“What else could I have thought? I have nothing else in mind but to protect my child.”
Amelia answered in a calm voice.
“Didn’t I say that I would protect your child? I wouldn’t let him die.”
“How can I believe that?”
It was as if he were asking how she could betray him when he had already promised her. Amelia let out a short laugh as she asked the question.
“Even now, you say that he is not your child or our child, but my child. You don’t think of Ian as your child. When the inevitable comes, you will think that there is nothing you can do and just abandon him.”
But the brief laughter quickly disappeared.
“Is there anything true about what you said to me?”
Ivan did not answer Amelia's question.
“Status, your heart, your promise.”
But his answer wasn't necessary in the first place. Amelia continued speaking with a self-deprecating laugh, as if she had never expected it.
“Don’t tell me there’s no need to discuss the truth because you’ve never confessed your feelings.”
“...”
“You knew that I loved you. And you knew that I believed that you loved me, too.”
Amelia glared sharply at Ivan as she spoke. The more she spoke, the more difficult it was to hide the emotions that were slowly building up.
“You made it so that I could misunderstand, and now you’re telling me it’s my fault for misunderstanding!”
Eventually, Amelia couldn't hold it in anymore and screamed. Her emotions, which she couldn't suppress, began to pour out uncontrollably.
“The truth is, from the beginning to the end, you had no intention of using me!”
In fact, it was more like a scream. A mixture of doubts and resentments that she couldn't honestly express for fear that Ivan might reject her.
If only she had been suspicious of Ivan's approach from the beginning. No, at least if she had doubted his heart and truth from the moment Ivan showed up in his true form. If she had, she doesn't think they would have come to this moment today.
“So you were talking nonsense about oracles and such in front of all those people?”
“Why didn’t you just be honest and ask for help? Then it would have been more beneficial to you to want to destroy the temple.”
Amelia gasped for breath in reaction to her violent scream. The emotions she had been hiding and pretending not to know were so intense that she let them out. But Ivan just watched the whole moment calmly.
“Do you know what you did?”
She hated Ivan like that. She couldn't stand the resentment. It seemed like a declaration that Amelia Escliffe could never shake him.
“What do I know? It doesn’t matter to me.”
Amelia gritted her teeth and answered. Ivan, who had been watching Amelia's actions with a blank expression the whole time, smiled for the first time. Amelia glared at him warily at the twisted smile that appeared on his face.
Ivan took a step closer. Amelia unconsciously tried to step back, but she held onto her body and froze.
“Just admit it, Amelia Escliffe. You may say you only thought about saving your child, but the truth is that you botched things up because of feelings of betrayal.”
Ivan quietly laughed at Amelia. It seemed as if he couldn't stand the fact that Amelia had been manipulated by such a mere swindler, made a joke of him, and missed her chance to escape the temple on her own.
“Amelia.”
Ivan's large hand was raised. Amelia's eyes followed the trajectory of his hand. Ivan lifted his hand and gently stroked Amelia's cheek. Like the sweet affection he had shown her when she had no doubt that it was love.
“Just as you said, I intended to use you.”
And he honestly admitted his plan.
“Once my purpose was over, it wasn’t my concern whether you died or not. Just like it didn’t matter to you what happened to me.”
A cold voice, gentle hands. She let her guard down, and her heart was pierced without her knowing it. Amelia clenched her trembling fists.
“Even saving your life is a task for me. And it is a very troublesome task.”
The hand that had been gently stroking Amelia’s face began to slowly move down. Ivan’s hand soon began to move down her neck, then her shoulder, and then her back.
“But after coming here and seeing you follow me without a single doubt, I changed my mind a little.”
“...”
“Yes. After all, you have my blood-related child. Regardless of whether I can admit it to others, you are the woman who gave birth to my child. You even love me...”
Ivan ran his fingers along Amelia's slender spine, then touched the three rows of pearls that had been revealed between his thumb and index finger.
“I thought I had to save that life and protect it.”
Ivan smiled sweetly. It was a face that Amelia had once been captivated by and couldn’t do anything about. At the moment when Amelia was flustered by the smile whose intentions were unknown, Ivan’s hand snatched the three-row pearl decoration that he was groping with his fingers. It was as if he wanted to grab the hair, but couldn’t bring himself to do so, so he used a decoration instead.
Amelia gasped and took a surprised breath. Her body was sucked into his embrace. Her lower body was pressed against Ivan’s, but her upper body tilted back uneasily under the strength of his grip.
“But you made me into a fool who is manipulated by a mere agent of God while I am an ambassador from a foreign country.”
Thanks to Ivan holding Amelia's waist with his other hand, she was able to avoid falling despite the precarious position. However, Amelia could not hide her anxiety and fumbled with her hands, grabbing Ivan's chest. Ivan's shirt was crumpled and twisted.
Thump, thump. She felt nervous, wondering if her heartbeat could be heard beyond their touching chests. It was an emotion she couldn't tell if it was fear, nervousness, or anxiety.
“Did the Duke of Russell say that he was satisfied with making his offspring the Crown Prince and taking over the royal family?”
Ivan asked. Amelia did not respond to the strange title of Duke Russell because she did not know who he was. However, Amelia guessed that he was also related to the temple.
“Amelia.”
But Ivan seemed to take that as a positive answer. Ivan called Amelia in a soft voice.
“Those who sit on the throne are basically out of their minds. There are quite a few of them who act with petty greed as if this seat is theirs.”
“...”
“That’s why we learn from a young age to kill and eliminate anything that poses a threat.”
Amelia's body froze. When their eyes met, Ivan smiled brightly.
“But now I feel like your child is a threat to me.”
“...”
“Aren’t you curious about what that crazy kid can do?”
Suddenly, her heart sank. Amelia forgot to breathe for a moment. She wondered if he was going to hurt Ian.
“Why do you look so surprised? Didn’t you even consider that when you were thinking of stirring me up?”
Ivan spoke leisurely. And he lowered his head as if he were going to kiss her lips. Amelia did not avoid the gaze of the man who would not hesitate to kill his own child.
It was because of the terrible realization that suddenly came to her. Ivan didn't take Ian because he felt sorry for his child. He didn't want to keep his life. He wanted to threaten the child's life if she didn't cooperate with his will. She could tell just by looking at how easily he talked about the child's life.
“You piece of trash.”
For a moment, her vision blurred. Amelia glared at Ivan with watery eyes. Then, as if spitting out a curse, she criticized his character.
But Ivan only smiled wryly as he watched Amelia blaming him. As if he knew that was all she could do. The moment his heart was completely exposed, the sunset completely disappeared, and the gloomy night air covered his face.
“Oh, Ian, that’s pitiful. You’re the father.”
Clear tears flowed down her cheeks. It was frustrating that that was all she could say to Ivan.
“Just try to do something stupid. I won’t stay still! I’ll tell everyone that Ian is your son and that I slept with you!”
Amelia pushed Ivan's upper body away and struggled wildly. She barely managed to get away from Ivan. The pearl decoration wrapped around Ivan's hand broke in the fierce resistance, and several pearls were thrown into the air. The body that stepped on the pearls tilted over. Amelia sat down on the floor in an unsightly manner.
“Yes. Try it. You, who was locked up in the temple, and I, who was only in the palace, had sex and even had a child. I don’t know who would believe such a believable story.”
Ivan laughed at the sight and left. The only thing left in the room was the woman he had pushed away, abandoned in the darkness. Amelia roughly wiped away the tears that were still flowing down with her hand. Then she giggled.
Ivan hated her so much that he wanted to kill her. In fact, it seemed like he wanted to kill her. No, it was all a lie. She didn't know what he wanted to do.
Amelia looked around with wet eyes. Pearls were scattered on the floor like grains of wheat. Footprints left by Ivan's shoes. The carpet, disheveled and creased at the corners. And Amelia Escliffe, sitting down in her shabby clothes.
Everything was a mess.
Amelia answered in a calm voice.
“Didn’t I say that I would protect your child? I wouldn’t let him die.”
“How can I believe that?”
It was as if he were asking how she could betray him when he had already promised her. Amelia let out a short laugh as she asked the question.
“Even now, you say that he is not your child or our child, but my child. You don’t think of Ian as your child. When the inevitable comes, you will think that there is nothing you can do and just abandon him.”
But the brief laughter quickly disappeared.
“Is there anything true about what you said to me?”
Ivan did not answer Amelia's question.
“Status, your heart, your promise.”
But his answer wasn't necessary in the first place. Amelia continued speaking with a self-deprecating laugh, as if she had never expected it.
“Don’t tell me there’s no need to discuss the truth because you’ve never confessed your feelings.”
“...”
“You knew that I loved you. And you knew that I believed that you loved me, too.”
Amelia glared sharply at Ivan as she spoke. The more she spoke, the more difficult it was to hide the emotions that were slowly building up.
“You made it so that I could misunderstand, and now you’re telling me it’s my fault for misunderstanding!”
Eventually, Amelia couldn't hold it in anymore and screamed. Her emotions, which she couldn't suppress, began to pour out uncontrollably.
“The truth is, from the beginning to the end, you had no intention of using me!”
In fact, it was more like a scream. A mixture of doubts and resentments that she couldn't honestly express for fear that Ivan might reject her.
If only she had been suspicious of Ivan's approach from the beginning. No, at least if she had doubted his heart and truth from the moment Ivan showed up in his true form. If she had, she doesn't think they would have come to this moment today.
“So you were talking nonsense about oracles and such in front of all those people?”
“Why didn’t you just be honest and ask for help? Then it would have been more beneficial to you to want to destroy the temple.”
Amelia gasped for breath in reaction to her violent scream. The emotions she had been hiding and pretending not to know were so intense that she let them out. But Ivan just watched the whole moment calmly.
“Do you know what you did?”
She hated Ivan like that. She couldn't stand the resentment. It seemed like a declaration that Amelia Escliffe could never shake him.
“What do I know? It doesn’t matter to me.”
Amelia gritted her teeth and answered. Ivan, who had been watching Amelia's actions with a blank expression the whole time, smiled for the first time. Amelia glared at him warily at the twisted smile that appeared on his face.
Ivan took a step closer. Amelia unconsciously tried to step back, but she held onto her body and froze.
“Just admit it, Amelia Escliffe. You may say you only thought about saving your child, but the truth is that you botched things up because of feelings of betrayal.”
Ivan quietly laughed at Amelia. It seemed as if he couldn't stand the fact that Amelia had been manipulated by such a mere swindler, made a joke of him, and missed her chance to escape the temple on her own.
“Amelia.”
Ivan's large hand was raised. Amelia's eyes followed the trajectory of his hand. Ivan lifted his hand and gently stroked Amelia's cheek. Like the sweet affection he had shown her when she had no doubt that it was love.
“Just as you said, I intended to use you.”
And he honestly admitted his plan.
“Once my purpose was over, it wasn’t my concern whether you died or not. Just like it didn’t matter to you what happened to me.”
A cold voice, gentle hands. She let her guard down, and her heart was pierced without her knowing it. Amelia clenched her trembling fists.
“Even saving your life is a task for me. And it is a very troublesome task.”
The hand that had been gently stroking Amelia’s face began to slowly move down. Ivan’s hand soon began to move down her neck, then her shoulder, and then her back.
“But after coming here and seeing you follow me without a single doubt, I changed my mind a little.”
“...”
“Yes. After all, you have my blood-related child. Regardless of whether I can admit it to others, you are the woman who gave birth to my child. You even love me...”
Ivan ran his fingers along Amelia's slender spine, then touched the three rows of pearls that had been revealed between his thumb and index finger.
“I thought I had to save that life and protect it.”
Ivan smiled sweetly. It was a face that Amelia had once been captivated by and couldn’t do anything about. At the moment when Amelia was flustered by the smile whose intentions were unknown, Ivan’s hand snatched the three-row pearl decoration that he was groping with his fingers. It was as if he wanted to grab the hair, but couldn’t bring himself to do so, so he used a decoration instead.
Amelia gasped and took a surprised breath. Her body was sucked into his embrace. Her lower body was pressed against Ivan’s, but her upper body tilted back uneasily under the strength of his grip.
“But you made me into a fool who is manipulated by a mere agent of God while I am an ambassador from a foreign country.”
Thanks to Ivan holding Amelia's waist with his other hand, she was able to avoid falling despite the precarious position. However, Amelia could not hide her anxiety and fumbled with her hands, grabbing Ivan's chest. Ivan's shirt was crumpled and twisted.
Thump, thump. She felt nervous, wondering if her heartbeat could be heard beyond their touching chests. It was an emotion she couldn't tell if it was fear, nervousness, or anxiety.
“Did the Duke of Russell say that he was satisfied with making his offspring the Crown Prince and taking over the royal family?”
Ivan asked. Amelia did not respond to the strange title of Duke Russell because she did not know who he was. However, Amelia guessed that he was also related to the temple.
“Amelia.”
But Ivan seemed to take that as a positive answer. Ivan called Amelia in a soft voice.
“Those who sit on the throne are basically out of their minds. There are quite a few of them who act with petty greed as if this seat is theirs.”
“...”
“That’s why we learn from a young age to kill and eliminate anything that poses a threat.”
Amelia's body froze. When their eyes met, Ivan smiled brightly.
“But now I feel like your child is a threat to me.”
“...”
“Aren’t you curious about what that crazy kid can do?”
Suddenly, her heart sank. Amelia forgot to breathe for a moment. She wondered if he was going to hurt Ian.
“Why do you look so surprised? Didn’t you even consider that when you were thinking of stirring me up?”
Ivan spoke leisurely. And he lowered his head as if he were going to kiss her lips. Amelia did not avoid the gaze of the man who would not hesitate to kill his own child.
It was because of the terrible realization that suddenly came to her. Ivan didn't take Ian because he felt sorry for his child. He didn't want to keep his life. He wanted to threaten the child's life if she didn't cooperate with his will. She could tell just by looking at how easily he talked about the child's life.
“You piece of trash.”
For a moment, her vision blurred. Amelia glared at Ivan with watery eyes. Then, as if spitting out a curse, she criticized his character.
But Ivan only smiled wryly as he watched Amelia blaming him. As if he knew that was all she could do. The moment his heart was completely exposed, the sunset completely disappeared, and the gloomy night air covered his face.
“Oh, Ian, that’s pitiful. You’re the father.”
Clear tears flowed down her cheeks. It was frustrating that that was all she could say to Ivan.
“Just try to do something stupid. I won’t stay still! I’ll tell everyone that Ian is your son and that I slept with you!”
Amelia pushed Ivan's upper body away and struggled wildly. She barely managed to get away from Ivan. The pearl decoration wrapped around Ivan's hand broke in the fierce resistance, and several pearls were thrown into the air. The body that stepped on the pearls tilted over. Amelia sat down on the floor in an unsightly manner.
“Yes. Try it. You, who was locked up in the temple, and I, who was only in the palace, had sex and even had a child. I don’t know who would believe such a believable story.”
Ivan laughed at the sight and left. The only thing left in the room was the woman he had pushed away, abandoned in the darkness. Amelia roughly wiped away the tears that were still flowing down with her hand. Then she giggled.
Ivan hated her so much that he wanted to kill her. In fact, it seemed like he wanted to kill her. No, it was all a lie. She didn't know what he wanted to do.
Amelia looked around with wet eyes. Pearls were scattered on the floor like grains of wheat. Footprints left by Ivan's shoes. The carpet, disheveled and creased at the corners. And Amelia Escliffe, sitting down in her shabby clothes.
Everything was a mess.
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