Jason's words seemed to have stuck in Cecilia's mind. She couldn't help but think of that story at some point. But strangely, she never dared to ask Curtis directly.
Because of this, Cecilia waited anxiously for Diego's contact. And finally, Diego requested an audience.
“Your Majesty, James Morak...”
“Tell him to come in.”
Before Cecilia could even finish speaking, Madame Monte opened the door with a puzzled look on her face at Cecilia's hasty answer.
“Let me start with the little things.”
Diego, sitting down, began to report with a serious expression. It was that the trust bank in Benia had requested the use of its assets at the request of the royal family.
“They say they are asking for consent regarding asset management. They promise to return the profits at least twice.”
It was suspicious. Cecilia knows that Benia has been going through financial difficulties recently, but that doesn't mean there's any reason to try to use personal assets that were entrusted to a trust bank.
“I hear they are planning to introduce a conscription system recently. They say it is to increase military power...”
Since it was money from a foreign trustee, they probably thought it would be easy to manage.
“It’s suspicious.”
“I think so too.”
“Reject and freeze the account.”
She had no intention of helping Benia, who had been causing her headaches recently, with her assets. Especially if they were going to be used for military purposes. Diego nodded at Cecilia's words.
“If that’s the small thing, what else?”
After resolving the issue of the trust bank agreement, Cecilia asked a question. Diego moved his lips hesitantly.
“How do you choose what to say?”
When Cecilia made a joke without answering, Diego stuck out his tongue and licked his lips. He did it knowing it was rude, but it must have been because he was nervous.
“You asked me to investigate Duke Lane.”
"...Yes."
Just hearing that story made Cecilia's heart race.
“Has my father been acting suspiciously recently?”
She felt frustrated because the story kept going around and around. Cecilia urged Diego to answer.
“The relationship between Her Majesty the Empress Dowager and His Excellency the Duke may be older than we think.”
"...What?"
Cecilia paused. When Diego first told her about Curtis and the Empress Dowager, she said it didn't seem like much. But that wasn't the case?
“What does that mean?”
Diego met Cecilia's question with a calm face and looked straight into her eyes as if to prove that it was the truth without a single lie.
“I investigated the estate of the Count Oberon family. It is said that Her Majesty the Empress had a lover before her marriage.”
What does that have to do with Curtis? Cecilia held his shaking hand to steady it.
“A retired gardener who worked for Count Oberon’s household said he was a strikingly handsome man with blond hair and green eyes.”
Green eyes were not common within the Wyatt noble family. Moreover, at that time, if you were a young nobleman with blond hair and green eyes who was the same age as the Empress Dowager, your options were even narrower.
“He said that he secretly went in and out of the mansion and then left. Then he heard that the young lady was in despair when she heard that he was married.”
If that were true, their relationship was much longer than one might imagine, dating back to before Curtis married Olivia and before Cecilia was born.
“...”
Is this a dream? Cecilia blinked slowly.
'Call my father.'
After Diego left, Cecilia spoke in a voice that seemed as if it would stop at any moment. She was worried about what had happened, but Madame Monte could not bring herself to step forward. She simply did as she was told and sent someone to the Duke of Lane.
“Your Majesty the Empress, the Duke of Lane has here.”
In the afternoon, Curtis, who had received the call, entered the palace. Curtis sat down opposite Cecilia, dressed neatly.
“Thank you.”
“Give everyone a pass. And Madame Monte, please step aside.”
Madame Monte looked between Cecilia and Curtis, then put down her teacup with an anxious look on her face and closed the drawing-room door.
“Why did you suddenly call me?”
Curtis asked with a kind smile.
“Are you feeling sick somewhere?”
But when there was no immediate response from Cecilia, his face became worried. Looking at that, he seemed like just an ordinary father.
“...I’m not sick. I wanted to meet you because I wanted to ask you something.”
“Please speak comfortably.”
Curtis spoke as if she could ask him anything.
“As you know, Jason Nova was arrested for lese majeste and drug trafficking. He is currently in prison.”
Curtis nodded as if he knew.
“I asked him how he got the money to buy drugs illegally and do puppet shows, and he said my father was behind it.”
Cecilia didn't beat around the bush. The smile that had been faintly on Curtis' face faded at the direct words. And soon after, it disappeared completely.
“Do you believe what a crazy, drugged-out person says?”
And then he opened his mouth sternly, as if to say, "Do you not trust me?"
“The Empress Dowager wants to kill His Majesty. That’s why I thought she was behind this puppet show.”
“...”
“But I wondered what it meant when they said the person behind it was my father.”
Normally, she would have backed away, but this time, Cecilia didn't. Instead, she looked straight at Curtis. Her eyes clearly conveyed the pressure to speak properly.
“I thought you weren’t even related.”
But Cecilia learned that Curtis and the Empress Dowager had a connection that was older than she thought. She was also convinced that it wasn't just a fleeting flash of affection.
“I know that you and the Empress Dowager were childhood lovers.”
“...”
“You’ve never broken up, have you?”
Curtis stared at his daughter without answering Cecilia's question.
“Yeah. We were lovers.”
And after a long time, he finally gave an honest answer. Cecilia instinctively clenched her fists on her thighs. Her heart felt like it was falling into the abyss.
“We broke up due to family opposition. We never met again. Then we met again after Tiffany married the Emperor and your mother died.”
Cecilia's heart was beating so fast she felt like throwing up.
“I just couldn’t give up on this feeling. We loved each other too much.”
But there was no need for that. Soon, the extreme excitement actually calmed his head and heart.
“I have never directly supported the puppet show. However, the drug that funded the puppet show was originally brought in for Tiffany.”
“...”
“She was such a sensitive person that she needed a sedative to live with the Emperor he hated.”
The strength that had been in her fist slowly released. Cecilia stared at her father with an expressionless face. Their faces were surprisingly similar.
“You know too. Love isn’t something I can control.”
Just as Cecilia was crazy in love, Curtis was also crazy in love. So much so that there was no denying that they were father and daughter.
“Then why don’t you just continue to live as a secret lover? Why are you suddenly trying to antagonize the royal family? Your daughter is the Emperor's wife?”
Cecilia asked a question that was intrinsically linked to every issue Curtis had to deal with.
“Tiffany killed the former Crown Prince, Aster.”
Curtis confessed calmly. By then, even Cecilia could no longer keep her composure. Aster could not die in this life. Then, Isabella could not die either.
If the Empress Dowager had not acted in a scheming manner, Cecilia could have brought peace to everything.
“The Emperor is currently investigating everything related to the assassination of the royal family. If this is discovered, Tiffany will die.”
When she realized that, she was overcome with rage. Cecilia felt like she was being stupid for having gone to such lengths to protect Curtis.
“Cecilia. You are my good daughter and a member of the Duchess of Lane.”
Curtis opened his mouth leisurely.
“You and I. If they find out about this, we won’t be able to live in peace. You know that very well.”
Curtis knew that Cecilia would not want to lose what she had in her hands. That was why he trusted her and committed the act. That was also the reason for his honest confession now.
“So you have to choose this father.”
“...”
“I won’t ask you to do anything. Just stay quiet. When I become Emperor..”
Because he knows that Cecilia won't be able to easily abandon Curtis and her family. Because he knows that she would rather live a comfortable life as a Princess than an Empress, avoiding responsibility.
“I will find a good husband who suits you again.”
Cecilia had a feeling. She wouldn't have thought differently just because it was the Curtis of the past. He would have been the Empress Dowager's lover just the same. And he would have done anything to protect her. One of those things would have caused conflict with Eden.
He was never innocent. Not then, not now.
Because of this, Cecilia waited anxiously for Diego's contact. And finally, Diego requested an audience.
“Your Majesty, James Morak...”
“Tell him to come in.”
Before Cecilia could even finish speaking, Madame Monte opened the door with a puzzled look on her face at Cecilia's hasty answer.
“Let me start with the little things.”
Diego, sitting down, began to report with a serious expression. It was that the trust bank in Benia had requested the use of its assets at the request of the royal family.
“They say they are asking for consent regarding asset management. They promise to return the profits at least twice.”
It was suspicious. Cecilia knows that Benia has been going through financial difficulties recently, but that doesn't mean there's any reason to try to use personal assets that were entrusted to a trust bank.
“I hear they are planning to introduce a conscription system recently. They say it is to increase military power...”
Since it was money from a foreign trustee, they probably thought it would be easy to manage.
“It’s suspicious.”
“I think so too.”
“Reject and freeze the account.”
She had no intention of helping Benia, who had been causing her headaches recently, with her assets. Especially if they were going to be used for military purposes. Diego nodded at Cecilia's words.
“If that’s the small thing, what else?”
After resolving the issue of the trust bank agreement, Cecilia asked a question. Diego moved his lips hesitantly.
“How do you choose what to say?”
When Cecilia made a joke without answering, Diego stuck out his tongue and licked his lips. He did it knowing it was rude, but it must have been because he was nervous.
“You asked me to investigate Duke Lane.”
"...Yes."
Just hearing that story made Cecilia's heart race.
“Has my father been acting suspiciously recently?”
She felt frustrated because the story kept going around and around. Cecilia urged Diego to answer.
“The relationship between Her Majesty the Empress Dowager and His Excellency the Duke may be older than we think.”
"...What?"
Cecilia paused. When Diego first told her about Curtis and the Empress Dowager, she said it didn't seem like much. But that wasn't the case?
“What does that mean?”
Diego met Cecilia's question with a calm face and looked straight into her eyes as if to prove that it was the truth without a single lie.
“I investigated the estate of the Count Oberon family. It is said that Her Majesty the Empress had a lover before her marriage.”
What does that have to do with Curtis? Cecilia held his shaking hand to steady it.
“A retired gardener who worked for Count Oberon’s household said he was a strikingly handsome man with blond hair and green eyes.”
Green eyes were not common within the Wyatt noble family. Moreover, at that time, if you were a young nobleman with blond hair and green eyes who was the same age as the Empress Dowager, your options were even narrower.
“He said that he secretly went in and out of the mansion and then left. Then he heard that the young lady was in despair when she heard that he was married.”
If that were true, their relationship was much longer than one might imagine, dating back to before Curtis married Olivia and before Cecilia was born.
“...”
Is this a dream? Cecilia blinked slowly.
***
'Call my father.'
After Diego left, Cecilia spoke in a voice that seemed as if it would stop at any moment. She was worried about what had happened, but Madame Monte could not bring herself to step forward. She simply did as she was told and sent someone to the Duke of Lane.
“Your Majesty the Empress, the Duke of Lane has here.”
In the afternoon, Curtis, who had received the call, entered the palace. Curtis sat down opposite Cecilia, dressed neatly.
“Thank you.”
“Give everyone a pass. And Madame Monte, please step aside.”
Madame Monte looked between Cecilia and Curtis, then put down her teacup with an anxious look on her face and closed the drawing-room door.
“Why did you suddenly call me?”
Curtis asked with a kind smile.
“Are you feeling sick somewhere?”
But when there was no immediate response from Cecilia, his face became worried. Looking at that, he seemed like just an ordinary father.
“...I’m not sick. I wanted to meet you because I wanted to ask you something.”
“Please speak comfortably.”
Curtis spoke as if she could ask him anything.
“As you know, Jason Nova was arrested for lese majeste and drug trafficking. He is currently in prison.”
Curtis nodded as if he knew.
“I asked him how he got the money to buy drugs illegally and do puppet shows, and he said my father was behind it.”
Cecilia didn't beat around the bush. The smile that had been faintly on Curtis' face faded at the direct words. And soon after, it disappeared completely.
“Do you believe what a crazy, drugged-out person says?”
And then he opened his mouth sternly, as if to say, "Do you not trust me?"
“The Empress Dowager wants to kill His Majesty. That’s why I thought she was behind this puppet show.”
“...”
“But I wondered what it meant when they said the person behind it was my father.”
Normally, she would have backed away, but this time, Cecilia didn't. Instead, she looked straight at Curtis. Her eyes clearly conveyed the pressure to speak properly.
“I thought you weren’t even related.”
But Cecilia learned that Curtis and the Empress Dowager had a connection that was older than she thought. She was also convinced that it wasn't just a fleeting flash of affection.
“I know that you and the Empress Dowager were childhood lovers.”
“...”
“You’ve never broken up, have you?”
Curtis stared at his daughter without answering Cecilia's question.
“Yeah. We were lovers.”
And after a long time, he finally gave an honest answer. Cecilia instinctively clenched her fists on her thighs. Her heart felt like it was falling into the abyss.
“We broke up due to family opposition. We never met again. Then we met again after Tiffany married the Emperor and your mother died.”
Cecilia's heart was beating so fast she felt like throwing up.
“I just couldn’t give up on this feeling. We loved each other too much.”
But there was no need for that. Soon, the extreme excitement actually calmed his head and heart.
“I have never directly supported the puppet show. However, the drug that funded the puppet show was originally brought in for Tiffany.”
“...”
“She was such a sensitive person that she needed a sedative to live with the Emperor he hated.”
The strength that had been in her fist slowly released. Cecilia stared at her father with an expressionless face. Their faces were surprisingly similar.
“You know too. Love isn’t something I can control.”
Just as Cecilia was crazy in love, Curtis was also crazy in love. So much so that there was no denying that they were father and daughter.
“Then why don’t you just continue to live as a secret lover? Why are you suddenly trying to antagonize the royal family? Your daughter is the Emperor's wife?”
Cecilia asked a question that was intrinsically linked to every issue Curtis had to deal with.
“Tiffany killed the former Crown Prince, Aster.”
Curtis confessed calmly. By then, even Cecilia could no longer keep her composure. Aster could not die in this life. Then, Isabella could not die either.
If the Empress Dowager had not acted in a scheming manner, Cecilia could have brought peace to everything.
“The Emperor is currently investigating everything related to the assassination of the royal family. If this is discovered, Tiffany will die.”
When she realized that, she was overcome with rage. Cecilia felt like she was being stupid for having gone to such lengths to protect Curtis.
“Cecilia. You are my good daughter and a member of the Duchess of Lane.”
Curtis opened his mouth leisurely.
“You and I. If they find out about this, we won’t be able to live in peace. You know that very well.”
Curtis knew that Cecilia would not want to lose what she had in her hands. That was why he trusted her and committed the act. That was also the reason for his honest confession now.
“So you have to choose this father.”
“...”
“I won’t ask you to do anything. Just stay quiet. When I become Emperor..”
Because he knows that Cecilia won't be able to easily abandon Curtis and her family. Because he knows that she would rather live a comfortable life as a Princess than an Empress, avoiding responsibility.
“I will find a good husband who suits you again.”
Cecilia had a feeling. She wouldn't have thought differently just because it was the Curtis of the past. He would have been the Empress Dowager's lover just the same. And he would have done anything to protect her. One of those things would have caused conflict with Eden.
He was never innocent. Not then, not now.
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