‘……A flower?’

Iella blinked blankly. The freshly bloomed flower’s uniquely vibrant appearance brightened her eyes. Confusion washed over her like a wave.

‘……Why?’

That was the only thought that came to mind. Chase giving a flower to Ailexia—why? No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t understand the reason. Their relationship wasn’t close enough to exchange such gifts.

Of course, since Chase harbored s*xual desire for Ailexia, it wasn’t strange in that sense. Flowers were commonly given as gifts to express romantic interest or to gain favor from someone.

However, that was precisely why it was more confusing.

He would know better than anyone that Ailexia wouldn’t appreciate receiving flowers from him. He must be fully aware of what he meant to Ailexia and how she treated him.

Chase surely knew that this bouquet would only provoke Ailexia’s antipathy.

“I know you hate receiving such romantic gifts from me.”

Iella flinched at Chase’s sudden remark as she had been staring at the bouquet without any reaction. He had accurately guessed what she was thinking.

“It’s not like I haven’t been rejected many times before.”

Can he read minds? Once again, Chase accurately guessed her thoughts, and Iella unconsciously rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand. She wondered if her thoughts were completely visible on her face.

Watching her quietly, Chase reached out and took her hand that was touching her cheek. Before Iella could pull away, the rose bouquet he had prepared was placed in her hand.

Having received the gift unexpectedly, Iella raised her downcast gaze to meet his. She met his crimson eyes, which seemed more subdued than usual.

‘…They’re remarkably identical.’

To the emperor’s eyes.

She wasn’t sure why such a thought suddenly occurred to her. Since they shared the same imperial bloodline, it wasn’t particularly surprising. But the thought came instinctively, before she could even consider such reasoning. Looking only at their eyes, she felt almost certain she could mistake one for the other.

As if that had happened before.

‘What am I thinking?’

Iella quickly shook off the thought.

It made no sense. She had only met Chase and Helios after becoming Ailexia. She had never met them before that. There was no way she could have met them when she never left her territory.

“…Do you hate it so much that you won’t say anything?”

Just then, Chase’s voice was heard again. It was clearly a question that misunderstood her silence. Iella snapped back to attention.

To be lost in other thoughts while facing him—her sense of danger must have diminished significantly after returning to her original body once more.

But today, she wasn’t the only one acting strangely.

“There’s no other meaning. I couldn’t come to visit the sick empty-handed, so I brought this. …Would you accept it that way?”

“……”

Her hand, which had been moving to reject the bouquet, stopped. Iella looked at him with unfamiliar eyes. His attitude was extremely strange.

‘Why is he being so submissive?’

The man she had faced as Ailexia always had an imposing presence. Far from being considerate of her feelings, he was quick to push his own overwhelming emotions onto her.

Although that attitude didn’t persist until the end, that was only because Iella had exploited openings to escape or forced him to back off.

Just recalling the incident at the banquet was enough. If Iella had done nothing and given up then, they would have already engaged in embarrassing s*x right there.

But now, that intensity was nowhere to be seen. He was acting as if he had committed a great wrong against her. As Iella opened and closed her mouth in confusion, Chase let out a long sigh.

“I heard you collapsed. Because you ate something containing peanuts. And that the emperor personally served you that food.”

“……”

“The emperor must have exerted silent pressure. And you, not wanting to lose, must have defiantly eaten it in front of him.”

“…And?”

It was half right and half wrong, but Iella didn’t bother to point that out. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to lose; rather, she had put it in her mouth under pressure, almost by force. But that didn’t fit Ailexia’s character, and there was no need to tell him about it.

More than that, she wanted to know what Chase was trying to say.

Having already finished guessing Ailexia’s intentions, why was he bringing this up again?

‘Does he want to say he was worried?’

That would make sense. Even if it was a situation brought about by one’s own stubbornness, no one would fail to worry if someone they liked had nearly died because of it.

But even so, his attitude still didn’t make sense. She would have expected him to scold Ailexia instead. Asking why she had done such a thing.

“What? Is that all you…!”

…No sooner had she thought this than an agitated rebuke flowed from the Grand Duke’s mouth.

Hearing his naturally rising voice in response to her indifferent answer, Iella inwardly smiled wryly at her correct prediction. How had she come to understand him so well….

However, she watched as he suddenly cut off his words and took a deep breath to control his emotions. This too was an unfamiliar and surprising scene.

“Hah…. It’s fortunate there was only a small amount of peanuts; otherwise, it could have been truly dangerous. If the emperor had truly intended to kill you, you might never have opened your eyes again. I’m sure you, who values your life so dearly, would know this, so I’ve been wondering countless times why you did it.”

He continued in a steady, even tone, having returned to a calmer voice.

“It seemed strange to attribute it merely to stubbornness. After knowing it contained peanuts, you would have flipped the table rather than forcing yourself to eat it. You would have confronted the emperor, demanding to know his intentions.”

‘Are you crazy? I have to go that far?’

She thought she had stood up well against the emperor’s pressure, but that apparently didn’t even count as proper behavior. She needed to do something far more outrageous.

Iella couldn’t hide her shock. How on earth was she supposed to do that?

“…Truly, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t understand. Then I realized I might have been thinking from the wrong premise from the start. And then the answer came to me.”

“……”

“You, this time, might have wanted to die.”

Iella realized he was heading in a completely wrong direction.

But his slightly contorted eyebrows looked painful. Rather than fully revealing emotions, such small changes made his suffering all the more vivid. As if it conflicted with his heart’s desire to deny it.

“I know I pushed you too hard that day. I admit I restrained your struggling body and forced myself on you. If you hadn’t cried… if you hadn’t finally called my name, I would certainly have gone all the way. I would have taken you by force, satisfying only my own desires.”

So Iella couldn’t stop him. His untimely confession was too sincere. He was revealing his innermost feelings as if making a confession.

“Even knowing how much you hate me, no. Rather, because of that, I did it. I was tormented by being hated by you without even knowing the reason, and I became angry. I finally unleashed what I had been holding back. I thought, I’m already hated anyway, what difference would it make? But….”

He carefully raised his hand. However, just before touching her cheek, he hesitated and ultimately clenched his fist without making contact.

He spoke in a strained voice, as if his throat were constricted.

“I never thought my selfishness would lead you to make such a choice.”

‘What nonsense!’

Meanwhile, Iella was flabbergasted. He was thoroughly misunderstanding the situation. His skill at digging himself into a hole was quite remarkable.

‘Even if Ailexia was shocked by what happened that day, would she really be someone who would kill herself!’

She wanted to pound her chest in frustration. He acted like he knew Ailexia well, but he didn’t know her at all. Not one bit.

According to him, Ailexia was someone who would even confront the emperor. How would such a person consider suicide over this one incident? She would more likely be thinking of taking revenge against him.

Moreover, to be honest, if the real Ailexia had been at the banquet, Chase wouldn’t even have been able to create a situation to push her. She would have kicked him in the shin or broken his head with a dish if necessary. No, she might not have gone down to the banquet at all in the first place.

‘Besides, for such a change in mindset to occur, wouldn’t the Grand Duke need to be someone significant to Ailexia?’

Iella felt frustrated. Now she even felt sorry for him.

His face that seemed to have lost some weight, his appearance that looked troubled—all because he had been ruminating on such thoughts over and over.

‘Ailexia has no intention of giving him anything…’

There couldn’t be a more one-sided love than this.