Chapter 69
“How far should I trust someone before distrust creeps in? In the end, I realize there’s no one else to trust but myself. That person seems like that person, you know?”
Elia smiled sadly.
“Your Highness, I can’t trust myself. If anything were to happen to the people precious to the duke’s family, I don’t think I could avoid becoming a bad person.”
Elia wanted to protect the people who had died because of her. They, too, had the right to be happy.
“That won’t happen. You said you’d stop it, right?”
“Yes. I’ll stop it.”
“Then trust yourself. You can do it.”
For some reason, that one sentence resonated deeply in Elia’s heart.
“How do you feel right now? Happy?”
“I think I am.”
“I know from experience—it’s better together than alone. Bearing everything alone isn’t something you should do. I know because I’ve tried.”
Elia looked at Noah with a deliberately sorrowful expression.
Noah’s violet eyes shone brilliantly.
“That’s why I’ll live a long, long time.”
“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t let me treat you? You acted like you were going to die back then.”
“That’s because I couldn’t trust you. I wasn’t sure what you’d do to my body.”
“Wow… I must have been that disliked by you, Your Highness.”
“I’m sorry for back then. I was reckless.”
“It’s okay. Your Highness has every right to hate me.”
Elia knew well that she had no right to be forgiven by Noah. She had watched Noah die from a curse without intervening.
She was the one who had caused it.
“What do you mean by that?”
“It’s just… something like that.”
“Another secret?”
“Yes, it’s a secret. But I’ll tell you one thing: I will always be on your side, Your Highness.”
“That’s… reassuring.”
Noah chuckled softly.
Why did that one sentence make him feel at ease? Perhaps he had secretly hoped someone would say that to him. No one had ever truly spoken to him from the heart.
Elia was the same.
If someone had given young Elia sincere advice in the past, her future might have been different. At that time, she had been too young and narrow-minded.
In the past, Elia had given people what they wanted to protect them and to be loved. Every time, the smiles and praise she received were so sweet.
Back then, Elia had been just a child. A child whose heart hadn’t fully grown.
A child who only knew how to live in that way.
She had never had anyone teach her how to truly live.
If a proper adult had been by her side, things might have been different. But back then, all the adults around her only looked out for themselves.
She was genuinely moved.
Maybe that’s why tears came to her eyes.
Noah was taken aback.
“Are you crying?”
“No, it’s just…”
“Why are you crying all of a sudden?”
“You moved me too much, Your Highness.”
“Hey, I was the one more moved, so why are you crying?”
Elia looked at Noah, tears streaming down her face.
“It’s because of you, Your Highness.”
Noah was speechless.
He rubbed Elia’s face with a handkerchief.
“It hurts, be gentle.”
“Ah, sorry.”
Elia snatched the handkerchief and wiped her tears.
“See this?”
“What?”
“My swollen eyes, because of Your Highness.”
“Why is that my fault?”
“Because you moved me. I’ll tell the duke that my eyes look like a pufferfish’s.”
“What? You’ll tell him that too?”
“Then what would I say about my eyes like this? Lie?”
“Well… you cried because you were moved on your own.”
“Tch, can’t even say a word.”
Elia just laughed.
“It’s cold. Let’s go inside and rest.”
“Agreed.”
Elia walked ahead, and Noah fell in step beside her. Walking side by side didn’t seem unpleasant anymore.
“Good night.”
Noah accompanied Elia to her bedroom.
“Unnecessarily kind.”
For some reason, Noah’s unfamiliar kindness didn’t feel unpleasant. Kaji, who had been resting in the room, teased her.
[Elia, what’s with your eyes? Did you cry?]
Kaji wasn’t always by Elia’s side. He rested when he wanted to.
‘Yes, I cried.’
[Who made you cry? I’ll scold them.]
‘Your Highness.’
[That brat made you cry?]
‘Don’t scold him.’
[Why?]
‘Because I cried from being moved.’
[You were moved by that brat?]
‘Yes.’
[What’s going on.]
‘Exactly.’
[Why would you cry just from that?]
‘Am I not allowed to cry?’
Kaji didn’t understand why Elia had cried because he didn’t know about her conversation with Noah today.
‘Do you like that cushion that much?’
Kaji had taken it out from Dragon Rare, claiming he liked it. It was a red velvet cushion with both heat-retaining and preservation magic, making it warm and durable.
So he hadn’t left it all day.
[This cushion is amazing. Warm, soft, sturdy.]
‘You could have just said you want a bed.’
[Then people would know I’m here.]
‘So what? You already told the duke I was here without asking me.’
[You just blabbed without consulting me.]
‘Are you embarrassed?’
[Don’t act like that knowing it.]
‘Think about a bed too. And if you want something, say it.’
[You’ll do it all?]
‘If it’s something I can do.’
[Are you hurt anywhere?]
‘I’m fine.’
[They say if someone suddenly does something they usually don’t, it hurts somewhere.]
‘Really? What do you take me for.’
[Never mind.]
Then Kaji lay back on the cushion.
[Sleep, kids should sleep early.]
Elia chuckled softly at that. She had been about to sleep anyway. Today had been particularly exhausting.
The next day, after breakfast and finishing her self-defense training, Elia went to her study with a delighted expression, drawing blueprints.
She couldn’t help but bob her shoulders at the thought of gilding the duke’s mansion in gold.
“Elia, you look excited today too.”
Alexis, sitting at the desk next to her going through backlog paperwork, said, smiling at her.
“I’m excited! Finally, I can put gold on the duke’s mansion.”
“That excites you that much?”
“Of course! I’ll contact Uncle Lapis to help find craftsmen.”
Working with gold wasn’t something just anyone could do.
“Is that a blueprint?”
“Yes, want to see it?”
When she showed Alexis her ambitious blueprint, he was impressed.
“You drew all this yourself?”
“Yes, I’m good at drawing, right?”
“It’s more than just good—it’s incredibly detailed.”
In the past, she had grown close to Serhi, who was obsessed with blueprints, and learned to draw them well.
When competing with Raul for the throne, he wanted to design everything to gain the upper hand. He was someone who planned for every possible contingency in battle.
He wanted Elia to design the buildings too. He couldn’t trust any building that hadn’t been touched by her hands. Serhi was self-serving and highly paranoid.
He also claimed that learning swordsmanship and getting stronger was to protect himself.
So Elia learned to draw blueprints. She begged craftsmen to teach her, using it to aid Serhi’s bid for the throne.
‘Crazy man.’
Even thinking about it now made her shudder.
“Elia, do whatever you want.”
“That’s the plan.”
Alexis seemed happy just to see her smile. Noah spoke up from the side.
“But wouldn’t gilding the mansion make it too dazzling?”
“Then, should we use platinum?”
“What?”
“That’s better. Platinum is superior to gold.”
Noah had been learning how to handle paperwork from Alexis recently. He wanted to learn, despite the difficulty of academic study.
“And it’s indulgent. The ultimate indulgence.”
“What’s this?”
Noah discovered a new blueprint.
“It’s a statue for the garden.”
“What?”
“We’re making statues of me and the duke for the garden. Should we make one of Your Highness too?”
“I’ll pass.”
“Why? You can be honest. Don’t be upset later.”
“I sincerely refuse.”
She even wore a face that clearly showed her dislike.
Noah thought it was crazy to make a statue of herself for the garden.
