I Won’t Accept Your Regrets

"Ugh… I really thought that everything was messed up."

Lumont took a deep breath, opened the carriage window and checked to see if anyone was following us.

Leaning his back against the side of the carriage, he stared at his hands only to see how violently they were shaking.

His white face showed how nervous he was.

I froze from the tension too.

I'm not going to meet Raymond here and now.

I recognized him by his voice.

During my time as Empress I rarely saw Carter, but I still remember his voice and eyes.

That extremely deep voice and blade-like eyes were features that weren’t easy to forget.

When I heard this voice, I instinctively saw the whole picture outside the carriage.

That meant Raymond was outside looking for me.

My premonition came true.

‘Enough of this charade, stop it.’

Just before the carriage door swung open, Raymond's voice stopped Carter's advance.

It was an exciting moment.

Everything was much more intense than when I met him at the Duke's estate.

I had to hide under the cart altogether, but the knights could find me there too. It was only a matter of time.

And if so… I would have to reveal my identity to Raymond, and I can't even imagine what awaited me after.

He's still looking for me.

According to Lumont’s words, after the day I ran into him at the Duke's house, his knights were sniffing out everything here and there.

Of course, he suspected something that day.

Otherwise, what's the reason to look for a woman who just bumped into him? Something about me struck him as suspicious.

And if he caught me on the spot, I would have to immediately go to the imperial palace, and then my participation in the court would be thwarted.

At worst… Maybe he'll soon find out about Carlisle's existence.

Cold pierced my fingers just from the thought of it.

"In my life I haven’t been so scared. I will never again go across His Majesty …"

"How did you guess that the Emperor was there too?"

"Isn't this the famous commander of the 4th corps? When I saw this face, I realized that the Emperor was somewhere nearby."

I think I underestimated Lumont too much, since he was able to get us out of everything that happened.

"I thought there would be a chase. But it looks like I fooled them," said Lumont, hitting his chest.

"And I escaped safely thanks to you. And I haven’t forgotten about the moment, how quickly you found a servant. As my friend said, you are really capable."

When I sincerely praised him, Lumont looked like he was embarrassed.

"No. What are you, I'm just using all the resources of our organization. Why is this so, stop… And the Emperor came here for the same reason as us?"

"Maybe yes."

"Ellie…"

Lumont looked at me and touched his lips.

"Lumont, you can say it."

"…I have a question."

"Ask anything."

"Why don't we turn to His Majesty? He seems to be on the side of the Duke. But we have to run and hide."

Lumont didn't seem to understand the key point.

Naturally, it was easier to enlist the help of the Emperor.

But Carlisle is standing behind me. This is why it was impossible.

But I couldn’t give him this truth.

"I'm just trying not to mess with His Majesty. We are already divorced, and if it becomes known that he helped me, dirty gossip will spread again."

"I see…"

His face showed that he wanted to ask more. However, he said nothing, as if he felt how firmly I drew a line here.

The wagon suddenly crossed the gate and returned to the capital. When I arrived at the mansion, it was already well past midnight.

I got out of the carriage and said to Lumont before heading to the mansion:

"Send Helen and Carlisle to a new location in the morning."

"What happened to this place?"

"In the morning I go to court. Then it will become common knowledge of my return to the Empire… We must hide Helen and Carlisle in a quiet place."

After I raise a fuss at the trial, the attention of the entire public will be focused on me.

Newspapers are catching up too. So for now, I will have to hide my son by all means.

"Good. As soon as tomorrow comes, I will try to cover my tracks."

"Good job. And come to court on time."

"Don’t hesitate, I will appear before them like a lion."

Lumont looked at me with burning eyes. Has he forgotten how he spoke to Raymond recently? He was trembling like an aspen.

He's really peculiar.

"See you tomorrow."

Saying goodbye, I turned towards the mansion.

* * *

When Ellie successfully contacted Thun, a candle lit up in the office of the Marquis Sios.

Marquis Sios frowned when he saw the report on the table.

"Is it certain that the servant has disappeared?"

"Yes, sir. This is the servant that Count Barten brought with him every time. Therefore, he is a servant who has seen and heard all your meetings. And this boy suddenly disappeared."

Bam-!

The Marquis couldn’t stand his anger and hit the table hard.

"I told him to be careful! But he was running around with this servant everywhere! Does the Count know that the servant has disappeared?"

"No."

"Are you saying that the servant that this idiot always took with him disappeared, but the count didn’t understand this?"

"That’s right."

At the knight's words, the marquis slapped his forehead.

"That doesn't matter now, Father."

A woman's voice came from the other end of the office.

The Marquis turned to the woman seated on the sofa.

Lisa, a beautiful woman with blond hair woven with golden threads, forced a smile onto her face.

"Yes, this isn’t the main thing. But you better tell me this. Why the hell are you laughing in such and such a situation, Lisa?"

The Marquis didn’t hide his displeasure.

"Tomorrow will be the trial, and I don't know who stole the guy who could turn the whole game. Is it funny to you?"

The Marquis frowned. Lisa got up and went to the marquis.

"You can cry if you want to, father."

"What?"

These absurd words instantly threw the marquis back. And as if she no longer cared about her father's reaction, Lisa turned to the knight.

"Did you see anything suspicious before the disappearance of the servant? Whether the knight of the Emperor came… Or some suspicious woman."

"Woman?"

There was no convincing evidence, but the Marquis assumed that it was the Emperor who took the servant.

Duke Croft had already been tied hand and foot, and there was no one else beside him except the Emperor.

But Lisa had a different opinion.

Besides Raymond, there was one other person who could help Duke Croft.

Ellie Croft.

Former Empress. And she disappeared for six years.

It isn’t known where she was, but she must have heard about her father.

And unlike other noble families, these father and daughter got along well.

Her father was hanging by a thread. Rather, it would have been strange if she hadn’t come back yet.

The knight shook his head at Lisa's words.

"I haven't seen anyone who looks like a knight. And the woman… I haven't seen anyone."

"So you missed the servant by your stupidity."

"Yes?"

The knight wondered if he had heard wrong. But Lisa had already turned away.

"Father, I think you should change your plan for tomorrow."

"What do you mean? Even if they put this servant as a witness, it's okay. Who will believe the boy's delirium when all the evidence is already in front of their eyes?"

Lisa sighed.

How dumb was he?

Her father didn’t deny himself idiocy either in the past or now.

From the very beginning, Lisa didn’t think that this could ruin the whole plan.

He seemed to think that the relationship between Duke Croft and the Emperor was unimportant, but Raymond would not have left his close friend without a fight.

"No, father. If we present ourselves as idiots at the trial tomorrow, the nobles who believed in us and followed us may have doubts."

"My father has already lost the trust of His Majesty. If this servant shows up at the trial tomorrow, we will not avoid surrender. Otherwise, we will lose everything at all."