Just outside the door, the two people released their grip on each other’s hands after more than 10 seconds. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, they were about to leave and head to their respective rooms when Caine’s door was pushed open once again.
However, it was not Caine who emerged, but Edwina. Her face was still flushed with excitement and joy after Caine had nodded and granted her request to take her out to play.
Usually, Edwina wore an expression of quiet sorrow. Combined with her pale purple eye makeup and lip color that imitated the Queen, she always gave off a gloomy and unfortunate vibe of melancholy. Yet, here she was, walking out of Caine’s room with a red face and a smile she couldn’t hide.
Even Vita and Altina were stunned. It was precisely because they knew what Edwina was usually like that they were frozen in place.
“Ah…”
Edwina, who hadn’t expected the two of them to be standing at Caine’s door, was naturally startled as well. As a result, the three of them stood there staring at one another, falling into a strange silence for a moment.
It only lasted for a brief while, however. Edwina was the first to react, offering a serene smile as she greeted the two women.
“Good evening, Aunt Vita, Lady Altina. Is there something you need from Mother? Did you forget to mention something earlier?”
Despite having just walked out of Caine’s room, Edwina’s attitude was perfectly natural. Anyone who didn’t know better would have thought she had just walked out of the Queen’s actual chambers; there wasn’t a hint of awkwardness about her.
“Ah, yes, good evening, Edwina. Actually, we were just about to leave. There wasn’t anything else we needed from my sister from another world. But what about you, Edwina? Have you been in Sister’s room this whole time? And did something good happen? You look very happy.”
It was Vita who responded. This was partly because she held a higher status than Altina, and partly because she was Edwina’s relative. Whether for public or private reasons, it was more appropriate for her to respond. Even though Vita’s heart was filled with suspicion and displeasure, she still put on the facade of a concerned elder, asking Edwina what exactly had happened. She wanted to know what could make her gloomy niece so incredibly happy.
“…”
Altina remained silent, but she quietly watched the Princess whom she regarded as a political rival, waiting for her answer.
Both of them expected Edwina to either look hesitant and find the words difficult to say, or to use clumsy acting to weave a lie to hide the truth. After all, in their eyes, there was a high probability that Edwina had the same idea as them—planning to win Caine over.
To their surprise, upon hearing their concern, Edwina did not hesitate for even a second. She immediately broke into a bright smile, looking as if she were dying to share her joy with someone. She even clapped her hands together in front of her chest out of sheer delight.
“Yes! Aunt Vita! Mother actually promised to take me out next time! Just the two of us!”
She was so genuinely happy that it didn’t look like an act at all. No matter how one looked at it, it was a true outpouring of emotion. She was so open and honest that the despicable adults were stunned once again.
“Oh? Ah, haha, then that is indeed something to be happy about. Congratulations, Edwina.”
“Thank you!”
Vita had never expected Edwina to be so honest as to reveal the reason directly, and she certainly hadn’t expected it to be just because of a promise to go out together. This made the smile on Vita’s face somewhat subtle. She looked like she was happy for her niece, but in reality, she felt Edwina was making a mountain out of a molehill.
However, after thinking about it carefully, it was understandable. As far as Vita knew, Edwina’s true adoptive mother, Corellia, had never gone out alone with her. Edwina’s behavior was clearly the result of her treating Caine and Corellia as the same person. It was a classic display of a child’s psychology when they were starved for maternal love.
It wasn’t what she had feared at all; Edwina wasn’t trying to ‘conquer’ Caine.
Vita even felt a bit of empathy for her. As a fellow victim who had been ignored and even hurt by that cold Queen, Vita felt that she might actually be able to offer her niece some genuine concern rather than just testing her. Even with her twisted heart, Vita was momentarily touched by Edwina’s truly radiant appearance, causing her to temporarily set aside her inner darkness and accept the joy Edwina was sharing.
“…”
Altina, standing to the side, couldn’t understand Vita’s train of thought at all. She did agree that Edwina’s behavior was a result of a lack of maternal love, with the culprit naturally being the Queen herself. But she couldn’t understand what was worth being this happy about. After all, although she and the Queen were childhood playmates, she had never sought the Queen’s attention.
Therefore, she couldn’t empathize with Vita or Edwina. However, her lack of understanding didn’t hinder anything. It was enough to know the information that Edwina’s proactive behavior toward Caine was due to a lack of motherly affection.
Altina didn’t immerse herself in the shared joy like Vita did. Instead, she stood a short distance away with a solemn expression, like a royal guard, silently watching the interaction between the Queen’s sister and the Princess.
…Of course, that was only how it appeared on the surface. Compared to guarding the relatives of that cold Queen, Altina actually wanted to guard the person inside that room. In her view, Caine, who came from another world, was the true monarch she should be loyal to. These relatives of the Queen—who would eventually be overthrown by them—were not worth protecting.
Perhaps she was indeed cold-blooded, but she simply couldn’t understand such extremely personal emotions.
In any case, thanks to Edwina’s lack of guile and her open honesty about why she was happy, Vita and Altina, who always hid their true thoughts, temporarily set aside their suspicion and wariness toward her. They continued to view each other as the number one enemy obstructing their goals.
Edwina was just a child lacking love—there was nothing to worry about.
As for the other princess, Vanessa? The fact that the ultimate mother-complex princess had a terrible attitude toward Caine was something almost everyone already knew. There was even less reason to worry about her.
“We’ve reached your room. Well then, you should get some rest, Edwina. Don’t let yourself stay awake just because you’re too happy. Staying up late is the enemy of beauty.”
“…I wish you sweet dreams, Princess Edwina.”
“Yes, I will rest early. I wish you both sweet dreams as well.”
After leaving the area near Caine’s room, the three of them walked and chatted until they reached Edwina’s room, where they parted ways. After Vita’s concern and Altina’s serious farewell, Edwina maintained that rare smile as she saw them off.
Thinking that Edwina posed little threat, Vita and Altina left with peace of mind. Edwina, looking completely innocent, turned and opened her door, stepping into her room to rest.
At this moment, the two women did not realize what a serious mistake they had made. But they couldn’t be blamed; after all, even Edwina herself didn’t yet realize that her heart didn’t just crave motherly love.
Besides, who’s to say that even motherly love can’t… change its nature?