North x Northwest

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Side story 3 – Liloa’s Chapter 1: The Fruit

Liloa had never understood the concept of “something she couldn’t do”, for she was Joseph I’s daughter. Everyone at the Obernyu court bowed their heads to her and listened to the short words of her tongue.

Liloa was well aware of her own status even as a young child.

As the only princess at court, she easily obtained everything wished to possess. Therefore, her understanding of the word “impossible” was bound to be limited. That was until she was eight years old, completely unaware that a child’s definition of “everything” was absurdly narrow…

One day, Liloa’s mother, Henrietta said.

“When did my lovely daughter grow up like this?”

When the Archduchess said so, other ladies followed suit and immediately praised Liloa’s beauty. Liloa’s cheeks blushed bashfully at the compliments of these beautiful and prestigious ladies. The mischievous Madame Celot even wrapped Liloa’s little body in her shawl.

“Oh my, look at you. You already look good in dark purple. Like a true lady!”

Children usually wore light-coloured clothes whereas dark-coloured clothes were a sign of maturity.

The remark caused Liloa’s whole face to turn bright red. Henrietta watched the scene and muttered lazily.

“…You’re becoming more like a lady every day. But you’re still so small…”

The truth was that Henrietta was never very interested in raising her children, Venua and Liloa. Instead, she missed the free life of the imperial court and grew tired of the indifference of her husband, the Archduke. In addition, the people of the Obernyu court valued strict formality and considered loud laughter frivolous, so they made up countless afterwords about the princess from Sesbron. They even dubbed her as the most unsuitable woman for the Archduke in this world. Meanwhile, Henrietta heeded no attachment to the court of Obernyu and rather spent her time roaming the palace with her closest ladies-in-waiting, gambling with young, handsome noblemen, and calling in fortune-tellers, who were in vogue during those days.

Because of this, Liloa was delighted by this rare attention her mother showed her for a change.

Over the next few days, the Archduchess’ ladies-in-waiting continued to tell Liloa how all grown up she had become, Liloa was delighted at first but eventually grew tired of hearing everyone’s comments about how she’d become a lady. It didn’t feel bad though. After all, becoming a lady entailed becoming an adult. It also meant finally breaking free from her childhood and being able to stand before her parents as a person. Liloa knew this and wished for nothing more than to be recognised by her parents.

‘…What should I do to look more like a proper lady?..’

Thoughts as such occupied Liloa’s mind for a while.

Of course, despite all her worries, it was entirely up to her father, the Archduke, to determine whether she had become a proper lady.

When Archduke Joseph I came to her for that judgement, Liloa stood by her room’s window with slightly shrunken shoulders. The maids who had been playing with her, the governess*, and the nanny had left the room one after another.

Joseph glanced at his daughter with indifferent eyes.

As for Liloa, she wanted to hold his hand or at least smile, but she didn’t dare to do so. Joseph took a slow turn with Liloa in the centre. Under his penetrating gaze, Liloa had to give her whole body a tight grip so that her shoulders would not slump more than necessary. The child intuitively knew that if her posture was even slightly disturbed, the day she would face Joseph again would be far away.

Like his father, Archduke Joseph I was most preoccupied with public affairs and his hobbies. Obviously, neglecting his wife, Henrietta didn’t mean that he was insensitive to women. But it meant that he was enjoying secret relationships with his lovers and mistresses. He came nowhere near a family-oriented image. Joseph I found it disgusting when children crawled on all fours like animals and never said a single word of kindness to them. As far as Liloa remembered, she and Joseph had less than ten proper conversations.

Still, Liloa liked her father for no reason just like how she liked her mother for no reason. Although she was disappointed that her parents didn’t care about her, it didn’t affect the attachment she felt to them. All the other noble children were similarly raised by their nannies from infancy and were considered immature and dishonourable until they became adults. Liloa, like all children she knew, just hoped she would grow up quickly.

That was why Liloa couldn’t forget the trembling and nervousness she felt when her father first came to judge her.

Liloa took advantage of the moment Joseph was whispering with the chamberlain to look at her father’s face.

‘I look just like him.’

Liloa didn’t have Henrietta’s dazzling blonde hair or her rich complexion. Liloa knew that even compared to Venua, she looked more like her father because of the long hair Joseph had. He always wore his long hair loosely tied, because of this, whenever she gazed at his profile, it was like looking in a mirror. Liloa often couldn’t hide her curiosity and looked at him in wonder.

Anyone at court—even those who saw Liloa for the first time—knew that she was the daughter of Joseph I. Liloa felt proud of the fact that she resembled the monarch whom everyone admired.

‘Someday, I will become someone who is as benevolent as Joseph, and everyone will look up to me.’

“…I can see she has grown up well. She doesn’t cry loudly or run around frivolously like she used to. In other words, she knows how to behave properly now…”

“…Yes, Your Highness. You can see the deep dignity of the young lady, like a true princess…”

“…Right…”

“…She is now at an age where marriage is considered acceptable as well…”

“…Really? How about the Duke of Lacroix?..”

“…They will be a perfect match…”

“…Good. I think so as well…”

Having said that, Joseph turned around, leaving Liloa bowing to his back as he left the room. She correctly figured out that what she heard was something that would seal her fate, but she couldn’t quite understand what it meant.

While she was wondering whether this was a good thing or not, the maids waiting outside her room forgot about their places and rushed to her.

“…Miss, did you hear that?..”

“…The Duke of Lacroix has proposed to you!..”

“…Does this mean that you’re getting married soon?..”

“…I heard they’re on their way to Obernyu to formalise the engagement!..”

The maids couldn’t hide their interest in the young attendants that the Duke of Lacroix would bring and continued their conversation in a squealing manner. Meanwhile, Liloa stood by the window away from them and looked outside. But no matter how hard she craned her neck, she couldn’t see the Duke of Lacroix’s procession.

Liloa rested her forehead weakly against the cold glass window.

‘…Strange. I thought I would be happy to know I’ve grown up, but this all feels just strange to me. Am I getting married? All I know is that marriage is when a woman moves into a man’s castle, lives with him, and gives birth to his children. Like how my father and mother also got married and gave birth to me… Everyone talks about marriage being a very romantic and happy thing, but for some reason, I don’t like it…’

Liloa was bothered by those thoughts as the only couple she had watched closely were her parents. She didn’t know much about Joseph, but Henrietta didn’t look happy at all. Whenever Joseph and Henrietta were together, Liloa had never seen them treat each other with affection. On the contrary, it was Madame Drieux who Joseph treated with utmost kindness. Liloa reasoned that if there was such a thing as ‘love’ between a man and a woman, then the treatment Madame Drieux received from Joseph was that of love.

“…That’s what I mean, Miss Liloa. Marriage is not done out of love.”

“Then why are you all so curious about the Duke of Lacroix’s entourage? Why do you already like them and are fantasising about marrying them?”

“If a man is a member of the Duke’s entourage, it means he also has a lot of wealth. He will make a good husband…”contemporary romance

“…We’ll be together for the rest of our lives, so imagine what it would be like if we did love each other!..”

It was what the lively maid Ann said. However, Liloa’s tutor, Charlotte, who was five years older than her, shook her head.

“Ann is just an idealist.”

“No, I’m not! How happy it is to live chastely while being loved by your husband. Not only me, but everyone wants that too.”

“Love is not something you have with your husband. A husband and wife are only in a relationship out of duty and responsibility. True love, on the other hand, is something you do with your lover. Just look at His Highness the Archduke and the Archduchess…”

“Charlotte!”

“..!”

The nanny who was embroidering by the fireplace shouted.

“That’s not something you should be saying in front of the young lady!”

– – – – –

Footnote:

Governess: A governess is a largely obsolete term for a woman employed as a private tutor, who teaches and trains a child or children in their home. [WIKI]

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