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CHAPTER 92…
My eyes widened in surprise.
At the same time, Idris’s brows furrowed. He looked as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard.
“Without me—just Leticia?”
“Yes. Only Lady Cloel.”
“Why?”
“I do not know His Majesty’s deeper intentions. I was merely instructed to bring Lady Cloel alone. Forgive me, Your Highness.”
Idris took my hand and said,
“Don’t think too much about it. You can just come with me. Whatever he wishes to tell you, I’m sure it’s something I should hear too.”
It was obvious he intended to ignore the imperial order and accompany me, in case I felt uncomfortable going alone.
But—
“I’ll go by myself.”
I refused him first.
“I happen to have something I want to say to His Majesty as well.”
Of course, that was a lie.
I didn’t want Idris to break an imperial command because of me.
More than that, I trusted the emperor—who had treated me with dignity in our last conversation, even though he could have easily overpowered me with his authority.
Idris narrowed his eyes slightly, studying my face as if doubting my words.
“Is this something I’m not allowed to hear?”
“Yes.”
At my firm answer, Idris looked displeased but released my hand.
“Fine. I’ll wait here quietly. Go on.”
The chamberlain, who had been waiting, led me out of the banquet hall to the royal family’s lounge.
“Your Majesty, I have brought Lady Cloel.”
“Enter.”
Inside, the emperor was the only one waiting for me.
As I’d expected, the empress was not present.
“I greet Your Majesty.”
I offered the proper greeting and sat. He got straight to the point.
“I hear that just before the auction today, the painting was stolen.”
My heart sank at the unexpected subject.
I’d tried to keep the matter as quiet as possible so it wouldn’t cause trouble.
‘…Well, I did involve one of the palace’s attendants. Of course he’d know.’
Even if the problem had been resolved, it hadn’t never happened—I couldn’t escape responsibility.
“I apologize. With so many people, including Your Majesty, showing such generosity, I should have been more careful—”
“Why did you hide the fact that the painting was stolen?”
“Well, that’s…”
“You caught the culprit, and since the painting was returned, you must have been able to identify who was behind it. It would have been the perfect chance to deal a blow to the duke.”
The emperor spoke as if he could read my mind.
The memories from my previous life were still horrific, and Phaidan’s constant interference and attempts to drag me down disgusted me.
If I’d followed my heart, I would have gladly exposed his pettiness in front of everyone. But—
“I thought what could be gained by covering it up was far more valuable than the momentary satisfaction of revealing the truth.”
“And what is that value?”
“Everyone’s goodwill toward today’s charity bazaar.”
The emperor gave me a look, as if telling me to explain further.
“Her Majesty the Empress was the first to lend me her ear, Sir Hildes genuinely cherishes the children and cares for the empire’s future…”
“…”
“And the children want more of their friends to have the same opportunity to learn as they do.”
If I had revealed Phaidan’s actions today, people would have forgotten about the project itself—remembering only gossip about me and him.
“The true focus of today’s bazaar should be the project Her Majesty and Sir Hildes planned. They deserved the spotlight.”
“…”
“So, without meaning to, I ended up hiding the matter even from Your Majesty. I apologize.”
I bowed my head, ready to accept any criticism for my decision.
But—
“No. That’s not your fault. It’s the palace knights’ fault for failing to guard properly.”
…What?
I blinked blankly.
‘Did His Majesty just… shield me?’
When I looked up in surprise, I saw a faint smile on his face.
“Thank you—for making Vanessa’s wish, and the children’s wish, come true.”
For a moment, the emperor’s smiling face overlapped with Idris’s in my mind.
And suddenly, I understood why His Majesty had been so displeased with me before.
‘Because I’m a precious younger sister who resembles him.’
A genuine smile spread across my lips as well.
“I only did what I ought to have done.”
Perhaps because I felt closer to him after seeing this resemblance to Idris, I added a lighthearted jest—something I’d gotten used to saying when teasing Idris.
“If I may add, just for peace of mind—”
“…?”
“This time, all I did was repay Her Majesty’s kindness, so Your Majesty doesn’t owe me anything.”
I was referring to the first time I’d met him, when he’d been reluctant to take back the empress’s late mother’s keepsake because he didn’t want to feel indebted.
He seemed to recall it too, letting out a quiet chuckle.
“You do hold a grudge longer than I expected.”
“It was our first meeting, Your Majesty. Not something one forgets easily.”
“Don’t worry. This time, I have nothing to trade with you.”
And with that, my third conversation with the emperor came to an end.
When I returned to the banquet hall, I noticed someone important was missing.
‘Did Idris step out for some air?’
I decided to take a breather myself and accepted a glass of wine from a passing maid.
As I sipped and looked around, the hall was filled with joy and friendly chatter.
Maybe this peace was thanks to the absence of someone I had expected to cause trouble.
‘Father didn’t come.’
Not only was he absent, but there’d been no word from him.
In my previous life, my father and stepmother had thought of me as their crutch.
By now, they would usually have caused some incident and come running to me to clean it up.
It was suspicious that those who loved to flaunt themselves hadn’t shown up to the empress’s tea party or the charity auction.
‘I should send someone to check soon.’
While I was thinking, I spotted a familiar face.
‘Ah—Mikael!’
Come to think of it, I hadn’t gotten a chance to thank him for his hard work earlier.
Of course, I had thanked everyone involved right after the bazaar ended, but since Mikael had been the one helping me most closely the entire time, it seemed right to do it personally.
I followed him out of the banquet hall.
“Sir Hildes!”
“Ah, my lady.”
“Could we speak for a moment?”
We stepped out onto a nearby balcony.
Leaning on the railing, I felt the night breeze—cooling the heat of the day—brush past me.
“Thank you for all your help these past days. Thanks to you, we were able to finish the bazaar without any problems.”
“No, my lady, I should be the one thanking you. You handled everything so wonderfully.”
“Thank you. Because of your suggestion to meet the children directly, and through planning this event, I feel like I’ve become a better person.”
When I first returned to the past, I thought I wouldn’t mind becoming a villainess—that it was better than being pitied.
But through this project, I realized something.
I truly wanted to be a good person.
As I smiled with satisfaction, a serious voice came from beside me.
“No, my lady—you’ve been a good and admirable person to me from the very beginning.”
“From the beginning?”
“When I was a novice attending my first social gathering, it was your offer to dance that allowed me to fit in at all.”
Vaguely, a now-faded memory from before my return surfaced—of a young boy unable to blend into high society.
“I’ve liked you since then.”
“…”
“So when the administration office got the request to assist you, I immediately took the position. I think that might be why I went to find you right away that day.”
Words that would normally have been stammered out with a bright red face, Mikael said calmly, though with a faintly bitter smile.
“Ah, but I didn’t bring this up to make you uncomfortable…”
The bitterness faded, replaced by a gentle smile.
“I just wanted you to know—you’re the kind of person who could steal someone’s heart.”
Mikael was a good man.
Born a noble, yet kind enough to care for the orphans.
Even now, instead of pushing his feelings forward, he set boundaries first so I wouldn’t feel awkward.
It wasn’t a confession expecting an answer, but I still owed him one.
It’s only proper to respond to someone who’s shared their heart sincerely.
“I…”
I was choosing my words and about to speak when—
“There you are, Leticia.”
I turned toward the voice to see Idris stepping through the balcony door.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”
And for some reason… his eyes were cold as ice.
