The Queen Who Deserves To Be Tainted - Chapter 61.2

With an irritated expression, Illene hurriedly supported Robert. Damn it, if it weren’t for the masquerade ball, she could’ve just handed him over to someone else.

“Ha really, what am I supposed to do with this mess…?”

She decided to take him to the nearest available room. While the purpose of the room wasn’t exactly pure, it was too much of a physical strain for her to bring him to the central palace on her own.

As Illene struggled to carry Robert, passersby gave them curious looks. She felt incredibly embarrassed, wishing the ground would swallow her whole.

The thought that people might misunderstand made her even more frustrated. Grinding her teeth, she muttered under her breath.

“You seriously owe me for this, today.”

“I’m dizzy… slow down…”

“Shut up!”

Up until then, Illene had been planning to just toss her clueless childhood friend into a room and leave right away. But the physical exhaustion was taking its toll.

Finally, she managed to drag him into a room that wasn’t locked with a red card. Illene threw Robert onto the bed and lay down for a moment. After catching her breath, she was about to get up again.

“Ah…!”

Suddenly, Robert grabbed Illene’s wrist. Illene scowled, looking down at her wrist for what seemed like the third time that night. Robert was staring at her with tears in his eyes.

“…Don’t go.”

He’s drunk.

Sighing, Illene shook her head and tried to pull her wrist away from his grip. But suddenly, a strong pull dragged her back, and in an instant, she was lying on the bed with Robert on top of her. She looked at him with a bewildered look.

…Wait a minute. This is…

“Illene.”

“….”

“Illene.”

His voice that kept calling her, didn’t sound right. Illene glanced at her wrist again and then back at Robert. Seeing the tears welling up in his eyes, she realized it for sure and gave him a stern warning.

“You’re drunk.”

“….”

“Don’t do something you’ll regret when you sober up tomorrow.”

“If I let you go now, I’ll regret it more.”

“Then what? What are you going to do if you don’t let me go?”

Illene scoffed and warned him once more.

“Don’t cross the line. Don’t make things awkward between us…”

At that moment, Robert leaned down and kissed Illene. She froze and when she looked at him again, his expression had changed to one of almost crying.

“Don’t go.”

“…”

“Don’t go, Illene. Stay with me.”

Illene’s heart started to race rapidly. Realizing this, she was horrified.

‘…Am I crazy? Am I drunk too?’

But what was even more disturbing was the fact that she didn’t mind the kiss with Robert just now. Feeling confused, Illene bit her lip, and Robert leaned down once more to kiss her. And then…

‘Stop!’

Illene quickly cut off the memory. She couldn’t bring herself to recall any further. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart. She then began to think more rationally.

The deed had already been done, and what mattered now was damage control. There was no such thing as an issue that couldn’t be fixed. She could definitely handle this.

‘First, I need to get away.’

Running away might be embarrassing, but it would help. And if running away didn’t solve the situation, then she would be honest about it. You were drunk, I was drunk, and we’ll just pretend it never happened.

For the sake of their future relationship, that seemed like the best option. With that conclusion, Illene’s heart finally felt a little lighter.

* * *

Elfreda sent out invitations to the tea party to the people on the list she received from Rachela.

Since Rachela was attending and Ejnar was involved, she expected a high attendance rate, but her anxiety from the trauma of the first tea party couldn’t be completely shaken off.

Trying not to show her nerves, Elfreda made her way to the central palace’s reception room a few days later, feeling jittery.

“I greet the shining moon of Machi.”

Once again, Robert was there to greet her. He looked around Elfreda, and when he didn’t spot Illene, he subtly clicked his tongue.

“Is Illene still unwell?”

“Oh, no. She had some urgent matters to attend to.”

“I see…”

With an awkward smile, Robert decided he would have to find a way to visit Solar Palace soon, by begging Ejnar if necessary. Nonetheless, he didn’t show any of his thoughts on his face as he courteously escorted Elfreda into the reception room.

Elfreda was curious about how many people had actually arrived when she noticed that Robert wasn’t saying much, so she assumed the attendance rate wasn’t dismal. Still, she entered the reception room with her heart racing with anticipation.

“Ah…!”

What she encountered was completely unexpected, and Elfreda let out a small gasp without meaning to.