EWOWMAIBTYPF Chapter 166

Chapter 166

 

His captivating smile, the kind that could make anyone dizzy just by looking, left me momentarily speechless.

Lucio, seemingly interpreting the dazed look on my face, asked,

“Don’t believe me? Should I call them over so they can explain why they acted that way?”

“No, thank you!”

Startled, I shouted.

There was really no need for confirmation. To be honest, the moment Lucio said it, several things clicked in my mind.

Wasn’t I the one who had been enjoying all the things Lucio sent me through Ascart like it was nothing?

Just this morning, I drank mint tea imported all the way from the Empire to help me wake up.

Even that light, the fluffy bathrobe I wear after bathing…!

⟨Lia, do you want to wear this? Looks like Lucio made a mistake and sent a women’s item.⟩

…The shame made it impossible to lift my head.

Whenever my mom used to say my dad and Ascart were completely oblivious, I would nod in agreement, thinking ‘Yeah, they kind of are.’

But seriously, how was I supposed to interpret that?

The point was… Lucio, of all people, having those kinds of… feelings for me?

Honestly, even now, I was so flustered I wasn’t sure what to believe. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to accept it until I heard it straight from his mouth…

“Lia?”

Just then, while I was still staring at the ground, Lucio’s face suddenly entered my line of vision.

His stunningly handsome features were suddenly close, dangerously so.

Startled, I looked up, and Lucio, who had bent down to meet my gaze, asked gently:

“So, are you not mad anymore?”

Nod, nod.

My heart felt like it was about to drop, so I just nodded awkwardly, trying to brush it off. He smiled again, and I felt weird.

Then he said:

“Then now you have to make up for my anger too.”

The smile vanished from his face, and Lucio raised his eyebrows as he questioned sharply,

“How could you not write to me even once? Let’s say it couldn’t be helped that you broke our promise. But to just leave with a thank you and nothing more?”

“…”

“Weren’t you even the least bit curious about me? Whether I was doing well, how I was living?”

“…I heard from Diana.”

My voice trembled as I swallowed hard and continued.

“She told me about you often.”

“…”

At my answer, Lucio fell silent, frowning as if he were at a loss for words.

“So you thought I was doing just fine?”

Something about the expression on his face made me feel like I’d done something terribly wrong, but I nodded honestly.

“Yes. There was no reason you wouldn’t be.”

“Hah.”

Lucio let out a low laugh.

“So basically… you never even considered that I might have missed you.”

“…!”

“I missed you.”

He said softly as he gently tucked my hair behind my ear.

“There were so many times I wanted to just board a ship and go to Belus right away to see you. Do you know what kind of feelings I had to suppress to hold myself back?”

“It was a complete waste of effort.”

The quiet words that followed snapped me back to my senses, and I quickly stepped back to avoid his touch.

“W-why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

“You’re really asking because you don’t know?”

“Of course I am!”

“Liar.”

Lucio gave a short, scoffing laugh and stepped toward me as much as I had backed away.

And then another step.

Before I knew it, he was standing right in front of me, his silver hair casting a shadow over my forehead.

He leaned in and whispered softly in my ear,

“You already know why I’m acting like this.”

“…”

“Even if you say you don’t, it’s fine. Because until you figure it out, you’ll keep thinking about me.”

“And that… wouldn’t be so bad either.”

The low, melodious voice that tickled my ear made my head spin.

I desperately wanted to escape the situation, but I had no idea how to get out of it. That was when a long trumpet blast rang out from below.

It was the signal that the ball was beginning.

 

***

 

“The glorious Emperor and Empress of the Empire now enter!”

“Her Highness the First Princess and His Highness the Second Prince now enter!”

At the herald’s booming voice announcing the entrance, Serphin couldn’t help but furrow her brows.

She quickly adjusted her expression as she thought of the nobles she’d soon face, but the displeasure wouldn’t go away.

It was all because of Nicholas—who, preposterously enough, was walking beside her now and whose name was always announced alongside hers.

“A vulgar *****.”

How dare he walk side by side with her, the legitimate daughter of the Emperor and Empress.

Her fingers twitched, aching to slap him right there, but Serphin barely restrained herself.

This was not the place, and she had to maintain decorum—especially with how quickly Nicholas had been expanding his influence lately.

She had lived her whole life believing it was her destiny to become the next ruler. She couldn’t understand how things had come to the point where her position was being threatened.

Her pride was deeply wounded, but that only made her raise her chin higher.

“May the Empire be bathed in eternal glory!”

As the nobles stepped aside to open a path through the center of the hall, she felt a little better walking through with pride.

The slight smile on her face reflected her rising satisfaction as she looked over the bowing nobles and foreign dignitaries with pleasure.

That was when she spotted two people standing stiffly upright.

The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Belus.

“…”

They were among the few who didn’t need to bow to anyone, aside from the Emperor and Empress themselves. Still, Serphin’s brow twitched at the sight.

She was especially irritated by the pink-haired Grand Duchess, whose mere presence was grating.

‘Because of that woman…’

Filthy blood like Nicholas and others shut away in the separate palace were living as if they were royal too.

Serphin clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms, trying to suppress the murderous intent bubbling within her.

No matter how much they irked her, she couldn’t touch the Duchy of Belus.

The Grand Duke was a powerful archmage, with access to the mages of the Tower and the manastone mines… Despite being a small duchy, their wealth and influence were too formidable for even the Empire to disregard.

The more threatening they were, the closer she needed to stay.

Serphin quickly did the political math in her head and tried to replace her sour expression with a brilliant smile.

But the intention to form good relations with Belus shattered in less than ten seconds.

Her eyes suddenly burned with fury.

‘Why are those two standing together?’

Scanning the hall out of habit, she had found Lucio standing beside the Grand Duke’s daughter.

She had been humiliated once when he rejected her in the Kingdom of Riven, which only made her want him more.

She had been considering new proposals to persuade him again upon his return…

‘I knew the Elard and Belus families were close, but still…’

The two of them were standing near the entrance, not with their families in the center of the hall as if they had just spent time alone.

Lucio, who had never escorted another woman besides the Duchess and Diana, now had the Grand Duke’s daughter holding his arm.

Worse yet, they looked perfectly coordinated—Lucio in a light gray jacket embroidered with silver thread over a navy shirt, and the Grand Duke’s daughter in a blue dress. The ensemble looked as if it had been intentionally matched.

Even the nobles in the ballroom were sneaking glances at them, pretending not to notice but clearly intrigued.

“Raise your heads.”

It was at that moment, upon the Emperor’s command, that Serphin met eyes with the Grand Duke’s daughter.

There was a moment of small satisfaction as she saw the girl flinch, clearly startled by her deadly glare.

But then—

“…!”

Serphin’s eyes widened.

Lucio had glanced between her and the Grand Duke’s daughter, then leaned in to whisper something in the girl’s ear.

Without realizing it, Serphin clenched her dress tightly, trembling in rage and humiliation.

She had known Lucio for years—she could tell at a glance.

The Lucio Elard whispering sweetly to the Grand Duke’s daughter wasn’t the cool-headed, unyielding young lord she had known.

He was a man in love.

 

***

 

When Serphin’s gaze met mine, a chill ran down my spine.

Dressed in a crimson gown embroidered with gold, she looked as stunning as a blooming rose, but her glare was so fierce it felt like it could draw blood.

Even though I knew she couldn’t actually hurt me, the intensity of her hostility made me shrink involuntarily.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Lucio whispered gently in my ear.

Immediately, Serphin’s glare grew sharper.

I gave Lucio a sharp look in disbelief.

He must’ve caught the curses in my eyes, because he whispered again:

“The Grand Duchy of Belus is too important an ally. She won’t try anything foolish.”

Well, I had to agree with that.

Even if she did lose her temper and come at me, I wasn’t planning to just take it lying down.

‘Still, did you really have to provoke her like that?!’

I could already imagine how Serphin saw me.

She had been vicious even to a young maid over her obsession with Lucio. There was no telling what she’d do now.

It was laughable to think I had just been relieved about escaping the terrace and being alone with Lucio.

And it wasn’t just Serphin that worried me.

When I returned to the ballroom with Lucio after hearing the trumpet, all the nobles had given us meaningful glances just for entering together.

‘Especially…’

My family’s reactions were priceless.

My grandfather, who had returned to the capital from the Marquis estate, looked like he was about to march into battle. My father stood frozen, eyes wide open, while my mother’s mouth hung agape.

‘We only entered together, that’s all…’

The horrified looks on their faces filled me with an indescribable embarrassment, and my face flushed red.

“I told you we should’ve come in separately!”

I shot a glare at Lucio, annoyed by his stubbornness, only for him to mouth, ‘What?’ as if he had no idea what the problem was.