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Chapter : 13
For the five days Estellin did not wake up, he came to understand anew what it truly meant to have one’s blood run dry.
He had always loathed her to a terrible degree, yet seeing her collapsed like that made his chest ache.
A day after she fell, the empress—Lysianthus, Estellin’s older sister—stormed into the mansion without a word.
As soon as Estellin collapsed, a message had been sent to the imperial palace, and it seemed she had rushed over immediately.
“Estellin!!”
Lysianthus barged in and grabbed Luciano, demanding to know what was wrong with Estellin.
Only after hearing his explanation did she finally calm her racing heart.
She sat on the chair beside the bed, holding Estellin’s hand, and every three minutes she shot Luciano a sharp glare.
She looked at him as though her adorable, beloved youngest sister had collapsed because he had treated her cruelly.
Up to that point, Luciano could endure it.
But three hours after Lysianthus left, Estellin’s older brother arrived—the young duke of Celedina, Erion.
“Your Grace!”
“What brings you here, Young Duke?”
“I heard from Her Majesty that my sister collapsed, so I came to see her.”
From that moment on, his headache began.
Erion asked the same questions as Lysianthus, stared at Estellin for a long while, then left the grand ducal estate.
The next day, Duke and Duchess Celedina visited.
As if to prove they were Erion and Lysianthus’s parents, their behavior was exactly the same.
Only after they left did Luciano finally get a moment to rest.
“Haa… what a headache.”
On the third day since her collapse, the front courtyard of the grand ducal residence filled with letters, bouquets, and gifts wishing for Estellin’s recovery—sent by noble young ladies who adored her.
“What is all this now…?”
“These are tokens of concern from the young ladies who wish for Her Grace’s recovery.”
“Place them all in my wife’s sitting room.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Only after all the gifts were moved did Luciano finally have time to stay properly by Estellin’s side.
“I heard your constitution was weak before… so it was true.”
Thinking back, even in the early days of their marriage, Estellin would fall ill or collapse at the slightest provocation.
At the time, he had thought she was desperately seeking attention.
But as he looked at her face, still unconscious after days, he began to hate himself for thinking that way.
“I’m sorry… my lady.”
He did not have the courage to speak while facing her.
So he could only say it while looking at her sleeping face.
When she finally woke up, he was able to see Estellin’s eyes again after a long time.
“Mm…”
When she opened her eyes, he didn’t know exactly what he felt—but he was relieved.
Why was it that, even though he hated her so much, seeing her awake made him feel at ease?
‘Even I don’t understand myself,’ he thought.
Two days after her recovery, a welcome visitor arrived at the grand ducal residence.
“Estellin!!!”
“Sister?”
It was Lysianthus.
Having heard that her sick sister had recovered, the empress discarded all dignity and ran straight to her.
“People will gossip. The empress of the empire, running around without decorum or authority like this.”
“My adorable, precious sister woke up—what do decorum and authority matter?”
“Sister… I wasn’t that sick, really.”
Estellin smiled to reassure her, but Lysianthus still looked worried.
“Let’s go somewhere to recuperate right away! When Khalid married me, he gifted me a villa in the south. Let’s go there and let you recover properly.”
“It’s fine, Sister. I’m really fully recovered.”
“Please go, my lady.”
A cool voice spoke from behind her.
Turning around, she saw Luciano standing there in formal attire.
“Luciano?”
“I believe it would be best for you to rest well, just as Her Majesty says.”
“But I need to push forward with preparations for winter, and the orphanage project as well—”
“You can do that after you return. If you fall ill again, it will disrupt everything.”
Unable to withstand both Lysianthus’s and Luciano’s persuasion, she nodded.
“Alright… I’ll go. But only for one week. After that, no matter what anyone says, I’m going back to work—don’t stop me.”
These were things the original Estellin never did, and that was why she wanted to do even better.
Only then did Lysianthus finally relax, letting out a breath as she clasped Estellin’s hand.
“Thank goodness. Sera?”
She urgently called out the name of the maid behind Estellin.
“Pack Estellin’s belongings at once. We’re leaving immediately.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Sister, why are you preparing so quickly?”
“We have to leave right now.”
Having not left the imperial palace in a long time since becoming empress, Lysianthus was even more excited and eager to depart.
After saying that, she spoke to the maid she had brought with her.
“Tell Khalid this: for one week, I’m not the empress, but Estellin’s sister. Tell him not to look for me. Understood?”
“W-What? Your Majesty! You can’t—!”
The maid’s face turned pale, but Lysianthus ignored her and dragged Estellin into the room.
“Estellin! What should we play first?”
“Sister… are you sure this is okay?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. I took care of all urgent matters before coming.”
As soon as they finished preparing, Lysianthus and Estellin warped to the southern villa.
The southern villa was truly beautiful.
It was clearly a gift worthy of an emperor giving to his beloved wife.
A fairy-tale-like mansion, a garden blooming with roses and peonies, and just behind it, a sparkling emerald sea.
Just looking at it felt healing.
‘Even illnesses you didn’t have would disappear here.’
After unpacking, they went down to the beach.
“Estellin! Look at this!!”
“I’m looking, Sister.”
Lysianthus smiled brightly, like a child seeing the sea for the first time.
“This is the first time I’ve traveled like this since I was fourteen.”
“Really…?”
“Yes. After that, it was lessons for becoming empress, marrying Khalid, and living frantically as the empire’s mother. I never really got to play like this.”
“Seems like you’re the one who needed recovery, not me.”
Laughing, Estellin played in the sea with her sister, splashing water and acting like a real family.
‘But this guilt won’t go away.’
The thought that this happiness should belong not to her, but to the true Estellin of the original story, weighed heavily on her chest.
“Next time, let’s come with Brother too.”
“Yes, Sister.”
They played until evening, then decided to eat out and entered a restaurant.
According to imperial etiquette, the empress was never allowed to go out privately or without guards—but Khalid had approved it, allowing them to relax.
“Welcome.”
Fortunately, no one recognized them thanks to their disguises.
‘Good thing we wore wigs.’
“What would you like to order?”
“Two salmon steaks and a bottle of this region’s famous wine.”
“Understood.”
After enjoying their meal, they returned to the villa.
“Your Majesty, Your Grace, welcome back.”
“I’m tired. Could you prepare the bath?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“And bring me a glass of champagne.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
While her sister bathed, Estellin sipped champagne and gazed at the beautiful night sea.
It was emotional and serene, yet her thoughts were weighed down with work.
‘Luciano must be exhausted, handling my duties too. He just returned from the northern campaign… I feel bad for burdening him.’
Just then, a clear knock sounded, and Lysianthus entered wearing a robe.
“What are you doing, Estellin?”
“Drinking champagne.”
“I brought macarons. Let’s have them together.”
They sat on the bed, drinking champagne and eating macarons.
For that moment, they simply enjoyed themselves, unaware of what those left behind in the capital might be thinking.
“Welcome, Grand Duke.”
“I greet the empire’s one and only sun, His Majesty the Emperor.”
Ever since Lysianthus’s declaration, Khalid had been anxious to the point of madness.
“At such a late hour, why have you summoned me?”
“The empress abandoning me and running off to the south….”
Luciano felt a headache coming on, knowing he would once again have to indulge the lovesick emperor’s complaints.
“She didn’t abandon you, Your Majesty. She merely went to rest with my wife.”
“She should be resting with me….”
Khalid pouted and returned to his work.
‘Is my wife doing well?’
Watching Khalid like that made Luciano think of Estellin as well.
And those thoughts only grew stronger once he returned to the grand ducal residence.
“Your Grace, welcome back.”
“Yes. My wife… ah, she’s in the south.”
The butler smiled faintly at Luciano’s demeanor and guided him to the bath.
“I’ll have the water prepared. Please go and rest.”
The mansion, already desolate, felt even emptier.
All because Estellin was gone.
Luciano soaked in the bath for a long time, thinking of her, before emerging.
“Your Grace, I’ve brought the documents Her Grace was handling.”
“Leave them there and go.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
After watching Edgar set down the papers, Luciano headed to the room where the portraits of the former grand duke and duchess were kept.
“Father. Mother.”
There hung a portrait of a smiling couple, along with a painting Luciano had drawn with them as a child.
His father, with blond hair and violet eyes, and his mother, with golden hair and black eyes, were a perfectly matched couple—ideal partners.
Though their marriage began as a political arrangement, they fell in love and cherished Luciano, the fruit of that union, more than anything.
“Luciano? Come here.”
He could still remember his mother’s warm voice and his father’s laughter.
Forcing a smile to shake off the memories, he left the room.
“Your Grace… you went into that room.”
Ed, who had been searching for him, studied Luciano’s expression, worried he might be grieving.
Luciano spoke calmly.
“Yes. I found myself thinking of Father and Mother after a long time.”
Seeing how Estellin had changed reminded him of the Estellin who once mocked his parents’ deaths—and made him want to see their portraits again.
