After Leon left, I turned my eyes again to the Marquis's wife.
“Speak clearly.
I ate that chocolate too.”
“It's hard-earned chocolate.
Was it delicious?”
“It's not regular chocolate, is it?”
The Marquis's wife looked at me with an innocent expression as if she knew nothing.
I continued to speak, looking into her devious eyes hidden behind that innocent expression: “Are you going to continue to feign ignorance until the end?”
"I swear I don't know!
You're really getting weird.
Are you really Belle?
Or are you, even though you're the wife of a foolish prince, beginning to think you're something important?"
I felt anger rising inside me as I saw her insolent face.
“Yes, I am indeed something important.
I became the princess, right?
And Leon cares about me so much.
Didn’t you see how much he relied on me?
Ah, were you jealous that I, who you considered insignificant, became popular while you didn’t?
Is that the reason you did it?
Aren’t you really that low-minded?”
The Marquis's wife's face suddenly hardened.
'What?
Was the random thing I said to tease her true?’ I unintentionally opened my mouth in surprise.
“Well, I can't deny it.
Do you think you have it all now?
With this idiot by your side?
But when you feel sorry for yourf soon, think again about my offer.
I don't know anything else, but I can guarantee you a comfortable life abroad.
Isn't that a good offer for you?”
'Do you mean to help me escape abroad?
Why?
'Me?'
I was married by order of the Emperor.
I did not obey the Marquis's order to watch Leon, but if I disappeared, the Marquis would be the most affected.
'Wait, what if she wants to embarrass the Marquis?'
“You are truly a pathetic person.”
I muttered to myf.
Whatever the reason, I genuinely felt sorry for her.
I didn't want to continue talking to her.
Talking to someone who played such vile tricks made me feel like I was sinking to her level.
“If you repeat this trick again, I won’t really forgive you.”
I warned her again, then left her room and returned to my room.
When I entered the bedroom, Leon, who was dressed elegantly, saw me, stretched his lips and turned his head sharply.
“Leon, are you angry?”
“You said you'd come back quickly, but Belle Belle is a wolf and a liar.
Shepherd girl!”
“Leon, you are truly adorable.
Thinking of the she-wolf, the liar, and even the shepherd girl!
Are wrinkles starting to form in Leon’s brain?”
"Wrinkles?
Like these?"
Leon frowned heavily, noting the wrinkles between his eyebrows.
I pressed those wrinkles and shook my head.
“Wrinkles will appear on your forehead.”
“Hehe,” Leon laughed and smiled innocently.
His smile made me feel happy unintentionally.
Whether it was a lie or not, I didn't care.
I wanted to keep seeing that smile.
“Let's go back to Esther.”
"Can we?
I wanted to go home."
The capital, which was his original home, no longer meant anything to him.
I told the servants that we would return to Esther and ordered them to pack the luggage.
Then I changed into the dress I had been wearing since yesterday, and sat watching Leon draw until the servants finished packing the luggage.
"Wow, you drew well.
Is that a crab?
Or the sun?"
I asked, looking at a drawing of a circle surrounded by stick-like lines.
It looked like a decay bug from a children's storybook, but I tried to make it as beautiful as possible.
Leon didn't answer.
“...It's a person, Bill Bill, you're evil.
These are fingers.”
“Hmm… looks like Leon.”
Leon's eyes narrowed and he did not respond.
Why did he get angry when I said he looked like him if he was a person?
After the preparations were over, we stood in front of the Marquis's house watching the luggage being loaded, waiting for the Marquis and his wife to come out to bid us farewell.
The Marquis's wife finally appeared before we got into the carriage.
“The Marquis has not yet awakened from his drunkenness last night.
I apologize for bidding you farewell alone.”
I looked at her with the coldest look possible.
I didn't want to show any false friendliness that might make her feel even a little delusional.
“Your Highness, I thought you would stay in the capital for a few months like before.
I feel sorry for you to leave like this.
I hope you will come back soon so we can shop and enjoy together like we used to.”
‘I won’t do that as long as I’m sane.’ Did the real Belle hate Leon so much that she left Esther to stay with those parents?
I did not respond to her words, and Leon and I got into the carriage, and we left the Marquis's house and returned to Astaire.
This world is not my home.
I'm still a stranger here.
But the moment I arrived in Esther, I felt from the bottom of my heart that this was the place I was supposed to be.
Since our arrival at Aster, Leon seemed more at ease, joking with a calm expression.
Kalsen and his assistants interrupted their meeting and ran to greet us because of our sudden return.
“Ma’am, I was surprised that you came back immediately.
Frankly, I thought you would stay a few months as before.
I thought my master came back alone.”
‘Should you say something to ruin the moment?
'I was so touched!'
I smiled brightly and replied: “This is my home, where will I go?
Home is the most comfortable!”
“By the way, ma’am, a letter has just arrived from your friend.”
As I was stretching out of sleep, Amy approached.
"girlfriend?"
It was surprising that Bill had a girlfriend.
“Elizabeth Osmond...”
I muttered the name on the envelope Amy had handed me.
I tried to remember the events of the novel, but this name was not familiar.
She is certainly not a main character in the novel.
However, being Belle's girlfriend means a chance to form a relationship with someone outside the princely palace.
I opened the letter with a trembling heart and began reading.
After reading the message, I looked at Amy.
Amy stood quietly, looked at me in wonder, and asked, “Is something wrong?”
“I…don’t I have money?”
The letter was not an expression of the beautiful friendship between the noblewomen.
Crazy Belle, or rather I, has borrowed money from this Osmond.
‘Can I call her a friend?
I should call it credit.'
Elizabeth was angry that I had ignored her at the party even though she had lent me the money, and that I had not tried to repay the debt.
After the party ended, she returned home and wrote a letter full of anger.
“If you do not pay your debts within a month, I will make you and Your Highness humiliated throughout the entire empire.”
I read the last part of the letter out loud, shaking with rage.
“Amy, why am I in debt?” I asked Amy, who was actively avoiding my eyes, either because she was shocked by the content of the message or because I was angry.
Amy looked embarrassed at another maid next to her.
I felt that I would not get an answer easily, so I asked another question: “What is the value of 30 solar?
Or a couscous or a moose or something like that.
Can you explain that?”
Since I got here, I haven't dealt with money directly, so I didn't know how much debt I owed.
“10 mos equals 1 kos, 10 kos equals 1 luna, and 100 luna equals 1 solar.”
‘If 1 luna is worth about 100,000 won… oh my!’
I felt like slapping myf.
"Crazy.
I'm really crazy.
This is crazy.
I can't go on like this.
I have to manage my money myf.
Amy, who's managing my money now?"
Amy swallowed as if she had made up her mind, then opened her mouth: “…As far as I know, you don’t have or manage any money, ma’am.”