Chapter 23
Luciana slowly lifted her head, a faintly distant smile on her face, her tone calm. “He doesn’t just have me as his sister.”
Luciana paused slightly, then added coolly, “I’m tired.”
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Everyone acted like she was the only one they could count on. Back then, Luciana accepted that willingly. But now, even if she wanted to back out, she couldn’t. Francesca seemed determined to use her.
Today, when it came to pleading for Dorian, Francesca hadn’t even considered asking Juliette. She had only summoned Luciana.
“That god statue–Dorian gave it to Juliette. Did you know about that?” Luciana asked, already knowing the answer.
Francesca may not have known at first, but by the time Luciana arrived, she definitely did.
Trenton had already gone to question Dorian, so naturally the first thing to do should’ve been to return the statue. It was Francesca who had someone go get it.
Francesca had already sent people to Juliette’s place, yet didn’t even think about asking Juliette for help. Not a single word about it.
Hearing this, Francesca hurried to explain, “I knew. But your sister can’t help. She’d only upset your father.”
“How could that be? You and Father both adore her the most. Then comes Dorian,” Luciana said plainly, stating the truth.
The only reason Luciana ever received any affection from Francesca was because she was obedient and never fought for anything.
If Luciana ever started fighting back, Francesca would say she was no longer considerate. And if she wasn’t that, there’d be no need to care about her anymore.
That was how Francesca treated her. It wasn’t like with Juliette–Juliette could act spoiled, throw tantrums, be unreasonable, and people still doted on her. Because she was the baby.
Luciana wore the invisible shackle of being the “understanding one.” Everyone pitied her for it.
But pity wasn’t the same as love. People pitied her, sure, but when things went wrong, the blame was still hers. All she ever got were things no one else wanted.
If Luciana ever broke free from that label, no one would even look her way.
Because someone had to wear that shackle. And that someone had to be Luciana. That was her role.
Francesca heard the cold edge under her words. She took a deep breath and asked sharply, “What did he do to you? Why are you so angry today?”
“What makes you think I’m angry, Mother?” Luciana smiled. “Didn’t I already give you a solution?”
Mentioning the solution, Francesca had to soften a little. She thought the plan made sense, just not the person carrying it out.
Francesca didn’t want to take the risk of angering Trenton.
“I can’t be the one to bring it up. I’m the queen. How could I ask him to steal from the king? Luciana, I know your brother was out of line the other day, but this time, help him just once more.” Francesca reached out and gently held her hand, her tone clearly pleading.
Luciana quietly pulled her hand back. You could ask Juliette. Whenever she wants something, she goes straight to Father and sweet–talks him. That kind of thing suits her much better.”
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Chapter 23
Luciana thought, ‘Mother clung to her pride and refused to step in. Fine. But isn’t Juliette still there?
Juliette can refuse to help too, but Mother doesn’t even bother asking. Instead, she guilt–tripped me over and over. Does she have to be this biased?‘
The smile on Francesca’s face froze. Even after she’d spoken so kindly, Luciana still turned her down.
“So you’ve really made up your mind not to help?” Francesca asked again, unwilling to give up.
Luciana stood up and didn’t answer directly. Instead, she asked, “Would you blame me, Mother?”
Luciana’s gaze held nothing but quiet curiosity–no unease, no panic. She seemed interested in Francesca’s answer, but not concerned about it.
Francesca swallowed the words she almost blurted out and forced a smile. “Of course not. Dorian does need to be taught a lesson.”
Deep down, though, Francesca was still upset and did want to blame Luciana a little. But now wasn’t the time to say that out loud.
Luciana wasn’t in a good mood today, and clearly her emotions were off. If Francesca pushed too hard, things might get worse.
It was better to wait for another chance to talk.
“I don’t think you’re that unfair, Mother. You wouldn’t dismiss everything I’ve done just because I chose to stand back this one time,” Luciana said sincerely, her smile bright and warm, like she truly believed what she was saying.
But Luciana knew perfectly well Francesca would blame her. She thought, ‘It can’t be helped. Let her. There’ll be plenty more blame to come.
‘If Dorian can’t carry the weight, maybe someone else should. And Mother will never forgive me for this.‘
Guilt crept into Francesca’s heart. She felt bad about how she’d just judged Luciana.
Luciana was right. One mistake didn’t erase everything she’d done before. Everyone could see how much she’d cared for Dorian in the past.
“You really don’t need to worry, Mother. If this teaches him a lesson, it might not be such a bad thing. If he always relies on me to bail him out, one day he’ll take something even more serious, and no one will be able to save him.” Luciana comforted her while throwing subtle blame at
Dorian.
It sounded like Luciana believed that getting punished this time might actually be a good thing for Dorian.
The fact that Luciana could say that right in front of Francesca showed she truly meant it for Dorian’s own good, which made it even harder
for Francesca to argue back.
Francesca thought, ‘Luciana’s right–this isn’t Dorian’s first time. Hopefully he’ll finally learn something this time.‘
Dorian was under house arrest indefinitely, and all the servants around him had been switched out by Trenton’s orders.
Dorian was completely lost. He couldn’t make sense of what was happening. That god statue–he didn’t even remember it at first.
It wasn’t until Trenton kicked him twice that it hit him. Dorian had taken it. He’d taken it before he came back in time. He had forgotten all
about it.
Dorian wondered, ‘In my previous life, that god statue never caused any trouble. Why is Trenton suddenly making a big deal out of it now?!
Even though they didn’t announce anything publicly, there was no mercy behind closed doors.
“Prince Dorian,” a soft voice whispered from outside the window. A maid leaned close, calling him quietly.
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Chapter 23
It was Jeannie, one of Francesca’s attendants. Francesca had sent her to calm Dorian down.
Dorian rushed over and asked eagerly, “Did Mother say when I’ll be allowed out?”
Dorian was bored out of his mind. He couldn’t stand being locked up.
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It had been so long since the last time. In his previous life, once he became crown prince, no one ever grounded him again. Even before that, it rarely happened.
Back then, it was just for show–maybe two days and done.
‘But now, Father is furious. And he won’t calm down in a few days. He’ll never let me out,‘ Dorian thought.
Jeannie looked troubled. “Queen Francesca doesn’t know when you’ll be released.”
Dorian stomped his foot, frustrated. “Did Luciana come? What did she say? Did she come up with a way to help me?”
Whenever something went wrong, Dorian always turned to Luciana. It was a habit.
Even though, in the end, he had resented her and let her die alone far from home, Dorian couldn’t shake the instinct to rely on her.
Dorian had this strange confidence–this deep–rooted belief that no matter what happened, Luciana would help him.
That Luciana would always do everything she could for him. So when he blurted out her name, even Dorian was caught off guard.
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