HPBUY Chapter 107

Sienna suddenly felt her throat burning as if scorched by fire. His beautiful lips, which had been gazing at her intently, slowly opened again.

“However, if you go to Parma.”

A soft baritone flowed from his lips, red like a ripe apple. It was the gentle voice she had loved so dearly on some day similar to today.

“Forget the past.”

“……”

“Leave not even a single moment behind.”

There was no regret in his farewell. No lingering attachment or anything similar in his voice. It was merely a plain statement informing her that this was the condition for her to successfully complete this great task.

Sienna’s reddened eyes glared at the wine glass in front of her. She slowly inhaled to keep from shedding tears.

“Of course.”

A dull sound emerged, in stark contrast to his calm voice. With those words, Sienna rose from her seat. Leaving behind the celebratory drink she hadn’t even touched, she returned to her bedroom.

After returning, Sienna stood still for a while before walking slowly toward the drawer on the wall.

She unlocked the drawer with a key and pulled out her father’s will that she had hidden deep inside, unfolding it. Her fingers flipped through a couple of pages. Sienna’s name was on the third page.

The sections concerning Joseph, Marianne, and Dahlia contained nothing different from what was already known. Only the content regarding Sienna herself was unfamiliar.

Sienna’s lowered eyes began to slowly trace the will. Although she had read it countless times before, she read each character aloud.

[The following two items are bequeathed to the Imperial Princess:

First, the Empire guarantees the autonomy of Ricata Territory, and ownership rights are passed to the Imperial Princess.

Second, all authority regarding Ricata Territory, apart from ownership rights, is also entrusted to Imperial Princess Sienna Rosamund Mel Maloney.]

These were simple sentences, but the impact they would have caused the Empire had they been publicly revealed would have been immense. It was not difficult to understand why Joseph, and even Duke Lowell, had tried to conceal this.

As she read her portion over and over again endlessly, she laughed silently. Yet tears fell from her eyes. The faint laughter soon turned into sobbing.

Emotions too complex to define welled up inside her.

If only she had known earlier. If she had just swallowed her pride and gone to see her father when he called for her on his deathbed, what kind of life would she have led?

Though she knew it was a meaningless supposition, she sometimes wondered what direction her life would have taken if she hadn’t gone to Lopwell.

Her life was already a complete mess. No matter how hard she tried to smooth it out, the creases could never be erased. Because of this, she couldn’t imagine what an uncreased life would have been like, even when she tried.

Only after recovering the will did she become certain. The parts that had already been creased would never return to their original state. Though she would surely live a different life than before, the lump that had taken root in her heart would clearly never disappear from within her.

She had persisted out of spite in front of Declan, but in truth, she knew better than anyone.

That even after reclaiming everything, she would ultimately be unable to erase him.

****

Sienna tossed and turned all night and eventually couldn’t fall asleep. As the sky began to brighten to a clear blue, she pulled her robe tightly around her and left her bedroom.

Leaving word with Christine that she was going horseback riding for a while, she went to the stable and took out the mare she had ridden before.

“Are you sure you’ll be alright, since you’re not familiar with the geography here?” the stable keeper asked with concern as he handed her the reins.

Though it was an unnecessary worry, Sienna informed him of her general plan to go to the western forest. Saying it wouldn’t take long anyway, she mounted the horse.

The stable keeper, apparently still anxious, tried to persuade her again, but Sienna spurred her horse without looking back.

The morning forest, still carrying the energy of dawn, was quiet. The sound of hooves hitting the ground echoed over the silence.

Although mounting a horse still made her nervous, it was a sensation she had become somewhat accustomed to compared to before. Riding alone and facing the cool breeze head-on naturally cleared her complicated mind.

How much more time had passed? Just as Sienna arrived at the center of the western forest, a drop of water fell on her head. Looking up at the sky, it was still clear for rain to be falling. Was it her imagination?

Thinking nothing of it, Sienna spurred her horse again. But before long, the sky began pouring rain as if mocking her thoughts.

It seemed to be a sudden shower.

Sienna pulled her hood over her head and turned the horse around. To reiterate, she was familiar with this area’s geography. At least familiar enough to easily find a place to shelter from unexpected rain.

As time passed, the raindrops grew steadily larger.

Riding through this rain on horseback seemed hopeless. If the horse were to slip on the rain-soaked slope, it could lead to a serious accident.

Even in the midst of this untimely downpour, Sienna calmly thought things through. As she walked through the forest holding the horse’s reins, a large rock suddenly appeared in her field of vision.

Sienna looked up at the sky once more. The rain was growing fiercer, and the soil was rapidly becoming saturated. It was impossible to continue leading the horse any further.

After some deliberation, she loosened the reins and led the horse under the rock. She tied the lengthened reins to a nearby tree stump.

Then she fell into thought briefly. She could squeeze herself next to the horse, but the rain didn’t seem likely to stop soon. Staying crammed in this narrow space in the meantime didn’t seem like a good idea.

Having made up her mind, Sienna tightened her robe more securely. She shifted her steps, recalling a cave she had seen on the way.

She had passed it by earlier because the terrain was too low and steep to bring the horse, but if she was going to shelter from the rain separately from the horse anyway, it seemed better to return to that cave than to find a new place.

Sienna took a step, recalling the path she had taken in her mind.

The forest looked similar in every direction, and it was difficult to distinguish directions due to the cloudy weather, but fortunately, Sienna had a fairly good sense of direction and had visited this forest several times before.

Thanks to this, it didn’t take long to return to her previous location.

Upon rediscovering the cave she had seen earlier, Sienna carefully set foot on the steep downward slope. The descending path was extremely narrow and slippery.

Only after descending at a slow pace was Sienna able to reach the cave. As soon as she entered, she removed the hood she had pulled down tightly and loosened the tie on her robe.

Thankfully, due to the robe she had worn anticipating the chilly morning air, her clothes were not very wet. As soon as she removed her robe, the rain outside began to grow even fiercer.

‘I didn’t expect to be stranded like this.’

Sienna’s gaze turned indifferently toward the outside as she loosened her ties.

She took off her wet shoes and placed them aside, then leaned against the cave wall. Occasionally, raindrops splashing from the front of the cave moistened the tops of her feet.

The cave wall against her back was extremely cold. It was a chilling sensation enough to make her hair stand on end. She covered her knees with the dry inside of her robe to prevent her body temperature from dropping.

The sound of the pouring rain in her ears and the warm sensation on her knees made her drowsy. Since the rain didn’t seem likely to stop soon anyway, Sienna closed her eyes, leaning against the cave wall.

How much more time had passed?

Sienna, who had unknowingly fallen asleep, opened her eyes at the sound of footsteps right in front of her.

The sound of rain pouring down furiously, as if to split the cave, was heard faintly. Her drowsy gaze, aimlessly scanning the patches of moss here and there in the cave, slowly turned to the front.

Not far away, a pair of ruined boots came into view. Sienna blinked in confusion. As she slowly raised her head, her eyes met with ones that seemed very angry.

He must have ridden in a hurry, as his breathing was rough.

The sleepiness vanished instantly. Sienna rose from her position against the cave wall with a startled face. He could have taken one step into the cave, but Declan remained frozen in place, just glaring at Sienna.

“Declan.”

“To you.”

They both opened their mouths simultaneously.

Amid the torrential rain that seemed as if the sky would collapse, his voice alone was clear.

“I wonder what kind of existence I am to you.”

He muttered.

From a very young age, Declan had known what he possessed. The blood of a great noble, above-average skills, and even the beautiful face that everyone praised.

Although he claimed to have never taken great pride in these facts, the admiring exclamations showered upon him were always expected.

Sienna was the exception.

Today was no different. Leaving at the crack of dawn and not returning until the sky was filled with dark clouds that blocked the sun, driving him to madness, and ending up like this. He felt deflated after his insides had been burning black all day.

It’s always like this.

He’s always the one burning inside. Sienna always maintained an attitude as if he didn’t matter at all. The moment he saw her face, peacefully asleep and oblivious to the world, an unprecedented disillusionment swept over him.