A fortune-telling princess - Chapter 13

After saying that, Gile smiled again. He seemed to be enjoying himself, laughing with his gums exposed.

Swoop!

“……!”

But that laugh didn’t last long.

“You… you! What are you doing?”

It was because Ravi had pulled Gile close to himself.

Ravi hugged Gile, who was taken aback by the sudden embrace, and whispered in his ear.

“Is that all?”

“What?”

“The only thing you’ve got to show off is your family?”

“You little! Let me go!”

“Well… A family like this would definitely help this time.”

“What are you talking about……!”

“I heard the rumors.”

“What?”

“The money.”

“……!”

“Your thesis, I heard that some teachers were particularly helpful to you.”

Ravi hugged the flinching Gile even more tightly.

“Make sure to continue taking care of your family.”

“…….”

“Because you’re an idiot son-of-a-bitch with nothing to brag about than that.”

Pat-pat.

After saying that, Ravi let go of Gile. Ravi patted Gile on the shoulder, whose face was red with anger, and headed to his own seat. Well, he was going to.

Stop.

“……?”

If it wasn’t for the strange atmosphere that one could feel suddenly.

Suddenly a deadly silence settled in the presentation hall, which had been noisy with people greeting each other, just a moment ago.

When I turned my head, everyone was looking at the same place. In response, Ravi also moved his gaze.

Ravi’s eyes widened as he looked at the place everyone was staring at. Someone was entering the presentation hall with a very bright smile.

She was a woman wearing a red dress reminiscent of a rose in full bloom.

‘…Why are you out there?’

It was Camila.

* * *

“Duke, Lord Ludville has just arrived at the entrance of the territory.”

“Ah, really?”

Duke Sorpel, who had been pacing around his office, nodded his head broadly at the words of his aide, Jackter. His long-awaited first son had finally returned.

“Would you like to go out, sir?”

“Sure.”

In order to welcome his son who had won this battle, the Duke of Sorpel was willing to go out to meet him.

“There will be no problem preparing for the festival and party, right?”

“Of course. All the people of the territory are now out on the streets waiting for Lord Ludville and the other soldiers.”

“Let us head out, then.”

“Yes, sire!”

“Oh, yeah.”

Duke Sorpel’s steps toward the door stopped for a moment.

“What about Camila? I think we could go out together.”

Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Camila all day today. Is she busy preparing for the party? I didn’t even bring any gypsophila today.

“That is…….”

“Why? What happened to Camila?”

“Lady Camila is not here right now.”

“No?”

“She left a little while ago.”

“Where?”

“She said she was going to the magic tower…….”

“The magic tower? Why that place, all of a sudden?”

“Perhaps she went to see Ravi… … .”

“Ravi? Ah……!”

Duke Sorpel finally realized his mistake.

He had been completely oblivious, engrossed as he was by the news of Ludville’s victory. He heard that there was a big event going on at the mage tower, where Ravi was.

“Well…….”

I should have paid more attention! Duke Sorpel clicked his tongue repeatedly.

‘So Camila went there?’

This was another unexpected piece of news. Was she the kind of kid to do such a thing?

Duke Sorpel made a surprised expression once again.

* * *

“The next presenter is Ravi Sorpel.”

After the host’s introduction, Ravi, who had climbed onto the podium, quickly swallowed the laughter that was about to burst out after sweeping through the audience. Everyone’s eyes were still on one person.

‘Of course.’

Camila waved her hand lightly at Ravi, who was still staring bewildered at herself and the people.

‘That’s why I warned you in advance.’

People might compare us two. So, you should get some new clothes.

She smiled softly, and exclamations could be heard from here and there.

‘She was always quite good-looking.’

It was just that she had not been able to make use of her beauty before.

‘So what if the clothes were flashy?’

It didn’t matter if they didn’t suit her.

Camila had always bought and worn the most expensive and fancy clothes, but none of them actually suited her.

‘I know why I did so.’

There was only one reason why she adorned her whole body with such expensive clothes and jewelry. It was one of the few things she could do to shield herself from the outside world.

‘From the disparaging looks of everyone around me.’

The fake daughter of Duke Sorpel.

It was Camila who was more aware of that fact than anyone else.

She chose the most expensive and flashy things to wear on her body to avoid the attention of the crowd.

‘And what did that achieve?’

It left her with no confidence in herself. When she stood in front of people, she instinctively shrank into herself and her eyes glared, not wanting to expose her insecurities.

There was no way anyone would want to approach Camila, with such an unbalanced and strange disposition.

‘Developing a sense of fashion doesn’t just happen.’

Camila spent nearly a week choosing this outfit, filtering through everything.

She went around all the clothing stores in the downtown area. She didn’t even look at the price. Even if the price was cheap, even if it wasn’t an expensive luxury item, as long as it was something that suits me! That was the point.

‘Because if I wear it, everything becomes a luxury item.’

She was like that even when she was living as Sia. Anything you put on becomes a trend and sold out.

Even now, the eyes of the young ladies who entered the presentation hall were very attentive. I could see that they wanted to come right away and ask where I got the clothes and jewelry.

‘Well, no person would really approach me.’

They had completely ignored Camila until then and would be embarrassed to approach her and pretend to be friendly all of a sudden.

In the meantime, Ravi’s presentation went smoothly. It was quite cool to see him explain the new formulas he had found step by step.

Some time passed.

“Why the heck are you here?”

The first thing Ravi said after approaching Camila after the recital was this. No matter how you think about it, it was very sudden of her.

He thought about why Camila was here throughout the recital, but still had no idea what her intentions were.

‘Besides, what the hell is that look?’

He was honestly a bit surprised. Had this gal really looked like this?

It was quite satisfying to see Gile look glooming and angry after Camila’s appearance.

When it had seemed that his younger brother was getting all the attention from people, he looked excited, but once Camila appeared, everyone’s attention was focused on her – how annoyed must he be right now?

He was still glaring at Ravi and Camila even now.

“I don’t know either.”

“What?”

Ravi sent a bewildered glance at Camila. She herself doesn’t know why she came here, are you kidding me?

“I really don’t know.”

“…….”

“Just… I came because I just wanted to come.”

Really. I don’t know why, it’s just… I really just wanted to come.

‘That’s strange.’

These siblings strangely reminded her of her own past.

“That child’s parents aren’t here?”

“She’s an orphan.”

“An orphan?”

Whenever there is a school play or an important event that parents have to attend, there was always a whisper that would come from behind.

“That child’s father was in the news before.”

“Ah! He was despairing about life and they all tried to die together…….”

“Yes, only the woman died in the end.”

And the words that would inevitably follow.

‘What’s even funnier is that the father even called 911 to save his own neck.’

There was no such thing as familial love. Mother didn’t like her daughter very much. Although she had clearly given birth herself, she was somehow reluctant to grow attached to her child.

Even the mother herself couldn’t seem to comprehend why.

‘Not to mention that sorry excuse of a man called Dad.’

He treated her like she was someone else’s child. He would say, “how can there be such an unlikable child?” and would beat the woman and the child for no reason.

Eventually, on the day he came in drunk, the man made the extreme choice. Her mother, who was also very tired of life, went along with him. The daughter, not knowing any better, complied with what her parents told her.

‘Sa-, save me! Please……! It, it hurts so much!’

She could still hear the words. Even as her consciousness was fading.

Even at a young age, I was dumbfounded at the sound of my father frantically trying to save his own neck only, while his wife and daughter were dying.

That day, Mother eventually died. Fortunately, she herself had survived.

Her dead mother looked at her with pity for a while before disappearing. Still, she had clearly had a relieved face before she left this world.

She must have been tired. A daughter who gave birth to but had no affection for, and a husband who would beat her at every chance.

After that, she was sent to orphanages here and there, until she got accepted into a movie audition she found by chance, just like that. Even if it was as a supporting role.

As luck would have it, the movie drew 10 million viewers and she was able to enter a large entertainment company under good circumstances. The dramas and movies she chose to appear in became box office hits, and she established herself quicker than any other actor.

Her life had been going smoothly, but then that man appeared.

The murderer.

After killing her mother and trying to kill herself, he had come back and demanded money, with no sense of shame at all. My teeth gnashed when I heard that he was released from a shortened sentence because of his supposed physical and mental condition.

He made some serious demands, threatening to sell her past to journalists if she didn’t comply.

‘It’s because of you! Your mother died because of you!’

He would say some crazy bullshit, so I immediately called a reporter with whom I was close.

‘Am I guilty?’

It’s him who’s guilty, so why should I feel threatened?

I had no intention of hiding anything. I didn’t want to reveal it if I could, but also had no intention of handing that piece of trash any amount of money.

Ignoring the screams of that person that was my father, I immediately made an appointment with the reporter and the next day, I announced everything to the world.

Everything, from what had happened in the past, to him demanding money from me.

I was in the popular search rankings for nearly two weeks. People were sympathetic, and there were endless angry comments towards the man who had threatened me.

As if afraid of such public attention, the man never came to see me after that.