BXBX NOVEL Chapter 440
“You found Rivetti?!”
Laura immediately pounced on Viscount Langdel, her face inches from his and her eyes wide.
“Where is she? Is she all right?!”
Viscount Langdel leaned back awkwardly, as if overwhelmed.
“Miss Rivetti is in Moire. A small town near the Rimwell Estate, which Miss Rivetti inherited.”
“Is she healthy? Is she hurt?”
“I don’t know, it’s not mentioned in the report.”
Since there was a report, I assumed that Viscount Langdel had not found Rivetti himself. It must have been one of his men.
I put my hand on my chest with relief. I was worried that Rivetti would commit some folly due to her unfortunate situation.
“Viscount Langdel, is it possible for you to bring Miss Rivetti?”
“Here?”
Could a young noblewoman who had only recently debuted in high society manage a territory on her own? It was unlikely that she had been taught how to do so.
I had heard that her mother was very ill. Perhaps she still retains her faculties, but if her body is weak, it will be hard for her to guide her daughter.
“Just this once, please.”
Viscount Langdel nodded with a smile.
“I will. It is not a difficult task.”
AfterViscount Langdel left, Countess Jubel and Laura exchanged worried looks.
“Will Miss Rivetti come, Countess? I don’t think she will want to, due to shame.”
“It’s possible that she will come, since Miss Rivetti admires Her Majesty very much. It must have come as a shock that her father and brother were in cahoots with ‘that woman’ and lost their lives because of it.”
“But Miss Rivetti had nothing to do with it.”
Mastas and Rose didn’t know Rivetti so they remained silent.
I paced back and forth across the room with my hands behind my back as I listened to Countess Jubel and Laura talk. Shortly after, I went out into the corridor.
Mastas quickly followed me and asked me about Rivetti. As I replied, a sudden pain arose in one side of my belly.
When I stopped with my hands on my belly, Mastas asked in surprise.
“Your Majesty? Are you all right?”
“Don’t worry, I’m fine.”
I lowered my hands and continued to talk about Rivetti.
***
‘… Just as Rivetti needs to learn how to manage her estate, I must figure out how to act on Heinley’s behalf while he is gone.’
Once Mastas went back to sit with the rest of my ladies-in-waiting, I went on a walk escorted by Viscount Langdel and sank into thought. As I walked without paying much attention to where I was going, I noticed Sovieshu standing at the edge of the pond.
For a moment, I thought that he was about to jump.
“Viscount Langdel!”
Startled, I called for Viscount Langdel to grab Sovieshu, and I also extended my hand, intending to freeze the water.
Only a few small shards of ice formed around my hand and fell to the ground, but Viscount Langdel managed to grab Sovieshu around the waist and pulled him back.
Sovieshu was astonished, but quickly became angry.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“I asked him to do it.”
When I explained with indifference, his anger vanished immediately.
“Really?”
Sovieshu smiled sheepishly, as if he was embarrassed by his outburst now that he knew it was on my orders.
“Navier.”
“Don’t be disrespectful. I am Her Majesty Empress Navier to you.”
After he spoke to me with false closeness, I turned and walked away.
Why did I have the impression that Sovieshu would jump into the pond when I saw him there?
Although Emperor Sovieshu had gone through difficult times due to Rashta’s trial and death, and the discovery that his daughter wasn’t truly his own, it didn’t make sense for the 19 year old Sovieshu, who didn’t have these memories, to feel this much despair.
The worry that I felt in the moment turned out to be unnecessary. The situation was so absurd that it hurt my pride.
“Navier.”
I quickened my steps without looking back. I only stopped once I was sure that no one besides Viscount Langdel was following me.
Finally, I felt relieved and sat down on a bench in the garden.
***
“Your Majesty. I need to ask… just in case…”
“No, I never intended to jump.”
At Sovieshu’s firm answer, Marquis Karl reluctantly nodded.
They were back in the room for distinguished guests.
Marquis Karl hadn’t seen Sovieshu’s expression just before Viscount Langdel grabbed him because he was far away. However, it was unlikely that Viscount Langdel would have pulled Sovieshu back like that for no reason.
Sovieshu’s ‘real’ personality, which appeared at night, came to Marquis Karl’s mind.
— Find a way to get rid of the personality that appears by day.
Marquis Karl rubbed his face with both hands.
Could it be that Sovieshu’s day personality knew what had been said? Did he try to jump into the pond due to revenge, or did he think he could destroy the ‘real’ personality with another shock?
Marquis Karl wondered if he was losing his own mind.
“Marquis Karl.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Have you had any worries lately?”
“!”
“Have you?”
“No, Your Majesty. Of course not.”
After Marquis Karl answered with a smile, Sovieshu returned the smile and turned away from him.
Again, Marquis Karl could only see Sovieshu’s back, so he didn’t notice that Sovieshu’s expression had become grim.
‘It’s impossible that the bastard does not think the same as me.’
Sovieshu narrowed his eyes as he clenched his hand.
After the incident a few days ago, Sovieshu started to question the competence of ‘Night Sovieshu’.
‘Night Sovieshu’ didn’t share important information, despite the fact that he was the main culprit of the current situation.
‘He’s truly useless.’
Sovieshu disliked ‘Night Sovieshu’ more and more.
When he saw the pond, the thought crossed his mind that one more shock could cause the ‘Night Sovieshu’ to finally disappear.
Sovieshu relaxed his hand and looked at Marquis Karl via the mirror. He noticed his sad expression.
‘Night Sovieshu’ retained all memories and had more knowledge, so Marquis Karl considered him the ‘real’ Sovieshu.
‘Marquis Karl may be loyal, but he seems to be more loyal to the ‘Night Sovieshu’ than to me. Can I really trust him?’
The inevitable conclusion was ‘no’.