Chapter 93
Translator: uly
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: If You Had Disappeared
The Queen of the Thalassa Kingdom was plunged into confusion. Dragged into the lounge by the King against her will, she stared blankly at the wall.
"My dear."
The King, who had been patting her shoulder to comfort her, looked at her face, and the Queen spoke.
"What if nothing really happened?"
"......"
"It's strange, isn't it? I was so sure the Emperor had killed my daughter......"
"......"
"If that's an act, it's too perfect. No one could imitate it."
The King nodded as if in agreement. Indeed. The Emperor's blackened face seemed to have lost all trace of its noble dignity. It was unimaginable for a ruler of a nation to crumble like that. He was still just a green boy.
"It must have saddened him that much, the death of that girl."
The King let out a sigh as well. At this rate, they couldn't publicly question Calista's death. They would face accusations of hounding a grieving Emperor. Asherad was publicly deferential to the Empress Dowager. He only flew into a rage when his lover was touched.
"What if the Emperor loved Calista too?"
"Nonsense!"
The King shouted at the Queen's words. The Queen bit her nails, lost in thought. Before she could go further, the King hurriedly interjected.
"The Emperor had a lover. And that woman even tried to poison him!"
The King had learned of Calista's misdeeds from Veronica. She was a headache who alternated between mad acts out of love for Asherad. That was Calista in the King's eyes.
If she weren't his daughter, he would have cast her out long ago. If no one had removed Calista, he would have done it himself. He was grateful someone had taken care of it.
"But it's strange...... What if the lover was just for satisfying his desires, and the one he truly loved was Calista?"
Indeed, Calista's delusions hadn't swollen for no reason. The King clicked his tongue at the Queen's chronic affliction rearing its head again.
"In any case, we need to investigate Calista's death. She was healthy when she sent that letter."
The King swallowed the word "excessively" and continued.
"Even if it's not the Emperor's fault. If it's the Empire's fault, then we'll make Emperor Asherad pay the price......"
"Good heavens, you!"
The Queen cried out in horror.
"How can you make such a demand of a man grieving Calista's death!"
In her imagination, Asherad was already a man who had passionately loved Calista. They couldn't be together, but they had loved each other desperately and parted in death. Asherad had become a pitiful man.
"I won't allow it. Don't do it!"
The King of Thalassa found her foolishness endearing, but not at times like this. She was so sensitive when it came to her daughter.
Asherad would take care of things to some extent anyway, so they had to be satisfied with that.
At that moment, there was a knock at the door.
The royal couple looked toward the door.
* * *
Daphne was dreaming. A wistful dream of a childhood she could never return to. In the dream, she was nine years old again, heading to the Imperial Palace.
The attendant had abandoned Daphne, the daughter of the seductress who tormented the virtuous Empress and threatened the kind Crown Prince's position. Lost, a tree fairy appeared to her.
A beautiful boy with leaf-green eyes and stylish black hair. The boy kindly showed her the way. Their conversation along the path was so delightful. When they reached their destination, Daphne mustered her courage despite her reluctance to part.
"Um, your name......"
How much she had hesitated before asking. For a girl with no peers, this boy was wondrous and amazing.
"It's Asherad."
As he said it, the boy smiled with narrowed eyes. That enchanting smile flushed her cheeks red.
"So, see you again, Daphne."
Daphne smiled at his words. She hoped they could meet again. She wanted to be friends with that kind boy.
That day, Daphne saw the Emperor but paid him no mind. She only gazed at his eyes, which had been kind to her, thinking they resembled Asherad's, and smiled brightly.
Even at home, Daphne thought of Asherad. Ignoring her gentle mother's calls, she recalled their conversation and his handsome features.
Were all the people in the Imperial Palace that beautiful?
I want to be someone like that too.
How wonderful it would be if that brother became my friend.
Slightly curly hair, kind eyes. A doll-like upturned nose, red lips. Daphne blushed as she pictured his face.
See you again—how nice it would be to meet once more.
She picked up her hidden charcoal and kept drawing Asherad's face.
Gazing at the boy's face, she hummed a tune and lost herself in imagination.
"Daphne. We meet again!"
When Daphne returned to the palace, Asherad approached with a bright smile. He took her hand and guided her through every corner of the palace.
His tenderness was meltingly sweet. His soft, warm hand. Holding it, Daphne grinned foolishly.
A beautiful, kind boy. Daphne had already lost her heart to him.
If I marry someone like Mother someday, I want a gentle man like him.
Not like her 'fake' father, who was always absent, who locked Mother away out of anxiety, but someone who would whisper sweet words of love endlessly.
I want to marry a man like that.
Daphne was still imagining. Strangely, her imaginings felt so real that she was walking through the palace with Asherad.
Then, a breeze blew, tousling his hair. Daphne smiled at the lovely sight, but soon let out a gasp.
Through the loosened shirt from the wind, she saw a dark bruise. The hidden parts of his body were mottled like painted canvas. There were even scabbed wounds. What was that? Horrific injuries from being beaten.
She recoiled in shock from his battered body. To the speechless Daphne, the boy in the dream said coldly.
"It's because of you."
In that instant, Daphne's reality shattered. She screamed. But no sound came out. This was a dream. In this dizzying space, Daphne recalled the horrific reality over and over. She sobbed for a long time.
Daphne knew what became of that boy.
He would become like his father, imprisoning her.
He would mercilessly kill everything around her.
In the rain of blood, he would approach her sobbing self, embrace her, and dare utter the world's most horrific word: love.
If only she could return to that time.
To the time when she knew nothing.
To the time when she smiled purely at Asherad.
To the time before any misfortune.
To the time when she was showered in Mother's love.
If only all traces of that 'fated enmity' could be erased.
Please.
Be erased.
Vanish.
Disappear.
Daphne wished and wished again.
* * *
Asherad gazed down at Daphne. She still hadn't died. It was strange. A faint pulse, a body not fully cold. Daphne was clinging desperately to life.
Asherad had laid her in his room and watched over her. When he pressed his ear to her for faint breaths, hope surged if he heard any; when her hand he held grew cold, it felt like plummeting into hell.
For days, Asherad hadn't slept a wink. He feared that if he dozed off, Daphne would mock him and leave forever. As long as he watched, she wouldn't dare depart out of fear.
Asherad gripped Daphne's arm. He remembered the first time they met. How had he been then? Outwardly kind, but he couldn't contain his hatred and gripped her shoulder tightly.
But was that outward kindness? He couldn't even answer. He hated that girl. He hated her bright face that seemed loved, her fragile timidity that drew eyes.
Yet hearing her chatter and smile made a tree grow in his barren space. There, he could breathe.
Yes, that's why he hated her. For being something he could breathe through for someone else. His mother and father only looked suffocated at him, and he couldn't show clumsiness or timidity.
He hated her.
But he knew all too well.
That innocent girl was blameless.
Yohannis had blamed him, but Asherad had realized it first.
He knew.
He had no justification for revenge. That's why he couldn't let go. He needed to cling to that sticky bond. To remain a hateful 'someone.' His relationship with Daphne was doomed from the start.
Could he love someone who treated him like a dog? And from the moment his mother killed Daphne's mother, his revenge became forced.
Yet Asherad hated Daphne. He chewed on his hatred for the fairy-like girl raised in love.
He took pleasure in deceiving her. But the problem was that he had fallen in love with her. His love could never come to fruition.
Knowing that from the start made him crave her more desperately. Holding her hand, he pressed his forehead to its back.
"Yes, you're right."
We're fated enemies.
You're right, Daphne.
We could never help it.
Yohannis was right. What Asherad had done was tormenting a powerless girl. He had no power left, but enough to torment Daphne.
If only he had been truly powerless.
Without any power, if he had been powerless, this wouldn't have happened.
He had just enough power to drag Daphne to ruin. He covered his face with both hands. Piercing regret settled in. If only there had been no past.
If only he could start over from the beginning......
Then came a rustling sound. When Asherad looked up, her limp hand was drooping.
"Daphne!"
He thought she had died. That his world had ended. But the limp hand moved, climbing back onto the bed.
Daphne was moving.
Beholding that miraculous sight, he filled with ecstasy. Daphne was moving. She could live. She was waking! Seeing color return to her face, he thanked the gods sincerely.
Daphne kept moving and opened her eyes. Jewel-like blue eyes appeared. Seeing him lost in joy, Daphne's eyes widened suddenly.
"Asherad?"
The question, devoid of any emotion, pierced him.