Chapter 88
Chapter 088
Far, far above.
A balcony in a beautiful spire, from which the family's vast private estate could be seen at a glance.
Shaaah—
The pleasant night breeze blew softly, tickling her gentle hair.
Elysia rested both hands lightly on the marble railing, silently looking down at the ground below.
The view spread out before her was, quite simply, a dazzlingly beautiful nightscape.
As if the Milky Way had spilled straight down from the heavens.
Countless lights glittered like jewels on the ground.
"Haaah……."
A very long, soft breath slipped from between Elysia's red lips.
It was less a sigh than a refreshing exhale that washed away the heavy blockage in her chest in one go.
This spire was her perfect secret fortress and sanctuary.
Because only a very small number of the family's most trusted and loyal servants guarded it through the night.
The only special place where she could briefly set aside the heavy title of young lady and relax in casual clothes late at night.
Normally, Elysia always came up here whenever she was upset and felt stifled.
But.
'Tonight is different.'
A sweet, pleasant smile spread across her lips.
The quiet peace that always came whenever she visited here to soothe her pent-up emotions.
Today, strangely enough, it was making her restless and oddly excited.
"Why am I like this?"
Elysia whispered lightly to the moon in the night sky.
In the end, if you asked whether the huge events of the day had been resolved badly, the answer was 'absolutely not'.
Fortunately.
Truly, miraculously fortunately.
That man was perfectly safe, without even a single hair out of place.
The conflict with the church that had been deeply tangled up around that arrogant, indifferent man was also resolved.
'Of course.'
Although she had to witness, with her own eyes, the crown prince's emotional infidelity—the man who had once been her fiancé and the object of her blind longing.
'……I don't feel anything anymore.'
Elysia could feel her own heartbeat, so calm it surprised even herself.
If her past self had seen Crown Prince Louis clinging to that pink-haired saintess, she would have cried tears of blood and despaired.
But now, it was different.
'It was just…… stubborn pride. A hollow pretense.'
Because she had started sorting out her own feelings as well.
Instead, a liberating feeling, as if her chest had been opened wide, surged through her.
In such a carefree situation, how could she possibly be jealous or point out his turning his eyes toward another woman?
'What truly preys on my mind is……'
Elysia's violet eyes narrowed languidly.
'That pink-haired woman.'
Saintess Lily.
The little saintess who had stood pressed close behind Cassian kept circling in her mind.
'She was definitely wary of me.'
A woman's instincts are always eerily accurate.
Elysia was certain of it.
The reason she had been so fiercely guarded around her was definitely not because Elysia was the future crown princess.
The saintess had clearly stood in front of that man to shield him from Crown Prince Louis.
At the same time, she had also clearly been blocking Elysia herself from taking Cassian del Farne away from her.
"Ha."
Elysia covered her mouth with her fan and let out a small laugh.
What a thoroughly twisted and ridiculously cute four-way love tangle.
'I thought that if I just shook off and gave up that awful love-hate obsession I'd stupidly clung to for so long, I'd feel a little lighter and freer.'
Why had everything become so new and thrilling, and yet such a complete mess?
'Why on earth am I…….'
Could this be true destiny, perhaps?
She had spent so long mocking herself, convinced that because her whole life was bound by arranged marriage and duty, it would be impossible for her ever to exchange real feelings of 'true love' with someone.
But now, this surging whirlpool of emotion in her chest was explaining everything in a single dazzling sweep.
'Well, in a situation where I already have a fiancé, having such deep interest and fluttering feelings for someone else is a huge deviation in itself.'
For the past few days, Elysia had been desperately fooling herself into thinking this immense interest in the man who kept coming to mind was merely curiosity about his unusual character.
But only today had it finally become certain.
That it wasn't merely a liking for his character.
That she wasn't looking at him merely as an interesting person.
Cassian del Farne.
The moment she heard that that man was in danger, her heart thudded down to the floor.
The moment she looked at him standing at the main gate with such an untroubled, easygoing expression, all the tension in her body melted away, and she felt a rush of relief.
And above all,
without even realizing it, she desperately wished that the sharp, cold side of herself she had shown him just before would be forgotten.
The moment she had soothed him and spoken in a gentle voice that came out so naturally for the first time in her life.
'I have to admit it.'
Elysia lightly pressed the tip of her chin with her fan.
'I have feelings for that man…….'
Even if the beginning of all this was a complete mess.
She wanted, in her relationship with this man whom she had let fully into her heart for the first time in her life, to gladly untangle this complicated knot with her own hands.
'This is hard.'
Elysia pouted, as if making a cute complaint.
She had no one to blame, and nowhere to pour out these fluttering feelings right away, so her heart only grew more restless.
Then.
Clack, clack, clack.
The regular click of shoes came from below the spire's spiral staircase.
A set of footsteps that were very familiar and comforting to Elysia's ears.
After waiting quietly, a middle-aged woman soon came up onto the balcony with a warm smile.
"Young lady."
"What's the matter?"
"It's almost full spring now, but the night wind this high up is still quite cold."
The middle-aged woman spoke in a voice that carried gentle warmth and grace.
"I brought warm tea and a soft blanket, so please warm yourself up a little."
"Thank you. You're always the only one who looks after me."
The woman with the kindly smile carefully set the ornate teapot and teacups from the silver tray onto the marble table.
Every movement she made overflowed with the grace and composure of someone who had served the Rosenberg family for many years.
Trickle─.
The warm tea flowed in an elegant curve, filling the teacup.
Along with the warm steam rising in curls, a very pleasant, sweet floral fragrance perfumed the chilly air around them.
Elysia pulled the fluffy blanket the woman had carefully draped over her shoulders a little closer and deeply inhaled the warm scent of the tea.
It felt as though her tense heart were gently loosening.
"The tea smells too good for me to drink it alone."
Elysia smiled brightly, gesturing to the empty chair opposite her.
"If you're not busy, could you enjoy tea time with me?"
"Oh my."
"Mm. For some reason today…… I don't want to be alone. I want to share this breathtaking night view with someone."
At Elysia's adorable pout, the middle-aged woman smiled warmly, deep wrinkles creasing at the corners of her eyes.
"Actually, you looked just like that, our pretty young lady, so I brought two teacups."
"I knew it. You're always so perceptive."
With a slight bow, the maid sat gracefully in the chair opposite her and filled her own cup with the red tea as well.
After lifting the cup with great elegance and savoring the aroma, she took a light sip.
Then she looked at Elysia with warm eyes, as though looking at her own daughter.
"For some reason today."
"……"
"It seems your heart is fluttering and all tangled up for a very different reason than usual when you come up here."
Elysia's purple eyes sparkled and widened.
"How did you know?"
"Hoho. When this old nanny has loved and watched someone deeply since they were a baby, she develops a very mysterious sixth sense, almost like magic."
At those words, Elysia felt her nose tingle.
If it were anyone else.
Even if it were the head maid who had served her for so long, she would never have allowed such intimate, almost family-like language toward her.
Because the 'status and dignity that must be upheld,' which she had been taught and drilled into her bones as one of the Rosenbergs, were that cold and uncompromising.
However,
the kind woman before her was the one and only precious person who could be considered a complete exception to that strict standard.
And she was also wise enough never to cross the line or casually say such warm, almost presumptuous things to Elysia.
Elysia could tell at once why the maid, with affectionate behavior and words she didn't usually show, was subtly offering her such concern and comfort.
"I must have looked really upset and out of sorts today."
"You did."
The woman asked quietly as she set down her teacup.
"There's a very pretty peach blossom blooming on your face. Might this old nanny ask just a little what has your heart beating so hard?"
"……Peach blossom?"
Not a face full of hurt,
Peach blossom?
"Of course, I can see the fluttering, complicated feelings on your face right now, and the hurt and ache inside them as well."
The maid said with a warm smile.
"But I also sense that isn't all there is to it."
Elysia fidgeted with the teacup handle and parted her lips slightly.
Her hesitation didn't last long.
Because the person before her was the most reliable and only ally in the world, someone who would keep any huge secret she confessed to the grave without fail.
Then she should just pour out the worry she couldn't tell anyone here.
Wouldn't it be better to feel even a little relieved?
"You have to keep it a secret."
"Please speak comfortably. I'll listen all night, and the moment we go down from the spire, I'll forget it immediately."
"I…… think I'm in real trouble."