When the Guide Stopped Playing a Villainess, the Obsession Began - Chapter 15
Lea dressed herself properly and headed to the Empress’s palace with Zion.
All the way there, they were followed by countless gazes.
Her mother had many nicknames among the nobles, and the most common one was the ‘cunning fox’.
They couldn’t possibly know she was a fox werebeast, and yet somehow, they had come up with such an uncannily fitting name…
The nobles of the Cantabrian Empire, while never openly stating it, subtly looked down on both Lea and Bianca.
That wasn’t any different among the palace servants nearby either.
They followed them only because they held power, but who would truly trust someone with such murky origins?
The price of wielding guiding as a weapon became painfully clear in a time of crisis.
No one came to defend Lea or Bianca.
Instead, everyone scrambled to bring forth evidence of their past deeds and laid them out before Calix, who had become the new reigning Emperor.
Lea stood for a moment in front of the glittering golden entrance to the Empress’s palace and looked up.
Zion glanced at her with a look of pity, thinking she was afraid of the Empress.
But Lea felt no fear. If anything, she was composed.
She was simply reviewing the actions she needed to take so she wouldn’t make a mistake.
Still, she didn’t forget that deep within her body, she held a flame of resentment and anger.
The course of action she needed to take, the role she had to play.
Outwardly, she would obey her mother, but she could not allow Calix to be harmed. She would need to maintain a delicate balance.
With that resolve, Lea let out a soft sigh.
“Shall we go in?”
Zion, who had been waiting by her side, stepped forward first. Lea followed him into the Empress’s palace.
Waiting at the door was the chief lady-in-waiting, Bianca’s closest aide.
Even after seeing Lea, she didn’t show any particular courtesy.
She gave the bare minimum of a nod and silently opened the door.
In the past, Lea had agonized over even the smallest gesture from the chief lady-in-waiting.
But now, it didn’t matter.
After all, it had been the chief lady-in-waiting who had confessed every detail of their mother and daughter’s crimes… Just to preserve her own life.
It made her mother seem almost pitiable, as though all of it had been meaningless.
As the doors opened, a strong scent hit the tip of her nose.
The room was filled with flowers arranged all throughout the vast reception hall.
“Mother.”
Lea approached Bianca, who was reclining on a red couch.
Five or six ladies-in-waiting were clinging to Bianca, pouring perfumed oil on her from fingertips to toes.
The floral scent was so strong it stung the nose, and the scent of the oil layered over it made it nearly impossible to breathe properly.
Her mother was still as indulgent as ever, and the gaze she directed at her daughter was as cold as always.
Bianca spoke with her eyes gently closed.
Not even a perfunctory ‘welcome’ crossed her lips.
“His Majesty says he will host a banquet for me.”
Her words brought back memories for Lea.
“What’s so special about a birthday anyway. It just means I’ve aged another year.”
“But, Your Majesty the Empress. The day of your birth is nothing short of a blessing for us. Please take back such words.”
Lea quietly looked at the murmuring lady-in-waiting.
Jesse, the daughter of the chief lady-in-waiting, was a woman skilled in social maneuvering.
She also secretly harbored feelings for Calix.
So boldly, passionately, and slyly that she didn’t even bother to hide it from the Empress.
Ironically, in the past, Jesse had been one of those who tormented Calix in the palace.
But of course, the most malicious of them all had undoubtedly been Lea herself. Perhaps in the past, she had tormented him with feelings similar to Jesse’s.
The difference between them was that Jesse fully understood her feelings while doing it, and Lea… hadn’t even realized what her own emotions were as she caused him pain.
Aside from that, both had shared the same desire.
To see Calix fall.
Because they thought only then would they be able to fulfill their love.
But now, Lea understood very well just how wrong and foolish that way of thinking had been.
She subtly watched her mother’s expression.
Why had Bianca summoned her just to talk about a banquet?
In the past, Lea would’ve agonized over it until her head hurt, but now, she understood her mother’s intent instantly.
And strangely, she didn’t mind it.
‘So this is how you’re confirming that I’m your real daughter, huh.’
But for now, she had to play dumb.
For the time being, in her mother’s eyes, she had to appear as nothing more than a foolish daughter.
