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It happened shortly before the return, not long after the news that Louis Rosenberg had died.
“Your Majesty, Lady Fontaine asks to see Your Majesty.”
After Louis’ funeral, as she and Wilhelm were grieving, Olivia came to see her.
Anastasia met her without a single hesitation.
Because she thought it was the same comradeship that lost her nephew.
It was an action she would not have done if she had been Anastasia in the original.
“I greet you, Empress.”
Anastasia looked worriedly at Olivia’s helpless greeting to her.
She wasn’t even that kind of person by nature. She had a rather dry and cold impression, so it was true that whenever she visited the island of Schweig, it was difficult to deal with her without hesitation.
But her reunion with her after Louis’ death, Olivia’s face, was far more injured than she had originally known.
Her cheeks were sunken as if she hadn’t eaten properly, and her eyes were wide open. Her hair was also dry and brittle.
Anastasia groaned, she looked so gloomy like a dead person.
How heartbroken she was. She thought so.
“Welcome, Lady Fontaine. Your complexion doesn’t look very good.”
“…”
“Are you eating right? I am worried.”
“… I am just eating enough to not die.”
“I know it will be very heartbreaking. But in times like these, we have to be strong.”
It was Olivia, a nanny on the island of Schweig, who cared for Louis almost like a mother. She, whom she often visited and met, was much more sad than herself.
It was when Anastasia was looking at Olivia with her sad heart.
“I… … I killed His Majesty the Prince.”
Anastasia asked with a bewildered expression at her unexpected confession.
“What do you mean? The Prince had a fever…”
“I should have taken better care of the Prince.”
Olivia sobbed and covered her face with her dry hands.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Ahh…”
Did she mean that? Anastasia comforted Olivia with her sad groan.
“Don’t say that, Lady Fontaine. I know better than anyone how much love the lady took care of the prince.”
“But, but…!”
“Knowing that the lady is so sad, the dead Prince will also be sad. More than anyone else, he would want the lady to be happy.”
“… Is it?”
“Sure.”
“… Actually.”
Olivia barely stopped crying and she said to Anastasia.
“I have something to give you.”
“What…”
“It was meant to be given to Your Majesty the Empress before the Crown Prince passed away.”
“Louis… … to me?”
Hearing Olivia’s words, Anastasia’s eyes flickered quickly. She asked in a trembling voice.
“That is… … What is it?”
“May I come near you for a moment?”
As Anastasia nodded her head, Olivia moved closer to Anastasia. Anastasia asked Olivia with agitated eyes.
“What the prince wanted to give me…”
But the question was not finished.
This was because Olivia, who was only a short distance from Anastasia, pulled out a pin and stabbed Anastasia in the chest without hesitation at the moment.
“Ah…!”
Anastasia stared at Olivia with fast-widening eyes.
With a blank face, she stiffened her backside and pulled it out without hesitation.
Blood came out of the hole. Anastasia groaned and stumbled in pain.
“Why…”
“Shut up. Louis died because of you.”
Olivia lifted her blood-stained needle once more with a gruesome look.
“You should die like my sister.”
“Wait….”
Anastasia reached out helplessly, but it was a meaningless struggle.
“Her Majesty the Empress!”
At that time, the lady-in-waiting who heard Anastasia’s scream rushed into the reception room.
Surprised by the appearance in the reception room, she hurriedly quarantined the two and called the Guards.
“You killed my baby. You, you ruined everything! You stupid, naughty girl! Die, die, die! Die! Die! Die!”
Olivia screamed as if she had lost her temper.
“Capture this woman and put her in a dungeon right now!”
“Your Majesty, can you hear me? Your Majesty the Empress!”
“The Empress’s lungs…”
That was it. Anastasia was unconscious.
~~~~
“Fortunately, the wounds were not deep. Not piercing her vital point, Anastasia quickly regained consciousness.
But as soon as she woke up, Anastasia had to face another shocking situation.
“… Is Fontaine the culprit who assassinated His Majesty the Emperor?”
She couldn’t believe that she had suddenly changed her attitude and wanted to kill her, but they were the assassins of the former Emperor and his wife.
‘It’s something that didn’t exist in the original.’
To Anastasia with a puzzled expression on her face, Mrs. Rochester explained her circumstances.
“We searched the mansion where Prince Louis stayed on the island of Schweig while Her Majesty was unconscious.”
“Why the mansion suddenly…”
“The sudden attempt to kill the Empress, and if she is such a distraught woman, she may have been involved in the death of the Prince. His Majesty has commanded them.”
“Then maybe…”
Anastasia asked Mrs. Rochester with her nervous look.
“Is Lady Fontaine involved in the death of the Prince?”
“Fortunately, that was not the case…”
The Duchess of Rochester furrowed her brow and muffled her lips.
“During the search process, Fontaine’s diary was found.”
“A diary?”
“Yes. There, the motive and circumstances of the crime three years ago were written in detail.”
The truth she heard from three years ago was far more terrifying than she was prepared for.
~~~~
Olivia Fontaine appreciate her birth very much.
She said it was a good thing, of course, that the Marquis of Fontaine was her father.
But the fact that her mother was the maid, not the Marquess of Fontaine, was an intolerable shame.
Even though her birth mother died giving birth to her, and she was raised by the Marquis of Fontaine from the time she was infant.
By the time she began to speak, Marquis Fontaine’s wife, who could not ignore her affection for raising her, had officially entered her family register, but Olivia was always unhappy that she was not the right girl for Marquis Fontaine.
The Marquess of Fontaine, as well as her half-sister Violet, treated her as a true family.
A person with an unhealthy heart often accepted sincere favors in the worst way possible.
‘After all, without even thinking of me as her real daughter.’
Olivia was disgusted with the pretense of the two.
As proof of that, the Marquis of Fontaine did push her half-sister Violet in her place as the candidate for Empress of Emperor Alexander.
The age difference was only ‘only’ 6 years.
‘It should have been mine. I have a better appearance and my qualities as an empress are overflowing…! Anyone who sees it would think so, why the hell did he use Violet instead of me!’
But Olivia did not express any dissatisfaction and remained quiet as a good daughter and as her good sister.
It was because of the words of the Marquess of Fontaine on the day Violet became Empress.
“You should get married to a good place too.”
It’s a good idea. Of course she meant as a Duchess, right?
Olivia, who had her hopes, held her breath and listened to her obediently.
‘If you’re a Duchess, you’re no better than an Empress.’
One day she waited for her father to decide her marriage, inflated with her dream of becoming a Duchess day by day.
“Your marriage has been decided.”
Finally, the Marquis Fontaine announced her fate.
“Marry the second son of Count Arte.”
The most terrifying thing she had never thought of.
~~~~
“Greetings to Her Majesty, the sun of the Empire.”
“Welcome, Olivia.”
Empress Violet greeted Olivia, who came to her with a big smile.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you. How have you been?”
“Your Majesty, too. I visited you last week.”
“Please come often if you don’t mind. Life at the Imperial Palace is so lonely.”
“But I understand His Majesty is very kind to you.”
“What? Haha.”
Violet laughed embarrassingly, and Olivia asked Violet with some expectations.
“Have you ever had a fight?”
“No way. As you say, His Majesty is too kind to me.”
“…I see. That’s a relief.”
Contrary to her answer, Olivia clenched her fist. This is because she expected a feud between the two.
However, even after a few years of marriage, the relationship between the two was still solid, and there seemed to be no room for themselves to squeeze in between.
Olivia, who controlled her emotions by swallowing dry saliva, continued calmly.
“I actually came to talk to you about something.”
“Oh, I had something to tell you, too.”
Violet looked bright as if she thought Olivia’s words were good news.
“Go ahead, Olivia.”
“Well…”
Olivia said after a brief silence.
“I’m getting married.”
“Oh, is that true?”
Violet clapped her hands and rejoiced.
“Good for you, Ollie. I was worried about your late marriage. I thought I’d ask our father to hurry up and get you married.”
“…”
So, who’s going to be your husband?”
“The second son of the Count Arte.”
“I’ve heard of Count Arte’s second son. A man of good character. You’re marrying a really nice guy. Congratulations, Ollie.”
…Congratulations
Olivia could not hear Violet’s sincere words.
Horncher was a count, but upon the death of Count Arte, his second son would take over the title of Viscount, not Count.
Then she herself would become the Viscountess. Even the Viscount was in the countryside, very far from the capital.
Naturally, Olivia protested at first.
“How could you do this? You said you’d make me a Duchess!”
But…
“What? When did I say that?”
“You were sure you’d marry me to a good place…!”
“This greedy thing. You’re out of your mind!”
“Father, what do you mean…!”
“You should be grateful that you’re registered in my family register. Oh, my God, Duchess! How dare you cross the bridge when you’re a daughter of a maid. You should be grateful for the position of the Countess’ daughter-in-law.”
She was completely betrayed. Olivia rebelled after that, but the Marquis of Fontaine did not give up, saying that she had to pay her debt.
“… Do you really think so?”
Even though she was born as the same young daughter of the Marquis of Fontaine, she ended her life as a mere Viscount. Did Violet really think this was a good thing for her?
‘At best, she’s a woman who will become a Viscount, but what do you know about such a personality?’
Of course, Violet’s husband was also a man of good character, but he was an emperor.
He was one of the most handsome men in the empire. There was nothing to compare it to with mere small works.
But Violet couldn’t even imagine Olivia’s dark side, and only answered with her bright face.
“It’s like that in life. After all, it’s best to have a good personality in a spouse.”
Olivia thought Violet’s words were a deception.
She was angry that she seemed to be making fun of her.
‘She is the Empress after all. So she can just scratch my insides with those words.’
Olivia, in her wrath, was silent, and Violet shyly changed the subject.
“Actually, I have good news for you.”
“What? Please tell me.”
“Actually…”
Violet cautiously confessed.
“I’m pregnant, Olly.”
As soon as she heard her words, Olivia felt something inside of her cut off.
“Louis now has a younger brother!”
“… Congratulations.”
It was her love for Violet, who had been carrying on a very thin string. Even if it was only half, the affection she had as a sister.
But the moment she realized that she was in a position to become a country Viscountess and Violet was in a position to become a great Empress who gave birth to several princes, Olivia decided.
‘Even if I die, I won’t be able to see you being happier here.’
She wanted her to give back the happiness that was originally hers.