Until The Real One Shows Up​

“I’ll follow the Empress’ will.”

“Your Highness the Crown Prince!”

Olivia, who was holding onto Louis, shouted with a startled look.

“What do you mean… What do you mean, Your Highness? You answered wrong now, didn’t you?”

“…”

“No way! Your Highness, how could you do this to me! Are you trying to betray me?”

Olivia howled at Louis, who had no answer.

“You’re going to abandon me. You’re saying you’re going to abandon me and choose the Empress!”

“Guards!”

Anastasia, who could no longer watch, immediately called the guard. Guards rushed into Louis’ room.

“Did you call, Your Majesty?”

“Get Lady Fontaine out of here right now.”

“Let go of me! How dare you touch someone’s body!”

Olivia, of course, resisted violently.

Of course, Anastasia didn’t want to use this method, at least in front of Louis.

‘But Lady Fontaine will never leave this room on her own feet even if she dies.’

She was such a strong person.

“Your Highness, you can’t do this to me. Your Highness, Your Highness!”

Olivia’s screams of being dragged away by the guards, and Anastasia rubbed her forehead with a headache.

‘I never thought I’d show that to a kid who’s just regained consciousness…’

Anger crept up again. Anastasia tried not to express such feelings, but pulled her hand off her forehead and looked at Louis.

Louis had a rather blank face.

‘…what should I say?’

Anastasia was a little perplexed, then quickly loosened her expression and sat next to Louis.

“Since when have you been up?”

“…”

Louis shook his head instead of answering.

As if he didn’t want to answer, Anastasia didn’t ask any more. The answer wasn’t even a very important question anyway.

“How are you feeling? Are you okay?”

This time he nodded. Anastasia finally smiled and told Selene.

“Call the court doctor.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Selene quickly stepped out of the bedroom, leaving only two people in the room, Louis and Anastasia.

Anastasia wondered what to say again, and asked Louis cautiously.

“Do you want to be alone? Should I go out?”

This time he shook his head. Fortunately, she didn’t kick her out, so Anastasia pondered what else to say.

“…”

But the worry wasn’t too long. At one point, Anastasia held Louis tightly due to an uncontrollable impulse.

Louis felt himself stiffen in embarrassment, but Anastasia hugged the child harder.

“…I’m sorry.”

The words uttered in a sobbing voice drained Louis’s body.

But without noticing it, Anastasia began to cry after uttering the two worda.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Louis… I should have noticed… I’m sorry.”

Anastasia, who only spitted out one syllable at a time, looked at Louis with strange eyes and asked.

“Why… is Your Majesty apologizing?”

Louis couldn’t understand her.

It wasn’t because of her that he collapsed. Strictly speaking, it was his own fault.

Even though he knew he was overdoing it, he couldn’t tell Anastasia the truth.

“I lied. Well… …it wasn’t alright, actually.”

Because of Her Majesty, the time to study had been reduced, and he had to stay up all night, so he couldn’t tell her not to come anymore.

It was because he was afraid.

With that said, it seemed that Anastasia would not come to him anymore.

Then, goodbye to all the strange toys he saw for the first time, games he had never heard of, and the strange stories.

For the first time, the rainbow-colored existence of play intervened in his achromatic daily life where there was only study, study, and study.

Because he knew very well that if Anastasia were gone, no one would give him such a rainbow colored life.

He didn’t want to give it up. So he hid it and pretended to be okay.

“Don’t cry. It’s my fault.”

“No… It’s not Louis’ fault.”

Anastasia heard that, and now she began to cry out loudly.

As things got worse, Louis panicked.

“I… …I’m a bad friend. I was excited to play with Louis… … I didn’t realize how hard Louis was having it… …Well, it’s all my fault. Sorry.”

“No, it’s not…”

Louis looked at Anastasia’s face after he came out of her arms.

She closed her eyes and cried like a child.

“I thought adults wouldn’t cry. Maybe not.”

“Who said that? Did Olivia say that too?”

Damn Olivia. Anastasia continued to whimper as she uttered swear words in her mind.

Looking at Anastasia’s face, Louis carefully reached for her.

  “Ah…!”

  Anastasia looked at Louis with a surprised look on her face at the small warmth of his hand.

Louis was wiping away tears on Anastasia’s cheeks with a rather serious face.

“Don’t cry.”

“…”

“If you cry, Goddess Rosenia won’t give you a birthday present.”

Anastasia smiled unconsciously at the words, and Louis frowned upon seeing them.

“Don’t even laugh. You’ll get hurt if you cry and laugh.”

“What should I do?”

“Just stay still.”

At Louis’ instruction, Anastasia eventually looked at Louis without crying or laughing.

Anastasia stared at Louis, who was still absorbed in wiping tears from her cheeks, and asked.

“The Empress’ Palace… Are you sure you don’t mind following me?”

“Yes.”

Louis replied in a faint voice.

“Since I don’t have a nanny anymore, Your Majesty will be my nanny.”

“Ah….”

“Have you already changed your mind?””

“Oh, no! No way!”

Anastasia, who hurriedly replied, quietly added a moment later.

“I’m glad you woke up safely, Louis.”

“…”

“I was very worried.”

Louis, who was silent for a moment when he heard it, asked.

“Did you nurse me?”

“Nurse you… how to answer…”

Anastasia clumsily answered.

“I’ve been by your side the whole time.”

“Why?”

“Because Louis is sick.”

“There’s a lot of people who’ll take care of me.”

“That’s true, but…”

“It’s annoying, nursing. Why didn’t you ask your subordinate to do it?”

“It wasn’t annoying at all.”

Anastasia denied it in a tone as if it could not be.

“I just wanted to be the first one to see Louis wake up.”

“…”

“I thought I would be relieved if I saw you as soon as possible.”

There was nothing false in the way she said it, so Louis was confused.

That look, like a mother.

In fact, it was an expression he had seen from Anastasia a few times.

But especially today.

‘Why are you being nice to me?’

He couldn’t understand. Why…

Why did she look at him like that?

Why did she worry about him with that?

…in fact, she hated him.

 ‘Or in fact.’

Watching Anastasia struggling to speak in a quivering voice, Louis became confused.

‘Don’t you hate me?’

Anastasia was only showing a completely different appearance from Olivia’s numerous warnings from the beginning until now.

She didn’t hate him, she didn’t try to kill him, she didn’t ask for anything.

Just, she did everything for him. As if she didn’t want anything, as if he were truly her darling nephew.

In fact, it was quite a long time ago that such suspicions arose.

“Louis, look at this. Is it funny?”

Looking at the face of the ugly doll while laughing like a child, he thought expressionless.

‘Does Her Majesty really enjoy being with me?’

Otherwise, every aspect of her was too delicate and realistic to be a play.

‘Perhaps… … You might like me a little bit.’

But if it was true, that would be saying that Olivia had been lying to him all this time.

‘Who should I trust?’

He was confused but what was more confusing was his mind.

From that moment on, Anastasia became undeniably better.

In fact, it was strange that Anastasia wasn’t kicked out even though he was prepared to study all night.

They became friends by some chance, but it was just an illusion, and if he wanted to get rid of her, it was possible.

He was also confident in being harsh. Olivia had taught him to do that.

Olivia thought Anastasia was persistently going to the Imperial Palace despite his persistent rejection, but it wasn’t that.

He never actually rejected her fervently.

Of course, even if he refused, Anastasia would have kept coming.

He pretended not to know, but he knew.

Actually, he enjoyed watching Anastasia more than playing.

Her Majesty the Empress, who always said nice things to him, always smiled when she saw him, and Her Majesty the Empress, who looked at him warmly with loving eyes.

It’s because he liked it.

He tried to ignore it, but he had no choice but to realize it.

“I’m going to take care of Louis until I find a new nanny, what do you think?”

As soon as he heard that, he knew he wanted to follow her.

At the same time, he thought it was a good opportunity.

Because he thought maybe Olivia was lying to him.

“I…”

The world he has believed in so far may be all lies.

So he wanted to check.

Which one of them was lying to him.

“I’ll follow the Empress’ will.”

Who really loves him?

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