Chapter 252: Puppet Matriarch

Leona looked at them through her own tears, and despite everything—the decades of isolation, the cold shoulders, the whispered accusations—she felt no anger. No bitterness.

How could she?

If she had been in their position, watching their matriarch transform from a cheerful, loving woman into a slab of ice overnight, she would have doubted too.

She would have questioned. She would have believed the rumors.

Instead of resentment, she felt something else. Something warm and fragile and long-forgotten.

Relief.

They finally knew the truth. They understood or were beginning to understand why she had become the way she was.

The weight she had carried alone for forty years, the burden of protecting them from herself, had finally been shared.

And she hoped that maybe this would be enough.

That maybe telling them this much of the truth wouldn’t bring consequences and she could stop right here.

But when she turned around, she noticed to her utter shock that Luca was looking at her with a very sharp, penetrating gaze like he was telling her he already knew this wasn’t the full truth.

Like he was urging her to speak more, to tell them everything.

Seeing that she had no choice—Leona was forced to continue.

She let out a deep, weary sigh.

“Despite everything.” She continued, her voice steadier now. “I still thought I didn’t have it too bad. After all, I still had someone by my side.”

She looked down at her hands, twisting together in her lap.

“Julius…My husband.”

The villagers, who had been wiping their tears, straightened. The story wasn’t over. They leaned forward, drawn by a gravity they couldn’t name.

“Even though we had only just married, and there wasn’t much of a connection between us yet, we were still husband and wife.”

Leona closed her eyes in rememberance.

“Julius had also witnessed everything. The apparition, the curse, my father’s words. He knew the truth. Julius understood. And in a way he was my only support.”

But the moment she opened her eyes, there was even more darkness in them than before.

“But unfortunately.” She said, her voice hollow. “Even that light was taken away from me.”

One of the elves gasped audibly, her eyes widening.

“What? What do you mean? What happened?”

Leona let out a reluctant, bitter smile.

“At first, Julius was acting normal or as normal as he could be after what happened. He was still the considerate, decent man I thought I had married.”

“But as the days passed after that incident…Julius started to change. He became a different person.”

Her hands clenched into fists.

“He would be much colder than usual. He would ignore things I said. The warmth that had been in his eyes, even the small amount that was there—disappeared completely.”

“Instead, it felt like I was talking to a stranger. A completely different person.”

She looked up at the crowd with a desperate gaze.

“Of course I asked him about it. I asked him what was wrong, why he was treating me that way. Just like any husband and wife would do, I tried to have a conversation with him.”

Her expression turned even more bitter as she said,

“And in response, he told me that he didn’t know why. But he thought it was probably because he was being influenced by my father’s spirit.”

Shocked gasps rippled through the crowd.

They hadn’t been completely sure before, but now it was becoming clearer—Leona’s father, the previous Patriarch, really had possessed or at least heavily influenced Julius in some way.

Leona continued, her voice trembling slightly.

“Julius said he was having nightmares. He said he would have conversations with my father in his mind.”

“That his emotions were being affected by it, becoming volatile and unpredictable.”

“He even apologized to me for acting cold and said he just couldn’t hold himself back.”

She looked down the ground, as her hands trembled.

“And I…I forgave him. What else could I do?”

Nyx’s face had gone pale. She remembered those days—the slow, creeping change in Julius’s behavior.

At first, she had thought nothing of it. Everyone changed after marriage, didn’t they? But now…

“But it only got worse.” Leona said, her voice hardening. “The way he treated me grew colder, harsher. He spoke to me like I was his subordinate, not his wife.”

“There was no love, no kindness, no warmth. Nothing.”

She closed her eyes like she couldn’t even think about the pain and betrayal she felt as she said,

“I had thought he was my support. My only ally. And he…he abandoned me too.”

Her voice cracked.

“I cried every night because of that. Everything was collapsing around me. Every connection, every relationship—destroyed by the curse my father had placed on me.”

She looked at the crowd, her eyes desperate.

“But of course, I still tried to stay strong. As long as I kept my emotions in check, didn’t talk to anyone, and acted cold to everyone…everyone would be protected and safe.”

She let out a relieved chuckle. “I thought I could at least sacrifice myself for everyone’s good. I thought if I just endured it, nothing else would happen.”

This made everyone grit their teeth in frustration and guilt—seeing how much Leona had sacrificed while they themselves had done nothing.

They had just watched her suffer, judged her, and turned away.

Leona’s face twisted with remembered pain.

“But unfortunately, those were just shallow dreams that never came true.”

She paused, gathering her strength.

“Do you remember the day I was going to make changes to the village rules?” She asked. “When I was going to establish that women in the village would have equal status to men?”

“It was something that many of us had been planning for a very long time.”

Hearing this, many of the female elves had solemn looks on their faces.

They remembered that time clearly when all the women had gathered together, full of hope and excitement.

They had talked about the new rules Leona would implement, given her suggestions and ideas, knowing she would become the Matriarch soon.

And Leona had openly accepted their input, had promised to fight for them.

They had thought true change was finally coming to the village.

But when they really thought about what happened afterward…their expressions filled with sorrow and confusion.

Leona, seeing their faces, nodded slowly.

“Yes.” She said with a sad smile. “As you already know, that also went completely wrong.”

Her voice hardened with self-loathing.

“Instead of supporting your cause on that day—when you came to protest, when you petitioned for equal rights—I completely went against you.”

“I betrayed all of you. I sided with the male elders arguments instead, saying that everything should stay as it was, that there was no need to change anything.”

She looked around at their faces.

“I saw the betrayal in your eyes that day. I knew that many of you turned away from me then and never looked at me the same way again.”

Many of the women looked away, unable to meet her gaze. The memory was still painful.

“But I had no other choice.” Leona said, her voice cracking. “Julius made it impossible for me to agree with you.”

This shocked everyone.

“What do you mean, Leona?” An elder asked urgently. “What did Julius do? Did he force you? Threaten you!?”

Leona actually chuckled, a dark, humorless sound and shook her head.

“No, not at all. Do you really think I’m someone who would give in under threats to my own life?”

Nyx shook her head immediately. She knew how determined and fierce her sister was.

Despite Leona’s carefree nature, she was an incredibly strong person who would never back down under personal threats.

But when it came to threats against others…

The moment Nyx realized this, her face went pale. She understood what must have happened.

Others in the crowd were coming to the same realization.

Leona confirmed it.

“When my father placed that curse on me, he said more than just that I couldn’t show emotion. He said…” Her voice turned cold. “…that he would be able to do whatever he wanted.”

“And anyone who went against him would suffer.”

She looked at the crowd.

“The ’he’ he was speaking of…was Julius.”

Gasps echoed through the square.

“A few days before the decision was supposed to go through, Julius came to me. He told me…”

Her jaw tightened at the memory like it still frustrated her

“…that he didn’t want the changes to happen. That he wanted to go against the agreement.”

She shook her head in irritation and she went on to quickly say,

“I was shocked. Julius had been in favor of the changes when we discussed them before the wedding. He had supported me. But now he said my father’s spirit was affecting him, changing his emotions. He said he had no choice.”

Her voice grew quieter.

“But I went against him anyway. I told him I was going to help everyone, no matter what.”

The villagers’ eyes shone with something like pride. She had fought for them. Even then, even when everything was stacked against her, she had fought.

But then Leona’s face twisted as she said,

“But that was one of the worst decision I ever made.”

The pride vanished, replaced by horror.

“The very next day…” She continued, her voice trembling. “…a dozen more female villagers suffered through that horrible pain.”

Shocked gasps. People turned to each other, eyes wide with realization.

“I remember that.” Someone whispered. “A few days before the protest…so many people got sick. We didn’t think anything of it at the time.”

“But it was because of Leona.” Another murmured. “Because she stood up to Julius.”

Leona nodded.

“That’s when I understood. It wasn’t just about showing emotion. I couldn’t go against Julius either. Because in some way, through my father’s curse…”

“…Julius had become an extension of him.”

“His desires, his goals, his hatred for female elves…”

She spat the words like poison.

“…had transferred to Julius.”

“My father always looked down on women. He would never allow equality. And Julius—influenced by him was the same.”

She looked at the crowd, her eyes filled with regret and reluctance.

“Because of that I had no choice. I betrayed you. I crushed your hopes. I became the villain you thought I was.”

She bowed her head.

“And for that…I am sorry.”

“No!”

The shout came from multiple voices at once. The crowd surged forward, hands reaching out, eyes blazing with denial.

“Don’t apologize, Leona!”

“It’s not your fault!”

“We should be apologizing to you!”

“We didn’t understand. We didn’t even try to understand!”

“We just believed the rumors. We never asked for your side!”

“We’re so sorry! We’re so, so sorry!”

The elders couldn’t even look at her. They hung their heads, tears streaming down their wrinkled faces.

They were supposed to protect the younger generation, to guide them, to support them.

Instead, they had stood by and watched as Leona was destroyed.

Nyx let out a long, shaky breath.

She had known her sister was strong, but this, this was beyond anything she had imagined.

Leona had fought against the curse, against Julius, against the entire village, all while bearing the weight of everyone’s suffering on her shoulders.

And she had never broken.

Lulu and Luna clung to each other, weeping openly.

Their mother wasn’t a villain. She wasn’t cold or heartless.

She was a savior sacrificing her dignity, her happiness, her very self, over and over to protect the people she loved.

The realisation made the entire breakdown with their entire realities over the past few decades breaking down right before them.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep