The Abandoned Heiress Gets Rich with Alchemy and Buys an Enemy General
Vol. 1 - Ch. 38 - From the Depths of Darkness - Part 1

Silently emerging from the darkness, the door swung open.

I felt as though a gigantic, dark, and terrifying presence was seeping into the room like a phantom. But standing before the door was Aliza Seigrit, my half-sister.

Aliza was one year younger than me, and her face resembled her mother, Lizaria. She didn't resemble me or our father much.

Her cold, lake-like blue hair was neatly tied up, and her pale blue eyes seemed even larger thanks to the carefully applied makeup. She was clad in a luxurious dark blue dress embroidered with golden thread and studded with jewels.

In the past, she was... bright, innocent, with hair as blue as the sky.

Perhaps it was because I hadn't properly looked at Aliza, or maybe it was because Aliza had changed over these three years.

I could still feel the faint chill of fear, but there was a somehow alluring and sinister impression. Aliza, standing before the open door, showed no emotion on her face.

Cyril stepped forward, as if to shield me from Aliza.

Seeing Cyril's hand on the hilt of his sword, Aliza tilted her head curiously.

"Sister, it's been a while, hasn't it! Cyril, why are you so angry? It's cruel to lock me up in my room and put a lock on it!"

Aliza spoke as if the expressionless demeanor from earlier had been a lie.

Her words were both coquettish and sulky.

That was the Aliza I knew. She often acted like this and would cling to Cyril, saying things like, "You're always paying attention to my sister. It's not fair. I want to talk to you too!" and I watched Aliza from afar as she clung to Cyril's arm.

It felt somewhat nostalgic and ridiculous.

Back then, my world consisted only of home and school, and every time I saw Aliza cozying up to Cyril like that, I felt incredibly uncomfortable, but now... it all seems so foolish and trivial.

"Aliza, how did you get out? I put a magical lock on the door from the outside. Your magic shouldn't have been able to match the magic I used on my lock."

"Well, that's just rude. Cyril, you're underestimating me too much! I have magic too, you know, and you even admitted that I'm more talented than my sister!"

Despite Cyril's glare, Aliza seemed unfazed as she placed both hands on her mouth and furrowed her eyebrows, looking troubled.

"I removed the magical lock. I can do something like that, you know."

"Why did you capture Chloe? It's been three years since then. What's your intention now?"

"Because my sister used a deadly assassin from a terrifying enemy nation to attack Eliza-san! She tried to kill Eliza-san because she was in her way! She has always been like that, hasn't she? Always with such a shallow heart."

"Well, even if I were that shallow-hearted person, Julius doesn't even listen to me, so I couldn't have him attack Eliza. If I were to request such a thing from him, I'd just be called an idiot or a fool and scolded." I spoke from behind Cyril.

I wouldn't go as far as saying 'I hate Eliza, so just kill her!' But even if I did, I'd probably just end up being ridiculed.

But Julius seemed to dislike Eliza, so maybe he'd be happy to kill her. No, he wouldn't. Julius was quite level-headed, after all.

He wouldn't hesitate if necessary, but he also wouldn't do anything unnecessary. Probably. I'm not entirely confident, but probably.

"Hmm, Sister, you've changed a lot since three years ago, haven't you? Back then, you were trembling and smiling meaninglessly, always fawning over me, but now you've become quite bold in your speech." 

Aliza put her index finger to her lips and smirked at me mockingly.

"People change in three years, you know. Honestly, Aliza-chan, since you've become so happy with Cyril-sama, please just leave me alone! I was on my way to becoming a wealthy alchemist. Now that Chloe, the beautiful and talented young alchemist, has a clear and promising path ahead, don't interfere."

"Hehe, how absurd. Chloe Seigrit, the coward, pretending to be strong. You can't do anything on your own."

"Aliza, what are you exactly? I saw a grotesque figure in your room. You and that figure were discussing to kill Chloe."

Cyril drew his sword smoothly, the blade gleaming. Aliza, facing the pointed tip with cold eyes, stared back at Cyril.

"I am here for Chloe. Three years ago, I hurt Chloe without even trying to listen to her properly. ...This time, I will protect her."

I stared wide-eyed at Cyril's back, taken aback. It was the first time he had said something like that to me. But while I appreciated it, I felt nothing beyond that. When Julius said it, I felt excited and happy.

"How cruel, Cyril! You protect my older sister, your former fiancée, instead of me, your beloved wife! You're a cruel man!"

Aliza laughed, clutching her stomach and contorting her body.

Her piercing voice echoed in the small cell.

I hadn't realized how unsettling it was to have nothing---no staff for amplifying magic, no bag of alchemical items. Even without a staff, I could still use magic. I pondered over a few offensive spells. The room felt colder. It was morning when I was locked in here, so it must be around midday now. Despite the clear blue sky outside, the cell felt dim.

"Honestly, if everyone just believed me and listened only to me, they could've been happy. Why does everyone have to interfere? Right, big sister? Don't you think so? I just want to be happy, but everyone gets in my way. Now... because you were in the way, I need to get rid of you, okay?"

"What have you done, Aliza-chan...? Our father was always kind to you, and you lived without any inconvenience. You even married Cyril-sama... So, what's causing you so much trouble?"

Aliza sought my agreement by addressing me as her 'big sister'.

But I couldn't understand Aliza's feelings at all. Was I really that much of a hindrance to her?

But why?

"You're the troublemaker. Big sister... You know, my mother and I grew up in the slums of the Seigrit Duchy. You have no idea what life in the slums is like, do you? You don't know how much I've suffered and struggled, do you?"

"Aliza-chan..."

No, that's not right.

Lizaria and Aliza lived in a separate mansion thanks to our father's arrangement--- But where did I hear that from? I haven't had a proper conversation with my father. I've never talked to Aliza about her life.

Lizaria was intimidating, and I was always running away from her.

I never really listened to either of them.

"My mother used to tell me all the time. That I was the Duke Seigrit's child. Just once... when the duke came to inspect the slums and saved her from some bad men, they fell in love. But the duke had a wife and a child, so he said he'd come back for us someday!"

"Is that... true?"

I recalled my father's face.

He was reserved and always seemed grumpy, but he always cared for my mother, who was always frail.

I didn't want to believe that my father betrayed my mother. But even if it were true, Aliza was cherished after coming to the ducal house. So, what was it about me that bothered her so much?

Was I really disliked by Aliza to the extent that just living was an annoyance to her?

"It's true. But, big sister, my father never came for me, no matter how much time passed... And then, news of your engagement with Cyril-sama reached the slums. How could I forgive that when I was living like trash, and you were going to marry the crown prince? I told my mother many times. Let's go to the duke's house."

"That was when I was ten years old, right?"

"Yeah... I wished for someone modest and lovely as you to become my princess. I never imagined it would turn out like this," Cyril-sama said.

I thought he chose me because of my family background, but I didn't even know he thought like that.

"That's when I realized my mother had been driven to madness by life's hardships. So she lied to me and told me I wasn't the duke's child, and that she didn't even know who my father was... My mother tried to thwart my happiness. Can you believe it?"

Aliza chuckled deep in her throat. It felt like Aliza's shadow shifted and morphed without any wind.

"So, every day, I prayed. 'Please make me happy.'... Then, one day, an angel appeared from the gate of the Underworld. The angel told me, 'If they become a hindrance, just kill them.' With the angel's power, even if I kill them, they'll come back to life and obediently follow me like slaves. So, I killed my mother for that."

For a moment, I couldn't comprehend what she was talking about.

Aliza spoke without any remorse, innocently as if it were natural.

Aliza's shadow stretched and morphed toward the wall. It transformed into a grotesque figure with two horns on its head.