“Lia!”
Endimion rushed to us. His face turned red as if he was very angry.
“What are you doing? Kissing a man on the cheek?”
“…Yes? It’s just a token of gratitude.”
I retorted, widening my eyes. It was very common for nobles who were close friends to kiss each other on the cheek. It meant that it wasn’t something to be angered like that.
“Frinel told me. This is just a greeting between nobles. Of course, I’m not a noble…”
Of course, if it was the old me, I wouldn’t have done this even though I knew it. I pretended to be sullen and lowered my head.
“That’s right. Is a kiss like this enough to make you angry so much?”
Despite being surprised by Lobelia’s sudden action, Frinel calmly hides his expression. However, the covers of his mouth were pointed upwards as if he was in a good mood.
At the sight of Frinel, Endimion was even more displeased and opened his mouth. “I can’t believe Your Royal Highness is being kissed by a commoner.” He said that just because he was angry.
Frinel creased his brow, glancing at Lobelia. “Should the imperial family, which should unite everyone, discriminate between commoners and nobles?”
Giving authority to the nobles didn’t mean belittling the commoners, it meant taking care of them. Such discriminatory remarks should never come out of the mouth of a marquis. Moreover, if the subject was the woman whom he loved, he should have been more careful and thoughtful about his words.
“Marquis dare to say such a thing?”
His blue eyes flashed coldly. His low voice, which was like a beast’s growl, was heavily covered with rage.
Endimion shuddered and gulped down his dry saliva. He belittled Frinel because Frinel wasn’t involved in politics in general, but it seemed that he wasn’t so docile.
“…I made a mistake. I apologize.”
“Both of you stop. You’re going to fight.” I smiled innocently, pretending not to understand this situation.
“It’s okay, Marquis.”
“Marquis. Right, I—”
Endimion showed signs of disappointment at the completely different way to address him from before. But I cut his words firmly like a knife.
“I heard that Marquis has another wife besides me. Did you say Mari?”
I called her name friendly as if Mari was my friend. Then I slightly curled the corners of my mouth.
“By the way, am I… not even able to greet her?”
“The situation is a bit complicated,”
“What’s the difference?” Frinel raised one eyebrow slightly. “I think the shameless one is you.”
“Your Royal Highness!” He gave off a look of displeasure and shouted.
Is he anxious? Does he feel unfair that he suffered this? The appearance of Frinel seemed to cause anxiety for Endimion. Just looking at his face, which was always calm, but now disheveled, I could tell that.
I laughed inwardly at Endimion. You can love multiple people but can’t stand others doing it? Even the thieves wouldn’t have such audacity.
I sighed deeply and hugged my own arms as if I was afraid. “Marquis. The reason I came here without saying anything was because I had Frinel by my side who took care of me,”
My trembling voice soon ended firmly.
“And because you said that I have a daughter.”
“…Lia.”
“I’m scared.”
I shook my body.
“I have nightmares every day…”
“Nightmare…”
Endimion moved closer to me with his eyes full of pity. But, as if wary of him, I took a big step back.
“I don’t want to talk about it now. I still can’t trust Marquis.”
“Lia, how could you say that to me…!”
I just said I couldn’t trust him, but Endimion looked at me tearfully.
I looked at him blankly. He was making a stupid expression as if his heart had been torn to shreds. If I had known that just a few words would provoke such an expression, I might have shown my resentment to him that day when I had lost everything. I should have given him a piece of my mind when he lied about going to work. If so, would things be a little different from now?
I closed my eyes tightly. My anger and resentment enveloped my troubled and confused heart. I wasn’t sure how long I could hold back the anger welling up in my heart. Even now, I struggled to resist the urge to crush that impudent face with my mana.
My mana responded to my emotions and crept into the ground. The transparent mana with a slightly blue tint soared up into the sky through the trees planted around. In an instant, lightning flashed across the clear sky with flashes strong enough to close your eyes.
“Uh?”
In an instant, black clouds covered the sky. The dark clouds surrounding the march looked grim as if they were going to swallow all of the march in one bite at any moment. Soon, rain began to drop by drop at a time.
“It looks like it will rain, so it’s better to avoid the rain first.”
It’s because of you, fool. Perhaps because of my anger, my mana that was sent down surged up into the sky. Even so, I didn’t expect that I could control the weather.
I nodded my head softly and followed Endimion as he guided the way. Frinel looked at me anxiously. But I just gave a small nod as if I was okay with this.
Suddenly, I realized the way we were going wasn’t the way to the main building. I tilted my head slightly and glared at Endimion’s back. After walking for a while, the appearance of an annex located far away from the main building was revealed. One of my eyebrows furrowed.
Is he going to put me in the annex rather than the main building? Don’t tell me that he doesn’t want to get scolded by Magorit? Unsurprisingly, a ridiculed smile was made.
I didn’t know how Magorit treated Endimion for five years. Still, if she was the same as before, she would definitely make an innocent face as if she didn’t know anything. If he said, ‘At last I found my love, Lobelia. You must understand me, right, Mari?’ she would have smiled brightly.
As my impression crumpled, as if reading my mind, Frinel opened his mouth first. “Isn’t this an annex?”
As soon as we arrived at the annex, it rained like a storm at the right time. Swaa, staring at the sound of the rain, Endimion replied indifferently.
“Ah, I need a little time to make Mari understand. If I told her that I found Lobelia right away, she would be confused too.” He grinned without feeling sorry as if he was satisfied with this excuse.
But there was no way that I would accept it as it was. I responded coldly. “You said you love me, but are you saying you’re going to keep me in the shadows?”
“That’s not it,”
“Then what about my daughter?”
“…Lia. Merilly knows Mari as her mother.”
“Do you mean you won’t reveal my identity to the child?” I staggered, acting as if I had been shocked.
“Lia!”
“Lady Lobelia!”
The hands of the two men seized my arms one by one. I glanced at the two slowly, then slipped my arm out of Endimion’s grip.
“Lia…”
“Frinel was the one who helped me when I was wandering around, losing my memory.”
I sighed and uttered my words clearly as I lowered my eyes. “In this situation, who else could I trust?”
At the words of Lobelia, who was so determined, Endimion only pursed his lips with no rebuttal. It was natural for her to be so angry because the only place he brought her to was the annex. He just lowered his head.
I glanced at Endimion with my narrow eyes, then turned my head and looked at Frinel. “Frinel.”
“Yes?”
“For me, can you come to the march every day? I think it would be too scary to be alone in this unfamiliar place, in a place so far away from the main building.”
“Of course.”
Endimion jumped at those words.
“That’s not going to happen. When a man from outside comes here,”
“If so… I will not enter the march.” My tone was firmer than ever.
Endimion raised his voice as if pleading. “Honey!”
My facial muscles twitched slightly. It was the call I’d heard for three years, but I found that word was offending me.
I slowly approached him, gazing intently at Endimion. “Until my memory returns, could you please stop calling me that way?”
Then I spat out one letter after another.
“Marquis Hamilton.”
White lightning flashed behind me when I spoke in a cold voice. At that moment, Endimion’s face collapsed in despair, feeling a piercing pain in his chest.
