A natural smile spread across Seseenia’s face.

“If others see, they’ll think Rohan is worried about Teddy, not me.”

“What?”

“I mean the way people look at us.”

Belatedly, the two who were looking at each other lowered their heads without saying who would go first. The sight of them clapping their hands like a doll, moving only their necks, was quite impressive.

“No, I like women.”

“I like you, Master. I absolutely dislike Mr. Rohan.”

“…I dislike you too.”

“Haha…”

“…So, you look even more suspicious, Teddy.”

Rohan looked at Teddy with a rather disappointed expression, but Teddy just smiled. A very small smile. It was a smile that Teddy, whom she met briefly in the past, never seemed to make, something she couldn’t even imagine.

“Now, shall we go? Teddy.”

“Oh, yes!”

As if waiting for Seseenia’s words, Teddy moved. Watching them with an awkward expression, Rohan followed them until they left the store.

As soon as they got on the carriage, Lizbeth, as if familiar with it, mentioned the destination, and the carriage slowly sped towards Matop.

As always, Lizbeth, with her hair tied high, looked intently at Seseenia, clicking her tongue left and right.

“I wonder why you’re going to Matop today. Lizbeth.”

“Oh! How did you know?”

“I just felt you were curious. I’ll ask Teddy a bit about why we’re going.”

“I see.”

As always, Lizbeth’s questions went only that far. It seemed like she didn’t want to cross the line, as Lizbeth only solved one-dimensional curiosity. Where they were going today. Whether there was a reason for the purpose.

Why they were going there, why she was curious, there was nothing about that.

Perhaps because she had lived as a maid in the past, not as an empress, when she was with her, the oppressive feeling of the empress, which was heavy, seemed to disappear from Seseenia.

Even putting aside revenge for a while, it wasn’t bad to live happily during this time. Just this time was enjoyable and happy. Like a puppet already dead, placed inside this time with the intention of being the only breathing hole for Seseenia, Lizbeth was a quite significant presence to Seseenia.

“Miss.”

That’s when it happened.

“Huh?”

“When I’m with you… Father looks like he used to in the old days.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Something happened. So I was separated from Father for a while. He came back after some time, but… the Father I saw after a few years seemed like a different person. He hurriedly hid his emotions. But… when I’m with you, when I’m at the Iar Emporium, Father looks like the playful old days.”

Seseenia tightly held Lizbeth’s hand beside her.
“I will continue to make it like that. It might be tough because I’m in charge of the Emporium’s work, but still… Rohan being Rohan-like, Lizbeth being Lizbeth-like. I want to live that kind of life. So, please take care.”

“Yes…!”

After saying that, I felt a bit sorry for Teddy.

No matter what, Teddy wouldn’t be able to live as Teddy. The most comfortable and peaceful time in Teddy’s life is right now. Now Teddy had to live as a noble close to punishment. So, Seseenia silently stared at him with a sense of guilt.

“Master.”

“Yes.”

“Can I live as myself?”

“Teddy…”

What should she say? In fact, should she say that Teddy’s lineage is like this? But blurting out such words right away was difficult. Ultimately, confirming that he belonged to the noble lineage was a priority.

So, Seseenia couldn’t say anything.

At that moment, Teddy smiled brightly.

“It’s okay, I am.”

“Huh?”

“Even if there is no peace in my life, it’s okay because I have this moment. I… mean it. I lived imprisoned. Freedom has come to me. And… there are people who think of me. I thought God hated me terribly… but maybe pretending to hate me was not to give me such joy.”

Teddy stroked his neck.

She tried to undo it several times, but Teddy refused, so the restraint on his neck remained. The fact that he had a restraint proved that he was a slave. He was so stubborn that even if she tried to use it as an excuse, Teddy refused to untie the restraint.

When the restraint was untied, he looked like a person whose reason for existence disappeared, and he seemed both pitiful and tender.

Not knowing that he wanted to belong somewhere, Seseenia still couldn’t untie the restraint around his neck.

“Teddy.”

“Yes.”
“What kind of life did you live? Do you remember anything?”

“Ah……”

“If it’s hard, you don’t have to speak.”

Seseenia knew about him. Ermus, given by his mother. And that mother gave him that name before selling him.

Even though she knew he was a precious child of the imperial family, a boy who could ascend to the throne, the woman sold her son as a slave. And then a sponsor who rescued the abandoned prince.

The last thing she remembered was that the sponsor was not from a prestigious family.

‘Now that I think about it, it’s strange.’