Chapter 4: Did You Know Everything?
“My goodness.”
As I strolled through the garden, I shook my head in disbelief.
No wonder it had all seemed so suspicious.
I should’ve realized something was off when the reports were unusually detailed.
How many people did Helena involve in this?
From royal chefs to designers, guards, and beyond…
Every corner of the palace.
Literally, every corner of the palace had people planted by Helena.
Helena was far more impressive—no, terrifying—than I thought.
It felt like I was in some kind of espionage movie.
Isn’t this scale a bit excessive?!
As I groaned internally, I turned to Countess Chloe and asked,
“How many more are left?”
“So far, we’ve identified 318 individuals.”
“…What?”
I had spent the entire day meeting people yesterday, and there were still that many left?
“All these people were helping me?”
Once again, I found myself amazed at Helena’s recruiting abilities.
“I knew there were some helpers, but I never imagined it was this many,” said Countess Chloe, clearly just as shocked.
Well, it was understandable.
I’d already met nearly a hundred people yesterday, and there were still far more remaining.
To make matters worse, the number seemed to keep increasing the more people I met.
At this rate, I might end up meeting everyone in the palace except the emperor himself.
How many people had Helena recruited to stalk the emperor?
Never mind the empress being obsessed with the emperor—what was up with all the people who supported her?
This is too much. She went way overboard.
My head felt like it was spinning from all the thinking.
To clear my mind, I decided to take a walk through the garden with the maids.
“What lovely weather for a stroll today.”
“The garden seems even more beautiful because of it.”
As the maids said, the garden was indeed beautiful.
Flowers were blooming as if competing with each other.
The wisteria vines stood out with their purple blossoms.
And below them, a stream trickled along the path.
The open scenery helped clear my thoughts.
As I wandered through the garden with the maids, a voice called out.
“Your Majesty the Empress?”
I turned my head toward the voice.
A woman was walking quickly toward me.
She was so breathtakingly beautiful that I couldn’t help but marvel.
Even though the sun had set and the surroundings were growing dim, her presence seemed to light up the area.
With her luscious pink hair and sparkling emerald eyes.
Her small face and perfectly proportioned features drew admiration effortlessly.
Her gestures and expressions alone were enough to captivate anyone.
Even without anyone explaining, I knew who she was.
“…The Imperial Consort.”
It was none other than Fay, the heroine of this world.
“Your Majesty the Empress. I didn’t expect to find you here.”
With a gentle smile, she bowed her head.
“Lady Fay. I didn’t expect to meet you here either.”
I returned her greeting with a light nod.
I had expected to meet her eventually, but not so suddenly like this.
Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself.
I had to handle this carefully from now on.
In the original story, Fay was a bright and innocent heroine.
But due to the strict rules of the imperial court and Helena’s relentless bullying, she had become deeply withdrawn.
That was how she ended up being despised by Jerome and eventually met her execution ending.
But.
That can’t happen.
My goal is to live a long and peaceful life. A quiet, steady existence!
I couldn’t afford to worsen my relationship with the heroine any further.
Don’t worry, heroine. I have no intention of tormenting you like in the original story.
I had no reason to bother her since I didn’t love the emperor.
I tried my best to put on a kind smile.
For someone who was likely feeling very timid, I thought it best to greet her warmly first—
“Your Majesty! It feels like it’s been ages since we’ve seen each other.”
“…?”
—Or so I planned, but Fay greeted me first.
And she even smiled brightly.
Wasn’t she supposed to be shy and withdrawn?
In the original story, it was said she would flinch and burst into tears just from accidentally meeting Helena’s eyes.
“I heard you were unwell for a while. Are you feeling better now?”
“…”
What is this?
Where’s the shyness and timidity?
Judging by her cheerful smile, it felt as if we were still in the early stages of the story, before Helena’s torment had begun.
But that couldn’t be true since the story had already progressed significantly.
“Your Majesty?”
Fay called out to me again when I didn’t respond.
“Are you still feeling unwell?” she asked, clasping her hands tightly together.
“No, no. I’m fine.”
I shook my head.
“I’m much better now. Thank you for asking.”
“That’s such a relief.”
She smiled radiantly.
“Did you come out for a stroll as well, Your Majesty? I was walking with His Majesty, so I guess our paths crossed by fate!”
She clapped her hands as she spoke.
“His Majesty?”
Was she referring to that terrifying two-faced emperor?
Suddenly, my desire to continue the walk evaporated.
“Yes, he was with me until just a moment ago, but the guards called him away for an urgent report.”
So, in other words, he wasn’t here right now.
“Well, that’s unfortunate.”
At my words, Fay’s expression darkened.
“That’s right. I even wore my favorite dress today to take a walk with His Majesty.”
“Dress?”
Flinch.
Hearing the word “dress” made my guilty conscience prickle.
Whether she noticed my discomfort or not, Fay proudly spread out the hem of her dress.
“What do you think? Isn’t it pretty?”
“It is pretty.”
I wasn’t just saying it to be polite.
The yellow dress, fluttering lightly in the breeze, suited her perfectly.
At my compliment, Fay smiled brightly, as if she were genuinely delighted.
“Actually, His Majesty gave me this dress as a gift.”
“Oh, I see.”
A gift.
Just as I’d seen in the original story, Jerome was endlessly kind and considerate when it came to her.
Of course, I didn’t expect gifts myself.
I just wished he’d stop acting strangely.
Better yet, it’d be nice if he agreed to a divorce.
“You must’ve been happy to receive it.”
“Yes, I was very happy.”
Fay nodded and then, as if sharing a secret, glanced around before whispering,
“Actually, all my dresses were ruined not too long ago.”
Prickle, prickle.
My conscience stung again.
“That must have been awful. Whoever did that must be a terrible person.”
“Yes.”
She nodded and then broke into a bright smile.
“But it’s okay. Even though the culprit wasn’t caught, His Majesty gave me such a beautiful dress because of it. I’m almost grateful to them.”
“……”
It seemed Fay hadn’t heard the rumors yet.
The rumors that I was the one who ruined her dresses.
Thinking about the events from the other day, I couldn’t help but mumble,
“It was the head maid of the Imperial Consort’s Palace…”
“Pardon? Why are you mentioning the head maid of my palace?”
“Oh! It’s nothing.”
I thought perhaps Fay was staying silent for the sake of the Empress’ dignity.
Given her position, even if she knew the Empress was the culprit, there wasn’t much she could do about it.
“It’s nothing at all.”
“What’s bothering you? Is it something I shouldn’t know?”
“No, you’ll find out soon enough. And by the way, your dress really does suit you—it’s not just a compliment.”
“Thank you. Hearing that from Your Majesty makes me like this dress even more.”
She spun around in place, showing off her dress again.
And then—
“There you are.”
A low voice interrupted.
It was Jerome.
Flanked by several royal guards, he approached with a serious expression.
His sharp, commanding presence made me unconsciously shrink back, but Jerome’s focus wasn’t on me.
“I was worried when I couldn’t find you.”
His gaze was fixed on Fay.
“I must’ve wandered too far without realizing it.”
Fay smiled brightly.
“Your expression seems troubled—did something happen?”
“There was a report of an intruder in the palace.”
“An intruder?”
Fay gasped in surprise.
“For now, it would be best to return.”
Jerome said as he took Fay’s hand.
For the first time, I heard him speak in such a gentle tone.
He could sound that kind? Goosebumps ran up my arms.
Jerome’s cold eyes eventually shifted to me.
“The Empress is here as well.”
His indifferent expression and curt tone stirred an unexpected defiance in me.
No, come on. He treated the heroine so differently!
For a moment, I understood why Helena had been so jealous and caused such chaos.
Hey, male lead.
Even if you favor her, this is too much. Don’t you think this kind of blatant favoritism is unfair?
“With things so unsettled, it might be better for you to return to your chambers.”
How considerate—he wasn’t worried about me at all.
His words seemed less like genuine concern and more like formal politeness.
Placing a protective arm around Fay’s shoulders, he turned away as if shielding her from me, the villainess.
Ha. Well then.
I let out a dry laugh.
Fine, I’ll go.
As I turned to leave, I noticed the maids looking stiff and furious.
They seemed upset by Jerome’s dismissive attitude toward me.
It’s fine, everyone. I’m okay.
I smiled to reassure them.
“Ah!”
A sharp cry sounded behind me.
Turning around, I saw Fay limping.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m sorry. My shoe just…”
Her left shoe’s heel had broken.
Jerome furrowed his brow slightly.
“We’ll summon whoever was responsible for the shoes and hold them accountable.”
“There’s no need for that. It must’ve been an accident. Everyone makes mistakes.”
“But…”
“Please, I beg you. If someone were punished because of me, I wouldn’t be able to bear it.”
“You’re truly… No, fine. I won’t hold anyone responsible. I promise.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“It seems you won’t be able to walk like this.”
Jerome moved to lift her into his arms.
Fay’s eyes widened in shock.
“I-I’m fine, Your Majesty. I can walk on my own.”
“No. I’m not fine with that.”
Jerome ignored her protests and picked her up.
I watched them quietly as they walked away.
This was a scene straight out of the original story.
When I’d read it in text, it seemed so romantic.
But seeing it from Helena’s perspective felt oddly surreal.
“Oh.”
I suddenly remembered.
Those shoes. Weren’t they the handiwork of my maids?
Turning to the maids, I saw them looking distressed.
No wonder.
What was meant to cause trouble had inadvertently helped the Imperial Consort instead.
“We’re sorry, Your Majesty.”
“We didn’t mean for this to happen in front of you…”
The maids murmured.
“It’s fine. Like I said before, I don’t really mind.”
I smiled as if it truly didn’t bother me.
“Let’s go back.”
As I reassured the maids and started walking back, I overheard Jerome and Fay’s conversation behind me.
“But earlier, you showed the Empress your dress. Why?”
“Pardon? My dress?”
“I told you the Empress was the one who ruined all your dresses.”
“Oh, but I don’t mind. Thanks to that, you gave me a new one.”
“I’m worried the Empress might harass you again.”
“No way. Her Majesty the Empress wouldn’t do such a thing.”
What…?
I turned back to look at them in shock as they walked away.
Excuse me, heroine…?
You knew I ruined your dress the whole time?!
—
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