Chapter 26: Why Are You Here?

 Grit exercised maximum patience.

 He felt like shouting right away, grabbing Clea’s wrist and forcibly dragging her away.

 But unfortunately, this was the imperial palace.

 It was a place where every single action could have unpredictable consequences.

 He lowered his voice as much as possible while filling it with intimidation.

 Meanwhile, Clea had to try her best to suppress her laughter as she looked at them.

 The intimidation they had shown until now had never once made Clea feel afraid.

 When they raised their voices, she found it annoying because of the noise, and when they raised their hands, the wounds visible through the mirror brought her nothing but irritation.

 “Do you know how much commotion you’ve caused in our family?”

 “Are you going to keep standing there?”

 “Clea.”

 She no longer needed to listen to their words as they were.

 All that remained for her was death, and she had the means to make that death comfortable.

 Finally, Steve, unable to bear it any longer, stepped in to mediate.

 He persuaded Grit to sit down first, saying what if Edmund appeared and saw this scene.

 When Edmund’s name came up, Grit reluctantly sat down as Steve suggested.

 Clea raised the corner of her mouth only after seeing the two seated.

 “Edmund won’t be coming.”

 “How would you know that?”

 “Because I’m the one who called you two here.”

 Strictly speaking, she had only called for Grit. Seeing Steve who had followed along, she held back a sigh and looked at her family members whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

 “Let’s go home now.”

 The proposal came from Grit, who was sitting with a grim expression.

 Steve shrank back, but Clea quietly savored the aroma of her tea.

 “Do you know where you are?”

 “I know this is the Crown Prince’s palace.”

 “Knowing the relationship between the imperial family and our family, you still remain here!”

 “What does it matter? I’m neither here nor there anymore.”

The atmosphere grew cold  at Clea’s words.

 When she mentioned that she was no longer a member of the Odoi family, the two men’s eyes grew sharper.

 Watching this, Clea felt good.

 It was amusing to see these people, who had always treated her as nothing more than a useful tool, now trying so hard to take her back.

 “If you return now, you won’t be expelled from the family.”

 “That’s right, Lloyd has long forgotten about the broken engagement. Even if he brings it up again, I’ll somehow stop him, so just stop this and come back.”

 “Ha, you still don’t understand what I’m saying.”

 Clea stopped savoring the aroma and put her teacup back in its place.

 Then she directly met the gaze of the two men.

 Grit and Steve recalled how Clea had always avoided making eye contact with them.

 They certainly believed that she couldn’t meet their eyes out of fear.

 But now, there was absolutely no fear in Clea’s gaze.

 “You don’t actually think you abandoned me, do you?”

 “Clea?”

 For a moment, Steve called her name to confirm if he had heard correctly.

 But there was no response.

 Clea gave Steve a brief glance before looking away.

 At that look, Steve felt uneasy and called Clea once more.

 However, Clea didn’t look in Steve’s direction again after that.

 “I abandoned you.”

 “What do you have that allows you to abandon us? Stop with your petty pride and let’s return to the mansion quickly.”

 “Don’t you understand why I’m here even after seeing it with your own eyes?”

 Grit thought to himself.

 That Clea was just being stubborn now.

 Of course, he too had been very surprised when he saw Clea here.

 It was a place he had firmly denied despite his suspicions, so he never dreamed she would appear here.

 But the Duke of Odoi still didn’t believe the rumors.

 The absurd rumor that Edmund had taken in Clea instead of Aria Hersher.

 “You must have knelt before the Crown Prince, begging him to help you just once.”

 “Why would His Highness listen to me? What would he gain?”

 “Wouldn’t the Crown Prince enjoy the disgrace happening in the Odoi family? After all, the Odoi family isn’t exactly favorable to the imperial family.”

 The Odoi family, unfavorable to the imperial family, being disgraced.

 Hearing those words, Clea couldn’t hold back her laughter.

 Her laughter echoed throughout the reception room.

 Everyone around her remained quiet.

 The atmosphere froze even colder than before she laughed.

 Grit felt his patience reaching its limit, as if she was mocking his words.

 Steve was worried about Grit while pressing Clea.

 “What kind of way is that to speak to your father!”

 Clea stopped laughing at Steve’s words.

 And without even looking at him, she sneered.

 “Why should I consider someone who only sees his child as a tool as my father?”

 At that moment, unable to contain himself any longer, Grit tried to stand up. But Clea wasn’t finished.

 “Did you think I didn’t know about all the things you gained from the Grand Duke and his wife by using me?”

 When they heard her next words, Grit froze for a moment like a man whose body had turned to ice.

 This was, in fact, the reason why the two had been searching for Clea.

 The fact that with Clea’s existence gone, the bond with the Persi grand ducal family would be severed, and they would no longer be able to obtain what they had been getting.

 She looked at the two frozen people with contempt.

 ‘What was she so afraid of that she wanted to stay under such people?’

 A part of the novel came to mind.

 Clea, who constantly wanted to be recognized as a member of the Odoi family.

 Despite clearly being a lady born and raised from the legal wife, not an illegitimate child, she became more and more isolated the more she obsessed.

 Eventually, she became fanatically obsessed with the Odoi name, and in the end, was only used by the Odois before meeting a miserable end.

 ‘If only she had let go of her attachment to the Odoi name, the original Clea’s life might have been peaceful.’

 Whether she truly loved Lloyd and followed him, or forcibly maintained their relationship because of the family.

 If she had lived for herself instead of for the Odoi family, she wouldn’t have engaged in the reckless act of fighting with Aria.

 “Sign this.”

 She handed a piece of paper to Grit.

 Grit looked at the paper Clea handed him and clenched his hand.

 Clea’s expression remained calm as she watched the paper gradually crumple.

 The content written on the paper was simple.

 “Sign the contract stating that you will permanently expel me from the Odoi family.”

 At what amounted to telling him to stop using her, Grit frowned and glared at her.

 “Do you think I’ll agree just because you say so?”

 “Haven’t you told me countless times? That if I don’t obey, I can’t maintain the Odoi family name. I can’t even count on both hands how many times I’ve disobeyed you, so why not just expel me now?”

 “You try to get the better of me just because I’ve been a little lenient!”

 “Ah, Father!”

 Before Steve could intervene, Grit stood up.

 He had finally lost his patience.

 Not even recognizing that this was the imperial palace, he raised his hand toward Clea.

 She sighed.

 Given the place, she had thought ‘surely not,’ but she realized that people truly don’t change.

 Who would have thought he wouldn’t hide his pathetic behavior even in the imperial palace?

 ‘If my face gets scarred, will he hate seeing it?’

 Despite Grit glaring at her with a fierce intensity, Clea didn’t avoid his gaze and looked back at him.

 She was more worried about her face for Edmund than the pain.

 She worried that if her face became unpleasantly scarred, he might dislike it.

 While she was contemplating, touching what she held in her hand, something suddenly appeared before her eyes.

 She opened her eyes wide and looked at the situation.

 “I was a bit worried so I watched, but what is going on here?”

 “Y-Your Highness!”

 What had suddenly appeared was none other than Edmund.

 Edmund twisted the wrist that was about to strike Clea.

 Grit was flustered seeing him, who not only suddenly grabbed his wrist but also had hostility in his eyes.

 “Is this why you told me to watch?”

 “I didn’t think someone would resort to violence in Your Highness’s presence.”

 She looked at Edmund who had appeared and saved her.

 He was thoroughly angry.

 ‘I thought he was just a gentle lamb, but he’s exactly like in the novel.’

 Because he had only shown a gentle and mild appearance in front of Clea, she thought he was different from what she had heard.

 But the Edmund before her eyes was a man who matched the rumors perfectly.

He emanated an overwhelming atmosphere with his smoldering yet cold eyes alone.

 And Grit, meeting that gaze directly, felt completely overwhelmed and frightened.

 “And I had no intention of accepting it meekly either.”

 She boldly held out what was in her hand.

 Edmund couldn’t help but laugh at what she offered, finding it absurd.

 What Clea held out was a teacup filled with tea.

 She had planned to pour it on him, just like she had done to Lloyd when he spoke rudely before.

 But Edmund had appeared before she could.

 “Then shall we continue our conversation, Duke?”

 Clea no longer called Grit ‘Father.’

 Aware of this, Grit’s brow remained furrowed.