Chapter 169
Leona’s life at the academy had been relatively peaceful ever since.
Once Leona and Ayla started attending together, the bullying toward Ayla disappeared almost instantly.
Instead, Leona gradually stopped attending Gabriel’s tea parties.
She had wondered what she would do if invitations came since she wasn’t particularly eager to go—but a letter arrived from Gabriel first.
It said that since she would be busy making new friends, she could contact him later when she wanted to come.
Refusing an invitation from the Empress was nearly impossible, so the letter was welcome news for Leona.
Leona and Ayla got along quite well.
And she realized something about Ayla: she couldn’t be simply labeled as obnoxious or stupid—it wasn’t so simple.
“I hope my family can live a little better,” Ayla said.
“…Is your situation that difficult?”
Sitting on the lawn, eating a sandwich filled only with ham and cheese, Leona asked cautiously.
Count Wolfgang and his wife weren’t particularly ambitious.
They were kind-hearted but lacked business acumen and social skills, barely making ends meet on the taxes collected from their lands.
From the commoners’ perspective, the Wolfgangs were fairly well-off. But among the nobility, they were considered poor.
In other words, they were the complete opposite of Duke Eckhart’s family.
When Leona took her words seriously, Ayla smiled awkwardly, saying it wasn’t that bad.
“They just support me enough to attend the academy. But, as you know, I grew up in an orphanage. You were the first to give me a warm bed and meals, so I want to help my family live better than I do now. I’m not sure if you two actually want that, though.”
“Let’s finish eating quickly.”
Apologizing for the heavy atmosphere, Ayla bit into a sandwich overflowing with fresh vegetables.
Leona turned back to face her, taking a bite of her sandwich as well.
She had heard before why Ayla was dating Cassius.
Because he treated her well. Because he was handsome.
But now she was sure that wasn’t the full reason.
As usual, Leona was preparing to go to the academy.
Wiping the water dripping from her face with a towel, she sat at her dressing table—and frowned at something.
“What is this now?”
A small box sat on her dressing table along with a note addressed only to her.
Judging by the handwriting, it was obvious that Lloyd had sent it, and Leona couldn’t hide her displeasure.
She looked at Flora and Jane, silently asking for an explanation.
Despite Leona’s reaction, the two remained undeterred, eyes bright with anticipation.
“Go ahead and open it, Miss,” they urged.
What could be inside to make them say that?
Leona had thought of simply checking the contents and tossing it in the trash, but she was weak against Minerva’s servants.
Reluctantly, she untied the ribbon and opened the box.
Her frown deepened as she saw the contents.
“A necklace?”
It was a thin gold chain necklace resting on a dark blue velvet cushion.
Leona didn’t usually wear accessories.
Expensive jewelry was heavy. Even lightweight pieces got in the way.
For someone like Leona, who chose clothes as simple and unrestrictive as possible, a necklace was the worst kind of gift.
Flora and Jane, knowing her taste, still hovered nearby.
“It’s a gift prepared by His Highness the Duke,” they said.
“He also said he hoped it would please you.”
Would it please her? She thought. Didn’t she at least have to see his face to accept it?
Since that incident, Leona had avoided Lloyd; unless he sought her out, she wouldn’t show her face.
And he did the same. Even if he returned from the duchy, he never specifically came looking for her.
By now, Leona was stubbornly waiting to see when he would call her, making this method of delivering a gift especially irritating.
Jane nodded, as if understanding her feelings completely.
“Miss, we understand how you feel. But he specifically asked that you accept it.”
“….”
Once again, Leona was extremely weak against Minerva’s servants.
After all, they were the only ones she could trust in the Duke’s castle.
With a sigh, she looked at the necklace.
In the thin gold chain was a round, light green gemstone.
She didn’t know much about gems. She could differentiate them by color or shape, but multi-colored ones were difficult to identify.
But she could be certain.
“It looks like a gem I’ve never seen before. And…”
A mysterious light green gem, almost hypnotic, with a sheen running through the center.
Flora nodded, understanding what Leona was thinking.
“It looks like a cat’s eye, doesn’t it? It’s a newly discovered gem from the duchy’s mines. Its shape inspired the name ‘cat’s eye.’”
“Why would he give me this?”
“It’s a gift for you before it’s officially commercialized,” Flora explained.
Leona grumbled inwardly. Why bother having Jane and Flora explain this instead of just putting it in a letter? Using the former princess’s servants like this was a bit much.
Her lips complained, but her hands naturally went to the necklace.
Ordinary jewelry never caught her interest. The gems she played with as a child—Minerva’s sparkling ones—made anything else seem ordinary.
But this one was new, and… somehow…
“Leona, you know, cat’s eyes look like glass beads. You never get tired of looking at them all day,” Ayla’s childhood memory of Minerva’s soft whispers returned.
When Leona was a child, Minerva loved staring into her eyes, quietly lying beside her, blinking slowly, seemingly drawn into them until falling asleep.
Bang.
Leona slammed the box with the necklace down, her body trembling as if it might break with a tap.
Her tear glands had dried up too early; she rarely cried except when thinking of her mother.
Deciding she shouldn’t speak further, she grabbed the necklace and held it out to the servants.
“I’ll wear it.”
“His Highness will be pleased, Miss,” Jane said.
Whether “His Highness” referred to the princess or the duke, Leona didn’t know.
The cat’s eye necklace was placed around her neck.
It wasn’t too flashy, elegant enough to match her uniform perfectly.
She disliked cumbersome things—but she could wear anything that reminded her of Minerva.
‘It would’ve suited Mom much better,’ she thought, quietly holding a wish that could never come true, fidgeting with the necklace for a long while.
“Leona, that necklace is so pretty!”
“It’s a gem I’ve never seen before. What kind of gem is it?”
Even just wearing a new necklace caused a stir at the academy.
Especially since it was a gemstone no one had seen before.
Ayla was also very interested in the necklace.
“Leona, what’s that necklace? It’s beautiful!”
Ayla didn’t normally wear jewelry, either.
Since accessories were allowed at the academy, both of them were unusual in that regard.
Leona had assumed Ayla wasn’t interested in jewelry, but apparently she was.
“I got it from His Highness the Duke. He said it’s a gemstone that will be commercialized soon, but gave it to me early.”
“Wow, that’s so kind of him!”
‘Kind? Hardly.’
The man had only slipped a note into a gift box and let the servants deliver the rest—how was that kind?
‘Well, compared to his usual indifference, it is kind.’
Remembering how indifferent Lloyd usually was, this gift did seem kind.
Ayla kept chatting about the necklace afterward, calling it cat’s-eye-like, simple but beautiful, her eyes sparkling.
She seemed to want it, and Leona thought,
‘I’ll ask him to prepare one for you too.’
She didn’t want to talk to Lloyd, but if Ayla wanted it, she could do this much.
Maybe there’s a blue one too?
Since Ayla had sky-blue eyes, she thought blue would suit her more than light green.
Leona’s necklace drew attention wherever she went, leaving her exhausted by the noisy day.
After finishing her final class, swordsmanship, she prepared to leave with Ayla.
But something felt off.
Feeling around her neck, Leona realized something.
“Why? What is it, Leona?” Ayla asked.
“…The necklace is gone.”
