TPOP 110

Chapter 110

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“For the time being, looking at bright light might keep making your eyes water like this. It’s because your cornea is irritated, so let’s just wait a few more days. Let’s see—your fever’s gone down, and the seizures seem to have stopped.”

“I guess I caused you a lot of trouble.”

It had been a long time since they’d left Karman, so she wondered why they were still in the small village of Ormance, but it seemed a lot had happened while she was unconscious.

Thankfully, Zoe acted as if it were no big deal.

“It’s not that you’re a burden. You were simply too weak to endure the journey. Now, lift your head.”

Zoe applied a drop of eye drops to each of Diana’s eyes. The stinging pain in her eyes gradually subsided.

“…Thank you.”

“I’ll accept your thanks once you’re fully recovered.”

“It’s not just this time—you’ve helped me before, too. You treated… me.”

When she had been suffering from a high fever for quite some time in the main palace, Zoe had treated her three times. Looking back, there had been a reason she needed a female doctor. After a brief pause, Zoe asked,

“I suppose you asked the Crown Prince of Karman? Why you were sick.”

“I asked, but I didn’t get an answer. I found out… just by chance.”

“I see.”

Zoe didn’t ask any further. Silence was far better than half-hearted consolation.

Whenever Diana thought back on those days, an unbearable headache would flare up. The man’s confident voice, insisting he had nothing to hide from her, felt as though it were shattering her brain into pieces.

Diana struggled to change the subject.

“So… has His Royal Highness the Prince been here the whole time?”

“No, he first went to the royal castle to pay his respects to Her Majesty the Queen. He returned to this village four days ago. It seems he’s quite concerned.”

She had no idea what kind of disgraceful behavior she must have displayed. And in front of the Prince of Ormance, no less… It feels embarrassing to have made such a spectacle of herself.

Diana’s face flushed as she imagined the neighbor prince’s appearance from the soft tone of his voice.

***

Once her eyes began to open, it didn’t take long for her vision to stabilize.

On the first day, she could barely distinguish between light and dark, but by the next day, she could faintly make out the shapes of people and objects. The day after that, the forms that had been nothing more than shadowy blobs gradually took on depth, and she could vaguely distinguish colors.

After a few days had passed, her vision had returned to the point where she could discern the texture of an object’s surface if she brought it close to her face. She could even read letters, albeit blurrily.

Once Diana’s condition had stabilized, the Prince of Ormance requested another audience. Diana was able to hear from him the details of how she had escaped from Karman.

“The border of Karman has been sealed for nearly a month. It was closed immediately after we narrowly rescued you from the high river caused by the torrential rains.”

“Are you saying I traveled from the imperial palace to the border region in just three days? By river?”

“That’s right. If we hadn’t been waiting there in advance, you would have been stranded at the border. It was sheer luck.”

“Hmm,” the Prince of Ormance said, changing the subject.

“Divine providence… Yes, I suppose it was also the will of the heavens? The rain that fell for ten straight days, and the current that became uncontrollably fast. That’s why you were able to reach the border so quickly and appear right before us, just as we were waiting. Heaven and earth are on your side, Diana.”

She had guessed as much from his voice, but the prince was incredibly small. Though his gentle voice was the opposite of small. Compared to his mature tone, his voice was still very youthful. If he hadn’t even reached puberty yet, he might be around twelve… or perhaps as old as fifteen?

It was incredibly embarrassing to have made a fool of herself in front of such a young boy. Fortunately, Elliot was dignified and mature.

“Normally, I would have taken Diana straight to the Royal Palace of Ormance, but circumstances didn’t allow for it. I suppose this, too, is the will of the heavens.”

The teacup in front of Diana clinked. The tea swirled around, sending droplets splashing out. A few drops even splashed onto Diana’s hand.

Did I do well?

As if begging for praise.

Because you protected us.

Now we’ll protect you.

Don’t worry. Don’t worry.

No one can take Diana away.

‘You stood in our way.’

She knew it instinctively. There were far more things she could do now, borrowing the power of the spirits, than before. Once her vision was fully restored, even more would be possible.

She was no longer in Karman. And she herself was no longer a commoner of Karman.

The fact that the Prince of Ormans did not treat her with condescension was proof of that. It was also the source of the sense of dissonance she had felt ever since opening her eyes. 

Since leaving the spring as a child, Diana could count on one hand the number of people who had treated her as an equal. It went without saying that this was especially true when dealing with nobles or royalty. It felt as though she had finally returned to the original course of her life.

However, Diana couldn’t bring herself to rejoice just yet.

“If I drifted all the way to the border in just three days, the flooding must have been severe.”

“That’s what I heard.”

“An ordinary person would have died, wouldn’t they?”

Perhaps finding the question odd, the prince remained silent. Diana changed the subject.

“An ordinary, sensible person would assume I’m dead, wouldn’t they?”

“Usually, yes. I was quite surprised myself when I found you, Diana.”

“Even if no body is found?”

“The water rose so high that finding a body would be even harder. I heard the damage to the houses along the riverbank was severe as well.”

She didn’t know how high she had fallen from, but if the prince put it that way, it would be easy enough to cover it up as an accident.

They had already crossed into Karman’s territory. Now there was nothing left to bind Diana.

Yet, a sense of unease began to sprout in the back of her mind.

“You’re mine.”

She jumped in surprise at the voice that had slipped out before she realized it. That day, on the cliff, the man hadn’t let go of Diana’s hand until the very end.

Her foreboding was not unfounded. After a brief pause, Elliot spoke up.

“A composite sketch of you is circulating in the border regions of Karman. Word is spreading little by little to the countries bordering Karman to the north as well.”

“My composite sketch?”

“I’ll leave this here for you. Take a look once your eyesight has fully returned. I don’t know who drew it, but they’re incredibly skilled. It captures Diana herself—neither lacking nor excessive.”

Only one person came to mind who could have drawn her face. The moment she recalled the elegant sound of brushstrokes that had filled the quiet space, her heart ached.

Though she had never seen it with her own eyes, the space she had traced countless times with her fingertips unfolded in her mind like a canvas.

In her imagination, the man was always sitting on a sofa from which he could look diagonally out the window. She would sit at his feet, or beside him on some days, or nestled in his arms on others, listening to the rustling sounds of brushes and pencils.

Since Diana was the only subject the man had devoted himself to for some time, what was captured on paper must be the result of the past few months. It was the face he had observed—a face she herself had never seen.

“How did he portray me?”

Diana barely managed to swallow the question that was about to burst from her lips.

The fact that the composite sketch was circulating meant a warrant had been issued. A warrant signified a determination to find someone, and if that was the case…

The Crown Prince of Karman was still searching for her. Since he knew she wielded the power of the spirits, he might not even believe she was dead.

She knew it instinctively. Felix would never give up on her. Whether he caught her and dragged her back to that dreadful palace, or cut off her head for daring to break his hand, he would never grant Diana her freedom. Just look at how he’s released her face to the public.

That man couldn’t care less about Diana’s feelings. He’d probably never know why she fought so desperately to escape him.

“I mustn’t let my guard down just because I’ve managed to escape.”

Diana brushed aside the wanted poster the prince had handed her.

“What does it say here? Is my description included?”

“A woman with wheat-colored hair and pale green eyes. She is just under 5’5”, with a slender, delicate build. She appears to be in her early to mid-twenties. Perhaps because there’s a sketch, there’s no specific description of her appearance.”

That must mean the sketch was so lifelike that there was no need to add any further details. Diana muttered as if in a trance.

“Then the only things I can change are my hair color and gender.”

“I was just about to mention hair dye… Wait, hair color and what?”

Prince Elliot, who had been nodding casually, suddenly widened his eyes.

Diana flipped the wanted poster over and stood up, her eyes shining with resolute determination.

“Can I use scissors? It would be great if you could prepare a hair clipper as well.”

***

The honey-colored hair that had drawn gasps of admiration from everyone who saw it was mercilessly cut off.

Diana grabbed her long hair and snipped away haphazardly. Shorter, then even shorter. Until it was hard to tell she was a woman just by looking at her hairstyle. The way she cut off clumps of hair as they came to her hands made her look, at first glance, like someone who had lost her mind.

The man loved Diana’s hair. Her snipping grew increasingly compulsive.