordinary dress.

As Juliet gently moved, the soft fabric fluttered, creating an illusion of scattering stardust, thanks to the numerous diamonds intricately embedded in the dress.

“…It’s extremely luxurious.”

“I wonder what the Countess Monad is thinking. I have no idea.”

People in the social circle sent admiration and criticism towards Juliet simultaneously.

Moreover, although it was a principle to wear masks at the Purification banquet, for some reason, everyone already knew that today’s glamorous black-dressed protagonist was Juliet Monad.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The reason for this was because Juliet wore her mask proudly only after entering the banquet hall.

“What on earth prompted this?”

People murmured.

Countess Monad was known to not be fond of boisterous banquets nor excessively flashy dresses.

“Hello, Lady Eunice.”

Today’s Juliet, unlike her usual modest appearance, was dressed in luxurious attire and warmly greeted acquaintances.

People received her greeting with intrigued expressions.

“Ah, yes, Countess Monad. It’s been a while.”

“My goodness. Your dress is literally dazzling.”

“It must have been hard to acquire, right?”

Wearing a black mask, Juliet, who was lightly wandering around the outdoor banquet hall, shone like a black bird.

From any angle, Juliet Monad’s dress was blindingly glamorous.

‘How much is that?’

The twinkling spots on the pitch-black dress, as if sprinkled with stardust, were all real diamonds.

Ronda, who followed Juliet to oversee her at the banquet hall, pursed her lips.

If a dress could be wings, a dress like that would shine regardless of who wore it, not necessarily Juliet Monad.

‘Anyway, I just have to wait a few more hours.’

Ronda glanced at the clock ominously.