Chapter 37
Sensing someone outside the door, Elonia hurriedly placed the frame down and dove behind the curtains.
The door swung open at the same moment.
“But Your Majesty, instead of flatly refusing, wouldn’t it be better to—”
“You talk too much, Aaron.”
“You’ve finally earned some points with Her Highness, and you want to lose them all in one go?”
“This is different.”
Aaron and Artius entered the office.
Artius, brushing off Aaron’s persistent nagging, settled into his chair.
“I can’t get any work done with you constantly pestering me. If I fall behind any further, I won’t be able to visit the Imperial Princess’s Palace today, so be quiet.”
“Be honest with yourself. You’re not falling behind because of me. You’re too busy agonizing over what gifts to give Her Highness.”
“…Silence.”
Elonia, hidden behind the curtains, observed their conversation using her clairvoyance magic.
Although Artius was hidden behind his large chair, his delayed response suggested that Aaron had hit a nerve.
Aaron’s nagging continued relentlessly, forcing Artius to finally dismiss him.
Aaron felt frustrated at being kicked out after speaking the truth, but rank had its privileges. He lowered his head and quietly left the office.
“Peace at last.”
Artius, rubbing his temples as if he had a headache, leaned back in his chair.
His entire body was now hidden from view, leaving Elonia with nothing to observe.
After Aaron left, Artius worked diligently, his pen flying across the stack of documents on his desk.
Elonia watched as the pile slowly dwindled.
Time passed.
Finally, the mountain of paperwork was cleared.
“Haa.”
Artius sighed wearily, setting down his pen.
Elonia, who had been sitting by the window, suppressing her presence, also felt a wave of exhaustion.
‘Ugh, this is suffocating.’
She wasn’t gaining anything by staying here. Just as she was about to leave,
Artius spoke.
“Philia.”
‘…!’
Elonia’s heart skipped a beat at the sudden voice, but she quickly realized he wasn’t talking to her. He was addressing Philemon, using her nickname.
‘I’m still safe.’
Thanks to Elonia’s efforts to conceal her presence, Artius had no idea she was even in the room.
“Can I even begin to atone for my mistakes now?”
He spoke as if confessing his sins, his gaze fixed on Philemon’s portrait.
“Everyone I loved left me too soon. Even you, Philia, who promised to stay by my side forever. So, to protect what remained, I abandoned my only friend’s dying wish and went to war, leaving that helpless child behind.”
“…!”
What remained.
Elonia knew he was referring to her.
‘He went to war… to protect me?’
And his only friend’s dying wish?
There was only one thing Artius could be referring to.
Chelon’s dying wish.
‘He didn’t forget?’
She had been so sure he had forgotten.
Confused and overwhelmed by his unexpected confession, Elonia held her breath, trying to make herself even smaller.
Artius shifted his gaze to Elonia’s small portrait and continued.
“And yet, even though I tried not to love her, she almost died… Philia, I’m still terrified of losing those I love to the gods. She’s all I have left… So even if she hated me, as long as she survived, that was enough.”
Survived?
Was he saying he treated her harshly to ensure her survival?
Because everyone he cherished had died young?
‘…That’s impossible.’
Whether Elonia believed him or not, Artius continued to speak, his voice filled with regret.
“But lately, I’ve been having second thoughts. The fact that she hated me from such a young age means I must have hurt her deeply. Even if I didn’t want to lose her, was that truly for her own good…?”
“…”
“You were right, Philia. Children grow up so fast, and those around them, especially their parents, shouldn’t miss a single moment of their growth.”
Artius paused, his voice thick with emotion as he continued.
“…You were right about everything. It feels strange to hear her call me “Father,” to see her grow up so quickly. I thought I was doing what was best for her, but look at me now. How could I not love the child you left behind?”
Elonia was frozen in place.
She had come here to learn his true feelings.
But it was like peering into the depths of a submerged iceberg.
The Artius she had known as a father was merely the tip of the iceberg.
‘…This is too much.’
She had hated him all this time.
Even after she fell ill from the punishment he inflicted upon her, even after she heard that mysterious voice and woke up, even after she decided to observe him, even now, when he was completely under her thumb.
She had hated him with a passion.
And yet, he had loved her as his daughter all along.
He had wanted to express his love, but his past, filled with loss and grief, had prevented him from doing so.
No, he had chosen not to.
Because he couldn’t bear to lose another precious person.
Elonia instinctively wanted to reach out and comfort him.
But at that moment, her eyes met Philemon’s in the portrait.
“…!”
Startled, Elonia accidentally revealed her presence.
And Artius, with his sharp senses, immediately noticed.
“Who’s there?”
His gentle, remorseful voice was gone, replaced by a cold, sharp tone that pierced Elonia’s ears.
“…!”
Elonia flinched, her heart pounding in her chest.
‘Damn it, I messed up.’
It wasn’t as if the portrait had come to life.
She had made a careless mistake, unlike her usual self.
As Elonia panicked, Artius rose from his chair, his expression glacial.
He began scanning the room for any sign of an intruder.
“This is…”
He easily spotted faint footprints on the carpet.
They were too small to belong to an adult.
There was only one person in the entire Imperial Palace who could have left such tiny footprints.
‘No way.’
The footprints led towards the window behind the desk.
Artius whirled around.
His gaze locked onto the curtains where Elonia was hiding.
Elonia, peering at him from behind the curtains, was caught in a dilemma.
‘What do I do?’
It would have been better if she had been caught from the start.
But she couldn’t face him now.
‘I can’t look at him right now.’
Normally, she would have boldly emerged from her hiding place.
But she had seen her own portrait on his desk.
And she had heard his deepest, most carefully guarded secret.
Facing him now, with all these confusing emotions swirling within her, felt too overwhelming.
She wasn’t ready to confront these feelings, to let them drag her down an unknown path.
‘…I have so many questions.’
Did he truly love her?
Did he really remember Chelon’s dying wish?
Had her death not been in vain?
She wanted to ask him, to demand answers.
‘But not now.’
It would be too pathetic.
Too embarrassing.
As Elonia struggled to make a decision, Artius reached for the curtains.
‘…Damn it, whatever.’
Elonia squeezed her eyes shut.
Artius flung open the curtains.
“…No one’s here.”
Even though Elonia was sitting on the windowsill, her eyes tightly shut, Artius couldn’t see her.
He stared at the empty space for a moment before speaking.
“…Of course. Why would she ever come here on her own?”
He muttered, his voice laced with disappointment.
He was actually relieved that she hadn’t heard his confession.
‘Whew.’
Elonia, covering her mouth with both hands, let out a sigh of relief.
Thanks to her invisibility magic, she had managed to escape detection.
‘I didn’t want to use this spell yet. It takes too much energy.’
She focused on controlling her rapidly depleting mana, holding her breath.
“I should get going.”
Fortunately, Artius closed the curtains and left the room.
Elonia didn’t exhale until the door clicked shut.
She could breathe again, but her head was pounding.
She wanted to go back and rest.
***
After that incident, Elonia became increasingly introspective.
Fortunately, Artius was truly busy, as he sent word through Aaron that he wouldn’t be able to visit the Imperial Princess’s Palace for a while.
‘Thank goodness.’
She had never enjoyed his visits, but it was even worse now after seeing his vulnerable side.
Elonia tried to understand why she felt this way.
But she couldn’t figure it out.
‘This is strange. I wanted a loving family, and it seems Artius actually cared about me… as his daughter. But I feel uncomfortable seeing him.’
Even when Sarah brought her favorite snacks, asking what was wrong, Elonia refused them, claiming she had no appetite.
The Asta brothers, who visited on the weekend, were surprised to see her lost in thought.
“What’s wrong, El? Did someone bully you?”
Llewellyn fussed over her, examining her face with concern.
Normally, she would have pushed him away, but now she just sat there listlessly, letting him poke and prod her.
Llewellyn, alarmed, turned to Sarah.
“Sarah! Is she sick?!”
“Be quiet…”
Elonia mumbled, too tired to even answer properly.
Seeing Alberich’s worried expression, Sarah replied, her voice laced with concern.
“She’s been like this for a few days now. The palace physician said she’s not sick, but…”
“That’s it! Someone’s bullying her! El, tell your brother. Is it the Emperor again?!”
“You can tell me anything. I won’t breathe a word of it.”
Elonia, facing their concerned gazes, felt a pang of guilt for worrying them. But even that thought quickly faded.
She had too much on her mind to worry about others.
“He hasn’t even visited me in ages… It’s not that. It’s just the summer heat.”
The Imperial Princess’s Palace had excellent air conditioning, and Elonia hadn’t even stepped foot in the garden for days.
But Sarah and Alberich had no choice but to accept her flimsy excuse.
Only Llewellyn, the ever-innocent child, was outraged.
“What? He hasn’t visited you? He’s not reflecting enough! Just you wait, I’ll tell Mother!”
“There’s nothing to tell… Father’s busy. That’s all.”
“But!”
“Ugh… Just… Leave me alone.”
Llewellyn continued to protest, but Alberich managed to calm him down.
Even though Alberich and Llewellyn tried their best to cheer her up, Elonia remained indifferent.
***
A few days later, Artius, having finally cleared his backlog of work, visited the Imperial Princess’s Palace.
Aaron, as usual, came to announce his arrival.
“Your Highness, His Majesty is here.”
“…I don’t want to see him.”
“Y-Your Highness?”
“I’m sick. I’m not coming out.”
“W-what?”
Elonia mumbled, burrowing under the covers.
She had never thrown a childish tantrum before.
Sarah, seeing Aaron’s confusion, explained on Elonia’s behalf.
“She hasn’t even touched her favorite snacks for days.”
“Is she really sick…?”
“Lady Chloe said she’s perfectly healthy.”
“Oh.”
Sarah, worried that Elonia might have inherited Philemon’s delicate constitution, had already consulted the palace physician.
Aaron, relieved but still a little troubled, scratched his cheek. Seeing that Elonia had no intention of coming out, he gave up.
“I’ll inform His Majesty.”
“I’m sorry, Sir Aaron.”
“Don’t worry. Nothing is more important than Her Highness’s health.”
Aaron turned to leave.
But then,
“Elonia! Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?!”
Artius, somehow having received a completely different message, barged in, knocking frantically on Elonia’s door.
‘Damn it…’
Elonia cursed under her breath.