I’ll Be the Heroine’s Competent Divorce Partner - Chapter 140
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 140
‘My goodness.’
I struggled to hold back the laughter that was about to burst out as I questioned Joshua again.
“You were excited? Really?”
“Honestly, wouldn’t it be strange if I wasn’t excited?”
Joshua protested to me with an aggrieved expression.
“How long have I had a one-sided crush on you…!”
“…”
“…”
Silence fell.
Huh?
My eyes widened as I asked Joshua back.
“A one-sided crush?”
“…Ah, it’s nothing.”
Joshua bit his lower lip hard, then desperately tried to play it off.
But I saw it.
How his neck had turned bright red before I knew it.
‘No way, how is this nothing?!’
That perfect man had been liking me for a long time!
My eyes lit up as I quickly clung to Joshua.
“Could you tell me a little more about that story? Please?”
“No.”
“Come on, don’t be like that. Please?”
“I don’t want to.”
Joshua’s face was so red as he replied primly that it looked like it would burst if I poked it.
The corners of my lips curved upward to their fullest.
‘Ha, I should stop teasing him, shouldn’t I?’
He reacts to every single word so cutely that I just can’t help it.
Chuckling with laughter, I picked up a bite-sized piece of orange.
The fresh yet sweet juice burst in my mouth.
After savoring that taste for a moment, I called Joshua in a subtle voice.
“You know, Joshua?”
“…”
Joshua narrowed his eyes and looked back at me.
It was a look full of wariness, worried that I might tease him again.
I smiled warmly with my eyes.
“Thank you.”
I was sincere.
I hadn’t expected Joshua to bring lunch like this when he must be so busy.
Honestly… I was very happy.
At the same time, his expression softened a little.
“Don’t mention it.”
After finishing our meal like that.
Joshua and I leaned against each other and had various conversations.
“The policy that Elodie proposed this time, it’s been very effective so far.”
I looked at Joshua with a brightened expression.
“Is that really true?”
Joshua nodded with a bright expression.
“Yes. Of course we need to observe it a bit longer, but so far I think we can evaluate it as successful.”
“Then, could I go inspect the childcare facilities once?”
“An inspection?”
“Yes. Since it’s a policy I proposed, I’d like to go see for myself at least once whether it’s being operated properly.”
“Understood. I’ll send word ahead.”
“Thank you.”
I smiled brightly and unconsciously got up.
It was to clean up the lunch boxes scattered on the table.
Then Joshua also hurriedly got up from his seat.
“Just leave it, Elodie. I’ll clean up…”
At that moment.
Our fingers bumped into each other.
It was contact that I wouldn’t have been particularly conscious of normally.
‘But why now…’
I swallowed dry saliva and raised my head.
At the same time, our gazes met.
Silence flowed once again.
“…”
“…”
But this silence didn’t have the awkward or flustered feeling from earlier.
Rather… it was thick.
“Elodie.”
Joshua called my name in a low voice.
The fine hairs all over my body stood up.
I instinctively realized.
What he was thinking right now.
And I too…
Instead of answering that call, I gently closed my eyes.
Our lips overlapped.
Hot breaths tangled together wildly.
Soft flesh persistently rubbed against the tender mucous membrane inside the mouth.
My head became completely hazy.
I embraced his neck with all my strength.
* * *
Before I knew it, it was evening with the sun slowly setting.
Joshua, who had just gotten off the carriage, unconsciously touched his lips.
The sensation of soft lips still seemed to linger.
At the same time, his face flushed red.
‘Damn it.’
He wasn’t some adolescent boy, yet he’d been thinking about Elodie all day over just one kiss.
W-well, of course she had taken his first kiss.
Still…!
‘More than that, Elodie seems too thin lately.’
Just then.
Joshua slightly furrowed his brow.
Her waist that he had embraced earlier was so slender that, with a bit of exaggeration, it seemed like it would fit in one hand.
‘Should I prepare some nutritious food for her next time?’
He should probably consult with the chef.
Or find a decent restaurant…
Joshua, who had been thinking various thoughts, glanced up.
His violet eyes, which had been excited all along, quietly settled.
‘Today… should I go see Father?’
His father who had been unable to open his eyes for a long time.
His father who was barely maintaining his breathing with the help of sacred relics.
He wanted to tell such a father.
That for the first time, a woman he wanted to share his future with had appeared.
That when his father opened his eyes someday, he wanted to introduce that woman to him directly.
And so Joshua impulsively headed to the imperial palace.
‘Hmm?’
He stopped just before entering the Emperor’s bedroom.
Someone was standing in front of the bedroom door, where normally not even a mouse would dare approach.
Judging by their attire, they seemed to have come to escort someone.
That meant.
There was already a visitor.
“Who are you?”
At that question, the attendant bowed his head.
“I am Marquis Bartsen’s attendant.”
“…Uncle’s?”
Joshua’s expression became subtle.
Instead of continuing to speak with the attendant, he grasped the bedroom door handle.
Click.
The door opened.
The bedroom inside was dark.
Only a dimmed stand lamp was casting a faint crimson light.
The first thing that came into view was the enormous bed placed at the far end of the spacious bedroom.
It was the bed where Father always slept.
The sacred relic that sustained Father’s life was glowing faintly.
Above it, two paintings that Uncle had personally drawn and gifted hung side by side.
Marquis Bartsen, who had been sitting on a chair pulled up beside the bed, glanced back.
“Ah, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
His face showed no surprise at all.
Joshua approached the Marquis with a stern expression.
“Uncle.”
It felt somewhat strange.
There was once a time when he had greatly trusted his uncle, but now he only felt uncomfortable whenever he faced him.
Joshua unconsciously clenched his fists tightly.
Where had the uncle he once knew disappeared to?
The man who had been a respectable adult of the Imperial Family, what had he become…?
“What brings you here?”
At that sharp question, Marquis Bartsen let out a chuckle.
“Your words are a bit strange. It’s not so unusual for a younger brother to visit his elder brother, is it?”
Those words themselves were correct.
However, in recent years, it had been very rare for the Marquis to visit the Emperor.
The Marquis lightly shrugged his shoulders.
“I was just curious about how my elder brother was doing after such a long time, so I came to visit.”
“…I see.”
A subtle displeasure crawled up his skin like an insect.
Joshua narrowed his brow as he looked back and forth between his father and uncle.
His father, who lay with his eyes closed as if dead.
And his uncle, who gazed at his father with an unreadable expression.
In the past, he had believed without doubt that his uncle was genuinely worried about his father.
But now…
“Congratulations, the pilot policy proposed by Marquis Lucerno seems to be progressing well.”
Just then, Marquis Bartsen spoke up in a smooth voice.
“How should I put it, everything Your Highness the Crown Prince supports achieves excellent results. You truly are destined to become a wise ruler.”
“….”
“Your elder brother must be happy to have raised such a fine son.”
The Marquis’s voice dropped to a secretive tone.
In the darkness, the Marquis’s eyes gleamed like those of a feline.
…It was a strangely eerie light.
“How does it feel to be chosen as the Empire’s sovereign from the moment of your birth, Your Highness?”
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
