The Fake Madam Disappeared

Daphne turned around.

“So you were awake, Madam.”

“…Your Highness.”

Daphne tensed at the sudden appearance of Elizabeth. The Princess’s unnervingly calm expression only heightened the tension. Daphne hesitated, then stood up.

“I’ve been thinking, Madam.”

Elizabeth stepped closer, her demeanor weary, as if she hadn’t slept all night.

“I was so furious… I kept thinking about it.”

She tilted her head slightly.

“No matter how much I try, I just can’t understand. I’m the noblest and most beautiful woman in the Empire, so why….”

Elizabeth trailed off, suddenly realizing she was speaking in front of Daphne. She swallowed the rest of her words, which had risen to the tip of her tongue.

To say them aloud would be no different from admitting defeat. Instead, she gave a radiant smile, veiled in falsehoods.

“The Duke has accepted my proposal, Madam.”

“…You mean he agreed to the divorce?”

Daphne asked, and Elizabeth nodded.

“He agreed right away, without even taking time to consider.”

Daphne blinked, then slowly lowered her head.

“I see… That’s good to hear.”

“Yes, very good.”

A short silence followed before Daphne raised her head again. Her blank expression, showing neither despair nor sorrow, reminded Elizabeth of Edmund. This wasn’t the reaction she had wanted.

Elizabeth bit her lip.

“But there’s something I find a little strange, Madam.”

Her eyes gleamed with a sharp intensity. Daphne caught the glint in Elizabeth’s gaze and felt a rising sense of dread.

“I started wondering… Are you really pregnant?”

“….”

“Come in.”

At Elizabeth’s command, someone entered the room. It was a royal physician.

Daphne took a step back.

“…Your Highness, please don’t do this.”

“We can confirm whether you're pregnant just by checking your pulse. It won’t take long. No one will know.”

Elizabeth murmured.

“Grace, hold her.”

At Elizabeth’s cold command, Grace seized Daphne’s arm. Daphne struggled desperately.

“Your Highness, this is…”

Smack!

A sharp pain burst across her cheek as sparks seemed to fly.

“Your Highness!”

Grace cried out in shock, but Elizabeth simply shrugged.

“This much is nothing. A slap won’t make her lose the baby if there even is one.”

Then, she glared sharply at the physician.

“What are you waiting for? Hurry and check whether she’s pregnant.”

“M-Madam, I’m terribly sorry. But my family’s lives are at stake…”

The physician stepped closer.

Daphne looked around frantically for a way to escape, but there was none. Screaming for help would be pointless. Even if she broke free from Grace, the physician was a grown man. She wouldn’t be able to overpower him.

At last, the physician grabbed Daphne’s wrist. She squeezed her eyes shut.

“What is going on here?”

A new hand grasped the physician’s, breaking his grip.

“Marquis Bled?”

Elizabeth’s face twisted at the unexpected disruption.

“What are you doing here?”

“I could ask the same, Your Highness.”

Sergei stepped in front of Daphne, shielding her from Elizabeth’s sight.

“His Majesty is asking for you.”

“…My father?”

“Yes. He said he would visit your quarters. He should be arriving any moment now.”

Elizabeth went pale and swallowed hard.

“Grace! Let’s go!”

She hurried out of the room.

“You there.”

Sergei addressed the trembling physician in the corner. The man flinched and looked up.

“Nothing happened just now. Understood?”

Sergei flashed a faint smile. The physician nodded hastily.

“Y-yes, of course.”

Then, in a panic, he fled the room.

Everything had happened so fast that Daphne remained frozen, gasping for breath.

“Sister.”

“…Why would my brother come to such a miserable place?”

Snapping back to reality at Sergei’s voice, Daphne realized how close he was and took a step back.

“You’ve become quite haggard.”

Sergei reached out a hand. Seeing it approach, Daphne turned her head and shut her eyes tightly.

“Have you forgotten I just helped you? No need to be so tense.”

He gently patted her shoulder. Then, he glanced around the small room.

“…Why are you here?”

Daphne’s voice trembled with unease.

“Mother and Father are gone now. It’s just the two of us left. Why are you treating your only brother like a threat?”

Daphne’s face twisted. It was Sergei who had killed their mother. Even on an empty stomach, nausea rose up inside her.

“Interrogations begin today.”

Sergei spun lightly on his heel.

“Still… you look better than I expected.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Oh? Haven’t you heard anything? One of your husband’s men visited at dawn.”

“I haven’t heard… what news?”

“The Young Lord hasn’t woken up.”

Daphne retraced Sergei’s words, one by one.

Damian hasn’t regained consciousness.

She looked up at Sergei, eyes trembling.

“What would I gain by lying to you?”

He continued.

“But this is your choice, Sister.”

Sergei explained slowly, clearly for her confused mind.

“You chose the Duke. That’s why the Young Lord ended up like this. Maybe the Duke could have endured it, but sadly, the young one couldn’t. And after clinging to that strange necklace for years, his energy must have been completely drained… He might never wake up.”

‘My choice…’

Daphne had chosen Edmund. When faced with two paths, she hadn’t even hesitated. And she hadn’t even realized it.

“It’s your fault the Young Lord is in this state.”

Sergei leaned in.

“Or maybe not. If the Duke’s men had taken you a few hours earlier, perhaps he would’ve survived.”

Then he whispered.

“But it can’t be helped. The one the Duke chose… wasn’t you.”

With that, Sergei left the room.

Daphne didn’t move.

Only after a long while did she collapse to the floor.

She crawled to the door on her knees, pounding against it. She screamed until her voice gave out, struck the door until her hands were scratched and bruised.

She didn’t stop until she had fully accepted that no one was coming. That no one was there. Only then did Daphne’s hands fall silent.

Her mouth moved soundlessly, no voice escaping.

She was drowning in despair so deep that not even sound could reach.

Was it guilt for not choosing Damian? Or the anguish that Edmund hadn’t chosen her?

No one could say.

Daphne wept quietly, her cries swallowed by silence.

* * *

“Ahem. Your Highness, if I may. I wasn’t able to say this yesterday, but regarding Duchess Winter…”

“My, look at the time. I’ve got a rather urgent meeting scheduled.”

Today again, Carlito abruptly rose from his seat.

“Let’s discuss it tomorrow.”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

Once again, the Imperial faction had to swallow their words.

Edmund watched Carlito intently. Just like yesterday, the moment they tried to bring up Daphne, Carlito would change the subject. It was no coincidence.

“Oh, Duke Winter.”

Carlito suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“How is the Young Lord faring?”

A chilling bloodlust swept through the previously noisy chamber, plunging it into silence.

“Hm? What’s the matter? I only asked because I heard he was hurt. I was thinking of offering a magic stone imbued with holy power.”

Only Carlito seemed unaffected, tilting his head in curiosity.

“He’s fine. It’s not a serious injury.”

“I see. Well then, never mind.”

Edmund watched Carlito’s retreating figure in silence.

The reason his killing intent had flared up at that question was because of what happened at dawn. Damian’s condition had suddenly worsened.

His body had trembled violently, teeth chattering, soaked in cold sweat. The energy inside him had twisted wildly, ready to explode at any moment.

Edmund had rushed to his carriage to return home immediately. But someone stood waiting for him outside.

“Your Excellency.”

It was Johann, who should’ve been at the mansion. Edmund feared the worst.

Johann spoke quickly, in a low voice.

“The Young Lord’s condition hasn’t improved, but it hasn’t deteriorated either. However… that’s not why I came.”

To have come in person despite knowing Edmund would return soon meant the matter couldn’t be brushed aside.

“There was a prison break attempt last night at the facility where Madam is being held. Security has been tightened. They’re even planning to install barrier magic. In other words… it’s now impossible to approach her.”

T/N: Why do I keep hurting myself over and over again? My heart felt like it was being stabbed knowing how much Daphne is hurting 😭