For the One Who Hates Me - Chapter 19

“Hic… hic…” Riel was huddled on the bed, hiccuping.

Mina carefully handed Aura a cup of milk mixed with maple syrup. When Aura fed the milk to Riel, her breathing calmed down. But tears started to well up in her eyes again. “Hic… I should have listened to you. I shouldn’t have looked for my wet nurse…”

The moment she said “wet nurse,” tears streamed down her face. She had grown fond of Tasha in such a short time. ‘She must have been so lonely in the separate palace.’

“…I want to die,” Riel muttered. Aura was surprised that a seven-year-old would say something like that. She herself had only known love at that age. Aura stroked Riel’s head. “Riel. I understand how you feel, but you shouldn’t say that.”

“But… I’m so sad, and my heart hurts.” Riel hiccuped again. Aura let out a soft sigh. “Even so… you have to protect yourself.”

“How can I protect myself?”

“Even if you get hurt in a situation like that, you have to find the strength to live on. Instead of wanting to die.”

“But how…?”

“Hmm… The feeling that allows you to do that is called pride.”

“Pride?”

“Yes. It’s a feeling that will never let you fall to the bottom.”

It was the mindset Aura had learned as a princess when she was seven years old. Riel didn’t seem to understand.

“It will naturally come to you the moment you feel okay about what happened today.”

“Is that true…? I hope so.”

The words “naturally come to you” seemed to comfort Riel. Riel took another sip of the milk herself. “…I want to sleep. Can I sleep here?”

“Of course. I’ll sing you a lullaby.” Aura patted the blanket. Riel burrowed into the blanket and turned her back to Aura.

Outside, a deep darkness had fallen. ‘It was a long day.’

Just as Aura was about to sigh, Riel spoke.

“You want something from me, don’t you?”

“No. I don’t.”

“Liar. Tell me quickly, before I change my mind.”

She didn’t want to pry information out of this little girl. But she had to, for her own situation. “Alright, Riel. I’ll ask you just one thing. Do you know of a magician who was close to your late father?”

“A magician?” Riel seemed to be trying to remember for a long time. “I’ve never heard of that. I barely saw my father anyway…”

“Okay. Thank you, Riel.”

“But… a letter came once. To the separate palace.”

“A letter?”

“Yes. A lot of letters came for my father. The servant always collected them and sent them to the main palace. The servant said they were from a magician.”

It was definitely suspicious. Receiving letters at the separate palace meant that the letters were being hidden from the other royals.

“Did you ever… see who sent the letters?”

“Yes. One time, I was so curious that I tried to open a letter. The servant stopped me, but… I saw it then.”

“Who was it?”

“…Julius. It said Julius.”

‘A magician named Julius…’

It was a name she had never heard before, and it wasn’t a Zenia name either.

“Thank you for telling me, Riel.” Aura lightly kissed Riel’s forehead. Riel’s eyes were moist. She must have been very tired because she fell asleep right away. ‘I need to tell Mina’s brother to look into this Julius guy.’

Knock, knock. A cautious knock was followed by the door opening. It was Karl. ‘What is Karl doing here at this hour?’

“Aura.”

“Shh.” Aura put a finger to her lips and pointed to the small door that led to the lounge. Karl nodded, as if to say he understood, and left the room.

A moment later, Aura entered the lounge. It was dark and cold, with only a few candles flickering. Karl, who was looking out the window, saw Aura. Aura walked to the sofa and leaned on the back of it.

“So, what is it?”

“How is Riel?”

“I finally calmed her down and put her to sleep. I think she should stay here for a while.”

Karl just stared at Aura’s face, which flickered in the candlelight. Aura felt a little embarrassed and shrugged. “Well… that’s what’s happening. There’s nothing else I can do today.”

Karl took a step closer. He grabbed Aura’s chin and tilted it up. Aura froze, thinking he was going to kiss her. But he just meticulously examined her face, as if he was trying to find something she was hiding.

“…What are you doing?”

“You seem to be alright.”

“What do you mean?”

“From the office, where did you hear from?” ‘Is he asking about when she came in after hearing Riel’s cries?’

“From when Riel said ‘livestock.’”

“I see.” Whatever he had been worried about, he seemed to have let it go. But he didn’t let go of her face.

Aura asked, “So, what happened to Tasha?”

“Ah, Tasha.” Karl said calmly, “Tasha is dead.”

Aura’s eyes widened. Tasha was dead? The wet nurse who had raised the emperor, in a single day?

“She was executed on the spot for treason. She tried to use Riel to challenge my authority, which is treason.”

“Oh…”

“I didn’t do it to please you. But how do you feel about it? It was what you wanted, wasn’t it?”

At first, she didn’t know what he was talking about. But then, Aura remembered their conversation on their wedding night.

“Be suspicious, Karl. Keep being suspicious.”

“…”

“I hope you lose your brother because of your suspicion.”

Karl’s eyes flickered for a moment. Aura didn’t stop. “Just like I lost my parents and brothers, I hope you lose the few people you have left. Whether it’s Isen or Tasha.”

She grabbed his arms and stood on her tiptoes. She leaned in close to his ear, and she could smell cedarwood. “After doing the ‘calculation’ that you love so much, I think that’s only fair.”

Aura was speechless. At that time, she had truly wanted Karl to be alone. Her hatred for him was still the same. But… she didn’t want anyone to die so easily.

“Well? Answer me, Aura,” Karl urged. He wasn’t blaming her; he seemed genuinely curious. His dark eyes seemed to have lost their power today.

Aura almost asked, ‘Are you really okay? She was like a mother to you.’

“Yes. I’m very pleased.”

“…That’s good.” Karl smiled faintly. Aura turned her head to get out of his grip. “Alright. I get it. You can go now. It’s late.”

The moment she turned, Karl grabbed her hand. “There’s more.”

“What now?”

“About Isen.” Aura’s heart sank. She hadn’t had any contact with Isen since the coronation. So why? She had a bad feeling. ‘Did he find out that Isen told me about the Pin?’

But what Karl said was completely unexpected. “Go to Isen.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“I’ve thought about it. No matter how much I try to stop you, I think you’ll end up meeting him anyway.” Aura didn’t deny it. Karl pulled her toward him. “Isen is desperately waiting for you to contact him. It seems their goal is to win you over.” He said this so casually, revealing that he had been monitoring Isen.

Aura hid her nervousness and asked, “So, what do you want? Who’s behind Isen?”

“I have my suspicions. It’s either Lion or Thane. Or both.”

Duke Lion and Duke Thane. Both were part of the Crown Prince’s circle and held a lot of power. Karl’s investigation was probably accurate.

More importantly, his words gave Aura a huge clue. ‘Good. Then at least one of them knows about the Pin.’ All that was left was to find out Karl’s intention.

“You already know everything. What do you want me to find out?”

“The price Isen was promised by the person behind him.”

Silence hung in the air for a moment. Aura understood the hidden meaning in his words. If he knew the price, he could negotiate with Isen and convince him to give up the rebellion.

“Are you trying to use me to save Isen?”

“That’s right. I have to save Isen. And you seem to be the right person for the job.”

Aura couldn’t understand Karl at all. “…How can you ask me to do something like this?”

“Do you think this is an impossible request?”

“Your family killed my family! And on top of that… you want to use me to save your family?!”

Saying it out loud made it feel even more horrible. Aura, unable to control her anger, tried to punch Karl in the chest.

“You bastard! Absolutely not!”

Karl easily caught her fist and pulled her close. His eyes were cold in the darkness. His voice was low in her ear. “Alright. Then don’t contact Isen, Aura.”

“!”

“From now on, if you contact Isen, I’ll assume it’s one of two reasons.”

“…”

“Either you’re helping me, or you’re helping Isen’s rebellion.”

In other words, if she met with Isen and didn’t help him, he would consider it treason. Aura just stared at Karl with bloodshot eyes, without saying a word. Karl cupped her cheek and lightly kissed her. Aura’s lips were hot, but she was as stiff as a wax figure.

“Good night.” Karl left the lounge, leaving her alone.

Aura just blinked. A single tear streamed down her cheek. He had cruelly brought up the memories of her family that she had tried so hard to forget. It was so ruthless and so cruel.

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