“He won’t go as far as crippling every man who approaches you like he used to, right?”
At that moment, Justin Lancaster’s face flashed through my mind.
No. That couldn’t be. There was no way Raios would kill the second son of the Lancaster family, the son of an army commander, over a woman who he didn’t even love. He could lose his position as the crown prince because of that, just because Justin had sent me love letters and exchanged a few words with me.
However, I couldn’t be certain. There was no one else I could think of besides Raios. If there was one more person, it might be Carl…
“He wouldn’t kill me just because I proposed to you, right? Alright, let’s give it a try.” Ignis got up from the bed. “If your engagement is annulled, will you marry me?”
“No.”
“What?”
“I was merely informing you that I am still engaged to the crown prince. So… I have no choice but to refuse you, Lord Ignis.”
Of course, even if I had a choice, I would still refuse after considering it. I didn’t utter a single lie.
“So if you want to accept, you should first obtain a definite annulment from the crown prince?”
Of course, I didn’t say that annulling the engagement meant I would accept. There was no need to kindly explain to someone who was threatening me so despicably.
“But if you want, I can accompany you to the crown prince.” I smiled sorrowfully.
Suddenly, I thought it was fortunate I had lived so naively up to this point. At this moment, he couldn’t even imagine that he was being used by me.
* * *
“Hahahahaha.”
Raios Geranze burst into laughter.
“Hahahahaha.”
The laughter scattering from his parched tongue was dry, making the face of the reporting servant pale. For the crown prince to suddenly laugh like this…
“Hahahahaha.”
How long did he laugh like that? After a while, Raios abruptly stopped laughing. Then, he immediately gave his approval.
“Let them in.”
Ignis de Windsor and Danae Windsor had arrived. They came with a formal request to annul the engagement.
* * *
I had never thought of Raios as something to fear. From the very first moment I met him, it had always been like that. Even when our relationship soured, when he was angry with me, said hurtful things, and insulted me. I never once feared him. I just found him repulsive, hateful, or annoying. But now…
What is this? Was Raios always like this?
High on his throne, with crossed legs and a bored chin in hand, the black-haired man was expressionless. His eyes held no anger, just a deep, pitch-black darkness, yet strangely, I saw him as a completely different person than usual.
“So.” Raios looked back and forth between Ignis and me, moving only his lips to speak. “What do you want from me?”
“We request to annul the engagement, Your Highness.”
Despite saying he was scared, Ignis’s mouth was free.
“I have proposed to Danae.”
“Proposed.” Raios murmured the word. As if it was a word he was hearing for the first time, he rolled it around in his mouth several times.
“Proposed?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Pardon?”
“Why?”
Raios asked emotionlessly while still resting his chin on his hand. “Why?”
“…”
“Do you not know that Danae Windsor is my fiancée?”
Ignis squinted at the crown prince as if observing him, trying to read his intentions. “I do know. That’s why I have requested this audience to ask for an annulment, Your Highness.”
“…”
“Dana told me. She wants to live being fully loved.”
I never said that. But I decided to stay silent. Maybe Ignis’s method might work. It wouldn’t hurt to try.
“I can give that love to Dana.” Ignis shamelessly spouted words he didn’t mean. “I will love only Dana for the rest of my life, never looking at another woman. I can swear to God.”
“…”
“There will be no other woman in my life but Dana.”
At that moment, I bit my lip. I almost burst into laughter.
Those words. When the dimensional gate was closing, Raios had said the same thing. That he would only love me, there would be no other woman, and swore to god.
How ironic. To throw the same line in front of the person who easily broke such vows. He might not have known, but it was amusing nonetheless.
Raios probably wouldn’t even remember. If he remembered, he wouldn’t break his vows so easily. Or would he? Even if he remembered, he might still break them. Thinking so little of me and loving Allice so passionately.
“…So.”
Raios lifted the corners of his lips. It was a very strange expression. His face was stiff, but only the corners of his lips lifted, looking like a smile or perhaps a threat.
“You want me to annul the engagement?”
“Yes, Your Highness. If you grant it, we would like to offer a portion of our wealth as a token of our gratitude.”
“All of it…”
“Pardon?”
“I want all of it.”
Raios slowly raised his face, holding it in his hand. Sitting up straight, he stared darkly at me. He moved his lips and spoke. “Every last bit.”
A chill ran down my spine.
Again. This eerie feeling. As if being sucked into a pitch-black abyss…
“If you can’t give me everything, you might as well leave now.”
Raios spoke slowly and smiled once more. This time, he showed his teeth like a beast.
“I wish you a safe journey home.”
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