The Prince's Taste - Chapter 4.4
Judy Esther was walking through the palace garden, trying to soothe her bitter heart. The sudden image of Richard and Ella in an intimate scene shattered her previously solid mental state. She wasn’t bipolar but her emotions were swinging wildly.
Since she became aware of her existence 15 years ago, she had made an effort to avoid entangling herself with Richard. Knowing that falling for him would lead to an unhappy future, she had vowed over and over again that she would not fall in love with him.
But upon meeting him, it was as if she had crossed a river of oblivion, and she was helplessly swept away by his charms.
“Judy, you’re the only one for me. There’s no one else.”
His affectionate gaze and gentle voice made her heart race wildly at his confession.
“Judy Esther, come to your senses. Please.”
“I’m crazy. If I’m really not crazy… he…”
In the early dawn, with their bodies intertwined, he groaned deeply. He gently looked down at her face and confessed in a lowered voice.
“I love you, Judy Esther.”
At that moment, it felt as if time had stopped.
The confession of love, which she had regarded as belonging only to the heroine, shattered her mind. Yes, she admitted it. Judy Esther could not resist Richard.
“I think I’ve fallen in love.”
Like the Judy Esther in the original story, she also fell for him without any warning. Her emotions are like that on a roller coaster, soaring to endless happiness and then plummeting to the ground in an instant. Then, she spotted a four-leaf clover with round leaves.
“A lucky clover?”
She reached out and picked the clover. It was the first four-leaf clover she had ever found in both this life and her past life. At least today, Ella wouldn’t show up. She didn’t know if that was good luck or not, but the little clover lifted her spirits.
‘What the heck?’ She chuckled and straightened herself as she took a step forward. As she walked, she saw nobles leisurely strolling through the palace grounds. There were maids and attendants bustling about, busy with preparing for the evening banquet. Perhaps because it was the national founding day, there were many people coming and going.
Before long, Judy Esther’s steps led her to the lost and found area. It was a remote and deserted place. The caretaker’s eyes widened at the sight of her.
“Lady Emers, are you looking for something?”
In a calm voice, Judy Esther asked if there was a shoe that had been found near the stairs by the banquet hall. The man shook his head, saying that while there were hairpins dropped by ladies, no shoes were found.
She had asked, just in case. Even if Cinderella had attended the ball, she would not have seen a single lock of the prince’s hair. Except for the first day, Richard had been glued to Judy Esther in the bedroom; how could she have seen him? With no prince chasing after her by midnight, there was no need to run away in a rush, and no reason to lose a shoe.
“Perhaps the sudden appearance of a goddess-like beauty caused a furor…”
“If I may express my opinion, Lady Emers is the most beautiful of them all.”
“T-thank you.”
“It’s nothing. It’s always a pleasure to meet a beautiful lady.”
With nothing gained other than flattery about her appearance, Judy Esther left the lost and found area. Since she was already at it, she decided to make one last check at the carriage house.
A young attendant who was chatting with the coachmen was startled and stammered as he greeted her. After lightly returning his greeting, Judy Esther immediately asked.
“Have you ever seen a carriage shaped like a pumpkin that sparkles gold, from the first day of the founding festival until now?”
“I’ve never seen anything like that.”
From the looks of it, Cinderella had not made an appearance yet. There was no way she would attend a banquet without the prince. In any case, she would surely appear on the day of the banquet that Richard would be present. Judy Esther’s heart became complicated.
The coachman from the Marquis Emers’ household was also at the carriage house. He probably hadn’t rested properly while waiting for her. Since she was already there, she thought she might as well go home.
The moment he saw her, his eyes glistened with tears of joy.
“Miss, you’re finally here..”
It wasn’t that big of a deal. She felt embarrassed. Come to think of it, she had been out for two days. Her father would surely lecture her. Judy Esther already felt a headache coming on.
Inside the carriage heading towards the marquis’ residence, she pondered over the original story. She squeezed out the plot, excluding that damned scene.
Cinderella’s real name was Ella. Her father made a fortune as a merchant and was granted the title of baron. Wanting to appear like a proper noble family, he remarried a fallen noblewoman. The woman looked down on the father and daughter as commoners, as did her two daughters she brought with her. Then Ella’s father went on a business trip and went missing, and her stepmother took control of the household and began to torment Ella in earnest.
“Oh, this is just Cinderella.”
