Chapter 10

Translated by XyeHeart Edited by XyeHeart

Meriel nodded as she examined the designs in the booklet the lady showed her.

“I like it.”

The design is as small as Meriel’s. It was a lace-covered gown to match. Meriel, who likes fancy clothes with lace, thought the design she showed was nice.

“No.”

But the rejection came from somewhere other than Meriel.

“Why on earth! It should appeal to you as well.” Apellia retorted indignantly.

“I don’t like it.”

“The bride should like her wedding gown! It’s the most special day ever!”

Klaus drank only the innocent tea while grumbling about not being able to refute what the lady said as a designer.

“I like this one as well.” Meriel rejoined the conversation.

The design, which she carefully examined, was detailed and lovely. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She could only wear it to a wedding because it was so fancy.

“Its…”

Klaus took a breather before speaking. His face flushed with annoyance, and he slammed the teacup down to make a sound.

“It’s so obscene.”

“……what?”

Klaus gave the impression that he should say something, which he did. But he’s telling them again in case it didn’t get delivered.

“Isn’t the dress a little lewd?”

Meriel turned her head quietly. She tried to keep the corners of her mouth from twitching.

The designer who was stuck in the absurdity coughed in vain.

“Oh, I’ve been up all night lately…”

Apellia ignored what she heard. She pretended to look at the booklet with the designs that had received obscene words.

Apellia opened her mouth after a while, as if she had to show some courtesy.

“My shoulders are all exposed, and my chest stands out…”

“That’s what you call obscene, Apellia.”

“…not in dresses these days. Do you have anything?”

“The wedding will have a large number of guests,” he explained.

“There must have always been a large number of guests at a wedding.”

“It’s not just one person staring at her,” he retorted.

Apellia nervously wrapped her hands around the booklet. She didn’t seem to want to show him her work any longer.

“Hah! You’re so picky!” Apellia exclaimed.

“As you say, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime wedding.”

“Look at Your Grace’s outfit!”

“I don’t care if it’s mine or one of the other designs on that side.”

“Hah! Do you like this red uniform?”

Klaus raised the corners of his mouth as he saw a picture of a red uniform and a golden seal.

“Was there anything that didn’t suit me?”

It was blatant sarcasm.

Anyone who saw him knew that any ridiculous outfit would shine.

Apellia clenched her fist and tightened her grip on Meriel’s hand.

“Are you sure you’re going to wear this dress?” He looked at Meriel.

“………”

“I can make it my life’s work. So, of course, she’ll do it.” Apellia shot back.

Meriel turned to face Klaus, who was looking at her with displeasure. It was a silent warning not to take anything for granted.

Meriel carefully removed Apellia’s hand, which was holding her hand, while looking at him.

“Of course,” she replied emphatically.

Apellia shed tears with an emotional expression as she smiled with her eyes.

“…Meriel!”

He stopped calling her the princess and began addressing her by name. Perhaps because he was aware of Apellia, he appeared to be concealing her status as a princess.

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“Are you going to wear that obscene outfit to our wedding?”

“Doesn’t this kind of exposure happen all the time?”

“Who says such a thing?”

“A friend of mine did.”

“You don’t have any friends.”

“…..Pardon me, Your Grace.”

When Meriel noticed Klaus speaking firmly, she became upset. He stated that she had no friends and that her eyes drooped as if she was depressed.

“No, I mean……”

Meriel took a breather when she noticed him speaking awkwardly, as if he was embarrassed. He acts as if he did something wrong, and she almost laughs.

“I, too, have a friend, we met while traveling here together.”

“……do you mean…”

“It’s Kiyan,” she confirms confidently.

He rolled his eyes, as if agitated, but quickly said, twitching his eyebrows.

“He didn’t say that. I would have known.”

“How do you know?”

“He’s not your friend either.”

“Do you always know if there’s anything you don’t know?”

“No, never… you… no, never will.”

Klaus was irritated by the teacup, but he’d already finished drinking it.

“That is already empty.” Meriel pushed him with the teacup she had received.

“I’ve never been formally dressed for a ball, so I’ve been wanting to try on this fancy dress. Can’t you allow it?”

“…..”

“It could have been too much greed. It’s so meaningful that I’ll be greedy. I don’t want to believe it’s a marriage with…”

She tensely clenched her teeth and stretched her shoulders. She lowered her head slightly and gripped her hands tightly.

Meriel appeared to be struggling to contain her laughter, whereas Klaus was thought to be suppressing his sorrow.

“No, Meriel… if you really want it…”

“Really?”

“……”

“Thank you very much, Your Grace.”

Meriel gave a big grin. She couldn’t laugh freely, but the smile that spread naturally was genuine and joyful.

Meriel returned to the palace that day after checking the size of the dress and deciding on the minor details. When she returned, she rode in the carriage with Klaus.

“We’re getting married in the spring. The invitations will be distributed throughout the Empire starting next week.”

“I see.”

“I’m going to the imperial palace as well.”

“Oh..”

“Are you worried?”

“What?” Meriel asked, her gaze drawn to the rapidly changing scenery outside. Meriel felt his eyes on her, but she didn’t turn her head.

“How is the imperial palace going to react?”

“I can see it coming.”

“What…?”

Meriel recalled how the imperial people treated her as if she were a child.

“His Majesty must be worried. The object to be killed is in the property of the untouchable. His Highness… could be bored. Because the person he used to bully is no longer there.”

“……”

“Her Highness, too, must be bored. Now that the one she used to humiliate is no longer there.”

Meriel had always lived in a separate palace in the Imperial Palace’s northeast corner. There was a crown prince a year her senior, and a young princess a year her junior. The Crown Prince visited her palace and bothered her, and the young princess humiliated her by making her feel ashamed when she attended a ball to which she had not been invited.

“There could be a problem before the wedding.”

“Are you still not going to tell me why His Majesty is after you?”

Meriel averted her gaze by closing her eyes.

She wanted to forget about being a princess. She wants to forget everything, but unlike the princess who died, she herself lay unconsciously in her body, never forgetting the princess memories that all flowed into her.

“Because I know His Majesty’s secret.”

“…a secret?”

Meriel opened her closed eyes and looked out at the dimming landscape outside.

[ Meriel! ]

[ Mother, please! ]

[ You must leave right now, Meriel. ]

[ Run, Meriel! Hurry! ]

Meriel’s parents were the previous emperor and empress.

It was only a minor inspection. Meriel and her parents thoroughly enjoyed the tour. The inspection felt like a picnic because she packed their lunch in a picnic basket and held their hands. On the way, she was riding in a carriage when it was involved in an accident, was attacked by thieves, and collapsed without a hitch. Her parents yelled at her to flee.

[ Father! Mother!…no..please..Don’t go! No!!!! ]

Her throat stings just thinking about the tears and screams she shed at the time. Although she entered the body of the princess, to her who became Meriel, the princess’s pain and sorrow as a child became real and felt like hell every time she remembered it.

What happened to the princess that day was so real and hellish that it was truly horrifying.

As she screamed and cried, someone grabbed her hands and led her away, shutting her screaming mouth. That is how the little princess survived.

[ Isn’t she still young? I will ascend to the throne. ]

She had lost both of her parents, which shocked and saddened her.

The princess, who was present, sensed her uncle’s regret as he stroked her head with a gentle smile. Even in the cemetery, her uncle’s expression is one of disappointment and sadness.

Only then did the young princess realize something.

Who are the unusual knights, and why do they feel regret for her rather than pity when they see her alive?

[ No, it was done by Uncle. ]

[ Why are you lying? ]

[ Uncle, is that really who you are? ]

[ Meriel, what are you talking about? ]

[ What makes you feel sorry for me? ]

It might have been fine if she had kept her mouth shut. While everyone was holding a funeral, her uncle stared at little Meriel for a long time with frightening eyes.

That day, Meriel came dangerously close to death for the first time. She had to feel the sharp emotion that night in her bedroom, where she was sobbing with sad tears. Little Meriel was terrified by the frighteningly richness of life outside the bedroom.

[ What have you been doing? ]

[ I mistook myself for being in the bedroom. ]

[ Are you telling the truth? ]

It was a clear murder. Meriel, who was hiding under her bed, shutting her mouth and sobbing, was forced to make a terrible decision.

Will she exact vengeance by revealing the truth about her parents’ unjust and tragic death, or will she forget about them and move on with her life?

Meriel, the young girl, chose the latter.

For the first time in her life, she recognized her ability to read other people’s emotions, but she had to erase her memories. That day, the princess herself became a fool. Meriel desperately defended herself and waited for help.

Smiling at the enemy who murdered her parents while being chastised for being a fool.

The princess didn’t want to think. She preferred to remain a fool as it was. That way, she felt like she could remain Meriel, whom her parents adored, without becoming anyone else.

“Princess?”

Meriel regained consciousness in response to Klaus’ summons. Perhaps it’s because she had a long time ago peeked into the princess’s memory and still felt it. Her mind was racing and her heart was pounding.

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