CL Chapter 3

At the age of eleven, Charlotte sat nervously in the reception room of the royal palace.

This was the moment she was to be introduced to her fiancé, whom her father, King Diandel of Ignator had personally chosen.

The seat across from her remained empty.

It wasn’t that the other party was late, Charlotte had simply arrived far too early.

Her heart raced with a mixture of curiosity and excitement.

Unconsciously, her steps quickened.

There was still half an hour until the scheduled meeting.

It was a short time, yet long enough for Charlotte to fill it with thoughts of her future fiancé.

What family would he be from? Could he be a prince from a neighboring kingdom? How old would he be? Would he be close to her age? Or perhaps a young man who had already had his coming-of-age ceremony? What kind of person would he be? Would he be smart? After all, he would be the future head of state, so it would be ideal if he were wise and prudent.

As these thoughts flowed one after another, they suddenly vanished from her mind when the sound of a knock on the door brought her attention back to the present.

Only one question lingered.

‘Would he….like me?’

But that last lingering curiosity was soon dissolved as the boy, stepping into the reception room at Charlotte’s consent, calmly introduced himself.

“I am Leo Carthenon, the second son of the Duke of Carthenon.”

Charlotte, who had been watching the boy approach with a look of wonder, suddenly felt as though she were falling off a cliff.

The boy’s dark brown hair, faintly tinged with black, slowly lifted as he looked up, his gaze meeting hers.

What……?

Who did he say he was?

‘I am Leo Cartheon, second son of the Duke of Carthenon.’

The boy’s polite greeting echoed in her mind like a distant ringing.

‘I am Leo Carthenon, second son of the Duke of Carthenon.’

The words seemed to pierce her ears like a sharp needle.

“It’s an honor to meet you.”

The boy calmly finished his introduction.

Charlotte remained silent, staring at him.

The second son of the Duke of Carthenon was an illegitimate child.

How could the future queen of Ignator be betrothed to a illegitimate child? Such a thing had never occurred before in the history of the kingdom, no matter how many volumes of historical records were scoured in the royal library.

Since Mia’s birth, Charlotte had gradually realized that her position was changing.

I had known it, but this situation was different.

It was as though this engagement was a declaration that the future of Ignator would not rest in her hands.

At some point, her lips, which had been tightly pressed together, trembled.

The bitter taste of despair filled her mouth.

If there is a flavor to despair, perhaps this is it, Charlotte thought faintly.

It was then that she felt a soft touch on her fingertips.

“…….”

It was a handkerchief.

The illegitimate son had offered it to her. He didn’t fuss or make a show of concern, but simply did what he felt was necessary and helping her with quiet dignity.

But it wasn’t a wound that could be wiped away with a piece of cloth.

Charlotte glanced at the boy’s offering with distaste.

She knew he was not to blame. In Ignator’s social circles, illegitimate children were always looked down upon, but Charlotte, unlike others, believed the fault lay not with the child but with the circumstances of their birth.

Had he not been her fiancé, she might have welcomed him warmly.

They might have shared tea and sweet treats, talked, and perhaps even become friends if they found common ground.

If only he weren’t the proof of her abandonment.

Charlotte snatched the handkerchief from the boy’s hand and wiped her eyes instead of her lips. The dry fabric quickly became wet.

The boy waited silently, standing still until her sobs began to subside, patiently enduring the cold silence of the princess who neither greeted him nor allowed him to sit down.

“Princess…”

When her weeping had slowed, the boy finally spoke again.

Charlotte, wiping her face, met his gaze directly.

It was green.

Like newly sprouted leaves in spring.

“I will become the Duke of Carthenon,” he said.

That little sprout declared that it would one day be a forest. So there was no need to cry.

That day, the princess who had been cast aside by her father fell in love.

 

⋆｡°✩ ★ ✩°｡⋆

 

 

It must be a lie.

Leo Carthenon, known as the light of Ignator.

If something like that had happened to him, even the remote palace would not have remained so quiet.

Charlotte couldn’t understand what he hoped to gain by saying such things.

It was all nonsense.

She recalled the boy’s green eyes, staring steadily at her, and slowly began to rebuild the wall around her heart.

“…Have you lost your mind?”

The insult was aimed at her father, Diandel.

“You should have called for a physician, not me.”

She built her defense up again, piece by piece.

“Have you become so incapable of distinguishing right from wrong?”

She hid behind the wall she had created.

“Is this really what you want?”

Charlotte tapped her temple, convinced she was now safe.

The bitter mockery that lingered in her mind, a disrespectful comment directed at her father didn’t seem to bother her anymore.

Diandel’s eyes twisted in anger.

Charlotte, satisfied with the small victory, allowed the tension around her mouth to fade.

Thud.

A crumpled piece of paper suddenly landed at her feet.

“It’s a letter from Baron Erik Moore.”

The words added weight to the situation.

Baron Erik Moore was one of Leo Cartheon’s closest allies.

“If you don’t believe it, see for yourself.”

Despite her vow to never bow to him again, Charlotte bent down to grabbed the crumpled paper without hesitation.

Her hands shook as they unfurled the letter.

She wanted to look at it, but didn’t want to at the same time.

The conflicting emotions made her hands tremble.

When her eyes caught the beginning of the letter, she held her breath, reading every word carefully.

It spoke of an unknown illness, the resulting loss of vision, and detailed how Diandel’s nonsense was somehow made true.

“……”

The letter slipped from her hands, falling to the floor as a chill ran through her body.

Even in a room where the temperature was always warm, it felt unbearably cold.

Why? How could this happen?

The walls she had built around herself collapsed, and all Charlotte could do was stare in disbelief.

“Mia……What about Mia?”

Mia had always adored Leo Carthenon.

Even when he was to be Charlotte’s fiancé, Mia had wanted him.

She had blushed when they met, hiding the shy feelings that clung to her heart. And in the end, she had claimed him.

There was no way Mia would let go of Leo Carthenon now. Not when he was about to become Charlotte’s.

Mia would never allow it.

“Mia…..What did she say..…?”

The answer never came.

Charlotte turned away and walked out of the room.

The face of Mia, who had so sweetly stolen what was hers, appeared in her mind.

She wanted to crush that face beyond recognition.

It felt like a mission, a duty she had to fulfill.

“Ugh..…”

But as Charlotte snapped back to reality, she found herself caught by Diandel, her father, choking her with his hands.

In his desperate attempt to protect his daughter, the king had thrown aside his throne and rushed toward her.

“How dare…..A lowly…..creature like you…..”

“……!”

His voice, twisted with hatred, filled her ears.

Through the haze of unconsciousness, Charlotte could see his monstrous face and hear his cruel words, reminding her just how insignificant she truly was.

In all her life, there was only one thing Charlotte had ever wished for, one thing she had desperately longed for, but now, she had given up on it long ago.

Affection.