Chapter 37: Trust, Each Harboring Their Own Sches
“Your Highness, this posture is making a bit embarrassed. Can we change it?”
“This posture is practicing how to kill you with a single strike.”
Loka gripped the gleaming dagger in Yiwen’s hand, the shining blade nearly piercing my heart.
Yiwen looked at coldly, but her hand remained steady, stopping just before my heart.
It was clear Yiwen didn’t want to kill now, but for so reason, these days she harbored resentnt toward my self-assured actions.
She felt the need to teach a lesson.
I sincerely clasped Yiwen’s hands, or rather, the dagger in her hands, forcing a smile to try to sway her with my sincerity, but Yiwen didn’t seem to loosen her grip.
“So, what exactly did I do wrong? Does Your Highness really want to kill now?”
“You think about it yourself, then co explain it to .”
“Was it because I took your treasure without saying a word? Or because I secretly went to see your family and didn’t co to save you myself—Your Highness, slow down, it’s really going to stab !”
Yiwen’s expression softened slightly when she heard my admission of fault, but after hearing my words, her anger only grew.
If I hadn’t blocked her with my hand, she might have actually stabbed .
“Why didn’t you explain it to clearly?”
After so tugging and pulling, the dagger was finally flung onto a nearby cabinet.
Yiwen unhappily pinched my cheeks, her face full of resentnt and a wronged little expression.
“Do you know, when I found out you took it, I thought you had truly betrayed , taking my token to beco that wretched Grand Duke’s granddaughter.”
Yiwen’s words were full of complaints and disdain, but the aggrieved little expression on her face betrayed her.
More than the theft of her identity, what she feared most was the fact of my betrayal.
The Empress’s manipulative words back then had indeed affected her, causing her to be restless when she was brought before the Emperor for judgnt, her mind filled with the reality of my betrayal.
I was born in a palace that appeared glamorous on the surface but was filled with sinister undercurrents.
Despite my inconspicuous identity shielding from most dangers, I had never lacked stories of betrayal and backstabbing.
Concubines vied for favor, princes sought their father’s affection, servants bullied others with borrowed power, and nobles flattered for gain.
Everyone harbored their own sches, yet the overlooked Athyst Palace seed purer by comparison.
“I hate betrayal. What I hate most is when soone I trust betrays . Even if you claim it’s for my own good, I still hate that version of you.”
Yiwen stared at my feigned innocent expression, her eyes filled with both resentnt and conflict.
Every ti I looked at this person’s face, I felt a strange sensation.
If she had truly betrayed , trading my life for her noble status, I might have been able to kill her without hesitation.
After betraying , this person brought others to save , then told it was all for my sake. This person, this person!
As I watched Yiwen’s expression shift from cold indifference to irritation, then to a dissatisfied little look when staring at , why did it seem like there was sothing glistening at the corner of her eyes?
“Loka, you… big jerk!”
“Why did you do this? Do you know I really wanted to kill you back then?
Those who betray will only be killed by .
Why didn’t you tell ? What if I had actually killed you?”
Before the Emperor, Yiwen had already thought of a solution.
Though she truly didn’t want to acknowledge the Grand Duke of Saito’s, when the Emperor’s people brought her to the Grand Duke’s mansion, she could use that identity to escape them.
At that ti, Yiwen had gradually given up hope for , the one who betrayed her first.
To her, betrayers were unnecessary.
Once she resolved her imdiate troubles, the first thing she would deal with was .
But just as she made up her mind, that red-haired man told her it was I who brought the silver sword to the Grand Duke’s mansion, and it was I who made the Grand Duke co to her rescue.
The one who betrayed her beca the one who saved her!
Yiwen’s heart, which was about to close off, was shattered once again by this baffling act.
She was stunned, and throughout the journey with the Grand Duke, she doubted herself, doubted , doubted the truth.
“I said I would kill you, and wasn’t your goal to eventually kill too? Why did you save at the critical mont? How am I supposed to kill you now?”
As tears seed about to spill from Yiwen’s eyes, a pair of hands retaliated by pinching her cheeks. I smiled, squeezing her face.
“So, is Your Highness crying because I didn’t tell you the truth? Or because you didn’t get to kill ?”
I clearly knew I could use the silver sword token and my past-life mories to weave countless lies, making myself the sole heir of the Grand Duke of Saito’s.
I could even use this identity to gradually rally the forces of the Saito’s Empire, building my power in another empire, perhaps achieving even greater feats than in my past life.
The only sacrifice here would be the misunderstood and executed Sixth Princess Yiwen.
For my past-life self, this was just an insignificant figure in a sure-win deal.
But why… When I looked at Yiwen’s face, just like every ti I could easily kill her, did I not want to see this delicate yet resolute princess die, even if I would eventually kill her myself?
So, in the end, I only used this opportunity to secure a promise from the Grand Duke of Saito’s.
Compared to the rewards of the other plan, this was a re drop in the bucket.
But when the Grand Duke nodded and agreed to personally retrieve Yiwen, for so reason, a weight lifted from my heart, and I inexplicably felt a sense of relief in my soul.
“Maybe it’s because I want to be upright and honest, not fond of using dirty tricks to harm others—because I’m a good person?”
Yiwen looked at my self-mocking joke and pinched my face hard again.
“Did you even believe that when you said it?”
But the next second, I grabbed Yiwen’s hands. Unable to stop her montum, Yiwen fell into my arms. I smiled, gently stroking her hair.
“Or maybe… It's because my true feelings for Your Highness don’t want anyone but to kill you. That counts as my true heart for Your Highness, doesn’t it?”
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