If I Were Reborn, I Wouldn’t Marry You - Chapter 140

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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 140
A thick sense of dread washed over me.
Simultaneously, my mind began spinning frantically, desperately searching for a way to escape this situation.
‘Well, since it’s come to this, should I just go along with it?’
…But this was far too unromantic.
Within seconds, several possibilities flashed through my mind, yet none of them felt right.
In the end, I chose to play ignorant.
‘I’m sorry, Leon. I really underestimated you. I won’t let this happen again….’
After offering a silent apology, I smiled as naturally as I could manage.
“Haha, who knew panna cotta was so soft? I barely applied any pressure to the knife and it sliced right through!”
Then I proceeded to feign fascination at how remarkably soft the pudding made from milk and whipped cream had turned out.
The excuse that came to mind was absolutely ridiculous, leaving me mortified and awkward, but having already started down this path, I couldn’t back out now.
‘If I did, things would become ten times more embarrassing and awkward.’
If this grew any more uncomfortable, I might actually die of shame.
Desperate to avoid that fate, I steeled my resolve.
This was all about momentum, after all!
Fortunately, my desperate performance seemed convincing enough.
Leonhardt carefully rolled his eyes, studying my expression.
His gaze was clearly searching, as if probing whether I had truly noticed nothing.
‘You’d never make it as an interrogator.’
I muttered this only to myself while laughing as though embarrassed.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Do I have something on my face?”
To add detail to my act, I carelessly brushed my cheek with a half-hearted gesture, and Leonhardt responded with his pupils still trembling slightly.
“Oh? Oh! I think you have a fallen eyelash.”
I thought it was unfortunate that he had to make an excuse, but honestly, this was the best Leonhardt could do.
“Really? Where?”
I started to brush off his comment and reach for a hand mirror in my bag when Leonhardt extended his hand.
“Here.”
And indeed, a single golden eyelash was actually stuck to his index finger.
‘So he wasn’t clumsily making an excuse—he was just observant.’
The realization suddenly crashed over me.
Feeling subtly embarrassed, I laughed awkwardly.
Perhaps because that awkward laugh seemed more natural, Leonhardt visibly relaxed.
His face practically screamed, ‘She really didn’t notice.’
In the meantime, the Waiter had discreetly disappeared, apparently having signaled something to the musicians.
When we first entered the Restaurant, they had been playing soft, ambient melodies like white noise, but now the background music sounded like something from the climax of a romance film.
Anyone watching would think, ‘Something’s definitely happening here!’
Yet the musicians continued playing, as if this had always been their intention, seamlessly maintaining their sweet melodies.
‘These people really know their job.’
I laughed to hide my embarrassment.
My audacity had completely run out, and my gaze dropped downward.
Then, in the reflection on the wine glass, I caught sight of a single rose that had fallen to the floor when the Waiter hastily stepped backward, and my heart grew a little heavy.
‘I thought I might finally receive a proper proposal this time.’
What could I do?
The problem was me—I had told myself not to expect anything, yet I harbored the greatest expectations of all.
To soothe my bitter feelings, I ate the panna cotta in one bite.
The sweet taste did offer some comfort.

* * *
‘Don’t try to do something grand. Just stick to the basics.’
This was the resolve Leonhardt had repeated to himself hundreds of times while preparing his proposal.
Of course, it wasn’t born from the mindset of some mediocre fool who planned to do things halfway and call it done.
Rather, after returning, as he came to understand himself better, he realized that whenever he tried to do something exceptional, things would go awry—so following the conventional approach yielded better results.
‘Miela loves the simple things more than I expected.’
She wanted a husband who brought a modest bouquet on anniversaries rather than a virtuous ruler whose name would echo through history.
She desired couple items to show off to others rather than the largest mines on the Continent.
Because she already possessed so much, she valued sincerity over objective wealth that caught others’ eyes—a truth he only now understood.
In other words, the conclusion was not to make the proposal grandiose.
‘…The weather has been lovely lately. Would she dislike a proposal in the Plaza on a weekend afternoon? Would that even fall into the category of grandiose?’
Wouldn’t that be romantic enough?
Wouldn’t she be delighted to receive blessings among so many people?
Miela was sociable and affectionate by nature….
Leonhardt disliked ostentation and preferred simplicity.
Yet despite this disposition, Miela’s existence was so precious, beautiful, and invaluable to him that he wanted to display her openly—so he found himself tempted by the idea of a Plaza proposal.
Most fortunately, just before the final attempt, Leonhardt realized this was trying too hard—an effort that had spiraled too far.
In the end, Leonhardt set aside his regrets and decided to follow the method that roughly eighty out of every hundred men chose when proposing.
Renting an atmospheric restaurant, kneeling on one knee, and offering flowers and a ring while asking her to be with him forever.
Thinking this was within the bounds of normalcy, he gradually expanded the scale until it became quite elaborate.
He rented the most famous restaurant in the Capital and redesigned its interior, inviting musicians from the Imperial Symphony Orchestra—the finest ensemble in the Empire.
He commissioned a bouquet from a rare new variety developed by a renowned florist through an exclusive contract, and the gemstone for the ring was acquired at auction from the most prestigious house on the Continent.
On the surface, it still fell within the bounds of normalcy.
And so arrived the day of the proposal, after all preparations were complete.
He had thought himself calm, but it was all an illusion.
The moment they sat across from each other at the table, his heart pounded so violently it felt as though it might burst from his chest.
Fortunately, his expression was naturally blank, and Miela seemed tired today, concentrating intently on cutting tomatoes with a serious face—this gave him just enough time to steady himself.
Leonhardt took a deep breath without Miela noticing.
For the first time in his life, he understood what it meant to feel sweat beading on his palms from nervousness.
‘How on earth did I manage it before the regression?’
In truth, looking back, it seemed he had proposed quite impulsively back then.
Everyone had treated him and Miela as though they were already engaged.
Dozens of people had asked why I still hadn’t proposed.
There were excuses about repaying debts to Roderick and Miela.
But it was an impulse that had been building up, layer upon layer, day after day.
One day when I met with Miela and spent time together, something that had been pressed down so tightly suddenly burst forth.
There wasn’t any particular trigger.
That day, Miela was simply so lovely and precious to me.
Even when I proposed impulsively back then, I regretted it madly until Miela gave me her answer.
Those few seconds felt like an eternity, and I regretted that I might have ruined our relationship with careless words.
That moment when Miela accepted my proposal was undoubtedly the happiest moment of my life.
Just imagining it brought back those emotions, and a soft smile played at the corners of Leonhardt’s eyes.
If she accepts this proposal, I’ll be twice as happy.
Miela does like me a little, after all.
I’d started thinking of other things to calm my nerves, but the more I thought about it, the more heat rose to my face.
The waiter who was serving dessert to Leonhardt, who had drunk cold water to regain his composure, gave him a signal.
The timing they had arranged beforehand was now.
My heart, which I’d barely managed to calm, began racing wildly again.
Leonhardt secretly transferred the ring case into his hand.
At that moment, Miela looked up at him with a startled and flustered expression.
Leonhardt, who felt caught, was equally startled.
Why? What is it?
Wondering if I’d been discovered, I quickly glanced around nervously.
Sensing something amiss, the waiter silently retreated and disappeared.
“Ha, the panna cotta is so soft I barely applied any pressure with the knife and it just sliced right through!”
Miela, who couldn’t see what was happening behind her, spoke awkwardly in an exaggerated theatrical tone.
At her words, Leonhardt’s eyes naturally turned toward the plate.
Looking at the panna cotta with its corner cut off, Leonhardt was certain.
She must have gotten some in her eye.
As Leonhardt gently removed the eyelash stuck to Miela’s cheek—she was convinced she hadn’t been discovered—he laughed silently to himself.
She was adorable.

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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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