Chapter 13: To You Who Have Forgotten Me (10)
“Y-Your Highness.”
For a moment, Lea’s eyes widened with the thought that it might be Caius. She told herself it couldn’t be. He was far too busy to show up without warning, but her feet moved faster all the same.
Hurrying down the stairs, she stopped at the landing. The faint flush on her face quickly drained. The man standing at the foot of the stairs wasn’t Caius.
Why is he here…?
As Lea instinctively sharpened her guard, Diego, who had been strolling casually across the hall, spotted her and gave a light wave.
“Ah, Princess. Pardon the intrusion.”
His beaming smile was disarmingly bright. At the very least, he didn’t look drunk or under the influence of anything. Even so, Lea couldn’t lower her guard. While she hesitated, Diego approached the stairs without a second thought.
“…Your Highness, what brings you here?”
Lea greeted him with as neutral an expression as she could manage. But perhaps she hadn’t fully masked her unease, because Diego’s smile deepened with amusement.
“I got tired during a walk. Thought I’d stop in for a short rest.”
He shrugged, casual and overly smooth. Lea held back the urge to snap and responded coolly.
“I see. Then please, rest as long as you like.”
The West Palace didn’t belong to Lea. Whether it was a knight or an attendant, she had no authority to turn anyone away. Let alone Diego – he was royalty. If he wished to stay, there was nothing she could do but accept it.
“Oh? Leaving me already? Won’t you at least share a cup of tea with me?”
Diego tilted his head, feigning disappointment at her curt reply.
Lea paused mid-turn. Seeing the exaggerated sorrow on his face sent a chill through her. She would rather stand all day under the scorching sun than sit and drink tea with this man.
“I’ll ask an attendant to bring some tea for you.”
“But I want to drink it with you.”
Diego’s voice dipped as he stepped in closer. When Lea instinctively stepped back, he leaned in with a theatrical flourish.
“No need to be so scared. I’m just asking for tea.”
His voice, close enough to stir the air between them, carried a veiled implication. Lea didn’t flinch. Instead, she stepped back again, her tone firm.
“I’m not feeling well today.”
“Then I’ll have them bring a tea that helps you feel better.”
“No, perhaps another time—”
“Princess.”
His voice suddenly dropped, and his gaze locked with hers. Eyes the same sapphire hue as Caius’s, yet somehow entirely different, curved into a knowing smile.
“Don’t you think it looks even stranger, avoiding me this much?”
He tilted his head slightly toward the hall. Lea followed his gaze with a subtle frown and saw the palace attendants, heads bowed, subtly watching the exchange.
They stood there, caught in the middle, unable to intervene as the two seemed to be bickering.
Lea pressed her lips together, looking troubled. No matter how much she disliked him, Diego was still royalty, Caius’s brother, no less. Showing open disdain toward him wasn’t wise in any sense.
“Weren’t we rather close in the past? No need to treat me coldly just because your fiancé is back. Let’s at least talk for a moment.”
Sensing Lea’s unease, Diego smoothly took control of the situation like a snake slithering into place. Without giving her a chance to respond, he waved to a maid and casually ordered refreshments to be brought to the parlor. Only after the maid had gone to the kitchen did Diego straighten up and raise his brows.
“Shall we?”
The moment flowed like water, seamlessly moving according to his will.
Lea glared at him for a moment, then suppressed a sigh. Confronting him any further here would only create a scene. And if anything happened, she would be the one to bear the consequences. She had already been caught up in unsavory rumors involving Diego before. Now was the time to be even more cautious.
If scandal tainted her again, the one who would suffer for it was Caius.
“…Fine. Let’s go.”
Forcing out her reply, Lea turned around. Diego smiled with satisfaction and followed her at a leisurely pace.
— — —
“The Western Palace hasn’t changed at all,”
Diego said, legs crossed, as he looked around the drawing room with vague interest before finally resting his gaze on Lea.
“It’s still just as small and shabby as ever, but oddly enough, I find myself drawn to it.”
His meaningful smile made Lea avert her eyes.
At the sight of that indecent, leering grin, a long-buried memory surged to the surface, leaving her deeply unsettled. She knew exactly why Diego had brought up the Western Palace so suddenly.
A long time ago, he had barged in here unannounced. That day, he was heavily intoxicated with drink and drugs, and accompanied by a woman who looked neither like a court lady nor a noble. According to the whispers of the maids, the woman was a courtesan brought in from outside the palace.
That night, Diego had taken her to the room directly across from Lea’s bedchamber and slept with her there. From the gap of the intentionally open door, Lea could see the silhouettes of their bodies. The woman’s shrill moans, the man’s fevered murmurs.
Everything she saw and heard that night lingered like a nightmare for days afterward. Even now, just recalling it stirred a sickening feeling deep in her gut.
Lea grimaced and tightened her grip on the teacup in her hand. All she could think about was escaping this wretched encounter once a reasonable amount of time had passed.
Almost as if he had sensed her discomfort, Diego let out a small chuckle and changed the subject.
“Come to think of it, your fiancé seems to be busy with state affairs lately. Doesn’t it get lonely, being left alone all the time?”
His casual question met with Lea’s expressionless reply.
“No, you don’t need to worry about that.”
“Really? Funny. To me, you look like someone drowning in loneliness.”
Diego raised an eyebrow and whispered as if he knew everything.
“If it comes to it, I wouldn’t mind comforting you.”
As Lea’s face hardened, Diego burst into laughter and flopped back against the sofa.
Suppressing the revulsion rising in her throat, Lea responded calmly.
“This mockery of yours. I suggest you stop.”
“Mockery?”
Diego repeated the word as if unfamiliar with it, then lifted his chin and studied her. His gaze shamelessly traveled from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.
“That’s a bit unfair. I haven’t even laid a hand on you. If I really meant to mock you, wouldn’t I have barged into your bedroom by now?”
He shrugged, wearing a look of exaggerated grievance that was grotesquely insincere.
Lea bit the inside of her cheek, struggling to hold back the fury welling up inside. Every word out of his mouth was laced with insult, yet he acted as though it were all harmless banter. Shameless as ever.
“Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but I’m the Crown Prince’s fiancée.”
She lifted her chin and fixed him with a defiant stare.
“And the Crown Prince will soon be officially declared heir to the throne.”
Mentioning Caius didn’t feel particularly good, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on feelings. If she wanted to push Diego back, this was the only way.
“If you keep crossing the line, I’ll have no choice but to inform His Highness. And believe me, he won’t take it lightly.”
To someone like Diego, a threat backed by Caius would land far harder than expressing personal disgust. And sure enough, the smile vanished from Diego’s face, leaving it curiously blank.
“So cruel. You leave me with nothing to say.”
His long fingers brushed against his jaw in a familiar motion, one that chillingly resembled the Empress. The resemblance in their sharp, unreadable features made Lea recoil internally.
“That was always the problem. That you belong to him.”
His gaze grew heavy, trailing from her chin up to her forehead as he spoke in a near-whisper, more to himself than her.
“If I’d found you first instead of him… maybe you’d have been mine by now.”
“…”
“I wouldn’t have to stand here licking my lips, watching from afar. D**n shame.”
……
T/N: Oh, disgusting! 🤢🤮
