Chapter 64
Getting Along Fine Without Me
Just before crossing the castle gates, Daphne lowered her body as much as possible.
Noticing the noblewoman sprawled across the entire back seat without a shred of decorum, Ismel turned to her with an amused expression.
“Why are you doing that?”
“…In case someone takes a shot at my head.”
The driver let out a brief chuckle. Sitting in the passenger seat, Ismel stared at her with a peculiar expression for a few more seconds before turning back to face forward.
Their first stop was the royal palace staff quarters.
In the well-kept garden, the maids and attendants of the royal palace were enjoying their tea time.
“That guy, over there.”
Daphne stopped in her tracks, her gaze landing on a familiar-looking man, and let out a scoff. It didn’t take much to recognize Kisha Serenade. Even here, where he’d been “dragged off,” he hadn’t neglected his habit of flirting with women.
“My lady?”
Spotting her, Kisha excused himself from the maids and dashed over to his employer.
“You…”
Daphne raised her hands to clasp his cheeks, turning his face this way and that.
Kisha, who had always been of average build, had somehow gained a bit of weight over the past three days.
“Why do you look so… well?”
The inquiry sounded odd, but the reality was clear. Contrary to her three days of constant worry, Kisha seemed to have been doing just fine.
“Sorry for worrying you. Her Highness the Crown Princess took excellent care of me.”
Kisha’s grayish-blue eyes darted playfully as he smiled.
“Psyche?”
“Yes. I’ve been eating three square meals a day, and she even gifted me three master-crafted swords! She really knows her weapons.”
Kisha’s face lit up as he proudly rambled on about the swords he’d received for nearly two minutes.
‘What is this? Are you saying I know nothing about swords?’
Daphne mentally counted the number of swords she’d bought him over the years. Seeing Kisha seemingly more thrilled than ever, her eyes narrowed slightly.
“My lady, what’s with the outfit?”
“It’s customary to dress like this when visiting the palace as a guest. I’ll change for the evening.”
Daphne lowered her gaze to inspect her modest attire: a blue-tinted blouse and a navy skirt suit.
Not too long ago, she had been the prince’s fiancée. Back then, she could waltz into the palace wearing extravagant gowns as if it were her home. But now, things were entirely different.
‘Now, I’m little more than a traitor.’
If she weren’t the king’s niece, she wouldn’t even have been allowed to cross the palace gates intact.
“I heard there’s a party tonight.”
“Ah…”
A party at the royal palace at a time like this? Daphne glanced down at the ground with a troubled expression.
“I didn’t recognize you from a distance. Didn’t know you had clothes like this.”
“I bought them. It’s been so long since I’ve worn something like this that it feels unfamiliar.”
Kisha scratched the back of his head before offering a clumsy compliment, saying the outfit suited her well. Daphne smirked and lightly punched his arm.
“No dangerous incidents, right?”
It was her way of asking if he’d been interrogated or tortured.
Quick on the uptake, Kisha rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, showing his unscathed arms. Daphne pressed her lips together and nodded.
“Where’s Celestian?”
She furrowed her nose and glanced over Kisha’s shoulder. All she could see were three maids with fierce glares—likely either waiting for Kisha or keeping an eye on him. The familiar golden hair was nowhere in sight.
“I was wondering when you’d ask. But I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since we entered the palace. Our paths completely diverged.”
“Oh, and Her Highness…”
“Lady Beaucater, this way, please.”
Ismel interrupted, gesturing politely to another direction. Daphne exchanged a glance with Kisha.
Kisha extended his arm toward her as if offering her support, but before she could take it, Ismel spoke again.
“Lady Beaucater, please proceed alone.”
Daphne tilted her head.
“Ismel, as you know, Kisha is my bodyguard. He should accompany me.”
“Rest assured, Lady Beaucater. Arrangements are being made for Sir Kisha Serenade to join you at the party.”
A party with Kisha?
Daphne blinked a few times.
“That’s going to be difficult. He has too many lovers.”
Kisha hesitated and took half a step closer to Daphne.
The maids behind him, however, only looked more displeased. Daphne suppressed a laugh and stopped Kisha with a wave of her hand.
“While we’re at it, go sort things out with your new girlfriends.”
Kisha blinked rapidly, his expression pleading as if to ask what she meant. Daphne smirked dryly.
“Vacation’s over. I’m docking your pay.”
“My lady…”
*****
After sending Kisha back to his temporary quarters, Daphne dutifully followed Ismel.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve been inside.’
Despite Daphne’s efforts to brighten up the newly refurbished Crown Princess’s Palace, its signature gloomy atmosphere lingered, amplified by the overcast weather.
‘The dreary weather makes it even spookier today.’
Romeo’s mild separation anxiety whenever Psyche was away meant that this palace wasn’t her actual residence. The place was so meticulously maintained by a surplus of staff—cleaned three times daily—that it barely felt inhabited.
‘I used to visit this place to see my aunt. That was over ten years ago…’
It had been Romeo who erased all traces of her aunt from the palace.
As Daphne climbed the stairs toward the second-floor reception room, led by Ismel, she suddenly froze mid-step. Below the landing, there was an unusually open space that caught her attention.
‘Was it always open like that?’
If her memory served correctly, there had once been a wooden door installed there, leading directly to the maze garden her aunt, Rose, had left behind.
Standing in front of the area, deep in thought, Ismel wore an uncharacteristically serious expression.
“Ismel, why are you standing there like that?”
He raised his head at Daphne’s question.
“It’s nothing. The design must have been flawed during the renovation—it seems the wind ripped it open.”
The one who oversaw this palace’s renovation had been none other than Daphne herself.
‘A design flaw? No way.’
Daphne blinked rapidly as she scrutinized the exposed area. The door hinges, hanging pathetically, bore clear signs of being forcibly broken.
‘Should I ask if someone was being imprisoned here?’
The Crown Princess’s Palace had already been a sort of self-imposed prison for her aunt Rose.
‘Maybe it’s her ghost.’
Curious, Daphne leaned forward, glancing around as if hoping to see her aunt’s specter. Of course, there was no ghost. What she did see, through the window beside the landing, was the maze garden outside.
The garden had been designed by the Green family, brimming with secrets. Without a map, anyone entering it would need to wait for rescue—an exit-less labyrinth.
Standing by her side, Ismel subtly gestured again toward the second floor.
“Please proceed. Her Highness the Crown Princess should be arriving soon.”
Practically ushered into the reception room, Daphne narrowed her eyes when she found it empty.
‘Is this her way of making me wait now that she’s Crown Princess?’
Daphne smirked, thinking about the times she had made Psyche wait, citing her busy schedule. This felt like karma.
Years ago, this had been her aunt’s bedroom—a place where Daphne and Romeo used to play absurd pranks. Now transformed into a reception room, Daphne inspected it carefully, searching for anything that might need repairs.
“Hmm.”
Aside from the untouched, uninhabited air, nothing seemed amiss. With a small sigh, Daphne plopped down at the tea table near the window, pulling off her gloves.
Through the window, she noticed a familiar figure in the maze’s center.
‘Psyche?’
Psyche stood alone, staring at the ground. Dressed in a pink gown and holding a white parasol, she was so striking that Daphne couldn’t help but admire her beauty, even from afar.
‘Is she waiting for me?’
Daphne considered heading down instead of staying here and awkwardly rose from her seat.
That was when Psyche turned her head to the left, and someone else appeared.
Daphne froze mid-motion.
Her thoughts halted. Her breath caught. Even the act of blinking seemed to escape her as she stood rooted in place.
In the garden’s center stood a familiar back.
‘Romeo…’
What were the odds of Romeo Rodriguez, born with jet-black hair, suddenly dyeing it gold? None. That wasn’t him.
So how many people in this kingdom had such a tall, striking figure and pale blonde hair?
The answer was clear. Daphne had seen that person countless times, even if only from a distance.
Even in the drizzle, even at a distance, she could see it clearly: Psyche was smiling brightly.
Celestian’s face wasn’t visible as his back was turned to Daphne, but she didn’t need to see it to know what expression he wore.
Thump.
Something heavy fell inside her chest, and she clenched her eyes shut.
An unexpected chill ran from beneath her ears to her thighs, leaving her skin crawling. She rubbed her hands over her thighs, trying to shake it off.
“Calm down, Daphne Beaucater.”
She sat back down, taking deep breaths. This was all within the realm of what she already knew.
Celestian’s feelings for Psyche? She’d known about them!
‘Does Psyche feel the same way? Or maybe she just said something pleasant—congratulations on his engagement, perhaps.’
Flooded with uncertain assumptions, Daphne shook her head.
‘If only I could see his expression, I’d feel better.’
Was it sadness? Joy? Or something else entirely?
Unable to suppress her cursed curiosity, Daphne glanced out the window again. The two were sharing Psyche’s white parasol, standing close together.
“……”
Daphne’s ankle twitched unconsciously, her tension manifesting physically. Straightening her foot, she suddenly sprang to her feet.
As she rose, her hand accidentally knocked over a vase, which fell from the table and shattered.
‘I’ll pretend I didn’t see that.’
Something rose in her throat, and she instinctively covered her mouth, glancing around the room. Of course, no one was there.
Pushing her red hair back behind her ears repeatedly, Daphne forced herself to think.
‘This isn’t the first time. It’s not like I ever trusted him. Why am I even disappointed, Daphne Bucator?’
After several deep breaths, she raised her hand to pat her chest.
With her expression now calm, Daphne quietly exited the room the way she had come in. She vowed to act as though she’d seen nothing at all.
