I should have done this sooner.
After saying that, Juliet paused for a moment. Despite having spoken them herself, Juliet struggled to understand her own words.
However, before she could ponder her own words, the man approached her, and she stiffened her face again. Her expression, similar to that of a person in a portrait, was her specialty.
“You called for me.”
His voice was polite and formal, like that of a subordinate addressing a superior. Juliet sensed a hint of guilt beneath his words.
It was only natural, considering he was the one who had brought everything to this point. Yet she felt a strange sense of discomfort.
Perhaps it was because she had seen his face up close before.
As she gazed at his face, which was still the same as it was in her memories, she thought to herself:
The only time they’d been this close was back then. That’s why it feels like this.
Of course, she had no intention of proving her guess right or wrong.
Juliet dismissed all the maids who were attending to her.
“Leave us alone for a moment. I have something to discuss with him.”
The maids, accustomed to her impatience, quickly left the room.
Finally, with only the man and her left in the room, Juliet turned to him by the bedside.
“I have a favor to ask.”
The words were new to both him and her. There was no malice behind it.
However, neither of them dared to acknowledge the fact out loud.
Juliet lifted her chin and looked at the man, who replied quietly.
“Please speak.”
His perfectly pitched voice trembled slightly. Juliet noticed it, but it didn’t change anything.
There were too many things between them for even a simple change in tone to make a difference.
Instead of paying attention to such trivial matters, she spoke what she had wanted to say for quite some time.
“Make sure to send my body back to Rosenta after I die.”
Juliet didn’t see what expression the man had on his face in response to that statement. Whatever it was, it must have been quite a sight, but unfortunately, she wasn’t looking at him.
Instead, she was looking at a painting on the wall—one adorned with expensive blue pigments. A painting of something she had never seen in her life and never would.
There was no denying the exaggeration of the landscape, with golden light shimmering over the blue and a reddish hue tinting the areas the sun touched.
Nevertheless, she couldn’t help but ask.
“You’ve seen the sea, haven’t you?”
Before everything went wrong, she had asked the man about the sea. She was curious because she had never seen it before.
However, before she could hear his answer, she discovered a greater truth, and from then on, the sea didn’t matter to her.
Bringing up that topic now was truly a whim, but it seemed to remind the man of a fragment of the past. Juliet could sense that his expression had become even more melancholic.
Anyway, the man answered her question.
“……Yes.”
“Does it really look like that?”
Is everything really so blue and bright?
The man was silent for a moment. Juliet waited for him to say that the painting was indeed exaggerated.
But what he did after the silence was to affirm her words.
“Yes.”
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
That day, he asked her a question he hadn’t asked in a long time.
“Is there anything you want?”
Juliet remembered how she used to get frustrated every time he said that, but now she had no energy to do so.
She met his blue eyes, fixed on her.
“I miss my brother.”
It was a pure and simple wish, without any malice or resentment.
She truly missed Driene. While she missed her father as well, it was her brother who had often cared for her, despite the significant age difference between them.
Her greatest wish would be to see him one more time, feel the warmth of his arms, and act spoiled. If that was not feasible, she simply desired to converse with him, hold his hand, and engage in conversation about any subject.
Brother, In a book, I read that there’s a type of tree that only blooms once in a lifetime. They wait for decades, and when they finally bloom, they die. The painting in my room is of the sea, isn’t it? If I had known it would end up like this, we should have gone to see the sea together back then. Who would have thought that we would never get to see it together?
But Driene couldn’t come to her, and she couldn’t go to Rosenta.
Even Juliet, who didn’t know much about the world, knew that. Yet, the man casually accepted her words.
“Is there anything else?”
He was a person without pretenses, but it was strange that he was being so accommodating. Juliet thought so, but she didn’t press the issue.
“My garden.”
She used to have a garden at the palace, and she wanted to know if everything was still the same.
Although Driene assured her nothing had changed in his letter, she wanted to see it with her own eyes and feel that it was unchanged.
The man nodded in response to her words.
“Anything else?”
Juliet hesitated for a moment in response to his question. She had long since buried her wishes and couldn’t think of any.
As she rummaged through her memories, she spoke up.
“I want to see the festival.”
Once a year, a great festival was held in the capital of Rosenta. The festival, visible from the palace, was still vivid in her memory.
Flowers and colorful flags fluttered in the air. The loud cheers and the songs everyone sang together. People wearing colorful shoes and clothes.
To showcase that picturesque scene reminiscent of a fairy tale, Driene would carry her sister and climb to the top of the tower whenever the festival came around.
The view of the streets was clearly visible from the top of the palace’s tallest tower.
Because of her health, Juliet couldn’t go to crowded places, so Driene would describe to her the things she couldn’t see. The stories about the sugarcane juice, the roasted fruits, the skewered meat, the cheap liquor, and the loud dance music were among her favorite tales.
The man nodded at that.
“Understood. Is there anything else?”
Juliet wondered how far the man would go with his accommodating attitude, but she couldn’t think of anything else.
So she shook her head.
“No, that’s all.”
The man nodded again.
“I understand.”
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
Their relationship remained unchanged after that day.
The man, who had promised to fulfill everything, retreated back into the shadows, and the woman, who had acted as if she didn’t hate him, remained silent. The conversation, which had been surprisingly smooth, was buried.
Perhaps it’s for the best.
Sometimes, on sleepless nights, Juliet would repeat this to herself. It’s better if nothing changes.
After all, she would eventually die, and the man would remain.
Although she knew it was impossible, Juliet sometimes thought that the man would live forever. He seemed so big, strong, and sturdy.
And having such a person in her heart would only make her suffer.
Juliet didn’t want any lingering regrets. She already had too many things to let go of. She didn’t want to add another layer of loss on top of that.
The man probably had similar thoughts. His unique pretense from that day was clearly forgotten as he drifted back into his usual demeanor.
Juliet thought it was a bit absurd, but she didn’t voice it. It wasn’t the first time he had acted that way, and she wasn’t much different either.
It wasn’t the first time he had acted that way, and she wasn’t much different either.
It seemed like everything was going to end like that.
But life is inherently a series of unpredictable events.
The one who disrupted the peace was the man.
One evening, Juliet heard something strange.
“What did you say?”
She looked up at the man standing by the bed with a puzzled expression.
Her face showed a mixture of frustration and annoyance, which was understandable given what he had just said.
What’s he saying now? Juliet blinked.
“Could you please lend me your hand?”
The man, who repeated the same words, had a truly polite demeanor, but Juliet wondered if he had finally lost his mind.
Hand? He’s asking for her hand?
Since their marriage, Juliet had never held the man’s hand. They were technically husband and wife, but in reality, they were closer to enemies than anything else.
Their relationship had improved slightly recently, but it was mainly due to her illness and unpredictable temper.
Juliet was sure that if she had been a bit healthier and had more time to live, such conversations would not have taken place.
She knew the man was aware of this fact.
Her frustration grew as she realized that her expectations had been completely wrong. Her temper, which was a part of her personality, also flared up.
How dare you?
That was the thought that suddenly came to her mind.
How dare you ask me for something?
Of course, Juliet knew that the man’s status was similar to hers, if not higher. In fact, he had more than she did. Power, wealth, and property were all his.
Juliet had experienced all these differences firsthand. The fact that she had been dragged to his land and was now facing death was proof of that.
So, if they were to compare what they had, he would definitely be ahead of her.
Despite that, Juliet found the man detestable. It wasn’t just because he was always humble and submissive in front of her.
What she couldn’t stand was his demeanor.
He acted as if he were the law, dragging her here without asking for her opinion. He would step back, pretending to show respect, and bow his head, pretending to be regretful. When there was an important matter, he would ask for her opinion, and if she didn’t like something, he wouldn’t do it.
What great hypocrisy! Juliet felt a surge of anger whenever he acted like he was supporting her. It was a reflexive reaction.
He acted as if he had given her the power to make decisions, but in reality, he was the one who had the power. Juliet knew that he could do whatever he wanted.
So, just as he had brought her across the border without her consent, he could also take her hand whenever he wanted.
