Timid and Shy - Chapter 59

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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59.

Sophia and Baron Ariel left the Reception Room and made their way to the old Greenhouse. The winter sky was overcast, but the Greenhouse was warm and welcoming. Wild orchids were in bloom, and their fragrance filled the air.
Sophia breathed in the scent deeply and prepared herself for the conversation with her father. She had to persuade him if she was to go to Oberon.
‘I have to be honest with Father. Nothing else will convince him.’
Baron Ariel spoke first.
“I was suspicious even when you became betrothed to Crown Prince Robert, but I was certain once you returned to Ariel. There was something to that betrothal. But now you want to become engaged to Oberon as well? Sophia! I understand the desire to provoke Oberon into trapping themselves, but this is far too reckless.”
The Baron, who had been speaking with such firmness, now looked worried as he turned to her.
“You don’t need to stake your safety. We have time now, and we have the means. We can take on Oberon slowly. There’s no rush. I simply cannot fathom why you’re drawn to such a dangerous course.”
Sophia looked around the Greenhouse before answering.
“I want Ariel to grow more prosperous and powerful. I want all those who dare to touch us to pay the price. And I need something to devote myself to—something that demands my absolute best effort to succeed.”
At Sophia’s last words, Baron Ariel smiled and spoke.
“I’ve wondered what I’d feel if you found someone you truly cared for, and how you might change. But I never expected this. So you like Crown Prince Robert but can’t have him, so you’ll take Oberon instead?”
Sophia met her father’s gaze and replied.
“It’s far safer to covet Oberon than to covet the Empress’s throne. How modest of me. Oberon is nothing in comparison.”
“Is that all you want? You don’t think that if you gain Oberon, you might somehow… keep your betrothal to Crown Prince Robert, do you?”
“No, Father. I’m not foolish. Why would anyone choose me when they could have Gareis?
I know how futile that hope is. I hear Parma has come to the Capital. Soon I’ll lose even the status of the Crown Prince’s betrothed. I have to hurry.”
Sophia spoke with naked ambition, her words tumbling out eagerly.
“And I hate letting the Imperial Court rob us of what’s ours. Oberon belongs to us. Father, we must take Oberon. We still have the threat from Wiscom and Crown Prince Frederick. With enemies circling us, I won’t let go of what we can claim.”
Baron Ariel sat down in one of the Greenhouse chairs. The creak of the wood sounded almost like his sigh.
“Very well. If your heart is set on territorial conquest, then so be it. But you must be careful. Devise the best strategy to protect yourself first. Only then will I send you to Oberon. What matters most is that you remain safe. And I have no wish to call Oberon family. I don’t want to call those fools relatives.”
Sophia gave a hollow laugh.
“Yes, Father. I’ve no desire to acquire an incompetent husband either.”
Baron Ariel did not press Sophia further about Crown Prince Robert. He could tell from the way she avoided his gaze that he already knew the answer.
‘She truly loves Crown Prince Robert. And he won’t be caught, even if she tries.’
Baron Ariel spoke softly.
“He will regret it. He will surely regret letting you slip away.”
Sophia turned her back to her father and gazed at the orchids in full bloom. Her trembling hand caused the flowers to sway as well.
Baron Ariel rose quietly and placed a hand on Sophia’s back. In the shelter of her father’s embrace, Sophia finally let the tears she had held back fall freely.
“He will never regret it. He doesn’t even know that I care for him. Perhaps he never will. Every conversation we had was only about advantage and benefit. How could he ever know I care for him? He never will. I cared for him even as I feared him knowing it. I never once let him see that I…”
Sobs choked off her words.
Baron Ariel said nothing. In truth, he doubted Crown Prince Robert was so unperceptive. Yet he also doubted the Crown Prince was foolish enough to reveal it if he had noticed.
‘Damn Wiscom. If Sophia had never met Crown Prince Robert, she wouldn’t be crying now. Damn them all.’
Baron Ariel comforted his daughter, grateful that she was finally opening her heart. He ached thinking of how alone she had carried this burden, suppressing her own feelings all this time.

***

Since arriving in the Capital, Parma had made a show of attending every social gathering. She exchanged perfunctory greetings with Crown Prince Frederick and Isabel whenever their paths crossed, though her manner was cool and measured.
Every time Crown Prince Frederick saw Parma, a bitter smile flickered across his lips before he took his leave. Parma made no effort to hold back a man who so obviously wished to escape her presence.
He was a Crown Prince, after all, and even if she had confronted him, he wasn’t the type to be made to understand. Parma was well aware that whenever she and Isabel occupied the same space, the gathered crowd watched with bated breath, their faces alight with anticipation.
‘Do I look like I exist to provide you vulgar entertainment?’
She could see it clearly now. The gathering of those who enjoyed stoking her legendary temper to create spectacle for their amusement.
The young noblewomen and suitors who circled Parma, always quick to mirror her mood and read her expressions, were hoping she would finally clash with Isabel.
‘I thought I at least had good judgment, even if I wasn’t as clever as my brother. But that wasn’t true either, was it?’
Parma knew her reputation for infamy stemmed partly from her own temperament. Yet her brother’s words also held truth—that others sought to provoke her and then magnified the incidents, spreading rumors to fuel her dark legend.
Since returning to the Capital, Parma had seemed to carry on as before, but she now regarded the people around her with new eyes.
Most of the young noblewomen and suitors trafficked in their family names, used others as tools, and attacked those they disliked through intermediaries.
Those in society leveraged everything at their disposal—their lineage, their beauty, their wit, their patrons, their betrothed’s family—to inflate their own standing.
Parma had come to believe she had no need for such tactics.
‘Being Gareis is enough.’
She had once enjoyed parading Crown Prince Frederick about, and losing him had brought both rage and shame. Now only emptiness remained.
‘Perhaps I should have entered the Academy instead, as my brother suggested.’
She had read books and received instruction from scholars, but the only practical use she’d found was in not being bested in conversation. Stepping back now and observing society and her former self, she felt only a hollow ache.
Today, too, Parma set aside her thoughts and entered the Ballroom.
Lately, Philip had taken to hovering near her with tiresome persistence. Judging by his stiff manner, it wasn’t affection that drove him—he was clearly keeping watch to prevent any approach from Crown Prince Robert.
‘And here’s someone with nothing but an Academy diploma doing this sort of work. Perhaps the Academy isn’t as remarkable as everyone claims.’
Even seeing Isabel no longer kindled anger in her. She would have her revenge, but not in the crude form of confrontation or displays of rage.
Venting her frustrations on Isabel Wiscom would only bring mockery back in return—or so Parma suspected. One had only to observe Isabel’s affected show of fragility to see through it.
‘Isabel Wiscom isn’t acting helpless because she lacks intelligence. She does it because she believes it serves her interests. As one would expect from House Wiscom.’
Parma concealed her newfound cynicism about society. She continued to treat people and hold conversations as she always had. Yet with each passing hour, the parties and gatherings grew tedious, exhausting.
When Parma slipped into the Powder Room for a moment’s rest, several young noblewomen hurriedly vacated their spots.
She spared them not a glance—they weren’t worth her attention. Once inside, she found Isabel Wiscom also present in the Powder Room.
With a cool demeanor, Parma gave a slight nod in acknowledgment, then settled onto the sofa to ease her weary legs.
Isabel studied Parma’s expression, bolstered by the encouragement of several young noblewomen, and stepped before her. When she spoke, her voice was small and trembling.
“Young Noblewoman Gareis. If my actions have caused you any distress, I beg your forgiveness. I did not wish to do these things.”
Parma looked up at Isabel and replied with composure.
“Would you be more specific about what you mean? Don’t leave it so vague. Tell me plainly: what actions did you take against your own wishes? What did you do while I was away from the Capital?”
Parma straightened her posture and fixed her gaze on Isabel. Isabel’s face paled with alarm.
Parma regarded her with equal patience, curious herself about what stage Isabel had constructed and what she meant to reveal.
‘You’ve held out longer than I expected, Isabel Wiscom.’
Parma’s expression remained composed as she watched. Isabel lowered her head, and when she spoke again, her voice wavered with tears.
“In truth… from the moment I first met His Highness Frederick, my heart was drawn to him. But I came to understand that he did not feel the same. It was unrequited love. When His Highness Frederick became betrothed to you, I resolved to let go of my feelings and avoided any place where I might encounter him. Time passed, and I thought I had finally moved on, but when I saw His Highness Frederick again…”
Isabel paused to collect herself, drawing a shaky breath before continuing.
“Only then did His Highness show me his true feelings… Yet knowing he was already betrothed to you, Young Noblewoman Gareis, I tried to suppress my heart. But then I heard the betrothal had been broken, and… I have wanted to apologize to you ever since. Let me do so now. If you ask me not to see His Highness Frederick, I will comply.”
As she spoke, Isabel gazed at Parma with eyes brimming with tears. After listening to her account, Parma fell silent for a long moment before responding.
“I have no intention of interfering in whether you and His Highness Frederick become betrothed or part ways. I simply hope you make a wise choice. If there is affection between you, it will serve you well in navigating the challenges ahead. You both must endure a difficult time, after all. As you yourself must realize, His Highness Frederick’s circumstances are quite different now from when he was betrothed to me.”
Parma continued in a light tone, as though the broken betrothal held no regret for her.
“I accept your apology. Should His Highness Frederick find love with you, I wish for nothing else. I only hope that in time, you will not come to resent him.”
Having said her piece, Parma smiled faintly.
Isabel’s lips trembled. Parma looked at her and spoke.
“Now that you’ve apologized, won’t you let me rest? Young Noblewoman Wiscom.”
The conversation between Parma and Isabel that day spread as rumors—as though Parma had issued a Declaration of Intent against Isabel Wiscom. It was said that Parma, invoking the name of House Gareis, meant to obstruct His Highness Frederick.
Days later, when Parma heard these rumors, she laughed them off.
“Whoever started this rumor must be someone who knows me well.”
The Duke of Gareis suspected the rumor had been spread by Crown Prince Robert. Had House Gareis not become incapable of maintaining neutrality?
When the Duke of Gareis grew indignant, Parma spoke.
“You never intended to remain neutral anyway. You made the first Declaration of Intent yourself—telling the Duke of Wiscom that it would not be easy for His Highness Frederick to become Crown Prince.”
“At the time, I meant only to complicate matters for Crown Prince Robert. This time, it favors him, does it not?”
“If it favors Crown Prince Robert, there is nothing unfavorable in it for us.”
The Duke of Gareis fell silent, pressing his lips together.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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