CHAPTER XXVI

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Around four weeks passed and it was at long last time for the royal engagement that everyone was looking forward to. Everyone was on a joyous occasion except one person who sat all dolled up and looked like the most attractive woman, with a dark blue dress with golden strings attached at the waist. The frills spread out on the side. She wore a necklace that Argus had gifted her last time. Her hair was twisted on one side with golden strands inserted that covered the top of the hair like a tiara. Rhea was normally extremely pretty since she was after all the female lead however today she looked especially like she was out of this world, an angel.

Right now she was pouting, sitting in a carriage opposite Lydia who chuckled nervously since she knew that Rhea could burst any moment

"Cheer up. We are attending the party, aren't we? You'll get to meet Argus there."

"Yeah but these past two weeks we couldn't see each other even. Either I'm busy, or he is busy trying not to get killed. We tried delivering letters to each other but even that won't work. The letters either get lost or burned up somewhere. We try conveying our message to each other through common friends, but that's not possible since whenever they would meet Argus, there would be an assassination attempt on him. I get the book is trying to force us apart so the book can proceed like originally but isn't this too extreme? At least let me see him. I can't even see his face from far away. I can barely breathe the same air in which he is in."

Rhea looked like she was on the verge of crying and would burst out at any moment.

Lydia tried patting her hair to calm her down, but she moved away.

"Don't ruin my hair. Argus hasn't seen it yet."

"...okay. Is it just me or with time you are starting to sound more and more like the original Rhea? You never cared about your appearance before. Even when you went on that date, you didn't care but right now look at you. You're becoming more and more like her."

"...I've observed that too. But it doesn't feel like I'm becoming her. Rather it feels as if Rhea was a part of my personality that got separated away a long time ago and now it has reunited making my personality whole again. I feel like me. Not Rhea, not...what was my name used to be in the past? But only just me. Don't you experience this too?"

"No. Because my personality has always been that of Lydia. I never recognized the need to seek myself or change because it has always been me."

"For all one knows you were inevitably meant to be Lydia."

"Perhaps so."

"But I still hate this book for causing me and Argus to drift apart."

"You're still sulking about that?"

"We only just had one date! Only one date!"

"Sorry..."

"Let's just as soon as possible acquire the book and rip out the pages. Have you decided on an ending?"

"A perfect one."

"It's not like everything turns out to be a dream and we wake up with none of this happening?"

"....Err...That's not necessarily accurate. There can be alternative endings you know."

"You merely thought of that ending, right?"

"...."

"So you want me to forget you guys? Everything we have done together? All the times we spent meant nothing to you?"

"No...That's not it. I just...I thought that this way you would be happy. Since you've always complained about being in this book."

"I may have complained a bit but I am not saying I don't like this life. I don't think of this life as trapped in a book but rather a new life with a new me where I encountered so many people that I hold dear and cherish. So, please...I believe you...do what is best."

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