Ch#70
2023.11.09.
If she was a vassal whom Herdin trusted enough to entrust consultations about this incident, she would surely waver at Blair's words about wanting to clear Esmeralda's wrongful accusation.
And Blair's approach worked precisely as intended.
"But......"
Watching Agnes hesitate without firmly refusing or agreeing, Blair seized the opportunity to press her opinion further.
"Even though it's late, I want to clear Her Majesty's injustice now."
"......"
"Help me, Agnes."
Agnes let out a deep sigh at Blair's earnest plea but ultimately gave in.
"......Just this once, instead."
Blair's face lit up at finally hearing the answer she wanted. Seeing it, Agnes quickly added sternly,
"If you show even the slightest sign of strain, or if you suffer any aftereffects afterward, you must obey me without question."
"Thank you."
Agnes smiled as if conceding defeat at Blair's smile despite her warning.
"Are you that happy? It must be incredibly difficult for you."
"There are things that must be done, even if they're hard."
Agnes looked at Blair with worried eyes as she spoke calmly of the pain her trauma would bring, then recalled something and said,
"If you're doing this to gain recognition in Delmark as quickly as possible, I want to tell you there's no need. The people who reject you for that reason are the bad ones."
At Agnes's concerned words, Blair's eyes widened in slight surprise before curving into a gentle smile.
"......There was a time when that was true, but not anymore."
A trace of bitterness tinged her smile as she answered.
"I've regretted that incident for a very long time...... and now I don't want to regret it anymore. That's all."
Agnes thought Blair's eyes seemed to gaze into some distant place, but she shook off the thought upon hearing the faint chime of the grandfather clock.
"Alright. Shall we begin then? Before His Grace returns."
* * *
As evening dusk settled.
A woman in a black robe was followed by a woman in an olive-green robe as they alighted from the carriage.
Holy knights guarding the side door blocked their path into the Temple.
"I'm sorry, but you must return today. The Temple is closing......"
The woman in the black robe then pulled something from her inner pocket.
It was a badge emblazoned with the Imperial crest.
Only then did the holy knight look flustered and examine the woman in the olive-green robe.
Platinum blonde hair, scarlet eyes, and a beautiful face untouched by time.
Recognizing her, the holy knight hurriedly bowed.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't recognize you. Please, come in."
He stepped aside, signaling to the puzzled knight beside him who hadn't recognized Katrina.
The two women passed them and entered the Temple, unaware of another gaze watching them.
Their footsteps stopped at a private chapel.
The Temple had private chapels prepared for high nobles who wished to pray and meditate in quiet.
The woman in the black robe remained at the chapel door, while only the woman in the olive-green robe entered alone and removed her hood.
Katrina's face was revealed beneath it.
As Katrina personally lit the candles while walking around the chapel, another person entered.
"What troubles bring you here so urgently?"
Gerard approached Katrina with his usual gentle smile.
Katrina's composed expression crumbled the moment he appeared, like a beast revealing its weakness only to the one it trusted most.
"......Your Holiness."
"Yes, Your Majesty. Speak freely. I will help however I can."
Katrina bit her trembling lips hard before spilling out the pent-up pain.
"Blair...... is recovering her memories from that day."
"......"
"What should I do?"
Her scarlet eyes swirled with anger, betrayal, fear, and various other emotions as she asked.
Gerard approached with a smile, as if understanding her without explanation, took her trembling hand, and soothed her.
"The Princess Imperial is Your Majesty's daughter. What worries you so? She won't defy natural bonds."
"No, you're saying that because you don't know that child. She's fully capable of dragging me through the mud. I know her well."
Katrina recalled Blair calmly responding to her demands to stop the hypnosis and consultations.
'Don't suppress me anymore, Mother.'
Those eyes. That gaze.
Just recalling them made her teeth grind.
"That child...... resembles that woman. More than I do."
When Blair was born, Katrina had been utterly satisfied.
A pretty daughter who took after her completely.
One son resembling her husband, and beneath him, a daughter resembling herself—perfect for completing the family picture.
Moreover, being so lovely like her, she would shine in high society and strategic marriages alike.
The Emperor cherishing the daughter who resembled Katrina felt like proof of his love for her.
Esmeralda doting on Blair also pleased her, as it felt like possessing what that woman lacked.
Katrina's life had been perfectly flawless.
Until she realized, as Blair grew, that she was gradually resembling Esmeralda more each day.
At first, it frustrated her.
'You're my daughter, so why?'
It felt like the child born from her womb had suddenly been stolen.
So she tried to mold the child into her own image by force.
But even after Esmeralda's death, even as she grew to resemble her more in face, she couldn't hide her true nature.
The moment she faced Blair, who had her face but Esmeralda's exact gaze, it was utterly horrifying.
It was as if the dead woman's ghost had come back to life.
At some point, Blair had shifted from a proud trophy to a rival to be defeated.
How pitiful, wretched, and...... delightful it had been to see that child crave even a shred of her affection and receive none.
But everything went awry when Blair married into Delmark.
Following Ivan's advice to absorb Delmark's power through the strategic marriage had been a misstep.
"......That day's truth must not be revealed."
Katrina muttered desperately in a voice thick with urgency.
If the truth of that day came to light, everything she had built over her lifetime would crumble.
That could never be allowed.
Gerard, watching the trembling Katrina with calm eyes, finally spoke.
"If you're truly worried, then do this."
* * *
"Then sweet dreams, Madam."
"You too, sleep well."
After helping Blair change into her nightgown and even brushing her hair, Melli quietly left the room.
Blair gazed at the door that wouldn't open again for a moment before rising from the vanity.
He hadn't visited her bedroom for the past few days, but just in case, it was best to retire early.
As she finished preparing for bed and was about to slip under the covers, Blair noticed her unconsciously trembling hands and clasped them together.
It was the lingering aftereffect of the hypnosis she had undergone with Agnes that afternoon.
Blair sighed at her body reacting beyond her will.
The hypnosis, started with such vigor, had ended in failure.
Despite struggling with Agnes for a long time, the young Blair in her subconscious never escaped the wardrobe she was trapped in.
Perhaps it wasn't trapped but locked away to protect herself thoroughly.
Still, she had glimpsed one thing not seen in the previous hypnosis.
In her subconscious, through the crack in the wardrobe, Blair had seen a maid's uniform.
The face of the maid said to have died there that day.
But facts already revealed held little meaning in uncovering the incident's truth.
Agnes had comforted the disheartened Blair, saying it was 'proof that memories are slowly returning,' but separately promised no next session.
'If you have no aftereffects tomorrow, we'll consider it then.'
Thus, today's session ended.
Lying in bed, Blair clasped her still faintly trembling hands and prayed fervently.
That she would be fine even tomorrow morning.
After soothing herself for a while, Blair's eyelids slowly closed.
* * *
Upon waking, Blair blinked her heavy eyelids slowly before snapping alert.
'Where...... is this?'
Not only had the place she slept changed from bed to sofa, but this wasn't the scenery of her bedroom where she had fallen asleep at all.
Yet it felt familiar. Even nostalgically so. Especially the faint scent filling the room soothed her heart.
Blair slowly rose. Then, against her will, her hand moved to rub her still sleep-clouded eyes. That hand was small.
The moment she realized it, a voice escaped her similarly beyond her control.
"Her Majesty the Empress?"
Lifting her head, she saw someone at the foot of the bed.
"Oh my. You're already awake, Blair?"
A nostalgic voice. A nostalgic face.
But it was Esmeralda, now a trauma for her.
The instant she saw her, Blair intuited.
'......A dream.'
And simultaneously, that this was no mere dream but a memory from some forgotten time alongside the incident.
