In between them, she had once achieved a perfect family.
Was it the will of the gods telling her not to forget that day and move on?
The illusion quickly crumbled.
The day he doubted who Chevelyn’s daughter was.
The day he left her alone to be with another woman.
The day he kept secrets and didn’t answer when asked if he loved the princess.
The day Chevelyn missed a step on the stairs, and the day he laughed when she asked for a divorce.
All these scenes overlapped in her mind.
‘This must be a sign not to repeat the past… to protect Chevelyn. Get a grip, Hilane.’
Hilane took a deep breath.
And then she told him how she had been living and what situation Chevelyn was in.
“…Chevelyn can’t speak to anyone but me.”
“What do you mean?”
“She was nearly poisoned recently.”
Revan’s face twisted in shock at this revelation.
It couldn’t be helped.
Even now, thinking about that moment made Hilane’s heart ache.
“You made us so miserable, and now you say you’re sorry? What’s the point? It’s already like this….”
She wanted to make him suffer more.
“…Listen carefully.”
“Hilane… I… that is….”
“I’m the one who asked for the divorce, but you’re the one who abandoned Chevelyn and me first.”
The time she was in pain because of Revan,
…and as much as Chevelyn cried alone, she wanted him to feel the same pain and suffering.
“If we hadn’t started at all, I wouldn’t have been abandoned, and you wouldn’t have anything to apologize for.”
“…….”
“But then Chevelyn wouldn’t have been born, so I won’t even think about it.”
Thinking of Chevelyn, Hilane hid her weakening heart.
“I treasure my daughter too much. So, I can’t forgive you.”
“…….”
“Revan, we are done. Truly… let’s stop here.”
With that, she didn’t take Revan’s outstretched hand again.
As she said goodbye to him, Hilane considered many things.
Would she have been less miserable if she hadn’t loved Revan?
‘Without needing to share painful feelings, should we have just remained as Chevelyn’s parents?’
No. She didn’t know anymore. She didn’t want to know.
The emotional knot in her heart was too large to measure.
She was too exhausted to carry on any conversation with Revan or bear his one-sided emotions.
She no longer loved Revan.
Today confirmed that for her.
“I hope you don’t live well.”
“…Hilane. Don’t go.”
Without any hesitation, Hilane passed by Revan.
She was thankful for the veil, as it hid her tears from him.
* * *
Aachen had not been in a good mood until just before the ceremony began.
He had only recently learned that the Emperor of Caliosa had given Ifrit’s Tear as a wedding gift.
‘I shouldn’t have let the empress handle the exchange of gifts.’
Giving Hilane the necklace once worn by the crown princess meant reinstating him as the heir.
Aachen had no desire to become crown prince again.
Even now, as an independent Grand Duke of Belzette, Count Tiara was wary of him. If he became crown prince again, it would only incite further conflict.
Aachen did not want Hilane to be drawn into political battles.
There was always the risk she could get hurt in the process.
But it was too late to take back what had already been given.
As he pondered what to do, the door opened, and Hilane entered.
Seeing her approach in her wedding dress, gently pulling the veil along, left him speechless.
Damn it, Hilane, adorned with Ifrit’s Tear around her neck, looked dazzlingly beautiful.
Though her face was covered by the veil, her delicate form couldn’t be hidden.
‘She’s still so thin.’
As they walked to the altar together, he could feel the stares.
‘Is there something on my face?’
He wondered what she was thinking.
It was the one time he wanted to read another person’s mind.
Even if he threw off his gloves, he wouldn’t be able to know her true feelings.
Despite the numerous touches shared during their night together, he couldn’t read her.
A special person. To Aachen, Hilane was such a person.
As the ceremony began, Aachen promptly answered the High Priest’s question about whether he would respect and love her.
He wanted to respect Hilane.
He always wanted to love her.
No matter what happened, he was confident he could love her.
So he vowed. To always respect and love her.
With the vows exchanged, they became husband and wife. He could now truly call Hilane his wife.
That alone made him happy. He couldn’t remember a day as happy as today.
Though he had initially suggested a simple ceremony due to Belzette’s weather, he felt it was lacking.
Aachen decided to prepare a grand and splendid state wedding.
As he resolved and kissed her hand, Hilane’s ex-husband entered.
‘Why is he here…?’
He felt uneasy.
Seeing him call her by her nickname made Aachen tense.
He was afraid that Hilane, taking a deep breath, might still have feelings for her ex-husband.
‘It hasn’t been long since the divorce; of course, there would be lingering feelings.’
Suppressing his emotions with anxiety, he suddenly laughed.
Hilane had pushed her ex-husband away with a determined expression.
‘The Crown Princess mentioned…’
It occurred to him that this unwelcome guest might be the person causing trouble.
The ex-husband, who had ruined the ceremony, still considered Hilane his wife.
He even asked if they could start over.
‘How much I’ve gone through to be with Hilane again…’
Everything about it irked him.
Not wanting to show an immature side in front of Hilane, Aachen issued a warning.
Yet, the ex-husband recklessly persisted.
Since no one had witnessed the ceremony, there wouldn’t be any rumors.
Aachen didn’t want to put Hilane in an awkward position.
Just as he was about to dismiss the whole situation, he felt a pang when Hilane asked him to step aside for a moment.
He tried to appear as calm as possible, but he didn’t want to leave them alone.
His feet wouldn’t move, but how could he refuse when Hilane asked him to step aside?
Reluctantly, he headed towards the carriage.
A maid was waiting in front of the carriage.
“…You are?”
“It’s an honor to meet you. I am Elisha Dion, attending to the Grand Duchess of Belzette. May the blessing of Freya be with the Grand Duke.”
The maid slowly bowed.
‘Ah, she serves the Grand Duchess.’
It turned out she was Hilane’s personal maid.
Hearing her already refer to Hilane as “Grand Duchess” made Aachen’s face flush.
There was no need to be anxious.
Hilane was now the Grand Duchess of Belzette.
No matter what anyone said, she was his wife.
Not her ex-husband’s.
“…The Grand Duchess will be here shortly.”
“Understood, Your Grace.”
Upon entering the carriage, Aachen saw a little girl sitting there.
Her cotton candy-like pink hair curled in waves.
“?”
Surprised by his appearance, the girl fiddled with a pearl-shaped hairpin.
‘Ah, she must be the Grand Duchess’s daughter.’
Aachen sat as far away as possible to avoid scaring the child.
Then he spoke in the gentlest tone he could manage.
“Hello. Nice to meet you. I’m Aachen.”
“……!”
The girl tried to respond but, unable to, she shrank back in frustration.
“Her Highness Princess Chevelyn, the Grand Duchess’s only daughter, Your Grace. The princess is very shy…”
Elisha stepped in to explain who the child was.
She said the girl was shy, but Aachen quickly realized.
‘Is she mute?’
Having suffered from mutism himself as a child, he recognized it easily.
‘It must be very frustrating for her. I hope she doesn’t push herself too hard.’
During his own childhood, he had experienced the agony of not being able to speak.
Though his mind would tell him he could, no sound would come out.
The Emperor of Caliosa had scolded him for not speaking.
Count Tiara had mocked him, questioning how he could inherit the throne.
Violet and Bianca, finding him unresponsive, had played together without him.
Seeing the child struggle to speak reminded Aachen of himself.
[ I’m sorry. ]
He read the child’s lips.
‘Why is she apologizing…?’
There was no reason for her to apologize.
He suspected many had given her strange looks before, which troubled him.
“There’s no need to apologize, Princess. Don’t be discouraged. You’ll be able to speak someday.”
“……”
“I did, too.”
His words, though simple, seemed to comfort her as she smiled brightly.
Sometimes, a mage could sense the emotions of others.
The unannounced emotion that seeped in was a clear, pure, and lovely pink.
He wondered what her voice would sound like.
‘She even smiles like the Grand Duchess. How lovely.’
At that moment, Aachen couldn’t have known.
How deeply he would come to love Chevelyn, just as he did Hilane.
How he would eagerly await the day Chevelyn would speak.
‘First impressions are crucial. I hope I made a good one. I hope my appearance wasn’t off-putting.’
For now, the priority was to build a bond.
* * *
Chevelyn clearly remembered the words of the maids who said she might not be her father’s real daughter because her hair color was different from his.
Not only that, but she also had memories that remained in her mind by the second.
Her father shouting and her mother crying.
‘What do you expect me to do? I tried to let it go quietly. Somehow, I tried to ignore it! I wanted to raise her as my daughter!’
‘What?’
‘If a paternity test shows she really isn’t my daughter? Then there’s no turning back! So, I just…’
Her parents fought because she didn’t resemble her father.
Because of that, her mother was sad and hurt.
There was a time she dreamed that her mother distanced herself from her father and hated her.
It was a nightmare that her mother might abandon her.
‘What if Mom gets hurt again because of Cherry?’
Chevelyn thought about this every day.
When she was alone with her mother, she was fine, but her voice wouldn’t come out when she was with other people.
‘Can the princess not speak? Oh my, how unfortunate. Princess Hilane must be very upset. Her only daughter can’t even speak. How embarrassing it must be.’
At first, it was frustrating.
She worried that her mother might feel ashamed. She wanted to hide from the strange looks people gave her.
Somewhere where no one was.
The pitying looks always ended up directed at her mother.
One morning, she woke up and couldn’t see her mother.
While searching for her, Elisha told her that her mother had gone to the temple.
When Elisha said they should get ready to visit her mother, she also mentioned they would now be living in a place called Belzette.
What kind of person was Aachen Requier Belzette, who had proposed to her mother?
Since the day the proposal letter arrived, Chevelyn had been imagining Aachen.
A monstrous figure, an angry figure, an annoyed figure, someone who would look at her inability to speak strangely.
She had thought of all these things, but when she finally met Aachen, he was completely different from what she had imagined.
He wasn’t a monster. He didn’t get angry or annoyed.
His blue eyes sparkled, and he was very tall.
His deep, steady voice was gentle. Her heart raced at his soothing words.
Until now, no one other than her mother had ever said such things to her.
‘Cherry thought he would be a monster. Like others, she thought he would ask why she couldn’t speak….’
Aachen didn’t look at her strangely because she couldn’t speak.
He didn’t get angry even when she didn’t greet him.
He told her it wasn’t something to be sorry about.
Aachen had come into their lives.
Into the small world where it had just been her and her mother.
‘Having a new family. Maybe it’s not so bad after all.’
♡♡♡
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