Chapter 173. Astrid's Black Lion (1)
Noah repeatedly expressed his desire to stay at her home, but Olivia sent him away. Because tonight, she wanted to sort out her thoughts alone.
"Then you just have to not go into that room."
Noah's grumbling could be heard, but Olivia, hiding her laughter, pretended not to hear.
"Go on now. Once my thoughts are sorted, I will go to Princess Marguerite's place. Even now, there are many people staying in this small house because of me, and it's inconvenient for everyone."
"I want to try staying in this house too."
Mason and Jonan, who were beside him, looked at Noah with reluctant eyes before simultaneously shaking their heads.
"Please go safely, Your Highness."
"We will take good care of Her Highness, so don't worry~!"
Noah looked at Mason and Jonan, who bowed their heads, with an indescribable gaze, then looked at Olivia's back as she walked away heartlessly.
How truly cruel.
Olivia disappeared without looking back, and Mrs. Betty simply tilted her head in greeting before closing the door.
"It's cold, so cold."
"……."
Noah put his hands in his pockets, kicked the ground pointlessly, and turned around. Then, with reluctant steps, he got into the carriage.
Olivia watched Noah's carriage recede through the window.
A letter was in her hand.
"It's a letter from Ansen Wilhelm, Your Highness."
Her gaze as she looked at the letter was as cold and sharp as frost. As soon as Mrs. Betty, who had delivered the letter, left the room, Olivia took the letter out of the envelope.
As Olivia quickly scanned the letter, her lips twisted to one side.
"...Amusing."
Olivia muttered cynically and threw his letter into the fireplace to burn. After confirming that even the corners of the letter were consumed by flames, Olivia called Jonan.
"Did you call for me?"
"Go to Ansen Wilhelm and tell him to come to the meeting room at the Levidian Hotel tomorrow. The time is 11 AM."
"Understood."
"And, I want to capture that scene in a photograph, so please prepare the camera in advance."
Jonan recalled the article by Les Duing that Ansen Wilhelm himself had published. He bowed respectfully to the black lion, who seemed ready for revenge.
"Yes, Your Highness."
Olivia turned her gaze to the documents detailing Ansen's whereabouts.
To some, it was light as a feather, but to others, it was heavy enough to make them want to give up on life. Olivia looked at the sofa where her grandmother always sat and spoke indirectly.
"Grandmother, as you said, the world was unfair."
"Liv. Only by acknowledging what is unfair can you move forward."
"I always thought I could move forward, but looking back, I realize I haven't taken a single step."
"Now, what is it that you can do? What only you can do."
Olivia nodded calmly at her grandmother's voice, which sounded like a hallucination.
"...Yes, I will."
"I love you. Olivia."
Noah's low, cool voice seemed to embrace her.
"I'll try."
Then, her grandmother's hearty laughter seemed to echo from somewhere far away.
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Meanwhile, Noah, who had arrived at Marguerite's mansion, heard from Margo about the documents Olivia had received.
"I sent her away today because she seemed to have recovered a bit. She said Rick Winford handed them to her right after she left the court."
Noah recalled Olivia, who had been crying profusely. Why wouldn't she?
Ansen Wilhelm. He truly couldn't forgive that man.
Noah paced his room even after returning. He couldn't easily think of what he should do for her.
The setting sun stretched deep into the room, dyeing the world red. The mist-like twilight descended dimly, and soon darkness fell.
Noah watched the servants busily lighting lamps and suddenly remembered the medicine.
Olivia, who took medicine because she couldn't sleep. She said she suffered from headaches the day after taking that medicine.
Thinking of her having to take it alone in the dark while he was away made his insides feel like they were melting.
Noah immediately stormed out of Margo's mansion.
The carriage seemed too slow, so he mounted a horse. Without a moment's hesitation, he spurred the horse on and disappeared somewhere.
When the butler rushed to Margo in a panic, she was looking at her nephew's receding back through the window, a sinister smile on her face.
"The Duke hasn't even had dinner yet..."
"Dinner isn't important right now, so mind your own business."
If Beatrix were here at a time like this, Margo would undoubtedly have made a bet with her.
Whether Noah would return today or not.
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Mrs. Betty, who was tidying up the entrance area before going to bed, was startled by Noah's sudden arrival.
"Your Highness!"
As if being chased by something, Noah hurried down the hallway and opened Olivia's door.
When he opened the door, Olivia was sitting on the bed, drinking water. Noah approached her with a contorted face and asked, his lips trembling slightly.
"Did you take the medicine?"
"Noah."
"You received documents related to Ansen Wilhelm from your aunt today, didn't you? ...Are you okay?"
Anxiety and fear rippled across Noah's shadowed face.
Suddenly, she felt a sense of déjà vu. Facing his anxiety and fear, she remembered the man's voice calling her as if she were going to die.
"Olivia!!!"
She thought the man approaching across the sky must have had a look of pity on his face, but the last face she saw was clearly one of fear.
Noah, with the exact same expression as then, examined her complexion.
"Huh? You still can't sleep?"
Olivia smiled, feeling pity for Noah's frightened face. As she opened her mouth, her voice cracked with emotion.
"Noah, I only took it because I couldn't sleep. Just like taking cold medicine when you have a cold."
"In Herod, you took that because of me."
Noah's voice cracked and trembled. He was still suffering from guilt.
But how could it be entirely his fault?
Because she hadn't fully faced her own life, and because he had interpreted her life as he pleased, each of them struggled.
Olivia slowly pulled Noah's head towards her. Then, she rested her face on his head. His shoulders, which had been tense, gradually relaxed.
"No. Don't think like that."
She felt him, who had been still, wrap his arms around her waist.
"Are you afraid I'll take medicine? At this hour?"
"……."
Olivia smiled and looked down at the man in her arms. And dimly, she realized she had been waiting for him.
"I was just about to have trouble sleeping, so since you're here, could you help me sleep?"
At her small whisper, Noah's head shot up, and Olivia casually averted her gaze, patting the spot next to her.
"The bed is a bit narrow for two..."
"No, it's not narrow at all. What's narrow about this?"
Noah, staring blankly at Olivia, impatiently cut her off and quickly lay down on the bed, as if afraid she might retract her offer.
"Now that you're lying down, there's no room for me?"
"What are you talking about? There's so much space here."
Noah shamelessly insisted. Olivia, finally bursting into laughter, giggled uncontrollably, and Noah watched her laugh without taking a breath.
How long has it been since I heard this laughter?
You don't know how much I've waited for this sound.
Noah felt overwhelmed with emotion and gently pulled Olivia into an embrace. Then, he slowly stroked her hair.
The warm, firm body behind her and the delicate touch stroking her hair.
As she felt his touch, sleep, as if by magic, began to pour over her.
"Noah……."
"Yes."
Olivia said, closing her heavy eyelids.
"Tomorrow, I'm going to meet Ansen Wilhelm."
The hand stroking her hair paused for a brief moment, then resumed.
"Do you want to go alone?"
"Yes."
"Go and shatter him. Will you tell me about it when you get back?"
Olivia laughed in a voice full of sleep.
"Of course."
"I have something to do tomorrow too. Can I come here after I'm done?"
"Certainly."
Noah kissed Olivia's forehead. The body held gently, the sensation of hair brushing between his fingers.
Noah, too, was soon drawn into sleep.
On the narrow, worn bed, the lovers fell asleep simultaneously in the same posture. And through the long night, both found peace.
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
In stark contrast to Olivia and Noah's peace, Ansen endured a sleepless night.
As soon as news related to 'Oliver' shook the front pages of the newspapers, Olivia appeared in court.
The extra editions explicitly hinted at the connection between Oliver and Olivia, and several engineers and researchers who had retired from Wilhelm Corporation continued to make revelations.
[Former Wilhelm Corporation Chief Engineer, Ansen Wilhelm, was aware of the defects in the ship-based Magic Dome.]
[Former Wilhelm Corporation Researcher, 'In reality, the Magic Dome's upgrades are not happening. It's just a cover-up.']
Influential politicians were ignoring all contact from Ansen, fearing they might get caught in the fallout, while the newspapers continuously demanded Ansen Wilhelm to reveal the truth, and the number of employees resigning in agitation also continued to rise.
His legal counsel and his mother spoke with hopeful voices that the Pulder court might not recognize the constitutional petition filed by the Princess of Herod, but that was merely wishful thinking.
Noah Astrid, who had come with him, wouldn't have been idle. He would have already met everyone he needed to meet.
If so, what was the only way he could overcome this predicament?
Ansen was convinced that Olivia was the only person who could save him.
Time passed with cruel slowness. He had arrived at the hotel meeting room an hour early and had been pacing for a long time.
The heavy, tightly shut door opened softly, and a woman entered.
"……."
All of Ansen's movements froze.
She appeared not in a flashy dress, but in a sleek, black suit like a crow. As she walked, the hotel staff offered polite greetings.
It was clearly Olivia.
But... was it Olivia?
Ansen stared blankly at Olivia as if mesmerized, and only came to his senses when she was close.
He quickly extended his hand to greet her. He intended to kiss the back of her hand as a gesture of respect, but Olivia merely stared at him instead of taking his hand.
She closed her eyes once, then opened them and looked at Ansen.
"……!"
The moment her sharp, black eyes fixed on him, Ansen felt as if he were facing Noah.
Could those beautiful, pitiable black eyes change this much in half a year?
Olivia ignored his hand and sat down, saying, "Sit."
Ansen awkwardly folded the hand he had extended and sat opposite her.
"Have you been well?"
In response to Ansen's greeting, Olivia stared at him, then chuckled and said,
"Everyone else can ask if I've been well, but of all people in the world, shouldn't you be the one who doesn't greet me like that?"
"……."
"How dare you."
