Evelyn felt a guilty jolt but pretended otherwise, raising one smooth hand to her cheek.

“The members of my family have always been known to mature quickly.”

“That’s the first I’ve heard of it.”

“Ha-ha. It’s true!”

‘Why is he pressing me so hard? Is it really that obvious?’

Though worried, Evelyn did her best to look confident.

Derrion glanced at her.

“…Well, I suppose you could have suddenly matured, just as you claim.”

“Of course. I’ll be eighteen as soon as my birthday passes.”

“You’re still young.”

Evelyn stared incredulously at Derrion for treating her like a child.

‘You’re young too! Look at you, pretending to be an adult.’

The children in this world already irritated her with their exaggerated maturity, but Derrion was by far the worst.

Concealing her thoughts, Evelyn smiled as shyly as possible.

“In any case, I owe it to you that I’ve grown up so healthy, Your Eminence. You’ve offered prayers for my soul’s peace every year.”

Perhaps because she was speaking to someone of such high status, flattery slipped naturally from her lips.

The High Priest might not be permitted to marry, but one never knew what could happen in life.

‘All that experience in the working world is finally paying off. Did I endure all those hardships just so I could use these skills now?’

But Derrion’s expression darkened.

Sensing the sudden chill in the atmosphere, Evelyn watched him cautiously.

“Your Eminence?”

The sounds of the lively celebration drifted toward them, suggesting that they were nearing the banquet hall.

Derrion lightly placed a hand on top of her head.

Evelyn flinched.

He spoke in a low voice.

“…Perhaps it would be better to perform this year’s prayer for your soul’s peace after your birthday, once you’ve had the chance to grow a little older.”

A cold breeze stirred Derrion’s hair.

Evelyn stared blankly at the short white strands fluttering in the wind.

‘Good grief. I have no idea why he’s acting like this, but he looks positively divine.’

He was probably the rudest of all the potential male leads, but that maddeningly wistful air of his made up for every flaw.

Evelyn stared at him in a daze, nearly drooling, before abruptly coming to her senses.

Derrion seemed to have said something unsettling, but she had not fully understood what he meant.

“Um, Lord Derrion, why must the prayer be offered after my birthday…?”

At that moment, a scream rang out from inside the banquet hall.

“Aaaah! What is this?!”

Evelyn’s gaze snapped toward the hall.

Her face instantly went pale.

‘Don’t tell me. Has it already happened?’

She hurriedly looked up at the sky.

The sun had not yet set.

Why had the incident already occurred?

‘No. Perhaps this should have been expected. I’m changing things, after all.’

Evelyn rubbed her throbbing temple.

She intended not merely to alter the original story but to shake it to its very foundations.

That made this troublesome.

If variables like this continued appearing, knowing the original plot would not help her respond in time.

Derrion studied her anxious expression.

“What is it?”

“Nothing. I’m simply worried that something might have happened.”

Leaving Evelyn behind, Derrion entered the banquet hall first.

Aymon spotted him and hurried over.

“Your Eminence, where have you been?!”

“I went for a short walk. What is all this commotion?”

“Well…”

Aymon’s gaze moved toward the center of the banquet hall.

Princess Maelia stood there with a shocked expression while Adonea patted her shoulder.

Obson, thoroughly drunk, was fast asleep behind a curtain.

Adonea took the princess by the shoulders and gently guided her away.

“Your Highness, please come this way for now.”

“…But I can’t leave her alone.”

“Someone else will take care of everything. Please, Your Highness.”

Derrion smelled the metallic tang of blood.

When he stepped forward, he saw the myna bird’s body lying at the princess’s feet, its neck brutally twisted.

The nobles were whispering among themselves as they stared at the gruesome sight.

Derrion looked around.

Every face was twisted in horror, yet no one seemed to understand why the bird had suddenly died.

‘To commit such an act at the imperial princess’s birthday celebration… Whoever did this has remarkable nerve.’

Derrion turned to Aymon.

“That appears to be the princess’s myna bird. Am I correct?”

“Yes. Her Highness introduced it to several nobles a few hours ago, but at some point, they discovered it dead. No one saw the culprit.”

“No one witnessed anyone killing it?”

Aymon nodded. Derrion frowned suspiciously.

Committing such an act in the middle of a crowd would require a special ability.

Whether divine power, magic, or power borrowed from an evil god, something extraordinary must have been involved.

And yet the only forces he could sense here were his own divine power and the faint trace of Simon’s energy emanating from Evelyn.

Just then, Evelyn cautiously entered the banquet hall through the terrace.

A middle-aged woman holding a fan shrieked hysterically.

“That child! She must be the culprit! It has to be her!”

The woman’s cry echoed throughout the banquet hall.

Evelyn stopped in her tracks.

The murmuring grew louder.

“Yes, there can only be one reason something so ominous happened.”

“Throw her out this instant!”

“Where is Duke Chantalis? Have him remove that child at once!”

Evelyn clenched her fists.

Though she tried to remain confident, tears gathered beneath her veil.

‘For once, I’m grateful that my face is covered today.’

She bit her lip without letting anyone notice.

She had hurried back because remaining in the garden any longer might have made her look suspicious.

Yet the people gathered in the banquet hall began shouting whatever suited them, exactly as she had expected.

Then Duke Chantalis walked toward Evelyn.

Large golden letters appeared in the air.

[I vouch for this child’s innocence. If Evelyn truly committed this crime, I will relinquish my title as duke.]

It was an extraordinary declaration.

The nobles exchanged glances.

Before the duke could raise his pen again, Sachi shouted.

“Evelyn hasn’t been in the banquet hall this entire time. How could she possibly have killed the princess’s myna bird?”

The middle-aged woman who had first accused Evelyn hurriedly hid her face behind her fan.

“W-Well, that…”

Duke Germand interjected arrogantly.

“How should we know? Shouldn’t you demand the truth from your cursed sister? Ask her what she did with Simon’s power, when she did it, and how.”

At Duke Germand’s words, the others began agreeing once more.

“That’s right! With Simon’s power, she could have done it from far away.”

“How frightening.”

“What are we supposed to do about that sinister child?”

Evelyn, who had been standing frozen, finally came to her senses.

In the original story, no one had defended her.

But things are different now.

Duke Chantalis and Sachi had both succumbed to her ultimate weapon, her irresistible charm.

If she remained silent, these absurd rumors might become accepted as fact.

‘I promised myself the same thing when they accused me of stealing at the orphanage in my previous life. I’m the only one who can protect me.’

And now, she even had family members beside her who believed in her.

Drawing strength from Sachi and Duke Chantalis’s support, Evelyn raised her voice.

“I did not kill the myna bird. I was walking in the garden this entire time.”

Her desperate voice carried a compelling sincerity.

The fresh fragrance that had previously lingered faintly around her suddenly intensified and spread throughout the hall.

In an instant, the tense atmosphere subsided.

Catching the stronger scent emanating from Evelyn, Derrion narrowed his eyes.

“…What is that child?”

“Lord Derrion?”

After hearing Evelyn’s words, the nobles exchanged awkward glances.

Then a young nobleman spoke with an embarrassed expression.

“…It is true that no one actually saw Lady Evelyn kill the bird, isn’t it?”

“That is true.”

As the nobles’ attitudes became increasingly uncertain, Duke Germand could no longer contain his anger.

“What are you all saying? Anyone can see that this was the work of that filthy servant of evil!”

At that moment, a handsome young man standing behind him placed a hand on Germand’s shoulder.

“Father, please stop. She’s still only a child.”

“But Iole…!”

“Father.”

When Iole firmly restrained him, Duke Germand cleared his throat.

Evelyn’s tension faded as she watched the exchange with interest.

‘That fool has such a perfectly respectable son?’

He had probably been nothing more than a passing minor character in the original novel, so it was hardly surprising that she did not remember him.

Watching Duke Germand behave strangely meekly toward his eldest son, Evelyn smiled knowingly.

Either he was an utterly devoted father, or his far more capable son had him completely under control.

Just as the atmosphere began shifting in Evelyn’s favor, Adonea stepped forward.

“…But I saw Evelyn wearing a red dress at the ducal estate.”

Everyone’s attention turned toward her.

Sachi asked in a flat voice, “What does that have to do with anything?”

“That day, we were talking in the garden when we discovered a dead bird. Brother Oden saw it too. Isn’t that right, Brother?”

Adonea looked at Oden.

With a conflicted expression, he nodded.

“…Yes, I remember.”

“Evelyn suddenly appeared afterward. Once Brother Oden had left, Evelyn approached me, and she reeked of blood. It smelled like a wild animal.”

The nobles began murmuring again.

Unable to contain her anger, Evelyn spoke.

“What are you talking about? Are you saying I killed that bird?”

“Surely you know better than anyone, Evelyn. I couldn’t bring myself to say anything that day, but I was truly terrified.”

Without even looking at Evelyn, Adonea trembled as though consumed by fear.

Evelyn was too dumbfounded even to laugh.

‘What kind of b*llshit is she spouting now?’

Just as Evelyn was about to step forward in outrage, Sachi spoke.

“So Evelyn wore a red dress that day? Are you suggesting she chose it to conceal bloodstains? Do you honestly expect us to believe such nonsense?”

“I couldn’t believe it at first either. But after seeing what happened today, I couldn’t stop thinking about that day…”

“Then we can inspect the dress at the ducal estate. There’s no need to condemn her based on your suspicions.”

“But Evelyn might have done something to it since then. Why are you defending her so fiercely? Could it be that you have fallen under the influence of evil?”

Adonea trembled as if frightened.

Sachi’s face twisted in anger, and he was about to shout when Derrion’s clear voice rang through the hall.

“This child did not kill the imperial princess’s myna bird.”

Evelyn raised her head.

To her surprise, Derrion stood beside her.

“I can vouch for her. I was with her in the garden. I swear it in Chara’s name.”

The hall immediately fell silent.

These were not the words of an ordinary man, but of the High Priest swearing upon Chara’s name.

Although Derrion had not yet reached adulthood, everyone in Lagria knew that he wielded greater divine authority than ten adult priests combined.

At that moment, Evelyn saw a shadow pass through Adonea’s eyes.

A chill swept over her.

‘Adonea…?’

Princess Maelia, who had been watching everything unfold, stepped forward.

“If His Eminence, High Priest Derrion, says so, then I believe Lady Evelyn is innocent. All of you must stop persecuting a young girl.”

Though the princess remained pale from the shock of her bird’s death, her voice was firm, warning them that she would not tolerate any further commotion.

At her words, the nobles immediately backed down.

“Please forgive us, Your Highness.”

They all bowed their heads.

Out of the corner of her eye, Evelyn saw the newly awakened Obson being informed of what had happened.

Just as she was about to breathe a sigh of relief, Adonea bowed to the princess.

“…Thank you for forgiving my younger sister’s wrongdoing, Your Highness.”

‘This b*tch just won’t quit.’