# 32
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“…confession?”
Blood dripped from my face.
“Well, it's not certain.”
Yes, please say it's not true.
Vivi hesitated for a moment, watching my reaction, then cleared her throat and shouted, imitating what I should have said yesterday.
“I'm lonely, so please be nice to me!”
“Something like that...”
Oh, my God.
I clapped my hand over my mouth.
'No wonder he kept talking about spending time together!'
I should have bitten my tongue and passed out in the dining hall.
Of course, I knew instinctively that all of these statements had been drunkenly made up by me yesterday, with Diana and Ian in mind.
But at the same time, I somehow had a gut feeling that a big misunderstanding had occurred.
How did the attitude change from Diana to Anna?
It must be my fault that I was drunk.
‘Alcohol is an enemy….’
When Vivi saw me almost unconscious, she waved her hands.
“It's okay, I heard the mood wasn't that bad! After that, the master carried you to your bedroom!”
No, I should have drowned myf in the first bowl of soup instead of biting my tongue.
Whenever Vivi spoke, it was as if my soul was leaving my body and wandering aimlessly.
“You've been through a lot lately. All the servants understand how you feel.”
"permission…."
“Yes! They say that the master did not eat breakfast and waited for you to come down to the dining hall today?”
Vivi clenched her fists, full of energy.
Regardless, I was on the verge of losing my mind, unable to deny reality.
'Are you crazy...?'
Not to mention anyone else, but for Ian? No, I can't do that.
Could Eloise really have a crush on Ian?
Is this why I said things I shouldn't have said?
The fact that my memory had been completely erased and I could no longer remember anything was starting to feel like a curse to me.
I quietly held my head in my hands.
'I'm sorry, Diana...!'
My little fairy, the ruler of beauty, my sweet, wonderful, and beautiful Diana, I couldn't even help you...!
I wanted to go back to yesterday and slap myf, but it was already too late.
Feeling very frustrated, I waved my hand towards Vivi.
“...Go now.”
I think I need to pray for forgiveness now.
“Understood. If you need anything, please call me anytime, ma’am.”
Vivi bowed and was about to leave, but she hesitated and turned around.
“Um, ma’am.”
"Yes?"
"I think couples become closer through lovers' quarrels. Stay strong!"
This is not the case...
I really felt like crying.
❖ ❖ ❖
The next day, Mrs. Zeid, who had received my letter, arrived at the Duke's residence early in the morning.
She looked paler than usual.
“D-Duchess.”
“Oh, Mrs. Zed. Are you there?”
I waved my hand slowly as I drank Vivi's tea, and Mrs. Zed's face turned even paler.
She shook the letter she was carrying weakly.
“I received this message...”
“Yes, I sent it.”
"Yes!"
Mrs. Zedd let out a shriek and shuddered, dropping the letter.
"Oh, my God."
I tore my eyes away from her and took another sip of tea.
Mrs. Zed picked up the letter from the floor nervously, as if she were looking at something terrifying.
“Well, then, the Imperial Palace...”
“Yes, I said we would go to the Imperial Palace.”
“Ah, ah, ah…”
“Yes, today.”
"Yes."
She looked at Mrs. Zed, who looked on the verge of fainting, with pity.
After all, Ms. Zed had been stuck in a back alley salon with no customers until just a few weeks ago.
Just becoming the Duchess's exclusive dress designer was a huge shock to her, and now she would meet a royal princess. How can she keep her sanity?
The common people usually saw no shadow of members of the imperial family from birth to death.
Even Salon Veronica, the largest salon in the capital, the head designer has not met any members of the royal family.
After she emptied the cup of tea, she stood up and patted Mrs. Zed on the back.
“You have a lot of work waiting for you.”
“D...Duchess?”
Originally, I was supposed to give her some reassuring words, tell her to relax because it wasn't a big deal.
But even if it was just an empty statement, I couldn't bring myf to say that it was no big deal.
If it weren't for the fact that the person in question was the princess, I might have said some reassuring words.
“Yes, Your Highness...”
Mrs. Zed was on the verge of tears from my earnest encouragement.
“No matter how much I think about it, I don’t think I can do this. I might jump out of here and break my leg...”
“Try it, if you think you can handle the princess's wrath.”
I pointed towards the balcony and smiled sweetly at Mrs. Zed.
My careless attitude caused Mrs. Zed to lose her balance and stagger around.
“Huh, huh.”
I can completely understand her feelings.
The princess's troublesome reputation was notorious, even among the common people.
She looked at Mrs. Zed, whose soul seemed to be detached, and patted her on the shoulder.
“Don't worry too much.”
“Your Highness...”
“It's not like you're going to die, is it?”
Desperation spread across Mrs. Zed's face.
❖ ❖ ❖
Finally, in the carriage heading to the Imperial Palace, Mrs. Zedd, who was chattering her teeth anxiously, asked carefully:
“Oh, Your Highness.”
"You say."
“Then why does the princess want to see me...? Did I do something wrong?”
“Ah, hmm.”
If you think about it, I haven't explained it yet.
Perhaps I was so attracted by the princess's insistence that I skipped Lady Zedd's detailed explanation.
She looked at Mrs. Zed, who was still looking pale, and instead of answering, she smiled sweetly at her.
'If I told her she was going to make a dress for the princess, she might jump off the wagon.'
“Yes, Your Highness…?”
“You'll know when we get there.”
Mrs. Zed took a deep breath.
At the same time, the carriage, moving steadily, was passing through the main gate of the palace.
As I got out of the carriage with the trembling Mrs. Zed, I could see a figure in the distance, running towards us, her dress dragging behind her.
“Duchess!!!”
The princess was waving her hand eagerly, unable to hide her excitement.
Behind her, were the maids who seemed to have lost all their color trying to keep up with her.
‘If the Duchess of Brillose had seen this, she would have scolded her severely.’
While I was thinking about this, the princess, who quickly arrived at my side, smiled broadly.
“Are you coming?”
“Princess, it is nice to see you again.”
“Indeed. How are you?”
“If you're asking how I've been doing for the past day, I'm very fine.”
Honestly, who would summon someone to the Imperial Palace after only one day of meeting them?
When I gave a slightly sharp answer, the princess blinked wide before bursting into laughter.
“Oh, that's right, we met yesterday too, right? Waiting for you feels like it's been a year!”
“I feel honored by your words.”
As the Princess and I exchanged pleasantries that were not real pleasantries, Mrs. Zed lifted her skirt and bowed respectfully, trembling, a step behind us.
“A..I have the honor to meet Her Highness, Luisa Evgenia is Levant, Second Sun of the Levant Empire.”
The princess's eyes sparkled.
“You must be Jeremy!”
"…Sorry?"
As I watched her confidently get the name wrong, I cleared my throat and whispered,
“It's Lady Zedd, Her Highness.”
“Aha.”
The princess nodded cheerfully and took Mrs. Zedd's hand, shaking it up and down vigorously.
"My mistake! So you're Mrs. Zed?"
“Yes, yes, that's true.”
“Hmm, you're more ordinary than I thought.”
The princess murmured as if curious, then smiled cheerfully again and began walking.
“Okay, let's not stand here. Come inside!”