The Sub Male Lead is Burning with Jealousy - Chapter 5 Part 12
So, the statement that she didn’t dislike her must hold some truth.
‘How could she not hate me?’
She thought the word ‘uncomfortable’ was an understatement. Angelica’s mere existence gnawed at Anais’s pride.
He married her for another woman, and in the midst of that, he came to love her. And now he says he loves her…
‘I wouldn’t believe those words either.’
How angry she must be. She couldn’t even imagine how much she would hate Rahil and despise herself. Angelica’s shoulders slumped in a situation that seemed utterly hopeless.
Her friends buzzed around her, eager to know what was discussed on the balcony, but Angelica couldn’t share a word. Speaking out could only bring trouble to the Empress and potentially lead to a massive scandal.
‘I feel like I’ve become a bad person.’
Angelica had not contributed to their plight in any way. The Empress knew this and thus had opened up about her feelings first.
Had she been ostracized for no reason at all, even Angelica would have found it painful. After all, the other party was the Empress. The wife of her best friend. The imperial family was also the greatest ally of the Calix ducal family.
Angelica managed to compose her tearful expression and led her friends away from the Empress’s group. She still wanted to be close to Anais, but now was not the time. The thought of waiting for a better moment itself felt like an act of violence towards Anais, plunging Angelica into deep gloom.
* * *
As expected.
The look in Emilio’s eyes sharpened as he watched Angelica. Although he was the master of the magic tower, he hadn’t been invited to the ball. He attended the event as a partner to another noble.
Emilio had decided to keep his distance from Anais after their last conversation, primarily because he couldn’t fully trust her.
Sure enough, the Empress seemed to have called Angelica aside at this ball to say something. Angelica emerged looking completely distraught, while the Empress seemed to be in a better mood.
‘She must have tormented Angelica. Either by giving her a sense of humiliation or by pressing her with some absurd rumor.’
He regretted even momentarily feeling sorry for Anais during their time at that hotel. Still, wanting to verify, Emilio approached Angelica.
Angelica was surrounded by her friends, receiving comfort.
Yet, Angelica’s expression, as she was being comforted, was odd. It was as if she was enveloped in deep thought, or like someone who had been handed the problem of the century. Herman, who had accompanied her as her partner, seemed frustrated with Angelica’s silence.
“Your complexion is poor. Did you hear something unpleasant?”
“Well….”
If only she could explain everything clearly, but it was a matter that shouldn’t be spreading around. Even someone with no tact wouldn’t go around spreading such talk. Angelica was aware of that.
‘Who would have thought His Majesty would do such a thing!’
She knew, her male friends including Theodore weren’t exactly kind to women, except for a few exceptions. They were often brusque or cold to women.
Angelica had always told them that they would regret it later if they continued behaving like that. But she never imagined things would get this complicated!
‘I can’t just side with His Majesty because it’s all his fault! It’s natural for him to be disliked! I have no idea how to help His Majesty!’
Angelica had been convinced that she and Rahil were nothing, and that since Rahil had come to like the Empress, everything would eventually work out.
‘What should I do now? It seems like any attempt to help will only earn me disdain…’
The Empress revealing her demeaning situation today seemed like a warning, as if she was saying, ‘I have no interest in the Emperor, and I dislike you all, so please stay away from me.’
Angelica who was convinced that all that remained was for Rahil to find happiness, was now confused. She wanted to help, but it was like looking at a tangled thread without knowing where to start unraveling. Interfering seemed to only lead to disaster.
‘Ah! What am I supposed to do now…!’
“Angelica.”
Emilio, making his way through the crowd, approached her just as she was about to tear her hair out, causing Angelica to lift her head.
“Shall we talk somewhere else?”
* * *
Entering a lounge reserved for nobles, Angelica also sent the maid away. It would have been problematic if only the two of them entered such a place, but Herman was with them now.
Herman was their valuable colleague and friend. He had contributed to Rahil securing the throne over the crown prince, so there was nothing they couldn’t discuss in front of him.
“Why do you look so distraught? Your beautiful face is all messed up.”
“Emilio….”
Angelica hesitated on how much she should reveal. It seemed the Empress had told her everything, but sharing that with her friends was another matter.
“Have you ever heard…. why His Majesty married the Empress?”
“I haven’t heard anything specific.”
‘Ah, as expected,’ Angelica sighed. Emilio suddenly remembered the Empress saying she hadn’t wanted this marriage.
“Why? Marriages of convenience among nobility are common. Being the Emperor, there must have been pressure to marry…. He just chose someone suitable and married her, didn’t he?”
“Suitable? That’s a bit too much to say.”
At Herman’s remark, Emilio scoffed, insisting it was true. While Angelica felt an overwhelming urge to pull her hair out in frustration.
“It seems Her Majesty didn’t want it.”
“Huh? But isn’t the marriage of noble ladies all too similar? Even if she didn’t want it, Marquis Ruol must have wanted it.”
Strategic marriages were the most common form of marriage in noble society. Marriages like Angelica and Theodore’s, where both parties were mutually in love from the start, were rare.
Emilio spoke as if it wasn’t a big deal, but for Angelica, who married out of love for the person she wanted, it made her feel sorry.
“So, did Her Majesty criticize you for that issue?”
“No! Not at all… She didn’t say anything like that. She….”
Angelica knew she had to choose her words carefully here. Her friends were sensitive to such matters, and if they thought the Empress had tormented her, they wouldn’t stay silent. Even if the other party was the Empress and married to their friend, they would find some way to criticize.
“She was honest with me.”
“How so? I’m not getting it.”
Emilio asked, puzzled. Angelica instinctively felt that she shouldn’t disclose everything about the proposal that greatly damaged the Empress’s pride, especially not to Emilio.
“She shared her pains, the things that hurt her pride. It must have been difficult for Her Majesty to talk about this, especially to me…”
Considering Rahil had proposed to Angelica several times, it would have been even harder for the Empress to broach the subject. How shattered must her heart have been to share this with her?
“Lady Angelica, if you speak like that, we can’t understand.”
“I can’t tell you everything as it’s related to Her Majesty’s dignity. I’m sorry about that. But… there’s something terribly wrong His Majesty did to Her Majesty, and because of that, it seems hard for her to look at me.”
“So you’re saying she talked about that?”
Angelica nodded at Emilio’s question. Thinking back, the Empress was crying alone in the hotel during her honeymoon.
‘This guy. His words and actions don’t match, do they? He seemed to have said something about treating her preciously or something similar like that.’
“The fact that Her Majesty looked hurt made me feel down too. I couldn’t say anything comforting from my position….”
With Angelica’s words, Herman and Emilio were convinced that ‘the issue’ was emotional. It was related to the Empress’s dignity but could not be disclosed, and it seemed the Emperor had grievously wronged the Empress.
‘What could it be?’
“Can’t you really tell us what happened between them? I can keep a secret.”
