I lost my expression.
Anyone? Is this really happening?
‘What on earth did I do….’
It must be true that Leah’s drinking habits are extremely, shockingly severe.
I looked at the lonely hallway where the Emperor had disappeared and started to guess.
1. Overturned the dining table.
Considering Leah’s past behavior, it wouldn’t be impossible. But if it was that bad, wouldn’t Lauren have told me?
2. I hit the Emperor.
Judging from my limbs being fine now, this doesn’t seem right.
3. Swearing.
No, no. Even if I blacked out, I still have some awareness of what happened.
4. I said something strange.
… Could it be this?
But if so, what exactly did I say?
I asked Lauren and the maids, but I couldn’t find an answer. The emperor sent everyone out while they were drinking, so they didn’t know what was going on inside.
I didn’t hear anything special, and all they could say was that after drinking all the alcohol, the emperor and I fell asleep in the bedroom like usual.
In addition, the previous Leah was always drunk, so she didn’t really have any drinking habits, so there was no answer.
‘I didn’t say that in two years, I’m going to be poisoned to death and he’s going to commit suicide, did I?’
Is that why you avoid me because you think I’m an idiot?!
Horrified, I went back to the main castle.
Knock knock.
“Your Majesty? Talk to me.”
“Your Majesty, the emperor went out on an inspection today. He’ll be back late at night.”
He ran away!
I returned sullenly after being completely turned away. And I had no choice but to spend the day in the palace without the Emperor.
Anti-poisoning project with Lindo, medical check-up with physician. A delicious snack time during the break. After that, I slowly settled down in the garden of the castle and groaned. The garden that crosses the castle is close to the entrance, so I can run straight there when the Emperor returns.
‘Ah. Now that I think about it, I only thought about my image to the public, not to the emperor.’
“Whew. I’m already a stalker, so what if rumors spread that I’m talking nonsense?”
“No way, we won’t let that happen!”
Whenever I say that, I feel out of breath. The maids who have been fed nutritional supplements and are now in good spirits opened their eyes wide and took my side.
‘It feels like only yesterday that they’re hiding behind Lauren and crying.’
Still, I felt good about having my own side for the first time, so I tried to smile and follow along.
“Yeah. Then you guys can scold them instead of me.”
“You can’t do that!”
But then suddenly, an unfamiliar voice intervened. The maids and I turned our heads in surprise at the same time.
“Your Majesty, then everyone will misunderstand. Your Majesty even torments the maids.”
A woman with smooth silver hair and purple eyes.
‘Eloise?’
At that moment, the memory of Leah, who had been asleep, suddenly came to mind. I blinked as I watched her approaching me.
Her name was Eloise Appenzeller. Her status was lady of the Count. So, she must be my cousin.
My father, Cromwell Celeste, was the eldest son of the dukedom and had a younger brother named Louis.
When the previous Duke died and my father inherited the Dukedom, Louis received the Count of Appenzeller among the subsidiary titles inherited by the dukedom.
That Count Louis Appenzeller was my uncle. And his only daughter was Eloise before my eyes.
‘Is everyone in this family so unfortunate? They all only had one child, and the wives died quickly.’
Was the Countess of Appenzeller not a hereditary noble, but a newly appointed noble a few generations ago? I think it was said that they were descendants of the Siren, one of the rare extinct species.
Anyway, along with that secondary information, I remembered that my mother, Duchess Celeste, and my aunt, Countess Appenzeller, gave birth and died on the same day.
That’s why Eloise and I have the same age and birthday.
‘By the way.’
Cousins usually look quite different, but the Celeste family’s blood is so strong that Eloise and I look so much alike that you could almost believe we’re sisters.
That said, even our hair and eye colors are the same.
“Hello, Eloise. Sit down.”
I welcomed it with amazement, but Eloise seemed to take seriously the jokes I had just exchanged with my maids.
“Your Majesty. I really feel bad that people call you a crazy, a stalker, and a witch.”
When did the witch come about? Soon, we’ll be able to make a list of my nicknames.
I giggled, feeling dumbfounded.
“Yeah, I don’t like it either. The witch was a bit too much.”
“Your Majesty, I’ll help you. Don’t harass the poor maids!”
“Hmm.”
I met eyes with my cousin, who had an innocent and pure impression, the complete opposite of my faced appearance.
“How about announcing that you’ll live the rest of your life repenting the unpleasant things you’ve done? If you go to the temple and practice as a way of self-reflection, your image will be even better!”
Eloise flashed her eyes and grabbed my hand. It was a statement as innocent as her image.
“Eloise, I’ve never ‘harassed’ the maids.”
With my chin up, I spoke with a languid face.
“What? Oh, that’s not what I mean.”
“I know, I know. You were going to say something like a public apology or temple practice, right?”
I shook my head slightly. Eloise immediately looked sad.
“But!”
“I don’t say things I can’t take responsibility for.”
Eloise’s eyes widened as if she thought I didn’t do it because it was fun.
“The empress of this country is openly admitting that it’s a mess. And she can’t stay in the temple long enough to be considered sincere. Wouldn’t she be even more criticized if she couldn’t do it?”
“Ah.”
Eloise’s innocent eyes trembled. Since she didn’t think that far ahead, I generously understood my cousin.
“Well, it’s okay. You meant it with good intentions.”
“I was short-minded.”
Eloise was completely exhausted. I observed her curiously.
‘Hmm, I don’t remember much. But I guess we were pretty close since we were cousins.’
The maids’ reactions seemed familiar.
I was glad to finally meet a family that was truly family, so I tried to talk more about what I had been worrying about.
“Eloise? Why did you come today?”
“Ah. While I was in the palace, I wanted to see Her Majesty the Empress for the first time in a long time…”
“Good! Then talk to me. I have something to ask you.”
I was about to start chatting with Eloise, who was slightly tearful from embarrassment. The moment she wiped away her tears and sniffled.
“Eloise.”
A low, soft voice approached along with the sound of footsteps. I saw a young man with his fine hair neatly swept up.
Silver hair and warm red eyes. And he looked like me, too.
“Father!”
Louis Appenzeller, my uncle. Eloise greeted him with wet eyes.
“I meet Her Majesty the Empress.”
He nodded to his daughter and greeted me politely. He had a very gentle expression, but he was completely different from my father Cromwell, who was his older brother.
‘How can two brothers be so different?’
Eloise and I look alike, but our fathers are completely different. All four of them had silver hair, right?
I was surprised and greeted, but I realized a beat later.
‘Oh, this. This is a bit ambiguous.’
A woman who shed tears in front of the Empress. It was a situation where I, who was obviously bad, made my angelic cousin cry.
The maids seemed to have the same thought, as they looked troubled.
‘Oh, this is why I tried to fix my image.’
It was a pity to be misunderstood by my family members who looked like me.
As I was giving up, my uncle, who was standing next to Eloise, bowed his head.
“I think Eloise caused you some trouble.”
“… Yes?”
“She has been feeling upset after hearing rumors about Your Majesty recently. Even if she said something out of the ordinary, please be generous and understand.”
What’s going on?
My uncle spoke very gently and bowed his head.
Everyone knows my temper, but he doesn’t suspect anything right away and just covers up the situation cleanly.
“Your Majesty must also have a lot of worries about the rumor. I apologize for adding concern.”
“It’s all right. It’s been a while since we’ve met and we had a good time talking.”
And he didn’t even criticize me. He even said it was just a rumor first.
‘He must be a good person.’
If he were my father, he would have been sarcastic. I smiled at Louis Appenzeller, my uncle, in admiration.
“I have something to do, so I’ll go now. Have a good day.”
My uncle seemed surprised for a moment by my innocent smile, but soon smiled warmly and Eloise said goodbye.
“See you next time, Your Majesty.”
I waved and left. I saw them heading to the exit, as if they were about to leave soon.
‘I’m really jealous. You have such a warm father.’
It’s unfair. My father is gaslighted, but my uncle was like the older brother next door, the standard of first love. Why on earth are these siblings so different?
‘Well, whatever. Instead, I have a black leopard.’
How rewarding it is to tame it. It’s still a bit rough, though.
I visited the servant and instructed him to do something, recalling my original purpose. It was time for the emperor to return.
‘Hm, I’m going to be late.’
I rushed into the emperor’s office first. It was obvious that he wouldn’t come to the dining room because he was trying to avoid me!
“If you don’t remember what you did, just ask the person directly.”
Clank.
I took out the wine the chamberlain had brought and finished setting it up.
Why am I worrying about it alone when I don’t even remember? Besides, I remember the emperor saying he would reconsider holding a ball, so I was going to settle things tonight.
‘Women go straight ahead.’
I smiled brightly and hid behind the office door.
“Go and take care of your business. By the way, there’s no one here, right?”
I gave him a strong look telling him not to make a fuss even if the emperor came straight here. Then my maids nodded enthusiastically, and the escort knight and the chief chamberlain immediately left with cloudy eyes.
And after a few minutes,
Step, step. The sound of footsteps was heard, and the door finally opened and the emperor came in.
Click!
“Who is it?”
The emperor turned around with his eerie golden eyes and flinched.
I locked the office door with the thick lock I had prepared in advance and smiled brightly.
“Your Majesty, I’ve been waiting.”
Hmm. Somehow the genre seems to have changed to a confinement, but I must be mistaken.
TL/N: I’m sorry but unfortunately, I’ve decided to drop this novel. Other translators are free to pick up this project!
