When the One-Sided Love Female Lead Loses Her Memory - Chapter 22

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It was a kindness she had never felt from anyone in her life, so Diana had fallen helplessly for his small gestures. Even if he was being nice to her with an ulterior motive, she didn’t care. She was even glad she could be useful to him. So why, now, did the truth of it make the tip of her nose sting?

Even when she was being willful and spouting nonsense, or when she harassed his women and acted like a wild filly, it was Viern who ultimately gave in to her. So, perhaps she had just deluded herself. Because he was always soft with her alone, maybe… maybe Viern liked her a little too. How foolish.

‘No. It’s not that I’m foolish. It’s Viern’s fault for making me misunderstand like this.’

But her self-blame didn’t last long. Diana Rosenheir was not a woman who knew reflection; she was a woman who found it more advantageous to blame others than herself. Even if it was truly her own fault.

‘Since it’s come to this, I’ll get rid of that woman somehow…!’

Just as she was burning with resolve and jumping to her feet—

Snap.

From under the branch she stepped on came a sound like something breaking.

“Huh? Wha—?”

Her body lost its balance, wobbling dangerously.

“Wahhh—?!”

She fell straight down with the broken branch!

“Your Highness…!”

Aisen’s horrified cry echoed faintly in her ears.

* * *

The Princess had fallen from a tree. Upon hearing the news, Viern rushed to the palace in a panic. In his haste, he hadn’t even retrieved the jacket he’d left in the young Marquis’s daughter’s chambers. Despite Diana having pulled attention-seeking stunts like this multiple times, his heart still plummeted at the news of her fall. Especially since… hadn’t her body just suffered from that incident in the lake not long ago?

Of course, Viern had been receiving constant reports on her condition. He knew that with her strong body, she had recovered enough to stride around the palace. Yet, perhaps because of the last image he had of her—ghostly pale—his mind stubbornly insisted on seeing Diana as a patient.

‘Damn it. I warned her repeatedly not to climb to high places.’

This time, he’d give her a proper scolding so she’d never dare such a thing again. Why does she treat her own body so recklessly? Does she still think of herself as that pitiful creature confined to the tower?

“Your Grace, you’ve arrived!”

By the time Viern reached her chamber door, he was breathing heavily. He glanced at the servants guarding the Princess’s room.

“Her Highness?”

“Thankfully, Sir Aisen caught Her Highness, so she wasn’t seriously injured. However, her ankle is a bit swollen, and she shouldn’t move it for a while…”

At the word ‘unharmed,’ a sigh of relief finally escaped him. So, Aisen earned his keep for once.

“Brother…”

Aisen glanced at him warily and spoke cautiously.

“Her Highness seemed quite heartbroken over what happened a few days ago. So… please don’t scold her too harshly.”

“……”

Viern’s expression darkened at the sight of Aisen once again forgetting his place and defending the Princess. He didn’t know why it irked him so much every time his youngest brother showed concern for her. He was the one who assigned him to her, yet since when had he become so attentive to the Princess’s feelings? And he had the nerve to speak up when he couldn’t even prevent her fall.

“The one facing punishment isn’t the Princess, Aisen. It’s you. We’ll discuss your disposition later.”

Viern snapped at Aisen in a cold voice and turned sharply away. Today, he had no intention of letting his brother’s complacent and irresponsible attitude slide.

Of all things, she had to injure her ankle. The thought of Diana, who loved running through the palace corridors as if they were her own front yard, having to sit quietly on her bed for a while put him in a foul mood.

Pushing the door open quietly and entering, he saw Diana sitting dazedly on the bed.

‘It’s been four days.’

Viern stood silently by the closed door, taking in her appearance. What kind of trouble had she gotten into today? Her white dress was smudged here and there with leaves and dirt. It was a stark contrast to the young lady of the Marquis of Silberk, who had received him with perfect poise even while seated on her bed just moments ago.

Who could look at that disheveled state—more untidy than any noble lady—and believe she was a kingdom’s sole heir?

When he first brought her out of the tower, his plan was simple: educate the ignorant girl, blank as a sheet of paper, and sell her off at the right time for the highest price. Just as royalty and nobles often do in marriages—much like Viern Erkman himself, who had just sold himself to House Silberk for a considerable sum.

But watching Diana frolic freely in the world beyond that narrow tower, he had, at some point, unconsciously changed his mind. As long as he was around, Laurelai would prosper for a while even without selling her off. Perhaps the thought of her losing her freedom and being confined to a stifling frame didn’t sit well with him. Having spent her whole life imprisoned, shouldn’t she be allowed to enjoy the world with a bit more freedom for the rest of her days?