Who Regressed the Timekeeper? - Chapter 42
Amy was startled.
“What? How could I dare to……”
But Noah was adamant.
“To me, Amy is the closest person in the world. I think you can certainly do it.”
“But still……”
“I don’t want to order you to do this. Will you do it for me?”
“……”
When Amy didn’t easily give in, he now almost pleaded. Then he pulled out his ultimate trump card.
“We’re friends, aren’t we?”
After hearing that, there was no way out. Amy nodded reluctantly.
“I understand, Your Highness.”
“!”
Noah’s face brightened. Unable to contain his joy, he grabbed Amy’s hands and muttered as if to himself.
“Now I won’t be lonely even when I’m sick.”
“……”
Amy did not answer. But Noah could feel Amy tightly grasping his hand back.
“Lady Amelia.”
When she returned to the outer palace, the Crown Prince’s head maid was waiting for her as usual. In just a few days, her once plump face had noticeably lost weight. It seemed the Crown Prince had been giving her a hard time.
“Today he insisted on bringing you……”
“I’m busy.”
Amy quickened her pace without even looking at her. The Crown Prince’s head maid frantically chased after her, trying to persuade her.
“But he really hasn’t eaten anything today. If the honored guest of the duchy, His Highness the Crown Prince, becomes ill, would that be good for the duchy and the Grand Duke?”
“……”
Amy, who had been striding quickly, suddenly stopped. Then she glanced sideways at the head maid who had also stopped, leaning against the stone wall and panting, and thought.
‘She’s not wrong.’
It was better to be cautious until the Empress and the First Prince properly clashed. Amy irritably brushed back her hair and changed direction, starting to walk towards the separate building where the Crown Prince was staying. It was the first time she would see the Crown Prince in two weeks since the attempted poisoning incident.
“Your Highness the Crown Prince! Lady Amelia is here.”
The Crown Prince’s head maid proudly puffed out her chest and raised her voice. Amy entered the inner room slowly with an indifferent expression. The Crown Prince, who had been lying in bed pretending to be sick as a show of protest, bolted upright in surprise.
“Really? Amy really came?”
“……You seem fine?”
Amy looked at him with disdain and made a remark. The Crown Prince stared at her blankly and murmured.
“It really is Amy.”
“There’s no fake Amy, so of course it’s me.”
She retorted apathetically and plopped down in the chair next to the bed without permission. Of course, no one was going to say anything about that. The Crown Prince’s head maid, sensing an opportunity, quickly sent a maid to the kitchen to bring food.
“Amy……”
The Crown Prince dragged out the last syllable and pulled down the corners of his mouth. Amy ignored his attempt at acting cute and said coldly.
“Why did you call for me?”
The Crown Prince pouted and grumbled.
“Your tone is too harsh. It doesn’t seem like our Amy.”
“Who is ‘our Amy’? It’s certainly not me.”
“Then, my Amy?”
The Crown Prince blinked his eyes and made a cute expression. Amy silently stood up from her seat.
“It’s a joke, a joke! Don’t go!”
The Crown Prince hurriedly grabbed her, and Amy glared at him sideways.
“Please be careful. I’ve learned since coming here that I have less patience than I thought.”
“……I’ll be mindful.”
Seeing him deflate and twitch the corners of his mouth at Amy’s words, the Crown Prince’s head maid felt her frustration boiling over. She could understand why the Empress disliked Lady Amelia so much.
‘She really turns people into fools.’
As the Crown Prince’s head maid shook her head thinking this is why raising sons is a waste, she heard the Crown Prince’s awful words.
“With Amy gone, no one takes care of me.”
“!”
Both Amy and the Crown Prince’s head maid were shocked. Is that true? When Amy looked at the head maid with a doubtful expression, she shook her head vigorously in dismay. It meant she had never done such a thing.
“……If you pay a lot of money, there will be a line of people willing to do it.”
Amy, quickly losing interest again, brushed off the dust on the hem of her skirt. The Crown Prince, thinking Amy was joking, laughed and hit her arm.
‘I’m serious.’
Amy frowned, trying to endure the pain. That’s when the Crown Prince brought up an unwelcome topic.
“Oh, did you know? Even when I say I’m sick, Lady Esmaine doesn’t bat an eye.”
“……”
Lady Esmaine. The moment she heard her name, it felt as if time had stopped. At the same time, Amy could feel the cold dampness clinging to her skin. And the sensation of her vision spinning from the pain of hunger……
Unaware that Amy’s face had turned pale, the Crown Prince continued to grumble.
“I don’t know how a woman can be so cold. She has no affection at all. She’s so different from Amy.”
Amy took a deep breath, suppressing her anxiety. Just then, she was suddenly reminded of Noah’s suggestion that they take care of each other when one was unwell. Her erratically beating heart soon found its proper rhythm again.
“……From what I see, I don’t think that’s the case.”
“What?”
As the Crown Prince looked bewildered, Amy said calmly.
“She stays by your side because she has affection for you.”
“……”
The implication was that if she had no affection, she would have run away long ago. As the Crown Prince’s face hardened, Amy added.
“She’s different from me.”
“……Amy.”
“Cherish her.”
Amy said this and then looked directly into the Crown Prince’s eyes without avoiding them. Hoping he would realize that there was no use in holding onto her any longer.
“……”
How much time had passed? Eventually, the Crown Prince’s complexion turned pale and his eyes began to tremble uncontrollably. He had accepted, as Amy had hoped, that she had completely abandoned him. But he still didn’t want to believe it.
The Crown Prince’s cheek twitched as he moved his lips.
“Amy…… did you ever truly want to become my companion?”
“……”
Amy was momentarily taken aback. After regressing, she had imagined a few times that she might one day be asked such a question. Each time, she had confidently said that she never had, without the slightest hesitation. But now that the moment had actually come in reality……
“…Honestly, I thought it would be difficult. Her Majesty the Empress would have opposed it to the end.”
She was saying such things. Ridiculously……
‘Have you forgotten what happened before the regression? When I fell into a miserable state, you turned a blind eye and left, pretending not to see me. That’s how cowardly a person you are.’
A direct confrontation was always frightening. Amy tried to calm her rapidly beating heart once again and continued her thoughts calmly.
‘Even just looking at before the regression, it’s been proven that the Crown Prince is not useful. I can’t hold onto that card again because of past affection.’
She steeled herself and looked straight at the Crown Prince.
“I think this is as far as Your Highness and I go.”
It was time to completely part ways with the kind person who had pretended to be afraid on thunderous nights, falsely trying to hold her hand.
“Yes, Mother would have done that.”
The Crown Prince nodded slowly, staring at the floor with gloomy eyes. Thinking that he too had understood their situation, Amy felt a weight lift from her chest.
‘If you no longer bother Noah, I too will stop here.’
Amy’s eyes darkened as she thought of Noah.
‘The Crown Prince doesn’t know. If Noah had lost his life at the banquet, I would have torn you apart with my own hands.’
Recalling that time, she unconsciously clenched her fist as murderous intent welled up. Then she startled.
‘When did my feelings for Noah become this deep…?’
Before she could fully examine her own heart, the Crown Prince cut off her thoughts abruptly.
“I understand. You can go now.”
As if she had been waiting for those words, Amy immediately stood up.
“Yes. And as agreed with the Empire, Your Highness’s return date has been set for a week from now.”
With that final announcement, Amy left without looking back. The Crown Prince felt even more miserable seeing how light and unburdened she looked.
“……”
He closed his eyes tightly and then slowly opened them. There was no further contemplation on the Crown Prince’s face.
Amy thought that was the end of everything. But she had forgotten how obsessed the Crown Prince could be with a toy he couldn’t have.
[This is the timeline separator]“Who did you say came?”
Amy stood up in surprise at the news Mary brought.
“Sir Jack and Sir Dwayne. They arrived about a week earlier than expected. They should have passed through the castle gates by now.”
Mary chattered excitedly. The maids had already rushed out to see them. It was welcome news after a long time, since the banquet had been turned upside down by the attempted poisoning of the Grand Duke and the nobles had left like the ebbing tide.
“I wonder if the Crown Prince’s knights will quiet down now? Phew……”
Mary shook her head. Though they were still behaving outrageously, Vernon was controlling them well, and they didn’t cause disturbances beyond a certain level, so the conflict remained calm below the surface.
Amy walked quickly down the stairs from her office, glancing back.
“Surely you’re not still planning to harass the knights?”
“Oh my, Lady Amelia. How could weak women like us do such a thing……”
Mary cupped her cheeks with both hands, opening her moist eyes wide and fluttering her eyelashes. Of course, Amy wasn’t fooled by the detestable act.
“If there’s a fire in the knights’ quarters, or if someone falls down the stairs, or if weapons are damaged, know that everyone will be gathered. I’ve also strictly instructed Lady Weaver, so don’t try to be clever.”
“……Yes.”
Mary pouted dejectedly, but her mind was spinning.
‘She didn’t say anything about not messing with their food.’
She was inwardly giggling when she suddenly stopped. Jack and Dwayne had already passed through the castle gates and were walking across the outer courtyard, surrounded by people. It seemed they were coming to report their return to the Grand Duke.
“Lady Amelia!”
Like a dog seeing its owner after a long time, Dwayne raised both arms and waved them vigorously. Jack stopped and bowed politely. Amy quickly approached them and looked them over.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
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