My Ruin to You - Chapter 132

The chamber erupted again in murmurs. All recognized that without Edan’s quick thinking, the disaster could have been far worse. Yet while his actions prevented greater catastrophe, they couldn’t overlook those sacrificed inside the sealed walls. The losses were too great for pure praise, the decisions too perfect for criticism.

Next, the vice-commander reported on plague suppression efforts. As he described the Marquis and knights lost in the surprise attack, and the commander and additional knights who perished attempting to recover their bodies, stifled sobs could be heard from somewhere in the chamber.

“As starvation prolonged, the infected grew increasingly savage,” the vice-commander continued. “They ceased sleeping even during daylight, prowling for prey, drawn by the scent of living blood until they swarmed the castle walls. Though our knights defended the walls with all their might, it was merely containment – we couldn’t suppress the plague itself. Judging the marquisate beyond recovery and acting on His Grace’s orders, we’ve begun systematic burning of infected areas.”

He added that incineration was proceeding outward from the gates, with plans to return recovered remains to their families. Nobles who’d suffered no losses nodded along, while bereaved parents struggled to accept.

“Rumors circulate that Lady Celodienne was affiliated with the Marquis’s clinic,” someone interjected. “If, as Your Highness says, the clinic was conducting monstrous plague experiments – and the outbreak occurred shortly after her arrival in the marquisate…”

“Then you should be thanking my fiancée,” Valen cut in.

Silence.

“While you all preserved your own skins, it was I who crawled through that hell like a dog. Had she not gone, would the plague have been contained so swiftly?”

The implication was clear – without Roseline, he’d never have personally intervened. Though his tone remained flat, the razor-sharp words sufficiently blunted the nobles’ aggression.

“We deeply appreciate Your Highness’s noble sacrifice,” the Duke said with a bow. “But leaving these rumors unaddressed will breed lasting consequences.”

“With permission,” a black-clad noble – likely a bereaved parent – interjected, “we’d like to question the Lady briefly. May we summon her forward?”

The moment had come. As Roseline rose stiffly—

“Stay seated,” Valen ordered, thud grabbing her wrist.

She gently pried his fingers loose. “It’s alright.”
“Roseline.”
“I’ll return.”

Valen’s eyes frosted over as she moved toward the center, aristocratic stares pricking like thorns. She neither avoided their gazes nor bowed her head, instead lightly gathering her skirts to hide trembling fingers, counting silently to steady her racing pulse.

Approaching the head’s case, the cloying stench of dried blood stung her nostrils. Though her nose wrinkled instinctively, she schooled her features blank.

Leaning back in his chair, Valen tracked her unblinkingly. Tap. Tap. Tap. His right index finger maintained a metronomic beat against the armrest.

“What exactly did you do in the Marquis’s territory?”

The noble who had summoned Roseline forward posed the question.

“I did nothing,” Roseline replied. “I went there because they said they needed a Manifestor to assist at the clinic, but I was never assigned any work. There were no patients visiting the clinic either.”

“That clinic had been closed for months, or so I heard. Did you truly not know?”

“No. I did think it was strange that no one came to the clinic.”

“Then why didn’t you leave? If you found it suspicious, and you weren’t given any tasks—”

As the questioning continued, murmurs once again rippled through the chamber. Suspicion and wariness sharpened the gazes fixed on Roseline. She inhaled, closing her eyes briefly before reopening them.

“The marquisate was the only place that needed my abilities. At the time, I had no other choice.”

This much, the assembled nobles already knew. Roseline swept her eyes over them before continuing.

“I waited, thinking, ‘Surely work will come tomorrow—just one more day.’ But nothing changed. By then, I was already considering returning to the capital. I just wanted to check the basement before leaving.”

“The basement?”

“Yes. The Marquis had warned me never to go down there, which only made me more curious.”

“What did you find?”

“I saw bats. And then…”

Roseline trailed off, her gaze locking onto Valen below the dais.

“I set them free.”

The chamber fell so silent that even the sound of breathing seemed to vanish.

No one dared speak. The tension was so thick that not even the creak of a chair was permitted. In that razor-edged silence, Roseline watched with cold satisfaction as Valen’s composure fractured—just for an instant.

How does it feel, you bastard?