Chapter 55 Similar To Her Highness
It was no wonder Killion and Jediel had taken an interest in each other.
Veronia’s heart was full of mixed emotions. She knew she shouldn’t, but she missed Killion, missed him.
‘You miss him. That’s ridiculous…! What are you doing, Veronia!’
It was agonizing, the part of her that wanted him and the part of her that wanted to push him away at the same time, clashing and raging.
Her heart was splintered into many pieces, and all the sharp edges of the splintered pieces were sharp and stabbing each other. Each stab left a hole and crimson blood oozed out.
It hurt, it was painful, it was agonizing… and she couldn’t believe she still hadn’t let go of Killion.
‘Why are you doing this?’
She thought her new life after escaping the palace was perfect, with nothing lacking.
She had the gift of Luisa and Hugo, and the blessing of Jediel. Everyone in the family was healthy, with no illness in body or mind. She thought she was the happiest she’d ever been.
‘… But it wasn’t?’
She doesn’t really know. She doesn’t know why she feel so empty right now. She thought she had the puzzle all put together, and she was happy, but she was missing a piece, and suddenly she was stumped and upset.
The one piece missing from her life, Killion. Her life would be perfect without him. Only then would she be happy.
‘Don’t you dare… dream that, Veronia, you shouldn’t even be dreaming. Wake up, Veronia.’
Her tail tucked, she put the brakes on the cascade of futile thoughts. But her brain had no intention of obeying her orders, and so Veronia tossed and turned all night, thinking of Killion.
***
The day was no better. Even while tending to her patients at the clinic, Veronia would often slap.
“You seem a little groggy today, is something wrong?”
Megan, her assistant, asked in a concerned voice, and Veronia answered by drying her face with both hands.
“I didn’t sleep well last night, so I’m a little tired.”
“Holy…! So why don’t we feel particularly frisky and go out for lunch today? I hear that the new restaurant across the street is pretty good.”
“Sounds great! I haven’t eaten out in ages. Thanks for looking out for me, Megan.”
“No problem, of course I care.”
And just like that, lunchtime rolled around, and the two of them slipped out of their white robes and left the House.
The restaurant, which was rumored to be delicious, was packed. They were wondering if they should wait or just go somewhere else when a table opened up.
“Oh, our lucky day!”
“Yeah! I’m excited!”
Veronia and Megan immediately sat down and waited for the waitress to clear the table, when Veronia’s eye caught sight of a roughly folded newspaper. The previous customers must have read it and left it behind.
Remembering that she hadn’t read the paper yesterday and today because she had been in a foggy mood, Veronia opened it up, and there on the front page was an article about Killion.
“What are you so surprised about?”
“Oh, it’s…”
The story was about Espin Montez, the youngest princess of the neighboring kingdom of Hisric.
“Ah, so Princess Espin is coming as a special diplomatic mission for the coronation? I’ve heard rumors about her too.”
“It’s …”
Veronia listened to Megan, unable to tear her eyes away from the newspaper article.
“Even though she’s coming on a diplomatic mission, she’s staying at the Duke of Drea’s residence instead of staying at the Imperial Palace? I heard she has a close connection to the Duke of Drea.”
“…”
“I wonder if Princess Espin is having a little trouble with the Duke of Drea?”
Ho-ho-ho, Meghan laughed, as if she were entertaining a pleasant fantasy. The end of the newspaper article confirmed her suspicions. The whole empire, not just the reporters, wanted Killion to marry the princess of the neighboring country.
Veronia’s breath caught in her throat, her organs clumped together and hardened, turning to stone. Her body weighed so heavily that she could barely move or breathe.
‘He has nothing to do with me, never has, never will, never will!’
Veronia folded the newspaper backup and set it down on the corner of the table. Tears threatened to spill over at any moment, but she clenched her teeth and held them back.
‘What the hell did you expect, to be connected to a subject you can’t even identify, a subject that will never have a real face in your life, what are you, crazy?’
Veronia soothed herself over and over again. No, she blamed herself for dreaming of a future with Killion for a moment. She chastised herself for daring to admit to herself that she was in love with him.
She thought of herself as an abomination, an abomination beyond words. It was hateful.
‘But why… Why is it so heartbreaking… Why are you sad?’
Megan, sitting in front of her, chattered excitedly about this and that, but Veronia’s ears didn’t quite catch the words, only the constant hum.
‘This is so… weird! Please get a grip, Veronia, let’s face it, you knew from the start that you couldn’t connect with him anyway.’
The newspaper article about Killion stuck in her mind like a snake with a razor sharp tooth, and it seemed to sneer at her, baring its sharp fangs and lolling its long tongue.
“Here is the lamb stew and roast chicken you ordered. Enjoy.”
The food was served, but she didn’t feel the slightest inclination to eat.
***
“Your Excellency, why is it that the pile of approval papers on your desk never seems to shrink?”
Windler asked Killion as he placed another stack of approval papers on his desk. But Killion hadn’t heard Windler’s question and was staring unfocused at the stack of papers.
“Your Excellency? Your Excellency!”
“…Huh? What?”
Windler raised his voice and called out to Killion a few more times. Finally, his gaze landed on Windler.
Killion, looking groggy as if he had just woken up, looked at Windler and asked him with a glare what he wanted.
“I need a quick payment, Your Excellency.”
“…Yes. Leave it.”
Killion’s voice was sharp, as if he didn’t like his aide interrupting his train of thought for an unimportant matter.
Windler remained where he was, unmoved by the interruption. Killion narrowed his brow.
“What, is there more you want to say?”
“I… figured it out.”
Windler replied with a grave expression, and Killion asked again, his voice tinged with confusion and irritation.
“What do you mean, don’t spin it, get straight to the point.”
“Why does His Excellency like Ms. Nia.”
“What?”
What the hell was he talking about? Killion’s already narrowed brow narrowed even further, forming a deep crease.
“But if that’s really why you like Ms. Nia, I think it’s very disrespectful to her.”
“…”
Killion couldn’t understand what Windler was saying, so he propped his elbows on the desk, clasped his hands together, and glared at Windler. He gave Windler a look that said, ‘Go ahead, keep talking.’
Normally, Windler would have been overwhelmed by Killion’s momentum, but today was different. He wanted to make sure Killion was at fault.
“Isn’t the reason His Excellency likes Ms. Nia… so much is because she resembles the late Princess Veronia?”
“What?”
Killion asked, his face contorted, but he was actually quite surprised and panicking. Unspoken thoughts filled Killion’s mind.
‘Why is the Princess’s name here… Ah, you must have seen her without her hood yesterday.’
Killion continued to think, still frowning. He kept up a poker face to avoid giving away his embarrassment.
‘No, but the change in hair color and eye color has completely changed his appearance, if you can recognize it… I can’t believe Windler’s eyes are like this.’
Veronia’s true identity must never be revealed to Windler. If we do, all our efforts will be for naught. He might never see her again.
‘No! Never! I must be more careful in the future.’
Killion glanced at Windler, trying to hide his anxiety. His loyal aide let out a shallow sigh and continued in a calm tone.
“I saw it yesterday, and at first I didn’t recognize it, but then I kept looking at Nia’s face without her hood on, and I got it.”
“…”
“In Ms. Nia’s face, I could faintly see the face of Her Highness the Princess of Veronia, not exactly a likeness, but an uncanny resemblance.”
Finished with his preamble, Windler fell silent and glanced at Killion. He seemed to be waiting for Killion’s response.
Unable to remain silent, Killion slowly opened his mouth.
“I didn’t notice at first. But as I came into contact with Ms. Nia more and more, I began to see a resemblance to the Princess of Veronia.”
“…”
So it was. Windler nodded gently, something resembling confidence dawning in his eyes. It was smug, knowing he hadn’t been wrong.
Killion continued with his half-truth, half-excuse. He hoped Windler would believe him without question.
“That’s why I was surprised, but it’s not why I became interested in her, not ever.”
“…”
“You know this because you’ve spoken to Nia. She has only a slight facial resemblance to the Princess, but she speaks differently, has a different disposition, a different way of thinking.”
Windler nodded slowly to indicate his agreement with Killion’s words.
“Yes, but I’m afraid Ms. Nia will be hurt when she finds out about this later, so I think it would be better for you to confess to her first.”
“…”
“What if Ms. Nia misunderstands? What woman would be happy to think that the only reason she likes me is because I look like her ex-fiancé?”
Killion couldn’t help but be alarmed by this ongoing situation. He never thought he’d be getting relationship advice from Windler!
There was nothing wrong with Windler’s words. Everything he said was right. Except that Nia was Veronia herself, so what Windler was worried about would never happen.
