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Chapter 15
“When you came today, you weren’t crying.”
For a moment, I flinched, thinking he was talking about Bambi’s final moments before he died. But then I remembered that around this time, I cried almost every time Bambi came to see me. Of course, it was usually because of Father.
After swallowing the fully melted chocolate, I answered leisurely.
“Why? Disappointed?”
I must have looked too excited to see Bambi again. At my words, he frowned.
“You’re kind of weird today.”
“What do you mean?”
“You look happy.”
Well, obviously.
“Because I saw you.”
The moment I said it, I realized my mistake. The Bambi from before my regression would’ve smirked and teased me endlessly with, “You’re happy to see me? Why’s that?”
But the current Bambi only blinked a few times before his face turned bright red. Seeing such an unfamiliar reaction made my eyes widen.
Ah, what do I do? Now I kind of want to tease him.
“Here. Take this.”
Covering half his face with one hand, Bambi suddenly tossed me a palm-sized box. I quickly reached out and caught it.
“What’s this?”
“A birthday present.”
Goodness. Bambi, who never cared about manners or etiquette, had actually wrapped a gift for me.
I was about to open it immediately when his voice stopped me.
“Don’t open it now.”
“Why?”
“Just… stop asking questions. Check it after I leave.”
Wow, look at him being embarrassed.
Only then did I remember what this birthday present was.
An antidote.
A rare antidote capable of neutralizing any poison. Even for Bambi, it had been difficult to obtain, which was why the tiny vial inside the box was all there was.
Before my regression, I had looked at it and casually tossed it aside, thinking, When would I ever get poisoned? But later, that antidote had saved my life at a crucial moment.
‘It’s strange, experiencing this again.’
I stared quietly at the box when Bambi, still sitting on the balcony railing, asked,
“Did they lock you up again?”
“Yeah,” I answered.
“And they didn’t feed you?”
“Yeah.”
Bambi turned his gaze toward me, his expression hardening.
“But you… what happened to your face?”
“Hm?”
“Who hit you?”
“Oh.”
Right. Father had slapped me earlier. By tomorrow it would probably swell even more. I was glad Bambi had come before it got worse.
Bambi pressed again.
“I asked who did it.”
“Ah, the Marquis. You know what Father’s temper is like.”
Landing lightly from the balcony railing onto the floor, Bambi asked,
“Want me to kill him?”
What kind of—
Wait, would that actually be… okay? No, no. Patricide was still a bit much…
The red-eyed boy watched my reaction carefully before laughing hard enough for his black hair to sway. I felt a little nervous watching him sit so casually near the edge of the railing.
“You’ve changed a bit, Sophie. Last time, when I said something like that, you cried and screamed at me to leave.”
Ugh. I wanted to go back and slap my past self. Embarrassed, I cleared my throat and answered calmly.
“I’m done desperately trying to earn Father’s love now.”
“That’s good.”
“And I’m giving up on becoming Empress too.”
“That’s goo— wait, what?”
Bambi’s eyes widened. Even now, his ruby-red eyes were beautiful. Since I’d already started, I continued.
“And I’m quitting the plan to assassinate Leoni. You can call back all the spies and assassins we planted in the Imperial Palace.”
Bambi stayed silent for a long moment.
Which meant he didn’t like it.
He also seemed flustered by my sudden declaration.
Why? I thought he’d be happy about it. Just the manpower alone I’d hired through him had already been considerable. Wouldn’t it be better if he could use them elsewhere?
Standing outside any longer made me cold, so I headed back into the bedroom. Bambi followed after me, closing the balcony door behind him.
“So then… does that mean our contract is over now?”
His voice sounded strangely weak, as though he were forcing the words out.
But what was he talking about?
“Why would it be? You’re still acting as my bodyguard too.”
The assassination battle between Leoni and me had always gone both ways. Even if I declared I was stopping, there was no guarantee Leoni would do the same. And if I wanted to deal with Leoni, I still needed some kind of trump card on my side.
At my answer, Bambi’s expression visibly brightened. He raised one hand to cover his mouth, then walked over to the tea table in my bedroom and sat down arrogantly.
“Well, if you need me, I guess I can’t help it.”
“That’s not exactly what I said—”
“I’m a busy person, but I suppose I’ll have to make time for you. From now on too.”
I could clearly see the corners of his lips lifting.
Ah, right. There was something I needed to tell him.
As I walked toward the tea table, I spoke casually.
“Oh, by the way, I have a son now.”
“WHAT?!”
His crimson eyes immediately flicked toward my stomach beneath my nightgown.
What kind of misunderstanding was he having?!
But Bambi reacted faster than I did. With a fierce look I had never once seen from him before, he demanded,
“Who’s the father? Don’t tell me it’s your fiancé?”
“No!”
What a horrifying thing to say!
“Then who is it?”
Suddenly curious, instead of correcting his misunderstanding, I asked,
“If you found out… what would you do?”
Bambi looked at me as if to say, Why are you even asking something so obvious? Then he grinned and straightened his posture dramatically, pretending to think deeply.
“I’ve never thought about marriage before. It’s sudden, but fine. I’ll help you forget your late husband.”
Stop talking like my imaginary husband is already dead!
Before the misunderstanding grew worse, I hurriedly explained everything honestly—how my younger sister Elouise had hired mercenaries to deliver a child named Arne and a letter all the way to the Glentino Duchy, and how the child believed I was his mother and was currently staying there.
I briefly described Arne’s appearance before continuing.
“Please look into this child named Arne, Bambi. And find out where Elouise is too. Honestly, what on earth has she been doing?”
“So you’re just going to leave them alone? That Arne kid and the Archduke?”
Meaning: Shouldn’t we kill them?
I firmly shook my head. I wished he’d stop jumping to assassination as the solution to everything.
Resting his chin on one hand, Bambi looked dissatisfied as he thought things over. But I already knew he’d agree in the end.
Just as expected, after a while he grinned.
“Fine. Now I’m curious too.”
And I added one more request.
I asked him to investigate my father, Marquis Bartoli.
I had a feeling I’d soon need to get leverage on him for some… negotiations. Definitely negotiations, not blackmail.
Bambi seemed especially pleased with that final request before leaving.
The next morning.
The ones who woke me up were not my personal maids.
They were unfamiliar maids.
Which meant they belonged to the Lion faction.
“Hurry and get up, Young Lady.”
The one who spoke was the orange-haired maid who had mocked me when I spat out the brownie during my meal with Leoni. Looking utterly unwilling, she brought over a basin for washing and attended to me.
Splash.
Water hit my face. Even though it was obvious one of my cheeks was swollen, she scrubbed my face roughly.
Meanwhile, another maid searched my room with hawk-like eyes, checking whether I had hidden any food. While tidying the bedding, she even glanced under the bed.
‘Good thing I told Bambi not to bring food last night.’
Instead, I’d stuffed myself with extra chocolates beforehand.
The maid washing my face spoke.
“Your skin’s gotten rough, Young Lady. Lady Leoni’s skin isn’t like this at all.”
“…What?”
“Well, it’s obvious why the Master favors Lady Leoni more. She’s far prettier and more capable than you.”
Ha… would you look at that.
The maid finished speaking and practically threw the towel she had used to wipe my face.
Only then did I understand her intentions.
Head maid Gemma must have instructed her to provoke me into causing a scene. That way Father would dislike me even more.
But instead of getting angry, I quietly asked,
“What’s your name?”
“It’s Shima.”
“I see, Shima. You must think I’m easy to push around.”
Usually, when a noble young lady said something like that, maids would realize they’d crossed a line.
But not this one.
Instead, she looked at me with anticipation.
“And what if I do?”
As expected, she’d been ordered to provoke me.
Now that I knew her scheme, there was no reason to play along.
So instead, I shamelessly changed my tone.
“No, actually, I quite like your attitude. I should call Gemma and appoint you as my personal maid. I’ll tell her how deeply touched I am by your devotion. It’s hard to find a maid with such loyalty.”
“Wh-What?!”
“Why? Don’t you want that?”
Of course, she couldn’t openly say no.
But the moment I picked up the servant bell as if to summon the head maid, Shima panicked and reached toward me.
I grabbed her wrist immediately and forced it downward into the washbasin.
Splash!
Water flew everywhere. My dress got wet, but I didn’t care.
Losing her balance, Shima fell and slammed her knees against the floor.
I yanked her closer toward me and whispered,
