Chapter 2 -- Nightmare (1)
After ten days, Claude had opened his eyes. It sent the palace scrambling. Of course, the fact that the Emperor's life had been in danger was a secret that only a small fraction of people had been privy to. But there was no hiding the fact that he was injured. Many ladies had been present at Athy's picnic. So, no matter how hard anyone tried, it was impossible to bury the incident entirely. Now that Claude and Athy had woken up, looking well, everyone was beyond relieved and happy.
"Princess, why are you up again?"
Athy couldn't believe that all the things that had happened were real.
"You must rest to fully recover. Here, hurry and go to your bed."
"What about Dad?" Athy asked Lily, who had entered her room just a moment before. But Lily's lips kept firmly shut at Athy's question. The way she looked at Athy was inscrutable. Athy had asked about Claude's wellbeing so often that Lily had grown quite skillful at masking her troubled expression.
"His Majesty is also resting in his bed. So you should hurry and lie down too, Princess. That way, you'll be able to recover quickly."
Athy had been asking the same question every single day for a week and, every day that week, Lily had been giving her the same answers. Athy knew that Lily would likely give her the same reply no matter how many more times she asked about Claude. Feigning defeat, Athy let Lily's hand guide her back into bed.
"I will quickly bring a warm tea for you. If you feel chilly, you must let me know."
"I understand."
After scrutinizing Athy in her bed, Lily left the room. Ever since Athy collapsed during her picnic, Lily had been very overprotective. I heard my condition was quite severe this time. But I'm not in pain anymore. Besides, if we're talking about pain, then Claude should be worse off than I am…
"..."
After staying still for a moment, Athy pulled her comforter up to her nose. Truthfully, Athy hadn't been able to meet with Claude for the past week. What had happened earlier suddenly replayed itself in her mind.