Chapter 18
Sophie checked the bowl placed on the bedside table and spoke with concern.
“Young Lady, you’ve left your meal again.”
“I’m full.”
“You need to eat well to recover.”
“I’ll try. I’ve gone without food so many times that my stomach won’t accept it properly.”
“You’ll get better.”
“What is the Duke doing?”
“He is at the training grounds.”
Sir Aiden seemed to be a very diligent person. While resting in the room, I often heard the sound of sword training coming from the training ground behind the mansion.
“Sion also devoted himself to swordsmanship.”
Count Estarion was an exceptional swordsman, and Sion had inherited that talent as well.
I was proud of Sion for that. Perhaps it was because he had a talent I never possessed.
“He always held a sword when he needed to clear his mind…”
Ever since the truth about me not being Father’s biological daughter had been revealed, Sion had spent every day sweating at the training ground.
“And then he abandoned me. So thoroughly… to the Inquisition.”
As I recalled the despair I felt at that time, my eyelids trembled.
Since Sienna appeared, I hadn’t had a single day of peace—it was like walking on needles.
Finding out that my family wasn’t truly my family destroyed the world I had known and denied all common sense.
Still, I had loved them. Until I suffered a fate worse than death in the Inquisition.
“One day, I’ll make them kneel beneath me and beg.”
I clenched my teeth and let out a hot breath.
What I had gone through was far too horrific to forgive.
They had shown me not a shred of mercy—there was no reason for me to feel sentimental toward them.
“They drove a person to hell. They’re no longer worth any of my concern.”
With the determination to recover quickly, I tore the leftover bread and forced it down.
“I need to get better soon. I can’t just keep depending on others like this.”
Three months from now is the Spring Festival. That means the Crown Prince’s birthday ball—held during the festival—will also mark Sir Aiden’s debut in high society.
On that day, Sir Aiden will present himself as a noble and seamlessly integrate into the aristocracy.
Eventually, he’ll marry into a noble family and solidify his position.
My role is to sever his past completely and turn him into the perfect Duke Calypso.
Three months isn’t a long time to erase a life of slavery. He still can’t even read properly.
“I need to start lessons as soon as possible. In three months, Heraïs too…”
Being a tutor may not be a highly esteemed or honorable profession, but if it’s something I must do, I want to do it well.
I don’t want to become someone irresponsible who only seeks money. Anyway…
“Could you bring me a newspaper?”
Now that I’ve been cast out of my family and Sienna has taken my place, there must have been some major changes.
I need to know what’s happening in the world.
Honestly, I don’t want to know. I’m afraid of what I might read. But I must know—for revenge, and for survival.
“The newspaper?”
Sophie looked troubled and tried to divert the subject.
It wasn’t hard to tell that something was wrong.
“Young Lady, please focus on recovering. Also, it’s already afternoon—there’s no newspaper. It’s probably already been used as kindling.”
No one in this house reads the newspaper except me.
So it wouldn’t have been used as kindling before I saw it. I gave her a warning for the clumsy lie.
“Sophie.”
When I softly called her name, Sophie glanced at me nervously.
“I’ll be fine. Please bring me the newspaper.”
“Can’t you just not read it?”
“Whatever’s written in there… it’s something I must face. So go get it.”
At my firm command, Sophie reluctantly went to fetch it.
She returned after a while, holding the morning paper.
She hesitated for a long time before handing it to me with a worried expression.
“I suggest you don’t read it.”
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
I took the paper from her. I said I was fine, but my heart was pounding so hard that I had to take deep breaths to calm myself.
Huu… Silently inhaling, I checked the headline.
“Ah…”
A gasp escaped my lips.
[Crown Prince and Selena Estarion’s Engagement Completely Canceled]
I expected this. But it seemed I wasn’t mentally prepared.
I never desired the position of Crown Princess. What I wanted was the man named Philipso Martinessen.
I loved his intelligence, his seemingly cold yet kind demeanor, his refined speech.
Having your first love be your fiancé is considered a blessing in noble society.
It saves you the heartache of imagining a future with someone you don’t love.
“Let me be grateful that I was once able to stand beside him.”
I steadied my collapsing heart and read through the paper. It didn’t take long to grasp the important parts—until my eyes landed on a certain line.
“Young Lady…”
Sophie called to me with concern.
I tried to offer a smile to reassure her, but my lips trembled. Because…
[The Count Is Soon to Announce an Engagement with His Hidden Second Daughter]
The last line of the article pierced my heart.
I first met His Highness, Crown Prince Philipso Martinessen, when I was fourteen.
We met at our engagement ceremony.
It was a day when the sunlight made his fair skin glow.
“He’s beautiful…”
He could only be described as stunning. His silver hair shone over his blue formal attire, and his delicate features were captivating.
A refined forehead, a smooth nose, elegant eyes—everything about him was remarkable.
Especially the deep blue eyes under his long lashes—they were masculine yet graceful.
The Crown Prince was like a moonlit fairy, mysterious and ethereal.
“We finally meet. Sion praised you so much, I’ve long looked forward to this day.”
His eyes held an inscrutable expression. Our gazes met in the air. I thought his eyes were incredibly cold.
His blue eyes gleamed sharply, and his detached attitude made him seem aloof, as if observing the entire world.
Yet his tone was gentle.
As if he had read my thoughts, his gaze softened.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I was being rude.”
Only then did I realize my staring was improper. I quickly lowered my head in greeting.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Your Highness. I’m Selena Estarion. Please feel free to address me comfortably.”
My face burned. I was embarrassed—flustered, and too young to handle the situation well.
“Haha. Selena’s shy.”
“O-oh, Brother…”
Sion chuckled as he approached. Unlike me, who was meeting the prince for the first time, Sion and His Highness already knew each other well. They were quite close.
“Your Highness, this is my sister, Selena.”
“Ah, yes. I recognized her instantly. She’s much more beautiful than her portrait.”
“Th-that’s too kind…”
My face heated up again. I wasn’t normally this bashful.
But anyone would behave differently under the Crown Prince’s gaze.
No matter how well one tried to describe him, his elegance couldn’t be fully captured in words.
The feeling I had that day was one of intense admiration. And that admiration turned into affection with the smallest gesture.
“I wonder if the meal suited your taste.”
“It was truly delicious. Thank you so much for your hospitality.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Ah, Selena, would you like to walk through the garden with me? It’s spring now, and the landscaping is perfect.”
“It would be an honor.”
While we were walking in the garden, the heel of my shoe suddenly broke.
Thankfully, I didn’t stumble too noticeably, but walking properly became difficult. The heel had split and the sole flapped with each step.
Noticing my trouble, His Highness stopped and said,
“Selena, do you know how smooth the newly-laid palace floor is?”
“It’s hard to say for sure since I’m wearing shoes. But I’ve always thought the flooring was beautiful.”
“The patterns are indeed beautiful. The marble laid throughout the palace was imported from Orington in the East—it’s the finest quality. But you can’t truly feel its value through thick leather soles.”
Before I could even process his words, he removed his shoes on the spot and went barefoot.
“Like this, you can feel the soft texture as if walking on glass. I recommend you try it too.”
“Ah…”
He was being considerate, knowing it would be difficult for me to fetch new shoes right away.
Normally, someone would offer their own shoes or carry me, but his shoes were too big for my small feet, and we were too cautious in our relationship for him to lift me.
Besides, it’s considered improper for a lady to show her bare feet.
But if it’s a suggestion from the Crown Prince, it’s not improper—it’s practically a command.
I took off my shoes and stepped onto the marble path.
Though the cold touch should have made my feet ache, my chest was burning so much that I felt nothing.
“How is it?”
“S-soft… It’s really soft.”
“Is it? I’m glad you, at least, understand the value of Orington marble. Everyone else wears lambskin shoes and complains that the palace floors are hard.”
His Highness’s kindness moved me to tears.
Despite his cold exterior, his inner warmth was so touching that it made my heart tremble.
That day, I fell in love with the man named Philipso Martinessen.
It was a childish first love—but as I grew into a woman, that love took deep root.
