Until The Real One Shows Up​

“Were you there to see Louis?”

“…Huh?”

“See Louis.”

Anastasia repeated forcefully as if she hadn’t heard it wrong.

“You came to see Louis, right?”

In a tone that was almost certain, Wilhelm replied long after a rather blank look.

“…Yes, that’s right.”

Anastasia wondered at the oddly disappointed voice.

‘What is it? It feels like you’re suddenly out of energy….’

In hindsight, it was not so impossible to meet Wilhelm there.

She informed him of the day’s destination by letter before she left for Asterim, and he knew that Louis was accompanying her.

Therefore, it made sense that his carriage was waiting at the corner in advance to surprise Louis.

“If it hadn’t been for the accident, it would have been a pleasant memory for Louis… I’m sorry for everything.”

Looking at Anastasia, who was genuinely sorry, Wilhelm became a little dumbfounded.

‘She’s always thinking about other people.’

It was amazing that she did not worry about herself.

It was like that before. How flustered she was.

“Because it wasn’t too late. So don’t torment yourself with your imagination.”

Originally, she was a woman who would have been terrified and made a fuss.

How did she come up with the idea that she should comfort him in such a situation?

The extreme egoist, who was the most precious to herself, reached the peak of altruism in just one year.

He thought he had gotten used to Anastasia’s change to some extent, but still, this appearance was confusing as if he was seeing someone else.

“My six-year-old child has already had two carriage accidents.”

Wilhelm was freed from thoughts at the sound of Anastasia’s sullen voice.

Anastasia’s face was full of her genuine concern for Louis.

‘It’s no wonder he’ll be reluctant to ride a carriage like Wilhelm in the future.’

That was the time when Anastasia was depressed.

“You don’t have to worry too much.”

Wilhelm’s voice was heard.

“He’s still young, so if we take good care of it, the day will come when we can accept today’s business without difficulty.”

Anastasia smiled slightly at his hopeful words.

She asked in a similar tone.

“Is that so?”

“Sure. Oh, and Fontaine is in prison now.”

Wilhelm spoke as if he had forgotten.

“There will be a trial tomorrow. The result has already been decided.”

“Ah…”

Anastasia recalled the image of Olivia that she had met at the bottom of the cliff.

Anastasia’s expression hardened involuntarily as she recalled her face, glaring at her with evil eyes, as if possessed by a demon.

‘I was really surprised.’

It wouldn’t have been more surprising to see the dead come back to life.

“How the hell did she get there?”

“Actually, after the carriage crashed.”

Wilhelm explained calmly.

“Colton had caught the suspicious people around.”

“Suspicious people?”

“They were wearing masks.”

Wilhelm nodded his head and then continued his words.

“I immediately interrogated them, and found out that Lady Fontaine had planted several people around and was waiting for your carriage to arrive.”

Only then did she feel like she was getting hit.

Anastasia looked stunned.

“It seems that she was encamped there because she wanted to see me die.”

But she must have unexpectedly found out that Louis had joined her wagon, and she must have been insane since then.

Louis should never be included in Olivia’s target.

‘If he was alive, she would have come down to the bottom of the cliff to kill me and save Louis.’

She seemed to dislike her quite a bit. Even three years ago, she was quietly waiting for news of the accident at Fontaine’s mansion.

“Your Majesty.”

Anastasia called Wilhelm carefully. Wilhelm stared at her.

“As you know, there are many similarities between this accident and three years ago.”

Wilhelm’s expression naturally hardened at the words. Anastasia didn’t like to see his expression like that, but she had to say it.

“I may be… I think she may also be the real culprit of the accident three years ago.”

“Empress.”

“Isn’t the method too similar? Did you find the horse that crashed with the carriage?”

“Yes, I did an autopsy…”

Wilhelm replied with a grave look.

“There were signs of eating manic grass.”

“…it’s the same. Three years ago.”

“It could be just a coincidence. The victim was none other than her sister.”

Wilhelm continued with a perplexed look.

“More than anything, three years ago… Lady Fontaine didn’t benefit from doing that. The benefits of killing your family…”

“Empress.”

One word Anastasia uttered, astonishment passed over Wilhelm’s face.

“If she were aiming for the position, it makes sense.”

“To do that, even my brother….”

“On that day, Her Majesty accompanied her on a sudden outing. It was also unexpected for the Emperor to ride in Her Majesty’s carriage.”

Anastasia explained, making eye contact with Wilhelm.

“It went wrong. Just like now.”

“…”

“Of course there is no evidence. It’s just my guess.”

She had to find a diary with all the truth written in it. Anastasia asked with her brows narrowed.

“What is the position of the Fontaine family?”

“As it became clear that Lady Fontaine tried to kill you, Lady Fontaine was expelled from the family. On the pretext of not being the enemy. She’s no longer Lady Fontaine.”

It was a wise move. Louis was also involved in the incident, so the family could have collapsed.

“Wait, wait. Does that mean that the Fontaine family now has something to do with the accident three years ago?”

“No. The Marquis of Fontaine probably didn’t know. It must have been Fontaine’s solo crime. As the Marquis of Fontaine, there is absolutely no reason to support the ambitions of Lady Fontaine.”

Even before her return, after Olivia’s diary was discovered, the Fontaine family was the first to speak out, saying Olivia should be executed.

It was not only for the sake of the family, but also because the Marquis Fontaine was furious when he learned that Olivia was responsible for Violet’s death.

“Did you search the Fontaine mansion?”

“Yes, but there was no clear evidence.”

“Nothing?”

“Nothing.”

Anastasia’s expression was distorted with disappointment when she heard it.

Then where the hell… Where did she put that diary?

‘Did she get rid of it on her way to the capital? But why did she keep the diary that she had until the end before my return?…’

“However, it is crucial that Lady Fontaine was arrested for trying to kill you directly at the scene of the accident, so she will be sentenced to prison tomorrow. Some were caught and questioned at the scene.”

“Yes, that should be the case.”

“And what happened three years ago…”

Wilhelm thought there for a moment before continuing.

“It can’t be helped. Even if what you said is true, even if Fontaine was the culprit of the accident three years ago, there is no way to prove it.”

Wilhelm added bitterly.

“There is no way we can now find evidence that we couldn’t find then.”

“Then like this…”

As Wilhelm said, it was unavoidable. If the diary did not come up after searching the Fontaine mansion, there was no way unless she confessed.

“…”

Anastasia bit her lip and asked.

“Are you okay?”

“Because there is nothing I can do.”

He replied with resignation. Anastasia couldn’t say anything.

‘Did I say something for nothing?’

It was when Anastasia was regretting it because she seemed to have disturbed his mind for nothing.

“You don’t have to think like that.”

At Wilhelm’s sudden words, Anastasia looked at him with a surprised expression.

“Yes?”

“Aren’t you regretting it now? It’s something we can’t even reveal anyway, but you’re the only one who’s upset by bringing it up for no reason.”

“uh…”

How did you know…?

When the startled Anastasia eventually failed to control her expression, Wilhelm burst into laughter for the first time that day.

“Did you read my mind?”

“It seems that way.”

Wilhelm lowered his upper body close to Anastasia and poked Anastasia’s cheek with his finger.

“This face.”

“…”

“You regret it.”

Her heart is pounding.

Unexpected contact with a suddenly narrowed distance.

Anastasia’s heart began to beat as fast as it could explode.

As soon as she woke up from a long sleep, the situation was very dangerous.

However, in the situation, Wilhelm was staring at her with relatively subdued eyes, whether she was the only one whose heart was beating fast or not, she wasn’t sure.

“Don’t think like that.”

“…but.”

“I know you said that for me.”

Anastasia looked at Wilhelm with a bewildered expression.

“You’ve always been like that. Even if you pretend it’s not the case with words, you’re always there for me.”

“What do you mean…”

“Are you going to pretend to be innocent?”

Wilhelm immediately blocked Anastasia’s room for excuses, and leaned further toward Anastasia.

He was now so close that their lips could touch with even the slightest mistake, and Anastasia inhaled and exhaled her breath with a tensed look on her face.

“Didn’t you just say that because you thought you could reveal my innocence?”

“That’s…”

Anastasia showed signs of embarrassment and groaned in difficulty.

“Because I have to reveal the truth…”

“So for me in the end.”

Wilhelm approached Anastasia’s lips as if to kiss her, with an invisible smile on his lips.

“Is that right?”

A whisper fell on her lips. The enormous tension weighed on Anastasia’s whole mind as if she was about to lose her mind again.

Just in case he would kiss her like this, Anastasia tried not to provoke him as much as possible by carefully controlling her breathing.

She tried to keep her expression as casual as possible as she pretended not to be agitated, but it was questionable whether it worked.

It was proved immediately by the needless effort.

“…That’s right.”

With a grin-mixed murmur, he finally charged at her.