CHAPTER 171…………………………………
I realized it late because I had been paying attention only to Ayla, but Cassius was also here.
Cassius jumped up beside Ayla and spoke on her behalf.
“Don’t misunderstand, Your Highness. This is something I gave her.”
As if Leona were about to devour Ayla, Cassius shielded her behind him.
The sight was infuriating, and Leona’s voice naturally dropped to a cold tone.
“…Where did you get this?”
“It’s something that was being prepared for sale by your family. You should know better than anyone where it came from.”
“……”
Leona’s expression grew even colder.
The Cats Eye had not been officially released yet.
Besides, she had heard something from Lloyd just yesterday. Even if it was just a sample, it had never been given to anyone except Leona, and great care was being taken to prevent it from leaving.
Naturally, Leona couldn’t help but think this way:
Yesterday, Ayla found the necklace but didn’t return it to her.
Leona fiddled with the box in her hands and let out a bitter laugh.
It was just a passing thought.
Fortunately, what I lost is something of no value to me.
If that necklace—suspected to have been stolen by Ayla—had been a relic of Minerva, Leona’s eyes would have gone completely wild.
So Leona passed by Cassius, who was already braced to get scolded, and approached Ayla.
“I’m a step late, Ayla.”
“Uh… huh?”
“I asked His Highness to get this for you, but I didn’t expect you already received it from His Highness Cassius.”
Ayla, flustered and darting her eyes around aimlessly, finally met Leona’s gaze when it fell near her neck.
Leona saw a puzzled expression on Ayla’s panicked face.
“Still, it’s a gift, so take it. I don’t need two of them.”
Leona forced the box into Ayla’s arms as if handing off a troublesome burden.
“Oh, I’ve found my necklace, so you don’t need to worry about that. Alright, then.”
Leona gave a relaxed smile, as if to say, “Say what you want if you need to.”
But Ayla didn’t utter a single word.
Hah. Of course.
So human.
Why did it only occur to her now that Ayla was surprisingly greedy?
Leona turned her back on Ayla, chilly as ever.
The relationship between Leona and Ayla remained distant.
It wasn’t unusual for adolescent friends to have good days and bad days. Kids their age often fought and reconciled frequently.
But a problem arose.
Somehow, rumors spread that Ayla had tried to steal Leona’s necklace, but Leona had generously let it slide.
Worse, it was said that she even gave her a new necklace, saying she could have it.
Since Ayla didn’t actively explain herself, the rumors snowballed.
The daughter of a count who had nothing suddenly becoming Cassius’ lover, acting like she was somebody, a noble with a kleptomaniac streak, worse than a commoner, and so on.
Leona no longer paid attention to the baseless rumors attached to Ayla—or Ayla herself.
If only Ayla had come to say just one thing—“I found it late, but here it is”—Leona would have trusted her again. But she hadn’t even done that.
Everyone she tried to trust ended up like this. It seemed better to keep herself away from everyone.
Leona spent the following days in a state of helplessness.
She couldn’t even remember the last time she had truly laughed, just letting life flow by.
From the outside, she seemed like someone absent-minded.
Even things that should have angered her didn’t provoke much reaction.
It was the day she finished her final exams and received her report card, and Leona didn’t even know how she felt.
Lloyd glanced over her report card halfheartedly, avoiding eye contact, and proposed:
“Leona, would you like to come to the Duchy during this vacation?”
Leona, staring blankly out the window without really seeing anything, asked slowly:
“The Duchy?”
“It’s been a while since you last went, hasn’t it?”
Leona had stayed in the Duchy only briefly before entering the Academy.
Since enrolling, she had stayed exclusively in the capital residence, with no reason to go there.
Moreover, Leona didn’t enjoy long carriage rides, so it wasn’t an especially appealing suggestion.
As if anticipating her refusal, Lloyd spoke quickly.
“We moved Princess Minerva’s tomb to the Duchy.”
“…The tomb?”
Minerva was buried in the hilltop residence of Fran Village.
Why move it?
Without notice?
A spark of emotion—albeit slight—finally flickered in Leona’s eyes.
“I heard there was a thief in the residence. It had been empty for a while, so they must have broken in to see if there was anything worth taking. Not stopping there, they tried to dig up the tomb too. So we recently moved it to the Duchy.”
Leona sprang from her seat.
Daring to… Minerva’s tomb.
Fortunately, Lloyd didn’t add that they had caught the intruder before the tomb was dug up and imprisoned them; otherwise, Leona might have thrown another scene immediately.
After waiting for her to calm slightly, Lloyd gently asked:
“Would you like to visit? Fran Village is far, so you couldn’t go until now.”
Leona’s heart wavered.
Mother.
The first and only person I ever trusted.
Living among people, something she was not suited for, had exhausted Leona for a long time.
“…I’ll go.”
As soon as Leona’s words fell, preparations to go to the Duchy began.
Technically, it wasn’t much of a preparation—they departed the very next day.
Probably thanks to Lloyd having prepared everything in advance.
Leona felt oddly swept up in Lloyd’s scheme, but at least the thought of seeing her mother made her stop overthinking.
Even enduring the week-long carriage ride alone was challenging enough.
Minerva’s new resting place was in a place called the Thousand-Year Tree Forest.
According to Lloyd, the Cats Eye Mine was also in the forest, but Minerva’s tomb was located even deeper than the mine.
The sunny lakeside felt so peaceful that it made one want to lie down and nap.
Restricted to those with the Duke family’s permission, the area ensured Minerva could rest peacefully. Lloyd spoke at length, seemingly to reassure Leona.
Leona, her attention fixed on the white tombstone, barely heard Lloyd’s voice.
‘Minerva, rests here.’
A lonely tombstone with only a name, no surname.
Seeing Minerva’s tombstone for the second time, Leona knew she would never grow accustomed to it, no matter how many times she saw it.
Then Lloyd handed Leona a single white chrysanthemum.
“Leona, the flower.”
“…?”
“Place it carefully on the tombstone.”
Leona, unaccustomed to such etiquette, watched as Lloyd demonstrated.
With reverent, almost imperial poise, he knelt at the tombstone.
After laying the flower, he bowed quietly and spent a moment in prayer.
When the short prayer was over, he stepped aside, silently inviting Leona to follow.
Leona carefully stepped forward, mimicking Lloyd’s movements, and placed the chrysanthemum on the tombstone.
As if Minerva were pleased, a gentle breeze brushed the petals.
Leona couldn’t bring herself to pray.
She rarely prayed to her mother anyway.
Instead, she silently voiced her wishes:
‘I hope you aren’t in pain. Don’t worry about me; I’m fine. Still, watch over me from afar.’
She didn’t force herself to feel longing—Minerva might worry if she did.
When Leona stood, Lloyd came to her side.
The cool breeze that had been blowing since earlier rustled their hair, clothes, and uneasy hearts.
They stood silently in front of the tombstone for a long while.
Then Lloyd suddenly asked:
“Leona. Even now… do you still want revenge?”
