“That. Are you only polite at times like this?”

“Well, well. Unnie, it’s not just any position; it’s a position where you can become the Empress. Shouldn’t someone as noble and well-mannered as Unnie go? So, don’t think about conceding. Then, Father, I’ll go. It seems like you’ve said everything.”

“Uh…? Y-yes. Go.”

“Father!!! You should stop her!”

“Why stop her? Your father wishes for you to become the Empress.”

At times like this, there was no separate commander. It was the same in the past. The Marquise, who had convinced Elzé, who had thrown a fit even in the past, expressing her dislike for the Crown Prince and his engagement, now faced a similar situation.

In the end, Elzé collapsed without eating for a week. Unexpectedly collapsing, Elzé hit the ground hard, causing a significant amount of blood to flow. Only then did the Marquise stop trying to persuade her.

So, in the current situation, there was no way to give up on Elzé and hand over the position of the Crown Prince’s fiancée to Cessenia.

Cessenia poured the tea that was placed with dessert into herself in one go and left the room.

“Interesting.”

Cessenia, who had always felt uncomfortable during family meals, even humming a tune now, Elizabeth chuckled.

“Is something good happening?”

“Yeah. Something very interesting.”

“That’s fortunate. I was worried that you might be feeling unwell after the family meal.”

“No. You don’t have to worry. Now, let’s go back to our rooms. Probably… Unnie will come soon.”

“Miss Elzé?”

“Yeah. We need to go and wait in advance.”

Even during the meal, Elzé had been wanting to say something to Cessenia.

Once they parted ways with the Marquise, it was clear where they would go. Therefore, Cessenia lightly walked to her room more than ever.

As expected, Elzé came to Cessenia’s room.

“Do you have nothing to say to me?”

“Of course, you came. You should have made a bet or something.”

“What?”

“I thought you’d come right away. Maybe I should have made a bet with you.”

“Huh. Seriously annoying.”

“Isn’t it a bit foolish to ask if the person who came has something to say? Someone who came to visit will have something to say. What can someone who was quietly in the room have to say?”

Sip. Sip. Cessenia, who had nothing to do while waiting for Elzé, made a loud noise while drinking her tea.

“Ha. So irritating.”

“Opening the door without any manners is on your side, so why are you annoyed?”

“Who’s annoyed by that? You know the situation. But why refuse? Aren’t you supposed to get engaged to Prince Herbert naturally? Huh?”

“Why am I…? Unnie, are you really… stupid?”

Now with no intention of hiding her own emotions, Cessenia slightly tilted her lips and looked at Elzé.

“W-What do you mean by stupid?”

“Or… are you really treating me like a fool? Why should I get engaged to that guy?”

“Originally, it happened. So, shouldn’t it continue that way?”
Cessenia stood up from her seat with a somewhat worried expression, firmly holding Elzé’s hand. Elzé, taken aback by Cessenia’s unexpected gesture, tried to withdraw her hand hastily, but Cessenia’s grip was quite strong, leaving Elzé helpless.

“Unnie, think about it. If a regrettable past came back in time, what would you do first?”

“What?”

“You know, things like breaking off the engagement with the fiancé as soon as time reverses, saying, ‘Let’s break off our engagement,’ or divorcing your husband. Usually, don’t people do something like that first? But right now, I am in a time that hasn’t reached even such a situation, a very clean and perfect time. So, why would I… like an idiot, stubbornly choose that path?”

“…….”

“So what I’m saying is, I wonder if unnie asking me such a thing is really not like an idiot. Otherwise, why would you insist on me walking that shitty path? Is something hurting somewhere?”

The drooping eyebrows seemed genuinely concerned about Elzé. Irritation suddenly overwhelmed Elzé due to that concern.

“And, unnie. He was the man you wanted so desperately. The person you wanted so much that you betrayed your younger sister. But why suddenly, out of the blue, why would you try to yield to me?”

“…….”

“That’s right. Even though you knew he’s my husband, you snatched him away. So, shouldn’t it be okay for me to have him in this life? How nice it would be. Just have him from now on. Anyway, it’s obvious that Prince Herbert will become the emperor, like seeing fire. Instead of insisting on yielding, just put him in a precious treasure chest. His place suits unnie perfectly.”

Elzé, who had been silent all along, spoke then.

“If it were you, would you want to marry the person who killed you?”

“It seems like he did kill unnie. In that case, what about me? Wouldn’t I add more to that? Marrying the person who killed me and even betrayed me each time, wouldn’t I want to?”

“Anyway, I don’t want to. I won’t do it. You marry him.”