Chapter 3 Part 2. You Killed Me

I knew the future of Archduke Mona Chareuteu.

‘If I could in any way help him to the throne, I would have his patronage. But ……. ‘

Rumors grew, but the only rumors I ever heard about Archduke Mona Chareuteu were about his malicious nature, so I was worried. Above all, I had never heard a good word about the Northerners before. It was almost a gamble to approach him. Nevertheless, it was the best thing to do. I clenched my fist with determination in my eyes.

It was a day after I had organized all my plans that my father called for me. I looked at the tightly closed door of his office, hoping that everything would go smoothly. My father’s office, which had been more comfortable than my own, was now more uncomfortable than anywhere else.

“You wanted to see me, father?”

“Oh, you’ve come, Charlotte.”

My father saw me and left his seat.

I sat down on the sofa opposite my father.

“It’s been a long time. How have you been?”

He knew I hadn’t been well, but he asked me as if nothing had happened. I didn’t know what to say. I did not want to say that I was flattered.

“I have called you here today because I have something to say to you…”

“What is it, father?”

I already knew what he was going to say, but I deliberately pretended not to know. My father did not hide his distress and took a moment to catch his breath. He should have apologised for the party he had ruined, but he didn’t seem to think about it.

All that mattered to him now was to notify me that the real Charlotte was back and to solidify her position.

“That’s…….”

“What are you trying to say, father?”

I repeated what I had said before, and felt like I was reading a set script. I wanted everything to be over as soon as possible.

“….”

“Is something indescribable?”

My father wrinkled his brows and avoided looking at me.

“Father,” I urged, and he hesitated for a moment, but then opened his tightly closed mouth. “Actually, you are not my daughter, Charlotte.”

“I’m not your daughter. What are you talking about?”

“After Charlotte went missing, Clara was very sick. So I decided to give her a girl about our daughter’s age, to help her heal. That’s you, Charlotte.”

I clenched my fist as I saw my father frowning painfully. In the past, I had been so busy trying to understand my father’s feelings that I had lost sight of mine. ‘I will do what my father wants unconditionally.’ That was what I only had in mind and wept with him. But now I know a little more. I was devastated.

“Does this mean that I am not the real Charlotte?”

I tried to suppress my sadness and look at my father. I thought I was about to burst into tears, but I couldn’t tell if it was sadness or anger.

My father wanted me to be his successor too, even though it would have ended my life…

“I thought that if Phaethon married you, there would be no big problem. Because Phaethon is my nephew, and the Tiodurop bloodline will continue …”

‘You have deceived me,’ I thought. I couldn’t bear to look at him and nodded helplessly. Even though it was the second time he had told me the story, his confession still shocked me.

“I actually thought that Charlotte was dead. It was difficult to accept, but everyone and all the evidence was telling me that she was dead.”

“Then, why did you make me Charlotte?”

“Your mother was quite ill. As sick as she was, she could not accept the reality that Charlotte was dead. In the end I had to make a choice. Even if it was a lie, I had to make her laugh. “

“….”

“After Clara’s death, I thought I’d have to end the whole play. But unlike what I expected, you were so lovely. As if the real Charlotte had come back, so I raised you as Charlotte.”

My father looked at me with tears in his eyes.

“After all, I was a substitute for Charlotte, wasn’t I?”

“Don’t say it like that. Just because I did it wrong doesn’t mean I don’t love you. I know it disturbs you, but I assure you, even if there is no blood relation between us, you are my daughter. I love you and I mean it.”

‘Then, why did you abandon me?’ I swallowed my words in silence. Even though I remembered everything my father had done to me, I could not make up my mind easily. There had been too many happy days for me to hate him outright.

“I did not mean any harm by deceiving you. I just thought you didn’t have to know, for you have no memory of your childhood, and you have lived your whole life as the Young Miss of Tiodurop. I thought if I kept the secret, everyone would be happy.”

“Then why are you telling me this now?”

“She returned. Charlotte Blanc Tiodurop. My daughter.”

My father covered his face with his hands and drew a long breath.