Chapter 12

****

“Your Excellency, are you okay?”

“Ah…..”

On the way back to the Duchy in the carriage, Sophie asked with a worried expression.

I nodded.

“Yes. I’m okay.”

“Are you sure? I called you a few times but you didn’t hear me…”

I smiled a little. It wasn’t wrong. As Sophie said, I couldn’t concentrate the whole time I was shopping. Even though it was to choose clothes and shoes to wear for the emperor’s birthday banquet to be held soon.

It was because of the meeting with Sebastian.

“Is this because of Master Sebastian?”

Sophie asked as if she had read my mind.

I did not deny it. The sudden meeting with him was embarrassing enough for me, and it was right that I had been thinking about it all day.

Sophie sighed.

“Why did you have to meet Master Sebastian today? Why is that woman there…”

Sophie looked at me with a worried gaze. It was similar to the way my mother looked at me before she passed away. She was afraid I might go back to the way I was before. She was afraid I’ll be affected by my reunion with Sebastian.

But.

“I’m fine, Sophie.”

I turned my head and looked into Sophie’s eyes. As I spoke with a bright smile, Sophie narrowed her eyes.

“You’re right. It was because of Sebastian that I kept thinking about it. To be honest, I was a little surprised. I never thought that such a coincidence would happen.”

Who could have predicted? I didn’t go to the capital very often for personal business.

But the day I decided to go to the capital, on the way to go shopping, I almost hit my ex-husband’s lover with a carriage. And then I met my ex-husband, who looked completely different from when he was with me, with a serene and happy expression on his face.

Everything could not have happened unless Heaven had decided and let us meet.

But…

Oddly enough, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that meeting him didn’t just make me feel completely bad.

“… … Just think about it, Sophie. I’m glad that Sebastian looks happy.”

I remembered Sebastian’s expression. The image of him approaching Bianca with a relaxed expression with a hot dog in his hand.

His appearance in light clothes looked really free and happy.

I should have let Sebastian go sooner. He was a person who could smile so brightly. I held him by my side with my only desire. I made him live in hell.

Yes, this was our proper relationship. He was more suitable for that woman.

I sincerely thought that. ‘Sebastian, I’m so glad you’re finally happy. Forgetting things like me, I hope you will live happily by her side in the future.’

My heart towards him had become calm.

“Bianca and Sebastian, I think they look good together. Don’t you think so?”

Sophie looked at me with sad eyes, but I only had a happy smile. With no lingering feelings, with a serene expression.

Without knowing something would happen to me in the near future.

***

After a while, the dress and shoes arrived at the duke’s residence.

On the day I met Sebastian, I went to the capital and chose the dress and shoes myself. The shoes and clothing, which had been made to fit my body size one by one, showed off a pretty cool appearance.

On that day, I chose the design and material without thinking properly, so I was worried it wouldn’t be good. But when I stood in front of the mirror in my dress, Sophie opened her mouth and exclaimed.

“Wow. Your Excellency, you look really good.”

“Really?”

I looked in the mirror.

The dress I was wearing had a fairly unconventional design. The two-piece dress made of velvet material consisted of a top and a skirt. In particular, the skirt was narrow and simple compared to most women’s dresses, which were flashy and large.

I said looking at the puff sleeves that went into my shoulders to hide my dwarf physique.

“A little…Don’t I look like a child who stole my mother’s clothes?”

I purposely ordered a mature design, but it looked a lot more mature than I expected. Being visible to others was important. I asked with a worried expression, but Sophie shook her head.

“No! You look very good. And you’re a Duke. You have to show off this kind of dignity.”

“Yes…?”

Although it was an unfamiliar design, it seemed to fit well when I looked at it.

Anyway, the dress itself was very nice. It was also nice to wear shoes. The black shoes were handmade with care to make it comfortable to walk in, and it went well with the dress as if it were a pair.

“… Not bad.”

I looked in the mirror and thought. The birthday banquet was drawing near.

***

A few days later, the capital.

I was riding in a carriage and headed to the Imperial Palace where the banquet was held.

The weather was great. As winter passed and spring began, the cold air was rapidly dissipating. I was in the capital a while ago, and the air seemed to be much warmer than it was then.

On the way up to the Imperial Palace, a grand festival was being held on the central street of the capital. Commoners were free to participate in the festival and were celebrating the emperor’s birthday.

“As expected, it is the day of His Majesty’s birthday, so the atmosphere in the capital is much more lively.”

“I know. The days are getting warmer too…”

The carriage soon entered the palace.

This year, the emperor said he would hold his birthday banquet outdoors.

Flowers and ribbons were scattered everywhere in the outdoor plaza. The background music played by a band resounded peacefully. Among them, nobles were busily coming and going to find their seats or greeting each other.

The emperor sat at the top of the table and was greeted by the nobles. I approached him.

“I see the great sun of the Empire. I sincerely congratulate you on your birthday.”

“Ah. Duchess Aileen Lowell, you’re dressed up today.”

The emperor said softly with a modest smile.

Carter Dietrich von Rosien. He was a person well suited to the term ’emperor’. He was moderately dignified, moderately blunt, and moderately cold. In the past, he had a big cold image, but now he has gotten older, so his impression has deepened a bit.

Showing a moderate smile, I beckoned to the attendant who was next to me.

“Oh, and I prepared this…… … .”

The servant bowed his head and laid down something he was holding in front of the emperor.

“What is this?”

“I remember that Your Majesty liked fruits. The peach is a fruit from the East.”

Long ago, when I was Usher’s fiancée and frequently interacting with the imperial family, there was an emperor’s taste that I discovered. He liked fruits very much. I remembered that taste, and for a few days, I searched all over the country to pick and choose the fruits that would be most suitable for the emperor’s birthday banquet. So what I brought was peaches.

It looked so easy to eat, but I thought that its price and preciousness were very similar to the emperor sitting in front of me.

“In the East, it is said to be an immortal fruit. I thought it would be a good fit for a birthday banquet, so I prepared it.”

“… You’re very thoughtful, Duchess Lowell.”

The emperor’s gaze, who was looking at the peach with an interesting expression, turned to me. He was smiling.

“You didn’t even use a cane today.”

The emperor’s gaze slowly turned towards my legs. I swallowed my saliva.

“Are your legs better now?”

“… … Ah. Yes. That’s right.”

I was taken aback by the fact that I used magic, so I hesitated without realizing it.

People often, and not uncommonly, have shown interest in my legs, which were able to walk. Every time they looked at me, they were curious about how the unlucky Princess, who had acted as if she was living with legs that could not be fixed for the rest of her life, had now come to be fixed.

It was the same with the emperor.

I couldn’t help but get nervous whenever the emperor showed interest in my legs without anyone knowing it. No matter how friendly he was to the duke, he was, after all, the emperor of the empire, and I healed my legs in a forbidden way.

The emperor just smiled.

“I see. I am so glad that Duchess Lowell has made a comeback like this.”

“…… thank you. I’ll work harder in the future.”

After greeting the emperor, Usher sat next to me and looked at me with happy eyes.

His body was sitting in a very respectful posture, but his eyes were waving at me like a child who met a familiar person. If it wasn’t a formal banquet, it looked like he would get up and run to me right away.

It was when I turned around after answering him with a moderate smile.

There was a buzz of people. A woman entered the outdoor banquet hall from afar. People’s eyes were full on the beautiful woman who came in with a noble figure.

….Daphne?