Chapter 27

Episode 27: Daria Caroline

“I don’t understand.”

My inner heart that I had held all the time popped out.

Raymond looked me in the eyes as if he didn’t understand anything. I took a deep breath and continued to talk.

“How can you protect me to this extent?  Even I can’t forgive myself. Of course, you should be angry and punish me for showing up with a bad heart.  If not, somehow, Your Majesty must use me to move in your favor.”

“Not everyone in the world uses others for their own purposes.”

“Your majesty is nothing compared to him (Kailos).”

(T/N: in terms of manipulation)

“I don’t know who taught you like that, but you too, are living and breathing with your own will, not a chess piece for others.”

“No, I…….”

“If you haven’t lived like that so far, you have to live like that in the future.”

“…….”

I still couldn’t understand.

“Chloe.”

Standing up from his seat, he slowly approached me. The large carriage was not unreasonable for a healthy adult man to raise himself.

His rough fingertips slowly swept down the back of my neck. I was stiff because of the chilling tension.

“Even for that, you shouldn’t have anything to do with me.”

“…….”

I became speechless and sat there stiff for a long time.

* * *

“Ugh……”

As we approached our destination, wrinkles increased between Raymond’s eyebrows. When I glanced at the small sound of groaning, he warned me with a quite serious look.

“Daria is a much greater woman than is known to the public, in many ways.”

The woman he said would take care of me was Empress Daria. Long ago, back in time, I had only encountered Daria once.

‘It doesn’t matter if the child in the womb is really Raymond’s.’

The woman, who gave me the feeling of being as overbearing as Raymond, arrogantly raised the tip of her chin and pointed to my stomach.

‘Give me the child.’

She wanted my child. She promised to give me the best wealth she could give me if I handed over my child.

According to her explanation, it was not “taking away” the child, but “taking charge.” In addition, she told me that I could meet my child at any time, if I wanted, and that the child would also know me as a mother as it grew up.

But, of course, I declined her request, because Kailos wanted Empress Daria’s family, the Duke of Caroline, to weaken their bond with the Imperial Family.

Only now do I regret my choice at that time. If I had given Estelle to her then. If I had done that, my little Estelle…….

“Don’t take her seriously, if she plays a mischievous joke on you.”

Raymond looked genuinely concerned. I tilted my head silently at his appearance, then I belatedly understood.

She was his official wife, and I was still a woman who spent the night with him, although not deeply related to him in this life.

Besides, didn’t he leave the Imperial Palace because of me for quite some time? If she had known the truth, it would have been impossible for her to look at me with a kind gaze.

“It’s okay, Your Majesty. I think I’ll have to deal with everything that happens.”

“I’m saying this because she’s a much more dangerous woman than you think.”

Raymond groaned and sighed, then I also began to worry.

In the previous timeline, Empress Daria was the first woman in the empire to be awarded a title and land after divorcing Raymond. Rather than that, she slayed/removed Duke Caroline, who was her uncle, and then ascended as the Duke herself.

At the time, I was going crazy, imprisoned by Kailos, but rumors about how cruelly she had removed her Uncle came from time to time.

Suddenly, I remembered rumors one by one that I had not heard at the time.  Most of them were about whether she had painfully killed her own uncle and his children.

“Oh my, Chloe, I must have scared you too much.”

Raymond shook his head and stroked my head once.

“You look pale, but she will never harm you. Don’t be too scared.”

However, Raymond’s voice that said so still showed signs of uncertainty.

After getting off the carriage, I walked after Raymond, full of anxiety.  When I finally opened the door to the parlor, I found a brown-haired woman sitting in an elegant figure.

“Oh, hello?”

When the woman saw me, she got up from her seat and approached me. At that exact step towards me, I paused and froze.

“You’re Chloe Garnet”

The woman, who came close to the tip of my nose, wrapped my face and began to stroke.

“Your beauty is not worth giving to someone like Raymond.”

As if distinguishing products, I swallowed my breath at the monotonous voice.  The too close distance embarrassed me.

The woman stroked my earlobe and whispered in a soft voice.

“How about you leave Raymond and become my mistress?”

Hot, my face turned red. I’ve never heard such blatant words before. Even Raymond in the past timeline never made such a direct suggestion to me.

“Daria!”

Raymond stared at the woman with a red face like me. The woman laughed loudly as if the situation she created was fun.

“Ray, where did you learn to raise your voice at your wife whom you haven’t seen in a long time?”

Raymond’s expression wasn’t erased even with the playful tone of rebuke. The appearance of the empress with the emperor in the previous timeline was only seen in public. So I’ve never seen anyone treating Raymond like a child.

“Stop playing around with Chloe.  Most of all, it’s not the kind of relationship you think it is,” Raymond gritted his teeth and said.

Then the woman’s words turned even more embarrassing.

“Huh, then it doesn’t matter any more, does it?”

“Just fulfill your promise properly.”

Promise? My ears perked to his words. The woman nodded, raising the corners of her red lips.

“Of course.”

As soon as the woman finished answering, Raymond went outside, covering his blushing face with one hand. Her voice rang in my ear as I stared blankly at him running away.

“Only two of us are left.”

In an instant, the playful tone sank coldly. I knew how scary she was, so I swallowed my saliva and took a step back.

“Chloe. Can I call you like this?”

“Oh… Yes, I’m late to say hello. I’m Chloe Garnet.”

I grabbed the hem of my dress with both hands and greeted the woman. However, she looked at me with a blank expression, as if she was not interested in my greetings and suddenly suggested, “Chloe, why don’t you make a deal with me?”

As she narrowed the gap by one more step, she grinned at me. Then she took the chance before I could answer anything.

“Seduce Raymond.”

“What…..?”

I vaguely knew why Raymond told me to be careful of her. I’ve met many kinds of people in my life, but I’ve never seen anyone this embarrassing.

“Why? You don’t like it?”

When I couldn’t answer anything, she tilted her head.

“I heard you were running away from the Grand Duke Ludwig. If that’s the case, it would be a much more sure way, by seducing Raymond you will then be protected by him.”

“I… I don’t want to. That’s deceiving the other person.”

I felt my voice shaking a little when I said that. I was worried that she might be furious just because I talked back. In order not to collapse in front of her, I had to put strength on my toes and hold in.

“Then you just have to be sincere so that he doesn’t become deceived.”

“……?”

When I blinked because I couldn’t understand her words, she grinned and raised the tip of my chin with both fingers.

“Raymond is a pretty good person. He is the only emperor of the empire, not to mention his position, there is no one who can follow him in his inaction. His face is not my cup of tea, but young ladies like it quite a lot. Although he is fierce and cold-hearted…… He’s actually a very sweet and kind person, I guarantee that.”

“I think this is a very strange suggestion.”

I tried not to hurt her feelings as much as possible and continued to speak carefully.

“Her Majesty is his companion, why are you making such a suggestion to me….”

“That’s quite a valid question.”

She nodded and smiled.

“If it’s because you’re afraid of me, you don’t have to worry about me.”

“…….”

I couldn’t believe it. Raymond told me that I should be careful of her the whole time I came here. Maybe her words are simply to comfort me.

Just as her uncle and his children suffered in the past, if I did something wrong, I’d also have my face peeled off and my limbs cut off…….

When I thought about it more, I couldn’t face her. I felt like the blood was escaping from my whole body.

I answered timidly, tilting my head away from her.

“It’s impossible for me. Even if I accept Your Majesty’s proposal, it cannot be possible to really seduce him.”

Of course, in the past, I could seduce Raymond too easily.  Growing up in the hands of Kailos to suit the emperor’s taste, I was able to seduce him just by breathing in front of him, but not now.

‘Your Majesty, by any chance…… I…’

‘I can roughly guess what you’re trying to say, but that’s not it.’

Although I couldn’t finish my question to him, he guessed my question one step ahead and replied that he didn’t love me.

‘I don’t want Your Majesty to get involved with me.’

‘It’s the same for me, Chloe.”

We shouldn’t be involved anymore and both he and I knew that.

Besides, he may not know, but I was already a woman who betrayed him and caused his death once. It was unacceptable for us to get back together.