FMFR Chapter 4

Chapter 4 — Pierre Serenier

Daphne’s face stiffened for a moment. This time, she couldn’t easily compose herself and eventually lowered her head.

“Uncle, do you know where my room is?”

Medeia asked Baron Bellosi with a bright smile.

“Hmm? Of course. It’s the same room you used when you were little. Though, naturally, the furniture and curtains have been replaced.”

Medeia slipped her arm around Baron Bellosi’s and moved closer to his side.

“Then, Daphne, I’ll go inside first.”

She passed Daphne, who was still looking down, and led Baron Bellosi inside.

She didn’t look back, but she could clearly feel Daphne’s gaze fixed on her.

“……It seems Vinoa and Dian haven’t been able to leave yet. They intended to come right away, but Somishu Naval Academy is on an island, so……”

Baron Bellosi kept glancing at her, obviously watching her reaction.

Perhaps he thought she would be disappointed because she hadn’t received a proper welcome from the Duchess of Heidel, and her twin older brother and younger brother had also failed to arrive at the same time.

Medeia already knew what had happened because she had lived through it once before, so she knew their arrival would be delayed.

“That is, Dian is your younger brother. Both Vinoa and Dian are cadets at Somishu Naval Academy. Since you’ve never met Dian before, he’ll probably feel unfamiliar to you.”

“……I’m fine, so please don’t worry about it.”

She didn’t care if her reunion with them was delayed.

After all, she didn’t particularly miss them anymore.

More importantly, every time she climbed the stairs, she felt suffocated, and taking even a single step was painful.

Even though she tightened her grip on Baron Bellosi’s arm, her ragged breathing refused to settle.

When he noticed, his expression immediately filled with concern.

“Medeia. What’s wrong?”

“……I once fell down the stairs, so I’m afraid.”

“Oh, dear! Whatever happens, I’ll hold on to you. No, wait. I should tell Elize to move your room to the first floor. It must be inconvenient having to go up and down the stairs all the time.”

Baron Bellosi kept looking back at her, and even after they reached the upper floor, he didn’t let go of the hand supporting her.

At last, they turned left and arrived in front of her room. Only then did he relax and let out a relieved breath.

“Phew. We made it safely. Here, this is your room.”

“……Thank you, Uncle.”

“You don’t have to thank me for every little thing. How can you be so polite?”

As she looked at him fondly admiring her, Medeia suddenly remembered what Daphne had said.

‘She said that the person who kidnapped me when I was young and ruined my life is someone close to me. Could it be…… Uncle?’

It couldn’t be.

If that were true, there would have been no reason for him to go out of his way to bring her back from Aragon.

Especially since Baron Bellosi had been one of the people who had taken Medeia’s side when Daphne collapsed.

He had said it had to be a misunderstanding.

That a kind girl like Medeia could never have done such a thing.

She felt guilty for having suspected him, even if only for a moment, and found it difficult to face him.

‘……No. I can’t let my guard down yet.’

And yet, she still couldn’t bring herself to stop suspecting him completely.

“Uncle, I’m sorry, but I’m very tired and would like to rest. Would it be all right if I came to formally greet you later?”

“Ah! Yes, of course. I didn’t think of that. You don’t need to apologize. How can you be so considerate……?”

“No. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to return.”

“Ha-ha. Then I’ll be going now. Get some rest.”

Fortunately, Baron Bellosi left without noticing anything strange and closed the door behind him.

Once she was alone in the room, Medeia finally relaxed the stiff corners of her mouth from smiling for so long.

She stood up and looked around.

Nothing had changed.

Back then, she had been so grateful to Daphne for taking such care with the room that she hadn’t known what to do with herself.

Now, however, it was horrifying to see Daphne’s tastes so thoroughly reflected in every corner.

She especially wanted to tear off the pearls decorating the corner of the bed.

They reminded her of Daphne, who often wore things made of pearls, and the thought made her sick.

‘……It’s fine. Thanks to Uncle, I’ll be moving rooms soon anyway.’

There was something more important.

She wanted to repay Daphne for everything she had done to her, in exactly the same way.

By taking away everything Daphne possessed.

The love she received from everyone.

Everything.

First, she needed to ruin the reputation Daphne had worked so hard to protect.

For now, Daphne had the trust of the family and was probably seen by the servants as a gentle young lady.

And then……

Medeia intended to find the person who had kidnapped her in childhood and ruined her life.

And take revenge.

‘Daphne said that person was among those I trusted. She said that person deceived me while pretending to love me…….’

Knock, knock.

The sudden sound of knocking pulled Medeia out of her thoughts, and her entire body stiffened.

She hadn’t heard any footsteps.

Who was it?

If Baron Bellosi had returned, there was no way she could have failed to hear his heavy footsteps.

“……It’s me, Medeia. May I come in? I think I misunderstood you earlier. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings because of me.”

That sorrowful voice.

It was Daphne.

“Oh, and Mother wants to make sure you have a proper coming-of-age ceremony. So I invited Madame Sisanna today. She needs to take your measurements for the dress you’ll wear at the ceremony.”

“…….”

“The Delphium Dress Shop, which Madame Sisanna runs, is the most popular dress shop in the capital. I barely managed to get an appointment to coincide with the day you arrived.”

Come to think of it, Medeia remembered meeting Sisanna and having her measurements taken on the very first day she returned.

It had been that thoughtful gesture that had moved her and become one of the reasons she opened her heart to Daphne.

Looking back now, Daphne had probably only done it to win the Duchess of Heidel’s favor.

‘Wait. If Madame Sisanna is here, then could it be……?’

Medeia immediately opened the balcony door and looked outside.

When she looked down, she saw the carriage Sisanna had arrived in.

As Sisanna stepped out of the carriage, a long, bony hand with prominent knuckles appeared through the gap in the carriage door.

Medeia leaned farther over the railing to get a better look.

And then, through the narrow opening of the carriage door, the figure of a beautiful man emerged.

Platinum-blond hair that looked as though it had been dyed by the sunlight itself.

A handsome face with his bangs neatly swept back.

Her eyes met those of a man radiating an imperious aura.

His gaze landed directly on her.

As she stared into his blue eyes, she felt as though she were trapped beneath the sea, unable to breathe.

He must have come secretly without announcing his visit, yet he didn’t look surprised in the slightest to find her there.

Instead, the corner of his mouth slowly lifted.

His expression, utterly devoid of embarrassment or surprise, soon changed into one of interest.

Thump, thump…….

Medeia pressed down on her pounding heart, turned around, and closed the balcony door.

‘……He smiled.’

It had lasted only a fleeting moment, but the sight remained etched in her mind.

Their eyes had met, and he had definitely smiled at her.

She knew who he was the instant she saw his face.

How could she not?

For ten long years, he had deceived everyone by pretending to be crippled, acting as though he had no interest in the throne, and living a leisurely life.

Yet in the end, he had successfully usurped the throne and ascended as the king of Serenier.

Pierre Serenier.

He was inside that carriage.

‘Back then, I was too overwhelmed by everything to recognize who he was…… but I’m certain. He’s the Second Prince.’

The reason Pierre had quietly built up his power all those years was because of his aunt, Queen Consort Pasiphae Chavelle.

‘Since the Heidel ducal family was her maternal family, my cousin Lorenz, the Queen’s son, had a solid political foundation…….’

Leopold’s only legitimate son had been born with Queen Greta as his mother, but she had died after giving birth to him.

To make matters worse, his maternal family, Aragon, had a severe system of discrimination between legitimate and illegitimate children.

‘Queen Greta was an illegitimate princess.’

There was no way Pierre could have expected to receive military support from Aragon as the son of an illegitimate princess.

Pierre never relied on his maternal family.

He had never even visited Aragon, nor had he maintained any other form of contact with them.