Chapter Three

The Elysium residence was fairly far from the imperial palace.

Leonhardt, who had just woken up from sleeping in his nanny’s embrace, looked outside the window, still sleepy, and fell into deep thought.

The witch of the Clock Tower was the most outstanding magician in the history of the empire. Thanks to her, he was able to go back to the past.

The proof for that was the room he used when he was a child, the mark under the bedside table, and finally, his nanny—who was supposed to have left the palace when he came of age—greeting him the moment he opened his eyes.

Furthermore, today was not just an ordinary day, but the day when he was going to meet the future empress, Lady Elysium. Perhaps this was the last chance the witch had given to his ignorant self.

Or maybe the witch, feeling sorry for the empress who had never been loved, cursed him to love her for the rest of his life without being loved in return.

Either way, it didn’t matter. Looking back, he had more than one thing to feel sorry about regarding her. His last remaining conscience could not allow him the right to either love her and make her happy or to be so brazen as to apologize.

Leonhardt let out a deep sigh as he continued pondering. One way or another, he had managed to come back to the past.

The future had been set, and there was no guarantee of success if he gambled to get out of that mold. Too much risk if he failed.

Then there was only one thing to do—just let the future repeat itself, but don’t repeat the foolish acts he had done before.

“What if the lady refuses to get engaged to me?”

“Your Highness?”

Even someone like me managed to come back to the past. There was no saying that the empress couldn’t do the same.

No, rather, it was the empress who should’ve had the right to get a new life after her death. Leonhardt decided that he would hear her out obediently if she turned out to be opposed to the engagement.

“Such an unsavory thing would never happen.”

…Nanny’s right.

From Leonhardt’s memory, the duke of Elysium was a man so blinded by power that he would try to push his second daughter into his son-in-law’s chamber in place of his late eldest daughter.

Leonhardt pursed his lips in dissatisfaction. Whether the duke’s personality was noble or trash, the most important thing in today’s first meeting was her opinion, not anyone else’s.

“But… what if the lady doesn’t have a good first impression of me, or—”

“There’s no way!”

His nanny shook her head, serious. “How can any lady ever reject such a beautiful person?”

…She was right about that, too. When Leonhardt remembered the picture drawn of him when he was around thirteen to fourteen years old, he nodded in his mind.

Amethyst eyes that only an imperial heir was permitted to have and platinum blond hair he inherited from his mother. Although his defined jawline and sharp nose were currently covered by baby fat, he was certainly going to grow up to be a widely known gorgeous man in the empire in a few years.

“If you’re so worried, how about taking a gift with you?”

“A gift?” Leonhardt tilted his head. A gift, huh…?

“What does the lady like?”
Leonhardt mentally bit on his tongue. No matter how much he tried to remember, he had never given her a single flower, let alone a precious gemstone. Even so, he couldn’t say that the crown he put on her head on the coronation day was the only present he ever gave her.

Should he at least buy a big diamond ring, or a rose made out of ruby now?

“The lady turns eight this year. Wouldn’t girls of that age usually like dolls or playhouse toys?”

Eight years old. Hearing that, Leonhardt stopped himself from telling the carriage to turn around to the nearest jeweler.

The Lady Elysium he was meeting today was not the lady who was so perfect it gave him the chills when she came to the palace, but a little girl who should’ve been playing while laughing innocently in the gardens… she was just a child… like him.

“For me to not have any idea of what my future wife likes, I’m a failure as a husband…” Leonhardt held his head and groaned.

Should he go to a toy store? He should find something there if he went. Wouldn’t the most expensive one be the best? But what if the lady unexpectedly liked something simple instead?

If that was the case, what if she perceived his gift as a burden and formed a first impression of him as someone who frivolously spends money? His anxious thoughts kept growing. Leonhardt, who was getting cold feet, started to rack his brain over what an eight-year-old girl would like.

Suddenly, the atmosphere turned so strangely quiet that Leonhardt shifted his gaze. His nanny and the other maids were hurriedly hiding their delighted smiles by turning away, or looking out the window, or hiding their face between their knees.

“…What’s wrong with you all?”

“N-no… Your Highness… Oh, she would love a doll, wouldn’t she? I’m talking about a bright-skinned doll made out of ceramics. It has eyes made of glass beads and dressed in silk dress. It also has a pair of exquisite shoes personally created by a shoemaker…”

“You think the lady wouldn’t have one of those in her room? A doll is a dime a dozen. How about flowers instead? There is no woman who dislikes flowers.”

“Flowers might wilt fast, so how about some books instead?”

“If she’s a lady who wants to be an adult quickly, perfume wouldn’t be so bad, either!”

“How about a dress instead…”

“No, it should be a doll!”

“Flowers!”

“Books!”

“Everybody… calm down!” She silenced the maids, who were chirping away fighting over whether a doll or book was better. With a tired face, his nanny pulled Leonhardt, who was sitting quietly in the corner of the wagon, to her side and embraced him.

“As long as Your Highness picks it carefully while thinking of the lady, I’m sure she would be happy even with a wildflower growing on the roadside.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because the thought behind the present is as important as the value of the item itself.”

“…Is that so?”

Leonhardt was once again stuck. If he could, he wanted to give her everything from the doll, the books, to the flowers. But he wanted to give her something special, not ordinary stuff like that.

This was a reunion for him, but it was going to be their first meeting for her. If possible, he wanted to give her a good first impression. Not for the sake of his atonement, but purely so he could see her happy smile.

Though, I can probably say goodbye to making a good impression considering I have a bandage on my forehead… Leonhardt smiled bitterly as he once again let out a deep, deep sigh.

***

“The Elysium residence is over there. We’re just going to make an introduction today, so don’t be too worried about not getting a gift ready. That’s right! How about asking the lady what she likes with this opportunity?”

“In person? I should do it?”

His nanny and the other maids nodded in unison. As he got off the wagon with his nanny’s help, Leonhardt hid his perplexed look.

When his nanny explained that the road he thought was a forest a while ago was actually only the entrance to the residence, Leonhardt hummed as he tried to pull out information about the Elysium family from the depths of his memory.

“Now that I think about it, didn’t the empire’s very first empress come from the Elysium family?” His nanny observed. “Hoho! It’s like Your Highness is visiting a very distant relative’s house.” She smiled at Leonhardt. “Your Highness, please treat the lady gently. First impressions are important.”

The duke of Elysium’s residence was built out of white stones, and that made it look more suitable for a temple than a residence. When he remembered the empress’ selfless consideration, kindness, and gentleness… when he thought about how almost unbearably nice she was, Leonhardt felt like maybe the rumor about how the Elysiums were descended from angels was really true.

A bitter taste filled his mouth when he remembered her. Leonhardt refused to take his nanny’s hand and chose to go up the marble stairs by himself. The duke and duchess of Elysium were already waiting for him at the entrance to the main building. It towered over them, a massive structure made completely of sheer white stone.

“Greetings to the little sun of Esphedor.”

Leonhardt only replied to the duke of Elysium’s greetings with a little nod. The duchess, wearing a glamorous dress, gracefully bent her knees to greet him. However, Leonhardt’s gaze was already set on the future empress, who stood trembling by their side. Her pale face was tinted blue, like she was going to run out of breath at any moment. She did not even lift her head to look at them.

“Does the lady feel unwell?” Leonhardt asked while looking straight at the duke of Elysium’s eyes. The duke, who had the Elysiums’ signature silver hair and blue eyes, was visibly surprised by the unexpected question from the Crown Prince.

Has the duke always been this sort of person?

Leonhardt tried to remember again. In his memory, the duke of Elysium was more… How to say it? At least, he seemed like a person who knew how to conceal his feelings, like noblemen usually would.

“It seems like she’s nervous due to this being the day of her first meeting with Your Highness. Let me show you in, Your Highness.” The duke turned to address the duchess, saying, “Wife, will you please fix Isolde’s attire?”

Leonhardt forced the corners of his mouth up. Something felt off. He could easily guess why they called her Isolde, the name they gave to match his name, instead of a perfectly fine name like Elizabeth. Giving her the name Isolde was like declaring that their daughter would be the empress no matter what.

The duke of Elysium personally opened the door and escorted Leonhardt in. Meanwhile, the lady and the duchess withdrew with a light bow as soon as they entered the main building.

***

Elizabeth Isolde von Elysium. The only lady of the Elysium family, born as the Crown Prince’s fiancée—she would be the Crown Princess and, eventually, empress. As soon as they entered a room away from the others, the lady’s mother shoved her to the ground.

“Kyaaah!”

“How many times have I warned you?!”

“Mother! I apologize! The corset… the corset is too tight, so…”

“I’ve told you over and over again, you have to get on His Highness the Crown Prince’s good grace! I’ve always told you that the first impression is important!”

Elizabeth clung to the duchess as she stayed on her knees.

“Show me your calves!”

“Mother! Please… please forgive me just once!”

However, the duchess grabbed Elizabeth’s skirt and roughly yanked her pleading daughter away from her, as if she were handling an object rather than a little girl. The duchess snatched a new dress from nearby—and a rod made of ash tree.

“Hurry up!”

Elizabeth sobbed so hard she couldn’t breathe. Her mother taking out a new dress meant that she was going to be hit so much that her blood would get on the skirt. Moreover, the rod her mother took out was the one made of ash.

Elizabeth got on her knees and begged as if her life depended on it. She was starting to hyperventilate. She had already been struggling to breathe because of the corset that was so tight it nearly crushed her waist. If she cried more than this or was struck, she might really pass out.

“Mother, please forgive me. Or at least please allow me to take off the corset. Please! If I cry and pass out…”

“Then you should just not cry! How dare you make excuses?!” the duchess screeched. “Hurry up and show your calves! How could you not realize that all of my teachings have been for your sake, Isolde? Hmm?”

Her breath hitching in her throat, Elizabeth crawled and held to the drawer so she could get herself up. She tried to steady her hands to lift her skirt, adjust her breath. Just like what her mother said, she might be able to breathe as long as she didn’t cry.

She was just eight years old. A young girl who was supposed to be playing in flower beds, laughing, but she was forced to wear a severely tightened corset, a pair of high-heeled shoes, and a heavy dress. Under all of that were the rod marks put there to “help her be more graceful.” New marks on top of old ones meant they became red and deep, wounds like valleys that would never be filled.

The rod, wielded with little thought to its impact, found its way to the already tender scars of the young child. Each swing, while silent in its arc through the air, spoke volumes as it brushed against the delicate barriers of her healing skin.

“Ahhh!”

“Don’t make such a fuss! Get up already, Isolde!”

“Mother!”

In the end, it only took three hits to make Elizabeth fall. There was no way such a tender body could withstand the duchess’ fully powered hits on top of a dress that was too heavy her small body.

Elizabeth’s vision was thick with tears and shooting pain. She heard the duchess’ step sounds stop right in front of her.

“Everything I do is for your sake. How can you not know that it tears my heart as your mother apart every time I have to hit you…”

“Hic… Hic… Mother… I was wrong… please forgive me…”

After hitting her daughter’s calves with a venomous look and without hesitation, the duchess lifted her young daughter’s chin with the most benevolent expression on her face. And with a silk handkerchief, the duchess gently wiped the tears and snot ruining Elizabeth’s beauty. She then set her upright.

The duchess’ face then turned fierce again, as if her gentleness just now was just an illusion. “Set yourself straight. What’s with your clothes?! I told you that you must always be impeccably dressed! You still need to be educated. You’ll be grateful to us once you become the empress. Get it, Isolde? Hurry and get up!”

“Mother… Hic… It really hurts, please… please forgive me just once. Please? Once His Highness leaves, you can hit me twice as hard, so please…!”

“I said don’t make a fuss!”

Knock, knock, knock.

At that moment, Elizabeth and the duchess turned their attention to the door. The duchess’ face turned pale. The only time the duchess would turn pale was when the duke would personally discipline Elizabeth. The cane that the duke was holding might look like a normal cane made out of ebony tree, but it was actually very heavy with lead inside.

The day she got her “lessons” with it, her mother complained to the duke for the first time, saying, “What if you break Elizabeth’s bones and people find faults in her even though she’s going to be the empress?”

Elizabeth earnestly prayed that the person on the other side of the door wasn’t her father.

“Wife, can I come in?”

“P-please wait. Isolde’s condition suddenly turned bad, so she just fell asleep on the bed.”

With a glance and a gesture with her chin, the duchess ordered Elizabeth to go to her bed. Elizabeth couldn’t walk anymore, so she crawled to her bed in a hurry and laid down, closing her eyes.

After the day her father broke Elizabeth’s leg with his cane, it seemed like even her mother decided that she couldn’t just watch her husband’s “lessons” anymore and would try to end it with just her own.

Elizabeth once again prayed and prayed that her father would accept her mother’s reasoning and leave.

“Then, let me see her face for a moment before I leave.”

It was an unfamiliar voice. The duchess’ face paled like a ghost’s.