Chapter 19
“I’ll get up first.”
After finishing his meal, Karzan was the first to rise from his seat. To me, it looked like he was avoiding me—probably because he thought I might bring up that doll again. He glanced at me just before leaving, and the moment our eyes met, he scurried away as if startled.
He’s definitely hiding something.
“Vanity, if you’re done eating, you should go get some sleep. We’ll have to leave early tomorrow morning by sky carriage if we want to arrive in Reynos before nightfall.”
Sky carriage. Since it’s pulled by flying horses, it’s incredibly fast—you could get from the northern regions to Reynos in just half a day. The imperial family had one, of course, but among nobles, very few owned one. Even our own duchy didn’t have one.
“Yes, I’ll do that. Thank you, Duke. But…”
“Speak.”
“Why haven’t you asked me anything?”
“About what?”
“Why I’m here when there’s supposed to be a presentation ceremony for the crown prince’s fiancée candidates. Why I was with His Highness, and so on…”
“I heard that His Highness suddenly boarded your carriage. As for the rest, they’re your personal matters. I don’t believe it’s my place to pry. But a young lady of just seventeen traveling this far alone is dangerous. Don’t do it again, understand?”
He could have just called it running away from home, but thankfully, the Duke didn’t phrase it like that.
The next morning, I left in a rush without even having breakfast. As I came out to board the sky carriage, I saw Karzan leaning against the wall in a plain white shirt and pants.
Don’t tell me… he came to see me off?
“Your Highness, I hope you had a peaceful night. I must leave now, so if you’ll excuse me—”
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“There’s just one thing I need to check before you go.”
Check? What check? Karzan walked right up to me, who was staring at him in confusion, and placed his hand on my forehead.
What? What?! What’s going on? Did he eat something strange last night? Why is he touching my forehead? Did he ingest poison or something? Has he lost his mind?
“Your Highness, why—”
“Are you alright?”
Is he insane?
I had no idea what he meant by “alright.” Was he asking if I was okay with him touching my forehead without permission? As if that would be okay!
What is he doing? Is this his version of a farewell? In my previous life, he didn’t even come near me, so I could only stare at him in bewilderment.
He examined me for a moment, then let out a relieved sigh.
“Seems like you’ve recovered.”
What is he even talking about? I don’t know what I supposedly recovered from, but thanks to him, I’m starting to get a headache this morning.
All I could do was let out a sigh of disbelief—my strongest form of protest. I scoffed in his face and turned to leave. But then—
“I’ll see you at the presentation ceremony. Oh, and don’t be too surprised if I look a bit different then. My natural appearance is black hair and red eyes.”
Huh? What? What did he just say? The presentation ceremony should’ve been canceled. Why is he saying we’ll meet there? It should be canceled! That’s the whole reason I went through all this trouble!
And I already know you have red eyes! The important thing is: I’m not going to that ceremony! Not ever!
He turned away after saying what he wanted, and I nearly shouted at the back of his head—but held myself back. He was always a strange crown prince, but the more I got to know him, the stranger he became.
Still stunned, I finally stepped out of the front hall.
The sky carriage was parked on the white snow-covered ground where snowflakes were beginning to fall. From the way the snow swirled, it looked like a heavy snowfall was starting today. Such snowfall could only be seen in the northern regions, so I looked up at the sky in awe.
A powerful snowstorm was raging so fiercely that I could barely open my eyes.
“Even with the heavy snow, you’ll arrive safely by sky carriage, so don’t worry too much.”
I knew that already. I wasn’t worried about the weather. I was just admiring the beauty of this rare northern snowstorm.
“Give my regards to Duke Philip, and let’s meet again when there’s more time.”
“Thank you, Duke.”
Just seeing that he was alive was already a relief—but I was even more grateful that he didn’t ask me about anything.
I had ridden sky carriages a few times before—when accompanying the crown prince on inspections, for example—but I had never once ridden in the same carriage as him. He would share the space with Rosalie or Lumina, but never with me.
So back then, Rosalie and Lumina were certain that I would never become the crown prince’s official fiancée. I thought the same. That’s why I studied so ruthlessly.
But the Karzan I encountered yesterday and today was undeniably strange. He wasn’t the same man from my past life. That Karzan ignored me when I fell down. He hated when I came near him so much that he once made my ribbon look like a snake just to scare me away.
Just last night, I fell asleep feeling relieved that everything was finally over—but after hearing him say he’d see me at the presentation ceremony this morning, my mind has been in turmoil.
The claim that we were close before the age of eight was completely new to me. And that doll he says I gave him—what was that about? Then this morning, he even touched my forehead, looking genuinely concerned.
Though the view outside was breathtaking, I couldn’t even appreciate it. All I could do was sigh. Lost in thought, the half-day trip passed quickly.
By the time the sun began to set, I arrived at the ducal estate.
The sky carriage descended gently into the backyard, where my father’s study was. My father, being a duke, immediately recognized the carriage as belonging to Duke Duro.
“What’s going on here?”
When I hesitated to answer, the coachman handed my father a letter from Duke Duro. I was touched by how thoughtfully the duke had handled even the smallest details.
After reading the letter, Father quickly wrote a reply and sent the coachman off.
He didn’t say much, but I could see the disappointment in his face—a daughter he trusted had let him down.
He wouldn’t know, of course. That I had no choice but to run away. But even if I told him the truth, what would change? Even I wouldn’t believe my own story.
“I’m sorry, Father.”
For disappointing you…
“I just…”
I had no excuse, no justification, other than this one honest truth:
“I didn’t want to be the crown prince’s fiancée…”
“I figured as much.”
Father let out a quiet sigh, but his tone wasn’t accusatory.
“….”
“I was so worried.”
“…What?”
The imperial decision to appoint me as the crown prince’s candidate wasn’t something I could simply refuse. But it could be canceled if there were unavoidable circumstances. And I had run away to create exactly those circumstances—even if it meant turning down a golden opportunity for my family to marry into the imperial household.
It would only make sense for my family to be disappointed in me.
So I assumed Father was disappointed too—but it turned out, he was just worried.
“When I said you couldn’t attend due to poor health, the palace decided to postpone the ceremony. But since you dislike it so much, what can we do?”
In the end, it seemed I couldn’t avoid the ceremony. I’d have to face it head-on once again. But feeling Father’s concern for me made my heart ache.
Father…
I couldn’t call out to him, but my nose stung with emotion.
“I’m sorry… for putting you in a position where you have to go to a place you hate.”
“No, Father. You did your best.”
This time, I won’t mess up. I’ll make sure I get disqualified. I promise, Father.
I took the hand Father offered me—the warmest hand in the world.
As we walked into the house holding hands, reality started to sink in. I may have cleared the first hurdle—Father—but I still had two more to go: Mother, and then my brother.
“Vanity!”
Before I even entered the house, I heard my brother’s sharp voice ring out. From the tone alone, I could tell—he was furious.
It felt like I was crossing mountains only to find more mountains. I was already exhausted. But the fact that I could see Mother and Brother like this again made me feel deeply grateful for this life.
“Where the hell have you been?!”
My brother Varein stormed toward me, with Mother following behind him.
Both of them looked more stunned than angry when they saw me. I was wearing a thick winter cloak more suited for the northern region—completely out of place in this autumn weather. They were probably too dumbfounded to even be mad.
“You… What in the world…? Did you go to the north or something?”
