Celebrity Lady - Chapter 92
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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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Celebrity Lady
Chapter 92
* * *
With the outlaw Nathan gone, the Jousting Tournament proceeded smoothly.
Lark, who secured a bye in the first match, advanced methodically through each opponent, delivering a dazzling performance.
‘What on earth. Why is he so good?’
What struck me most was that across several matches, he hadn’t taken a single hit.
Had Lark’s spirit not been Randian, I might have wondered if he was cheating himself…….
“The glorious victor of the Jousting Tournament finals has been decided!”
Six to zero. The judge announced it loudly as he flipped the scoreboard.
Perhaps wanting to cap off the match beautifully, Lark unseated his opponent in the final with a single strike, claiming victory.
I watched the last challenger return to the waiting room with slumped shoulders, feeling a twinge of sympathy.
‘Still, the fact that he made it to the finals means he was the second-strongest competitor here. Hang in there…….’
In the end, there was no twist. As expected, the champion was the Crown Prince, Lark van Rashmach Decarde.
“We sincerely congratulate champion Lark van Rashmach Decarde!”
“Hooray!”
“Long live the Crown Prince!”
At the Third Princess’s declaration of victory, the stands erupted in thunderous cheers.
Following the custom of the Jousting Tournament, the champion Lark rode around the Tournament Grounds on horseback, expressing his gratitude to the spectators.
Meanwhile, the presentation ceremony was being prepared below the VIP box.
Standing beside the Third Princess, I stole a glance at the reward she held to present directly to the champion.
Placed upon a crimson velvet cushion was a Red Diamond Aparthe, glittering lavishly…….
……a tiara.
In other words, a women’s crown that Lark couldn’t possibly wear.
I laughed, seeing right through what Lark must be thinking. Who knew he had such an endearingly petty side.
“Did you give the Crown Prince your handkerchief?”
“It seems everyone gave theirs through the servants. I’d wager half the ladies here have already sent one to the Crown Prince?”
My ears perked up at the whispers of the gathered ladies.
The presentation area held not only the royal family, including the Emperor, but also clusters of beautifully adorned noble ladies.
‘Right. This is truly the highlight of the whole event.’
There’s a reason the Jousting Tournament is called a hallmark of courtship culture.
Probably every lady gathered here cared far more about the prize than the match itself.
Which lady would receive a kiss from the Empire’s most popular figure, the Crown Prince, now crowned champion of the Jousting Tournament!
……that was the question.
“Congratulations.”
“Congratulations, brother.”
“Congratulations, your highness.”
The Emperor and the royal siblings offered their felicitations as Lark arrived.
Finally, the Third Princess Aristana presented the Aparthe Tiara as the reward.
“We celebrate the great victory of Lark van Rashmach Decarde.”
“Thank you.”
Lark accepted the tiara in its case with a slight laugh, muttering under his breath.
“A tiara, then.”
His feigned surprise was ridiculous—after he’d asked for it to be made into a tiara in the first place…….
“Wasn’t it said to have been made at Blanc de Ruby?”
“The tiara is rather unusual, isn’t it?”
I felt a touch of embarrassment at the ladies’ murmurs, but only briefly.
Lark dropped a bombshell the very next moment.
“It’s wonderful. Soon I shall have to present this tiara to my bride.”
“Oh my goodness!”
“Kyaaaa……!”
The ladies blushed and fussed in excitement, while the assembled royals showed sudden interest.
‘A declaration like that at this moment?’
Lark had barely turned twenty, but by this nation’s standards, his marriage was remarkably delayed, so all eyes were fixed on the empty Crown Princess position.
And next would come the moment when Lark knelt before one lady among the many.
‘This is basically him signaling his choice for Crown Princess.’
Every eligible daughter of the great houses expected to fill the Crown Princess seat had gathered, so it was only natural.
Perhaps ordering the tiara wasn’t to mock the Second Prince after all, but part of Lark’s grander scheme.
He did have a calculating side, after all.
“What do we do, what do we do…….”
“Who, who will he choose?”
“It seems he already has a lady in mind?”
The murmur grew louder as Lark looked over the ladies.
Even I felt oddly tense watching this unfold.
I hesitated at Wisht’s words.
As I traded quips with Wisht, I suddenly spotted Lark standing before Lilia.
Of all people. It really was Lilia.
Everyone’s attention fixed on Lark and Lilia standing face to face.
The pairing was flawless. Lark’s beauty went without saying, and Lilia, whose appearance could make even angels jealous, made for a stunning combination.
“It looks like it’s Lady Lilia.”
“Well, as predicted.”
The ladies seemed unsurprised, accepting Lark’s choice as inevitable, though they pouted slightly.
A beautiful lady from a fine house. Indeed, by any measure, Lilia was worthy of being Crown Princess.
Lilia shyly flushed and extended her hand delicately.
‘Am I really not cool about this?’
Watching the two of them, a faint bitterness rose on my tongue.
“Oh, how odd. It seems she hasn’t come.”
“……?”
Just then, Lark looked around regretfully as if searching for someone, then suddenly turned away.
The ladies’ eyes widened in shock at the abrupt shift.
Most shocked was Lilia.
As she watched Lark’s retreating figure in bewilderment, her extended hand grew embarrassing; she hastily withdrew it behind her back.
“She didn’t come?”
“Um, um, which lady didn’t attend today?”
“Lady Merlin didn’t come. She said she wasn’t feeling well.”
“Oh my, oh my. Was it Lady Merlin?”
As Lark turned to leave, he spotted me standing apart and paused.
Then, smiling broadly, he approached me with deliberate steps.
“Victory’s own muse!”
With those words, Lark raised his right hand slightly, revealing the handkerchief I’d tied around his wrist.
“Thank you for the handkerchief, Lady Ruby.”
Every eye suddenly turned toward me at once.
Before I could even react, Lark dropped to one knee and looked up at me.
“Lady Ruby, might I have the honor of kissing your hand?”
“…….”
I was grateful, in that moment, to be wearing a mask. I couldn’t trust my own expression.
I examined the shocked faces around me, then slowly extended my hand toward Lark.
He smiled and brought my knuckles to his lips.
.>
As I bantered with Wisht, my gaze met Lark’s, who remained kneeling before me.
‘This is so awkward…….’
I stared blankly at his eyes, which crinkled warmly with laughter, and thought:
‘He’s far too dangerous a business partner.’
* * *
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!
Smashing his head against the wall so mercilessly looked like self-harm from a madman.
This had been Nathan’s habit since childhood.
Whenever compared to Lark, whenever he felt the crushing weight of his own insurmountable limits, this habit would surface.
“Your head’s the only thing that hurts~”
The sneer that emerged was fierce.
“You useless bastard.”
“So who told you to cheat?”
“That bastard Lark. He knew this would happen all along.”
Nathan breathed out in fury, his words tumbling forth.
Nathan had assumed cunning Lark would either not participate in this tournament or forfeit.
Lark knew he couldn’t defeat Nathan, so it would be better not to compete than face humiliation.
But Lark came to the arena knowing he’d lose. Why?
“Because he knew he could bury me!”
How was Nathan to have foreseen that Aristana would take such precautions against cheating?
But Lark had known. He must have been tipped off by Rubetria, his spirit user who could see the future.
“When will that bitch crawl out of Reubon?”
Nathan gritted his teeth and flipped through his calendar like a madman.
Early October—when Rubetria Diolus’s Isolation Sentence in Reubon would end.
“Damn it. I can’t wait that long. I need to get her out sooner.”
Nathan abandoned his earlier plan to approach and seduce her once her sentence ended and she could be reached. Today’s events had changed his mind.
Trying to persuade her with words would be difficult, given how she’d been building a bond with Lark all this while.
“If I just snatch her and lock her away somewhere remote, it might be entertaining. Make her my slave, reading the future for me alone for the rest of her life.”
Rage churned like turbulent waters, seeping through the gaps between his clenched teeth.
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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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