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Chapter 64
Was it intuition? Or just a chilling feeling?
The scene I saw yesterday between the two of them, and Frederic’s behavior right now—it all felt connected somehow.
Almost like talking to myself, I whispered the words:
“Tiago, curse orbs, and… Charlier.”
At Charlier’s name, Frederic flinched.
Just that reaction was enough for me to know.
‘It’s true! Charlier and Tiago are connected!’
Charlier, Tiago, and the curse orbs. They were all tied together somehow. And Frederic—he was anxious about it.
“……”
Everything was linked. It was clear.
“I see.”
I nodded to myself. Frederic looked startled by my calm response.
“So that’s why you came here, Frederic. I understand now.”
“……”
But his eyes looked filled with sadness. And strangely, the more sorrow I saw in him, the more disappointed I felt.
“Charlier… she’s the one who cursed me, isn’t she?”
A part of me wished it wasn’t true. But the answer was already written all over him.
The way his eyes shook, his hands trembled, the guilty expression on his face… it told me everything.
Yes—Charlier had cursed me. And Frederic knew it. He’d known all along but never told me.
“You knew. You knew it was true, but you still tried to hide it. For Charlier’s sake.”
Frederic didn’t deny it.
“…Ha.”
When I finally realized it, I felt strangely calm.
The fact that Charlier cursed me wasn’t the real shock. Whether it was Leo or Charlier—it didn’t matter. Neither of them were that important in my life.
What hurt was Frederic. That was what made my chest tighten.
Tears welled up in my eyes.
‘Frederic…’
The one person I thought I could trust. The one person I never expected to disappoint me like this.
Maybe… Frederic was the only person in this world I truly believed in since I ended up here.
And now, that Frederic had broken that fragile trust right in front of me.
The last rope I’d been holding onto snapped.
I turned my head away from him. The moment I did, tears rolled down my cheeks.
Frederic said nothing.
Would it have been better if he’d at least tried to explain himself?
If he’d said outright, I only kept it from you to protect Charlier—would that have hurt less?
“……”
A twisted smile tugged at my lips.
It didn’t matter anymore. Nothing he said, nothing he felt, could change this.
“Leave. I want to be alone.”
My voice came out harsh and broken, like a broken machine forced to work.
Frederic opened his mouth to speak but stopped. He quietly stood up.
He turned his head away, and I couldn’t see his face.
Behind his turned back, what kind of expression was he wearing? Guilt? Regret? Pity?
‘I don’t need guilt, regret, or pity.’
My gaze drifted away from him. I didn’t look back, not even as he walked out the door.
—Clack.
The sound of the door closing pierced my heart.
“……”
The tears I’d been holding back burst out, streaming down my face. I wiped them with both hands, glaring at the cold, closed door.
At that moment, I felt like I never wanted to see Frederic’s face again.
Why had I trusted Frederic so blindly?
Why had I leaned on him so much, even while knowing how he felt about Charlier?
Looking back, I felt pathetic.
“……”
I had no strength left. I didn’t eat lunch. I just cried and cried for hours, until my head ached.
It felt like all the water in my body had drained away. I reached out toward the glass on the table—
—Crash!
The glass slipped from my weak hand and shattered on the floor.
—Knock, knock, knock.
“Lady Delphine! Are you alright?”
It was Paella’s voice outside. But no sound came from my mouth. I’d cried so much my throat was dry and broken.
“……”
When she heard no answer, Paella carefully opened the door and rushed in.
Her eyes widened when she saw me.
“Ah… my lady! Your hand—it’s bleeding!”
I looked down. When the glass broke, a shard had cut me deeply.
‘Strange… why didn’t it hurt?’
It didn’t feel real. Like it was happening behind a screen, not to me. Even as the blood dripped down my hand, I felt nothing.
“If a shard is stuck inside, it’ll be bad!”
Paella quickly pulled out a clean handkerchief and wiped the blood away.
“Come, let’s wash your hand first, my lady.”
She supported me to stand up, but my legs had no strength. She half-carried me forward, struggling even though we were about the same height and build.
“Oh dear… oh my…”
She fussed over me as she carefully cleaned the wound, wincing as though she herself were the one hurt.
I stared blankly at her.
“My lady, luckily the glass didn’t stick inside. I’ll prepare something warm for you. Please sit here on the sofa.”
She helped me sit, then hurried to prepare tea.
She dipped a spoon into the tea, dropped one bit on her hand to test the temperature—like she was preparing baby food—and then brought me the cup.
Holding it with both hands, she offered it to me.
“Here, my lady. Drink this—you’ll feel a little better.”
I took the cup. The warmth against my fingertips cleared my head just a little.
—Clink.
“And… when I was little, whenever I felt upset, I always ate a sugar cube.”
She opened a small porcelain container and placed one sugar cube on the plate next to my tea.
I raised my eyes from her hands to her face.
She looked more mature than I first thought. At first, she had seemed clumsy and chatty, but right now she felt dependable.
I popped the sugar cube into my mouth. The sweetness melted instantly.
“How is it, my lady?”
Paella looked at me with wide, expectant eyes—so innocent.
I smiled faintly and nodded.
“See? I told you! Sugar cubes are the best when you’re feeling down. But if you eat too many, you’ll gain weight—I learned that the hard way.”
She exaggerated her words just to cheer me up. And somehow, it worked. I found myself laughing.
I sipped the warm tea again, and the heat spread through my body, calming me.
Paella’s sincerity had a way of melting people’s hearts.
‘Charlier…’
Suddenly, I thought of her.
The one who told me not to “act like a country bumpkin.”
The one who said being too kind to maids only made them arrogant.
‘No. The strange one is you, Charlier. You don’t know how to treat people sincerely.’
A firm strength rose in my chest. To stand against someone like Charlier, I had to strengthen my heart too.
Paella suddenly remembered something and nodded.
“My lady, I’ll bring some ice for your eyes.”
‘I didn’t know there was ice here… there’s no refrigerator.’
I just nodded.
She leaned close, lowering her voice as if sharing a secret.
“There’s an ice room in the underground palace storeroom. In winter, they collect ice and store it for a year. It’s so precious that only royalty can normally use it. But… I know the gatekeeper.”
Her cheeks turned red.
“Actually… the gatekeeper is my lover. Shh!”
She put a finger to her lips.
“This is a real secret. Nobody knows. If anyone finds out, I’ll be kicked out of here. Ah, why did I even say it? I’ve never told anyone before…”
And just like that, she was back to her bubbly, lively self.
I nodded to show I’d keep her secret. Her innocent face made me smile.
“Ice works well for swollen eyes. When I used to cry after being scolded by the senior maids, I would sneak some ice too.”
She picked up the empty dishes from the table.
“I’ll be back soon, my lady. Just rest here. And remember—everything I just said is a secret, okay?”
She gave a polite bow and left the room.
“…Haa.”
I had cried so much earlier, yet now I found myself smiling again.
Paella had filled the room with warmth and life.
“…Ah.”
The cut on my finger throbbed a little. Reality slowly sank back in.
And then my thoughts returned to Frederic.
—Ache.
My heart twinged painfully again. I pressed my hand against my chest.
It still felt empty inside. As if the place in my heart where Frederic had been was gone, leaving only a hollow space.
“……”
I drank another sip of tea.
‘Yes. I have to stay strong here. This isn’t an easy place to live.’
The ice Paella brought helped reduce the swelling in my eyes. I reapplied my makeup to cover my red face, then went out to walk in the garden.
‘Staying locked in my room only makes my head hurt.’
Unlike the chaos I’d gone through today, the garden was peaceful and beautiful.
