The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella

At Seraphina’s response, the Crown Prince stood there, utterly dumbfounded, his eyes wide open and his mouth agape.

For a long moment, he just stood frozen.

Then, as if snapping back to reality, he stammered,

"Y-You’re serious? You really mean that?"

"I said it was similar, didn’t I?"

"Have you lost your mind, Lady Bluewood?"

"That’s rather rude."

Julian nearly shouted in frustration but managed to rein himself in, lowering his voice into an urgent whisper.

"Do you realize that if you actually marry a beastfolk, you’ll be permanently exiled from the Terranolia Empire?"

And even if she were exiled, did she think Animallia would take her in?

Absolutely not.

If anything, the punishment would be far worse—so severe that exile would feel merciful in comparison.

"You’d become a fugitive, forced to wander endlessly with no land to call home."

"Oh, I see."

"What do you mean, you see?!"

Just deny the damn rumor already!

Julian clutched at his hair in sheer agony.

"That ‘precious person’ you mentioned before... they were a beastfolk?"

"Yes."

"So you’re telling me I invested in a sinking ship that’s about to turn into worthless scraps?"

"That’s why you should always do thorough research before investing."

"IS THAT SOMETHING YOU SHOULD BE SAYING RIGHT NOW?!"

He desperately searched her face, pleading for her to take it back—for her to tell him she was joking.

"I’ll make sure to repay your generosity, even if I’m exiled, so please calm down."

"Can’t you just give up on this doomed love already? If you return to the Terranolia Empire, I will personally arrange for you to have the ten most beautiful men in the world. I’ll set up your own private harem!"

Julian had completely lost it, resorting to utter nonsense in his desperation.

A talent of Seraphina’s caliber—someone like her—was not something he could afford to lose.

But Seraphina didn’t even bother listening.

She simply continued as if he hadn’t spoken.

"This rumor is definitely maliciously fabricated. First of all, it wasn’t an elopement, and second, I stayed with him because he helped me immensely."

Marriage had never even been on her mind.

Of course, it would be nice, but...

She shrugged and added,

"I won’t be getting married."

"Ah, so you were joking? Whew..."

Julian sighed deeply, muttering about how teasing a Crown Prince was unacceptable.

But then, Seraphina spoke again.

"But even without such formalities, our souls are already intertwined and bound together."

"...I really need you to clarify whether I should feel relieved or start preparing for disaster."

Seraphina absentmindedly brushed her lips with her fingers, lost in thought.

Then, she finally said,

"I would never make a choice that would bring suffering to him just because of my feelings."

Julian let out a breath.

Fine.

If no marriage was happening, at least she wouldn’t be exiled.

"However..."

Her voice suddenly lowered, growing sharp.

She had reached her own conclusion about the source of the rumor.

"There’s a chance I won’t even get to make that choice myself. Someone else might force me into exile."

There was no way this rumor had spread naturally.

It was too precise.

Whoever fabricated it had specifically targeted her situation, choosing the one rumor that would deal the greatest damage to her.

It was entirely calculated.

"The prince’s expulsion was a natural consequence of his own actions. It was justified."

And yet, instead of accepting that, he was now trying to banish her from the continent entirely.

"Why is everything he does so utterly pathetic?"

"So... it ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) really was him?"

"He’s the most likely suspect."

Who else could have so quickly understood the nature of the power he used?

Who else could have dismantled it as swiftly as she did?

No one.

She had even physically hurled a quill at him—there was no way he didn’t know exactly who had exposed him.

Julian’s expression grew grim.

"If this rumor solidifies into fact, I won’t be able to protect you, no matter how much I try."

If she was exiled from the empire, her academy records wouldn’t be spared either.

Her expulsion wouldn’t just be a formal dismissal—her entire existence here would be erased.

"Ah, damn it. I can practically see that bastard’s disgusting plan now."

Julian grimaced as if he had just stepped into a sewage-filled trash heap.

"And I can already tell what it is, too."

He planned to completely isolate her—to make her a person who didn’t exist in the world.

That way, she would have no one else to rely on but him.

If she was trapped like that, he could use her as a tool however he pleased.

Seraphina remained unfazed.

"If it doesn’t escalate to exile, I might still be banished from House Valkyrisen."

"Even if you’re not exiled, they won’t let you stay. The land of peace won’t tolerate someone constantly causing political discord."

"Then so be it."

She had no regrets.

She had already received more than enough kindness.

"If that happens, I’ll leave of my own accord. I won’t cause them any more trouble."

As long as she could stay by Elodie’s side, nothing else mattered.

After a moment of silence, Julian hesitated before asking cautiously,

"Lady Bluewood... do you even feel emotions?"

"Your Highness is surprisingly emotional, aren’t you?"

"No, I’m completely normal."

He made sure to correct her firmly.

"It’s just that my heart only reacts to one person."

"Ah... I see..."

Of course, there was another reason Seraphina remained so unbothered by Cesare’s tactics.

She had already endured these exact methods before.

Her stepmother had done the same thing to her since childhood.

Her existence had been erased from the records, and she had been forced into a lifetime of servitude—a tool for the household.

‘Why would this shock me now?’

She wasn’t afraid of Cesare.

She wasn’t horrified by what he was doing.

She just found it pathetic.

To the point where she wished he would simply drown himself in a shallow puddle and be done with it.

"At least take this seriously. That was only the first rumor. This is just the beginning."

"Is there more?"

"There are whispers that back when you lived with the Bluewood family—"

Just then—

Despite everyone deliberately keeping their distance from Seraphina, someone else approached her.

A woman with long, deep red hair cascading down to her waist, like aged wine.

"Si—"

She instinctively began to call her something, then caught herself, her voice shifting.

"Seraphina."

"...Rose?"

It was Rose Bluewood, the eldest of the Bluewood Countess’s daughters.

"It’s been so long."

Have you been well?

With a smile that could only be described as sickening, Rose greeted her.

What kind of scheme was she trying to pull with that repulsive expression?

Seraphina merely raised an eyebrow and responded calmly.

"I heard you enrolled at the academy."

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

She neither raised her voice nor trembled with past trauma.

It had been so long that she no longer felt anything.

Which, of course, did not mean she had forgiven Rose.

She simply didn’t care anymore.

"Did you enroll the year after me?"

"Yes! I still can’t believe I’m actually studying at the academy."

"......"

Has my stepsister finally lost her mind?

Wasn’t she the one who threw tantrums on the floor, wailing about how she would never waste her youth trapped in a prison like this?

And what’s with that voice?

Rose was speaking at half—no, a quarter—of her usual volume.

Yet, strangely, no one around them seemed to find this odd.

"Um... I’m sorry. I should have come to see you much earlier..."

"......"

"I just... couldn’t find the courage. I only managed to come now, just before your graduation."

Seraphina was speechless.

But Rose wasn’t done yet.

Suddenly, she lowered her head, hesitating before speaking in a delicate voice.

"But it’s been so long now... I really hope you can forgive Mother and me."

Forgiveness?

She came here to ask for my forgiveness?

Is that why she’s acting so out of character?

Did she really think this pathetic performance would soften Seraphina’s heart?

Or was she just playing for sympathy in a public setting, trying to force an apology out of her?

Since Seraphina didn’t yet know about the rumors, she had no choice but to think this way.

And so, without hesitation, she shot back,

"Did we ever have the kind of relationship where forgiveness was even an option?"

"But we’re still family. Even if you don’t see us that way..."

Of course, she didn’t.

Who considers their abuser ‘family’?

"Can’t we at least have a conversation?"

"Sure. If you had enrolled at the right grade level, we could have taken the same classes and had plenty of conversations already. But unfortunately, only I advanced ahead."

At those words, Rose’s face flushed red, as deep as her hair.

‘Is she going to raise her hand now?’

Seraphina remained completely unbothered.

She knew her stepsister far too well.

Rose had zero patience—whenever things didn’t go her way, she would lash out without hesitation.

"...Hic... You’re so mean..."

What.

Instead of attacking, Rose suddenly burst into tears.

‘Oh?’

For the first time, Seraphina was impressed.

This woman, who had never been able to control her temper, had actually learned something new.

"I didn’t care if you hated me or treated me like a servant... I was okay with that."

Excuse me?

"But... it really hurts when you speak like that. I never had a chance to learn before, and now you’re looking down on me for it..."

Seraphina experienced something new at that moment.

If a person hears something too absurd, they simply lose the ability to speak.

"What are you even saying?"

It took her a long moment before she could even formulate a response.

Rose flinched, as if she had been threatened.

"I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring this up, but... memories from our childhood just came rushing back..."

"No, I... ha..."

"I really am sorry!"

Rose shrunk back, as if terrified that Seraphina might hit her.

Now, she was caught in a situation where she could neither retaliate nor walk away.

And the more Rose acted like this, the louder the whispers around them became.

"Look at that. Could it be true?"

"They say she’s acting like a ruler in her own household, using Valkyrisen’s backing to dominate her own family."

"The head of the Bluewood family is completely powerless against her, isn’t he? I suppose I’d be the same if Valkyrisen were involved, but still..."

"But even so, this is too much. Treating her own sister like a servant? Denying her an education? I never thought she’d go that far."

"I knew it! She always seemed too confident."

Even some noblemen—ones Seraphina had rejected humiliatingly in the past—jumped in eagerly.

That was when—

The terrace doors suddenly burst open.

Doors that no one had entered through.

"Kyaaa!"

Someone shrieked, and in an instant, all eyes turned toward the entrance.

It was Geno.

"Hey, Redhead."

The boy was out of breath, as if he had sprinted at full speed.

His hair was a mess, tousled from the wind, and he ran a hand through it before smirking.

"Are you introducing yourself right now?"