Chapter 27
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The Male and Female Leads Broke Up - Episode 27
"From now on, if you want to see your siblings, just tell me. Understood?"
"Yes. I will do so. Thank you."
"There's no need for thanks between us. Let's hurry back. It's getting too late."
"Yes. I understand."
And so we left Hemoa after spending a satisfying and pleasant time together.
* * *
Time passed, and about a week after we returned home, Mary came back to my side.
"You're back already?"
I had given her a month's leave, but Mary returned after only two weeks.
I looked at her with displeasure and spoke.
"I've rested sufficiently."
"You must have missed your family."
"I'll be seeing them often now anyway. Did you manage fine without me, Miss?"
Truth be told, I had found her absence quite inconvenient.
Without her by my side—someone who understood everything about me like my own limbs—I felt unsettled in spirit, though my body was secondary.
"I really can't do without you."
I pulled Mary into a tight embrace.
She responded by embracing me in return, as if she had expected this.
We settled back onto the sofa across from each other.
There was something I absolutely needed to discuss with her.
"About your marriage..."
"My marriage?"
"Yes, you should get married now."
"I'm not yet..."
Mary hesitated, her expression uncertain as she trailed off.
I caught the meaning behind her words and spoke immediately.
"Even if you're not ready, I suspect William has different thoughts on the matter?"
"Pardon?"
Mary looked at me with wide, startled eyes like a rabbit.
"Did you think I wouldn't notice?"
I smiled knowingly, conveying that I had known all along.
"But... I..."
Mary, who always carried herself with such confidence, hesitated in a way entirely unlike her.
"William may have noble blood running through his veins, but only half of it. I am merely a commoner...."
So William was a bastard.
I reflected on my ignorance of this fact and resolved to learn more about William's family background.
"If that becomes an issue, I'll help you, so don't worry. More importantly, you two still care for each other, don't you?"
"Miss...."
Mary's eyes glistened with tears, her face trembling with emotion.
"I told you before that Lian feels like a younger brother to me. You're the same. You're like an older sister to me. So stop worrying and start preparing for marriage."
Mary was two years my senior, making her twenty-four this year.
Though Mary had served Belita for over a decade, I had only been with her for just over two years.
Had we not traveled together and simply remained as mistress and maid at the Manor, we would never have grown this close.
But we journeyed together through trials and tribulations, and that experience was worth far more than years of ordinary time.
"I appreciate your kindness, but I will absolutely not marry before you do, Miss."
"What?"
Yet Mary, whom I expected to jump with joy, suddenly said something completely unexpected.
"I will only marry after you meet a good man and marry him, Miss. So please, don't do anything about it now."
Mary's expression was resolute.
"What if years pass and you still can't?"
I had no thoughts of marriage yet.
Of course, as a noblewoman, I had the duty to strengthen my family through marriage, but I had no intention of marrying just anyone.
"That's fine. I'm content being with you like this, Miss."
"Mary!"
She showed no sign of bending to my will.
I sighed softly and gave her a look of exasperation.
"Don't blame me later. Understood?"
Mary nodded, and with those words, we both fell silent on the matter of her marriage.
* * *
Word of my return to the Capital spread swiftly, and countless invitations began arriving at the Duke's Mansion.
I had declined them all, unwilling to venture anywhere just yet—until one invitation arrived that I could not refuse.
While taking breakfast with my parents in the dining room, my father spoke up.
"His Majesty the Emperor has invited members of the three ducal families to the Imperial Palace."
"His Majesty himself?"
"Indeed. He's using family harmony as a pretext to gather us once more, no doubt."
Dining with the Emperor was an ancient custom, passed down through generations.
It served to demonstrate the purpose of the puppet Emperor—to maintain the balance of power among the three families without allowing it to tip toward any one side, and to prevent conflict between these militarily formidable houses.
When the Emperor hosted such a gathering, those invited would don their most agreeable masks, using the pretense of harmony as cover while they studied and monitored one another.
"You've been an adult for quite some time now, so you're certainly eligible to attend."
My father was right—I had come of age long ago, but my travels had kept me from ever attending such an event.
Though I now had the right to attend, I felt little desire to do so, and I looked toward my father with reluctance.
Yet his eyes conveyed an unmistakable resolve—I absolutely could not miss this.
"I must go, then?"
"Is seeing Cain Maxius still difficult for you?"
Seeing Cain Maxius held no particular difficulty for me.
It was simply the weight of such formal occasions that made me reluctant to attend.
But when I had returned from my travels, I had made a promise to myself—to accept without complaint whatever was given to me.
Now was the time to honor that promise.
"No, I think I'll be fine."
"If it remains difficult for you, I won't force you."
"That's right, Belita. You need not go if you don't wish to."
Though my father's eyes were resolute, he fully respected my will and my feelings.
And with my mother's support, they granted me the freedom to choose.
Thinking of such parents, I could not bear to shirk my duty.
"I'll go. I'm an adult now, and I must fulfill my responsibilities."
As I answered with a smile, my parents gazed at me with pride.
"Good, well reasoned. And...."
"Dear!"
"Ahem... No, never mind. Let's finish our meal."
What was that about? Why did he suddenly stop mid-sentence?
I looked at my parents with a puzzled expression.
But they avoided my gaze, focusing intently on their meal instead.
I wanted to ask what he had been about to say, but it seemed unlikely they would answer, so I simply continued eating.
After finishing my meal, I returned to my room.
While eating, I pondered what my parents had been hiding from me.
Nothing in particular came to mind.
'What could it be?'
There was the matter of the Byon Family that had been briefly mentioned before the trip, and whenever Father's impatient nature caused him to speak, Mother would always hold him back.
I tried to recall the contents of the novel.
But after breaking off my engagement with Cain, I had decided there was no need to concern myself with the original work any longer, so I had forgotten about it entirely during the journey—now the finer details escaped my memory.
'It's probably nothing serious.'
And if it were something harmful to me, my parents would have told me long ago.
With that thought, my mind eased, and I decided not to dwell on the matter any further.
* * *
A few days later came the evening of the dinner at the Imperial Palace.
I was terribly busy from morning onward, bathing and preparing myself for the palace visit.
Just as the sun was setting, I finished all my preparations and stood before the mirror.
"Miss, you look absolutely beautiful."
Mary praised my appearance with admiration in her voice.
Today I had chosen a soft lavender dress that complemented my golden hair particularly well.
With a hair ornament in a shade far deeper than the dress, I looked quite lovely and refreshing, even to my own eyes.
'Beautiful.'
When I was frequenting the Maxius Family Manor, I had to dress carefully to look good for Cain, but during my travels I had adorned myself only minimally.
So seeing myself dressed from head to toe like this after so long felt both unfamiliar and awkward, yet quite gratifying.
"How do I look? Do you think I'll stand out the most there?"
"Of course. You'll be the most beautiful one there, Miss."
If I went today, I would meet Cain and Adela, wouldn't I?
Now that I thought about it, even after searching through Belita's past memories, Belita and Adela had never had any point of contact.
And since I had possessed this body before the original story began, I had never seen Adela at all.
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