AWWEWNR Chapter 30

Perhaps now the Crown Prince was curious about the so-called Witch of Hayden, because she was a different type of woman than the others he’d dated. 

 

She’d said he didn’t like redheads, but all the women he’d dated had been extremely sexy.

 

If a woman was sexy, there was no one else in the empire like her. 

 

Not crass sexy, but sexy in a cute, sensual way. 

 

Her occasional flashes of innocence added to her appeal. Rosaryn knew her strengths, and she knew how to capitalize on them.

 

In comparison, Hanaella, with her dark hair and dark eyes, had a clean and clear image, but it wasn’t innocent. 

 

Her face was cold and aloof when she didn’t show any emotion, so it wasn’t the kind of look that men could easily approach.

 

She’s a pretty face, but she doesn’t have the charm to save it. She’s not endearing, and she’s cold when she’s not expressing herself. 

 

‘I don’t think the Crown Prince will keep a girl like that for long, and he’s not about to let the Darkness of Hayden become the Crown Princess.’ 

 

If he’s going to have a casual fling before he takes her, he’d rather have me than Hanaella.

 

With that thought, Rosaryn quickly made her way to the dressing room. 

 

When Tharrott saw her ascending the stairs to the second floor, he glanced at the invitation in her hand.

 

“Ariel’s seal…?”

 

“Ah— Tharo. Good timing, look at that. That foolish Hanaella has given me a chance to meet the Crown Prince, what is it?”

 

“…You mean, Lady Hanaella?”

 

“Yep. It’s an Imperial Palace pass.”

 

Rosaryn held up the pass and smiled. 

 

Looking at the pass, Tharrott lowered his gaze and looked at Ariel’s seal.

 

“This time, I’ll seduce the Crown Prince properly.”

 

“Are you sure you want to do that?”

 

“Just flirting, nothing more, nothing less. I’m not even sure if I’ll succeed. I hope they break up, but if not, I’ll make him buy gold, because I’m sure I can do that.”

 

“…”

 

“So I need some advice from my Tharo, because I need to look my best that day.”

 

“…I’ll escort you.”

 

A little surprised by his sudden words, Rosaryn smiled and gently stroked his cheek.

 

‘You’re afraid of losing me to the Crown Prince, how much do you love me, this man.’ 

 

“Alright, if it makes you feel better, then so be it.”

 

Rosaryn thought that Tharrott was madly in love with her, that he had offered to escort her. 

 

But Tharrott had only said it because he thought that if he escorted her that day, he could meet Hanaella. 

 

Unaware of this, Rosaryn kissed Tharrott on the lips and looked at him lovingly.

 

💫

 

Hanaella dreamed of the past again. She sometimes dreams, but tonight’s dream felt long and vivid. 

 

In her dream, she traveled to Ariel’s library and opened the Forbidden Book to turn Tharrott into a monster. 

 

The image of herself practicing forbidden magic, her face contorted with rage, was ugly even in her dream. 

 

But the emotion of the moment was palpable, and she understood.

 

If she could go back in time, Hanaella thought, she would have gotten revenge on the Thearine siblings in some other way than the foolishness of dabbling in forbidden magic. 

 

Things were much different now, but the Thearine were still reaching out to make her a part of the house. 

 

To keep them at bay, Hanaella thought she would have to become a wicked woman herself. 

 

Then, as she frantically practiced forbidden magic, she heard a voice echoing through the surrounding caverns.

 

「He who dabbles in forbidden magic, there shall be consequences, 

 

He who seeks … shall become … 

 

He who seeks to use forbidden magic, it shall be your …」

 

The voice was inaudible, but it seemed to come from within the Forbidden Book. 

 

To determine the source of the voice, Hanaella quickly walked over to where she was practicing forbidden magic and reached out to grab the scroll in her hand.

 

And at that moment.

 

There was a flash, and her eyes fluttered open.

 

‘Ah… a dream.’

 

She gasped. Rising to her feet, Hanaella made her way to the library, still in her nightgown.

 

‘The forbidden spell I used on Tharrott. I need to reread the texts about it.’

 

Surely the magic had a price, but she hadn’t checked to see what it was. 

 

No, it didn’t matter, she was only too eager to get revenge on Tharrott and Rosaryn. 

 

Maybe it had something to do with why she had returned to the past.

 

‘I swear I heard a voice in my dream, telling me to protect the sun in exchange for forbidden magic.’ 

 

I need to find out if I’m back in the past because I used forbidden magic, and what the voice in my dream told me to protect. 

 

Though, I have no intention of using that forbidden magic again, if I used it in the past, and it’s why I’m here now, I need to find the price and pay it. 

 

I’ve heard that if you use forbidden magic and don’t pay the price, you will be doomed.

 

Arriving at the library, Hanaella hurried to the second floor, where Ariel’s tomb was sealed. 

 

She pushed open the black magic-locked door and entered. Once she was inside, the door locked again.

 

《The Forbidden Book》

 

The Forbidden Book, handed down through the generations of the Ariel family, contained a handful of black magic spells that could be used against non-magical creatures. 

 

They were curses that would always cost the caster dearly, and they were forbidden magic, not to be used in the Hayden Empire. 

 

Flipping through the pages, Hanaella began to search for the spell she had used to transform Tharrott into a monster.

 

“…Found it.”

 

Slowly scanning down the pages of the book containing the spells she had once learned, she found the words written in tiny print at the very end.

 

「For those who have harmed humans with magic created to protect them, you will forever be in the shackles of Hayden’s next Sun.」

 

‘The next sun of Hayden…?’ 

 

The Crown Prince…? 

 

Or the Second Crown Prince…? 

 

Who is it asking me to protect?

 

‘Ah, the Crown Prince.’

 

In the past, the Second Prince became Emperor. 

 

However, after using the spell and being burned at the stake by the Second Prince, she returned to the past, to now.

 

‘Then the next Sun to be my shackle is the Crown Prince, and the reason I returned was to protect him.’

 

Hanaella closed the scroll and let out a long sigh. 

 

It was clear that she had returned to the past because of the Crown Prince, who had died in the battle against the Northern Demons. 

 

That was the price of using forbidden magic, and she was alive now to pay for it, ironically.

 

‘I wonder if I was supposed to like this…’ 

 

The family that was neutral in the first place was supposed to be on the side of the Crown Prince because of the forbidden magic I used, but it’s already happened. 

 

Ah, maybe it’s because of this fate that I couldn’t think of anything but the Crown Prince in front of my father… 

 

‘Well, it’s spilled water.’

 

After returning the forbidden book to its place and reopening the door with black magic, Hanaella stepped out, brushing her dripping hair out of her face as she made her way down to the first floor. 

 

Belle, who had been running around the manor looking for her, saw her emerge from the study in a breeze of pajamas and quickly rushed over to her, draping her with the shawl she was carrying.

 

“What are you doing here, my lady? Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?”

 

“Just checking on something,” answered Hanaella.

 

“To say the least, you startled me… in your nightgown, I swear.”

 

“No breakfast, just some hot tea.”

 

“If you don’t have an appetite, would you like soup or juice?”

 

“No, tea will do.”

 

“Yes, my lady. And I’ve prepared a massage and balm to prepare you for the afternoon ceremony.”

 

“Only the massage.”

 

“Oh, and the balm? Isn’t this the day you’ll be entering the palace with Lady Rosaryn?”

 

“That’s right.”

 

“I’m sure that foxy young lady will show up in full force…”

 

“That’s why I’m saying forget it, we’re just having tea with the Crown Prince, and it would look ridiculous if I overdressed and wore the perfume I never use.”

 

“Ah!”

 

Belle clapped her hands in understanding before Hanaella could finish her sentence.

 

“You mean to go in a way that would be embarrassing to the overdecorated Lady Rosaryn, which is why the jewelry you chose yesterday was small and simple!”

 

“Indeed.”

 

“Wow— my lady, I was wondering what you were thinking when you picked out that neat and simple dress, but my lady, you’re thinking of everything!”

 

At Belle’s comment, Hanaella smirked.

 

💫

 

Both Ariel’s carriage and Thearine’s carriage arrived at the Crown Prince’s palace at the same time. 

 

The door to Thearine’s carriage opened first, and Tharrott stepped out and offered his hand to Rosaryn.

 

Taking the hand of Tharrott, Rosaryn dismounted, looking more bewitching and sensual than ever. 

 

The off-the-shoulder white and red gown was clearly made for her. 

 

The chunky necklace around her neck didn’t look ostentatious because of the off-the-shoulder dress, but rather enlivened what could have been a dull dress without the extravagant embellishments of imperial formality.

 

In contrast, stepping out of the carriage with the help of her coachman, Hanaella felt more mature and elegant than on other days. 

 

The dark gray dress with a white sheer neck and arms, a figure-flattering neckline, and clean, simple accessories that were neither too much nor too little, complemented her dark hair and made her look more refined.

 

Tharrott couldn’t take his eyes off her as she stepped out of the carriage.