No More Regrets, Just K*ll Me

 

If possible, it’s better to provoke her so that I can at least catch her tail. Of course, I know well enough that it won’t be easy to catch.

“You, you dare…”

Princess Yermondi slammed the iron bars with a bang! I flinched and quickly pulled back.

‘What a vigorous princess.’

I had boldly declared that I spent the night with him, but I wonder if I can handle this.

Princess Yermondi was glaring at me as if she wanted to kill me. Her glare was similar to the one she directed at the Carlothian earlier.

It seemed like fire would spring from her eyes. A blue light flickered in her pupils.

“Do you think it makes any difference that you slept with him?”

I could feel her trembling with rage. To provoke her further, I opened my mouth.

“I don’t think it will make any difference. But people will see it differently.”

When I answered her bluntly, she bit her lip. Oh, what a tense expression. Indeed, no one remains calm in the face of love.

“…That would be nice.”

I asked,

“What did you say?”

“I wish you would just die.”

The princess spoke with a cold, commanding tone.

After a moment of shock, I slowly looked up at Princess Yermondi.

“…I suppose today’s events were orchestrated by you, Your Highness?”

However, the princess did not easily fall for such provocation.

“So now, the one who cursed the crown princess with dark magic is trying to frame me?”

“Then are you going to throw me in prison for insulting the royal family this time?”

The princess answered surprisingly firmly.

“No.”

But her following words, as if to say not to misunderstand, were close to verbal abuse.

“How can I be satisfied with something like that? I wish you were dead.”

In those short words, I could feel her true emotions.

“You’re being harsh.”

The princess frowned at my indifferent tone. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but I was faster.

“I trusted you, Your Highness.”

The princess’s mouth closed. It wasn’t that I trusted her; the original Ariadeline had trusted her a lot.

“You were one of those who supported me in high society.”

Well, it was all to use Ariadeline, but still.

“I quite liked you, Your Highness.”

In an instant, the princess wiped the anger off her face. Her expression became devoid of any emotion, like a statue carved from ice.

“Say that again.”

Did I strike a nerve? She spoke through gritted teeth.

“I trusted you, Your Highness. I liked you.”

For some reason, the princess said nothing. Her tightly clenched lips seemed about to bleed.

“Disgusting.”

“……”

The princess slammed the iron bars once more with a bang! Then, as if her teeth were chattering, she spoke to me.

“You, you insignificant thing…”

The princess seemed to be about to continue verbally abusing me. But then.

Creeeak, clang!

The sound of the prison door opening was heard. I looked toward the door without realizing it, and Princess Yermondi did the same.

There was nowhere in the palace the princess couldn’t go, but if someone were to discover her in the underground prison in this situation, it would certainly raise questions.

Perhaps aware of this, Yermondi hid her body in the dark, where the torchlight didn’t reach.

It was none other than Benjamin who came to find me. Unaware of the princess, he approached the front of the prison and spoke.

“I’ve confirmed that the testimonies of the mansion’s servants and the duke align.”

Then he opened the prison door.

Creeeak—

I stood up, but with my hands still bound, it was difficult to rise fully. Benjamin continued to speak, either unaware or pretending not to know.

“I’m letting you go for now, but I still have my doubts about you. The same goes for the members of the royal family.”

“That’s understandable.”

I replied nonchalantly, glancing at the darkness where Yermondi had hidden herself.

‘Even if it’s strange for Princess Yermondi to be here, that’s all it is in the end.’

I didn’t bother to inform Benjamin of Yermondi’s presence. Instead, I followed him out of the prison.

‘Ah, it’s blinding.’

Even though I had been in the prison for only a short while, the light was blinding. My body still shivered uncontrollably.

One thing I hadn’t anticipated was—

“Carlothian?”

“You’re out.”

He stood there amidst the blinding light. He frowned slightly when he saw my face and reached out to pull my wrist, which still bore marks from being bound.

“The injuries…”

“Oh, it’s only natural since I was tied up.”

“If you’ve cleared up your suspicions, shouldn’t you have untied the rope?”

Carlothian’s voice was cold as he spoke. Benjamin, with his hands behind his back, frowned.

“Do as you please. I just didn’t want to.”

“It’s better to only say what you can take responsibility for.”

Carlothian’s expression grew increasingly icy. It felt as if there was a chill emanating from him.

‘Is he this angry because of me?’

I recalled how he had rushed to prove my alibi and how he looked now. The disappointment I felt was beginning to melt away a bit.

I involuntarily tightened my grip on his hand.

Carlothian, who had stopped glaring at Benjamin, lowered his gaze and lightly held my wrist.

“Your face is pale.”

“Oh, it was a bit cold.”

Carlothian clicked his tongue at the sight of me in nothing but a nightgown and shawl. He then took out his sword and cut the rope binding my wrist.

Swish—

The rope fell away, revealing the red marks on my wrist. Carlothian grimaced at the sight, and then—

“Huh?”

He suddenly picked me up. Is he out of his mind right now?

I stared at Carlothian in shock.

Hey! Do you really not plan to remarry? Do you not think this will cause rumors if you go around the palace like this?

As I struggled in his arms, Carlothian frowned as if to say not to be a nuisance.

“I can walk on my own!”

“Forget it. You walk too slowly; this is better.”

“I can run, you know? Do you have any thoughts in that head of yours?”

“Ahem, ahem.”

At that moment, Benjamin cleared his throat. I was about to argue with Carlothian when I turned to him. Benjamin looked at us with an uncomfortable expression.

“It seems you two will manage on your own. I’ll be on my way now.”

“Do that.”

“Well then, goodbye.”

Benjamin quickly walked away as if he couldn’t stand the sight of us. Huh, it seems he’s seriously misunderstood the situation.

Carlothian, however, showed no sign of wanting to put me down and leisurely began walking.

“I’ll say it again: if you want to remarry, it would be better to just let me go.”

“It’s funny that you’re worried about my remarriage.”

“No, what’s so good about getting involved with an ex-wife who’s now fallen from nobility?”

“Sorry, but there are many people who want to marry me, no matter who I get involved with.”

That’s true. With that statement, I had nothing to say. Whether Carlothian was with me or a street commoner, everyone would still covet the title of Duchess.

Everyone knows that it’s impossible for me to become a proper wife since I’ve become a sinner.

Sigh, I don’t know. It’s funny that I’m worried about it when he isn’t.

In the end, I had to go to the carriage while being carried like this.

The nobles passing by nearly popped their eyes out, and the palace servants coming and going secretly glanced at us.

‘Ha, if rumors spread, it’s not my fault. It’s all on him.’

But I didn’t. I didn’t know how fast rumors spread or how they could be fabricated. If I had known, I would have pulled out Carlothian’s hair to stop him.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

After confirming that they had disappeared, Princess Yermondi returned to her room. The waiting maids hurriedly closed the door.

Bang!

As soon as she entered the room, she slammed her hand down on the side table. The maids quietly kept their mouths shut, careful not to upset her further.

Yermondi couldn’t hide her anger and trembled with rage. Soon, she swept everything off the table to the floor.

Crash!

“That damn thing.”

She had used dark magic once again to get rid of Ariadeline, but she had slipped away like an eel.

Moreover, the one claiming her innocence was none other than Duke Carlothian.

“Ariadeline…”

Yermondi pronounced the name as if chewing it over.

“Ariadeline, Ariadeline, Ariadeline.”

She spat out her name, Ariadeline, with a sound akin to a curse.

Thud!

A loud noise erupted as the princess, unable to calm her anger, overturned the side table.

At that moment, her maid, Aoloa, who had served her since childhood, asked,

“Rumors about Ariadeline and the Duke are spreading quickly.”

The princess retorted sharply.

“Of course, those gossip mongers won’t keep their mouths shut.”

“What should we do about the rumors we spread in advance?”

The rumors that Princess Yermondi had spread about an engagement between Duke Carlothian Denaves and herself were now coming back to haunt her.

If Carlothian got involved with Ariadeline, the false rumor of an engagement would make Yermondi’s position seem laughable.

“We can’t leave it like this; we can’t.”

The princess slowly calmed her ragged breaths. Soon, her expression softened into a gentle smile as she gave orders to the maids.

“I need to meet with Duke Carlothian Denaves. Send him a letter.”

“Should we send a letter stating that you will visit?”

“No.”

Yermondi stepped on a broken vase she’d dropped. Crack! The shards of glass shattered.

“Invite him to the palace. Ariadeline too.”

Yermondi looked at the maids with a sweet smile and added,

“And find a maidservant. One who listens well.”

“Yes, understood.”

No one knew what she was thinking—not even her maids.