ASPB 2

Chapter 2

“Huh?”

Otilie only blinked, looking utterly bewildered.

‘What is Arno saying right now?’

It felt as though he was playing a cruel joke on her.

“I’m talking about breaking off our engagement. I’ve grown terribly tired of you after five years together. I don’t want to see you anymore.”

He seemed completely serious. He wasn’t even looking at her anymore.

“I heard that the princess of the Welts Empire is incredibly beautiful. I’m planning to send a formal marriage proposal to the Welts Empire soon.”

His gaze was fixed on the flowers in the garden, completely indifferent.

“Both in status and appearance, she seems much more suitable as my marriage partner. Can you grant me one last favor?”

That bastard had unilaterally announced the end of their engagement. Afterward, no matter how many times she asked to meet him, he never agreed to see her even once.

Even when they happened to cross paths at official events, he either looked at her with a cold expression she had never seen before or simply pretended not to recognize her and walked past.

‘Ha. I spent an entire year chasing after that piece of trash. Why did I do that? What a waste of my precious life.’

Thinking about it made her feel even more irritated.

Arno von Eisenblut, that despicable man…

To become Emperor, he needed the support of the Falkenberg family, one of the great noble families.

After getting engaged to her when she was fifteen, he had continued pretending to love her until they were twenty.

‘In other words, he put on a wonderful performance until he no longer needed me. He could have made a career as a stage actor.’

Then, just before the Emperor grew old, fell ill, and died, Arno eliminated every faction that could oppose him before casually throwing her away.

‘To someone who wanted to strengthen the Emperor’s authority, the Falkenberg family, which was just as powerful as the imperial family, must have been an obstacle.’

And one year later, he became Emperor. That was when his madness began.

‘He even personally arranged a marriage meeting for his former fiancée.’

Otilie curled her lips into a crooked smile.

‘How very thoughtful of him.’

He had ordered Otilie to marry the Duke of the Altenbrick ducal family, one of the founding families of the Empire.

The reason was clear enough to be insulting.

He didn’t want to marry Otilie, but he still needed the support of the great noble Falkenberg family to some extent. So, for political reasons, he wanted to marry her off to a family that supported the Emperor.

She clenched her teeth, holding back the urge to let out a mocking laugh.

When they arrived at the entrance of the glass greenhouse, Maurice guided her inside.

Without showing any expression, she stepped into the greenhouse.

‘Ah, how long has it been since I last visited this greenhouse?’

Rare flowers from different countries, green trees, and the songs of little birds blended together in perfect harmony.

For the current her, it had only been three days since she last came here. But in reality, five years had passed.

Five years ago, after he broke off their engagement here when she was twenty, she had naturally never set foot in this place again before dying at twenty-five.

She carefully took in every detail of the greenhouse as she walked farther inside.

‘I should take a good look around. This will probably be the last time I enter this greenhouse in this lifetime, too.’

In her previous life, he hadn’t even lifted his eyes from his book until Otilie reached the tea table.

What kind of man read a book instead of even escorting his fiancée?

It was unbelievably rude behavior, but back then, she had simply found the sight of him so absorbed in his book adorable.

‘Hmph. That devilish man was adorable?’

She had been foolish to the point of stupidity.

This time, she deliberately approached him, making her heels click loudly against the floor.

At that moment, the man who had been reading his book looked up at her and stood.

His red hair swayed slightly in the warm breeze flowing through the greenhouse. His deep gray eyes quietly gazed at her.

His features were sharp, but the expression on his unbearably handsome face was completely different from the one she remembered.

‘He’s looking at me happily…?’

She was so startled that she briefly stopped walking, but soon continued toward him.

‘What is this? Why is he looking at me so happily? Is it because I’m walking more loudly than I did in my previous life?’

Until Otilie reached the table, the Crown Prince remained standing in the same spot, only turning his head as his persistent gaze followed her movements.

Just as Otilie was about to pull out her own chair, he suddenly came to his senses, hurried over behind her, and pulled out the chair for her.

She felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

‘You’re pulling out my chair? Why are you doing that?’

Otilie sat down with a rather stiff posture, unable to hide her nervousness.

He even gently pushed the chair in for her.

Their eyes met as he sat across from her.

‘The beginning of all my tragedies.’

It felt as though an eternity had passed before they could sit facing each other like this again.

To hide her nervousness, Otilie put on her usual smile.

Her green eyes, filled with a lushness that seemed out of place in the middle of winter in Filanin, curved gently. A clear, innocent smile spread across her gentle face.

And then she saw something she had thought she would never see again.

‘Why?’

Arno smiled brightly at her.

‘Why is he smiling?’

She was bewildered, but maintained her smile as though nothing had happened.

“Tilly, you must have had a hard time getting here. Were you very cold?”

Arno was speaking so affectionately.

It had been a very long time since she had heard him speak like that. A very long time indeed.

“No, I wasn’t cold.”

“That’s good, then.”

He gave her a gentle look and glanced over her from head to toe.

A shiver ran down her spine.

‘Ugh! It feels like bugs are crawling all over my body.’

“You’re wearing a blue dress. You look even more beautiful today, Tilly.”

That was right. Otilie was wearing a blue dress today.

In her previous life, she had worn a red dress when she came to meet him. But she didn’t want to repeat even the smallest detail of her previous life, so she had deliberately chosen a blue dress.

“Yes, I look beautiful in blue, don’t I?”

She spoke softly and smiled sweetly.

“Of course. Our Tilly looks beautiful in anything.”

He smiled back at her.

The smile of the man who was smiling so warmly reminded her of spring, which came to Filanin for only three short months.

Arno’s sharp eyes, straight nose, and firmly closed lips.

His cold and dignified appearance was perfectly suited to the Emperor who ruled over an empire of endless snowfields.

On top of that, he rarely smiled, and his personality was rather cold and rough.

He was the Crown Prince whom even the heads of the great noble families found difficult to approach.

Yet, toward Otilie alone, he had always acted like the warm spring.

And Otilie had loved that about him. She had believed that spring would last forever.

Even though she had lived her entire life in Filanin and knew better than anyone how short the spring season was.

“Thank you, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

Her forced smile was making the corners of her mouth twitch.

Just then, a maid carrying Otilie’s teacup interrupted the two of them.

The fragrant aroma of tea and the clear sound of water being poured created a peaceful atmosphere.

At least, it did for everyone except Otilie.

“Calling me Your Highness the Crown Prince… That’s a little hurtful.”

He whispered in a gentle voice.

“Why aren’t you calling me by my name today?”

Why else? Because we’ll be strangers after you break off our engagement!

Perhaps the maid found his affectionate behavior unfamiliar. Her hand holding the teapot trembled slightly, and she quickly lowered her head before leaving.

“Since we’re both twenty now, wouldn’t it be better for us to show each other some proper respect?”

“Suddenly talking about respect between us? That’s hurtful.”

Arno lowered his sharp eyes, and he genuinely seemed hurt.

‘What on earth is he thinking?’

Otilie’s mind was filled with confusion.

She merely touched her lips lightly to the teacup as if taking a sip, then quietly lowered her eyes.

‘Ha! I was planning to bring up breaking off the engagement first and leave before Arno could say anything about it… But why is he acting so differently from my previous life?’

A long shadow fell beneath her long, delicate eyelashes.

“Anyway, Your Highness the Crown Prince. Didn’t you say you had something to discuss with me today?”

“Yes, but today, Tilly seems… really different from usual.”

His voice was still as gentle and affectionate as spring, but she could feel his piercing gaze examining her.

“Different? I’m exactly the same as always.”

“Really? Is it just my imagination, then?”

He gave her a mysterious smile and reached toward the hand Otilie had placed beside her teacup.

Not a chance.

Otilie deliberately pulled her hand away and lowered it beneath the table.

His large hand, left with nowhere to go, froze in midair.

‘Why he’s changed doesn’t matter. It’s not like I’ll ever find out anyway. And what does it matter how he feels now? There’s one thing that will never change. You abandoned me.’

“Yes, Your Highness the Crown Prince. I’m exactly the same as always.”

She tried to smile as she usually did, but it wasn’t easy.

Looking at that face made her stomach twist.

‘Disgusting. The first thing I’ll do when I get home is wash my eyes.’

Arno narrowed his eyes again and gave Otilie another careful glance.

She paid him no mind and continued speaking.

“Anyway, about what you said you wanted to discuss…”

“Ah, well, that’s—”

‘No, Arno. This time, I’ll speak first.’

“However, Your Highness the Crown Prince, there’s something I’d like to tell you first. Would it be all right if I spoke before you?”