Chapter 3

𝕾𝖔𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖓 𝖙𝖔: 𝕸𝖞 𝕿𝖊𝖆𝖗𝖘 𝕽𝖎𝖈𝖔𝖈𝖍𝖊𝖙 𝖇𝖞 𝕿𝖆𝖞𝖑𝖔𝖗 𝕾𝖜𝖎𝖋𝖙

***

After a week had gone by and winter had arrived, I got a letter from one of my closest friends.

The first snowfall of the season started as I stared out the window. Grinning, I shifted the blanket off my shoulders.

"Verfeil, the first snow landed on my hands first"

"No, it landed on mine, Tia..."

After that night, I forgot about the past and my lips never changed. I used to get into a lot of arguments with Verfeil during our winter celebrations. When I saw him cry once more, it instantly returned to my memory.

I turned away from the exterior and stared at the table in front of me. A letter with his seal in the center, colored in green is lying there. This must be the first time I've ever felt nervous when I received his letter; usually, I get delighted.

It wasn't the cold that made my hands start to tremble. I couldn't take my eyes off the letter, and ideas for irrelevant questions kept popping into my head.

I exhaled.

I had not anticipated this type of response. Something seemed to keep me from the person I would confide in; when no one believed me, the coldness became my solace; but when the warmth came back, it felt as though it was slipping away from me once more.

As a raging anxiety developed in my heart, I was unable to comprehend it. No, there has to be another reason for this; dwelling on these feelings would just make it more difficult for me to plan ahead.

I sighed and stared at the letter until I was able to hold it. How could I have forgotten his seal when he used the same code every time he sent me a letter?

The season changed, and even though I could feel the misty air coming from the slightly open window, I was still able to feel the warmth of a caring person. The message smelled as bright, cheerful, and new as he did.

I could say more about him, but those were the first things that came to mind. Verfeil would be the sun rising from the darkest moments of the moon, while I would always stay on the moon, following the warmth of Caliere.

Before I gave in to the moon's influence, I wanted to see the sun one more time. I opened his letter without hesitation, and his opening words brought to memory the first letter he had sent on my behalf.

I laughed; being a mademoiselle at first made me feel like a maiden till my early maturity kept me in check. I read his letter, understanding what he was trying to say, but my attention faltered only after the first line.

A few seconds ago, happiness had consumed me, but loneliness took its place. My hands began to tremble as I held the letter, and my eyesight went fuzzy. I struggled to hold it properly and almost tore it.

As I tried to look away, water began to pour into the paper, and I didn't realize that I had already hit the ground as silent whispers of pain entered my mouth.

"Before I depart the capital, I wanted to sincerely thank you one final time. I would be in the Belfore East by the time you read this, ready to start my duties as the second prince. By then, Vestia, I hope you will have taken the decision for yourself to be happy as well since I have already done so and have gone past the hurt."

The one friend I had faith would stick by me, turned on me. The hope that shines brightest, like the sun, vanished through his words, leaving me with the unbearable darkness that is growing behind my walls of insecurity.

That day, my hope and sun disappeared through my own hands, just the way the snow does in winter.

I forced myself to believe that loving Caliere would be the proper decision and the path I must follow until I was unsure of what to do. If not, then all of the years I've spent training to be his crown princess will have been for naught but a frigid breeze.

A few days later, I received an invitation from the emperor to come see him in his garden. My clothes would be ready, and the servants would show me gorgeous jewelry, but that never happened. My room was unattended by maids.

As time passed, I took the initiative to get ready until I left the room and made my way to the garden, where I used to meet the emperor for tea while Caliere was occupied.

But the maids would glance at me every time I stepped forward, some seemed to ignore me, others gave me these pitying looks, while the others just shook their heads and moved on. I found myself squinting my own eyes.

Similar to what transpired that day, I couldn't shake the unease that kept entering my head. With each stride I took, my heart raced, leaving me full of unanswered questions.

My eyes locked on the young damsel by the emperor as my feet touched the tidy grasses. The emperor would smile and joke as if I had interfered with their quiet time, even if she had continued to tell him stories that I was unaware of in her day.

My body isn't listening to my want to back off and go in the other direction. That is how the emperor used to laugh and smile at me, but now those are not my own words.

I had the feeling of a melted candle, with its flickering light about to go out due to the wind.

The sensation of having something taken away from me bothers me. However, I could also ask myself if I truly belonged to them or if they belonged to me in the first place.

In order to preserve the beautiful atmosphere surrounding them, I hid behind the bushes, resembling a shadow and a goalless woman.

I know I shouldn't be doing this, that I shouldn't defy an imperial order, but I couldn't make myself comply just to contaminate the atmosphere around them.

When I heard Emperor Helmond say, "It would have been better if Caliere met you first, then you two would have a happy ending," there was a snapping sound.

The voice that would softly touch anything, bright shiny rays that were pleasant, and the aroma of citrus turned into the one that broke the glass in my heart.

Did I realize that the glass had already broken and would no longer shatter till the cracking stopped?

Her little actions created an empire to solidify her place when all I did went to rubble, and the next day, darkness enveloped me with whispers of emptiness.

The emperor and Caliere reminded me of how our aristocratic home earned its name because of a sandcastle, something I had no idea would happen to my household one day.

A few days later, a messenger showed up in my room to tell me about my father and my mother's subsequent actions.

"Duchess Diana would be found guilty of permitting such deeds and encouraging her husband's criminal activity, and Duke Elfein Monsiore would be found guilty of a horrible crime that carries a death sentence. You are expected to attend an investigation, Lady Vestia."

"No, this isn't possible; my parents are innocent. They are not ———; they are loving people."

"His Majesty has issued this directive. Imperial knights surrounded the residence," as the envoy remarked, "Your household had been a parasite to them for so long and now they have the upper hand in cutting ties with you."

In front of these people who were holding me, I acted irrationally and screamed loudly. I've had enough, and I don't care what happens to me or what I do.

I was so exhausted that all that was left to me was the life that my parents had given me.

I was unaware of what had actually occurred on the day I was imprisoned, but after the Ministry of Justice and the knights looked into my background and were unable to identify any faults, they made up something—something I hadn't even done—about me.

"So, you managed to slip a poison tea to give to the child of God, Vestia?" I had assumed that the emperor would assist me, so I was unprepared for the alternative. He had aimed his sword into the prison cell, nearly severing my neck.

The calm, kind voice turned into a sharp edge, and before I knew it, I could see Caliere squinting at me from behind him.

He gave me a direct glance for the first time, but his response was a little hesitant. As though he turned his gaze away and intended to shield his father from the sword's edge but failed to do so.

"Why..."

I heard the emperor say, "Knights, make sure she doesn't escape," before he left me with Caliere.

Caliere's words, "You've become indeed pitiful..." rang with sympathy rather than the customary anger. He blinked away, and the glance vanished as if he had looked at me tenderly. I hung on to the corroded prison bars and attempted to open my mouth, but every time I wanted to say anything, nothing came out.

He waited, but ultimately, he moved on from me.

Then, as if God had come to mock my lot in life, I blinked and the jagged blade reached my neck, yet my last wish involved him since I had never ceased hoping.

"If time would return to the past, I will never fall in love with him again, Dear God."

***

Author-nim note: edited ^-^ Please forgive my grammar, as English is not my first language. ^-^