When You Turned Your Back On Me, We Became Strangers [EN]: Chapter 84

“Why on earth……?”

Kaver withdrew his hand and stared blankly at the spot where Leyla had disappeared.

He couldn’t understand her behavior, as if she were trying to run away from him.

‘If her ego has returned, there’s even less reason for her to avoid me.’

Ren’s smile flashed in his mind, making him want to issue a search warrant immediately to find them both.

“Your Highness, what are you doing there?”

Haban approached, having noticed Kaver standing in the middle of the hallway.

“No, nothing.”

“We succeeded.”

At Haban’s words, Kaver looked at Leta.

Seeing her beaming face, it seemed she had obtained Leyla’s necklace.

‘Something definitely changed.’

He hadn’t missed the glint in Leyla’s eyes for that fleeting moment.

There was definitely life in those empty eyes.

“Oh my, who is this?”

Princess Adel appeared behind Kaver. He had expected her to go straight to her room, but it seemed she had followed Kaver.

“Greetings, Your Highness.”

Leta quickly composed herself and bowed her head towards Adel.

“Hmm, that’s strange.”

She had definitely sensed Leyla’s aura and came this way.

‘I felt resistance to mana a moment ago.’

But she wasn’t to be seen.

Aside from Leyla’s absence, why did she sense such a familiar aura?

And from Leta, Leyla’s younger sister.

“You find many things strange.”

Kaver glanced at Haban, looking at the dark sky outside the window.

“Escort Princess Vivianna Adel to her detached palace.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Haban pointed to Leta with a quick glance and stood before Adel.

“Let’s go. Even in the Imperial Palace, the night can be dangerous.”

“Is that so? Surely the Lady Leta Scharletia behind you isn’t a danger to me, is she?”

Adel covered her mouth and smiled, glancing at Leta behind Haban.

‘Strange, I need to investigate.’

The necklace around Leta’s neck looked different from the one Leyla had been wearing.

Then what on earth was this aura?

She couldn’t leave easily, feeling uneasy.

However, with Kaver watching, she couldn’t take any other action, so she had no choice but to step back.

“Let’s see each other often. I think I’ll be quite bored.”

Adel said a perfunctory greeting to Leta and walked ahead.

Only after she disappeared from sight did Leta relax, leaning against the wall and catching her breath.

“You’re going to see the jeweler, right?”

“Yes, but did you notice anything strange about her?”

“Hmm… she seemed a bit dazed for a moment, but she was the same as usual.”

Leta recalled the earlier situation.

‘It seems she anticipated that Princess Adel would come here.’

Kaver quickly assessed the situation.

It was clear that her ego had returned.

Judging from Leta’s reaction, she had handed over the necklace without showing it.

‘But wasn’t there a rejection response to the necklace?’

There were more than one or two things to figure out.

When he tried to receive the necklace from Leta, a crackling wave occurred.

“……It seems difficult to receive it.”

“That’s strange? It was fine a moment ago.”

Leta looked at the necklace in her hand, examining it from side to side.

“Could it be related to the mana Your Highness possesses?”

“If not that, perhaps a change occurred when it broke.”

With no other choice, Kaver headed to the jeweler with Leta.

* * *

Having entered the hidden room of the Imperial Palace with Leta, he met the jeweler who had left the reception room.

“Did you see her necklace?”

“Yes.”

“Can you make one exactly the same?”

“That is…….”

The jeweler shook his head.

“I don’t think I can perfectly reproduce it with my skills.”

“I heard that no one can match your skills, but it seems the rumors were wrong.”

At Kaver’s words, the jeweler hurriedly pointed to Leyla’s necklace.

“This one can be reproduced.”

“Then why can’t you make the princess’s necklace?”

“It’s a raw stone that doesn’t exist in the Empire.”

The jeweler lamented that it was beyond his ability.

“Are you saying it’s possible if I get the raw stone?”

“Perhaps the necklace the princess is wearing is made using a processing method used in the Kingdom of Peleponcia.”

“It’s not known then.”

Kaver quickly nodded at the jeweler’s words.

He was already bewildered to be in the Imperial Palace, but being asked to reproduce a necklace passed down in the kingdom was driving him crazy.

“Perhaps it will be impossible even if you go to the Kingdom of Peleponcia.”

“Why do you think so?”

The jeweler calmly explained, trying not to offend Kaver.

“As far as I know, it’s a technique passed down only within the kingdom.”

“Is it because the princess has special powers?”

“Yes, that may be because of the power in the necklace.”

Kaver was quite surprised at the jeweler’s words and waited for his next words.

“This is not accurate information, but that’s what we hear among ourselves.”

“……I see.”

The jeweler knew more information than he thought.

“You know about the kingdom’s information.”

It was a story that couldn’t be heard through rumors. Kaver had also struggled to get information through Lirita.

“Who are you?”

Kaver’s sword aimed at the jeweler’s neck.

“Why, why are you doing this!”

The jeweler’s face turned white, and his body trembled.

“Yes, it was strange from the moment I found you. From the fact that such a well-known jeweler doesn’t show his face.”

A black aura enveloped the sword, emitting killing intent.

“P, please save me!”

The jeweler knelt down and closed his eyes tightly.

“I’ll tell you everything.”

Leta quietly held her breath and covered her mouth with her hand. Even when Kaver drew his sword, she was so surprised that she almost screamed.

“Then the two of you should have a pleasant conversation all night long.”

Kaver sent Leta out, who might be even more surprised.

“It would be best for you to go back to your room first.”

“Yes, I think that would be good.”

Leta quickly nodded and carefully put the necklace in a box.

“I’ll leave this here.”

She carefully left the room.

Just as Leta got a little further away, Kaver sheathed his sword.

“If my guess is correct, you seem to be related to the kingdom.”

“……That’s right.”

“For example, a jeweler who knows how to make that necklace.”

“…….”

The jeweler lowered his head at Kaver’s words.

He couldn’t hide it any longer.

“I am Berham, a jeweler who belonged to the Peleponcia royal family.”

Kaver was puzzled by his words.

He had suspected it, but if he belonged to the royal family, Princess Adel would have recognized him.

“But why didn’t Princess Adel recognize you?”

“I didn’t show myself to anyone to protect the secret.”

If an assassin came or there was a threat to the royal family, the technology could be leaked if anyone knew who Berham was, so it was credible.

“Then why did you come to the Imperial Palace? You could have refused and run away.”

“I just couldn’t stay there any longer knowing the whole story about what I had been doing. And I ignored it even when I heard that the princess had used her power.”

“But why now?”

“My life in the Empire may be short, but I know what kind of person Your Highness is.”

Berham realized that something was wrong from the moment someone said they were looking for him.

To be honest, he didn’t know it was the Imperial Palace.

“If that woman hadn’t asked me, I wouldn’t have come here.”

He couldn’t bear to turn away from Leta’s desperate eyes.

He felt like he knew what that desperation was.

“But what I said earlier is true. You can’t get the raw stone here.”

“I will be going to the Kingdom of Peleponcia with the princess in three days, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

“Even if you get the raw stone, they will notice that the power in the necklace is different.”

Berham picked up the necklace Leta had left behind and stared intently at the raw stone.

“This necklace seems to be connected to Princess Adel.”

“Perhaps she sent her power into it.”

At Kaver’s words, Berham swallowed hard.

“Then there is only one way.”

“What is it?”

“Only Princess Adel can withdraw her power herself.”

And that would probably be impossible.

She would never regret or reverse what she had done. She had grown up that way since she was a child.

“What about destroying the necklace?”

Berham doubted his ears.

“……Are you serious?”

“Do I look like I’m joking right now?”

Kaver had the same thought as Berham. She would never withdraw her power, even if it meant dying.

“You don’t know me very well yet.”

Berham’s body trembled at Kaver’s ominously shining eyes.

“I’m serious enough to want to get rid of not only the necklace, but also Princess Adel and the Kingdom of Peleponcia.”

“Are you going to start a war?”

“I might as well. The kingdom has now touched the Empire’s sword, which is the same as touching the Imperial Family and me.”

Berham endured the killing intent he felt all over his body and gripped Leyla’s necklace tightly.

“Now, let me ask you.”

Kaver sat in his chair and spoke to Berham.

“Are you a person of the kingdom, or a person of the empire?”

Berham thought that this moment might be his last.