Chapter 1. An Accidental Encounter
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***
How astonishing.
How can such an accurate reasoning came from Leightonâs stupid brain?
It was the same when he was explaining about the duke, and now this.
Nelia couldnât bring herself to talk at the veil-like speculation that shouldnât have been accurate.
Nelia, who could barely come back to her senses, muttered.
â……Do you think there are one or two people who think the same as you? Itâs because the name of the gemstone on the necklace is Elenaâs Tears. Sigridâs lover.â
âWhy, did you know?â
âI just happen to hear something when Iâm staying by the dukeâs side.â
Nelia narrowed her eyes.
âI told you in advance so you wonât be in vain, but he already tried everything to Elenaâs Tears, and nothing ever happened.â
Actually, Elenaâs Tears are needed to find Sigridâs heart, but she had no idea how to instigate it yet. Nonetheless, the reason why she was adamant was because she wanted Leighton to not be concerned about it.
âYou donât know that.â
Leighton picked up one of the books on the desk and showed it to Nelia.
The tattered book was almost on the verge of becoming a rag. Where did he find this kind of book?
âIt says that Elenaâs Tears can only be instigated by the chosen one.â
Nelia spat out hot air at the vague and obscure explanation.
âI can also say that much.â
âNo, look at this book. This is such an old book! Canât you see the credibility of this from the old cover?â
âNot at all.â
Nelia said flatly. Leighton had a face full of bitterness.
âDonât say that. Do you know how much I had to pay for this book? Iâve spent all my salary that I got from working my ass off to father.â
Nelia internally clicked her tongue.
Tsk, tsk. He has been scammed for this.
âOnly the chosen one can instigate Elenaâs Tears according to the book, you cannot be the chosen one.â
Leighton scowled at the rather strong criticism.
âYou donât know that!â
So when he came to the Imperial Palace and tried to see the necklace, Leighton really meant it.
Oh, such a foolish guy.
He even believed the content of an old book which the source was unreliable, and held a false hope to it.
Nelia thought Leighton was like a fool and brushed it off.
She didnât expect this topic would be talked about by people again.
***
After talking with Leighton, Nelia left home to return to the dukeâs residence in time.
Luckily, the road became somewhat quiet in the evening, so it wasnât difficult for the carriage to go faster than usual.
Nelia thought she would be back in the dukeâs residence sooner than expected.
Kik-.
Until the carriage stopped with a loud squeak.
The horse stopped in a haste as they jumped wildly, and at the same time tha carriage shook.
âWh-whatâŚâŚ.â
Nelia grabbed the handle of the carriage in a hurry. She heard the coachman calming down the horse outside.
Soon, the carriage came to a halt.
When it became quiet, Nelia slowly opened the door of the carriage and stepped outside. She needed to know what just happened.
When she got out of the carriage, she saw the bewildered coachman and a woman sat on the ground.
Nelia approached the coachman and asked.
âWhat is happening?â
âThis womanâŚâŚ suddenly jumped in the way and almost got hit by the horse.â
The coachman exhaled a deep sigh after giving an explanation to Nelia. Neliaâs gaze shifted to the woman who sank on the ground.
She (Nelia) couldnât see the womanâs face properly because she was lowering her head.
However, the woman emitted an unusual ambience with her light pinkish hair scattered softly on the ground under the moonlight.
Nelia approached the woman and knelt down, sitting down with her.
âPardon my rudenessâŚâŚ Are you fine?â
The woman slowly raised her head.
As expected, the woman, who emitted such an unusual ambience, was extremely beautiful. Her slender features consisted of her white skin and bright red eyes, creating an alluring feeling.
Nelia stared blankly at the woman, and asked again when she managed to get a grip of herself.
âDid you not get hurt?â
The woman shook her head slowly.
âYesâŚâŚâ
Her small voice was heard slightly. The womanâs long eyelashes were trembling.
âI apologize for jumping onto the road all of a suddenâŚâŚ since I just came here, I wasnât used to the road.â
âItâs alright. Itâs alright as long as you donât get hurt.â
Nelia comforted the woman who looked somewhat pitiful.
âShe must have come from another countryâŚâŚ.â
It was just like seeing herself falling into this world for the first time. Nelia couldnât harbor the thought to simply pass by her and ignored her, so she asked the woman.
âIf youâre fine with it, do you mind if I offer you a ride to where youâre heading?â
The woman answered quickly, contrary to her expression, which looked a little blank.
â…….Can I?â
âOf course.â
She said she would offer a ride, but on the other hand, she was a little worried to see the woman accepting the offer right away without any other questions.
When she said that she would offer a ride, she couldnât believe the woman immediately took the offerâŚâŚ
Nelia took the womanâs hand and got her up on her feet.
âWhere would you like me to take you?â
â…..The monastery.â
She didnât appear like a priest, or was she a priest?
Nelia asked the coachman to stop by the monastery. She took the woman, who was standing, to climb into the carriage.
As the carriage set off, the woman stared out the window as if she marveled at the rapidly passing passage.
The longer she looked at her, the more unusual she seemed. With an unrealistic appearance, she also didnât talk much.
Nelia looked at the woman quietly and asked.
âMay I ask where you come from?â
The womanâs face turned from the scenery she was seeing with an indifferent gaze. The red eyes turned to Nelia.
âIâmâŚâŚ. From the southern part of Aten Town.â
Aten TownâŚâŚ. She didnât know that town. The woman added, perhaps she had read Neliaâs clueless expression.
âI donât think you will know. Itâs such a rural villageâŚâŚ.â
âHaha, I apologize. I never heard of that town.â
Nelia thought the atmosphere had become awkward. It seemed to be even more true because the woman was staring her right in the face after she finished her remark.
She wondered what was on her face, and it was the moment Nelia doubted her.
âPopo.â
The woman mumbled something that she couldnât comprehend.
PopoâŚâŚ.?
Nelia tilted her head.
âHeâs my friend, and he looked so alike youâŚâŚ.â
The womanâs white face had a pale pink hue similar to the color of her hair.
The womanâs slightly drooping gaze flickered to Nelia again.
âMay I ask your nameâŚâŚ.?â
âOh, Iâm Nelia Benedict.â
The woman recited her name quietly, âNeliaâŚâŚ.â and she spoke with her little hand on her chest.
âMy name isâŚâŚ. Charlotte.â
Charlotte, the name complimented her face perfectly.
The pretty hair color like sweet sherbet and the features that emitted a haughty ambience reminded her of an ice.
Nelia, who thought the name was really good, Nelia felt a strange sense of deja vu with the name.
âWhat is itâŚâŚ.?â
Nelia soon knew the reason.
This was because the womanâs name was the same as the female lead of this world.
No, not just her name, but even her appearance!
It would have been a coincidence if they have the same names, but her appearance was too identical with how the female lead was described.
Her personality looked a bit more conscious than she thoughtâŚâŚ.
More than that, their circumstances were the same as that of coming to the capital from the south and settling in the monastery.
Charlotte, who grew up in a rural monastery, came here according to the will of the priest who took her in.
The will was to find Sigridâs heart.
This was because the world might be in danger if the heart fell into the hands of a wicked person.
âThen she fell in love with Carlos and find the heart for him.â
Nelia shook her head as she recalled the original story.
The important thing she needed to think was that she just met the female lead through a ridiculous coincidence.
Duke Hart, Crown Prince Carlos, and Charlotte.
She wondered if there was a sort of magnet in her body that attracted the main character to her?
Rather than that, she didnât understand why she didnât notice this exact woman was Charlotte sooner. She could have recognized the woman just by her unusual appearance.
Nelia was still pondering, trying to recall the person Charlotte had mentioned a moment ago.
âWho is PopoâŚâŚ.?â
Was there someone with that name staying by the femaleâs lead side?
Nelia, who was busy thinking, suddenly realized a pair of eyes bore hotly into her.
Raising her head, she caught Charlotte staring at her and she felt embarrassed by that.
When their eyes met, Charlotte spoke up.
âCan I call you Nelia?â
âPardon me? Yes.â
âWhere was Nelia heading to?â
Once they exchanged names, Charlotte spoke more actively than she thought.
Nelia answered, contemplating to explain where she was originally going.
â…….The place where I work.â
âAt this hourâŚâŚ.?â
Charlotteâs mouth opened slightly. It seemed to be the expression that contained most emotions she had seen so far.
âThe duke I serve is not feeling well, so I have to go there.â
She was slightly guilty to say that the duke was sick, but he was not feeling well due to the curse, so it wasnât entirely wrong.
Charlotte dropped her gaze.
âIs that soâŚâŚâ
Nelia nodded.
âWhy is Charlotte outside in this late hourâŚâŚ.â
âShalott.â
Charlotte corrected the name quite adamantly.
âCall me ShalottâŚâŚ. Charlotte is too longâŚâŚâ
Is that so?
Although she didnât feel it was very long, the owner of the name wanted so, wellâŚâŚ
âWhy did Shallott come to the capital at such a late hour?â
âI came here early in the morningâŚâŚ and I was lost in the middle of the dayâŚâŚâ
âEven so, you have to be careful. You almost got hit by the carriage.â
âYesâŚâŚ. Youâre right.â
Charlotte nodded carefully at Neliaâs scolding.
âAndâŚâŚ Iâm saying this because Iâm worried for you, you canât just hop in when someone offers you a ride. What if you get kidnapped?â
Nelia spoke beyond the limit and soon regretted it.
She nagged too much at someone whom she just met for the first time.
She looked at Charlotte just in case she was offended, but she was smiling with her eyes closed.
âNelia is not a bad person.â
For a moment, Nelia just looked blankly at her figure.
How come all the main characters in this novel have charming faces?
The same applied to Carlos, the male lead, and Duke Hart, the second male lead as well as the villain.
â……â
Come to think of it, she remembered that Duke Hart was the second male lead in the novel.
She knew that the duke likes her now, but once she laid eyes on the beautiful Charlotte, even a woman would possibly fall in love.
And even Duke HartâŚâŚ.?
She felt strange upon thinking so.
âNelia, are you not feeling well somewhereâŚâŚ?â
Nelia realized she unknowingly had a frown on her face.
Charlotte was looking at Nelia with worried gaze.
âIâm fine.â
âIf so, thatâs a reliefâŚâŚ.â
Charlotte blinked slowly.
Then the carriage stopped and the coachmanâs voice was heard from outside.
âWeâre here.â
When she took a peek outside, she saw a large white pillar that looked like a monastery.
Charlotte had to say farewell now, but she didnât get up and was simply staring at her.
âSharlott?â
âNelia, thank you for today.â
âItâs nothing. You almost got hit by a carriage. You must have been shocked, so hurry and go inside, take a rest.â
But Charlotte still hasnât moved from her spot. Her red lips moved slowly.
âCan I meet Nelia again?â
***
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