“…Hilane.”
Revan stared at Hilane, now bound by vows to Aachen, in shock.
‘Calling me Hilane… How laughable.’
The voice calling her name just as warmly as it had in the past.
Hilane took a deep breath.
Her chest ached.
Was it because she took a deep breath?
Or was it the pang of longing for the past?
‘Don’t get caught up in unnecessary sentiment. Have you forgotten the pain Chevelyn suffered because of Revan?’
Hilane steeled her weakening resolve.
Aachen and the High Priest must have been equally surprised by Revan’s sudden appearance.
‘Who leaked the location to Revan?’
How did Revan know and find this secret place?
The only relief was that there were no guests
to witness this disruption.
‘As for the Grand Duke…’
Despite being the groom whose wedding was interrupted, Aachen didn’t seem overly flustered or displeased.
Although the situation could easily lead to a dispute between the two nations.
Instead, Aachen wore a faint smile as if he found the situation intriguing.
Indeed.
A former husband showing up at his wife’s remarriage.
‘What could be more amusing than this?’
Hilane stifled a bitter laugh and hardened her expression.
“Marquis Rata.”
“…Hilane.”
“What is this commotion?”
Revan’s eyes wavered at her sharp rebuke.
“Not only do you appear uninvited, but you dare to call and address a princess so disrespectfully?”
“Hil, I was wrong.”
Revan, approaching with determination, seemed ready to beg on his knees.
“Can’t we start over? I was wrong. It was all my fault.”
“…….”
At that moment, Aachen, who had been watching Revan indifferently, muttered.
“Was this the uninvited guest they mentioned?”
Revan’s gaze shifted to Aachen at the sharp tone.
“Even if it’s a simple ceremony, such rudeness during the union of two nations.”
“…….”
“One might excuse it as a lack of education.”
Aachen’s previously gentle eyes had turned fierce.
He kissed Hilane’s hand demonstratively and spoke.
“But I can’t tolerate disrespect towards my wife.”
Then he pulled her waist towards him.
“!”
The sudden closeness and the firm body of the man made Hilane flinch.
“Did you say Revan Rata?”
“…….”
“If you value your life, you should behave properly.”
Revan’s face twisted at the heavy, sharp warning.
Meanwhile, Aachen, with a raised corner of his mouth, looked utterly relaxed.
Revan found every aspect of Aachen from head to toe displeasing.
Even his breathing was irritating.
‘An uninvited guest?’
He showed his displeasure without hiding it.
He also didn’t conceal his possessiveness towards Hilane.
Revan revealed his emotions as well.
‘Treat her with respect as my wife, huh.’
Calling Hilane his wife seemed entirely natural.
As if Aachen was unaffected by Revan’s provocation.
His smiling face was infuriating.
It wasn’t just because he had taken Hilane’s side.
Even though he had rushed over in a frenzy upon hearing about her remarriage, Revan’s rational mind remained.
‘It’s truly the union of two nations. Hilane didn’t marry him out of love.’
Still, instinctively, he sensed danger from this man.
He couldn’t send Hilane to a man like this.
Hilane was his wife, the mother of his child.
This was an undeniable fact.
Aachen could never encroach on this intimate territory.
“You’re remarrying another man?”
“…….”
“What was I to you? Just a convenient means?”
Revan spewed sarcastic words and let out a bitter laugh.
He knew he was at fault.
He knew he had no right to hold onto her.
But the thought of her becoming someone else’s wife twisted his insides.
How could that be? She was his wife.
But…
‘Aachen Requier, Grand Duke of Belzette, is it?’
This man who had suddenly appeared and taken Hilane from him.
Thinking back, it was unlikely Hilane would have abandoned him so easily.
It had to be this man’s coaxing that did it.
He couldn’t let this continue. He couldn’t let Hilane be taken without a fight.
“Your Grace, High Priest. I apologize, but I request that this marriage be annulled.”
“Hmm, Marquis Rata.”
Caught in the middle, the High Priest let out a troubled groan.
“The marriage vows have already been exchanged, and the two are now husband and wife.”
“What….”
‘No way. That document Hilane signed earlier was the marriage certificate?’
Revan’s face darkened instantly.
The High Priest’s endorsement carried significant weight; it couldn’t simply be undone.
“Marquis Rata, it would be best if you stopped here.”
Yet, despite Aachen’s warning, Revan did not stop.
“…Your Highness, the Grand Duke. It’s truly a sight to see you taking another man’s wife.”
Without further thought, Revan grabbed Aachen by the collar.
His desire for Hilane manifested in this act of rudeness.
“Revan!”
Hilane called out loudly to Revan.
She was so surprised she didn’t even realize she was calling him by name.
If Aachen officially raised an issue, Revan could be executed for insulting a member of the royal family.
Hilane, who did not want the father of her child, Chevelyn, to be killed, anxiously tried to stop him.
“My wife… is not the marquis’s.”
Aachen, glancing sideways at Hilane, corrected Revan’s statement.
At that, Revan tried to throw a punch.
But it was easily blocked by Aachen with one hand.
“I told you to stop.”
“Ugh….”
Aachen subdued the agitated Revan.
“Must I make myself clearer?”
“…Ugh!”
Aachen, after throwing Revan aside, caught his breath and straightened his disheveled cravat.
“I won’t hold today’s events against you, as my wife would find it troublesome.”
“…Thank you, Grand Duke.”
Hilane sighed in relief at Aachen’s words.
“…I have something to say to you. Please, just for a moment.”
Revan, biting his lips, gave her a desperate look.
‘I didn’t expect it to come to this. I need to make sure this doesn’t happen again with Revan.’
“Grand Duke, could you wait in the carriage? I’m sorry.”
After seeking Aachen’s understanding, he hesitated briefly before moving away reluctantly.
“…Alright. I’ll wait.”
As he left, Aachen whispered to Hilane.
The High Priest, who had been watching them warily, had long since departed.
Only Revan and Hilane, once husband and wife, were left alone. Revan spoke first.
“…My biological mother apparently looks like Chevelyn.”
“…….”
“Chevelyn really is my daughter.”
It felt as though his blood had turned cold.
Even though she already knew, hearing it directly from Revan made it hit differently.
His belated acknowledgment of Chevelyn as his daughter was absurd.
She felt foolish for momentarily pitying him.
“You… you trusted someone else’s words again, instead of mine.”
At the very least, if he had come back like this….
She wished he had apologized. She hoped he’d say he had momentarily lost his mind.
“Yes. Chevelyn is your real daughter.”
“…….”
“But so what?”
Her bottled-up disappointment in Revan flared up.
“…I regret it. Saying those things. Acting that way. I’ll never do it again. I’ll never disappoint you again.”
Revan pleaded earnestly. He begged for forgiveness, promising never to hurt her again.
“I’ll apologize properly to Chevelyn… and be a really good father from now on.”
His eyes, reddened and brimming with tears, conveyed his sincerity.
“I know this won’t erase my sins. But I’ll do everything I can.”
Hilane bit her lip at Revan’s apology.
“Hilane. Just this once… can’t you forgive me? Please.”
To say she wasn’t moved would be a lie.
‘He says he won’t do it again, and that he’ll be a good father to Chevelyn….’
As she listened to Revan’s plea, Hilane recalled past memories.
‘…How did it come to this?’
It wasn’t even that long ago. Just a few months.
It hadn’t taken long for their happy family to fall apart.
Chevelyn, who had no difficulty speaking to others.
Revan, who had been kind to Chevelyn.
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