Chapter 87

“Since they said the princess is now in the stage where she can differentiate between objects, I thought seeing something like that instead of just going would be good for her development, so.”

“Aaah.”

Endure it. He really has no bad intentions. You just need to keep it in, that’s all.

Back to being Miss Sullivan the teacher, I swept my hand across my neck, trying to pass over this unbearable emotion.

The cool air from the exposed back of my neck lasted for only a moment. As soon as Rashid stepped out, nervousness became plain to see on the two princes’ faces.

“So, did you need this long to report that you failed to find the child?”

“Your Majesty.”

At the sudden cold interference, Tenon’s face flushed red. As if he had been watching to see how far he would go, everything about Rashid had sunken grimly.

“Who was it that told me to be careful again?”

“I, I apologize, Your Majesty.”

“……..”

I hadn’t known what to do when I was being scolded; seeing others being scolded made me feel at a loss even more. His eyes had only been indifferent when looking at Selene and me, but as soon as he stood in front of his younger brothers, they became completely cold.

“Um, then, I think it’s best that I go on my way now.”

“What of this?”

“Oh….. Reina.”

Abruptly lifted up into the Emperor’s hand from where she had been on the table, Selene’s body stiffened.

Take what is yours.

That being exactly what he seemed to mean, Rashid was about to carelessly hand her over to me, until his expression changed.

“This…..”

“What is the matter? Please give her to me quickly.”

Though I extended my two hands to him politely, his head as he looked upon the mallard duck once again tilted 25 degrees.

“…..doesn’t seem like your daughter.”

***

At the Emperor’s shocking statement, I also stiffened to an extent that exceeded Selene. As he stared at Selene without moving, Rashid made a doubtful face and held her body up.

“…..Catherine, are you sure this is your daughter?”

“Yees?”

What the. Maybe he wasn’t blind as a bat.

A chill ran up my spine at his unexpected enlightenment. Though he had seemed suspicious when I’d first come in, this time he was making an expression of certainty.

It wasn’t something I’d be able to insist my way out of. My lips could only shake, lost for words.

“Th-that’s….”

“But Your Majesty, it’s wearing the same ribbon.”

Perhaps because he thought there was no other way, Tenon also took my side.

Though that sounded like something I’d heard before, my mind had already blanked out into white, and I couldn’t think of anything else.

“I don’t know why Your Majesty might believe it so, but there is no way the Duchess would risk her precious life to lie about that to the Empire’s Sun, His Majesty the Emperor.”

“……..”

“Isn’t that right, Duchess?”

Please, don’t open up the path to death so kindly like that.

Unable to do anything, I could only bite into my lips hard.

I had been worried that the Emperor would yell at me for tricking him, but he remained silent for much longer. Peyton, who’d been inspecting him cautiously in my stead, said something to the Emperor as he looked down upon Selene.

“Your Majesty, I don’t know why you think that way, but….”

“The feeling’s different.”

“…..”

“The feeling is different when I’m holding it.”

After finally handing Selene over to me, Rashid calmly looked down onto his own hand.

Though he couldn’t even distinguish between papers or colors, he was apparently certain about the sensations of his own hand if nothing else.

“When I lifted it up from the lake, it definitely….”

He opened his mouth as if he’d attempt to explain the feeling, but he could not finish it.

He glanced at me, and I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again at his indifferent gaze.

“Catherine.”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty.”

“…..”

If I said that instead of feeling regret at not insisting to the very end, I felt more happiness at knowing this man remembered Haniel, I’d be actually crazy, right?

I bowed my head down, suppressing the emotions I couldn’t help.

“I’m sorry. My daughter had some other circumstances, so there was no other way.”

“What other circumstances?”

“……”

She went to school.

Our baby needs to get a perfect attendance award, you know.