Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 204

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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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‘I’ve already been so embarrassingly affectionate in my letters….’
I couldn’t help but worry about what kind of lovesick display Askart would put on throughout the entire meal.
And on top of that.
〈Lia, don’t worry about anything. I’ll get your family’s approval as well.〉
Lucio’s confident addition kept nagging at my mind.
When I looked at him with surprised eyes asking ‘How on earth?’, Lucio said that since he’d already made such a terrible impression, he had no choice but to resort to his final method.
Even if Askart might agree, my parents and grandfather would never consent so easily, and I had no idea what kind of plan he was scheming.
The fact that he spoke with such confidence suggested he had some certain method in mind….
“Sigh. He said he’d handle it, so I just have to trust him.”
I muttered to myself absentmindedly and nodded, when I felt a burning gaze on my cheeks.
It was Duchess Elrad and Diana.
Oh! Only then did I realize I’d lost focus again, and I stiffened my body while my cheeks flushed red.
Then Diana rushed over and hugged me, exclaiming, “Kyaa, future sister-in-law!”
“It’s not official yet.”
I made a small protest out of embarrassment, and Diana giggled as she spoke.
“‘Not yet’ means ‘soon’ you’ll be my sister-in-law!”
“I, I suppose so?”
As I scratched my cheek with belated realization, Diana cupped her cheeks with both hands and wore a dreamy expression.
“I’m so happy! You’re really going to be my sister!”
“Hehe. I’m truly delighted as well. Lia becoming my daughter-in-law!”
With Diana not enough, even Duchess Elrad chiming in, my embarrassment reached its peak.
We’d only just said we’d become lovers….
Though I had promised Lucio we’d become engaged soon, Diana’s eagerness and Duchess Elrad’s affectionate gaze—as if we were already family—made my face flush crimson.
I quickly bowed my head and began eating.
Hearing their giggles as they watched me, I felt as if I were walking on fluffy pink clouds that had materialized from nowhere.
I was so happy that I feared this peace might shatter in an instant.
* * *
Fortunately, this fluttering atmosphere didn’t change until after the meal ended and we moved to have tea time.
I’d only just grown accustomed to being called ‘my daughter,’ ‘my sister,’ ‘my granddaughter,’ and now I was hearing ‘my daughter-in-law’ and ‘my new sister’!
Sipping tea with a beet-red face amid this parade of unfamiliar titles, Duchess Elrad produced something she seemed to have prepared in advance.
It was the ‘sapphire bracelet’ that had come as my birthday gift before.
“So this is… a family heirloom of House Elrad?”
Mother had mentioned it was a precious item, but I never imagined it was the keepsake of the Previous Duchess Elrad and a heirloom of the House!
Duchess Elrad, who had already fastened the bracelet around my wrist, smiled.
“It truly suits you well.”
“Why… are you giving this to me….”
“Why? I’ve wanted to give it to you from the start, Lia. I waited until you came of age and sent it, but when it came back to me, I was so disappointed. That’s why I’m giving it to you now.”
At Duchess Elrad’s somewhat sullen words, I was momentarily stunned.
“So you mean….”
You had already decided I would be your daughter-in-law long ago?
Noticing the question I couldn’t bring myself to ask, a gentle smile played at the corners of the Duchess Elrad’s lips.
With Diana acting this way and now the Duchess Elrad as well, I felt utterly flustered.
‘Was I truly the only one who didn’t understand Lucio’s feelings?’
The more I thought about it, the more absurd and unfair it all seemed.
Of course, Lucio had explained that I was young and the security at the Grand Duke’s Castle was far too strict for him to contact me separately, but….
I felt a petulant irritation rising within me.
“Wait, I’ll bring the necklace I bought too!”
Diana, upon seeing the sapphire bracelet, sprang to her feet as if she might dash to her room at any moment.
“Diana, you can give me that necklace next time.”
I quickly grabbed Diana’s arm and turned my gaze toward the Duchess Elrad.
“About the bracelet….”
I carefully unfastened the bracelet and held it out, and the Duchess Elrad’s eyes widened.
“Don’t you like it?”
“No, that’s not it! I thought it was beautiful from the moment I first saw it. However….”
No matter what, it was a family heirloom and something meant for the mistress of the household—it seemed far too much for me to possess when I wasn’t even engaged, let alone married.
“It will be yours eventually anyway….”
The Duchess Elrad gazed at me with eyes full of reluctance.
I deliberately turned away from her gaze and placed the bracelet in the jewelry box, speaking with embarrassment.
“We’re not even engaged yet.”
“Then if we become engaged, will you accept it? And my necklace too?”
Diana then asked with sparkling eyes.
Instead of answering, I smiled and gently tapped Diana’s cheek.
I couldn’t voice it aloud, but I wanted to receive them when I finally removed the demon’s necklace from around my neck.
When that day came, I would be able to accept Diana’s necklace and the Duchess Elrad’s bracelet with a truly joyful heart.
“Sister, but you absolutely must accept the ring!”
“A ring?”
“Yes! Older Brother said he just needs to know the size… Oh no!”
Diana, who had been chattering happily beside me, suddenly clapped her hand over her mouth and looked at me nervously.
When the Duchess Elrad shook her head as if to say there was no helping it, Diana spoke with a dejected expression.
“It’s a secret from Older Brother!”
“Haha, I understand.”
I nodded at what I could already guess and linked my pinky with hers in a promise, and only then did Diana seem reassured as she threw her arms around me.
“You really are the best, Sister! If Older Brother ever upsets you, you have to tell me! I’ll scold him. Or better yet, I’ll never call him Older Brother again!”
Diana was so adorable, already huffing indignantly as if Lucio had already done something to trouble me, that I laughed and asked.
“If you don’t call him Older Brother, what will you call him?”
Surely she wouldn’t call him by his name?
I was imagining how Lucio would react if my much younger sister called him by his name and acted sulky toward him.
Diana answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“Of course, Brother-in-law!”
“Pfu, pfuhehe.”
I was sipping tea thoughtfully when an unexpected form of address made me choke.
I quickly asked Diana, who was patting my back.
“Diana, are you really going to call me that?”
“Of course! And if you call me by my name, I’ll get angry. How dare you address your sister-in-law so casually!”
Bewildered by Diana’s earnest words, I found myself glancing at the Duchess Elrad without thinking.
The Duchess Elrad gazed at us warmly and spoke.
“If I don’t want to lose my youngest daughter, I’ll have to give my eldest son strict instructions to treat his wife well.”
Wait, is this really happening?
The Duchess Elrad’s words left me somewhat confused.
Then I heard something even more startling.
“Lia, this is something I’m bringing up now, but truthfully, there was a time when I wanted to adopt you.”
In that moment, a forgotten memory surfaced.
I was so shocked to hear about that day from the Duchess Elrad’s own lips that I stared at her in surprise, and she continued with a nostalgic expression.
“It was a close call, wasn’t it? I had no idea you’d find your real parents so soon after. If I had adopted you back then, it would have been terribly awkward to meet the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess.”
“Haha….”
“And come to think of it, Lucio was quite adamantly opposed to the adoption at the time. Did he sense it instinctively? He insisted that you must never become his younger sister.”
My face flushed crimson at the Duchess Elrad’s teasing tone.
But it seemed my embarrassment was mine alone, as Diana hummed a little tune and murmured.
“Oh, I hope Younger Brother finishes his training and comes home soon.”
They always seem to bicker whenever they see each other, so does Allen miss being around after all?
“Once the whole family gathers, we can hold the formal meeting and set the engagement ceremony date! Right, Sister?”
No, that’s not it. Diana is only sincere about my engagement.
Feeling oddly apologetic toward Allen, I sent him a silent, inadequate apology and laughed awkwardly.
* * *
That night, at the Imperial Palace.
The Emperor suppressed his rising fury as he made his way toward the Treasure Vault.
It was right after he had summoned the Imperial physician and conducted a thorough examination, only to hear that the Grand Duchess was fine.
The Emperor had tried to stop Duke Elrad, who was preparing to leave with the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess, but the Duke was faster.
〈Your Majesty, then I shall take my leave. There is much to attend to with the family celebrations.〉
So absurd was the situation that the Emperor couldn’t utter a word, and without waiting for permission, the Duke nodded and turned to leave.
That arrogant, willful demeanor felt both unfamiliar and strangely familiar.
It was only later that he realized it was the same bearing Duke Elrad had displayed in the past, when he was consumed with suspicion and jealousy regarding the Grand Duchess.
Since making the contract with the demon’s relic, the Emperor had never seen Duke Elrad display such an attitude.
After his marriage and the birth of his children, he had shown nothing but deference and loyalty….
“How infuriating!”
Only then did the Emperor realize that Duke Elrad had revealed his true nature.
After all the trust and favor he had shown him!
Of course, he hadn’t expected Duke Elrad to harbor no resentment, having been forced into loyalty through an unforeseen incident.
But despite everything, the Duke had displayed loyalty for so many years, and the Emperor had shown him grace and favor accordingly. Yet at this crucial moment, to betray him like this.
“Insolent wretch. How dare a dog bite the hand of his master?”
The Emperor’s hurried footsteps quickened as he struggled to compose himself.
His sudden change in demeanor left me bewildered, yet a creeping suspicion and unease bloomed in the depths of my heart.
Soon, the Emperor entered the Treasure Vault.
The moment he placed his hand upon the innermost door, a metallic clang echoed through the chamber as the heavily warded iron gate swung open.
The Emperor made his way directly to where the demonic artifact lay, and upon confirming it remained exactly as he remembered, he exhaled a breath of relief.
As his anxiety subsided, an equal measure of fury surged in its place.
“I must make it abundantly clear who holds the strings of life and death.”
It was the moment the Emperor reached toward the artifact, his seething, cruel desire laid bare without restraint.
With a sharp crackling sound, cracks began to spider across the demonic artifact’s surface.
The Emperor jerked his hand away in alarm, but the shattered demonic artifact transformed into black smoke, dispersing into the air before vanishing entirely without a trace.
“W-what in the world is this…!”
Horror flooded the Emperor’s eyes as he stared at the scene in utter disbelief.
It was impossible—the greatest treasure of the Imperial Family, passed down in secret through generations, could not simply vanish like this.
“Mage! Summon the Chief Mage at once!”
The Emperor’s cry tore through the air, yet his screams had only just begun.

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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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