Chapter 4 (Part 2)

Sigh. How long will this go on?  

Cecilia’s uncomfortable day dragged on endlessly. She had to spend the entire day with the young ladies who tormented her, from morning service to meals, afternoon service, dinner, and evening service.  

Their mistreatment of her was blatant, ranging from outright ignoring her to constant harassment.  

They treated her like she didn’t exist most of the time but would pick on her whenever they felt bored. Even though she did their laundry, they deliberately provoked her and tried to humiliate her, just as they had in the dining hall before.  

It was clear they were waiting for her to either be expelled from the temple or leave on her own.  

Thinking about their actions made Cecilia’s blood boil, but given her current position, she had no way to retaliate. The difference in status between them created an insurmountable wall of reality.

However, if things continued like this, there was a possibility that she might be expelled before the event ended.  

She wanted to return home, but being dishonorably kicked out was something she wanted to avoid. To prevent that, Cecilia needed to show them that she wasn’t someone they could easily mess with.  

If anyone were to leave, it should be them, not her. Who were they to tell her to leave?  

While the other young ladies focused on their prayers in the chapel, Cecilia thought about how to get back at them.  

After contemplating various methods, Cecilia decided to go with the simplest form of revenge. That was to turn Lady Pirus’s laundry into actual rags!  

It was something she could have done earlier, but she hadn’t because such an act was far from the dignity of a noble lady. However, now that her anger had reached its peak, this wasn’t the time to worry about such things.  

She needed something to make them suffer.  

There was no need to ruin everyone’s belongings. Cecilia decided to target just one person—Lady Pirus.  

After all the prayers were over and dinner was finished, as usual, Lady Pirus’s clothes were left in front of Cecilia’s room. Clothes that Cecilia had always washed without complaint.  

Let’s see how you like this!  

Cecilia picked up Lady Pirus’s ceremonial robe and, instead of heading to the laundry area, went into her room.  

***

“Kyahhh!”

Lady Pirus’s scream echoed through the corridor, and soon, the sound of other young ladies approaching her could be heard.  

It seemed they had discovered the ceremonial robe, which had been shredded with scissors and neatly folded in front of her room.  

There was a commotion in the hallway, and shortly after, Lady Pirus stormed over to Cecilia’s door, pounding on it furiously. Her knocks soon turned into loud bangs.  

“Lady Bucklew, come out this instant!”  

“What seems to be the matter?”  

Cecilia opened the door with a puzzled expression, as if she had no idea what was going on.  

“How could you do this to my ceremonial robe? Three of them!”  

“You can ask the priest in charge to issue you new ones.”  

Cecilia shrugged indifferently, as if it had nothing to do with her.  

There were a total of five robes issued. One had been shredded by Lady Pirus herself the previous day, and now Cecilia had shredded three more, leaving only one intact.  

While Lady Pirus could request new robes from the temple, it would be humiliating for a noble lady, who was expected to be mature and responsible, to admit that she had lost her clothes.  

“You did this on purpose, didn’t you? You’ve done it before, and now you’re doing it again today!”  

“Do you have any proof that I did it?”  

“Who else could it be? You’re the one in charge of my laundry!”  

“Well, I noticed your ceremonial robes weren’t in front of my room as usual. I thought you hadn’t brought them yet.”  

Lady Pirus seemed momentarily taken aback by Cecilia’s audacious response, but she quickly scowled and shouted again.  

“Does that even make sense to you?”  

“Why wouldn’t it?”  

As the disagreement between the two showed no signs of resolution, the surrounding young ladies began murmuring among themselves.  

Those siding with Lady Pirus criticized Cecilia, while others argued that accusing someone without evidence seemed inappropriate.  

“What’s all this commotion?”  

As their argument grew louder, Priestess Anna approached them.  

“Lady Bucklew ruined my laundry….”  

Lady Pirus began to explain, but then—gasp!—she covered her mouth.  

She couldn’t admit that she had violated the rule stating that everyone must do their own laundry. Thus, Lady Pirus had no choice but to stop mid-sentence.  

“Are you trying to say that I did your laundry for you?”  

“N-no, that’s not….”  

Finding herself in a difficult situation, Lady Pirus glanced around, silently pleading for help from the other young ladies. One of them stepped forward.  

“I saw it. She tore the robes with her hands.”  

“Can you take responsibility for that statement? Do you really think I could tear ceremonial robes with my bare hands? Look at the tears—they’re clean cuts.”  

Cecilia had taken the robes into her room, locked the door, and cut them with scissors, ensuring there were no witnesses.  

Even when she placed the shredded robes in front of Lady Pirus’s room, she had made sure no one was in the hallway. Thus, the claim was a lie.  

“Since there’s a witness, there’s no need to drag this out any further.”  

However, without verifying the truth, Priestess Anna immediately sided with Lady Pirus.  

“Lady Pirus is lying. She shredded her own clothes and is trying to frame me for it.”  

Cecilia didn’t want to take the punishment alone. She wanted Lady Pirus to be punished as well, so she clung to her accusation.  

“No matter how much you insist, it’s useless now that there’s a witness.”  

Despite Cecilia’s truthful claims, Priestess Anna refused to believe her. Judging by the smug smiles of Lady Pirus and her group, they had likely bribed the priestess again.  

It would have been helpful if Lady Orkney had stepped forward, but she didn’t seem inclined to get involved.  

“Damaging someone else’s belongings and lying are both wrongdoings. Therefore, you will spend the entire day in your room reflecting on your actions instead of attending prayers. Additionally, you will be prohibited from eating for the day.”  

Priestess Anna concluded that Cecilia was solely at fault. Soon after, apprentice priests grabbed Cecilia by each arm, following the priestess’s orders.  

“Serves you right.”  

Lady Pirus and her group sneered as Cecilia was dragged away. However, Priestess Anna turned to Lady Pirus and said,  

“Lady Pirus, since you failed to properly take care of your ceremonial robes, you will also spend the day performing volunteer work instead of attending prayers.”  

“What?”  

Lady Pirus’s face turned pale. She hadn’t expected that she would also be punished.  

Although Cecilia didn’t know the details since she was dragged off to solitary confinement, she could guess that Lady Pirus had been forcibly taken away as well, judging by her indignant shouts of protest.  

Locked in solitary confinement, Cecilia had to remain in her room, unable to participate in the event, just as Priestess Anna had ordered. 

Aside from having to go hungry, the punishment wasn’t particularly difficult. In fact, being away from Lady Pirus and her group allowed Cecilia to enjoy a rare moment of peace.  

Of course, she didn’t forget to reflect on her actions. After all, she had lied about not cutting Lady Pirus’s robes.  

However, the more she reflected, the more unfair it felt.  

Lady Pirus and her friends had committed far greater wrongs, so why weren’t they facing any real consequences?  

Sure, Lady Pirus had been punished with volunteer work, but it wasn’t enough. They needed to face a punishment severe enough to make them truly regret their actions.  

Cecilia wanted to get her revenge before the event ended, but it seemed impossible to do it alone. She would need help from someone within the temple—someone who could expose their wrongdoings.  

However, based on Priestess Anna’s attitude, it was unlikely that any priest would believe her unless she presented solid evidence. Without proof, she might be accused of slandering others.  

If she acted recklessly, she might end up suffering even more, just like now. She had to be careful.

She needed a priest she could trust, someone who would believe what had happened so far. So Cecilia thought about which priest might believe her words.  

Who could it be… Ah!  

At that moment, a man came to her mind. It was none other than Priest Ian!  

There wasn’t a single person in this temple who would believe that he would lie. If Priest Ian believed Cecilia’s words, there would be no need for evidence.  

No, in fact, even if he lied, people would still believe him. Especially the young ladies who had applied to attend the event just to see him—they would support him wholeheartedly.  

To ask for his help, Cecilia needed to use the weakness of his that she held in her hands.  

He said he had insomnia, didn’t he? I wonder if it’s gotten better?  

To see if she could still use his weakness, she had to meet with Priest Ian and ask him.  

Meeting him privately would be difficult, so Cecilia decided to take advantage of the special privilege granted to participants of the temple’s event—the ability to request a confession with any priest they wished.  

The time was limited to five minutes, and there were so many applicants that it would take three to four days to get an appointment if she applied now. Since she also needed time to confirm whether his insomnia had improved, meeting him in three days seemed appropriate.