The Reason Why the Forsaken Fake Returned Chapter 133

“What?”

 

The voice that asked back trembled. His face looked as though he doubted his own ears, like he couldn’t understand what he’d just heard.

 

“You heard me perfectly well,” Shailoh answered calmly, without so much as a blink. She couldn’t understand why he looked so shocked. But what she understood even less what he did next.

 

Caleb rose to his feet and strode toward her. Then he reached a hand out to her. “Sasha.”

 

Knocking his hand away was almost a reflex. Shailoh herself was surprised by how coldly she brushed his hand aside.

 

Caleb froze where he stood, rejected. “I…” His lips moved as though he was about to say something, but soon his face turned deathly pale. It was as if every drop of blood had drained from his body. Then he staggered and shook his head. “Forget it.” He turned and walked away.

 

Shailoh’s legs gave out, and she sank down onto the floor.

 

Rose knocked not long after Shailoh was left alone. “Milady?” The moment permission was given, Rose opened the door and came in, her eyes going wide like a startled rabbit. “Why are you just sitting on the floor like that?”

 

“Ah.” Only then did Shailoh register the cold floor beneath her. With Rose’s help, she got to her feet.

 

Sensing that something was off, Rose just opened and closed her mouth for a moment, then cautiously ventured. “Did… he say something to you, Milady? Did something happen?” Her voice, when referring to Caleb, was very careful.

 

Shailoh wandered over and sat back down on the couch.

 

Among those who knew that Caleb, who had remained her under the alias ‘Kay,’ was the king of this kingdom were only Declen, the lord of this castle, Shailoh, Kiana, and Rose. From Rose’s perspective, even meeting Declen, the lord of the North, would probably be an extremely burdensome and imposing experience. So meeting Caleb, the king of this kingdom, would be even more overwhelming.

 

“Rose.”

 

Thinking that she should avoid leaving Caleb and Rose alone together whenever possible, Shailoh patted the seat beside her. At her gesture inviting Rose to come sit, Rose hurried over and sat beside her.

 

“Try not to speak with him unless absolutely necessary.”

 

“…Yes.” Rose bit her lip and nodded with a tense expression.

 

In truth, Rose was still completely bewildered. The kind and gentle ‘Kay,’ with whom she had gradually become acquainted, was the king? The very person who had hurt her lady more than anyone else?

 

When her thoughts reached that point, Rose hesitantly asked. “That… He won’t hurt or forcibly take Milady away, will he?”

 

“That won’t happen… probably.” Shailoh gave a weak smile and shook her head. If Caleb had meant to do that, he would have done it long ago. For some reason, though, he had never used that last resort. Of course, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t in the future.

 

“That’s a relief. I was really worried.” Rose stroked her chest and let out a sigh of relief, her voice choked with emotion.

 

Seeing her relieved expression, Shailoh hesitated over whether to ask, but eventually parted her lips. “By the way, Rose.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“If you heard someone putting themselves down and their face suddenly turned pale… what kind of feeling would cause that?”

 

Rose blinked for a moment at the sudden question. Then she quickly became serious and thought deeply about Shailoh’s question. Before long, her expression showed she had found an answer and began to speak. “That would be…”

 

“That would be?”

 

“That person—”

 

Rose couldn’t finish her sentence. Hurried footsteps approached them beyond the door, and someone knocked.

 

“Shailoh.”

 

It was Declen.

 

“I need to talk to you.”

 

* * *

After sending Rose away, the siblings sat facing each other in silence. A strange feeling washed over Shailoh.

 

Declen was sitting in the very chair Caleb had just occupied. In the awkward quiet, Declen was the first to speak. “Are you feeling okay? You don’t look well.”

 

“I’m fine. Just a little tired.”

 

It had only been a short while, but being alone in a private audience with Caleb was utterly draining. They hadn’t traded many words, yet the countless things exchanged through glances and gestures had worn her out. Even if she’d squeezed out every last drop of strength she had, she would still have been left exhausted.

 

“What did he say to you?”

 

“Nothing much.” Shailoh shook her head and lowered her gaze to her hands.

 

In truth, there hadn’t been enough spoken aloud to even call it a conversation. Pleading, persuasion, and questions laced with threats. She had been the one to pour all of those out. Caleb had merely listened in silence, then left the room with a pale face. He was like someone who had encountered something he absolutely should never have faced.

 

Under the stare fixed upon her, Shailoh eventually raised her head and asked in return. “What did His Majesty and Brother talk about?”

 

“He said something unexpected.”

 

“What unexpected?”

 

“That he wouldn’t forcibly abduct you and take you away. He swore it upon the king’s name.”

 

“Really…?”

 

Although Shailoh had just told Rose that such a thing wouldn’t happen, it was something she secretly had been worried about. Yet she could hardly believe that Caleb himself had sworn it to Declen.

 

Declen nodded and added heavily. “But he also said that if someone tried to tear him away from your side or force him to keep his distance, he couldn’t make any promises.”

 

“In that case…” Did what he’d just said actually mean something? She was about to press the point when Declen went on.

 

“He said he wouldn’t do anything beyond what a bodyguard would do. He told me you could rest assured.”

 

Shailoh fell into thought with a serious expression. Until she had come to the North, she had at least been able to discern Caleb’s true feelings through his face, expressions, and reactions. But now she could no longer understand his thoughts, as though she were trying to make her way through a thick fog. It felt like she had encountered an unfathomable mystery. Like a tangled ball of thread, she couldn’t even begin to figure out where or how to unravel it.

 

“Brother… Suppose that…”

 

Kianan’s face flashed through her mind.

 

“If I were to become engaged to someone else, would His Majesty give up on me?”

 

“You? To whom?” Declen raised his eyebrows at the unexpected statement and immediately pressed Shailoh for an answer. “Was there a man who proposed to you in the capital?”

 

Not in the capital, but here. And the man in question was none other than Kianan. But instead of answering honestly, Shailoh shook her head. “No, it’s not like that. I was just curious. Someone told me that, under the laws of the kingdom, a woman who has been engaged to another man even once can’t become queen.”

 

“Right… There is such a law. It’s one of the conditions that disqualify a woman from becoming queen.” Declen nodded in agreement.

 

“Why is that? A long time ago, there was a case in this kingdom where a widow became queen, wasn’t there?”

 

“That was a special case. She was a woman with an enormous inheritance, and there was also a doctor’s certificate testifying that her former husband was incapable of performing as a man.”

 

“Even so, the fact that she had already been married doesn’t change, does it?”

 

His answer rang through Shailoh’s mind like an alarm bell. “Because her husband was already dead.”

 

“So you’re saying…”

 

“Shailoh?”

 

“Even if an engagement is broken off… as long as the partner is still alive… the marriage wouldn’t be valid?”

 

“You could interpret it that way.”

 

The moment Declen acknowledged it, Shailoh’s face lit up as if someone had struck a match in the dark.

 

“Did His Majesty say anything else?”

 

“He said he intended to remain here, but since he has responsibilities as king, he would briefly return to the capital.”

 

That was just as welcome as what she’d just heard.

 

“When?”

 

“It was supposed to be tomorrow. But for some reason, when I went to his room, it was empty. It seems he left early.”

 

“…”

 

“You didn’t hear?”

 

“No…” Shailoh shook her head, her face stunned.

 

Had things gone as planned, Caleb might have knocked on her door just to tell her that. But for some reason, he hadn’t said a word. And the moment he’d stepped out of her room, he’d left.

 

Her puzzlement lasted only a moment. Then Shailoh swept all those questions from her mind and focused on what she had to do next.

 

Shailoh met Kianan again after sunset. To avoid the eyes of others, she went out into the courtyard, where she found him leaning against a large tree. Just in case, Shailoh didn’t face him directly. Instead, she stood on the opposite side of the tree and placed a hand against its trunk. Then, as though she were speaking to the tree, she began.

 

“I’ve been thinking it over. About your proposal.”

 

“Have you now? And your answer?”

 

“Alright. Let’s do it. But how? If I suddenly say I’m engaged to you, neither my brother nor anyone else will believe it… That person included.”

 

“Then we’ll just have to make them believe it from now on.”

 

Kianan had somehow circled around the tree. He slightly bent his body and held out his palm. Just as a knight would to a lady. Startled, Shailoh instinctively placed her hand on his palm. He then lightly kissed the back of it.

 

“Shall we start with a walk? If someone sees us, we can say we happened to run into each other.”

 

“So we show everyone that we’re gradually becoming closer, then get engaged when the time is right?”

 

“For now, yes. His Grace would never allow it, so once enough rumors have spread, we’ll secretly find a priest, conceal our identity, and get engaged. That way, there will be a record of it.”

 

“Why are you going this far for me? Even keeping it a secret from my brother.”

 

“It’s not in my nature to just sit there and take a hit.” Kianan grinned and offered his arm.

 

At the look in his eyes telling her to take it, Shailoh rested her hand on his sleeve. “I heard that you were the first to realize His Majesty’s disguise. What happened back then?”

 

“Something clearly happened. My neck still aches from it.”

 

It seemed Caleb had subdued Kianan rather roughly. Shailoh found that explanation reasonably convincing.

 

Kianan then suddenly added. “Besides, Milady is exactly my type.”

 

It was impossible to tell whether he was joking or merely flattering her. Shailoh saw no reason to reply.