༺ Decision to Leave (2) ༻

The night the Imperial Palace Ball ended.

Elizabeth returned directly to the dormitory.

Due to a few remaining tasks and the late hour, she originally planned to return the next day. However, she headed straight to the dormitory, using the aftereffects of the unfair fall as an excuse.

But there was no sign of Instructor Eon.

She couldn’t even remember how she entered the room. When she came to her senses, Elizabeth was sitting huddled on the bed.

“……”

She was immersed in thought all night.

Where on earth did she go wrong?

Her head was still foggy, but her brain, almost out of habit, analyzed the root of the problem. Reflecting on her short life.

Elizabeth’s life began when she was born into the royal family of the most powerful and greatest empire on the continent.

An overwhelming power that everyone bowed to, a noble dragon bloodline, and dazzlingly beautiful looks.

Everything she possessed was not a result of great effort. Simply by being born as the emperor’s daughter, she had all these things from the moment of her birth.

However, she never considered this a stroke of luck, not for a moment.

From the moment of her birth, her duty as a royal was demanded. Personal happiness and desires were thoroughly ignored, and instead, she was lavished with rigorous education to survive in the chessboard of power.

Royal etiquette, political knowledge, foreign languages for diplomacy, and learning about diverse national cultures and basic knowledge were just some of the many subjects required by the imperial education. At the same time, she had to correct everything down to her voice, speech, and even the way she walked for the posture of a princess.

Much of Elizabeth’s life was public, and her private life was always exposed to numerous subjects and the public. Every action and word of hers became a subject of judgment and criticism in social circles, and if who she socialized with and what she took as a hobby did not fit the royal image and benefit the empire, she had to give it up.

Of course, all these things were merely basic.

The most important lesson she learned in her childhood was never to trust anyone sincerely.

The day the maid, whom she relied on most, instead of the cruel emperor and her already departed mother, handed her tea mixed with poison.

That day was the first day Elizabeth awakened her dragon blood along with the Dragon’s authority.

Looking at the maid who was begging to spare her life while shivering from the fear and betrayal of nearly dying, Elizabeth’s heart froze cold.

It was the moment she realized that even the person she loved most could betray and try to kill her, depending on the situation.

The harsh environment of the royal palace made Elizabeth’s thoughts and actions calculated.

From some point on, she began to look at all human relationships only from the perspective of profit and usability. She constantly pondered how she could use others, and at the same time, gain their trust and loyalty.

Above all, she always hid her true emotions, and she constantly chose an appropriate image to show to others, conscious of the external gaze.

There was no such thing as a profound love between parents and children.

There was no such thing as unchanging loyalty among soldiers.

So, Elizabeth decided not to be swayed by fickle emotions or lies.

She trusted things she could practically calculate and manage, more than love and loyalty that could disappear at any moment.

She offered what she wanted to the person she wanted, and in return, she received something that brought her benefits.

Acting according to meticulous planning and thorough strategies, deeming all the values that humanity holds in high regard as worthless… the character Elizabeth von Galatea was completed in this way.

But…

Such a way of life is twisted. It’s not normal.

Naturally, it gets whittled away.

The heart of a human being.

The solitude she gained was not what she desired. It was simply a way of life she had no choice but to choose because she didn’t want to experience the same pain twice, because she didn’t want to die.

As a result, paradoxical feelings took hold in Elizabeth’s heart.

Having resolved to believe in nothing, she began to wish for the existence of a person she could fully trust without any compensation.

Just then, a man named Eon Graham appeared before her eyes.

One of the seven heroes of the continent and a soldier with outstanding skills. At first, she only calculated what kind of benefits he could bring her, and how she could use him.

But when the airship crashed, Eon, without expecting any reward, jumped into the flames just because his student was in danger, and saved her.

Experiencing this, Elizabeth thought.

Perhaps Instructor Eon could be the person she could truly trust, the one she had been looking for?

But one can’t easily abandon old habits. Naturally, she doubted once more. She couldn’t purely accept the kindness he showed her, and thought the relationship between an instructor and a student was insufficient.

So, she pondered what she could give to Instructor Eon.

The result was, she had nothing to give.

Money, power, honor, status – all of these were things Instructor Eon had already refused once. After much thought, it suddenly dawned on her. There was only one thing she could offer, something impossible for the emperor and the crown prince.

It was the satisfaction of revenge.

According to the information from the intelligence agency, there was deep animosity between Instructor Eon and the crown prince. If she could stimulate his resentment and desire for revenge, satisfying him, perhaps Instructor Eon would feel more than just student-level favoritism towards her?

…That was the plan, at least.

‘It was a miscalculation.’

She didn’t expect Instructor Eon to get so angry. What was the problem? Wasn’t just the insult enough? Did he harbor such deep hatred that he wanted to kill Wilhelm with his own hands?

No, that wasn’t it.

It wasn’t like that at all.

Why hadn’t she realized that Instructor Eon wasn’t the kind of person who would be pleased with such a thing? Had I been the one swayed by emotions? Thinking that what I had longed for was right in front of me, I acted hastily and made a mistake.

Lost in thought, before I knew it, a good while had passed since daybreak. Only then did I realize that I was hungry and thirsty. Naturally, since I hadn’t eaten anything all day.

When I opened the door to get something to eat, I saw the back of Instructor Eon climbing the stairs.

“…!!”

Startled, Elizabeth quickly shut the door.

Eating was not important right now. I needed to apologize to Instructor Eon as soon as possible. A bad relationship only worsens with time.

But then, Elizabeth caught sight of her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was disheveled, her complexion pale, and there were slight dark circles under her eyes.

I couldn’t meet Instructor Eon looking like this!

She immediately washed, put on makeup, changed her clothes, and straightened up.

Then, she went to find Instructor Eon.

Knock knock-

I was nervous.

I had pondered how to quell Instructor Eon’s anger, but in the end, no clear solution came to mind. So, Elizabeth chose the method she was accustomed to, out of habit.

Whatever Instructor Eon demanded, I would accommodate to the best of my ability. If that wasn’t enough, I’d bring all that I had to provide something that would satisfy him.

However, the moment I saw the empty room and the packed bags, as if he would leave at any moment.

Elizabeth’s mind turned completely blank.

***

I seemed to have.

I seemed to have babbled something frantically.

For quite a long while.

The moment I judged that I had lost my composure, I should have left the room, but I couldn’t.

My ability to control my emotions, hide my expressions, and lie disappeared in an instant.

Elizabeth, swept up in her disturbed emotions, spilled everything.

That initially she had intended to use him, the intention behind the invitation to the ball, and that she had made a wrong judgment.

She admitted her fault, and for the first time in her life, she pleaded passionately that she wanted to correct her mistake.

However, Instructor Eon’s reaction was always the same. He merely maintained silence with a troubled look.

Rather, after listening to Elizabeth’s story for quite a while, Eon explained that he was leaving the academy not because of her, but because he seemed to have misunderstood something.

He said that an important matter had come up and he simply couldn’t continue his duties as an instructor. He insisted there were no other reasons.

However, it was not hard to realize that his words were just a sweet lie.

Swamped with a sense of utter despair, Elizabeth left his room. She had come to realize that there was no way to change his mind.

She had messed things up big time, but there was no way to undo it.

She needed a means to change Instructor Eon’s mind. But she had no cards up her sleeve.

Not even knowing how she had returned to her room.

Elizabeth fell to the floor, drained of all strength.

And so, it had ended.

Everything was over.