Reincarnation of The Villainess: She Has The Duke's Baby!-Chapter 27: #-The Truth Is Revealed! Penelope’s Power
Isabella Lysander knows that Sebastian De Louis has had a lot on his mind these past few days.
Like now when the Crown Prince of the De Louis empire invited her to the palace for lunch and tea together. Ever since Isabella arrived at the palace, Sebastian only smiled at her and rarely spoke to her. Previously, Sebastian would always invite her to talk about anything.
"Tian," Isabella called in a gentle tone. Isabella was allowed by Sebastian to call his name instead of calling him Your Highness. Everyone in the imperial palace already knew about it and they were also happy that the Crown Prince was close to such a kind and gentle beauty like Isabella Lysander. "What’s wrong with you? Are you in trouble?"
Sebastian’s green eyes stared at Isabella’s pretty face. The man smiled and shook his head. "Nothing. Why do you ask?"
"You look a little strange, Tian. Since earlier, you looked like you were thinking about something. I’m just worried about you. If you have a problem, you can tell me, Tian. I may not be able to help, but I can be a good listener for you."
Sebastian laughed softly and stroked Isabella’s beautiful hair. This woman was the woman he had chosen. A very beautiful woman. A very kind and gentle woman. Very different from the rude and evil Penelope Askary. But, why does his heart have doubts right now? Why did he want Penelope Askary more than Isabella Lysander? Was it because Penelope’s attitude had changed drastically since the carriage accident at that time?
"Isabel, I have a question for you," Sebastian said in a serious tone. The red-haired man held Isabella’s hand tightly making Isabella blush. The woman always felt shy and blushed when she was near Sebastian. She felt lucky to be the only woman close to the imperial Crown Prince. Sebastian’s attention and affection always made Isabella comfortable and warm. "Maybe my question will make you feel a little uncomfortable. Can I still ask you?"
Isabella smiled and rubbed the back of Sebastian’s hand. "Tian, you are the Crown Prince in this empire. You can do whatever you want and talk about whatever you want. I don’t have the right to stop you."
Isabella’s smile made Sebastian feel guilty somehow. Before Penelope Askary changed, Sebastian De Louis loved the woman in front of him. No other woman could seduce Sebastian and turn his back on Isabella. But now, Sebastian didn’t expect that the woman who had succeeded in making him like this was the woman he had always ignored, Penelope Askary.
"One day I will become the emperor of this empire. There was no law in this empire that prohibited an emperor from having more than one wife. You will certainly be my empress. It was something I decided a long time ago. You are the only woman I love in this empire, Isabel."
Hearing Sebastian’s words, Isabella blinked and looked down. Her face was very red, making Sebastian smile. The man stroked Isabella’s cheek, then lifted her chin so Sebastian’s green eyes could stare at the beautiful face in front of him again.
"What if..." Sebastian gulped. Was it okay to ask Isabella something like this? What if he broke this woman’s heart? Sebastian wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if he saw Isabella cry because of him. "What if in the future, when I become the emperor and you become my empress, I suddenly want to remarry, want to have a concubine, will you allow it?"
The question made Isabella freeze. She looked into Sebastian’s green eyes. Those eyes looked serious, making Isabella look down. Her heart suddenly throbbed painfully, thinking that she wouldn’t be the only woman standing by Sebastian’s side. However, that was not uncommon in this empire. And Isabella was sure, that wasn’t uncommon in other empires either. An emperor may have more than one wife. Even many nobles have other hidden wives, which their families don’t know about.
"Do you... love another woman, Tian?" Isabella asked in a low and careful tone. She dared to meet those green eyes that she liked so much. Beautiful green eyes like emeralds. Isabella forced a smile. Sebastian always said that the man loved her very much. Even though Isabella also felt the same way as the Crown Prince, Isabella couldn’t say it in front of Sebastian. However, Isabella is sure that Sebastian knows about her feelings for the man. "If you love another woman, I’m fine. You can marry that woman and I will step down from the empress position you promised me, Tian."
Hearing that, Sebastian froze. Isabella Lysander’s eyes, which always looked warm, now seemed to have lost their light. Sebastian immediately knelt in front of Isabella and cupped her face.
"No, it’s not like that, Isabel," shook Sebastian. "I don’t love other women. All I love is you in this empire. It’s just... I want to build up my strength when I become emperor, Isabel. And for that, I have to marry a noblewoman from a family with great power. You will still be the only woman I love and I only want you to be my empress." Sebastian smiled reassuringly and kissed Isabella on the forehead. "Let’s just forget about this conversation. Let’s just say I’m out of my mind for talking nonsense to you." Sebastian stood up and raised an eyebrow when he saw his aide in the distance. The man seemed to be sending a signal for him to come closer, making Sebastian smile again at Isabella. "Isabel, my aide called me. Looks like there’s new information regarding the problem I’m currently having with Duke Edmund. I will be right back. Please enjoy this sweet."
Isabella smiled and nodded. She looked at Sebastian who was walking away from her. Then, the woman took a deep breath and held her chest. Her heart still ached.
"Isabella Lysander, you must ensure that your position as the future empress is not taken by another woman."
The voice that appeared in her head made Isabella frown. She looked around and there was no one but her in this palace garden. Several maids were waiting for her, but they were standing quite far from where she was currently.
"Did you know, Isabella? Sebastian begins to take an interest in Penelope Askary. That evil woman intends to take Sebastian away from you," said the mysterious voice again. "You have to keep Sebastian by your side. In this world, you are the female lead! You have to get Penelope Askary out of Sebastian’s side and out of this world, Isabella. Penelope Askary is destined to die!"
Isabella closed her eyes and massaged her temples.
She felt exhausted to the point of hallucinating hearing the terrifying words just now.
###
"I don’t want to eat carrots."
Those words made Penelope, who was cutting the meat on the plate, turn her head. The golden-eyed woman stopped cutting the meat and gave Edmund an annoyed look. Currently, they are in the dining room of Gerwyn’s mansion. Penelope was in charge of helping Edmund Gerwyn eat his lunch. Edmund was chewing his food and looked at Penelope with one eyebrow raised.
"Are you a five-year-old kid?" Penelope asked in an annoyed tone. "Even a five-year-old child knows that carrots have vitamins that are good for health."
Edmund shrugged. "I don’t like carrots. Since childhood, I have never eaten carrots."
"Then, from now on you have to eat carrots." Penelope cut the carrot near the meat and pointed it at Edmund’s mouth. "Now, open your mouth!"
Edmund frowned and turned his face away. His blue eyes met Penelope’s face with a protesting look. "I told you, I don’t—"
"Open your mouth!" Penelope ordered. The woman didn’t even care that in the dining room, there were two maids and two male servants. Even Evan, the butler, was there with them. Meanwhile, Philleo Aaron was waiting in front of the dining room’s door along with Edgar, Edmund’s loyal knight. "Do you want to open your mouth or I will force this carrot into your mouth?"
Edmund groaned in annoyance and forced his mouth open. The blue-eyed man munched on a carrot with a disgusted expression. This is the food he hates the most. Even when his parents were still alive, they never managed to force him to eat this carrot. Then, why did Penelope manage to force him?
Meanwhile, the sight of their master, the Duke who was known to be cruel and cold, would take orders from a woman, making the people in the dining room freeze. Their mouths were wide open. Evan didn’t even know what had happened to the Duke. In the past, the man had asked him to find a gift for Penelope Askary. Now, the man followed all of Penelope Askary’s orders and wishes. This is weird. Didn’t Edmund Gerwyn like Isabella Lysander? He might have hidden it from everyone, but everyone in the mansion knew that Edmund Gerwyn cared deeply for Isabella Lysander. However, Evan realized that the man’s attention to Isabella was starting to decrease when he was assigned by the Crown Prince to investigate the drastic changes that had happened to Penelope Askary after having a carriage accident.
"Show me your mouth," Penelope said in a firm tone.
"What?" Edmund looked at Penelope in disbelief. "You want me to open my mouth and show it to you?"
The blue-haired woman nodded firmly. "I wonder if you’ve swallowed the carrots or if you’ve been hiding them."
"Penelope Askary," groaned Edmund. The man massaged his temples. Suddenly have a headache because he has to deal with Penelope. Maybe she wanted revenge on him because he always teased Penelope. "If I had hidden that carrot in my mouth, I wouldn’t have been able to talk to you like this."
"Open your mouth, Edmund Gerwyn!" Penelope ordered in a firm tone. The woman looked at Edmund with an impatient look, making Edmund sigh. Edmund opened his mouth and Penelope nodded in satisfaction. "Good. You’ve eaten your carrots well. Now, I’m going to make you eat these cute carrots more."
"Huh?" Edmund shook his head. "No. I’ve had enough of the carrots you gave me earlier. I don’t want to—" Edmund’s words stopped when he saw Penelope give him a sharp look. The Duke sighed and raised his hands in the air. "Whatever you say, Penelope. I will comply with your wishes."
Edmund’s attitude made Penelope smile happily, while Evan and the other servants in the dining room opened their mouths again. They looked at each other and both questioned who is the man who was currently in front of them.
"Penelope..."
Penelope stopped chopping the carrots and frowned. She glanced at Edmund who was still sullen and at the servants around the dining table. The woman gulped and suddenly felt uncomfortable.
"Ed, did you just call me?" Penelope asked doubtfully.
Edmund’s blue eyes glanced at Penelope. "I was pouting, Penelope. I didn’t call you at all."
Penelope nodded and decided to ignore it. She thought maybe she was tired and hallucinated hearing her name being called. However, when she heard the voice calling her name again, Penelope froze. She immediately gripped Edmund’s wrist tightly, making the man look at her with a confused look, and raised one eyebrow.
"You really didn’t call me, Ed?" Penelope asked urgently.
Penelope had said twice that a voice had called her. Yesterday at the palace, the woman also said that there was a mysterious voice that spoke to her and even ordered her to stab herself in the neck with a sword. Remembering that, Edmund immediately became wary. He stood up from his seat and glanced at Evan and the other servants.
"Get out!" Edmund ordered. Then, the man glanced toward the door. "Edgar! Phileo Aaron!"
The door opened and the two knights entered. Seeing Penelope Askary’s pale face, Philleo widened his eyes and immediately approached his Lady. He knelt before the suddenly trembling Penelope. The woman still gripped Edmund’s wrist tightly. Currently, there were only four of them inside the dining room.
"My Lady! What happened? Why is your face so pale?" Philleo asked in a panicked tone. However, Penelope did not answer. This infuriated Philleo and he looked up at Edmund. "Your Grace, what happened to My Lady?"
"I don’t know either," replied Edmund coldly. "Suddenly Penelope said she heard a voice calling her."
"A voice?" Philleo frowned and looked at Penelope’s pale face. "My Lady, is this the same voice as the one that told you to hurt yourself yesterday at the palace?"
Penelope shook her head. "I don’t know, Sir Philleo." The woman looked up and her golden eyes met Edmund’s blue ones. "Ed, am I going back to doing dangerous things? What if I was ordered to hurt all of you this time? What happened to me?"
Edmund clenched his jaw. He hated to see Penelope who looked desperate and scared like this. The man tried to calm down and think clearly. If he was controlled by his emotions, then he wouldn’t be able to help the woman in front of him.
"Edgar, please get Violet." Edmund gave the order. He looked at Penelope and Philleo as Edgar nodded to carry out his order. "Violet is a wizard belonging to the Gerwyn family. So—"
"Penelope, I’ll borrow you for a bit."
Penelope blinked. "Huh?" The woman then bit her lips and could not hold back her tears anymore. She let the tears fall down her cheeks, making Edmund and Philleo freeze. "Ed... that voice just said if it wants to... borrow me..."
"Borrow you?! What do you mean by—" Edmund couldn’t finish his words when he saw that under Penelope’s chair appeared a pink circle. In the center of the circle are a crescent moon and a star. The circle itself looks like a sun. Then, Penelope’s body gave off a pink glow and suddenly, Penelope disappeared from before Edmund, Philleo, and Edgar who were just about to come out to call Violet. This made Edmund’s blue eyes widen and the fear immediately took hold of him. "Penelope?! Penelope Askary, where are you?! Don’t play games with me, Penelope!"
However, no matter how loudly Edmund called Penelope, the woman still did not appear in front of Edmund.
###
Penelope opened her eyes slowly.
The woman blinked and looked around her with a frown. She didn’t recognize this place. This place looks like a garden full of flowers. There is a fountain nearby, as well as some bunnies and other cute little animals. Penelope gulped and tried to walk to find out where she was and how to get out of there. It was then, Penelope saw a very beautiful woman in a pink dress standing in front of her. The woman smiled at her and approached her. Surprisingly, Penelope was not afraid. She felt comfortable.
"Hi, Penelope," said the beautiful woman while stroking Penelope’s blue hair gently. "I’m sorry for bringing you to this place without your consent." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞
"Who are you?" Penelope asked doubtfully.
"I am the one who has always protected the De Louis empire." The woman smiled warmly. "I am Goddess Elleia."
Penelope blinked and her mouth opened wide. "You are... Goddess Elleia?"
Goddess Elleia chuckled and nodded. She hugged Penelope and kissed her on the forehead. "You must be confused as to why I called you here. You’ve been through a lot of terrible things in your life. You also suffered during this time. Because of that, I will not allow you to suffer anymore in your third life, Penelope."
"Third life?" Penelope shook her head. "Wait a moment, Goddess Elleia. If you are a Goddess, I believe you know everything that goes on in this world. But, I’m not the real Penelope Askary. Maybe this body is Penelope Askary’s body, but the soul is mine. My name is Sienna and I come from another world. I was dead in my first life and I possessed Penelope Askary."
Goddess Elleia smiled and cupped Penelope’s face. "Honey, you are Penelope Askary. Your life as Sienna is your second life. Your first life was when you were killed by Edmund Gerwyn and Sebastian De Louis. Your second life was as Sienna and now you are living your third. I put you back where you belong."
Penelope froze. She couldn’t understand any of this. This is too sudden. "Wait! So I...."
"You are Penelope Askary." Goddess Elleia nodded. "When you met Penelope Askary’s soul fragment back then, it was your first soul. The first soul that was killed by the two men. Then, you were reborn in another world and became Sienna. Then, when you died in that other world, I returned you to this original body of yours. Because the second soul of Penelope Askary who was reborn in this world was divided into two. When Penelope Askary’s second soul that was in this world had a carriage accident, she asked me to take your soul and put it in this body."
"But... the real Penelope Askary said that she asked God to turn back time when she had that carriage accident."
Goddess Elleia laughed. "Yes, she did. But, I did not grant it. I granted her one more wish when she asked me to fill her body with another soul. And the soul I took was yours when you were Sienna. Because you were created together with Penelope Askary’s second soul. Do you understand?"
"Maybe?" Penelope Askary took a deep breath. She didn’t expect that she was Penelope Askary all this time. "Then, why did you summon me here, Goddess Elleia?"
"I want to awaken your power."
"Yes?" Penelope blinked.
"You have healing powers and purifying powers. You were hated by the Goddess of Darkness who always killed you in your previous two lives. To fight her, I will awaken that power of yours." Goddess Elleia touched Penelope’s forehead with her index finger. Then, the blue-haired woman’s forehead gave off a pink light. "Now, I will return you to your world. I already made a bit of a fuss over there when I brought you here. If you don’t come back soon, I’m afraid Edmund Gerwyn will destroy the De Louis empire."
"What?"
"He’s lost control of himself, Honey."
"Again?!" Penelope exclaimed loudly.
"You can purify the darkness in his heart and calm him down." Goddess Elleia pushed Penelope’s forehead lightly with her index finger. "Pray sincerely in your heart and your power will appear, Penelope Askary."
When Penelope opened her eyes, the woman’s eyes widened. She returned to the dining room of Gerwyn’s mansion. It’s just that now the dining room is so messy. The Gerwyn family knights were injured and unconscious. Philleo Aaron was trying to stay awake. His handsome face was injured and on the dining room floor, there was a lot of blood.
"Edmund!"
Penelope’s scream made Edmund turn his head. It was then, Penelope froze. Edmund’s blue eyes looked so scary. The man looked like a monster right now. Just like what Penelope had seen back then in the imperial palace prison. Penelope gulped. Edmund didn’t seem to recognize her at this point. However, the woman kept smiling.
"Ed, it’s me, Penelope Askary." Penelope tried to approach Edmund and opened her hands. "Me, your little bunny."
