Please Answer Me - Chapter 150

“Your Majesty!”

Thud!

The Queen stomped her foot on the ground forcefully. Her voice, filled with anger, burst out, “Iselle, I always knew there was something unusual about you. If you were an ordinary child, you wouldn’t have survived the former king. Yet, I entrusted Rosetta to you because I believed that your feelings for her were genuine.”

The Queen’s voice suddenly softened. “But I nearly made a grave mistake. I almost threw Rosetta back into hell with my own hands.”

“……”

While Iselle was at a loss for words, Rashid approached Rosetta. Her clothes were dirty, her ornaments were out of place, and her hair was completely disheveled. Blood was even flowing from her elbow, likely from the injury she sustained when she fell off the horse.

A voice that seemed forced out of Rashid escaped his lips. “Are you… alright?”

Rosetta nodded. “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry. This time, I didn’t let go of the reins until the end. So, both I and the child are safe…”

Her words were cut off as Rashid suddenly picked her up. Embarrassed to be held by him in front of so many people, Rosetta struggled.

“Put me down. There’s no need for this…”

But even those words didn’t make it to the end. She noticed that the hands holding her tightly were trembling slightly. Instead of asking him to put her down again, Rosetta gently stroked his back.

Rashid lowered his head deeply. “I’m sorry, Rosetta. I’ve made you go through this again.”

Rosetta hurriedly shook her head. “I’m really okay. More importantly, how did you… and Mother…”

“I’ll tell you everything later. Later.”

Rashid, still holding Rosetta in his arms, began to walk. From the moment she was embraced by him, the dizziness and anxiety she felt began to quickly subside. Rosetta rested her chin on his shoulder and let out a sigh of relief.

It was only when they arrived in front of the carriage that Rashid finally set her down. The Queen approached Rosetta.

“Mother…”

The Queen cupped Rosetta’s cheeks in her hands, tenderly. “Leave now, with him.”

Rosetta looked at her with wide, surprised eyes, her voice trembling as she spoke, “Are you… letting me go?”

“Yes, I’ll take care of everything, so don’t worry.”

“But… Father and Sister…”

“You know your father will listen to whatever I say, don’t you? And don’t worry about Tanit. She might get angry, but she’ll eventually come around. Her temper is like lightning, but she doesn’t hold grudges.”

Tears began to fall from Rosetta’s eyes. The Queen, feeling the warmth of those tears on her hands, whispered softly, “I’m sorry it took me so long. I should have answered your call for help sooner. I’m always a step behind when it comes to you.”

“No, Mother. You weren’t late at all.”

Rosetta burst into tears and threw herself into the Queen’s arms. The Queen’s eyes also welled up with tears, but she managed to hold them back. If she cried as well, it would make their parting even harder. They didn’t have much time. She needed to send them off before they attracted too much attention.

“Rosetta.” She gently pulled her daughter from her embrace and spoke, “This is the path you’ve chosen. Once you’ve made a choice, don’t look back, no matter what happens. That way, you won’t have any regrets.”

Rosetta nodded. “I won’t regret it. I promise.”

The Queen smiled. “Good.”

Then, in a colder tone, she added, “Now, go. We’ve said our goodbyes.”

Rosetta wanted to stay with her a little longer. There was no guarantee when she would see her mother again. But remembering what the Queen had just said about not looking back once a decision was made, she couldn’t show any reluctance.

Instead, Rosetta approached Iselle.

Iselle was still kneeling on one knee in that spot. His red eyes were filled with a mix of emotions—anger, betrayal, and obsession.

“You said you regret rescuing me from the basement, but I’m still grateful to you. Thank you for saving me, Iselle.”

Iselle didn’t respond, glaring at her as if he wanted to kill her. Meeting his fierce gaze, Rosetta continued, “You said I would despise you if I knew the real you. But that’s not true. The you I met in the basement was exactly who you are now.”

A realization passed through Iselle’s eyes. He thought that if she hadn’t lost her memory of him, perhaps their relationship wouldn’t have ended so hollowly, even if they hadn’t been together.

“I’ll never forget the flowers you brought me, Iselle.”

Iselle lowered his head deeply, hiding his expression from view. Was he feeling the same regret as before? Or was it a different kind of regret now?

“Goodbye.”

With that farewell, Rashid took Rosetta’s hand and led her away. After helping her into the carriage, he gave the Queen a polite bow.

“Thank you for helping us.”

“Don’t forget the conversations we had inside the carriage.”

At the Queen’s words, Rashid smiled. “Of course, Your Majesty.”

The Queen nodded. “Then, go. Take your golden bird with you.”

Rashid bowed to her again before boarding the carriage. Soon, the wheels began to turn.

Rosetta resisted the urge to open the window and look back. It was only after they had traveled far enough that the Queen was no longer visible that she buried her face in her hands and cried.

Rashid wrapped his warm arms around her shoulders. After a while, when her sobs had subsided, Rosetta lifted her head and asked, “But what did she mean by the conversations you had inside the carriage?”

Rashid smiled and shook his head. “That’s a secret between your mother and me. I can’t tell you.”

Rosetta looked at him with a tear-streaked face, astonished. “Since when have you and my mother been so close that you share secrets I don’t even know?”

“Well, it seems your mother quite likes me.”

Looking at his smug expression, Rosetta asked again, “Then, at least tell me this. How did you two end up coming here together? Why didn’t you wait for me at the agreed location?”

“…When the time came, your nanny didn’t show up. That’s when I realized something had gone wrong.”

“The nanny didn’t go to you? She was supposed to go with Allen to meet you, so why?”

Originally, the nanny was supposed to join him first. But since both of them had been injured, Allen had decided to accompany her. They were supposed to leave right after Rosetta departed the palace.

“I had a bad feeling, so I made some inquiries and found out that you had already left for the Colosseum. I was debating whether to wait for you at the agreed location or go to the Colosseum when Allen showed up. He had come with your mother.”

Rosetta’s eyes widened in surprise. “Allen came to you with Mother? How?”

“You’d better ask Allen for the rest of the story.” Rashid pointed outside the window. The carriage had arrived at the location where they were originally supposed to meet. There, among the Ardenese, were the nanny and Allen, waiting together.

“Princess!”

As soon as Rosetta got out of the carriage, Allen was the first to rush over.

“Allen, what happened? How did this all come about?”

“Princess, what happened to you? Did you fall on your way here?” Allen’s eyes widened as he saw her dusty skirt and injured arm.

Rosetta quickly waved her hand dismissively. “More importantly, answer my question first. How did you end up with Mother?”

“Well…”

Allen began to explain what had happened after Rosetta had left.

“After you left, we were about to set off when suddenly the Queen took us aside. She said she wanted to help you and demanded to know the entire plan. At first, I couldn’t tell if she was sincere or if it was a trap, so I kept my mouth shut…”

“I’m the one who told her.”

At that moment, the nanny stepped forward.

“The Queen isn’t someone who would bother with trivial traps. She would have killed us and confronted the Princess directly if she wanted to. Just like last time. After hearing everything, the Queen said she wanted to meet the chieftain of the Quat tribe herself, so Allen took her to meet him.”

The rest of the story was what Rosetta already knew. They had met, talked, and then decided to head to the Colosseum together.

Rashid took something out of his coat and handed it to Rosetta. “Your mother gave me this.”

It was a pass stamped with the Queen’s seal. With this, there would be no place in Lysa they couldn’t go.

“When did she even…”

Tears welled up in Rosetta’s eyes again. She hadn’t even properly thanked her mother. It pained her to think of how she had threatened her mother last time. Even though she had acted as if her parents didn’t matter because of the man she loved, her mother had still prepared something like this for her in advance.

Is this what a parent’s love is like? Rashid’s father had sacrificed his life to save his wife and unborn child, and his mother had also sacrificed her life for Rashid’s future.

Rosetta’s parents had also rescued their young daughter from the basement, knowing full well that keeping her there would bring great benefits to Lysa. And now, they were letting her go unconditionally.

Rosetta gently cradled her stomach. Now, she would shower this child with the same kind of love.

“Let’s go back home.”

At that moment, Rashid spoke. Rosetta looked up at him in a daze. Then she realized that although they were setting off on another long journey, this trip had a completely different meaning from the last one. They weren’t leaving to return later; they were leaving to go home.

To Arden, to their home in Edirne.

Rosetta beamed brightly.

“Yes.”