It’s Sunny But I’m Depressed Chapter 20

 

 Chapter 20: Rain, Tears, and the Desert (5)

 

“Uh… um…”

 

The flustered soldier stammered, unable to find his words.

 

“Your hair color is so distinctive.”

 

Finally, the bespectacled man, who had been silently observing, spoke up.

 

“Everyone in the palace knows that the priestess visiting the south has hair as blue as the sky.”

 

“Yes, indeed!”

 

“Oh my, yes, we knew that too. Haha…”

 

“Yeah, that’s right! I think I heard the rumor…”

 

The soldiers and women awkwardly laughed, siding with the bespectacled man.

 

‘Hmm. Is this all staged? Without an ally, this situation might be difficult to handle.’

 

At least in this world, it seemed she was indeed a priestess favored by the gods. The timing always seemed to work out perfectly.

 

“What is all this commotion, Priestess?”

 

Through the door opened by the soldiers, Regolus appeared, looking puzzled and holding a pink handkerchief.

 

‘Perfect timing.’

 

Having someone familiar in the palace was indeed a wise choice. Ilena greeted Regolus with a smile.

 

“Regolus.”

 

“Priestess, what is going on here? I heard you were having a tea party, but why are soldiers barging in?”

 

He asked, clutching the pink handkerchief tightly. Everyone in the room, except Ilena, was visibly flustered by his appearance. The bespectacled man, who had been gaping, finally spoke.

 

“What brings you to the palace, Regolus?”

 

“I came to have dinner with the Priestess. Andre asked me to deliver this handkerchief. He’s chatting with a maid he knows… But more importantly, what is happening here, Sir Otter?”

 

“Well, um, a necklace has gone missing, and we’re investigating.”

 

“Hmm? And you, not being from the investigation bureau, are handling it yourself?”

 

Regolus’s question left Otter visibly flustered.

 

‘Ah, so that’s what’s happening.’

 

Ilena could roughly guess what they were trying to do. They probably intended to frame her for stealing the necklace and then interrogate her. Those women were definitely not maids but actresses. That’s why they knew nothing of noble manners, yet their hands were so delicate.

 

‘How should I handle this cute little prank?’

 

Ilena glanced at the awkwardly hesitant women pretending to be maids. And then.

 

“…Please, come in.”

 

She smiled sweetly at the soldiers, her lips forming a smile but her eyes remaining cold. She added to Regolus, who was hesitating at the door.

 

“Regolus, please, come in.”

 

Though she had naturally taken control of the situation, no one seemed to notice.

 

“But Priestess!”

 

Regolus exclaimed, but Otter quickly signaled to the soldiers.

 

“Well, then.”

 

“Then, please excuse us for a moment! Ladies, please cooperate with the investigation!”

 

The soldiers, regaining their confidence, shouted loudly and entered the room. They began to search the women’s clutches and pockets with a somewhat formal demeanor. Ilena watched, arms crossed, as the soldiers pretended to search here and there.

 

And just as they picked up Ilena’s clutch.

 

“Found it!”

 

One of the soldiers shouted loudly.

 

‘Oh, that’s…’

 

A familiar sapphire necklace. The necklace Andre had brought from somewhere when she dressed up to go to the theater. A necklace with a sapphire the size of a thumbnail.

 

“Oh my, there’s definite evidence now!”

 

“How could this be, Priestess? Please, explain!”

 

The women who had been cooperating with the investigation suddenly began to accuse Ilena.

 

“Stealing! We trusted you, Priestess!”

 

“How can you stay silent? Why?”

 

‘They’re trying hard.’

 

Ilena chuckled. Andre, who could prove her innocence, was nowhere to be found.

 

‘That maid sent him on an errand earlier.’

 

What impeccable timing.

 

‘It’s like an unscripted drama, or perhaps a scripted one in this case.’

 

Ilena remained unfazed, her sharp gaze scanning those gathered in the room. She appeared calm, as if all this chaos had nothing to do with her. On the contrary, it was Otter who seemed uneasy.

 

‘Why is she so calm?’

 

He pretended to be composed, but inside, he was struggling, clutching his head in distress. His last plan, ‘If you step on a tack, tears will come from the pain!’ had failed. This time, it was ‘If you’re falsely accused, tears will come before you can even explain!’

 

Of course, it was a plan born from his own experience. When faced with anger or injustice, he wanted to argue back, but in reality, tears would just well up. Then, others would tease him for crying, leading to more tears from the injustice.

 

In the end, he’d return to his room, unable to argue back, kicking his blanket all night, simulating how he should have responded, and fall asleep grumbling. Naturally, being timid, he couldn’t confront them the next day.

 

He’d just live with a small grudge in his heart.

 

‘How can you not cry in this situation? It’s unfair! It’s sad! Please cry, Priestess! I really don’t want to do this!’

 

Otter bit his lip anxiously, watching Ilena. But he overlooked one fact. His ‘unable to speak up, kicking the blanket alone’ was limited to timid people. And Ilena was far from timid. Ilena’s eyes gleamed coldly. She was someone who became calmer in moments of crisis.

 

It was both her natural disposition and the result of her upbringing.

 

‘Grandfather always said.’

 

“A fight is won by the one who strikes first. If someone messes with you, hit them on the nose first.”

 

“Yes, Grandfather.”

 

Grandfather, who said all he had was money, taught her early on that striking first was the key to victory.

 

“Then, who wins a verbal fight? Hmm? Answer me.”

 

“Um… the one with the louder voice?”

 

“Close enough. A verbal fight is won by the one who doesn’t get flustered. You take after your grandfather the most. You’ll be great at winning people over with your words.”

 

Ilena, following her grandfather’s teachings, calmly thought instead of making excuses or getting flustered.

 

‘How should I deal with those glasses?’

 

Since before, he had been gossiping behind people’s backs, doing slightly annoying things even if they weren’t terribly bad. She couldn’t live with even a small slight against her.

 

‘Should I mess with him a little?’

 

Having made up her mind, Ilena spoke calmly.

 

“Yes, I think I’m the thief.”

 

Her demeanor was so nonchalant.

 

“What?”

 

“What?”

 

The people in the room, who had been accusing her, were the ones now taken aback.

 

‘Why are they so surprised? They were pushing me as the thief. Did they think I’d deny it?’

 

Ilena leisurely watched as they panicked and floundered.

 

“P-Priestess, you’re the thief? That can’t be…”

 

The bespectacled servant muttered, his face twisted in disbelief.

 

“Why do you think that?”

 

One of the women, who had introduced herself as a maid, asked with a foolish expression.

 

“Well, the necklace came out of my clutch.”

 

Ilena said casually.

 

“Who else could it be? My attendant? No way! I’d rather be the thief than suspect him! I’m a thief! A damned thief! Everyone!”

 

Ilena shouted dramatically.

 

“N-No, it’s not! Why say such harsh things…”

 

“Y-Yeah! It’s just a necklace, after all!”

 

Their extreme reaction left them flustered. Otter, too, was dumbfounded, his mouth opening and closing like a goldfish. In this sitcom-like situation, the only serious person was Regolus.

 

“That’s impossible! This is a clear setup!”

 

He exclaimed passionately. But Ilena sighed deeply, tilting her head sorrowfully.

 

“Even if it’s a setup, it’s still my fault. As a priestess, I made someone hate me this much. A flawed person like me deserves to be stoned in the square.”

 

She tried to force tears, but they wouldn’t come.

 

‘Before I had depression, I was good at fake crying.’

 

Instead, Ilena buried her face in her sleeve.

 

“I’m too ashamed to lift my head! I’m trash! I’m worthless! Please, execute me!”

 

Her extreme self-deprecation led them to start defending her.

 

“N-No, nothing is certain yet!”

 

“Yes, yes. We only have one witness’s testimony!”

 

“Sniff. No, please. Execute this flawed priestess! No…”

 

Ilena grabbed a knife from the table and brought it to her neck. It was a dull knife meant for spreading butter, not even sharp enough to cut steak. But the naive people in the room panicked.

 

“Priestess! Don’t do it!”

 

“Someone’s going to die! Ahh! Help!”

 

“Ahhh! No! Sir Otter, do something! This wasn’t part of the plan!!”