Chapter 265
Iona knew all too well that her question was meaningless.
It wasn’t as if the Empress would ever confess the truth honestly. No matter what answer she received, she wouldn’t be able to fully trust it anyway.
Perhaps Iona was simply hoping to see the Empress falter—just a little.
Maybe she wanted to see some hint of guilt, even if only for having ruined her mother’s life.
The Empress slowly dabbed at the corner of her eye, as if trying to buy herself time.
Draped in a black dress reminiscent of mourning clothes, her shoulders trembled as though she were still trapped in the tragedy of the past.
Eventually, the Empress spoke in a subdued voice.
“...When I found Teresa, she had already lost consciousness. It seemed like she had inhaled too much smoke. She wasn’t in any state to give a final message or say anything. I tried everything I could to drag her out, but... the fire had already spread everywhere. In the end, I had no choice but to leave her behind.”
“……”
“The despair I felt when I walked away from her… I can’t even put it into words.”
Ironically, Iona thought the Empress sounded quite sincere.
A faint chill crept up her arm, and she instinctively swept her opposite hand over it.
Suppressing the strange sense of admiration rising within her, Iona asked cautiously:
“...It was said that the princess’s body was never found. If that’s the case, isn’t there a possibility she might still be alive? Perhaps the person who started the fire kidnapped her?”
“The reason we never found the body is because the building had nearly collapsed,” the Empress replied firmly.
“If something like that had happened, surely a trace would have turned up during the investigation.”
Her tone left no room for doubt. She rejected Iona’s suspicion outright.
The doubts in Iona’s mind didn’t disappear, but she decided not to press the issue further.
If she was going to face someone who left no openings, she too needed to tread carefully.
“I apologize. I suppose it’s not my place to speculate when nothing has been confirmed yet. Still... hearing that Her Highness met with such a heartbreaking end, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy...”
Iona bowed her head, as if remorseful.
Her willingness to step back softened the Empress’ tone in turn.
“You’ve only just discovered the existence of your birth mother. Of course you’d be overwhelmed. We’ll do everything we can to help verify the truth, so try not to worry too much.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
“Have you tried reaching out to the former Count’s close aides?”
Iona shook her head.
“Not yet. Speaking of which... may I take a short trip outside with my husband? There are a few things I’d like to look into.”
“Of course. Is there a lead you’re following?”
Before answering, Iona turned to look at Leroy, who sat beside her.
They had accepted the imperial invitation thinking it might be a valuable opportunity—but there were still tasks left to handle outside the palace.
Iona decided it was time to make full use of the role she’d been handed: a woman “confused and shaken by the sudden revelation of her birth secret.”
Reaching beneath the table, she gently took Leroy’s hand and said:
“I’m thinking of visiting the place where I lived as a child. There might be something there… something that could lead us to a clue.”
***
Iona’s request to go outside was granted without much resistance.
However, the Empress claimed she was worried about Iona’s safety and sent a large escort unit along with her. It was obvious, though, that their real purpose was less about protection and more about surveillance.
Still, Iona wasn’t particularly surprised—it had been within her expectations.
In fact, part of her was even relieved.
At the very least, the Empress’ people didn’t gawk at her with dumbfounded, curious expressions like so many others had.
She was growing weary of the constant stares that followed her every movement.
Ever since Richard had made that report public, Iona had been at the center of attention.
A secret birth was, after all, an inherently tantalizing topic. And on top of that, she was already a well-known figure thanks to her recent, scandalous engagement.
The nobility had practically gone into a frenzy over her dazzling return to the capital.
Letters poured in by the dozens. Those with clearance to enter the palace came directly to the annex and knocked on her doors without notice.
Among those rude visitors, of course, was Richard himself.
“I never held much affection for my in-laws to begin with, but I truly didn’t expect someone even worse to appear.”
Leroy muttered, his voice laced with irritation.
He sat slouched in the carriage, chin resting on one hand as he stared out the window—a posture that didn’t suit him in the slightest.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Iona replied quietly.
“I’m sorry to have dragged you into all this.”
“Someone else is the one causing me trouble. Not you.”
Leroy responded flatly, without hesitation.
Even so, Iona couldn’t bring herself to feel completely guilt-free. After all, Richard had repeatedly visited the annex over the past few days, for no other reason than to see her.
As the crown prince, he couldn’t be turned away without a proper excuse, which made him an especially troublesome guest.
Eventually, Iona had come up with a desperate excuse: a cold.
She couldn’t risk passing on an illness to the crown prince, so it was a fairly believable cover.
Of course, Richard didn’t believe it for a second.
He kept knocking on the drawing room doors, feigning concern over whether her condition had improved, relentlessly pressing for a meeting, like he was testing her defenses.
In the end, Leroy had taken it upon himself to deal with the troublesome guest.
While Iona hid in her bedroom, refusing to show herself, Leroy used every method at his disposal to drive the prince out of the annex.
He always said that he sent Richard away peacefully, but Iona knew that the process had been far from smooth.
She didn’t even want to imagine what kind of things Richard might have said to grate on Leroy’s nerves.
This was all her doing.
Worried that their conversation might carry outside the carriage, Iona lowered her voice.
“Soon enough, there won’t be any more opportunities for him to see me. Now that he knows my position is in jeopardy, I doubt he’ll continue acting so relaxed.”
“Strange. He didn’t seem relaxed to me at all.”
Leroy turned to her with a meaningful look.
Iona let out a small laugh, as if to dismiss something absurd.
“It’s just a fleeting impulse. It won’t last.”
“If that’s the case, then it’s been a rather long impulse, hasn’t it?”
With that, Leroy recalled the sight of Richard that morning.
Perhaps thinking that early hours might offer a rare opportunity, Richard had come to the annex yet again at the crack of dawn.
His bloodshot eyes and anxious demeanor left a strange impression on Leroy.
Compared to the last time they had spoken alone—before the wedding—he seemed like an entirely different person.
The Crown Prince in Leroy’s memory had been insufferably arrogant and brimming with confidence.
He had believed that Iona would follow him blindly and without question. And the moment he realized that wasn’t true, he’d become someone else entirely.
That fact unsettled Leroy.
He feared those turbulent emotions might end up leaving some lasting imprint on his wife.
“Honestly, I don’t understand. Why are you so sure that those feelings will pass?”
Leroy’s words caught Iona off guard.
To her, the notion that Richard’s feelings were shallow and fleeting had been an unshakable truth, one she had accepted ever since turning back time.
Even after witnessing different sides of him, she had only seen them as temporary changes—reactions to her own altered behavior. She never believed he had fundamentally changed.
Iona murmured, her expression distant.
“There was a time… when His Highness the Crown Prince abandoned me.”
“……”
“We were being pushed back by an unexpected ambush, and the tides of battle had turned against us. Instead of ordering a retreat, he left me to guard the rear and fled. That was when I realized—he’s someone who can cast me aside without hesitation.”
She carefully recounted the events of her previous life, choosing her words with great caution.
Fortunately, Leroy didn’t seem suspicious. He simply fell into thoughtful silence.
After a while, he asked abruptly:
“Did you hear that order directly from him?”
“...Excuse me?”
“From what I’ve seen and felt… that man seems like someone who would have dragged you out, even if it meant throwing the rest of his guards to the wolves.”
---The End Of The Chapter---
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