Because of Her Majesty, the time to study had been reduced, and he had to stay up all night, so he couldnât tell her not to come anymore.
It was because he was afraid.
With that said, it seemed that Anastasia would not come to him anymore.
Then, goodbye to all the strange toys he saw for the first time, games he had never heard of, and the strange stories.
For the first time, the rainbow-colored existence of play intervened in his achromatic daily life where there was only study, study, and study.
Because he knew very well that if Anastasia were gone, no one would give him such a rainbow colored life.
He didnât want to give it up. So he hid it and pretended to be okay.
âDonât cry. Itâs my fault.â
âNo⊠Itâs not Louisâ fault.â
Anastasia heard that, and now she began to cry out loudly.
As things got worse, Louis panicked.
âI⊠âŠIâm a bad friend. I was excited to play with Louis⊠⊠I didnât realize how hard Louis was having it⊠âŠWell, itâs all my fault. Sorry.â
âNo, itâs notâŠâ
Louis looked at Anastasiaâs face after he came out of her arms.
She closed her eyes and cried like a child.
âI thought adults wouldnât cry. Maybe not.â
âWho said that? Did Olivia say that too?â
Damn Olivia. Anastasia continued to whimper as she uttered swear words in her mind.
Looking at Anastasiaâs face, Louis carefully reached for her.
âAhâŠ!â
Anastasia looked at Louis with a surprised look on her face at the small warmth of his hand.
Louis was wiping away tears on Anastasiaâs cheeks with a rather serious face.
âDonât cry.â
ââŠâ
âIf you cry, Goddess Rosenia wonât give you a birthday present.â
Anastasia smiled unconsciously at the words, and Louis frowned upon seeing them.
âDonât even laugh. Youâll get hurt if you cry and laugh.â
âWhat should I do?â
âJust stay still.â
At Louisâ instruction, Anastasia eventually looked at Louis without crying or laughing.
Anastasia stared at Louis, who was still absorbed in wiping tears from her cheeks, and asked.
âThe Empressâ Palace⊠Are you sure you donât mind following me?â
âYes.â
Louis replied in a faint voice.
âSince I donât have a nanny anymore, Your Majesty will be my nanny.â
âAhâŠ.â
âHave you already changed your mind?ââ
âOh, no! No way!â
Anastasia, who hurriedly replied, quietly added a moment later.
âIâm glad you woke up safely, Louis.â
ââŠâ
âI was very worried.â
Louis, who was silent for a moment when he heard it, asked.
âDid you nurse me?â
âNurse you⊠how to answerâŠâ
Anastasia clumsily answered.
âIâve been by your side the whole time.â
âWhy?â
âBecause Louis is sick.â
âThereâs a lot of people whoâll take care of me.â
âThatâs true, butâŠâ
âItâs annoying, nursing. Why didnât you ask your subordinate to do it?â
âIt wasnât annoying at all.â
Anastasia denied it in a tone as if it could not be.
âI just wanted to be the first one to see Louis wake up.â
ââŠâ
âI thought I would be relieved if I saw you as soon as possible.â
There was nothing false in the way she said it, so Louis was confused.
That look, like a mother.
In fact, it was an expression he had seen from Anastasia a few times.
But especially today.
âWhy are you being nice to me?â
He couldnât understand. WhyâŠ
Why did she look at him like that?
Why did she worry about him with that?
âŠin fact, she hated him.
âOr in fact.â
Watching Anastasia struggling to speak in a quivering voice, Louis became confused.
âDonât you hate me?â
Anastasia was only showing a completely different appearance from Oliviaâs numerous warnings from the beginning until now.
She didnât hate him, she didnât try to kill him, she didnât ask for anything.
Just, she did everything for him. As if she didnât want anything, as if he were truly her darling nephew.
In fact, it was quite a long time ago that such suspicions arose.
âLouis, look at this. Is it funny?â
Looking at the face of the ugly doll while laughing like a child, he thought expressionless.
âDoes Her Majesty really enjoy being with me?â
Otherwise, every aspect of her was too delicate and realistic to be a play.
âPerhaps⊠⊠You might like me a little bit.â
But if it was true, that would be saying that Olivia had been lying to him all this time.
âWho should I trust?â
He was confused but what was more confusing was his mind.
From that moment on, Anastasia became undeniably better.
In fact, it was strange that Anastasia wasnât kicked out even though he was prepared to study all night.
They became friends by some chance, but it was just an illusion, and if he wanted to get rid of her, it was possible.
He was also confident in being harsh. Olivia had taught him to do that.
Olivia thought Anastasia was persistently going to the Imperial Palace despite his persistent rejection, but it wasnât that.
He never actually rejected her fervently.
Of course, even if he refused, Anastasia would have kept coming.
He pretended not to know, but he knew.
Actually, he enjoyed watching Anastasia more than playing.
Her Majesty the Empress, who always said nice things to him, always smiled when she saw him, and Her Majesty the Empress, who looked at him warmly with loving eyes.
Itâs because he liked it.
He tried to ignore it, but he had no choice but to realize it.
âIâm going to take care of Louis until I find a new nanny, what do you think?â
As soon as he heard that, he knew he wanted to follow her.
At the same time, he thought it was a good opportunity.
Because he thought maybe Olivia was lying to him.
âIâŠâ
The world he has believed in so far may be all lies.