TRETTHD 37

#37. The One Who Endures

After taking a moment to settle the emotions that had welled up, the once-silent bedchamber gradually filled with Belia’s chatter.

“When I opened my eyes, I found myself asleep in the garden.”

Even lying down, Belia didn’t stop talking. It was a secret she had desperately wanted to tell someone for so long.

Until now, she had been forced to keep her complaints to herself—forced to assess, understand, and accept the situation alone.

The fact that she had regressed was astonishing and bewildering. But the doubt—would anyone truly believe her?—had piled up so much that, in the end, she had borne it all in silence.

“And Raul was by your side?”

Khalid, lying beside her and speaking with the gentle tone one might use to soothe a child, asked the question.

Belia gave a small nod.

“I was so startled that I shook him off and ran straight into the castle… and there—my whole family was alive, the castle was safe…”

Her words trailed off as the memories of that moment resurfaced.

Khalid tucked the blanket around her and pulled her into his arms.

“Once I grasped the situation, I thought… maybe this time I could change the future.”

“That must have been when you sent me the letter.”

Belia recalled that moment.

If Clozet had never mentioned the Empire’s Second Prince, she might have tried to find another way.

Thinking back, she realized—wasn’t Clozet the true starting point of this entire turn of events?

“If Clozet hadn’t brought you up, we might never have met.”

It was a serious remark, but Khalid burst into hearty laughter.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Because that could never have happened.”

His voice still carried traces of amusement.

“I told you—if we had so much as brushed past each other by chance, I would never have let you go.”

Tch. He was always good with words.

Belia shot him a half-pouting glance.

Then, as if something had just occurred to him, Khalid asked,

“Did you ever hear how I lived… there?”

He called the time Belia had experienced “there,” as if acknowledging she had truly gone back to the past—speaking of it as though it had been real.

“…Raul became Emperor, and you became a Grand Duke. To eliminate any possible danger, Raul tried to have you killed multiple times, but he failed every time.”

Khalid let out a scoffing laugh.

“How petty.”

Belia couldn’t help but chuckle.

Petty—how perfectly that word fit.

“In the end, you went to your granted territory and never returned to the capital… until the day I died.”

“Is that so? Strange.”

He looked genuinely puzzled.

Belia agreed and continued.

“I suspected you were plotting something, but Raul wouldn’t listen to me.”

“Tsk. Foolish man.”

Khalid clicked his tongue in genuine derision.

“Yes, he was foolish. Which is probably why he killed me.”

He fell silent for a moment, then asked cautiously,

“…Even at your last moment, did you have feelings for Raul? That would… hurt a little.”

Belia shook her head.

“Of course not. Any feelings I had for him had vanished long ago. The only thought I had left was that I had to survive, no matter what.”

Feelings for Raul?

They had been worn down, broken, and eroded away completely after he became Emperor—leaving only that miserable emptiness behind.

“…I endured like that for eight years.”

At her words, Khalid stroked her hair with a look of pride. Belia caught his hand to stop him.

She wanted to talk to him longer, but his constant petting was making her drowsy.

“Don’t keep touching me… you’re making me sleepy.”

She tried to force her eyelids to stay open, but no matter how hard she tried, they grew heavier.

“Kha…lid…”

Covering her eyes with his hand, Khalid whispered,

“It’s alright. Sleep well. Dream sweetly.”

Those warm words were the last thing she heard before darkness claimed her vision.

“Haa…”

Once he confirmed she was asleep, Khalid let out a sigh.

“Eight years, huh.”

He counted out the long stretch of time she must have endured.

Was that why she had built such walls around herself?

Was that the reason she kept pushing him away, insisting their relationship was nothing more than a contract?

Because Raul had betrayed her.

The thought that Raul was the reason she could no longer trust anyone made his insides churn with fury.

“No… I can’t just let that go.”

Khalid decided Raul deserved a little “gift” of his own, and lightly patted Belia’s back.

The road to the Empress’s palace was eerily quiet. There were hardly any ladies-in-waiting or attendants, and few guards at their posts.

“Shall I come with you?”

At the entrance, Khalid asked with concern, but Belia shook her head. This meeting had to be between herself and the Empress alone.

Besides, she didn’t want to drag him somewhere his whole body seemed to reject.

“Thank you for doing this for me.”

Even as she smiled, Khalid’s face remained tense and unyielding.

“Then, I’ll be back.”

She squeezed his hand, then let go, and pushed open the heavy doors of the Empress’s palace.

Walking through the empty corridors, she reached the Empress’s chamber. The air was hazy with faint smoke, the whole space wrapped in a peculiar scent.

The Empress sat upright on a sofa, her expression lifeless as she looked at Belia.

It was like this before, too.

Belia remembered the first time she had greeted the Empress in her previous life—the heavy atmosphere of the palace and the Empress’s dark expression had left her unable to hide her shock.

Taking a quiet breath, Belia approached.

“Glory to the Moon of the Empire. I am Belia, First Princess of the Kingdom of Ronica.”

She executed the imperial greeting flawlessly, dipping her knees slightly before standing straight again.

For a brief moment, something flickered in the Empress’s eyes.

“Thank you for granting me your time despite my presumptuous request.”

“…Sit.”

The Empress pointed to the sofa opposite her with an emotionless face.

Then, she simply stared at Belia for a long while, saying nothing.

When she finally spoke, it was with a cold smirk curling her lips.

“…I wonder why the Emperor allowed a girl like you to be with Khalid.”

The sudden remark left Belia puzzled.

“May I ask what you mean?”

“I hear you chose Khalid. Word even reached here—that the Princess of Ronica was weighing the Imperial Princes in both hands, deciding between them.”

“That’s—”

“Enough. I didn’t mean it as a scolding.”

She cut Belia off in a flat voice and gestured to the maid behind her.

The maid slowly placed tea and dessert on the table between them, then just as slowly left the room.

Belia’s gaze followed her to the door—and noticed it hadn’t been fully closed. Her brows knitted slightly.

The maid’s demeanor lacked any respect for royalty, and it felt more like she was lingering to eavesdrop.

“I don’t like you.”

The Empress, seemingly unconcerned with the maid’s behavior, took a sip of tea and gave a faint smile.

A moment later, there was a small click—the door shutting completely.

Spying…?

Who was meant to hear this conversation?

Belia’s eyes flicked quickly around the room.

Then the Empress spoke again.

“Your choosing Khalid was unexpected. I thought you were just a sheltered, naive girl who knew nothing of the world and dreamed only of a happy future.”

Her gaze locked with Belia’s.

“What did you want from Khalid when you chose him?”

Belia hesitated.

She had heard the Empress had never truly been a mother to Khalid.

Even when the Emperor treated him coldly, and the Empress Consort strutted about the palace like its true mistress, she had remained silent, as if she knew nothing of what went on.

Why was such a woman asking about Khalid now?

Uncertain of her intent, Belia stalled by picking up the teacup before her.

…Huh?

The moment the faint aroma reached her nose, her hand began to tremble violently.

The cup rattled against its saucer.

“What’s wrong?”

Belia couldn’t bring herself to take a sip—she barely managed to set it back on the table.

That scent… why here…?

The tea Raul had once forced down her throat—poisoned tea.

This was the same scent.

The thick vanilla aroma mixed with the bitter tang of herbs was something her mind could never forget.

Her pupils trembled.

No…

It was much weaker than the one she had smelled before.

Perhaps it was just a common tea with a similar scent. But Belia, who loved tea, had never encountered this aroma before that day. The suspicion would not leave her.

“…So you know what this is.”

The Empress clicked her tongue.

“As I thought… I still can’t fathom why the Emperor would permit you to be with Khalid.”

Belia’s voice was heavy as she asked,

“Your Majesty… do you know what this is?”

“Yes.”

The reply was casual—like someone commenting on the weather.

“Since when…”

Had she been drinking poison in her previous life as well?

Belia forced the words out.

“Since when have you been drinking this?”

“Oh, a few months at least.”

The Empress took another sip.

“…It seems they’re finally ready for me to die.”

…The Emperor?

Belia closed her eyes as a dizzying feeling washed over her. For a moment, she saw her own reflection in the Empress—bleeding out on the floor, growing cold.

Her once-still emotions now surged like a storm.

I want you dead now, Belia.

Raul’s voice echoed in her ears, just as it had when he had handed her poisoned tea.

Her stomach churned.

“Why… why would you—knowing all this…!”

Overcome, she was about to say more when the Empress relaxed her expression into a smile.

“Because I have to endure.”

Belia understood then.

The Empress wasn’t insane.

“Why… why go that far…?”

She couldn’t finish the question.

From the way the Empress toyed with her cup, smiling faintly with her eyes downcast, Belia thought she knew the reason.

“You’re not in a position to ask me that. I only agreed to see you because you’re to be Khalid’s wife. You meddle too much.”

“…Your Majesty, you should cut back on the tea.”

“It’s none of your concern.”

“But this is—”

The Empress raised her hand, cutting her off.