Chapter 83
Clearly a Couple
Early in the morning, Loren Delphinium, dressed smartly in a pink dress, appeared in the main building’s parlor.
“Daphne, thanks for the invitation.”
“No, thank you for coming, Loren.”
Her bobbed hair gently swayed as she cheerfully rubbed her cheek against Daphne’s.
“The Vucatter Marquisate is so well-kept. I saw so many artworks in the hallway on the way in—are they originals?”
“Yes, well…”
One of Amber’s countless hobbies was discovering works by unknown painters from all over the continent and raising their value in the mainstream market.
The paintings hanging in the main hallway had even caught the attention of royalty. And just when their value surged, Amber would sell them off at sky-high prices—perhaps it was closer to a money-making scheme than a mere hobby.
Seated on the sofa, Daphne felt like all the words she had prepared had completely vanished from her memory.
Just like Marius said, the news had already spread not only domestically, but also overseas. As a result, the hotel had even gained some benefits.
‘I don’t know how I’m supposed to say this.’
Loren Delphinium was as sharp as her bob cut. She was the pickiest when it came to negotiations, and she had a commanding presence that kept Daphne on edge the entire time.
“The photos from yesterday turned out so beautifully. I stayed up all night developing them just so I could show them to you first.”
Unlike the tense Daphne, Loren still looked cheerful as she pulled a white envelope from her briefcase.
“Photos from yesterday?”
“At the cave. I ran straight there as soon as I heard your husband had claimed victory.”
“Ah, my husband…”
Daphne gave an awkward laugh and lightly scratched the back of her thumb. Loren, having found the photo she wanted from among dozens, pulled it out and pressed it to her chest.
“Gosh, this one—it was so beautiful I almost cried.”
Though Daphne felt nothing but dread, she forced a smile. A cold sweat was now running down her back. Loren had just praised Celestian, even calling him Daphne’s “husband.”
In this situation, saying “Actually, I’m not pregnant, so could you write a correction article?” seemed utterly impossible.
—Daphne, don’t tell Delphinium the truth tomorrow.
It wasn’t that Daphne had chosen to lie. She simply couldn’t say the truth, given the situation.
‘I mean, how could I realistically get pregnant…?’
Needless to say, she was furious yesterday when she fainted on the stairs and woke up to see Celestian looking down at her.
Seeing herself stuck between a pair of dumb blondes, unable to even straighten her shoulders, made her feel absolutely pathetic.
And she still didn’t understand why she let Psyche go first, after wavering so much between love and friendship!
Daphne Vucatter had said for years that if she had to choose between love and friendship, she’d always pick friendship.
‘Well, Psyche did choose love. But she had to—for my sake. Yeah.’
So if she could just gather her feelings neatly, maybe she could completely chase Celestian out of her heart. But how could she go through the whole “making a baby” process with him?
‘I just got tempted by a handsome face and a good body. There are tons of guys like that in Secradion.’
Secradion was full of beautiful men and women.
Even the scoundrel she met at the casino—though his personality was trash—had a passable face, at least.
‘…And he’s good with a sword.’
But even Romeo couldn’t handle that heavy, heavy sword like Celestian could—swinging it like it was part of his own body.
‘He’s sweet, and even though he doesn’t always listen, he’s like an angel.’
And no man in all of Secradion looked quite so perfectly like Daphne’s type—from head to toe!
His smooth, silky hair that looked like spun gold moonlight, his porcelain-like skin, the warmth and strength of his embrace that she’d only felt briefly, and all those large, firm features…
Not to mention how he’d bend to her will and never bothered with some useless male pride.
‘And I’ve never seen a man with a beauty mark above his eyebrow before.’
Just as Daphne’s mind was slowly starting to drift toward the positive, Loren’s voice brought her back.
“Here, look.”
Delphinium peeked at the photo she’d held to her chest, then placed it in front of Daphne with an exaggerated gesture. The moment Daphne saw it, she let out a reflexive gasp.
“Wow.”
“Isn’t it beautiful? I think I’m really good at photography.”
The photo captured Celestian Theriosa, leaning in for a kiss with a cheeky expression, and Daphne Vucatter, holding his chin and laughing sweetly. The two looked like a picture-perfect couple.
‘They totally look like lovers.’
The surrounding people were all smiling brightly at them, making the photo sparkle twice as much.
“When did you take this? I look so pretty…”
“Right? Don’t you think so? Ah, you’re such a beautiful couple. I thought the Rodriguezes were the past, but now you two have shown up at just the right time. I’m honestly grateful.”
Daphne tried hard to control the twitching corners of her lips.
“Loren, sell me this photo.”
The fact that she looked so stunning in it brought her indescribable joy. And Celestian looked absolutely dashing, too. Most of all, she loved how they looked unmistakably like a couple.
“I knew you’d say that, Daphne. But I didn’t bring this to sell.”
“What?”
“At dinner yesterday. I heard everything from Miss Watret. That you declared war on Amber Green and said you were going to marry Theriosa.”
“Huh?”
Daphne was startled, hearing stories flow out of the woman in front of her—stories she shouldn’t have known. But then she recalled last night’s gloomy family dinner and went blank.
‘Ah, Watret. The girl who broke the plate.’
She was reminded once again that Loren Delphinium had eyes and ears everywhere. Daphne thought, scary, but covered it up with a smile.
“I brought it as a wedding gift. So tell me, where and how will you get married? Have you picked a name for the baby?”
“Nothing’s been decided yet.”
Daphne began digging her own grave with both hands.
“Once you have any kind of outline, just slip it to me exclusively, okay? Invite me and whisper it like this. If you do that… I’ll give you the photo.”
“Wait—will this photo be in a gossip magazine?”
“Not a gossip magazine. Tomorrow’s morning paper. I want everyone to cheer for your love, Daphne.”
If Daphne didn’t object now, it would be the same as climbing into the hole and lying down in it of her own free will.
“Loren, I haven’t been out in almost a week… Are you, uh, celebrating my love right now?”
But Daphne chose to lie down willingly and let the dirt cover her.
“Oh my. Haven’t you been reading the papers lately? That’s so not like you.”
Loren reached into her briefcase and pulled out a full-page newspaper. It was a tabloid known to be the most read among women in the country.
<Romance Story: ‘The Traitor and the Villainess’>
<A Love That Defied Everyone’s Opposition—The Romance of the Century>
Daphne smacked her forehead before she even realized it. The sharp slap sound was so loud that Loren looked at her in momentary confusion.
“Daphne, what’s wrong?”
“Oh, I was just so happy I got dizzy. Had to clear my head.”
“Hahaha. Daphne, it is something to be happy about. These days, even calling Theriosa a ‘traitor’ is seen as romantic by all the ladies.”
That’s not it. Please, everyone, stop…
The corner of her mouth, forced into a smile, trembled with a nervous twitch.
“Some are even saying that the rebellion—he did it all to take the throne and make Daphne his queen.”
The first proper conversation I had with that guy was on a gallows platform. As if that could be true.
But still, with all this praise, Daphne’s feelings were… complicated. Honestly, if she allowed herself to lean into it, she felt like she might float away with happiness.
Just a few minutes ago, she had been thinking about kicking Celestian Theriosa out of her room. That idea was long gone.
Is having a baby really that big a deal?
Ever since she was young, Daphne had planned to have one or two children—little versions of herself.
It was a plan that came from both hating and still loving her mother. Just the thought of having someone who’d love her no matter what, the way her mother once had, was comforting.
As Delphinium neatly gathered the scattered photos on the table, she asked,
“So, what’s the real reason you called me today? There’s no way Daphne would’ve known I took these photos—not with our tight security.”
Daphne decided to forget everything she was about to say, like peeling off a spicy onion.
“…I wanted to ask you something, Loren.”
“What is it, Daphne?”
Instead, she needed confirmation of the things she had always been unsure about. Sometimes the things Daphne read and the things she saw got mixed up in her head.
“The Archduke, um, with the current Crown Princess—was there ever, like, that kind of gossip?”
“Oh my, are we digging into your husband’s past? I always thought you knew everything and were just pretending not to.”
She wasn’t wrong.
Loren scooted a little closer and pressed herself against Daphne. Though they were alone in the main parlor, with staff moving about outside, it felt like something to be cautious about.
“Well, if I’m answering just your question…”
Daphne swallowed nervously at the strange tension in the air. Loren’s brown eyes looked like they were glowing red.
“As far as I remember, there was nothing like that.”
Loren emphasized the words like that. Meaning, there was no romantic scandal between Celestian and Psyche.
Then what was that weird vibe between them? What was I even thinking?
Daphne frowned, feeling like all her thoughts up until now had just been disproved.
