I Proposed Because You Were Terminally Ill - Chapter 52
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 52
A brief silence passed.
‘Why on earth did he lock the door?’
Damia looked directly at the man. She needed to figure out Basili’s intentions.
His eyes held a strange interest. Rather than fondness, it seemed like he was observing an insect with peculiar talents.
“….”
As was typical of those in power, he was skilled at using silence as a weapon.
In the end, it was Damia’s role as the weaker party to break this suffocating atmosphere.
“Your Highness, I apologize for disturbing your rest. If I had known you were here, I would never have dared to enter.”
“….”
“I shall withdraw now so you can be alone. Please forgive me if I have caused any displeasure.”
“I wasn’t particularly displeased. It seems I’ve caused a misunderstanding.”
His gentle voice penetrated her ears. Basili pulled out a handkerchief from inside his outer garment.
“I can’t just watch a lady walk around with something on her face. I’m more gentlemanly than you might think.”
Before she could react, a hand suddenly approached and grasped Damia’s chin.
The texture of leather gloves was vividly felt, then soft fabric slowly rubbed against her cheek.
A heavy, sweet fragrance suddenly filled her nostrils. It was similar to Drury’s perfume scent.
“Looks like wine stains. Are you already old enough to drink? You look quite young.”
Even though he clearly knew why Damia was tense, his tone was cheerful as if only the stain truly bothered him.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
She had heard rumors that First Prince Basili was unusually warm-hearted for royalty, but this was excessive kindness.
For a prince to personally wipe the cheek of a young lady he was meeting for the first time.
‘Why is everyone so eager to take care of me today?’
Damia maintained her smile while subtly stepping back.
She tried not to show her confusion, but her cheek twitched slightly.
“You don’t seem particularly grateful.”
“That’s… not true.”
“You’re quite similar to my younger sister.”
“You… flatter me.”
“Really. You’re quick-witted, yet you pretend not to know anything at first. Is it because you’re timid, or because you’re clever?”
Basili’s younger sister would be the youngest princess, Seraphina.
She was a princess so beloved by the Emperor that rumors circulated about him changing the succession laws.
However, few predicted the naturally frail Seraphina as the next emperor.
‘Why are so many people comparing me to their younger sisters lately?’
First Cassian, and now Basili. It was truly unwanted treatment.
“Your name is Damia, isn’t it? Viscount Ponti’s only daughter.”
“I’m honored that Your Highness knows of our humble family.”
“You’re the fiancée of the Young Duke of Sarkis. The woman who might become the mistress of the family called the Empire’s shield – how could I not know?”
He replied warmly while putting away his handkerchief.
Damia’s gaze unconsciously followed that white piece of fabric.
The corner of the white handkerchief was embroidered with the Soro Viscount’s House crest.
It wasn’t her imagination that he carried the same fragrance as Drury.
‘Did he have a separate acquaintance with Drury?’
Damia’s mind became tangled in complexity.
“I was about to head back myself. Do you need an escort?”
“Oh, no! It’s fine.”
“You don’t need to refuse so adamantly.”
“It’s really fine. I cannot impose any further on Your Highness.”
Just being the Young Duke of Sarkis’s fiancée was already drawing enough attention.
If she attracted more notice here, there would surely be consequences.
The fact that Basili might be close to Drury was also unsettling.
“It’s truly regrettable, but… it can’t be helped.”
Basili replied deliberately slowly. Instead of turning away immediately, he gazed at Damia for a long time.
Damia’s heart pounded violently as if she had fallen for him at first sight.
Of course, it wasn’t pleasant excitement.
Rather, it was closer to the fear a herbivore might feel when facing a natural predator.
* * *
Even after leaving the private room, Romi hadn’t returned.
“Have you seen a maid? Brown hair, about my height.”
Damia stopped a passing maid to ask.
“Are you talking about Romi?”
“Oh, yes. That’s right. Do you know each other?”
“We were quite close when Romi worked at this manor. She went outside earlier and doesn’t seem to have returned yet.”
“I see.”
“She looked pale, so I tried to follow her out, but she told me to leave her alone and acted sensitive.”
The maid sighed as if troubled. Damia’s eyes narrowed.
No matter how sick she felt, Romi wouldn’t just disappear leaving Damia behind.
“Oh, the dancing will start soon, so you should hurry back to the banquet hall. The butler earlier insisted we attend to every single distinguished guest without exception.”
“Romi is…”
“Romi will manage to return on her own. When she comes, I’ll tell her that the young lady she serves was looking for her.”
The maid replied obsequiously.
“You might just miss each other wandering around, miss. Please go in first.”
The maid was right. Searching aimlessly for Romi in this vast manor would be inefficient.
Besides, Drury’s words about waiting also weighed on her mind.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Don’t worry.”
Damia decided to go inside first and assess the situation.
As the banquet hall doors opened, chandelier lighting more dazzling than sunlight covered her vision in white.
Damia quickly scanned the crowd. Fortunately or unfortunately, Prince Basili was nowhere to be seen.
“Oh my, Miss Damia. Are you feeling better?”
A group of noble young ladies approached Damia.
Perhaps because she had maintained her position as the Young Duke’s fiancée for quite some time, their eyes held curiosity mixed with some goodwill.
“Yes, thanks to your concern. The guest room was truly beautiful.”
Though she couldn’t even remember the flowers that supposedly filled the place, Damia naturally made pleasant conversation.
“That’s good to hear. By the way, Miss Damia, could we get more of those sachets you shared last time?”
“That’s right! I haven’t been sleeping well lately, but when I keep that by my bedside, I sleep so well.”
The bribes and groundwork she had steadily laid for the future were proving effective.
‘Good. Everything’s going according to plan.’
Just as Damia was about to respond to them, she felt a piercing gaze on the back of her head.
When she turned around, Drury, standing in the center of the banquet hall, was staring intently at her.
Drury raised one eyebrow slightly. Her expression held more curiosity than anger.
‘Is she surprised that I returned unharmed? Surely… it couldn’t be?’
The moment Damia frowned, Drury turned away as if she had lost interest.
Soon she gestured toward the conductor.
The gentle melody that had been flowing suddenly stopped as if by magic.
At the unexpected silence, the chattering guests also began to close their mouths one by one.
“Please pay attention.”
Viscount Soro broke the silence and walked out to the center of the banquet hall.
An undeniable pride could be felt from his straightened shoulders.
Today, he looked as confident as if he had become a king.
“Actually, on the occasion of my daughter’s coming-of-age ceremony today, I would like to announce our family’s joyous news together.”
The Viscount’s voice instantly dominated the banquet hall.
“Well, it’s something that could be seen as joyous news not only for the Soro family but for the Belotea Empire as well.”
For the seasoned noble Viscount Soro, it was an excessively reckless and arrogant statement.
However, not a trace of hesitation or restraint could be found on the Viscount’s sharp face.
“Now!”
The massive doors of the banquet hall, which had been tightly closed, began to open once again.
Everyone held their breath as they stared at the scene.
Creak.
Since the surroundings were so quiet, even the friction sound of the hinges echoed loudly.
Damia also swallowed her dry saliva.
Her fingertips had already grown cold with an inexplicable tension.
“His Highness Prince Basil Belotea, First Prince of the Empire, is entering!”
Through the opened doorway, the midday sunlight poured in like a waterfall.
However, the man who walked in through that light was so brilliant that even the sun seemed pale in comparison.
Golden hair as if molten gold had been poured, and golden eyes that shone even more eerily.
Every gaze in the hall was captured by him.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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