Joseph couldn’t tell whether his lamentation was about Sienna not fully utilizing her potential, or about losing a prime opportunity right before his eyes.
“The very person I called to the capital has become useless. You’ve lost your chance to prove your worth, so there’s no reason for you to continue staying in the imperial palace.”
Only then did he realize it was the former. He was thoroughly sick of the siblings repeating the same conversation like parrots, going back and forth.
“If you’re going to repeat a story I’ve already heard, I should just leave.”
“But I had intended to show you kindness.”
Joseph spoke as if sighing, pulling out a cigar. His face was subtly tinged with irritation.
“Go to Monferrato.”
The subsequent words immediately creased Sienna’s brow.
“Suddenly, Monferrato?”
“I’m the one who wants to ask. How on earth did you cook the Grand Duke?” (TL: “to manipulate” or “to win someone over through persuasion or cunning.”)
Sarcasm flowed between his lips with pale gray smoke.
“Did you even offer your body?”
“…You’ve finally gone mad.”
“Your mother was a woman well-versed in bedroom politics, so I suppose you’re no different.”
Joseph’s lips, which had been spitting out mockery without hesitation, suddenly twisted.
Well, considering she died without finding her own path, perhaps that wasn’t entirely wrong.
Some memories remained vivid to him, no matter how much time had passed. For Joseph, that wasn’t his deceased mother or father, but that woman.
That damned woman.
An ignorant being who couldn’t even receive a title but boldly displayed her brilliance. A woman who tried to defy reason and instead claimed that this world was wrong for not accepting her own brilliant logic.
[I have no intention of apologizing. Nor do I intend to seek your apology.]
Even at the brink of death, her blue-green eyes showed no disturbance. Even her voice, pathetically breaking, maintained a noble tone.
[Whether you or I, we were simply faithful to our own desires.]
The woman remained composed even at the moment of her execution. Her expressionless face even showed a faint smile at times.
Years had passed, but her face remained as vivid as ever.
His gaze, briefly lost in the past, returned to Sienna. Those same blue-colored eyes were fixed on him. A gaze mixed with contempt and pity.
Just looking was enough to twist his insides. He had always disliked—no, despised—that look. Because it seemed to mock and look down on him, blending the faces of the father he hated and that woman…
Joseph crushed the cigar between his fingers.
If the Grand Duke’s recent actions stemmed from affection, he had no intention of letting that sentiment be realized.
“Do you know, Sasha? The men bewitched by your mother were not limited to my father.”
Sienna raised her eyes expressionlessly.
“Have you ever thought about why the former Emperor killed so cruelly the close friend he cherished, the previous Grand Duke?”
Joseph carefully observed her reaction, but Sienna didn’t even blink.
After all, she already knew the facts: that his father had gone mad suspecting his wife’s infidelity, and that the Grand Duke’s family were the victims.
In the previous life, Marianne had personally told her, and now her brother was pulling the same trick. The intention was so obvious that Sienna barely suppressed a sneer.
“What is it you want to say?”
“I’m saying the Grand Duke could never have feelings for you.”
Joseph muttered, as if confirming it to himself.
“So don’t harbor any inappropriate feelings. If you covet something beyond your station, you might lose everything you currently have.”
“…..”
“If you don’t want to become a miserable state with nothing in hand.”
Sienna let out a sardonic laugh at the incredibly patronizing tone.
“Just as you said, I am inevitably my mother’s child.”
She had no intention of denying her mother’s blood, nor did she want to cover up her mother’s transgressions.
She was born as the Emperor’s daughter and ultimately remained the daughter of a traitor. From the moment of her birth, her very existence was a wound to others. That’s why countless people believed their hatred was justified. Claiming it was an unavoidable burden she must bear.
Marianne and Joseph were no different. They never blamed their father for their mother’s unfair treatment. They simply despised their stepmother and the half-sibling to death.
It was only after their father’s affection had completely abandoned her that she realized most of the contempt and hatred attached to her were not truly her own.
Even if Joseph and Marianne became illegitimate children because of her mother, that did not justify blaming her for Soliet’s death. Even if her mother had truly committed infidelity with another man, that was not a reason for her father to reject her.
But for Declan, he would have more than enough reason to hate her.
“Come to think of it, I didn’t learn nothing from my mother.”
Joseph raised an eyebrow.
“How futile it is to parasitize on a man’s affection. At least I learned that much definitively.”
The end of her voice trembled slightly. Joseph didn’t notice, but Sienna herself felt it quite vividly.
“Are you afraid I’ll harbor pointless feelings for the Grand Duke? How ridiculous. What you’re afraid of is something else.”
He had already gained much.
No, he had always possessed much. From the beginning, everyone knew Joseph was the Emperor’s son, so how could he be in the same position as some illegitimate nobles? Status was merely something that eroded Joseph’s own pride.
Unlike Sienna, who remained an outcast in the imperial palace despite being an imperial daughter, Joseph had received more than generous treatment for an illegitimate child.
He mingled with the children of the empire’s top aristocrats and was appointed as a military commander despite having no significant experience. Eventually, he even seized the imperial throne, pushing aside the only imperial daughter according to the despicable imperial law.
“Are you perhaps afraid I might take away what you have?”
Joseph’s expression froze as if doused with cold water. Sienna forcibly lifted her trembling lips.
“Isn’t that why you’re acting so anxious?”
“…What?”
“You said I might lose everything I have.”
Sienna burst out laughing, genuinely finding it absurd.
“You know nothing.”
She had already experienced rock bottom. She already knew the pain of being considered a sin even while alive.
She was not afraid of Joseph.
Those who have nothing to lose are inevitably fearless.
****
The situation had flowed differently from expectations, but fortunately, everything was resolved well. There were internal conflicts, but compared to the dog fight they had at the former Emperor’s funeral, this was resolved quite tamely.
The Emperor announced his stance externally by having this princess voluntarily leave the imperial palace, and somehow packaged it in a good light. Of course, no one believed this entirely.
Still, she didn’t end up on the streets, so it was considered a successful resolution. Theodore thought.
Unlike Theodore, who was quite excited about returning to his hometown, Sienna’s expression in the carriage was not particularly bright.
Metasequoia trees lined up on both sides of the well-maintained road quickly brushed past the window. Tall trees appeared and disappeared at regular intervals. Her vacant gaze was fixed on the window, changing moment by moment, without moving.
The familiar landscape brought back unwelcome memories.
After Declan’s death and her exile from the capital, she had walked this road to return to the Monferrato territory.
When she finally arrived at the cemetery after walking for days, her feet were swollen and covered in blood. Though the distance could have been easily covered by carriage, at the time it had felt like an eternity to her.
Even now, sitting in this carriage, her heart was far from at peace.
Familiar scenery began to stir up emotions she had deeply buried, slowly consuming her.
As the carriage turned into the Monferrato mansion, she saw the crowd gathered in front. The Grand Duke’s employees had come out to greet her.
They said the Grand Duke had not yet returned. Nevertheless, the greeters seemed tense, as if he had given prior instructions. The moment Sienna stepped on the ground, piercing gazes stuck to her like sticky residue.
The head butler Ruben and head maid Christine came out in turn and paid their respects.
Despite serving a high-ranking noble, they seemed nervous about the imperial presence. Sienna calmly accepted their greetings and looked at the massive mansion behind them.
The Grand Duke’s residence was largely unchanged from her memories, except for a few areas decorated according to her own taste.
In contrast to Sienna’s troubled expression, Theodore’s face was constantly bright. He seemed overjoyed to be back home.
“Your Highness, aren’t you hungry?”
“I’m tired.”
Sienna responded dryly.
“I want to rest in my room.”
Theodore unusually nodded obediently. He seemed to understand that she would be exhausted after traveling such a long distance with poor physical condition.
“I, I will accompany you, Your Highness.”
The moment Sienna began to walk, head maid Christine hurriedly approached and bowed. Sienna gave her a sidelong glance and stopped walking. Christine, understanding the signal, quickly opened the mansion’s door.
