CH 42

There were several human figures rolling around in the box.

One was a blonde woman in an all white dress. Others had the hair pouty and her eyes were raised in triangles. Some had her hair twisted up strangely and had an angry expression on her face.The strangest thing was her hair that was twisted like a snake, with angry eyes and a huge mouth. It was more like a monster than a human.

Rott hesitated and explained.

“Hmm… I wanted to make a princess, so I asked the knights what they would look like.”

Was this all her?

“Yeah, but everyone speaks a little differently. I kept making it again…”

Oh, so it looks like there were several versions like this. Anything else aside, what was this snake hair? Not a monster… Was this the appearance of Eve as seen by the knights of the Grand Duchy? All of a sudden, she realized how bad the perception of her, or Eve, was.

“I’m looking at the monster Eve,” she added, puffing out her cheeks as if in pain.

“I guess everyone was playing a joke on me. The princess didn’t look like this.”

No, the knights probably sincerely explained the appearance of Eve they had seen. However, the finished model was different. It looked like a normal person and smiled kindly. She was looking at it quietly, and Rott explained it next to her.

“Not too long ago, Terrence told me what the princess looked like. So I was able to get it right this time.”

“Terrence did?”

At that, she turned her gaze back to the model Rott had made. That Eve was still wearing a white dress and holding a bouquet of pink roses, smiling brightly. Was this what Terrence told him about?

It looked so fine. She thought he would have described her in the strangest way.

“…Don’t you like it?”

Hearing the frightened voice, she turned around and saw Rott’s purple eyes quivering with tension.

“No, I really like it. It’s the first time I’ve ever had a gift with such sincerity. I will treasure it for the rest of my life.”

At those words, a bright smile bloomed on Roth’s face.

“I’ll make sure to finish it before the wedding!”

“Yes, I will look forward to it.”

The lady-in-waiting who was watching them from the side suggested to her.

“Would you like to look around the princess’s room now?”

“Yeah, I wonder how it will be.”

As she left the room, she waved her hand at Rott.

“See you later, Rott.”

Rott hesitated, then waved at her.

“Yes, Princess.”

She followed the maid upstairs. The room she was shown to was in the middle of the 3rd floor of the main building.

“This is the inner room for the princess to stay.”

When she opened the door with beautiful wooden patterns, bright light poured in. Like the imperial palace, it was a large drawing room, resting room, and bedroom connected together. A large arched window occupied most of one wall. A bright light coming through the window illuminated the room. All the newly prepared furniture was of the highest quality. Beautiful and stylish furniture and sumptuous decorations. Bright sunshine and fresh air. A delicate floral scent. It was a dazzlingly colorful and pleasant space.

The lady-in-waiting who guided her to her room spoke politely to her.

“If there is anything you don’t like, feel free to tell me.”

There wasn’t a single part she didn’t like. She thought her room in the princess’s palace was very luxurious, befitting a princess’ residence, but this place was more luxurious than the imperial palace. And the princess’s palace felt a little stuffy, but the structure of this place was spacious and comfortable. She approached the window in the bedroom. A large central garden was visible through the windows with beautiful light green damask curtains. It was winter, so the white snow was piled up, but I could see the well-kept garden trees, flower beds, and even the pond in the middle. The room was nice and the view from the window was great.

She really liked  it.

“Where is the Grand Duke?”

“He is in the northern garden.”

A maid led her to the entrance to the garden.

* * *

Terence was at the north end of the mansion.

Bright afternoon sunlight lit up the snowy garden. The warm sun fell on the marble tombstone erected over the grave.

Terrence thought he was not a sentimental or affectionate person, but he always felt bitter when he saw his parents’ graves. Suddenly, memories of the past come to mind. It was a cold winter when the windows were covered with white ice. It was the day before Terrence’s own 14th birthday. He had been unable to sleep at night and had gone down the hallway of the mansion to get a book. And he had seen his father leave the mansion in the middle of the night on the second floor stairwell. Surprisingly, that was the last thing he saw of his father. That night, while visiting his lover’s house, Terrence’s father lost his life in a carriage accident. Officially it was an accident, but in reality it was an assassination by those who held a grudge against the Grand Duchy. It was a very futile and absurd death. The image of his mother looking down at his father’s grave on the day of the funeral was unforgettable. The sadness and disillusionment in those eyes. His mother, standing quietly by the grave in a black mourning dress, looked like a cold tombstone. But even his mother was buried a year later under this cold tombstone.

The sound of cautious footsteps came from behind. He could tell who it was without even looking back. Terrence turned to his fiancée.

“Do you like where you are staying?”

* * *

She approached Terrence, who was standing near the graveyard.

“Yeah, it was really cool. I like it.”

The room seemed to have been redecorated right after the marriage was decided. But it was only a few days ago that they met at the Temple. There’s no way it could have been redecorated in such a short amount of time, so he must have started decorating the new Grand Duchess’ residence right after his marriage to Eve was decided. Even though he hated Eve, he decorated his new residence with unexpected care. Still, did he think that since she was the hostess of the Grand Duke’s family, he should treat her well?

“I’m glad you like it.”

The tombstone in front of Terrence caught her eye. A white bouquet of flowers was placed in front of the tombstone. Flower of the sacred tree. It was the bouquet she handed him.

“…You really brought it.”

“Didn’t you ask me to put it here?”

“Yes, I did.”

She didn’t know he would do it for real. She thought he’d just check the note and throw away the bouquet because it felt bad.

The white petals bloom fresh even in the snow. The flowers of the sacred tree did not wither for a long time even if they were plucked. This was the reason why this flower and the tree in which it bloomed were regarded as a blessing from God.

“Yesterday was the anniversary of Her Highness the Grand Duchess.”

It seemed like yesterday that she handed him this bouquet at the temple, but the date had already passed. She understood why Terrence had invited her to his mansion today. Yesterday, which was the anniversary of the Grand Duchess, probably did not want to invite guests to the mansion.

Terrence was silent for a moment before changing the subject.

“I’m looking into things in the South.”

“Oh, did you say there were signs of rebellion?”

Terrence was to go south immediately after his wedding.

“As I looked closer, I didn’t even have to go there myself. It seems that the Emperor exaggerated the situation. It must have been an attempt to divert my attention.”

She guessed it was to distract him from the wedding. Since this man was disapproving of the marriage with Eve, he must have accepted it quickly because he wanted to leave the capital.

“I plan to cancel the plan after properly reporting the situation there.”

“Good for you.”

It’s better to stay here than to leave the capital for nothing. As she was thinking about it, Terrence’s voice brought her back to reality.

“I have more news than that.”

“What is it?”

His voice lowered slightly at her question.

“Sir Gairen met the Empress. She seems to have been contacted by the Emperor.”

“Already?”

“The knight commander has a means of urgent contact with the Emperor. It will take three or three days, though.”

Knight Commander Gairen was the closest aide to the Emperor. As the Emperor treated them like limbs, it seemed that the two had a means to urgently contact them. Terrence looked at her for a moment, then looked away.

“Don’t worry too much. Rumors about the princess and me are already spreading in the islands. He won’t be able to kill the princess right away in this noisy yard.”

“I guess so.”

If he assassinated her now, the Grand Duke wouldn’t be accused of being the culprit alone like in the original story. She answered quietly, but in her heart she was a little nervous. Even if he couldn’t aim for her life right away, if the Emperor found out, a new danger might come.