ITIF Chapter 122

The One Person Who Understands the Pain

“I…”

“Giselle.”

Once again, the two opened their mouths at the same time.

“What?”

“Please, go ahead.”

Even their attempt to give each other the first chance to speak coincided with exquisite timing.

Giselle Grante pressed her lips together tightly and sent him a look.

‘If you have something to say, say it.’

Kavelaseth, who had been watching her face with a slight smile, soon opened his mouth with a serious expression.

“Giselle—no, Trinity.”

“……!”

For a moment, Giselle Grante’s thoughts stopped.

“Just now… what did you call me…?”

“Trinity, First Imperial Princess of the Phasis Empire. I want to sincerely apologize to you.”

“That…”

Giselle Grante’s blue pupils dilated greatly.

Kavelaseth simply smiled bitterly as he looked at her confused face.

“…How did you know?”

The moment she uttered those words with a trembling voice, her conversation with the Empress came flooding back.

[It’s me, me. The existence you’ve desperately wanted to kill and eliminate from the moment of birth. The First Imperial Princess of the Phasis Empire, Trinity!]

She had never revealed her identity. Except for that time. So if Kavelaseth knew, it could only be from then.

Looking at her violently shaking eyes, Kavelaseth said:

“Do you remember the day the young lady went to see the Empress?”

“Yes, I remember. Then Duke Cardia must have been there that day too.”

“At first, I doubted my ears, wondering if I had heard correctly. But when I thought about it carefully, it made sense.”

Kavelaseth nodded slightly as he spoke.

“You knew far too many things that only Imperial Princess Trinity herself would have known. The Emperor, the Empress, and even the Crown Prince. You knew the tendencies and behavioral patterns of the imperial family members far too well.”

“……”

“I want to compensate you for your past. For a lifetime.”

As she blinked blankly, a warm, large hand touched her cheek.

Giselle Grante raised her gaze, which had been slightly lowered, to meet Kavelaseth’s eyes. His gaze looking at her was infinitely warm.

“I formally request this. Will you become the Empress of the Phasis Empire?”

“……”

“I’ve thought about it a lot… This seems to be the best compensation I can offer you.”

Originally, the role of the Empress of the Phasis Empire was by no means small.

It wasn’t simply a matter of taking an empress for succession.

The first Emperor had to rebuild territory devastated by wars between continents, and at that time, he took as his empress a woman who was his closest confidant and strategist.

Was it because of such background?

For a while, the rule of the Phasis Empire was shared between the Emperor and Empress.

However, as peace continued, those bearing the mark of the heavenly descendant were no longer born.

As generations passed, the Empress’s position naturally diminished, leading to the present.

Though its essence had now become quite blurred, she seemed to understand what Kavelaseth meant by the role of Empress.

“And one more thing.”

Kavelaseth added to her, who couldn’t answer immediately.

“I don’t think there’s anyone else in the Empire who could fulfill the role of Empress as well as you.”

“……”

The longer Giselle Grante’s answer was delayed, the more anxiety appeared on Kavelaseth’s face.

Kavelaseth had always been composed in all matters.

For him to reveal his unease while waiting for permission was simply unfamiliar to Giselle Grante.

At the same time, her feelings became somewhat complicated.

When she recalled the past life where she had lived and died as Kavelaseth’s substitute, one corner of her heart still felt hollow and bitter, as if a hole had been pierced that couldn’t be filled.

But both she and he had been nothing more than newborn babies at that time. They had no power to choose the direction of their own lives.

Though the complicated feelings toward Kavelaseth hadn’t all been sorted out yet, she still felt a bit of anticipation for a future with him.

Except for those who would soon die, no one knew the pain of her past. No one would be able to comfort her, that was certain.

So it meant that now and in the future, the only person in this world who would understand her aching heart would be Kavelaseth alone.

Giselle Grante, who had been quietly watching Kavelaseth lick his dry lips and move them slightly, smiled faintly. Then she said softly:

“Alright. I’ll accept the proposal Your Grace has offered.”

Kavelaseth, who had been staring down at Giselle Grante’s hand extended before him, soon took her hand.

Giselle Grante shook their clasped hands slightly.

“Does this establish the contract?”

“For now.”

Giselle Grante nodded, contemplating what to include in the marriage contract.

“Dinner?”

“Not yet. I’m just on my way back. What about you, Your Grace?”

“Me neither.”

Kavelaseth, who had shaken his head slightly, suddenly turned his head toward her and asked:

“By the way, are you going to keep calling me Your Grace from now on?”

“The form of address… I’ll work on changing it gradually.”

Saying that, Giselle Grante lowered her gaze slightly.

On the way back to the mansion, Giselle Grante found herself deep in thought. And it seemed she wasn’t the only one thinking a lot.

As she walked and glanced sideways at Kavelaseth’s face, his straight brow furrowed slightly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m thinking about having to get permission from the young lady’s family—your current family, that is—and already getting a bit of a headache.”

Though he said that, a gentle smile spread across Kavelaseth’s lips.

‘Permission…’

Permission from family. When she thought of that word, the faces of two people naturally came to mind.

Family. Now her family was Duke Amaterasu and Mikhail.

Not people who would achieve their goals even if it meant killing her…

‘Those two… I think they’ll be happy about it.’

There might be initial resistance, but she was confident that Duke Amaterasu and Mikhail would surely give their blessing. As long as she wanted it.

However, she didn’t voice that thought aloud.

****

After finishing her short walk with Kavelaseth, Giselle Grante headed to the dining room.

“Welcome.”

Over the somewhat troubled-looking butler’s shoulder, familiar faces were seated.

Kavelaseth’s closest confidants, Count Preston and Marquis Howard, as well as Duke Blatnik and other nobles of the alliance, were already pleasantly drunk from early evening.

Marquis Howard, who had spotted Giselle Grante and Kavelaseth, walked toward them unsteadily, holding two glasses and a bottle of wine.

“Welcome! Everyone’s been waiting. Would you two like a drink… Huh?”

The gaze of Marquis Howard, who had been approaching them, dropped downward.

Precisely toward the hands that Kavelaseth and Giselle Grante were holding.

Marquis Howard, who had been staring at their clasped hands while blinking, gasped with a sharp intake of breath.

“Marquis Howard? What’s the matter?”

Duke Blatnik, who had been conversing with Count Preston, turned his head in this direction.

Following his lead, the gazes of the nobles in the dining room touched upon the clasped hands of Giselle Grante and Kavelaseth.

“……”

Silence fell over the dining room that had been filled with warmth and cheer.

Giselle Grante tried to release her hand.

But Kavelaseth, as if he had no such intention at all, gripped her hand tighter—just enough not to hurt.

“How strange. Everyone should know that Giselle is my fiancée.”

Kavelaseth, who had swept his gaze over the nobles of the alliance, brazenly kissed her forehead.

“……!”

At his action, the nobles of the alliance gasped silently.

Among everyone present, Giselle Grante was the only one whose face flushed red.

Of course, she too wasn’t unable to understand their reaction.

Kavelaseth was a goal-oriented person.

He was cold toward others, indifferent, and had no interest whatsoever in emotions like love.

For him to not only openly hold hands with Giselle Grante but also kiss her forehead.

For them, Kavelaseth’s change must be very unfamiliar.

By now, they were likely suspecting whether Kavelaseth had become slightly broken.

When everyone in the dining room was engulfed in shock, Mikhail and Duke Amaterasu entered the dining room.

“We’re a bit late…”

The two people who had been hurrying inside seemed to sense the strange atmosphere and quickly looked around.

And they seemed to quickly find the cause.

Cough.

Duke Amaterasu glared at Kavelaseth while clearing his throat threateningly, and Mikhail’s mouth dropped open as he only blinked.

Mikhail, who had been staring at the clasped hands of the two with an expression of disbelief, soon opened his mouth.

“Kavel? Right now, you and my sister are doing what…”

Before Mikhail could even finish his words, Kavelaseth pulled her shoulder in. Then he drew her toward himself quite naturally and held her.

“We’re getting married. I trust you’ll give us your blessing.”

At Kavelaseth’s words, the nobles of the alliance, who had been blinking blankly, began to offer congratulations one by one, hiding their bewildered feelings.

“C-congratulations!”

“You suit each other very well.”

Giselle Grante discreetly gauged her family members’ reactions.

Flames blazed fiercely in Duke Amaterasu’s eyes, and Mikhail also looked ready to rush over at any moment.

It was fortunate that the quick-witted butler of Duke Cardia’s household and Count Preston grabbed both of Mikhail’s arms and wouldn’t let go.

But was it her imagination that Count Frederick’s gaze looking her way seemed somehow melancholy…?

It seemed there was still a long way to go to persuade her family, but that was alright.

Now, Kavelaseth was by her side.

~Fin~