The sun was setting.
Kishian was slowly driving his horse and patrolling the territory with his men.
In fact, he didn't have to come out and walk around until this late hour, but even so, he couldn't easily return to the palace after patrolling.
It was because he wasn't ready to face the person who cheated on him yet.
'She collapsed, gasping for breath during the conversation.'
When Kishian asked her why she had deceived him, the Grand Duchess reacted extremely uneasily.
She gasped for breath and eventually lost consciousness.
It was easy to predict that it would be uncomfortable to meet face to face again in such a situation.
'What if you deceive others and react like that...'
It is also true that it was sad to see the Grand Duchess in pain.
But more than that, he felt more resentment.
He asked her not to deceive him.
She casually deceived Kishian herself.
She didn't apologize, she didn't give an explanation, and she collapsed.
It seemed that it would be difficult to forgive easily.
"..."
It was when he let out a long sigh.
The adjutant who was following behind asked.
"We visited most of the neighborhood, so why don't you go back now?"
He seemed to think he was tired and sighed.
It wasn't for that reason, but it was time to go back.
He asked the adjutant for the last check before returning home.
"What about other places? I know there are a few places I haven't seen yet."
"No problem. Monsters aren't even appearing these days."
It was just as the adjutant said.
The fact that the number of monster haunts had decreased significantly since the Grand Duchess came here had already been reported by Kishian.
In the past, monsters were so infested that even the lord, Kishian, often had to hunt them himself.
Now it's a peaceful area where he doesn't have to do that.
The adjutant added as if he had read his thoughts.
"The entire people of the territory owes a great debt to Her Highness the Grand Duchess."
"..."
"Seeing that the monsters have disappeared since she came. It must have been a special power as a savior. Thanks to her...
"You talk too much."
The adjutant, who was about to give the Grand Duke a little flattery, hurriedly shut up.
Even though he complimented his wife, for some reason, Kishian's expression was not good.
"I'm sorry."
"I'm going back."
"Yes!"
Since there were no monsters, there was no need to patrol anymore.
Kishian rode in the direction of the Grand Duke.
He was about to lead his soldiers home.
A woman selling flowers in a shabby outfit suddenly caught his eye.
"..."
It was the time when the Lissenblume was in full bloom, so she was standing with a basket full of flowers.
It was inevitable that the Grand Duchess would naturally come to mind.
"She was really happy the day I gave her the golden Lissenblume."
The memory of that day was still vivid.
Fearing that the Kishian would hand the trophy to her sister, the Grand Duchess looked at him nervously.
Later, when the flowers were handed to her, she smiled hard as if she was about to cry.
It was as if she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness.
'Was it so good to receive flowers?'
He paused for a moment and looked at the basket of flowers the woman was holding.
He thought that buying it and handing it over would ease the atmosphere with the Grand Duchess a lot.
But on the other hand, he didn't know why he had to go to such lengths, as he was just a victim of deception.
He hasn't forgiven the Grand Duchess yet, so why should he, who is innocent, even buy flowers and offer them? Well, it's pretty.
"...Your Highness?"
The lieutenant who was following called out to the Kishian, who was still stopped.
Kishian replied, keeping an eye on the basket.
"Go back first. I have something else to do."
"I see. Let's go back first."
The adjutant immediately bowed his head, led the soldiers, and disappeared.
Only when he saw that everyone was gone did Kishian slowly steer toward the flower seller.
***
I rarely saw Kishian's face.
I heard from Anne that he has been patrolling since the morning.
Considering that he had never patrolled before, it was obvious why he suddenly started wandering outside.
It must have felt horrible just to be in the same space as me.
Even breathing the same air in the same space as me felt disgusting.
"..."
I lay on the bed and curled up alone under the blanket.
I didn't dare to face him.
So it would be better not to come back like this, but I felt sick to my stomach when I thought he was horrible and avoided me.
I still want to be loved.
I didn't even understand the topic until I got to this point...
Gloomy thoughts continued to eat away at my mind.
Even though I had left the window open, the air felt thin.
I thought I was going to suffocate like this.
"Wife."
The low-pitched voice that I always heard came in from outside the door.
His voice was low and soft, but it was clearly imprinted.
I thought I wanted to hear it, but when I listened to it, my body trembled.
I was afraid that I didn't expect his reaction.
"May I go in?"
As Il crouched down without answering, he heard the door open.
I could also hear a rustling sound as if I had brought something.
'What did you bring? Did you put it down on the table?'
I couldn't see anything because I was lying under the blanket.
I felt the urge to pretend to be asleep, but I couldn't do it.
Because I'm not a child. Even if it felt painful, I had to face him.
"I'm sorry I couldn't answer. I was lying down because I wasn't feeling well."
"Still?"
"I'm sorry."
"No. I'm not asking you to apologize... I was just asking. I'm worried."
I looked up when I heard that he was worried.
I turned my attention to Kishian, whom I had avoided because I couldn't bear to look at him, and finally saw his face.
He didn't look angry.
On the contrary, he looked embarrassed because he didn't know how to treat me.
'I thought he would spit out insults as soon as he came.'
Isn't he so cruel that he would say bad things to someone who has just woken up after falling down?
I was scared of myself, but I was confused because he had a gentle look.
"Anger... I thought I would pay for it."
"You will pay it. When you feel better. Before that, first..."
"First of all?"
He looked at me, asking without hiding his nervousness, and slowly continued.
"Let's hear the reason first. Why should you have hidden it so much?"
"..."
For a moment, my lips closed as if they were about to harden.
Reason. It was simple.
If he knew I was fake, he would be disappointed.
He would be disappointed, angry, and eventually destroy the fake he was holding in his hands.
I was so afraid of it that I didn't dare to reveal the truth to him.
However, it was impossible to say this as it was.
'...It's miserable.'
How can I say that I was afraid of being abandoned because it was fake?
It's like admitting with my mouth that I'm just a counterfeit in the end.
He was silent, and his eyes wrinkled.
"Were you scared? Are you afraid you'll get angry?"
"...It's not like that."
"Then why?"
After a long consideration, I put the answer out of my mouth.
"I didn't think I needed to reveal the truth."
"..."
"Anyway... It didn't matter, did it? Whoever you marry, the twins."
"..."
"It didn't matter who you got from a woman with the same face, the same age, and the same status, right? Even if you didn't know I was Elona, you would have always loved me as Letie. After all, if it wasn't for the color of the token, you wouldn't have been able to tell them apart."
I spoke to him in a casual tone.
"Then I didn't even have to reveal the truth."
It is a blatant lie.
He received a fake instead of the real thing, so who wouldn't care?
Of course, he would be angry. Of course, he can't stand it.
However, if I admitted all the facts, I would be endlessly miserable, so I couldn't be honest with them.
"You thought it wouldn't matter if you cheated...?"
"..."
"It's a much more pathetic excuse than I thought."
He laughed in dismay.
I waited silently for his laughter to stop.
After that, he slowly pulled out the words he had prepared all along.
"If you are so upset that you decided to marry me instead of Letie... Change it now."
"What?"
"Go to the Imperial Palace. Ask my father for your sins, and bring Letie back. I won't mind if you throw me out."
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