The Princess’ Bedroom Doll · 19. December 2023

Doll 143

Chapter 143

****

Oliver grabbed Raha's cold hand.

She lifted her head dazedly. A tear slid down Oliver's cheek.

"Princess, I am a hidden sage, who has been a hermit for generations."

"...."

"I broke my hermit's vow and confessed my identity to the royal family. Before that, I only wanted to protect you, so please don't say that."

"Why me?"

"...."

"Why you me, Oliver."

"......because you were so broken."

Oliver's words echoed the words of those who had passed through Raha before, all of them saying similar things. Poor, pitiful, unfixable, terribly broken princess.......

Raha slowly tilted her head. The dilapidated tombstone was as shabby as she was. Oliver was right, he had done his best to mend her broken self.

"I see."

"...."

"I was so messed up......."

She was tired.

She was unbearably tired.

"I don't know how many people are being made miserable by these eyes.”

Raha looked down at her blood-soaked chest and opened her mouth to speak. How long would it be before her life was cut short?

She was glad it didn't hurt.

Raha wiped the back of her hand across her eyes, which had been wet for who knew how long.

"Do your job as a sage, Oliver."

"......princess."

"Because I didn't die for this day, for now......."

Her vision kept blurring. Inexplicable tears flowed nonstop, and Raha had to wipe her crushed cheeks a few more times.

***

And this was what Oliver, the hidden sage, recorded.

[Now that all legitimate heirs to the throne have passed away, Raha Delharsa, the only imperial member who has ever seen the eye of the sky, announces the names of the new heirs.

The territory of the Delo Empire under Delharsa's control is divided into exactly three provinces.

One third of the empire will be bequeathed to Duke Esther as compensation for the death of Countess Borbon.

The other third goes to the High Priest as an apology for Karzen Delharsa's insult to the Holy Land.

The final third is bequeathed to Shed Hildes, the royal lord of Hildes, as compensation and absolution.

It is the firm will of Raha Delharsa, the last of the heirs to have the eyes of the heirs, that all blue bloods who dwell in Delo must honor and fulfill their knightly oaths and pledges to Delharsa.

All of this is testified to by the wise men, who actively and successfully assist in its fulfillment].

"Well written."

Raha smiled slowly.

With this, all her sins in life were paid for.

"Take Blake Duke out. Keep him alive. I have no intention of letting him die so easily."

Oliver had bitten his lip so many times that his pretty lips were bleeding. But he obeyed and dragged Blake Duke out of the room.

He knew it.

He'd get a box of pills from somewhere and try to cure the Princess somehow, which was probably why he was still purposely pretending to listen.

And in the meantime, the wise men might return and repair the crumbling insignia.

Raha looked up at the flickering lights.

She was the only one alive in this beautiful setting. A nameless knight lay dead in the corner, and the former Emperor and Karzen lay bleeding side by side.

A painter should have been planted.

When would future generations see this again?

Swallowing down the urge to laugh, and actually forcing herself to be amused, Raha touched the tombstone once more. As she had noticed before, the giant marker was sensitive to her blood. Was that why? The cracks seemed to be picking up speed.

After five slaps in a row, Raha quit.

Because really, the heavens and the earth shouldn't overlap.

There should be enough left over for the sages to make hasty repairs.

Raha sighed and walked to the corner behind the stele. This was the site of the most important holy relic in the Delo Empire.

It wasn't hard to crawl through the beautifully decorated red rose bushes and hide from the bloodshed.

Her stomach was punctured and bleeding, but it didn't hurt. All she could do was sleep.

She knew.

That Shed would never kill her.

That he wouldn't be able to strangle her either, because he wouldn't be able to kill her.

Somehow he would keep her alive, somehow he would try to transfer that numbing warmth.

But now, to come and find rest, Raha had been exhausted for too long.

Her only wish, the one thing that kept her sane, had been fulfilled, and she had vowed that she would die to accomplish it. There was no way she could let go of that last inertial wish. Maybe it was because she was out of her mind, according to everyone, and maybe it was because....

"You are very cold, Raha."

They weren't wrong.

She was cold.

Horribly so...

Looking forward to the slow death, Raha buried her forehead in her clasped knees. Her wavy blue hair cascaded down her back. Even so, it bounced gently, and she thought to herself.

If even her corpse is beautiful, she thought, it will be harder for her fiancé to forget her.

All she could think about under these roses was Shed..........

Her vision was blurry. She felt like she was dreaming. Raha couldn't help but wonder if she'd passed out for a moment.

"..."

Raha reached out and touched the man in front of her. There before her, barely covered in blood, was her tearfully beautiful groom-to-be.

It was dreamlike, but she didn't even believe it was a dream.

From the beginning, he had been a manipulative man. He could come back to her at will, propose to her at will, tell her he loved her at will, and.......

Shed’s gaze fell on Raha's abdomen. A wound that had clearly been pierced by a sword. Shed barely suppressed the urge to pull Raha off him and run.

His breath caught in his throat a little as he realized she was watching him like a dream. As always, she was already too deeply embedded in his mind.

"Hiding in a place like this."

"...."

"Did you not want me to find you?"

"Because asking you to kill me would be too cruel for us after all."

Raha said in a slower tone than usual.

"Do you really need to see me like this?"

"Raha."

"Go, Shed."

"Raha delharsa."

He didn't say anything else. But Shed’s hand wiping at the corners of her eyes was trembling with a rare tremor, and Raha thought she might cry a little more. A deep anguish clung to her chest like lye.

"I gave you a third of Delo, Shed."

I hope you can see the reward I'll give you.

Perhaps the Holy Kingdom was weak-minded, or perhaps it didn’t want to get involved in any more conflicts. So the Holy Kingdom could not do this or that, and would eventually hand over its inherited territory of Delo to Shed.

The two together were the largest piece of land in the continent's kingdoms.

It would be great to form a new empire.

But.......

"I don't need it."

The words that came back choked Raha's breath.

"I never wanted anything like that."

"..."

"You know that, Raha delharsa."

She was the only woman he'd ever wanted. The one who looked like a part of him.

The ashen eyes that gazed back at him were like the bottom of a brazier with no embers. Rough and dry, he couldn't tell if she was breathing or not.......

No one could suppress her, no one could force her. No one could force her to live. Like a noble and sensitive rare animal, the moment she was forced to live an unwanted life, Raha would gladly bite her tongue and choose extinction.

She made him so helpless.

"I'm sorry, Shed."

Her voice was deep and wet.

"I'm sorry for making you fall in love with something like me."

What could she possibly say to comfort him? She's used up everything she had, and now she didn’t even have a fire left.

“Raha."

"..."

"What did you do wrong to me?"

"..."

"The only thing you've done wrong is to kiss me at will."

"..."

"That's all there is to it, Raha Delharsa......."

The deep wounds carved into him were clearly felt. Since when did her fiancé become such a mess?

Shed......

This man..

"Don't do that."

“Raha."

"Don't. Shed."

"I destroyed everything you hate, you should live."

"..."

"You win, Raha."

"..."

"You won, just like you wanted, Raha........"

Raha slowly squeezed Shed’s arm. The movement, not unlike the fluffing of down, indicated a faint life in its master.

"I...... don't want to live."

Just a little longer and she would die. She could die without going crazy. It's a forced life.

Was there any reason for her to live now?

Even if she did, would she find one?

"What's the point of saying I want to live now?"

A tear slowly rolled down Raha's cheek.

"It doesn't mean anything......."

Shed turned to look at her and lowered his head. Seeing the tears falling along his hard jaw.

Raha suddenly felt horrible. Not that he wasn't always, but right now he was out of breath.

"I......."

A voice, deeply scarred, pierced Raha's ears, painfully.

"I can beg you all my life, beg and cling as long as you want. As long as you're alive, I can, please."

"...."

"Please, Raha."

Raha covered her face with her hands, tears streaming down her cheeks in a steady stream. As cruel as she was, he was willing to be cruel. If Raha were to die, he would slit his own throat. It wasn't a guess, it was a certainty.

But she had been unhappy for too long.

So long, in fact, that one day Raha began to apologize to the gods at night. Since I feel so unhappy because I did something wrong, I will somehow pay for my sin. So please don't make me unhappy anymore...

As it turned out, yes, there was some merciful god who sent her this man. She couldn't have asked for more. She expected to be slowly drowning in happiness and then snap back to her senses like a slap in the face.

***

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