Chapter 200

Chapter 200

Being alone with him in a place like this would only attract attention, making her situation even more awkward. However, Frederick seemed to anticipate her concerns, and he grinned as if to say it shouldn’t matter to her.

“Did you bury my gift in the ground?”

“…”

“It’s ridiculous. When I woke up this morning, the garden was all dug up. What a commotion it caused. If I hadn’t told everyone to keep quiet, you’d probably have been summoned by the emperor again. Why are you so fearless now? I clearly said your life was paid for with the bullet you shot me back then.”

He said this arrogantly, hoping she’d cower, but Deatrice, with an expression of incomprehension, just tilted her head. “I saved your life earlier than that; how can you say such a minor injury could make that debt null?”

“What?”

“It wasn’t me; you could have died back then. So, at least when it comes to you, don’t I have some freedom to do anything I please?”

Frederick chuckled in disbelief but soon sensed something unusual in her words.

“For me? So, you mean there are people you don’t feel free with?”

“…I need to go.”

She stood up without saying anything more, and Frederick, looking puzzled, paused for a moment as if pondering something, then smiled and followed her.

“Seems like there’s something’s going on between you and Lucius.”

“It’s none of your concern.”

“Well, it seems like my concern. You’re going to be my queen soon, after all.”

He chuckled arrogantly, then began to offer advice to her.

“If you become a queen, you’ll have to stop this habit of shooting people recklessly. You used to be a perfect fiancée before. What happened to make you like this, I wonder?”

Frederick teased with a smirk, and Deatrice bristled.

“Do you want me even after I shot you?”

“There’s no reason not to. In fact, people seem to adore me even more. They say I forgive even the woman who shot me and even give her gifts.”

“So, you sent me a gift because you cared about people’s opinions?”

“Then, do you really think I sent it because I wanted to please you?”

“Is your reason for living the opinions of people who don’t even matter to you?”

Deatrice asked with a faint tone of disdain, and Frederick retorted sharply.

“If that’s the case, what would your ladyship say is a desirable reason to live for? Ah, love again?”

“No, truth. Truth matters.”

She murmured with determination. But Frederick chuckled and then sneered.

“So, your husband isn’t truthful. That’s why you fought, right?”

Between her and Lucius, if there was anyone who wasn’t truthful, it was Deatrice. But Frederick, seemingly eager to criticize Lucius without knowing anything, indulged in his own thoughts and continued talking.

“I’ve never seen that man openly reveal anything. Whether it’s six years ago or now, I wonder what he’s hiding so tightly. He’s afraid of guns, right? He pretends he’s not, but I remember him cowering when he was shot for the first time. I’ve seen plenty of knights like that during the war.”

Suddenly, Frederick grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. Then, he looked into her eyes and warned her solemnly.

“You need to think carefully, Deatrice. Those who have visible scars like that are often more broken on the inside. They may seem put together on the surface, but inside, they might be irreparably shattered. So don’t pity them and run away. Don’t live noisily, tangled up with such inferior being.”

“Don’t pretend to know things when you don’t.” She replied, pulling her hand away nervously.

“Then, are you saying that him being like that is okay with you?”

“Yes.”

To that, Frederick sneered.

“Seems like the lies are piling up. Oh, did you know? More than fourteen priests tended over Lucius before.”

“What?”

“Lucius saved the Emperor and got captured in the process. When he was retrieved from the enemies, he was half dead. How come you didn’t know about this? What else could be he be hiding from you?”

It was utterly unpleasant the way he casually mentioned it, as if he were unraveling the secret from that night with Lucius, just like that. Annoyed and with a furrowed brow, she asked, “How did you find out?”

In response, Frederick merely shrugged nonchalantly. “You mean, if I did some kind of investigation? Yes, I did. But it wasn’t that hard to find out. After all, there’s always a record of people the priests had treated. Especially when it comes to knights and the navy.”

However, whether he had easily or laboriously discovered this made no difference; the discomfort remained.

The fact that Frederick had gone through such lengths to find Lucius’s weakness was telling enough. Her displeasure was evident on her face, and Frederick raised the corner of his mouth as he spoke again.

“Are you suggesting that your husband does not tell you of such things? He’s been quite busy lately. I wonder what he’s up to.”

“Don’t compare Lucius to you.”

“Of course not. I wouldn’t dare compare him to me. He’s even worse, Deatrice.”