What I Gained by Giving My Body - Chapter 3.14

‘Princess Julia’s future wasn’t like this! It wasn’t such a terrible future…….’

The greatest hardship the Princess was to face was the birth of a Prince. In a situation where the possibility of becoming the successor had plummeted to zero, the Princess would fall into despair and go into seclusion.

“Have you lost your mind?”

Princess Adelheid spoke in a light voice, examining her.

“Do I have such a frightening appearance, Eugenia?”

“Her Highness the Princess possesses a perfect appearance.” The maid called ‘Eugenia’ answered firmly.

“That woman is likely just terrified, overwhelmed by Your Highness’s dignity.”

“Hmm…….”

Princess Adelheid tried to take Caitlyn’s hand, but failed as the other woman pulled her hand back as if struggling.

“Strange.”

Adelheid muttered to herself.

“I wasn’t told she had this kind of personality.”

“Well, I heard she was gloomy and incredibly rude. It seems to describe this woman right here exactly.”

A sigh escaped Adelheid’s lips. Her maid was very loyal, but sometimes she lacked tact. Or she was pretending not to have any.

“You know I didn’t mean it in that sense, Eugenia. She’s excessively timid.”

“This shameless low-born creature is only terrified because Your Highness is so special, so please do not pay it any mind.”

The maid, Eugenia, spoke quickly.

“Still, she seems to open her mouth a bit in front of me, so I will interrogate her as Your Highness wishes.”

“It’s not like we brought that woman here to find out anything anyway, is it?”

If Caitlyn had been just a bit more composed, she would have refuted their words. Since it wasn’t a ‘bringing,’ but a kidnapping. But Caitlyn was still consumed by fear.

Of all the futures she had seen so far, Adelheid’s future was the most terrifying. War. When a war breaks out, no one is safe, from the Imperial family to the lowliest commoner. Especially seeing Princess Julia’s state, it seemed Solaris was the side that had practically won.

‘W-what.’

Suddenly, her thoughts reached the unchanging future. Edward’s early death and herself becoming a loner. Until now, Caitlyn had thought the reason was that the future hadn’t changed because Archduke Akbar hadn’t fully received his power back yet. But what if the future already reflected the Archduke receiving his power back and curing Edward’s illness?

Her mouth went bone-dry. Caitlyn gnawed on her lips. She wasn’t afraid of the Princess in this immediate moment. Would she kill her, someone already known as Roxias Akbar’s fiancée, or what?

But the things she would cause in the future…

‘I can’t stop it.’

Even if people came to believe her words after she returned the power, by then, Princess Adelheid would already have occupied the seat of Empress one way or another.

‘If I were to abandon everyone and run away…….’

It was a war involving two countries that occupied the majority of the Empire and the Kingdom—the continent. But would she really be safe just by running away to another country? It was then. Slap! Her cheek burned with a sting. Having been struck while her mind was racing, Caitlyn didn’t grasp the situation for a moment and stared blankly at her opponent.

“You dare openly ignore Her Highness the Princess?”

Eugenia was panting, waving her hand.

“A low-born who bought a title with money!”

“Thank you, Eugenia.”

Adelheid spoke softly.

“My hand is too weak to strike that pretty face?”

“Your Highness doesn’t need to do anything! I will do it all for you.”

Caitlyn noticed a few strange things. No matter how much she cherished her mistress, Eugenia’s words now were somewhat excessive. In fact, the kidnapping itself was like that. If she were a proper advisor, instead of kidnapping her like this, she would have brought her politely and made a proposal that was quite tempting. Or at least threatened her properly. Right now, they were showing a half-baked side.

‘And yet she becomes Empress…….’

It was impossible unless someone was behind her. Princess Adelheid spoke toward Caitlyn.

“I brought some quite useful people. Unlike Britannia, torture is legal in Solaris. They are very effective for those who have tongues but don’t use them.”

Caitlyn thought. Is this person…… a bit lacking?

Torture leaves marks. No matter how nominal it was, if it were revealed that the Archduke’s fiancée was tortured by the Princess of Solaris, no one would be happy. Also, Roxias Akbar would not want her to be hurt in the slightest before he achieved his goal. If she had to recover her body, the day he regained his power would be that much further away.

Could Princess Adelheid really handle his wrath? Caitlyn didn’t think so at all. Thinking that, she must have unconsciously let out a faint smile. Slap! Her head whipped to the side. Perhaps because she was hit in the same place again, her cheek felt numb.

“……You really have a lot of nerve.”

It was Eugenia again.

“To laugh after hearing such things.”

Caitlyn said nothing. Eugenia’s end was being betrayed by her superior. The foresight didn’t reveal who the superior was, but Caitlyn was certain. The one who betrayed Eugenia was none other than Princess Adelheid.

“You won’t be able to kill me.”

Caitlyn finally spoke. she had no intention of playing along with this farce any longer.