Chapter 114

Riina’s wish was not to be fulfilled by the narrowest of margins.

“His Majesty has commanded the Duke to enter the palace immediately.”

Encountering the aide who was hurriedly gathering documents in the Duke’s office, Riina had to withdraw, biting her lower lip firmly.

Perhaps it’s for the best.

Her concern about the suspicious Max had made her act hastily, but it would be better to meet her father after clearly organizing what she needed to confirm.

Riina promptly turned toward her own office.

After dealing with urgent matters from the mountain of documents, how much time had passed?

She had been more focused than usual since the paperwork had piled up from her morning absence. Her shoulders felt stiff and tense when a knock sounded.

—Knock, knock.

“Come in.”

The moment permission was granted, the door opened and Becky poked her head in.

As usual, Riina kept her eyes fixed on her documents and reached for her teacup that should have cooled to the right temperature, but when her hand only grasped air, she finally looked up.

“Becky?”

Instead of asking “where’s the tea?” she directed her gaze to Becky’s empty hands, and Becky responded glumly:

“Today the milk was fresh, so I prepared Earl Grey milk tea. However…”

She seemed full of discontent, but after composing her expression and voice several times as if trying hard not to show it, she continued:

“The shadow says she would like to see you, my lady.”

Though the conversation had jumped abruptly from milk tea to Jane, Becky wasn’t one to speak nonsense, so Riina confirmed:

“Jane?”

“Yes. A servant from the annex came just now.”

Riina was about to nod dismissively but stopped.

It was perfectly natural for Jane to come see her.

Though Jane’s document processing had improved enough to be entrusted with some responsibilities—not quite at the level before the regression, but on track—they didn’t meet as frequently as before. But still, wasn’t she Riina’s shadow?

So a shadow meeting with her master shouldn’t be something that required a special request.

Finally understanding why Becky’s cheeks were so puffed up, Riina smiled wryly.

“What did she say?”

“That she has done her utmost to learn proper etiquette so as not to bring shame to Bolshevik, and begs to share refreshments with you.”

“So that’s why you didn’t prepare tea.”

“Yes. Of course, I’m ready to serve tea right away if needed.”

“No, prepare refreshments in the garden.”

“Yes.”

Becky truly looked like she had much to say, but she firmly pressed her lips together, faithfully adhering to a servant’s duty not to speak ill of the shadow.

No longer needing to run away, and perhaps because her days were now fulfilling, Becky’s once-thin cheeks had filled out properly, with a healthy reddish glow typical of girls her age. Now they were puffed up like a blowfish.

It was quite an adorable sight, but also somewhat puzzling.

What reason would Becky have to dislike Jane so intensely?

Regarding their relationship—blackmail… Yes, was it because of the blackmail?

But Becky had actually thanked her blackmailer, so she wouldn’t harbor ill feelings toward Jane, whom he frequently visited.

And since Jane was putting effort into winning over the servants, she wouldn’t be treating them poorly.

Unable to pinpoint exactly what the issue was, Riina gestured to Becky.

As Becky approached, Riina gently pressed her cheek and asked:

“You’ll ruin your cute face. Why do you dislike Jane so much?”

At the word “cute,” Becky’s ears immediately turned bright red, and she answered with exaggerated primness:

“Her eyes… are dirty.”

After briefly pursing her lips, choosing her words, Becky added:

“She always wears a smiling face, but she’s not really smiling. And most decisively, her eyes are too murky. She thinks she’s hiding it, but such things… thanks to my mother, I can recognize them well.”

Becky’s mother, a gambling addict, had laughed and cried, but it was all disgustingly fabricated.

In the end, she only wanted one thing.

And what always revealed that single-minded greed was her shiny eyes, like those of a dead fish.

Ordered by Riina to observe Jane, Becky had early on realized that Jane’s eyes were chillingly similar to her mother’s—an addict’s eyes.

Riina gently patted the back of Becky’s clenched hand, which had become shadowed with unpleasant memories.

She offered no words like “that can’t be” or “if you say so, it must be true.”

Just a light reassurance and warmth.

And that alone was enough to release the tension in Becky’s cold hands.

After caressing Becky’s hand for a while, Riina spoke:

“Now go call Jane. I’ll go in this attire, so there’s no need for special preparations. And you have a task to do in the garden. There’s something I want to verify.”

After giving Becky several instructions and sending her off, Riina took out the documents Jane had processed and submitted, quickly skimmed them, and exhaled briefly.

“What she wants…”

Before the regression, Jane had constantly told Riina:

‘For the sake of Bolshevik.’

Not just in words—everything she did was indeed for Bolshevik.

That’s why after the regression, Riina had considered leaving Bolshevik in her hands.

While she might not be certain about other things, there was no reason to doubt Jane’s loyalty to Bolshevik.

Jane had endured all of Riina’s harassment and interference for Bolshevik’s sake, working until her body nearly broke.

“So I thought it was steadfast loyalty, but it was actually shameless greed.”

As Jane’s unknown aspects were revealed, Riina’s initial post-regression resolve was being shaken from its roots.

Back then, her decision had been easy because she believed, and her determination came even faster.

That Jane, who knew how to succeed, would be a much better choice to lead the family than herself, who only failed.

She had also wanted to escape the unbearable pressure, failures, frustrations, and despair that had bound her before the regression.

But now…

“Hmm.”

Making a short nasal sound, Riina put down her pen and stared at the documents processed by Jane, who now rarely made mistakes.

Jane’s work had improved considerably, but it wasn’t exceptional.

Perhaps with more time, she might do even better.

“Before the regression, was I lacking, or were you more capable than you are now? Or perhaps both.”

Riina now had to admit that her assessment of Jane had been excessively high.

No, she needed to completely revise what she thought she “knew” about Jane.

How ironic that she could see herself and Jane more clearly now than before the regression.

How strange it was.

Only after giving up what she had longed for, after resigning herself, could she see so much more.

Riina smiled bitterly as she gathered the pieces she had discovered about the “current” Jane.

The hunting competition. Becky. The blackmailer. The unidentified herb.

The auction. Jane’s visitor. The mechanical device.

And finally, Lione’s words from his last observation of Jane.

‘I believe we should investigate the possibility that she’s a spy.’

The Third Prince had said he would summon Jane to the palace.

“The possibility of her being a spy for the imperial palace is extremely low.”

If she had been sent as a spy from the palace in the first place, her father wouldn’t have chosen her.

Moreover, Smith’s poor thinking was as transparent as if it were in her hand.

“He probably wants to establish a connection with Bolshevik through someone who could replace me.”

He had always been remarkably good at sniffing out people who could be useful to him.

When she firmly believed he was her first and last love, she had thought even that ability was a reason why Smith should become emperor.

‘A talent for judging people?’

‘Yes. The one who stands at the top doesn’t need to excel at everything. They need to find those who excel in specific fields and deploy them appropriately.’

How had Smith responded then?

Probably not with kind words.

Smith only spoke kindly to her when he needed something from her.

If she had failed to notice Jane’s suspicious behavior and simply handed over her position as heir before leaving, Smith would have had reason to congratulate himself on securing an excellent connection.

Before the regression, Smith had ultimately joined hands with Jane and delivered poison to her.

“At least he’s consistent.”

Riina smirked, then leaned deep into her chair and closed her eyes.

It was nearly time to go to the garden.

She still didn’t know what Jane’s purpose or greed was.

But she certainly couldn’t leave her beloved Bolshevik in Jane’s hands and depart anymore.

Riina suddenly felt overwhelmed.

She was still unlucky, still repeating failures… no, had she only failed…?

“I need to check.”

Whether consciously or unconsciously, she had deliberately avoided confirming the results of her work.

She was sick of failure, nauseated by the thought of her work causing harm to the family, and she had thought she would be leaving soon anyway.

But now it was time to check.

And Riina intuitively knew that she probably wouldn’t be able to leave for a long time, perhaps ever.

And that also meant she could envision a future with Einar.

“Should I attribute this too to your luck and my misfortune?”

An afterimage of Einar smiling with crinkled eyes as he got what he wanted flashed before Riina’s eyes.

Following it, his low laughter echoed in her ears and pooled in her heart.