A Blend of Romance and Fantasy - Chapter 37

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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37.
The royal family of Sincester received blessings from the Saint and Pope on their wedding day.
We too were meant to receive their blessings before boarding the wedding carriage.
I walked slowly down the red carpet toward the grand dais, where the roar of the kingdom’s citizens echoed.
“Long live Princess Charlotte!!”
“Long live Sincester!!”
Aurora and Erdan stood on the dais, dressed in magnificent ceremonial attire.
The moment I approached Aurora, I could see her eyes weren’t just red—they were swollen from crying.
Caught off guard, I whispered very quietly.
“Aurora. Have you been crying?”
“No matter how I think about it, I feel terrible. Once you leave, I won’t see you anymore.”
“Aurora.”
“And I can’t shake the thought that you’re going in my place. No matter how I think about it, the Sixth Prince isn’t your type at all.”
“…Hmm.”
Just as tears were about to spill, they retreated.
I glanced sideways at Leonard, who stood beside me. His expression was blank, but it was unmistakably clear.
‘He’s flustered.’
At least it was confusion rather than anger—I supposed I should be grateful for that.
In a moment that should have been for receiving blessings but had shattered into chaos, I began earnestly defending Leonard.
“Of course the Sixth Prince isn’t my type. But ideal types and true love are different things. Besides, I love the Sixth Prince very much right now. It’s absurd to call this a sacrifice.”
“They say love has a shelf life of two and a half years. What if your infatuation fades? You’re the type who falls in love quickly—you might not even last a year before demanding a divorce.”
“Aurora, sometimes I can’t tell if you care about me or hate me.”
I carefully wiped away Aurora’s streaming tears with the back of my hand.
“Don’t worry. I will definitely be happy. And if I’m not happy, I’ll come back here to Sincester.”
“….”
“You’ll accept me even if I become a divorcée, won’t you?”
“Of course!”
Aurora nodded vigorously, then suddenly turned her head toward Leonard.
“Sixth Prince, I have one request.”
“What is it?”
Leonard, having regained his composure, asked with a slight cough.
“Please don’t keep a harem.”
“A harem?”
“I’ve heard that Blake has a separate Harem Palace. But our Sincester, while we permit polygamy, do not tolerate harems as a nation. So if you’re taking Charlotte away, please honor that one thing.”
Polygamy, harems, whether this was a real marriage—I hadn’t given any of it a thought.
‘But why does this irritate me so much?’
As I frowned at the strange displeasure welling in my chest, Leonard squeezed my hand firmly.
“Of course.”
“You mean it?”
“How could I possibly take in another when I am honored to receive the Princess of Sincester? Charlotte shall be my first love and my last.”
“….”
Aurora wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and nodded.
“I will… have faith.”
“That’s enough, Aurora. The Kingdom’s people are beginning to murmur about something.”
Erdan, unable to let us linger any longer, approached and soothed Aurora.
Aurora concealed her reddened nose and face well behind her veil, then gestured to the Priests standing behind her.
They presented her with a sacred relic they had prepared in advance—the Scripture of Heaven’s Path.
It was a sacred object imbued with the blessing’s holy power, praying for safety and health on the journey ahead.
“Then I shall now bestow upon you both the grace of Elisia.”
At Aurora’s words, Leonard and I knelt reverently.
Soon, a golden radiance poured down upon us both.
Beneath that luminescence, I felt a profound sense of fulfillment welling up from deep within my being.
Throughout, Leonard continued to hold my hand. Though there was no particular need to.
The pulse throbbing between our touching skin felt intensely warm.
-I shall make you my first and last love.
…He certainly knows how to lie well.
I have no idea where this strange irritation is coming from, which only irritates me further.
I suppressed the urge to run my fingers through my hair and endured the blessing.
As the cascading golden light gradually subsided, Aurora pressed her lips to my forehead.
“It is complete. May Elisia’s blessing be upon you both.”
* * *
Teleportation cannot cover all distances in merely one second.
The duration of instantaneous travel varies depending on the mage’s magical reserves, their magical proficiency, and the distance itself.
We departed for Blake using the Large Teleport Gate, created by twenty state-sanctioned Mages stationed in the Capital.
The darkness beyond the window filled me with dread only briefly before overwhelming drowsiness claimed me, and I opened my eyes to Leonard’s gentle touch.
“Wake up.”
“Have we… arrived?”
“Yes.”
Boom—pop-pop-boom! Boom!!
The sound of fireworks exploding outside the carriage reached my ears, followed by trumpet fanfares, the beating of drums, and the orchestra’s performance.
“A festival?”
“It’s the sound of a welcome reception held in your honor.”
“It’s completely different from Sincester?”
“Blake carries the blood of the dragon race, so they favor spectacle and grandeur. Elegance is rather distant from their nature.”
The atmosphere was a complete one-hundred-eighty-degree contrast to Sincester, where distinguished guests were welcomed with the beautiful melodies of an orchestra.
Even from within the carriage, I could feel the intensely vibrant atmosphere reverberating around us.
I suppressed the urge to draw back the curtains and look outside, instead asking Leonard a question.
“Now we go to greet the Emperor and Empress, correct?”
“That alone? The Imperial Family—the Empress and Imperial elders—will surely all wish to see you.”
“I dislike it.”
My face twisted involuntarily.
“Aren’t they also threatening my life?”
“Don’t worry about that. As long as I’m beside you, no one will harm you.”
“Oh~ where does this baseless confidence come from?”
I laughed and lightly tapped his leg with my foot, and Leonard flinched slightly.
“Just how pathetic do you think I am? I still have the skill to protect one person.”
“Well, you do have the epithet ‘Heir of the Dragon Slayer.’ The heir of the dragon slayer, Leonard.”
“….”
In that instant, Leonard’s face flushed crimson. Yes, as a modern person, it must be an unbearably embarrassing epithet.
“That happened because I participated in a sword tournament once, and it became… I hate such embarrassing epithets!”
“Come on, aren’t you secretly pleased? ‘The heir of the dragon slayer’—that’s so cool. That’s what you’re thinking, right?”
“Let’s stop this. We’re not children, arguing over such a topic.”
Damn. He cursed softly and turned his face away, his cheeks burning so intensely that it was hilarious.
But what followed was a bittersweet feeling tinged with a touch of sympathy. Though I wasn’t sure if I had the right to pity him.
-Eight years in Thanatos….
Having been ground through the Punishment Unit for eight years, he must have developed formidable swordsmanship and inevitably earned such an epithet whether he liked it or not.
As I gazed at him with that poignant feeling for a moment, I heard a voice calling us from outside.
“Your Highness the Sixth Prince, we have arrived at Chronos Hall.”
The moment I heard that voice, Leonard’s expression turned ice-cold in an instant.
Eyes gleaming with frigid intensity and a face devoid of any trace of warmth.
The man who had just been joking and laughing with me was nowhere to be found.
“Very well, let’s descend.”
Caught off guard, I was reading his expression when he extended his hand to me.
“I introduced you to the person you’re about to meet. He’s my younger brother and the Third Prince, Alex.”
“You said he was a trustworthy confidant?”
“Yes. After him will come the Imperial Army. Just walk forward without panicking and go to the Emperor.”
“Don’t worry about panicking—I’m confident I won’t. After all, I’m a princess.”
Soon the carriage door opened.
The first thing that filled my vision was a golden carpet stretching to the Central Hall and armored knights lined up on both sides.
The atmosphere was so imposing and formidable that it seemed less like a welcome for the Sixth Prince’s betrothed and more like a guard against an enemy.
I paused at the unfamiliar sight, but Leonard, who had descended first, whispered softly to me and extended his hand.
“I apologize for the surprise. This seems to be the Emperor’s doing, so ignore it.”
“…No, it’s fine!”
I took Leonard’s hand and descended from the carriage slowly.
The moment I stepped down, the knights lowered their swords diagonally, casting a shadow over me.
Then, with a trumpet fanfare as the signal, the orchestra began to play.
Walking slowly down the carpet until I reached the end, I saw several members of the imperial family.
The Emperor and Empress, four imperial consorts, and several favored concubines.
And other imperial relatives who clung to life under the promise of holding their breath and staying silent.
“Welcome, Princess of Sincester.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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