When You Turned Your Back On Me, We Became Strangers [EN]: Chapter 46

“I’m glad the place you’re staying looks good.”

Leta seemed cheerful, thankfully.

It was probably because Caber was taking good care of her. She said she was in a place where people couldn’t easily find her, so there was no need to worry about safety.

“His Highness Caber is taking great care of me.”

“……Is that so?”

“You know, there are so many pretty flowers, I think you’d love them, Sister!”

Railay listened to Leta’s story and nodded. Had they ever shared a story so comfortably like this before?

Probably not.

“Leta, about sending you back like that that day…”

The events of that day still bothered her, making her uncomfortable. She shouldn’t have sent her back without any explanation.

She hadn’t even been able to send a letter, so she wouldn’t have blamed her if she resented her.

But Leta didn’t even bring up the matter to Railay first, as if she understood Railay’s feelings completely.

“Sister, honestly, I don’t understand everything. But I figured there must have been a reason why you had to do that.”

She didn’t hear all the details, but Leta heard from Caber about what Railay had gone through. It was Caber’s consideration, fearing that the two might become estranged.

‘His Highness didn’t seem to know everything either, though.’

At least, she could guess why Railay had made such a choice.

“Thank you.”

Railay replied briefly to Leta’s words.

“What are you going to do about Father?”

Railay, who was about to put food in her mouth, put down her fork and wiped her lips with a napkin.

“I don’t know.”

How could she make it so that both she and Leta could be satisfied?

Railay’s eyes narrowed slightly. A strange light seemed to settle in her green eyes, but she quickly masked her expression.

“I heard he seems to be up to something again.”

Leta remembered what Caber and Haban had said. She had gone to greet them and unintentionally overheard them talking seriously for a while.

“Right, he’s not one to stop here.”

It was expected. It was obvious that he would be gathering the strength to rise again. Just the fact that he came to the courtroom showed his intentions.

Above all, that day, the Crown Prince announced that he could use mana [magical energy]. This was also to quell the disrespectful rumors about her.

‘I didn’t think he would have thought this far.’

Railay wondered how far Caber had predicted and acted. She herself had not expected him to prove his abilities that day.

“We can’t move rashly. His Highness proving his abilities means that he no longer needs to be bound by the contract with the Trailla family.”

“Then, in effect, it’s been proven that Father has been cast out by the Imperial Family.”

Leta’s lips twitched. Wasn’t that what she had been hoping for?

“I hope Father suffers as soon as possible.”

Leta’s hand, cutting the meat, moved lightly. As she bit down, the juice spread with rich flavor.

“You’ll have to stay there for a while. Are you really going to be okay?”

Railay asked Leta with a worried look. Even though she was under the protection of the Imperial Family, she was worried about her being alone.

“I’m okay, there are people who play with me sometimes.”

“Someone who plays with you?”

Leta smiled brightly and chewed with her mouth full of food. It was Caber’s order, but Haban visited regularly.

“Oh, right! But Sister, who was that man with the long hair next to you?”

“Ah… that’s Ren.”

“I thought he seemed unusual when I saw him at the store that day… Could he be…”

Railay swallowed hard at Leta’s words.

‘What should I do? Should I tell her that I made a contract with the sword, even though it’s not a complete one?’

It was clear that Leta would be furious. She herself hadn’t heard properly about the sword and the contract, so she couldn’t explain it.

“Well, that’s…”

She thought it would be better to tell her what she knew now. She didn’t want to hide it anymore.

Just the fact that her sister was alive and in front of her was a miracle to Railay.

She didn’t want to waste time misunderstanding each other and resenting each other again. She decided it was better not to provide a reason for that in the first place.

“Does he like you, Sister?”

“Puh.”

Railay was so thirsty that she gulped down water and spat it out. She stared at Leta with an expression that showed she didn’t understand why the topic jumped so much.

“What, you really didn’t know?”

Seeing her blinking and looking flustered, it seemed Railay hadn’t guessed at all. Leta rested her chin on her hand and gave a satisfied smile.

“His Highness is in big trouble.”

Leta’s smile quickly turned mischievous. It was a sight that anyone could see she was enjoying the situation.

“It’s not like that. Ren is just… like family? I guess that’s what I should say.”

It was something she had never thought about. They had just always been together, and they had a sense of solidarity as sword and sword wielder that others didn’t know.

“Really? I don’t care either way, though.”

As long as it was someone who protected her sister and made her smile, she didn’t care who it was. But if she had to choose someone she was a little concerned about….

‘Still, it’s someone who has had a crush on her for over 10 years.’

Besides, he had even been rejected once, so how pitiful was that?

“A rival in love now? His Highness must be quite troubled.”

“No, I told you it’s not like that!”

Because of Railay’s repeated denials, Leta put down the food she was eating and began to get annoyed. She nagged her to look around sometimes and consider other people’s feelings.

“Look at that. Those two idiots ran over as soon as they heard the loud voices.”

At Leta’s words, Railay turned her head and saw the two men smiling awkwardly and pretending to do something else.

* * *

Railay slipped out of the room in the middle of the night without anyone knowing. Ren followed her as she moved secretly.

“I told you, you don’t have to follow me.”

“Still, you never know.”

Ren looked around warily. He began to guard Railay’s surroundings strictly, in case someone might pop out.

“People dying in the palace is nothing.”

“His Majesty said he summoned me.”

“That old man is the least trustworthy.”

At Railay’s words, Ren pouted his lips in dissatisfaction. He wondered why he was calling her only at night when he could do it during the day. He was still an unpleasant human being even after so much time had passed.

He wasn’t getting enough sleep as it was, and now he was calling her in the middle of the night!

Ren grumbled that it was all an unpleasant place.

“Don’t say that. He’s the Emperor, after all.”

Railay didn’t particularly like the people of the Imperial Family either, but from the few times she had met him, he was a better person than she thought.

“I wonder why he called you again today?”

“I don’t know, how would I know?”

He must have called her because he needed something, and it was likely to be about the Imperial Family. Maybe he was telling her to hurry up and make a contract with the sword.

“Ren, tell me about the sword today, no matter what.”

“Are you not planning to sleep after you come back?”

“If I have to, I have to.”

Sleep wasn’t that important to Railay.

“Are you even getting proper sleep these days?”

At Ren’s question, Railay nodded. It was a lie, but she couldn’t tell him honestly. She knew Ren wouldn’t stay still if she did.

Railay headed to the prepared room.

“I’ll be back.”

“Be careful, call me if you do anything stupid.”

“There are many ears listening here.”

“They can’t even see me anyway.”

Ren’s words were true. But the Emperor was not so easy to deal with. He had set up a barrier to prevent Ren from following him.

“I greet His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Yes, you’ve come. You know why I keep calling you at this late hour without me having to explain, right?”

“Is it because of people’s eyes?”

Railay lowered her head and kept her gaze on the floor.

“Now everyone will be paying attention to you.”

“Since His Highness the Crown Prince announced his abilities and mentioned me at the same time, it can’t be helped.”

“I heard you’re delaying the contract with the sword.”

At the Emperor’s words, Railay nodded. Was it for that reason, as expected? She wore a self-deprecating smile on her lips.

“The sword should belong to the Imperial Family. If you make a contract with the sword, you’ll be accepting the fate you’ve been avoiding so much.”

He stared down at Railay quietly. She was maintaining a straight posture without wavering, and her character seemed to have become quite strong, unlike in the past.

‘She’s grown up well. She must have resented me more than anyone else in that situation.’

He didn’t know how the Trailla family had been raising sword contractors. It was conducted in strict secrecy and contracts.

He had been like that too. He didn’t know about sword contractors when he was young, but after experiencing it himself, he could understand it a little.

“The sword goes into hibernation after a certain contract ends until it meets its new owner. I think that if I hadn’t only had foolish thoughts, I might have been able to prevent the tragedy.”

Why had he thought of it so naturally?

It was a relationship that he had never questioned. He didn’t know how scary that was.

“If you want me to carry out the contract quickly…”

Railay was about to say that she couldn’t. She wasn’t ready to accept it yet. Because she hadn’t even finished off her father with her own hands yet.

“What would you do if there was a way to break the contract between the Imperial Family and the sword?”

At the Emperor’s words, Railay’s head lifted up. Caber had already looked into it, but he said it didn’t exist.

Was that a lie?

The Emperor reached out his hand to Railay’s slightly furrowed brow.

“What do you say? If there is a way, will you take my hand?”

The hand he held out was a very sweet temptation. It might be poison, but it was an irresistible, fascinating offer.

Even though it was a situation where the Emperor might present any conditions, Railay couldn’t reject it right away.

No, she couldn’t reject it.