About Becoming My Ex-Husband's Mistress - Chapter 182

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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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Chapter 182. Will You Marry Me?
Luderne Sellen, who had instructed the others to maintain a proper distance, led me to where the Orchestra was stationed.
They had been performing continuously until the fireworks began, and had since paused to rest.
Luderne Sellen fetched an empty chair from a nearby table and seated me, then spoke to the Orchestra Conductor who was sharing drinks with the musicians.
The Conductor soon bowed respectfully and handed a violin to Luderne Sellen.
Luderne Sellen stood directly before me. The way he held the violin was extraordinary.
“You can play the violin?”
“I’ve always wanted to play it for you. Recently, I thought it might be fitting for a proposal. Besides, I can’t guarantee what will happen after tonight.”
The bow touched the violin strings.
“….”
Elegant grace and romantic melody.
I lost myself for a moment, forgetting that this place would become a battlefield within mere minutes.
And then I realized something.
Though I had never heard this piece elsewhere, it felt strangely familiar.
As I searched my memory for where I might have heard it, I recalled the day I first awoke on Heril Island at Luderne Sellen’s residence and opened the windows.
While gazing at the sea that sparkled like diamonds, I had heard someone practicing the violin.
I covered my mouth with both hands.
Then it was practice; now it was a flawless performance.
The sweet melody came to an end.
“Luderne Sellen, that song I heard on the day I awoke on Heril Island….”
“Yes. It was me. From the beginning, I’ve cherished it as a song for you.”
Luderne Sellen lowered the violin and knelt on one knee before me.
“From the very beginning, I couldn’t even imagine a world without you, Priscilla.”
He then withdrew a small jewel box from his breast and opened it.
A diamond ring with an exceptionally large stone gleamed, catching the light of the lanterns within the cabin.
“I love you with all my soul. I wish to spend every day of my life and every moment of my death with you. Please, will you marry me?”
“….”
Even knowing the setting was wrong, tears welled in my eyes.
I never expected a proposal like this.
When I first received a proposal at the Sellen Barony, it came only with a betrothal letter and gifts—a strategic marriage between nobles.
Yet here we were, he and I.
I had assumed that even if we overcame all crises, we would simply continue living this way naturally.
Shocked by the emotion, I remained silent, and Luderne Sellen’s expression twisted into a bitter smile.
“I knew you found the position of Grand Duchess burdensome, but I never imagined you would refuse.”
He seemed to have misunderstood my silence.
Just then, an Orchestra musician nearby who had been drinking spoke.
“Strange… I’m suddenly so sleepy….”
As the musician collapsed, the wine glass he held shattered with a loud crash.
“Wait, if you fall asleep like this, what will happen to….”
The musician beside him, flustered, soon collapsed as well.
“Ah, what is this? I’m getting drowsy too.”
Another orchestra member who witnessed this fell asleep leaning against his chair.
The bewildered guests began collapsing rapidly, one by one. The sound of wine glasses shattering echoed throughout the hall.
As most of the party attendees collapsed, I saw Zerox approaching.
Behind him stood the Knight Commander and roughly thirty armed knights under his command.
“Luderne Sellen!”
From another direction, I heard Eclite’s piercing cry.
Turning around, I saw Eclite wielding a blade that gleamed with an eerie light, accompanied by sturdy men dressed in black.
“Today is the day you return to your coffin! Argh! Shut up! Silence! I know it’s all an illusion!”
Eclite, who had convulsed as he approached, no longer seemed to bother concealing his murderous intent.
Luderne looked around and laughed in disbelief.
“I’ve made some preparations, but looking at the numbers, this won’t be easy. If luck is against me, I’ll only survive today.”
At Luderne’s words, I quickly extended my left hand.
“I agree with you. And I find the position of Grand Duchess extremely burdensome.”
Luderne looked at me.
I spoke honestly, gazing into his jewel-like eyes.
“But I no longer want to endure or retreat. I want to marry you too.”
In that instant, Luderne drew close.
I found myself in his embrace.
He lifted me effortlessly into his arms.
Taking the chair where I had been sitting, he placed me on his lap and slipped a ring onto my finger.
“This crisis no longer matters. I’m truly happy, Priscilla.”
Luderne spoke with his lips against mine.
“Now move your body toward the back as much as possible. No matter how many opponents there are, I will protect you.”
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, I felt a strange sensation coursing through my body.
Startled, I looked around and realized something extraordinary had occurred.
Everything had stopped as if time itself had frozen.
Madame Laber, Sir Mohr, and Walter—all visible in the distance—remained motionless.
Except for Luderne and me.
“Luderne, what is happening?”
Luderne was equally bewildered, surveying our surroundings.
“I’m not sure either.”
Then Sir Jester’s voice rang out loudly.
“Your Majesty! Priscilla!”
We turned toward Sir Jester. While everything else remained frozen, only Sir Jester was rushing toward us.
We rose from our seats and moved closer to Sir Jester.
“What is the meaning of this?”
“I don’t know, Your Majesty. Everything suddenly stopped. And it’s strange.”
Sir Jester, breathing heavily, extended both his hands before us.
A faint light emanated from his hand.
“I can feel magical power.”
It was a puzzled murmur.
Yet Sir Jester deliberately extended his hand for all to see. The light radiating from his palm was indeed growing steadily stronger.
“This sensation! Good heavens!”
His eyes widened, and he cried out as realization dawned upon his face.
“My magical power! It’s returning!”
Soon, threads of light began seeping from our bodies and from Sir Jester’s as well.
I stood frozen, eyes wide, as three strands of light intertwined and formed two symbols in the air that seemed hauntingly familiar.
As I watched them for a moment, I recalled the Temple.
They were the Eye of Truth and the Eye of Insight.
Multiple rays of light spread slowly in all directions from the symbols.
I watched as individual threads pierced into Zerox and Eclite.
Two rays extended toward the cabin where Melissa Bilsty had been staying.
Light seeped into Luderne Sellen and Sir Jester, Madame Laber and Brissel Mohr, and Walter.
The last place the light reached was me.
The moment I thought it was blinding, the scene before my eyes changed.
It was the swamp behind Count Genoma’s Mansion.
Looking closely, I saw Luderne Sellen and Sir Jester surrounded by numerous workers, their gazes fixed downward.
Yet the atmosphere around the Luderne Sellen I knew now was somewhat different.
His face was far heavier, sharper, and devastated.
Beside such a Luderne Sellen, Count Genoma wore a melancholic expression, while beautifully adorned Melissa Bilsty wiped her tears with a handkerchief.
“Luderne Sellen? Sir Jester? What are you doing here?”
I called out, but neither of them stirred.
No one could see me.
I cautiously drew closer. Following Luderne Sellen’s gaze, I gasped and held my breath.
A deep swamp had been excavated, its bottom now exposed.
Beneath Luderne Sellen’s feet lay a corpse, grotesquely mangled.
I recognized it immediately.
Abnormally twisted arms, wrists bound by a belt, a handkerchief stuffed in the mouth.
It was me, drowned in the swamp.
Suddenly, I understood.
This scene was being shown by the Eye of Truth and the Eye of Insight.
It was the truth that had been erased by regression.
The scene changed once more.
This time, it was an ornately lavish bedroom. Yet bottles of alcohol lay scattered across the floor.
I saw Luderne Sellen with his upper garment removed.
He sat leaning against the headboard, his head bowed.
“I’ve arrived, brother-in-law.”
The one who entered through the door was beautifully adorned Melissa Bilsty.
Luderne Sellen slowly lifted his head.
The moment I saw his face, my heart ached terribly. His skin was rough, and the unfocused crimson eyes had lost all light.
“Ugh, the stench of alcohol.”
Melissa Bilsty sat beside him with a genuinely pitiful expression.
An angelic voice filled the bedroom.
“Brother-in-law, I understand your heart must be heavy with grief over Sister’s accident, but please step outside now. How many days has it been?”
Luderne Sellen shook his head instead of answering.
Watching him, Melissa Bilsty turned her gaze away and sighed.
Luderne Sellen couldn’t see it. But I could see it clearly.
The triumphant smile playing across Melissa Bilsty’s face.
“Sigh, Brother-in-law, you’re too much! Even Emperor Doorban is at his wit’s end, you know? How much longer do you intend to carry on like this?”
Soon after, she jabbed her fingers at her eyes slightly. Then, covering her face with both hands, she whimpered.
“It would be better if you sought revenge for Sister instead!”
A question tumbled from Luderne Sellen’s parched lips.
“Revenge… you say?”
“Though they called it an accident, Sister’s death doesn’t sit right with me.”
At those words, a glimmer of light returned to Luderne Sellen’s eyes.
“What do you mean by that?”

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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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