You said you knew an angel would come to save you.
“An angel?” Is he still dreaming? I looked at Nathaniel in disbelief, then remembered what I looked like. I was in Claudia’s body, and though I was pretty for a child, resembling Veronica, the most beautiful woman in the world, I was no angel. With jet-black hair and purple eyes, I was closer to a symbol of a demon than an angel. Nathaniel, who was muttering “angel,” was clearly not fully awake.
“Hey, Nathaniel?”
“I knew you’d come to save me…”
“…”
But Nathaniel kept muttering, unable to regain his senses. He must have constantly dreamed of an angel saving him while suffering from the radical faction’s actions. Thinking this, pity for Nathaniel outweighed my disbelief. I sighed softly, realized it would be hard to have a proper conversation with him today, and got up.
“Phew, Ilness.”
[Huh?]
“Dolems and I have to go back now, so please take good care of him.”
If we lingered, Veronica might find out, and I wouldn’t be able to see Dolems for a while once he returned to the palace with Dandelion. So, reluctantly, I entrusted Nathaniel to Ilness.
[Well… I guess there’s no choice…]
“Make sure he doesn’t starve. Control anyone passing by to get him some food, got it?”
[Got it, got it…]
Ilness answered vaguely, sounding annoyed. I couldn’t trust him, but unfortunately, we were running out of time.
“Then I’ll leave him to you… huh?”
As I was about to leave and go back to my room, a small force stopped me. I looked down, and a small, white hand was carefully holding the hem of my dress.
“Don’t… go…”
“Nathaniel?”
“Please…”
“…”
Nathaniel, still seemingly in the middle of that “angel” dream, muttered with a vacant expression. His light gray eyes, which had lost focus, trembled as they looked at me. Seeing that, my heart softened for a moment.
[My Lord, we really must go now.]
‘…I know.’
I gave a small reply to Dolems’ anxious voice and looked at Nathaniel’s desperate face. I had secretly taken Nathaniel to weaken the power of the temple. But taking in a person and being responsible for them is not easy. I thought I was ready, but Nathaniel, utterly broken by the temple’s violence and clinging to a child like me, seemed much more pathetic than I had imagined.
I bit my lip and reached out to cup his pale cheek.
“It’s okay, Nathaniel. You won’t be in pain again, and this place is safe.”
“Ah…”
“We’ll be able to see each other again soon. So you can rest assured.”
“…”
Nathaniel slowly nodded and closed his eyes as if he were relieved. When he was brainwashed, he couldn’t even close his eyes properly and would just stare blankly into space with his eyes half-open. His sleeping face, with his soft breaths, looked much more peaceful than before.
“Let’s go now.”
I nodded and said to Dolems. I turned to leave, hoping to see a more complete Nathaniel next time.
“Do you really intend to keep Veronica by your side, Your Majesty?”
Duke Winston asked Dandelion with a dark expression. Dandelion answered with a serious tone.
“I need the duchess by my side.”
“Any other lady could be of help to Your Majesty. And you don’t necessarily have to marry her. We, the Winstons…”
“You know that’s not all there is to it, Duke.”
“…”
In front of a loyal subject, Dandelion spoke with the face of a man in love. Duke Winston fell silent. He knew very well that Dandelion had liked Veronica since they were children.
‘I initially thought he cherished Berry like a younger sister.’
Dandelion, who got along well with the eldest son Vincent, was often envious of Vincent because he had no siblings. That’s why Veronica would often accompany Vincent when he was called to the palace to be Dandelion’s playmate. Duke Winston had noticed, quicker than anyone, that the way Dandelion looked at Veronica changed with each passing year.
However, the situation at the time was very disadvantageous to the royal family, and he couldn’t stop Crown Prince Dandelion from being pushed out to the western frontier. Dandelion, too, had to give up on Veronica because of his uncertain future. And the Duke ignored his feelings. He didn’t like Cedric, but he couldn’t send Veronica to Dandelion, who was a powerless crown prince at the time.
Although Dandelion was completely different from back then and had even ascended to the throne, the political situation was not yet completely stable.
“The Empress Dowager and the temple will not stand by idly. Your Majesty knows how tenacious they are.”
“…Of course I do.”
“The old god was cowardly, but he will no longer turn a blind eye. However… my daughter has already been hurt so much. I can’t bear to see her get hurt in a messy fight again.”
Duke Winston continued to speak in anguish. He had many regrets. He should have been more proactive in stopping her marriage to Cedric Lionell. Even after she got married, he shouldn’t have ignored her but should have taken care of her.
In fact, the reason he was refusing Dandelion’s offer was also because he regretted his past actions. He couldn’t let Veronica into the royal family because he didn’t want to repeat that mistake.
“Your Majesty, is a second marriage life in the palace truly the path to happiness for Veronica?”
“…”
“Can you, who watched the royal family crumble, really promise that?”
It was an excessively disrespectful thing for a subject to say, but Dandelion couldn’t easily answer Duke Winston’s question. Both of them could easily guess that there were thorny paths ahead.
Dandelion opened his mouth with a determined expression.
“I, too, tried to give up on Veronica with that in mind.”
A first love should remain just a first love. The situation was too bad for him to force his affection on her, and he might even die on the battlefield. That’s why he couldn’t even think about confessing his feelings from the start.
“But after overcoming death several times, I started to regret that thought.”
“…Your Majesty.”
Surviving on the battlefield was a struggle every day. Even on days without a battle, he had to deal with the assassins sent by the Empress Dowager. He came close to death several times because of them. After going to the brink of death so many times, he felt pathetic for foolishly running away without even conveying his feelings to his first love.
“If Veronica refuses, I have no intention of forcing her.”
“Is there any woman in the Empire who could refuse a marriage proposal from Your Majesty?”
“Do you think Veronica is the type of woman to marry without her heart being in it, Duke?”
“…”
This time, it was Duke Winston who fell silent at that question. The Duke knew very well that Veronica was the kind of person who could refuse, even if it was the Emperor of the Empire. The problem was that Veronica also had feelings for Dandelion. Dandelion himself, for some reason, was not convinced and was trying to persuade the Duke first, not Veronica.
“Even if she wants it, I won’t have a way to stop her.”
“Duke.”
“So, talking to me is meaningless from the start, Your Majesty.”
“…”
Dandelion didn’t start the conversation about Veronica from the beginning. He had gone to the temple after hearing the news that Claudia had been attacked and wanted to get information about it from Duke Winston. The Duke told him everything he knew, but Dandelion seemed a bit puzzled, as if he had an idea of what had attacked Claudia. He couldn’t quite remember how the conversation had flowed after that, but at some point, Dandelion was talking about wanting Veronica.
“I understand. I’ll take my leave now.”
“Yes, please be careful.”
Duke Winston, who had risen, escorted Dandelion to the door. Since it wasn’t an official visit, Dandelion wanted to return alone, and the Duke agreed. And when Dandelion came out of the Duke’s office, Veronica was standing quietly alone in front of the opposite door.
“Berry…”
“Do you have time for a walk in the garden, Your Majesty?”
“…Yes.”
Dandelion nodded with a stiff expression and followed behind Veronica.
