She had bought herself a little time by coming to the lounge, but that reprieve was only temporary.
She had to leave before anyone came looking for her—
Whoosh!
The curtain was suddenly pulled aside. Rachel’s eyes widened when she saw who had entered.
“Lady Labelyn.”
“Baroness Rachel.”
It seemed she had redone her makeup.
But the corners of Aisha Labelyn’s eyes were red. Despite her tear-stained eyes, her lips curved into a lovely smile. The contrast made her expression seem even stranger.
“It’s all right if I sit down, isn’t it? I have something to say to you, Baroness.”
“…”
Before Rachel could answer, Aisha Labelyn took the seat across from her and smiled brightly.
“Did you see? His Majesty told me to leave because he wouldn’t tolerate any more disrespect.”
“…”
She hadn’t been like this before the Regression, had she?
Of course, it was no longer Rachel’s concern what kind of person Aisha Labelyn was. Rachel leaned back against the sofa and replied calmly.
“Is that so? But you seem to have come here to blame me. I don’t think I did anything wrong.”
“What did you say?”
“Did you think it would be easy to approach a man who likes another woman? I’m actually disappointed in you, Lady Labelyn. I never thought your determination was so weak.”
“…!”
A crack appeared in Aisha’s flowerlike smile. Rachel continued.
“Please try harder, Lady Labelyn. Otherwise, I might become the empress. You wouldn’t want to see that happen, would you?”
This wouldn’t do. Aisha had to work desperately to somehow turn the emperor’s heart back toward her.
If she kept coming to Rachel and blaming her every time something happened, she might eventually give up.
That can’t happen.
Aside from her discomfort with Aisha Labelyn, the lady was Rachel’s only hope. After all, according to the Records, she was the one who had even married the emperor.
“I’ll be going now. I hope you’ll bring me good news next time.”
Rachel stood up and left through the back of the lounge. Even then, Aisha Labelyn remained seated like a doll, offering no response.
She simply kept her mouth tightly shut, her orange eyes wide open as if they were about to tear apart.
By the time Rachel left the banquet hall, it was already evening.
As the guest of honor, she had forced herself to stay until now, but surely it was all right to leave at this point.
She glanced at the still-bustling hall and quietly headed toward the area where the carriages were gathered.
“Leaving already?”
“…”
A familiar voice stopped her in her tracks. Rachel turned around and answered calmly.
“Yes. Marquis Ingrave. Marchioness.”
“…”
Even when nearly every noble had gathered around her, they had only watched from a distance.
Now that she thought about it, they must have been waiting for a chance to speak with her privately. That meant they had more or less settled on their position as well.
Sure enough, her mother let out a scornful laugh before speaking.
“Yes. I’ve heard from the others. You finally decided to sever ties with us and leave the family, didn’t you? We even had to make excuses, saying we were so upset that we couldn’t bring ourselves to congratulate you. I never imagined you’d become so good at handling things. What a remarkable traitor you’ve turned out to be!”
“That’s too much praise.”
“You little—!”
The marchioness was left speechless, stammering as she pointed a finger at Rachel. Then Marquis Ingrave stepped forward, stopping his wife.
“Let me talk to her, dear.”
“…Fine.”
The marchioness took a breath and stepped back. Rachel quietly watched the marquis as he moved one step closer.
“Rachel.”
“…”
In truth, he was the real person she had to deal with.
A man regarded even at court as a ruthless and cunning strategist.
If anyone was going to make a move, it would undoubtedly be him.
With a cold expression that, in some ways, resembled her own, he delivered his verdict.
“You are no longer my daughter. No matter what happens from now on, do not think of blaming me.”
“…I expected this. Marquis and Marchioness, you’d be wise not to expect anything from me in the future, either. Whether it’s His Majesty or Duke Valencia, I won’t be doing anything for the two of you.”
“You…!”
The marchioness nearly stepped forward in anger again, but barely managed to swallow her rage. Rachel looked at the two of them for a moment.
Their appearance was different from the last time she had seen them in her previous life, but…
“…”
She actually preferred this.
Back then, they had looked down on her as if she were a piece of trash they needed to get rid of. Now, at least, even if they considered her ungrateful, they still saw her as a person.
“I’ll be going.”
“…”
No one called out to stop her. Rachel continued toward the carriages. Along the way, she called over a servant and instructed him to summon her escort knights. The Ingrave couple watched her until the very end.
The marchioness spoke.
“What do we do now?”
“What else can we do? She insists on drinking the poison on her own, so we have to let her.”
The marquis summoned one of the knights and gave an order.
“Nothing has changed. Make sure it succeeds.”
“Yes, Marquis.”
After sending the knight away, the Ingrave couple returned to the banquet hall with relaxed expressions. Then someone who had watched the entire exchange from behind a pillar began to move.
“Follow them.”
“Yes, sir.”
It was Nathan Valencia. His adjutant, Vale, immediately went to summon the knights.
He had told the emperor and the King of Borza that he would return shortly, but—
—You seem drunk. I’ll step outside for some fresh air.
—Hmm? You don’t look drunk at all.
—Are you really going to slip away with such a perfectly sober face, Duke?
As they had expected, Nathan had no intention of returning to a drinking session that had already served its purpose.
He had heard the King of Borza’s personal impressions of the Archmage, and the other matter had unfolded just as he expected.
Rachel Ingrave would gain the complete independence she wanted.
“…”
He had thought that would be the end of it.
—Hello, Duke.
He kept remembering the sight of her approaching him and speaking first for the very first time.
She said I reminded her of someone she hated.
Has she changed her mind?
Or did she want something more from him?
He had thought he was the one who had to be most wary of this kind of situation.
“…”
Strangely enough, a part of him welcomed the situation now. Nathan buried his face in his hands.
It was absurd.
But he couldn’t bring himself to turn away. In fact, he was glad. Even if she had approached him because she felt troubled by her mistake,
it seemed as though this might become a thread that could keep them connected.
“Duke, everything is ready.”
Vale, who had returned before Nathan realized it, brought him out of his thoughts. The escort knights were standing by with their horses, including Sir Blake, the deputy commander who served as head of the escort.
One squad of Valencia knights had already followed the carriage and was waiting outside the Imperial Palace.
Three squads were stationed along the road from the Imperial Palace to the Easton estate.
One squad was lying in wait near the Easton estate. The moment an assassination attempt occurred, the assassins—and even the evidence within their organization—would fall into his hands.
“Let’s go.”
He took the reins offered by Deputy Commander Blake and mounted his favorite horse. Nathan could feel his heartbeat quickening ever so slightly.
He had truly intended to keep his distance, just as she wanted.
But if she needed him,
There was no need to push her away, was there?
After all, he still had plenty of debts to repay.
That was all. For now.
***
Rachel left the Imperial Palace in a guest carriage bearing the imperial flag. There was a lot to do from now on.
She still had to finish repairing the mansion, hire a mage to put up a barrier around the estate, and recruit knights from her territory.
But she felt better than ever.
There were still several problems, but it wasn’t as though there were no solutions.
She would spend the winter in a cozy place, far away from everyone she didn’t want to see.
Her meals would always be freshly prepared and delicious, and whenever she wanted, she would be able to take a bath or go on an outing as much as she pleased.
“…This is wonderful.”
There wasn’t much longer to wait. Once she left the palace, Rachel planned to lie low and wait until the emperor’s interest in her faded.
Of course, there was still the problem with the Ingrave family, but that…
“…”
Once she had decided to ask for help, it was easy to bring the idea to mind again.
But if she asked him not only to help her escape the emperor, but also to deal with the Ingrave family’s attempts to undermine her…
Would he finally find it difficult to agree this time?
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