The Cursed Witch

Chapter 14|Confession

"You made Cosette leave, Father?" I asked just to be sure.

"Of course. If she even dares to lay a finger on you again, I promise, I would personally behead her."

W-wow, Father sure is scary...

But I know Cosette would come back.

It might be tomorrow or even today. Knowing her she just won't let it slide.

"Are you feeling okay now?" Father asked as he checked me with his eyes filled with worry.

"Yes, Father. You don't have to worry anymore."

.

.

It has been three days but Cosette showed no signs yet.

Did I assume wrong after all?

Maybe she got scared and ran away.

I shouldn't have let my guard down.

A maid knocked three times on my door.

"Come in."

She handed me a letter with a crest of the Boulstridge duchy.

I opened the envelope and found an invitation inside.

A ball is happening tomorrow since it's the birthday of the Duke.

And in a blink of an eye, it's already the Duke's birthday.

"I'm going to talk to him for a while. Enjoy the ball." Father said as he placed his hand above my head.

I could feel my cheeks getting warmer. Father is so affectionate towards me nowadays...

When I was about to leave, I suddenly heard shouting from the hall.

I immediately went there and saw Cosette, standing in the middle while holding a broken bottle of wine.

Every time she appears, she creates a commotion.

Does she want the attention of others that much?

She sprinted toward me as she pointed that broken glass at me.

"It's all your fault!"

But why? Why is she attacking me again?

She knows father won't let her off the hook another time.

"Have you gone crazy?!" I yelled as I tried to stop the glass with my bare hands to prevent it from stabbing me.

Tears strolled down her cheeks along with the blood from my hand as she continued to force the glass onto my neck.

"Maybe, I did. But it's all because of you! You stole what belongs to me. Their love, their gazes, their affection, it's all mine!"

She finally let go of the bottle but she gripped my clothes and cried on my knees.

"So why? Why do you have them all? Aren't I supposed to be the protagonist?"

She's right. Everything I had right now is supposed to be hers.

That would be the case if this is the original novel.

But it's not anymore.

The characters here are not just puppets who blindly follow the person that pulls their strings.

They have their own will. They weren't the characters I know from the novel.

They are humans.

"They are not yours. Their affection, their gazes, their love, they get to decide who they give it to, not you."

"They are humans with a will of their own not just a puppet that you could pull with strings."

Her eyes widened by my statement.

"Human you say... Then what am I even doing this for?!"

She suddenly snapped and took a shard of glass.

"They told me everything here was for me. They lied to me!"

She then plummeted the shard at me so I just squeezed my eyes.

.

What's happening?

Why is it quiet?

I finally opened my eyes and saw Florence, grabbing Cosette's hand that was holding the shard.

"You really are such a fool," Florence muttered as he threw her at the ground.

"Ugh!"

"Guards, take her!" Florence commanded.

The guard instantly took her by force but she started resisting.

But before they could take her away, she said something.

"You must be happy now, right? You have everything I wasn't able to get..."

She smiled bitterly at me. I didn't feel any sympathy for her at all.

And only now do I realize how f*cked up that novel was.

The heroine you say? She's just a manipulator who controlled everyone for her own benefit.

They both lived happily you say?

Florence suffered. He had to bear the pain of being manipulated while the people close to him believed that he finally found his happiness.

Everything in that book was sugarcoated. Filled with lies and deception.

"Let me treat your hand," Florence said as he picked me up and brought me to the lounge.

When I was finally covered up, someone budged the door.

"Ava!" Father and Zeke ran toward me and hugged me.

"That brat, I would kill her!" Father was enraged.

But Zeke, he hasn't said anything ever since he saw me.

He was just staring blankly at me.

"Zeke, what's wrong?"

He looked at me with empty eyes and looked back at my wound.

Tears dripped down from his eyes.

"Ahh... You're hurt... " His voice and hands were trembling as he checked my wound.

"I can't lose you again..."

His eyes were filled with sorrow. He looked desperate.

It feels as if he saw me in this state before.

"Don't worry, it's just a small scratch, it would heal immediately! "
I tried to console him but he just kept crying.

"Every time this happens to you, I'm not there. What would I do if I lose you again?!"

Huh? What does he mean by that...?

Does he know me from my past lives?

I don't understand...

As much as I want to ask, a part of me still wants me to wait.

"Explain everything to me when it's all over, okay?"

I lightly place my hand on his cheek and wiped his tear with my finger.

He held my hand carefully so he won't hurt it.

"As you wish."