Just Leave Me Be

Chapter 10

This had never happened to her before. At least, not as far as she could remember.

Boom!

Creeeeak!

“She’s here!”

Adele’s eyes shot wide open at the voices ringing in her head.

Oh right... I’d forgotten.

She struggled to ignore the cold sweat sliding down her back. She had almost died in this carriage.

Actually, she had died. At least for a moment.

But then, for some reason, she’d gone back in time. Not that it did anything to change the fact that she had died. The carriage had crashed, and she hit her head. Then she’d been dragged across the ground and impaled through the heart with a sword.

Adele silently clenched her fists and placed them on her knees to hide her sweaty palms.

“We haven’t been seeing much of you lately,” Duke Viphta said.

Adele slowly raised her head. She forced her face to stay blank, but she felt herself grow cold as the blood drained from her cheeks.

Calmly, she tugged up the corners of her mouth. With an exaggerated squint and a laugh—something she could do without a second thought—she could easily hide whatever bad day she was having.

“I’ve been busy,” she replied.

“I heard you’ve been spending most of your time in the library,” the duke added.

“Yes,” Adele answered shortly. Though she kept a smile fixed on her face, her voice was clipped and dry.

Duke Viphta picked up on it immediately.

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

“No, nothing,” Adele said.

“The maids are saying you’re acting strange lately.”

“By maids, do you mean Bella?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Is Bella my maid or your messenger, Your Grace? I really can’t tell,” Adele said quietly, her polite smile turning icy. She furrowed her brow and kept her gaze out the window.

“What did you say?” Duke Vipha asked.

Adele kept her mouth shut.

“All you need to do is keep quiet and stand in for Karena without a word. If you can do that, you’ll be able to live the rest of your life without going hungry, and you won’t have to return to that pathetic life of yours.”

The duke had failed to keep his promise. He had told Adele not to expect anything, but even so, Adele had still longed for the family’s affection before her death.

Furthermore, Duke Viphta had gone back on his word. He had told her she’d be able to live the rest of her life without going hungry.

That was a lie.

He had hidden the fact that she was his bastard child, and the rest of the family had made her miserable to no end. Adele couldn’t believe how absurd everything had been once she had learned the truth. And after all of that, she would be killed.

Now, she expected nothing from these people. She planned to make Duke Viphta pay for going back on his promise. But she couldn’t make him pay in a future where she was dead, so she’d have to collect her dues while she was still in her past.

“Are you sure you’re not unwell?” the duke asked. “You wouldn’t want your health to affect the events you attend. If you’re sick, have the physician take a look at you.”

Adele frowned at his feigned benevolence.

“I’m fine. I don’t feel sick,” she said, forcing a convincing smile.

She didn’t want to explain herself or try to make him understand like she’d done with Bella.

“Are you going through some belated rebellious phase? This isn’t like you,” the duke said with a click of his tongue.

It was obvious how pathetic he thought she was, but Adele forced down the retort surging up her throat.

Just grin and bear it.

She reminded herself that she had endured it all up until now. It was understandable that they would think that way because she’d never shown them this side of her before.

“Your Grace, what exactly am I like, then?” Adele asked, pretending to be calm. Even if her heart was rotting to the core, ablaze with fire and turning into ash, she was sure she could conceal it all with a smile. Hiding her true feelings and smiling wasn’t even a challenge anymore.

She remembered the way Duke Viphta’s brow furrowed every time she called him Father. Still, she had powered through and continued to call him so, hoping that someday he might actually accept her as his own.

He shouldn’t have said that to me on the first day if it was going to be like this.

* * *

Duke Viphta pressed on the wrinkle between his brows and thought to himself.

I just can’t understand why.

This girl, the result of his mistake—the tool he was using to replace his daughter to cover up his shame—had started to keep her distance. Then she’d stopped showing her face altogether. She wasn’t joining the family meals like she’d done every day, and she had stopped coming to greet him in the mornings.

He had never wanted to find his bastard child in the first place. If only his daughter hadn’t died that way.

Duke Viphta had two sons and one daughter. His first son had grown up to be a dependable young man, and his second son—while quite the handful—was an exceptional prodigy. His one and only daughter, on the other hand, had been sickly from the day she was born.

And then she died. It was such a gruesome and terrible death that she couldn’t even be given a funeral.

In such a religious and superstitious country, Callot was the devil’s disease, untreatable and deadly. Once rumor of it got around, his entire family would be done for. Enemies of the duke’s household would undoubtedly wield his daughter’s death as his weakness.

So, it was this child in front of him that he had brought in as a solution. A fake daughter who was quick to smile and could do everything on her own. She was fulfilling her duties much better than he had anticipated.

She seemed to long for affection, but he had thoroughly ignored her hints. The more he did so, the more desperate she became. If he paid her an occasional compliment, she seemed satisfied. He found it convenient that she never asked for anything in return.

The poor girl didn’t even know she was his bastard child; she was the perfect puppet for him to use. She’d been incredibly useful to him in more ways than expected.

He had believed, without a doubt, that she would continue to remain the same.

But one day she changed.

The girl who once couldn’t get enough of him had now gone a whole week without showing her face. When he finally did get to see her, she seemed hollow inside, like she was missing something.

What is she like, really?

How should he answer?

Always ready to smile? Kind no matter what? Unchanging and true to her word for the last 10 years? If he was going to be honest, it would be that she obeyed any order without fail. Yet, none of those answers seemed suitable enough.

* * *

The carriage arrived at the imperial city.

Adele stepped out as soon as the door opened. Everyone attending the hunting tournament gathered here first before heading to Fulheim Forest not too far from the capital.

Fulheim Forest was a vast and magnificent forest that spanned across as much land as the empire itself. It was home to a myriad of plants and animals, making it just the right place to hold a hunting tournament.

Hosted by the imperial city, the hunting tournament was held every two to four years in the forest. The scale of the tournament was quite grand, especially since it wasn’t held often.

Adele could see a great number of lords and ladies and some knights as well—many of whom had been given aristocratic titles.

Where is the man with the black armor?

Adele’s gaze slowly swept over the knights. Most of them were dressed in shiny silver armor, so she knew the black armor would definitely stand out.

Her eyes suddenly fell on her target.

Found him.

She didn’t think much would have changed from her past experience, but she couldn’t be too sure.

Oh, he’s looking my way.

The knight must have felt Adele’s gaze, for he turned his head toward her with his helmet still on. Adele locked her eyes on him without a word and prepared to start walking toward him.

“Karena.”

She reacted involuntarily as a familiar voice rang out behind her.