The Empress, who hadn’t shown her face at the hunting competition, suddenly appeared at the party that was almost over.
Thinking about it, no one had ever told me anything about the Empress.
Cause of my curiouness, I hurriedly prepared to go outside.
“I’m leaving now.”
I answered loudly to the Emblem knight and tapped Enoch’s shoulder.
“Let’s do well from now on, okay?”
“…Sure.”
Enoch was still my annoying childhood friend and rival’s at my seven-years-old, but sharing a secret with him made me feel more closer with him.
Seeing Enoch overlapping with that damned Yoon Doyoon, I realized I should be careful not to get too caught up in my past life memories.
I liked my current life. I really wanted to act like an immature child, less sensible, and throw tantrums like other seven-year-old kids.
“Cherry.”
As I was about to step out onto the terrace, Enoch called me.
“Why?”
“Who did you see in me?”
“Hmm?”
“You made me call you inspector. But it’s not because you wanted to hear me say that nickname.”
This sharp guy. He noticed right away that I had seen Yoon Doyoon’s face in him. When I didn’t respond, Enoch sighed and said.
“Promise me, Cherry.”
“Promise about what?”
“Don’t do that again.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t look for someone else in me.”
Enoch seemed confused, as if he didn’t understand what he was saying.
He couldn’t look me straight in the eye and was shifting his gaze around, as if he was trying to figure out why he was asking for this promise.
“It feels, kind of weird.”
Enoch couldn’t define the reason, but he urged me.
“Anyway. Don’t do it, Cherry. Promise me, quickly.”
“Alright.”
Maybe it was because I felt guilty for seeing Enoch overlapping with Yoon Doyoon. I obediently hooked my pinky finger with his and stepped out onto the terrace.
The Empress was just entering the party hall.
“Her Majesty, Empress Isabelle Leopardo Lutinas, and the second star of the Lutinas Empire, His Highness, Prince Arthur Leopardo Lutinas, are entering!”
Oh. The second prince.
I was seeing the second prince for the first time today along with the Empress.
Standing where the Emblem knights were, I watched the two of them walk to the center of the party hall.
The Empress, in a simple blue dress without a single jewel, entered holding the second prince’s hand.
She had sleek black hair cascading down and a small tiara encrusted with diamonds on her head. That was all the jewelry she wore today.
Her graceful dignity compensated for the lack of other jewelry.
The Empress smiled warmly at the second prince as she whispered something to him.
“…Wow, she’s beautiful.”
An exclamation naturally flowed from my mouth.
From her elegant steps to her blinking eyes and breathing, everything exuded nobility.
Moreover, the Empress was such a beauty that even a woman like me found her dazzling. Her round eyes and blue pupils reminded me of someone.
“…………..”
I quietly looked at uncle Edward standing nearby.
‘Now that I think about it, I heard that uncle Edward was the Empress’s younger brother.’
They looked just like each other. I could see the Empress’s face in uncle Edward and uncle Edward’s face in the Empress.
The only distinction was that the Empress wore a gentle smile, whereas uncle’s face was ashen and looked as though he had died.
“Enoch, why does Uncle look like that?”
“Oh right, why though….”
At my words, Enoch, who had been looking at the Empress, glanced at uncle and hardened his expression. Enoch quietly took uncle’s hand.
“………..”
Uncle Edward looked at Enoch in surprise. I saw fear in his eyes.
‘Why?’
Uncle was currently afraid of his sister, the Empress. There are many families with bad sibling relationships, but his reaction seemed excessive.
Uncle Edward’s hand, which was holding Enoch’s tightly, was trembling. Enoch, who was looking at Uncle Edward’s pale white hand, carefully asked while shaking his hand.
“Father, should we go back if you’re not feeling well?”
“Y-yes, that sounds good.”
At Enoch’s question, uncle Edward hastily nodded and turned to leave. But from behind him, a lovely, such a melodious voice came through from the Empress.
“Are you going to leave so soon after seeing your sister for the first time in a long while, Edward?”
The Empress was standing right in front of them, holding the second prince’s hand.
“……….!”
The expression on uncle Edward’s face clearly showed his surprise, as if to say, ‘When did she get here!’ The Empress, pretending to be hurt, sadly lowered her eyes and spoke.
“How disappointing.”
Seeing such a beautiful woman look so sad was heartbreaking. Even though she wasn’t talking to me, I almost blurted out, ‘I’m sorry.’
“…I greet Her Majesty, Empress of the Lutinas Empire.”
Uncle Edward, with a hardened face, bowed his head and greeted her. Enoch, standing beside him, also bowed his head.
“Is this how you treat your own family?”
“I have cut ties with the Marquess of Blandius, so please refrain from using such excessive words.”
Even though the Empress was a stunning beauty, uncle Edward, being her blood relative, didn’t blink and firmly rejected her words. It was the first time I heard uncle Edward’s voice carry such subtle hostility.
‘They say there are no brothers who get along with their sisters in this world, but this is…’
When I saw Yoon Doyoon, my enemy in my past life, I didn’t feel as much hostility as I did now.
“If there’s nothing more you want to say, I’m not feeling well, so I’ll take my leave and go inside.”
“Wait.”
The Empress, seemingly used to uncle Edward’s rejection, shrugged her shoulders and pushed the second prince forward.
“Are you going to leave without greeting your nephew whom you haven’t seen in a long time? Our Arthur likes you so much.”
The second prince, who was pushed forward by the Empress, didn’t seem to agree. His wide eyes were filled with confusion as he looked at his mother.
With black hair and blue eyes just like the Empress, the second prince still had baby fat, making him resemble uncle Edward when he was young. Seeing the three of them together really made them look like a family.
‘They say blood is thicker than water…’
I quietly nodded. Even though uncle Edward’s son was Enoch, the second prince looked more like him.
“That’s too much. How can His Highness the Second Prince be my nephew? Please take back your words.”
“Oh, Edward. The Marquess of Blandius may have abandoned you, but I haven’t. Haven’t I always said I would remain your sister?”
Uncle Edward, who had been cutting off her words coldly without making eye contact, suddenly opened his eyes wide. His blue eyes, filled with hostility, burned intensely.
“I told you I don’t want that. I don’t consider Her Majesty the Empress as my sister, and I never will.”
“Oh my, Edward! How could you…”
The Empress, as if deeply shocked, covered her mouth with a trembling hand.
Her eyes, distorted with sorrow at her brother’s harsh words, evoked sympathy.
This was a party attended by knights who participated in the hunting competition. The Empress looked so pitiful that she stirred up the chivalry of those gathered here.
I could feel a few knights, except for Gray and Emblem, sending hostile glances at uncle Edward. Despite knowing this, uncle Edward did not back down.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen uncle Edward seems so angry.’
