CH 81

Charelize gently swept Lari’s cheek. At the same time, she repeated apologizing while tidying up her messy hair.

Those who shed tears as the sight turned their heads one by one. It was because they were unfamiliar with seeing the little Duchess they admired had collapsed.

Charelize suddenly tore the hem of her dress and tied it tightly to Lari’s back. Her purpose seemed to stop the dark red blood that was still oozing out. She picked up Lari and walked to the door.

“Get out of my way,” said Charelize to the knights who blocked her way.

The fact that Iris brought a dagger inside the imperial palace, which was thoroughly inspected, means that someone was helping her. They had to find out who it was as soon as possible. In order to do that, it was right for them to forbid anyone to get out.

“Your Highness.”

“I’m sorry, you can’t leave now.”

Charelize, who had no intention of breaking her will, was unmoved despite the refusal of the knights. The knights who saw her were very perplexed and looked at Harbert IV, not knowing what to do.

The knights who saw it were very confused and looked at Emperor Harbert IV without knowing what to do. He couldn’t be sure what would happen if he prevented her from leaving. As he nodded his head slightly, the knights hesitantly backed away.

Charelize went outside as the servant at her side quickly opened the door. Hailey, who had been so startled that she had forgotten to breathe, regained her consciousness and followed her. Charelize went straight to the carriage.

“You came out early…”

The coachman, who wondered why Lari had come out earlier, found Lari in her arms.

“Ah!”

“What’s wrong, Lari?”

“Your Highness’s gloves… I forgot to deliver it.”

“You… huh. Just wait here.”

“I’m sorry, Uncle Rick. I will be back soon.”

It was a conversation he had with Lari just before. Lari, who smiled innocently and said she would hand over the gloves, now had a pale complexion, and her arms drooped.

Furthermore, Charelize’s reaction was quite strange. Without a word and with unfocused eyes, she climbed into the carriage and hugged Lari. Hailey ran over and took the seat next to her, breathing heavily.

“…Go to the duchy.”

“Yes? Ah, I understand.”

The coachman hurriedly drove the horses when Hailey told him to depart.

“Hailey.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

“When we arrive… call Baron Alec and all doctors in the capital.”

In a calm atmosphere, Charelize slowly opened her mouth. “Tell them it doesn’t matter how much the treatment costs… I’ll do anything, so come right away… please…”

“…”

“Tell them… to save Lari’s life.”

Hailey, who had been quietly listening to Charelize, eventually shook her head. Even though she knew that Lari was already dead, her heart ached at Charelize’s act of trying to deny it somehow.

“Your… Highness. Lari…”

“…”

“Is… dead.”

“…Why?”

Silence fell again. Hailey couldn’t bear to answer that question.

When they arrived at Marsetta Duchy, the butler and some servants welcomed them.

“Young Master… th-that blood…?”

“C-call doctor…”

“First of all, wipe it…”

Leaving them behind. Charelize moved her steps to Lari’s room. Then she carefully laid Lari down on the bed. As she covered her with a blanket, she examined Lari’s face. Seeing the shade around her eyes, she looked tired. Not wanting to wake her up, she came out cautiously, even closing the door.

“Your Highness, Lari…”

“She seems very tired. She’s sleeping deeply, don’t go in.

“…”

“When she wakes up, let me know right away…”

“Your Highness?”

Charelize head felt dizzy instantly, and her whole body felt heavy. Then, her eyes blurred.

“…Your Highness!”

Hailey’s voice calling her gradually became hoarse. Soon, darkness fell upon her.

* * *

Opening her eyes, Charelize found herself in the bed. A cold towel was placed on her forehead. Seeing how she dressed comfortably, someone probably had changed her clothes when she lost consciousness.

“…Lari, get me some water.”

She called for Lari because she was thirsty. Even after waiting for a long time by pulling the silver string, Lari didn’t come. Lari was a person who, as usual, would have come before Charelize called her, opened the window, and said the weather was nice.

Charelize pulled up the blanket and got out of her bed, wondering if something had happened.

“Lari?”

She came out to the hallway and called Lari’s name again.

“La…”

Only then did she remember. Lari is dead. She died after speaking all sorts of incomprehensible words.

Charelize forgot about it because she couldn’t believe it. Lari’s death came too suddenly. When her mind understood it, she couldn’t possibly accept that information. However, when that information touched her heart, she couldn’t even deny it anymore. Her legs gave out, and she slumped down. Charelize couldn’t breathe properly.

“La, ri…”

No answer came back. Her eyes quickly became hot. She thought she had cried enough but still had some tears left. She couldn’t completely let it out, so Charelize hit her chest and groaned.

“Your Highness.”

“…Lari?”

Charelize looked up and looked to the side where the sound came from. But it wasn’t Lari.

Hailey handed the water and pills in her hand to Charelize. It was pills to calm her down when she couldn’t distinguish reality and couldn’t breathe properly.

Only a few people knew she had this disease. Charelize thought it was her weakness and thoroughly hid it. Even Hailey only saw her in that state a few times. Therefore, it was originally Lari’s job to bring pills when symptoms appeared.

Barely supporting her wobbly legs, Charelize entered her room. She frantically rummaged through the drawers and pulled out a glass jar full of colored candies.

“…I think it’s bitter, so I bought some candy to share with Your Highness.”

“Candy?”

“It’s candy from such a famous store that everyone would line up hours, even on the weekends, to buy it.”

“Thank you, Lari. “

“Even Hailey doesn’t know this, right?”

“What?”

“That Your Highness doesn’t eat it often because of other people’s eyes. Your Highness likes sweet things. I know everything about Your Highness.”

It was bought for Charelize by Lari, who went out to town long ago.

“How long has it been since I lost consciousness?”

“It’s been about a week. On the third day, Your Highness woke up briefly but then lost consciousness again.”

“…I see.”

“Baron Alec came and went for a while, and… he said that Your Highness was in shock and overworked, so you need to rest.”

“…What about Lari?”

“Lari’s… ashes were placed in Rosnia.”

Rosnia. It was the room Charelize used when she was a princess, and it was given away by Duke Marsetta for Lillian to stay for a while.

“Did you hold the funeral already?”

“…”

It was a hot summer day, and she knew they couldn’t help it. Nevertheless, Charelize had mixed emotions and asked sharply.

Hailey lowered her head without saying anything. Soon Charelize felt sorry because she took her anger to her.

“You… why… never mind.”

The flowing air was so awkward that she swallowed back her words. Thinking about Lari, who normally smiled brightly and changed the atmosphere, made breathing difficult. It became something out of the ordinary. The emptiness that came from her death was heavy.

“Your Highness. Lari was really strange around this time last year.”

“…Strange?”

“It has been several years since Your Highness, who stayed at the villa, didn’t return to the duchy as you were on vacation. As she opened her eyes one morning, she looked for Your Highness and asked for the date.”

Hailey continued, narrowing her brows.

“Her hair, which she used to tie into two braids every morning, saying that it was because Your Highness liked it, was a mess… She didn’t tell strange jokes and left her favorite strawberry cake alone… Do you remember the lake Your Highness went to play when you were young?”

“If it’s a lake…”

“Yes. It’s a lake with a superstition that wishes come true because it is said to be made with the tears of Goddess Resina. Lari likes to dip her toes in there, so Your Highness often took her there.”

“I remember.”

Before she enrolled in Rosielt Academy, Charelize deliberately took time out to make good memories with Lari, who had never been to play anywhere.

“Anyway, she ran out into the lake barefoot. After that, she stayed in Rosnia for half a day, saying she would wait for the fall.”

“…”

“I asked why she was acting so strange, and she said it was because on the day Your Highness was leaving for the academy, she didn’t get to say her goodbye. So she had been waiting for the day Your Highness came back. And she’s worried that if Your Highness doesn’t know the way, or if Your Highness is in trouble… When I first heard it, it was strange. There’s no way Your Highness wouldn’t be able to find your way back to the mansion. More than anything, she suddenly changed overnight. She said she’d rather die than leave Rosnia.”

“…”

“I was worried that she would say such things since Your Highness graduated and returned to the duchy, but… I thought it was because Your Highness simply moved rooms.”

“Do you remember exactly when it was?”

Hailey folded her fingers a few times when asked by Charelize.

“As soon as Your Highness graduated, Your Highness had a coming-of-age ceremony and an engagement ceremony at Radiasa March, so it was the day Your Highness inspected everything and arrived at dawn.”

Remembering that it was customary for the engagement ceremony to be prepared by the male side and the wedding by the female side, Charelize nodded.

“It was me and Martin who followed at that time. Lari took a few weeks off and was somewhere, so I saw her face for the first time the next day. She didn’t go to Rosnia anymore.

Hailey let out a short sigh.

“That’s why I put her in Rosnia. It was weird, but I remembered she couldn’t say goodbye… Because of that, I think I had to put her in Rosnia… I don’t know the details because she never told me properly.”

“Didn’t she tell you anything?”

“Actually, Lari is not that kind of person as Your Highness knows. To those who ask about her past, she put up more walls than necessary… It happens to me sometimes too.”

Charlize thought she knew everything, but there was much more she didn’t know.

“Anyway… Your Highness, Lair wants to say goodbye to you one last time. When she said that she would be waiting for you in Rosnia, that word kept hanging in my mind.”

Hailey’s words about Lari wanting to say goodbye brought her mind back to the day she left to study in Peschte Empire.

“Princess.”

“…Yes.”

“I’ll be waiting for you in Rosnia. I’m not going anywhere but in Rosnia… In the Princess’s room… I will be waiting for you, so you should come soon.”

Duke Marsetta intervened and didn’t even give her time to reply to Lari’s words. And as his birthday approached and she returned to the duchy, he drew a clear line that made her mother angry.

As if dealing with her mother was annoying, the duke ordered the servants to load Charelize’s luggage back into the carriage. He even commented that she didn’t have to return for his next birthday. Because of that, Charlize couldn’t even meet Lari, let alone say goodbye, and had no choice but to return to Rosielt Academy.

She kept seeing strange things in the hallway to Rosnia.

“Your Highness, have some sweets. It’s really warm because I just baked it.”

Lari approached and smiled innocently, saying that she had baked cookies.

“That… I don’t have a fever anymore, and I remember the stain here…”

Lari, who was caught secretly cleaning the window, mumbled and avoided her gaze.

“I-it doesn’t hurt at all. I’m alright, Your Highness.”

Lari, who fell while running to see me in a hurry, hid her wound.

She looked at the illusion vainly. Lari is already dead. So, they were illusions created by her longing. Still, Charelize put her hand on Lari’s head. As expected, it disappeared quickly. Her hands couldn’t touch her.

Arriving in front of Rosnia, Charelize opened the door very slowly and went inside.

“Lari.”

“…”

“Did… you wait a long time?”

“…”

“I’m… sorry for coming late. I’m sorry for being too late to tell you…”

Lari’s urn by the window was bathed in the blinding sunlight.

Charelize picked up the letter next to it. It was crooked handwriting that reflected Lari’s clumsy personality. From there, she could tell that Lari shed many tears while writing the letter.