For the One Who Hates Me - Chapter 18

When Aura returned to her room, Riel was napping on the sofa. The maids were wiping sweat from their brows, a testament to how wild their play had been.

“She’s a very energetic princess,” Mina said. Even Mina, who usually kept her cool, seemed exhausted.

Aura looked down at the sleeping Riel. As the youngest daughter of the royal family of Zenia, Aura had never taken care of a child. It was a new and strange feeling to find such peace in the face of a sleeping child. Until a new wet nurse was assigned, someone had to take care of Riel. Aura thought she could do it.

A couple of hours later…

“Mmm…” Riel stirred.

Aura, who was reading a book beside her, said, “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes… I’m hungry.”

“Oh? Then let’s go to the dining hall together.”

“I’ll eat with my wet nurse for dinner.”

‘That’s surprising. I thought she found Tasha boring.’ Regardless, she couldn’t leave Riel with Tasha anymore. Even if Karl forgave Tasha, Aura wouldn’t.

“The wet nurse is busy today, so you can’t see her. Let’s go eat something delicious together. How about that?”

“…Then what about tomorrow?” Riel asked anxiously.

“The wet nurse… has been assigned to a different task. You’ll have a new wet nurse soon. So…”

“No! I want to be with my wet nurse!” Riel ran toward the door. The maids, flustered, tried to stop her.

“Your Highness, you can’t leave alone.”

“Get out of my way!” Riel pushed the maids and reached for the doorknob.

“Riel.” Aura got up from the sofa and approached Riel. “You are free to leave the room, but you still can’t see your wet nurse. You’re only bothering the servants.” Aura sat down next to Riel and smiled gently. “Since you’re a princess, can’t you try to be a little patient?”

But it was no use. Tears welled up in her round eyes, and she clenched her fists. “I know everything! You and my wet nurse fought, and that’s why you kicked her out, right?!”

Aura was speechless. ‘…She’s not wrong.’

“You’re only being nice to me to use me, aren’t you?! Why else would you be nice to me?!”

That was also true. She had approached Riel to see if she knew anything about the Pin.

“See! You can’t answer!” Riel raised her fists, ready to hit Aura.

“Princess!”

“Princess! Stop it!” The maids quickly grabbed Riel. Riel sobbed, tears streaming down her face.

“After my father died, everyone said I should have died too! I only saw my father a few times! I didn’t do anything wrong… they said I would be better off dead! Hic…”

“…”

“When I was all alone, the only person who came to me was my wet nurse! I want to live with her!”

It was a pitiful sight. The humiliation the child had endured, and the fact that the only person who came to her was Tasha. And all Aura could say to her right now was…

“Riel. Getting angry won’t change anything. It’s better to be grateful instead.”

“…What?”

“Uncle Karl saved you.”

“Uncle killed my father! I know everything!”

“But he saved you. That’s more important than anything else.” Aura tucked Riel’s hair behind her ear. Riel’s eyes wavered. One day, Riel would realize what a terrible person the Crown Prince was. She would also realize that Karl’s decision to keep her alive meant he was willing to endure the hatred she might feel for him.

‘Of course, this is painful for her right now.’

And sure enough, Riel burst into tears. “You’re just like Uncle!” Riel finally opened the door and ran out. Aura frowned at the gap in the door. ‘Come to think of it, I sounded a lot like Karl just now. It was so unpleasant.’

“Go after Riel and bring her back. Hurry.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The maids ran out. Aura couldn’t just stand there, so she went out into the hallway as well.

She searched the palace for what seemed like forever, but Riel was nowhere to be found. ‘That little girl has fast feet.’ Aura unconsciously moved toward Karl’s office. She saw that the office door was half-open.

‘Did she go in there?’

Aura walked toward the door. And then, she heard a commotion.

Around sunset, Tasha appeared in Karl’s office, as she had been summoned. Despite her tearful fit in the afternoon, she was standing with her back straight. She planned to show him she was healthy enough to return to her position as Riel’s wet nurse.

“You called for me, Your Majesty?”

Karl, who was sitting sideways on the sofa, tossed something onto the table. Tasha’s eyes wavered when she saw what it was. It was a promissory note with her name on it. It was proof that she had been funding the pure-blood supremacists for a long time.

Karl spoke calmly. “The promissory note is a public document, so there’s no need for you to explain anything, Wet Nurse.” Tasha swallowed hard. “However, I want to confirm one thing.”

“…”

“The protest at the empress’s coronation, was that your doing?”

Tasha slowly raised her head, a look of resignation on her face. “Your Majesty, you were the one who gave a Zenia woman the empress’s seat in the first place.”

Thump. Karl tapped the table with his fingertip. “That means yes. Theo.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Theo, who was standing by, stepped forward.

“She has insulted the royal family. Hand her over to the court.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“That’s all.” Karl stood up from the sofa as if he had no regrets. Tasha couldn’t believe it. An ordinary maid would have received more consideration than this.

“I raised you myself!” Tasha cried out.

Karl looked at her. “That Zenia woman, a Zenia woman! She said that because I was raised by a low-born woman… I was pitiful! She insulted you as if you were a commoner!”

“You are a commoner.” Tasha’s words made him question his ears.

“…What did you just say?”

“You are common. What’s wrong with saying that? I’m not a true-blood royal.”

“Th-That’s not true…! Your Majesty is the noble bloodline of the Kasa royal family…!”

“Aura is the noble one.”

“…Pardon?”

“Someone like Aura is noble. Not me.”

Silence filled the room. Even the usually calm Theo was staring wide-eyed at Karl. Tasha tried to calm herself down and swallowed hard.

“Your Majesty, it is true that I supported the pure-blood supremacists. But you are now being bewitched by that woman. She is not noble at all; she is out of her mind. Have you already forgotten that she tried to kill me? She also searched my room! It’s the true nature of those filthy Zenia people—!”

“Tasha Wender,” Karl said in a low voice. Tasha flinched and shut her mouth. “Who are you trying to teach a lesson to?”

“That’s not what I meant—!”

“You were the same when I was a child. You subtly tried to instill the superiority of the Kasa bloodline in me.”

“…”

“Well, I did listen to you because I felt sorry for a wet nurse who had to raise a powerless prince with no mother. But to continue like this?”

Tasha’s eyes welled up with tears. No matter what, Karl was like a son to her. She couldn’t believe he felt so distant.

“Ah, right. Now that I think about it, it was strange. I came back from Devla, and you were still alive.”

“Y-Yes?”

“The Crown Prince hated me so much. It would have been normal for him to kill you when I went to Devla, wouldn’t it?” Karl slowly walked around the desk and approached Tasha. “Were you in league with the pure-blood supremacist Crown Prince?”

Tasha’s tears streamed down her face. Karl asked, “Is that why you’re so obsessed with Riel? Because Riel is a true-blood of the Kasa royal family?”

“Princess Riel is the only hope for Kasa!” Tasha suddenly screamed. Her face was red, and she seemed to have lost her mind. “Not the child that woman will give birth to! A child from Princess Riel and a Kasa man will be the next emperor!”

Karl grabbed Tasha’s arm. “Tasha.”

“Haa… haa…”

“If you ever utter such nonsense again, I will end your pathetic life before you even get to a trial.”

Tasha’s jaw trembled. “If what you say is true, then Riel has to challenge me and she might die. Is that what you really want?”

“…That would be Princess Riel’s glory,” Tasha said with a manic glint in her eyes.

Just then, “…Was that what it was?”

They finally saw Riel standing in the doorway. Karl immediately let go of Tasha. “Take the princess away. Now.”

A servant approached Riel, but it was too late. Riel screamed with all her might. “What do you all think I am?!” Riel started to cry uncontrollably. “S-So, hic, hic, that’s why you took care of me all this time?! Hic, just to keep me alive… so I could give birth to a child someday?!”

“Riel.” Karl, unable to stand it, tried to approach her. Riel clenched her fists and screamed, “I am not livestock!!!”

“Riel!” Aura entered the room through the open door. Aura quickly lifted Riel into her arms. Riel hugged Aura’s neck and sobbed hysterically. “Waaah! I’m not livestock, I’m…!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay, Riel.” Aura stroked Riel’s back. A thin layer of tears formed in her eyes. She glared at Tasha and then left the office.

A mixture of shock and silence filled the office. Karl, standing in the middle, looked at Theo with a cold expression.

“Theo.”

“Yes.”

“Hand Tasha Wender over to the summary court tonight. The charges are insulting the royal family and… rebellion.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“R-Rebellion?! My God! Y-Your Majesty! Your Majesty!” A pale Tasha cried out. Rebellion was punishable by death, regardless of whether you were a commoner, a noble, or a royal. Tasha seemed to have finally come to her senses.

“I-I did wrong! I will leave the palace and live a quiet life, please, Your Majesty, Emperor!”

Theo and the servants dragged Tasha out of the office. Tasha frantically called out to Karl, but Karl only turned to face the window.

Karl clenched his fist. In the now-silent office, Tasha’s voice seemed to echo. ‘She is not noble at all; she is out of her mind.’ ‘It’s the true nature of those filthy Zenia people—!’ ‘Not the child that woman will give birth to!’

Aura was becoming an easy target for those damn people, regardless of whether she was strong or not. He would have to be more vigilant. Especially when it came to something like a rebellion. Even if she would hate him for it.

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