TCS 05

Chapter : 5. It Is Destiny

An elegantly shaped long finger lightly tapped the round glass.

As the water inside the glass swayed softly, a gentle voice echoed.

“You treated her wounds yourself?”

In front of the woman, whose head was bowed so low it almost touched the floor, lay the slippers that had disappeared the previous night.

“Yes, that is correct.”

The woman, unable to bring herself to meet the Empress’s eyes, remained completely motionless as she waited for the next words.

Though she appeared endlessly benevolent on the surface, the Empress never tolerated even the smallest mistake.

“It seems the rumors that he wishes to have Lady Bronte were not false.”

“……”

“What does it look like to you?”

“I am not quite sure yet.”

It had only been a day since Stella arrived at the Castillo residence.

The woman simply knew too little to offer a hasty answer.

“My, it seems I overestimated you.”

The Empress grabbed and twisted the woman’s chin.

Forced to raise her head, the woman’s eyes trembled softly.

“Think again.”

Lowering her gaze, the woman replied.

“In my humble opinion, the interest the Young Duke shows toward Lady Bronte is merely curiosity about something he does not possess.”

“Simple curiosity, you say?”

“……Yes.”

The woman’s body shivered uncontrollably.

If this answer failed to please the Empress, she would hardly leave this place alive.

Fortunately, however, the Empress wore a slight smile and let her go.

“It could certainly look that way. But would he really attempt to make a deal with me out of mere curiosity?”

As soon as the Empress finished speaking, two sturdy men stepped forward and dragged the woman out.

The Empress watched the woman disappear with an indifferent gaze.

“Send a different child.”

“Yes.”

“There is hardly anyone useful.”

How many maids had already entered and exited the Castillo residence by now?

Most of them brought back nothing but trivial stories, just like this one.

“I suppose I must see the Young Duke of Castillo myself.”

It was a conclusion reached under the judgment that meeting him face-to-face would be faster than receiving reports second-hand a hundred times over.

The Empress glanced down at the cat rubbing its face against the hem of her dress and smiled.

“Kanna, it seems you share the same thought.”

Lifting and cradling the cat—who let out a soft meow as if smiling back—the Empress looked out the window.

It had already been eight years since she arrived to live in a foreign land, and in that time, so many things had changed.

It was a day when dark clouds overcast the sky.

Stella looked at Jenna, who was applying medicine to her injury.

After applying the ointment with careful hands, Jenna looked up.

“Does it hurt?”

“It is fine.”

“I’m glad the wound isn’t deep, but it would be best if you didn’t walk for a while. Of course, it would be better if the doctor examined you directly, but as luck would have it, the family physician is currently on vacation.”

Stella nodded slowly.

It felt embarrassing to call for a family doctor over a simple foot wound anyway.

“The basic treatment is finished.”

With her legs rested on the stool, Stella wriggled her bandaged feet.

Thanks to the medicine Jenna applied, a cool, soothing sensation spread upward from the tips of her toes.

“Thank you.”

Stella leaned back against the sofa.

‘She said not to move, so I’ll have to stay put for a while, right? Lord Castillo said so as well.’

She had planned to gather a few simple belongings and flee immediately, but that plan had been completely ruined.

In this state, she wouldn’t make it far before being caught, so despite the discomfort, she thought there was no choice—until an unexpected gift was delivered.

Stella stared at the bizarrely shaped object.

“You may use this from now on.”

“What is this?”

“It is called a wheelchair.”

Stella found it difficult to maintain her composure while looking at the strange contraption.

The chair fitted with two large wheels was called a ‘wheelchair.’

“The wheelchair is an item the former Madam frequently used when her mobility was impaired.”

“Is it alright for me to use such a thing? I am merely a guest staying briefly in this house.”

Although Adrian had said she could stay, Stella intended to leave as soon as her leg healed.

This level of consideration felt far too excessive.

“You only need to use it until the wound on your foot heals. If you wander around like last time and get caught, I will be severely scolded.”

“……”

‘Like last time……’

Stella’s face flushed red.

She, too, did not want a repeat of what happened last time.

However, she couldn’t easily muster the courage to use an unfamiliar object.

Jenna sat in front of the hesitating Stella and chattered merrily.

“It must be suffocating to stay in your room all the time. Above all, this mansion was built to make moving around in a wheelchair easy. If you wish, My Lady, you can go anywhere.”

Stella’s eyes widened.

In truth, because there were so many stairs inside the mansion, a wheelchair had seemed quite useless to her.

As if reading Stella’s thoughts, Jenna added an explanation.

“The Madam was ill, you see. That is why the Master summoned an architect to alter the layout of the mansion. By pulling down a single lever, the staircase transforms like a slide.”

Surprised, Stella asked,

“Where is Lady Castillo now?”

Since this was the residence and not the main Castillo domain, Stella realized she had taken it for granted that Adrian’s parents were not here.

Even though paying respects to the mistress of the house first was basic courtesy.

“The Madam passed away when the Young Master was small.”

“Ah!”

“It happened a long time ago.”

At the news that Lady Castillo had passed away early, Stella was rendered speechless.

Perhaps it was only natural; she knew all too well what the death of family felt like.

Stella gently stroked the back of the wheelchair.

“Is it really alright for me to use this?”

“This wheelchair has been without an owner for a long time. If you use it, My Lady, the Madam in heaven would surely be pleased. Of course, if you do not wish to, I will take it away.”

Jenna held the handles on the back of the wheelchair, letting her shoulders droop dramatically.

“Could you help me sit down?”

“Of course!”

Jenna beamed as if her melancholy had never existed.

Stella settled into the wheelchair.

Though old, it was so well-maintained that it wasn’t uncomfortable in the slightest.

The seat was quite plush, too.

“Is there anywhere you would like to go? I can guide you.”

“No, it’s alright.”

“Please, feel free to speak.”

“Then, could you introduce this place to me?”

“Yes! Though I haven’t been here long myself and don’t know everything, I will do my absolute best.”

Jenna nodded like the cuckoo bird in a wall clock and pushed the wheelchair.

She then took her around various parts of the Duke’s residence, explaining everything in detail.

“Quite a few servants live in this residence. Cases like mine, where we commute from the outside, are rare. Most have their quarters inside the residence.”

“Inside the residence?”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t that uncomfortable?”

“Not at all. The welfare at the Castillo residence is so good that everyone wishes to work here.”

Since Adrian was a kind person, hearing that the welfare was excellent did not come as a surprise.

‘Lord Castillo is even kind to the servants. That must be why he is helping me.’

As she listened to the stories about the house from Jenna, the illusion grew that Adrian might be an even better person than she had thought.

After chattering for a long while, Jenna stopped in front of a door carved with a large eagle.

“This is the Master’s office.”

“The Duke’s?”

“Yes, though he is currently away in the Kingdom of Cetirus.”

The name Cetirus sounded familiar.

To Stella’s memory, it was the birthplace of Natalie, the third Empress of the Rajenta Empire.

“He went to resolve a diplomatic issue, so it will be difficult for him to return for a while. In the meantime, the Young Master is handling all matters of the Duke’s residence.”

“So that’s why he was busy.”

Stella turned her head toward the direction presumed to be Adrian’s office.

She recalled his office from the previous night, where the lights had remained on late into the evening.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t seen him today.”

“He went to the Imperial Palace today.”

“The Imperial Palace?”

Her blue eyes narrowed.

“Yes, he said he would return to the mansion around evening. Do you have urgent business with him?”

Stella lowered her gaze and shook her head.

The moment she heard the phrase ‘Imperial Palace,’ her body trembled so violently that no words could come out.

Jenna anxiously asked a few more questions, but inside Stella’s mind, a sound like a bolt of lightning striking in the dark echoed.

‘Run away!’

Stella clutched her head.

‘Neither your family nor the Imperial Palace is on your side.’

Her mind grew progressively darker.

Though she did not know why he had gone to the Imperial Palace, the mere fact that he went to the place she so desperately wished to avoid made her body shake uncontrollably.

“My Lady, are you alright?”

“……Jenna.”

“To break into a cold sweat like this……”

Jenna wiped Stella’s forehead with a handkerchief.

It was only after seeing the thoroughly soaked cloth that Stella managed to pull herself together.

She forced the corners of her mouth upward into a smile.

“It seems summer has arrived already. It is quite hot during the day.”

“I will bring you something cold. Please stay right here.”

As Stella watched Jenna run off, she tightly clenched her fists.

The fact that Adrian had gone to the Imperial Palace struck her with such shock that her trembling showed no signs of stopping.

‘Can I really trust Lord Castillo?’

Strength naturally flooded her hands pressed against her lap.

When even her own family had abandoned her, who could she possibly trust?

Inside the magnificent Asran Palace of the Imperial Palace.

The Empress’s palace—lined with countless pillars carved with vivid palmette patterns along cloudy bands—was famous for its opulence, adorned with all manner of gold and silver treasures.

Yet, even amid the splendor, the structured order maintained throughout aligned harmoniously with the Empress’s chilly aura.

Even with Adrian’s arrival, the movements of the Empress’s maids remained neat, precise, and unaltered.

Without fail.

Adrian sat across from the Empress.

Steam rose steadily from the hot black tea placed between them.

He knew she was no ordinary woman, but the gaze that seemed to perceive all surrounding circumstances was increasingly uncomfortable to meet.

“How is that child?”

The one the Empress referred to was Stella.

Adrian recalled her back at the residence.

Last night, as she walked in the garden, her figure bathed in the moonlight was madly beautiful.

Had he not noticed her awkward stride, he might have approached her as if spellbound and made a grave mistake.

An unbidden smile bloomed at the corners of his lips.

“Regrettably, she has lost her memory.”

“Oh dear……”

The Empress covered her mouth with a fan.

“I do hope she isn’t hurt too badly……”

Soon, she furrowed her brows and added words of concern.

However, it was immediately clear that there was not a trace of genuine emotion in her next words.

“Regardless, how fascinating. For you to wear such a dazed expression. Then again, you coveted that child from the very beginning, didn’t you?”

“Your Imperial Majesty.”

“There is no need to make such a face.”

Setting her teacup down, the Empress casually spewed cruel words in a tender tone.

“From the start, that child was too much for Theo to handle. I do not know who set fire to the Bronte estate, but wouldn’t all of this be for the sake of forming a destiny?”

The actual perpetrator of the fire was utterly shameless.

Having orchestrated the scheme solely to make the child born of her own womb the Emperor, she now calmly feigned ignorance.

Adrian shuddered at the Empress’s audacity, then let out a self-mocking chuckle at himself, being no different from her.

“Is that so?”

After all, he was the one who had assisted in everything.

Though her losing all her memories was a turn of events he hadn’t anticipated in the slightest.

“Indeed. It is destiny.”

‘To speak such absolute nonsense.’

Of course, for him, the moment he laid eyes on Stella, refusing the deal with the Empress had ceased to be an option.

“The moment you desired that child, this was destined to happen. So if you feel any guilt toward Lady Bronte, set it aside.”

He placed no value on words laden with such sentiments—whether it was called ‘destiny’ or ‘guilt.’

“However, your father weighs on my mind. Does the Duke know that you covet someone to this extent?”