n

n

n

nHer eyes, which had been trembling in shock, gradually blurred with sadness.

nHannah shook her head, covering her mouth with her hands to keep from making a sound.

nTears fell to the floor.

n“Hannah, don’t cry.”

nAstelle wrapped her arms around Hannah’s shoulders.

nThe tears continued to flow from Hannah’s cheeks until they touched Astelle’s shoulders.

n“Lady Astelle……the fact that I wasn’t by your side when you needed me the most…… I’m so sorry……”

nThe two hugged each other and shared warmth in the quiet bedroom where the dawn light permeated.

nHannah did not ask who the father was.

nHannah had seen Astelle who passionately loved Kaizen up close.

nShe also saw her deposed and left after getting married and spent her first night.

nAfter that, what happened to her?

nShe did not ask who the child’s father was and where he was now.

nAstelle decided to just tell the truth.

nShe no longer had to lie to Hannah.

nNo, she didn’t want to lie to Hannah anymore.

n“He is the emperor’s son.”

nShe whispered quietly into Hannah’s ear.

n“Theor is His Majesty’s son. I changed his eye color with a potion. You have to hide his identity. If it is discovered that he is the prince, Theor will be in danger.”

nWe must hide this secret until we return home, until we are safe.

nThere was no need to elaborate further.

nWith Astelle’s brief explanation, Hannah will be able to understand what happened before and after.

nHannah stopped crying and lifted her head.

nShe swore to Astelle, wiping her damp cheeks.

n“I will help you, even at the cost of my life.”

n

n***

n

nFortunately, Theor was refreshed in the morning.

n“Blynn!”

nAs Theor got up, a dog lying under the bed ran up to the boy and licked his cheek.

nTheor grinned and hugged Blynn.

n“Theor, are you okay now?”

n“Yes!”

nTheor patted Blynn’s fur and looked up at Astelle.

n“I’m hungry.”

nAstelle smiled relievedly.

nHannah, who was watching, also smiled.

nTheor’s complexion has improved and he has regained his vitality.

nThe doctor who came early in the morning also examined Theor and gave a definite answer.

n“You’ve recovered quickly. The young master appears to have been born with a very healthy constitution.”

nHannah brought a thinly fried potato pancake and hot soup for Theor.

nAfter Theor had fully recovered, he emptied the food Hannah had brought.

nAstelle walked out of the bedroom after watching Theor eat breakfast.

nAstelle went into the study with her grandfather and said, “We must leave as soon as Theor recovers.”

nAfter her maternal grandfather came to the bedroom to see the little Theor, he entered the study with Astelle.

n“Is he all right?”

n“We’ll have to see him recover, but I don’t think there will be any problems at this rate.”

nTheor was originally healthy, so if there are no special problems, he will recover smoothly.

nIt was fortunate that Theor was unharmed, but Astelle was still uneasy.

n‘We have to leave quickly before something unexpected happens again.’

nUntil yesterday, she thought she would be leaving the capital and going back to the Eastern countryside.

nBut, Theor fell sick one night and the schedule was postponed.

nLuckily he’s better now.

nWe should leave quickly when the opportunity arises. Astelle thought.

nThis time, she was going to leave without telling Kaizen in advance.

n‘I have already received permission, so I can just leave.’

nI didn’t want to get caught in another unexpected accident.

nAstelle spent the morning doing those calculations.

nBut towards the afternoon, a loud noise was heard from the front door.

nShe went downstairs and saw the attendant coming in with a large box.

nAfter that, a man and a woman who looked like commoners followed with another box.

nAstelle called for Hannah, who was standing by the front door.

n“Hannah, what is this?”

n“Lady Astelle……”

nBefore Hannah could explain, the maid carrying the box greeted Astelle.

n“Lady Astelle, His Majesty the Emperor has sent a gift.”

nThe man and woman standing behind him also bowed deeply to Astelle.

n“Who are these people? ”

n“They are a couple who used to play puppet show at the market.”

n“Puppet show?”

nAstelle suddenly remembered the puppet show she saw at the fair last night.

nIt was a play in which a doll was hung by a string that moved in a box.

nTheor couldn’t take his eyes off that puppet show.

nThe man and woman who received Astelle’s gaze came with a box and spoke quickly.

n“I was ordered to entertain the young master.”

nThe servant took them to the bedroom where Theor was.

nThe box that the servant brought with him was full of toys.

nCotton dolls and balls, small human dolls, and elaborately made castles, carriages, and cannons.

nAs expected, Theor was very fond of it.

n“Are they really doing a puppet show here?” (Theor)

n“Yes, His Majesty has ordered it.”

nAstelle answered as she suppressed her slightly complicated feelings.

nTheor smiled brightly as he held a ball woven from a gold thread from the box.

n“His Majesty is really kind.”

n“……”

nMeanwhile, the puppeteer man and woman laid out the play box in front of the bed and started the puppet show.

nTheor looked at the stage as if possessed.

nAstelle looked at Theor, who looked happy, with a bitter look.

n

n***

n

nFlorin went to the bedroom of her mother, the Marchioness.

nThe boudoir attached to the bedroom was used as a private space by the Marchioness.

nInside the room were her mother and Naen, the youngest of her sisters.

nWhile Florin was as pretty as a doll, Naen’s plump, round face didn’t have many pretty corners.

nNaen wore a drab gray wool dress with her dark brown hair roughly tied up.

nBecause of her outfit, she looked more like a nun than a lady of a noble family.

nThere was a frameset on the table.

n‘Come to think of it, it’s time for embroidery.’

nThe noblewomen chatted over the afternoon when there was nothing to do.

nHowever, the Marchioness did not even think about it because she was busy complaining to her youngest daughter.

nShe said, “I’m so pissed off……”

n‘She has said it a million times.’

nFlorin sat down feeling fed up.

n“Mother, don’t cry.”

nPoor Naen was busy trying to comfort her mother.

nShe had no special talents. With her ugly appearance, her main role was to be a puppeteer and consolation to her mother, the Marchioness.

n“I get pissed off when I think about what she did to me and I can’t sleep.”

nThe Marchioness who was wearing a green damask dress was twirling her beautiful blonde hair.

nShe had three daughters, but she always looked younger than her age.

n“His Majesty doesn’t even care about any women, but he brought that woman to the capital, gave her a mansion, and visited her often.”

n“She was the wife of His Majesty, Mother.”

nFlorin said bluntly, inserting the embroidery needle.

n“It is not unusual for His Majesty to visit her. She made it easy for him to finish the southern estate work.”

nThe Marchioness opened her eyes.

nShe looked like she wanted to yell at Florin, but she just kept her mouth shut.

n“Mother……don’t be too mad. Lady Astelle is leaving soon.” (Naen)

n“They said she should have left earlier, but she didn’t. When the day comes to leave, I’m sure she won’t leave again for other reasons.” (The Marchioness)

n“There was no choice this time. Her nephew was sick.” (Naen)

n“Was he sick?” (Florin)

nFlorin raised her head at those words.

nThe Marchioness, ignoring her second daughter, shouted angrily again.

n“I mean, that little boy got sick from eating some kind of fruit. Is it Lintail fruit? Why did he get sick from eating a common thing.”

nShe clicked her tongue.

n“It must be because that brat is so weak, surely he won’t live long,” the Marchioness continued.

nFlorin lost her words at the sight of her mother pouring a curse to a five-year-old, then she framed the embroidery again.

nFlorin, lost in her thoughts while embroidering, stopped and asked her mother, “What did he eat?”

n“It’s called Lintail. It’s just a common fruit,” the Marchioness replied with a sneer.

nShe had bribed a maid to spy on Astelle’s mansion.

nSo she knew perfectly well what was going on inside.

nAgain, the bad words about Astelle continued.

nBut Florin had other ideas.

nShe had seen Astelle separating the Lintail fruit on a cake at the tea party she had previously attended with her mother.

n

n***

n

nThe two days passed smoothly.

nTheor seemed to have fully recovered now.

nHe rolled over on the blanket of the bed, playing with the teddy bear, and as soon as he saw Astelle, he ran into her arms.

nTheor clung to Astelle’s arms as she patted his face.

n“I want to go out and play!”

nAstelle hugged him tenderly and patted him on the back.

n“Not yet. The doctor told you to stay in the bedroom for five days.”

n“Ugh……”

n