To You Who Forgot Me - Chapter 4

To You Who Forgot Me (1)

 

“I’m sorry, Lady Leah. His Highness is very busy with government affairs today…”

 

Leah looked up at Victor, who bowed his head in disdain.

 

Was it because of the dreams she had been having for the past few days? The reality in front of her didn’t feel quite real.

 

“…Lady Leah?”

 

When Victor called again, Leah blinked her eyes wide open.

 

“Oh, sorry.”

 

Taking a deep breath, she thought over what Victor had said to her. Then, the reality that she had forgotten for a while poured out at once.

 

A month has passed since Caius returned. And she received a notice of breakup from him about two weeks ago.

 

Ever since, Leah had been shut out of the door by him.

 

Concealing her pale fingertips, Leah calmly raised her head. Victor hesitated when their eyes met and spoke cautiously.

 

“Lady Leah. I’ll let you know as soon as my lord gets better, so maybe for the time being…”

 

Leah, who understood what he couldn’t bear to say, nodded politely.

 

“Okay. I’d rather not come for a while.”

 

Victor lowered his head as if he had become a criminal for no reason. Leah aloofly asked Victor to do so.

 

“If Caius comes looking for me, please make sure to inform me.”

 

“Yes, I will definitely do that.”

 

Only after she heard a firm answer did Leah turn her body around.

 

She took her steps, trying to stay as steady as possible, but she couldn’t help her feet trembling.

 

[“One month. Let’s keep the engagement just that much longer.”]

 

Leah thought that if she looked into Caius’s eyes and went through the memories one by one, he might remember.

 

Because their time was not insignificant enough to disappear like this.

 

However, to the displeasure of that thought, there was no time for Leah to squeeze into the daily life of Caius, who had become a completely different person.

 

Caius, who had decided to end this relationship by himself, hadn’t even met Leah after unilaterally notifying her of the breakup.

 

Swallowing her breath, Leah walked down the long, rugged hallway.

 

Courtiers were busy roaming around in the large hall under the marble balustrade.

 

As if to prove that Caius had a different status than before, the palace of the Emperor was now filled with countless people.

 

Leah learned long ago that Caius, who seemed perfect at any time, was actually an unfortunate Prince who had lived under numerous threats.

 

[“My mother passed away when I was twelve.”]

 

Caius was not the current Empress’ biological son but the son of the former Empress, who had passed away.

 

With the death of his mother, Caius lost his strong position.

 

After the current Empress, the Emperor’s official mistress, was appointed to the position, the forces that kept him in check increased rapidly.

 

It was said that the Empress existed behind the opponents who threatened Caius at every turn.

 

Such an Empress already had a child of her Imperial lineage, and she was frantic about overthrowing Caius, a thorn in her side, in order to elevate the second son to the pinnacle of power.

 

The reason why Caius suddenly left for the battlefield was definitely the influence of the Empress.

 

[“A dispatch has arrived from the front lines. His Highness, the First Prince, has succeeded in conquering the southern region of Tarond.”]

 

However, contrary to the Empress’ wish, Caius brought victory to the Empire every time.

 

The Empress gnashed her teeth silently, and those who sided with her and rejected Caius trembled with anxiety.

 

Caius, who returned from the three-year-long war as a great victor, firmly established himself as an undeniable and strong successor.

 

The Emperor, who had constantly weighed the two Princes with an ambiguous attitude, now recognised Caius as a worthy successor.

 

It won’t be long before the coronation day is decided.

 

It was fortunate. Leah sincerely thought so. But she was still disillusioned with herself, which she couldn’t help but laugh at.

 

Still, the despair over the fact that he couldn’t remember her was greater. Leah, biting her lip, turned the corner.

 

Just then, a man walking from the other side spotted Leah and whistled.

 

“I can see everything from here, Princess.”

 

Leah raised her gaze at the familiar yet unpleasant voice. And she reflexively hardened her expression.

 

The blonde man approaching with a grin was his Second Prince, Diego.

 

“Seems like I’m meeting you on your way to see my brother?”

 

Diego walked over, blocked Leah’s way, and spoke deftly.

 

The same sapphire-coloured eyes as Caius’s slightly curved.

 

“Oh dear, the long-awaited lover has returned, but is it natural that you don’t want to be away even for a moment?”

 

Leah, who had been glancing at him, turned her body away without saying a word. Just as she was about to pass, Diego, with his outstretched arm, once again blocked Leah’s path.

 

“What’s this? You’re not even responding now? That’s disappointing.”

 

Looking up at Diego, who was making an exaggeratedly sad expression, Leah opened her mouth coldly.

 

“Get out of the way.”

 

Since Caius left, Diego has been blatantly approaching Leah for some reason.

 

At first, Leah thought it was merely curiosity-driven interest, but that thought was proven wrong as he persistently continued.

 

For example, he would strike up conversations from an overly close distance, causing strange rumours to spread among the courtiers.

 

“It’s been a while since we met, yet you’re acting so distant. It truly saddens me.”

 

Diego stretched out his hand and patted Leah’s hair on the side of her head, smiling. Leah swatted the hand away and stepped back from him.

 

This way, he mocked her with an unpleasant expression.

 

Diego laughed loudly as Leah glared at him with her fists clenched.

 

“HAHAHAHA! Princess, it’s troubling when you look at me like that.”

 

His laughing face resembled the famous Empress with her exquisite beauty.

 

But in Leah’s eyes, it just looked dirty and unscrupulous.

 

“You know. That every time you look at me like that, it makes me feel so good.”

 

Diego, who made a calm, crazy remark, leaned his arm against the wall and looked down at Leah.

 

“So, what did you and my brother do?”

 

“…”

 

“Oh, yeah. Did you even get into bed?”

 

Diego babbled without hesitation at the sight of her freezing.

 

“There wasn’t even a chance to hold a woman during the war. It must have been to the point of bursting at the bottom from sobriety for several years. If it were me, I would have ripped off this modest dress as soon as we met again.”

 

Leah couldn’t stand it any longer and pushed his shoulder firmly. Diego raised both hands as if surrendering, smiling with cheeks dimpled.

 

He smiled until his dimples hollowed out as if he would not do anything.

 

‘Crazy b*st*rd.’

 

Swallowing the words that were up to her throat, Leah ferociously passed by Diego. The more she displayed her emotions and anger, the more he enjoyed the moment. He also learned that ignoring him was the best response from his experience.

 

“Well then, be careful on your way back, Princess. I’ll be looking forward to seeing you again soon.”

 

Diego shamelessly greeted Leah with a small smile as if having had enough fun.

 

Leah accelerated her steps, ignoring the gaze that followed her all the way. The knuckles of her hands, which had been holding back the displeasure, turned white as she gripped the hem of her dress.

 

Diego had been famous for being a libertine for a long time.

 

Rumours spread through the palace that he lived each day drinking and taking dr*gs, indulging with multiple women in the same bed.

 

What he did in his private life was none of her concern, but the fact that his unruly behaviour caused trouble for her was a different story.

 

She had expected him to be quiet for a while since Caius came, but nothing had changed, as expected.

 

Since he was a man who didn’t even respect the Emperor and Empress in the first place, there was no way he would bother with Caius’s feelings.

 

Leah bit her lip and hurriedly exited the palace. The meeting was not the least bit pleasant, and her already gloomy mood sank even further.

 

* * *

 

“My Lord.”

 

Standing in front of the table across the office, Victor bowed in silence.

 

Without even looking at Victor, Caius passed a document in his hand.

 

His indifferent eyes skimmed through the densely written letters.

 

“Well, personnel assignments have been completed, and border reorganisation is proceeding smoothly, isn’t it?”

 

Victor, who cleared his throat big and small, kept his eyes on Caius and continued.

 

“You aren’t too busy right now… How about spending some time with Lady Leah?”

 

Caius did not respond even to the carefully suggested words. Victor persisted in persuading him.

 

“She’s been coming for days, saying she would like to see Your Highness’ face. I don’t think it’s a very good picture that you consistently ignore like this every time…”

 

The fact that Caius lost his memory was unknown to the outside world.

 

If they knew there were gaps in his memory, he was certain that there would be many people who would try to bring him down.

 

“…If you continue to reject Leah like this, someone will probably have questions.”

 

Caius finally raised his shaded eyes and stared at Victor. His body flinched at the sight of the fierce gaze.

 

Victor knew it meant to shut up and leave, but he couldn’t move his feet and grunted.

 

After Caius returned, he quickly melted into life in the Imperial Palace. But he still couldn’t remember Leah’s existence.

 

It couldn’t have been more unfortunate and tragic.

 

“That matter.”

 

Caius finally opened his mouth, put down the folder and raised his eyelids.

 

“Why exactly did I get engaged to her?”

 

The hard eyes narrowed with suspicion. His eyes still looked distrustful of his engagement.

 

Victor rolled his eyes, trying to figure out what to say.

 

They got engaged just before Caius left. The opportunity came when the Emperor, who had repeatedly opposed objections until then, suddenly gave permission.

 

However, even before that, they were not engaged in marriage, but were in an official relationship.

 

Their engagement was neither politically motivated nor instigated by anyone. It was an engagement made purely because they wanted each other.

 

However, if Victor told Caius this story as it was now, he would most likely be treated like a madman.

***