C30 Part1

Translated by XyeHeart Edited by XyeHeart

Her parents sent her to the forest after an accident. She remembered them desperately yelling for her to flee. Meriel then fled while being led by someone’s hand. He was holding her shoulder and covering her crying mouth.

‘Who?’

It was a memory she hadn’t considered before. Unless she actively sought it, she had no recollection of the real Meriel. It was because it wasn’t something she remembered.

‘So I fled after the accident.’

Her head was on the verge of collapsing. The fog in her head thickened, as if she was peering at something she shouldn’t have.

“Meriel?”

Klaus anxiously called out her name.

[ Meriel, Meriel, Meriel. ]

In her head, she heard the voice of a young boy.

Meriel had inadvertently wrapped her arms around her head.

Klaus was taken aback and raised her chin, which was gradually dropping. His deep blue eyes could be seen. It was as deep blue as the abyssal sea. It appeared to be similar to the eyes of the person who held her hand as she ran.

[ Please, Meriel… ]

As he hugged her, who was crying and hiding among the sharp thorns, he said as if pleading. He prayed as he covered her mouth with his trembling hand.

[ Please, please, please keep your voice down. ]

She searched through her misty memories for him, but she couldn’t find him.

A drop of cold water fell on her face.

“Meriel!”

She awoke as if she had awoken from a dream.

Because of her first memory, Meriel stared at him blankly.

His hands trembled thinly as he wrapped around Meriel’s cheeks, befuddled. For the first time, she felt a sense of insecurity from him.

‘That’s it. After that, I have no recollection.’

He sighed and gently wiped the corners of Meriel’s eyes, which were welling up with tears.

“Did you recall?”

“Previously… I didn’t recall all of those memories.”

She had no idea she’d been rescued by the knight’s hand. She thought the emperor’s escort knight, who was not bought by Draven, had saved her.

However, this was not the case. It was not a knight who took her hand and fled. He wasn’t yet a young man, but he was still a young boy.

Meriel did not become a fool solely because her uncle, Draven, murdered her parents.

Perhaps it was even more shocking than the murder of her parents.

Perhaps the impact was so powerful that she erased it herself.

“What happened 14 years ago…” she asked.

“……”

“Are you aware?”

Only then did Meriel realize. Why did he look at her so pitifully every time he looked at her?

“Did you meet me 14 years ago, Klaus?”

Along with his anxiety over her question, she sensed his previous sympathy for her.

He can’t tell a lie.

No, even if he lied, Meriel would be able to tell. In her confusion, Meriel unintentionally knocked out his hand, which was holding hers.

He clench his fist and open his mouth to say something.

The reception room door swung open.

Juliana entered.

“Meriel!”

Juliana tossed her luggage bag, which she was holding in both hands, to the ground. She dashed up to her, arms wide open, and snatched Meriel into her arms.

Juliana was quite tall. Meriel crawled into her arms as she stood up in her dazed state.

Meriel became aware that her face was in contact with a fairly fluffy area.

‘That’s a blatant chest.’

She had no choice but to be held still by Juliana, who hugged and jumped slightly.

“You’ve matured so well. Do you realize how much I missed you?”

“I…uh…Princess Juliana?” she asks.

“Oh my goodness! What exactly do you mean? Please call me sister.”

“……”

Klaus separated Meriel from Juliana’s arms when she was perplexed and unsure what to do.

Juliana twitched one of her brows.

“Are you interfering with my younger sister’s reunion?”

“I was afraid you’d cause her to pass out from breathing difficulties.”

“Hoho..that’s too much to think about.”

“By looking at Meriel, you can’t tell if it’s real or not.”

Meriel flinched as he took a breath. She sensed a slight animosity between the two, as if sparks were flying.

‘Aren’t they close?’

Juliana cast a gloomy look at Klaus and took Meriel’s hand in hers.

“Did you have any difficulties? It was simply because I was overjoyed.” Juliana said this as she turned to face Meriel.

“Well, that’s fine.”

She couldn’t say she nearly suffocated because she was buried in her chest.

Meriel held her hand in such a delicate manner that she had never before faced adversity. She felt compelled to do so.

Juliana smiled at her, but her true emotion was one of regret. It was similar to Kiyan, who knew her as a princess at first and looked at her sympathetically. Juliana was also like that of her.

“Let’s take a seat first.” Meriel offered.

“Oh my! That’s right!”

Juliana took Meriel’s hand in hers and slid her into the seat beside her. She was no longer seated next to Klaus, as she had been. Klaus’ brow furrowed.

Meriel stood up to take her seat, but Juliana grabbed her hand again and gently drew her to sit next to her.

Klaus’ scowl became even more ferocious.

‘What are you two doing?’ Meriel was feeling helpless.

Meriel was forced to sit awkwardly due to a nervous battle over her. Juliana was clutching her wrist so tightly that she couldn’t even change seats.

“I didn’t find out about your wedding until it was too late, so I couldn’t attend. Has something bad happened?”

“Yes, but everything worked out well.”

“I knew Diana wasn’t thinking, but I didn’t expect her to do this.”

“It’s all right, Princess.”

“Oh! My!”

Juliana slapped Meriel on the arm. Meriel’s eyes widened at her sudden action, despite the fact that she wasn’t sick.

“Please call me sister.” Juliana expressed her dissatisfaction.

“Ah…”

“I can feel the distance. What are you calling me a princess for?”

“You’re right, sister.” Meriel responded with a puzzled expression.

She smugly smiled at how pleased she was.

“But why did you feel compelled to marry someone like that? If I hadn’t been by your side, this would not have happened.”

“What?”

“Is it fine to live with a monster?” Juliana asked, softly laughing.

Meriel cast a glance at Klaus, who was struggling to keep his rage in check with a frown on his face.

It was completely unexpected that even the emperor, who was known for his caution, would treat him so harshly.

Juliana was unknown to Meriel.

Most importantly, despite her rude remarks, Klaus only endured his rage and said nothing else.

Meriel quickly deduced that she had known both of them since childhood.

“He’s not a monster to me, and sister has nothing to worry about.”

“Oh! Really?”

Shaky Juliana fixed her gaze on Klaus. Klaus’ ferocious expression softened slightly, as if he liked Meriel’s response. Juliana’s hostility remained, but it was not her only emotion.

Her pleasure, longing, and self-pity. Meriel recalled what she had seen before Juliana arrived. She was certain that the two were aware of something she couldn’t recall.

‘No, one more…Someone is aware of the situation.’

She didn’t want to remember, but she had seen and recognized the man.

Craig was there.

“I have a lot of things I want to tell you, Meriel. I’m glad you grew up well and without much trouble. I am delighted to be able to tell you this story.”

Of course, she had no recollection of Juliana. She could only guess that she had been friendly before the accident.

“Would you mind if I stayed here for a while?”

“Ah…”

“It’s not possible.”

Klaus refused like a sword when Meriel did not dare to respond.

“I did not ask you.”

“I own this palace.”

“Isn’t Meriel the hostess? It’s a joint effort.”

“I’m not fond of it.”

“Even if you like Meriel?”

“It cannot be said simply to be good.” Klaus stated unequivocally.

He gave Meriel a look that said, ‘ Refuse immediately .’

Meriel lowered her head awkwardly due to Juliana, who tightly gripped her hand with the hope that she would accept her at the same time.

‘It felt like its from before’

She let go of herself and sighed, wondering what she was doing. She wanted to listen to Klaus as much as she could, but she can’t just throw Princess Juliana out of the palace.

“Go ahead and relax, sister.”

“Oh! Thank you very much, Meriel!”

She is aware that Juliana had laughed at Klaus even though she hadn’t seen him. Klaus’s rage was palpable to her.

Meriel was deep in thought while in Juliana’s arms. Juliana and Klaus’s relationship, as well as Klaus and Craig’s relationship. Her own lost memories and their relationship. Everything seemed to be intertwined.

Translator’s Note:

Please accept my apologies for the frequent posting delays. In the coming weeks, I’ll be posting between Friday and Tuesday for one or two chapters. I’m so swamped with schoolwork that I can’t promise to post two chapters per week. X♥X

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