Leopold blinked once. Yet Olivia's expression remained unchanged—a countenance of perfect composure, bearing not the faintest trace of sarcasm or regret.
Through teeth clenched so tightly they ached, he could taste something metallic—the phantom flavor of blood drawn from his own restraint.
Leopold stood frozen, unable to relax his jaw, staring at Olivia as an unfamiliar sensation crept through him with gathering force.
No. Surely not.
He attempted to deny the anxious thoughts spiraling through his mind. What should he say to her? What words could possibly bridge this chasm?
Sea-colored eyes wavered without anchor or direction. His gaze turned toward my face as though refusing to accept what could not possibly be true.
Yet I continued to smile, unwavering.
"You lie. You must be lying. Whenever I looked upon you, your expression always proclaimed your love for me."
"You perceived even that much. Then why did you fail to notice that flowers were arriving for me bearing your name?"
"Flowers? Surely you cannot mean—when you mentioned flowers before..."
I curved the corners of my lips into a knowing smile. As though that alone constituted sufficient answer, Leopold's complexion drained of all color.
Ah, yes. Whom had I dared to pity?
Maria Ethel warranted not a shred of sympathy. This wretched choice must have been precisely what Maria Ethel had desired all along.
I quietly lowered my hand—the hand that had once yearned so desperately for someone to hold it. Before it could even begin to move, it was grasped firmly by a warmth I had come to know well.
"...I remember everything you said to me."
"..."
"How passionately you spoke of your love for Lady Ethel."
"Olivia—!"
I could endure no more.
Leopold's tightly clenched fists trembled with visible agitation. His heart felt as though it might burst asunder. Each breath that escaped his lips grew increasingly ragged and desperate.
And yet, with what must have seemed infinite cruelty, the woman before him smiled with effortless grace.
"Therefore, I presume to say this."
Infinitely more beautiful.
"Henceforth, do not speak of wanting me by your side."
Infinitely more resolute.
Just as he had done when he announced the dissolution of our engagement.
Leopold's heart—only now beginning to stir with awareness—shattered slowly before it could even comprehend its own awakening. He bit down hard upon the inside of his cheek, experiencing helplessness for the first time in his existence. Even as he stood in circumstances where he could not so much as register his own anguish, he could not help but notice how exquisitely beautiful Olivia appeared.
In stark contrast to her gracefully curved lips, her verdant eyes remained cold as winter frost as she delivered her warning to Leopold.
"Should Your Royal Highness, by some chance, harbor different feelings for me—do not dare reveal them."
"..."
"And I beseech you—"
"..."
"When I departed that place, consider my final silhouette as my answer to you."
That retreating figure—the first time he had sensed something amiss. What he ought to have felt was not mere doubt, but rather a profound sense of crisis.
Leopold's expression crumbled by imperceptible degrees.
As I observed his innermost thoughts peeling away one by one with detached indifference, I reflected upon the words I had spoken.
I do not look back at the place I have left behind. I made that vow on the day I first showed him my retreating back.
The one who now held my hand as I took each precarious step forward stood at my side. A single glance was sufficient to satisfy the longing I had harbored for over a dozen years—and so I resolved to give my utmost, for Edwin's sake.
"The Imperial Moon. In that exalted place..."
In the place I had left behind—
"Your Royal Highness already possesses a Lady Ethel whom you love."
Maria Ethel, who had yearned so desperately for that position, could now claim it for her own. From a high window, I could discern Maria Ethel's countenance gazing down upon me with crystalline clarity.
Those sapphire eyes brimmed with undisguised resentment.
I averted my gaze from her without the slightest hesitation.
---
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"Mother, what shall become of us if His Majesty discovers everything? Olivia—everyone witnessed her rejection of my brother!"
The drawing room of the Empress's palace.
The Princess, tears streaming down her face, at last buried her countenance in her palms. Her sobs punctuated the silence as teardrops fell to the marble floor.
The Empress, observing the scene, could scarcely contain her own breath.
What disgrace had befallen her proud son and daughter. That her brother had declared he would sever all connection with their family was, in this instance, a blessing in disguise.
Marquis Ethel and Maria Ethel alike—neither would be permitted to escape unscathed.
Her blood-red fury extended equally to Olivia, who had dared to reject her son.
"She knows not her proper place."
A flash of rage escaped her lips.
Olivia was one who deserved to be subjected to contempt before the entire assembled nobility.
The Empress suppressed her anger and addressed her head lady-in-waiting.
"Has there been any word from the operative dispatched to Vikander territory?"
"I regret to inform Your Majesty that no communication has arrived from that quarter. However..."
The lady-in-waiting, her expression troubled, leaned toward the Empress and whispered softly. The Empress's face flushed crimson as she absorbed those words, her features sharpening with predatory interest.
"Is this truly so?"
"Indeed, Your Majesty. According to the Princess's maid, Her Royal Highness exchanged letters with the Grand Duke—employing an alias!"
---