Chapter 43

The second floor of the villa, Grace Hall.

The Roland Theater Company, invited for today’s party, presented the play {Death of Helga} in full swing.

I looked far ahead and swallowed my laughter.

‘Go flirt, you punk.’

Ricky’s blonde head was seen sitting next to Lisbeth.

Even if we didn’t open it, it was clear that the note left was Lucifer’s Choice.

Ricky, who had been trying to kick Lisbeth out, suddenly had to be her partner throughout the party.

“Simon…! My sun!”

In the meantime, the play reached its climax.

Sarah’s voice, who played the female lead, Helga, filled the quiet hall.

All the aristocrats focused on her performance and couldn’t take their eyes off her and held their breath.

“Don’t you think the actress’s outfit looks great today?”

“You’re right. The original one was a bit too flashy. The new costume fits the mood of the play much more.”

Two young noble ladies in front of me whispered.

“The dress Sarah Hugo wore before going on stage was similar in design.”

“Oh, you’ve seen it too, Young Lady Seaton?”

“It was my first time seeing the design, so I couldn’t help but notice it.”

“It’s an elegant and mature style, so I keep seeing it repeatedly. It looks very slim and-”

The two whispering girls turned back furtively.

I was the only one who wore a dress with the same design as Sarah’s, so they couldn’t help but wonder.

I ignored the gazes of the two girls observing my dress with hawk eyes.

“Rubette.”

Then someone quietly approached me and sat down next to me.

It was Lillia.

“Are you crazy? What the hell’s wrong with you?”

“Shh.”

I put my index finger over her lips, telling her to be quiet as she tried to raise her voice with an angry face.

“Keep your manners when you watch a play.”

“You-! Hmph!”

Lillia, grinding her teeth, eventually stuck her lips close to my ear and whispered.

“Why are you doing this to Ricky?”

“Oh, what did I do to Ricky?”

“Do you want to play innocent? Didn’t you know that Ricky deliberately didn’t want to invite Princess Lisbeth?”

“Oh? I didn’t know.”

“How funny. You purposely stole an invitation to bring her back, and you interrupted when we were about to send her home!”

“Hmm, well…”

“Did you think of Ricky as your enemy?”

Without taking my eyes off the stage, I chuckled. “I didn’t know, but I can answer that ridiculous question.”

“…”

“Of course he’s my enemy. When I think of all the things I’ve been hurt by the two of you up until now, I’ll wake up even from my sleep.”

At that moment, Lillia was startled by my momentum as I glared at her.

Blinking in embarrassment, she soon burst into laughter.

“Well, so what, are you going to take revenge? Are you so childish?”

“Childish?”

“I don’t touch you these days because I think you’re upset. My mom also told me not to fight with you. You should be satisfied with what you’ve got and stop bothering Ricky.”

“Pft.”

Oh, this is a real edy.

I swept my cheek with a sigh of laughter.

“Hey.”

In an instant, Lillia’s smiling face hardened, and she froze.

I put my face close to her and whispered in her ear, “Since you think I’m childish, I’ll feed you water in a tremendous way that graduates from the level of children’s pranks.”

“Wh-what?”

“And don’t worry. Ricky is the only one who’s going to get beaten. You are among those who will drink water.”

“…”

I smiled softly at Lillia, who was frozen and embarrassed.

Now she would’ve known for sure whether I was still an idiot who only suffered through bullying or a mad dog who had changed 180 degrees after surviving.

Until now, my vague stance must have been confusing…

“Ha!”

“Mph!”

As I faked a hook to her jaw, Lillia reflexively stepped back in surprise.

At that ridiculous look, I giggled, folded my arms, and stared back at the stage.

Clap, clap, clap, clap—!

“This big sister is a mad dog, you see.”

“Wow!”

“That’s amazing!”

The play ended promptly, and loud applause and cheers erupted from the audience.

Even in the dark room, Lillia’s reddened face, unable to contain her anger, was a sight to behold.

When the stage light, which had been turned off for a while, was turned on again, I got up.

‘It’s very thrilling.’

Sarah, standing in the middle to greet the audience, noticed me and gave me a wink.

‘Perfect.’

My plan for today was a huge success.

I secretly responded to Sarah with a hand kiss before leisurely leaving the hall.

***

“Everyone can’t take their eyes off Sarah Hugo!”

“Oh, you must have been thrilled.”

“That’s right. Of course, their eyes were on me as I was walking out of the party. Those children frowned when I went in, as they looked at me in a dress they had never heard of before, but when I went out, they looked at me with their eyes lit up.”

“Is princess leading the trend in the capital now?”

“Pfft. Maybe?”

Serburn Street.

Following me, who was running hard, was Lark, exercising together after a long time.

He was a good listener and also had a good reaction.

I was so excited that I chatted about what happened at the party today.

“Haa, can we take a break?”

“All right. Come here.”

Lark opened my water bottle and handed it to me instead.

“Thank you. Oh, and the hairband you gave me during the day. It went very well with the dress I wore today.”

“I have a good eye, don’t I?”

“It was perfect.”

Seeing me with my thumb raised, Lark burst out into laughter.

“Thank you for taking care of Lissy. As someone not used to such places, it must have been hard to pay attention to each one of them.”

“Um, not at all. Maybe it’s because she’s similar to Your Highness, but she has a great learning ability. She’s adjusted very well.”

“That’s a relief.”

“And here.”

I handed Lark a small business card, hiding a sinister smile.

Blanc De Ruby

— Madam, Becky Whiman

— Lunten Business District, 486 Boutique Street

— Operates by reservation only. Please visit us directly for inquiries.

“What’s this?”

“A chance to be a great older brother to your younger sister!” I added like a smooth talker.

“It’s a tailor’s store I know very well, and soon the queue will be long enough to wait a full year to get a dress.”

“Aha, is this where you got the dress you wore today?”

“That’s right. Princess Lisbeth will also plain to you in a few days. She’d want a dress fitted at this store right now.” I laughed and added, “At that time, if you bring this business card with you, Madam will make the reservation first, so make sure to use it. This is in return for His Majesty’s gift today.”

Looking at the business card and me alternately, Lark burst into laughter and nodded.

“I see. Thank you.”

“Here you go. Drink up, Your Highness.”

As I prepared to run again, I handed the canteen, and Lark drank familiarly.

We started running side by side, speeding up.

It was a dark night, but the moonlight was quite bright.

Lark, who had been running for a while, asked, “By the way, did Young Master Reiger e to the party today?”

“Kedrick?”

Why are you talking about that shit all of a sudden?

“You see, where the twins are, there can’t be no Kedrick.”

“Well, yes. You must be glad to see his face.”

“What?”

I slipped while running.

“Oh, dear.”

Tak—!

Lark quickly grabbed me, who was about to fall, by the arm.

“Be careful.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden? Why would I like seeing Kedrick’s face?”

Lark shrugged.

“Because you like him.”

“What?”

“I heard you’ve been in a crush for seven years.”

I see. It’s Victor.

I swallowed my anger at my brother, who had a light mouth.

‘When can I get rid of this one-sided love tag?’

It wasn’t me who was chasing after Kedrick, but Rubette.

‘I can’t deny that I’m Rubette and Rubette is me, though…’

I said quietly with a sigh.

“Yes. But now it’s over.”

“Really?”

“I wasn’t going to say this because it’s embarrassing, but I still like Kedrick in the future until I die. So 45 years of life.”

Lark was surprised. His eyes widened as he said, “Oh…” and stood firm for a while.

“Don’t you understand? It looks weird, right? I’ve been following someone who doesn’t like me all my life.”

“Well…”

“It would have been impossible, but do you know what Kedrick always said every time I tried to give up?”

“What did he say?”

“‘Sometimes I get excited about you, I don’t even know who I like, I keep thinking of you before I go to bed, I’m sorry for speaking harshly…’”

So it wasn’t Rubette’s delusion; it was clearly Kedrick’s ‘fishing management’.

“Of course it was all a lie. To Kedrick, I’m a little… I must have been that kind of woman he doesn’t want to have but isn’t willing to throw away. ‘It’d be a pity if I can’t see her in front of my eyes’.”

“What trash.”

I was startled by Lark’s harsh reaction but then burst into laughter.

“Anyway, if you’ve seen all of that miserable future, won’t you feel discouraged and exhausted? Well, looking back, I didn’t like him. I-”

I added, spreading my shoulders, “… I have this kind of taste for men.”

“I see.”

Lark patted his chin and nodded, playfully exposing his chest.

“Pu ha ha ha…!”

I laughed and patted him on the shoulder, “I know you’re in good shape even if you don’t do that.”

“I wasn’t joking.”

“Oh, it’s funny…”

I was about to shed tears thanks to Lark, who had a good sense of humor, but he soon raised one eyebrow and asked, “So, are you sure you’ve made up your mind now?”

“Stop talking. Stop talking. Now, just looking at that face makes me shudder.”

Kedrick, Kedrick, Kedrick.

I gritted my teeth while recalling the memories of the shithead that was deeply embedded in Rubette’s 45 years of memories.

“If I collect only the tears that were shed because of him, it will probably be enough to fill the Lake Gratia in Prague.”

Although she had already turned back time, I felt sad for Rubette’s feelings for Kedrick, so I became depressed again.

“…”

As I lowered my gaze, I could feel Lark’s gaze on my face.

Then, suddenly, his gently stretched hand caressed under my left eye.

“…?”

As he had his back against the moonlight, he looked up. Lark’s expression was strange.

“There’s tearstain. It seems that you’ve cried a lot.”

“Aah…”

As his hand touched the corner of my eye-

‘Mm?’

It reminded me of the first meeting with Kedrick at a mask festival, which had made Rubette develop a lifelong crush on him.

“There’s tearstain. It seems that you’ve cried a lot.”

There was a terrifying sense of dread.

I glanced at Lark, startled.