Queen of Revenge - Chapter 50

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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 50
Black strands of hair tickled my forehead.
Lucian pressed his lips against mine.
His hand cradling the back of my head was warm. His lips carried the bitter taste of medicine.
It was not a kiss driven by desire. Yet it was enough to brake my headlong rush toward the precipice.
“….”
My heaving chest gradually stilled.
Lucian held his lips against mine for several seconds before slowly withdrawing.
“Why does it matter if it was the first?”
The Guard Knight’s eyes, visible at such close range, were resolute.
I found myself holding my breath, hanging on his every word.
“Whether it was first, second, or last—meaning is something we assign to it.”
“….”
“No matter what the Duke says, if you refuse to give those memories with him any significance, they’re nothing but a worthless moment in time. And if they refuse to fade, you simply bury them beneath something else.”
While I blinked blankly, his lips found mine once more. It felt entirely different from Benedix’s kisses, which had always been so desperate.
This was light, as though to say such things were trivial—yet stern, as if commanding me to finally compose myself.
I unconsciously wrapped my arms around his neck.
An anchor bearing Lucian’s name caught hold of my capsizing heart. He held me firmly as I clung to him like a frightened child.
“And logically speaking, if the Duke intended to wield the Princess’s secret as leverage, there would be no reason for him to come all this way and make such a grand proclamation. It was merely an attempt to intimidate—nothing more, nothing less. You’d only be playing into his crude provocation.”
“….”
“Do you understand?”
After staring at Lucian for a long moment, I sniffled.
My eyes were red from crying, as were my cheeks and nose, but at least I seemed to have calmed down.
“Yes….”
“Well done.”
Lucian carefully wiped my tear-stained face with a handkerchief.
He applied fresh salve to my split lip, tidied my disheveled hair, and pulled the blanket back up. Then he carried me to the bed.
Like a doll with its strings cut, I relaxed completely only after being buried beneath the covers.
It was some time before I murmured.
“That I can die and come back—that’s a secret.”
“I know.”
“…I’m sorry you had to see me like that.”
I pulled my head beneath the blanket.
“You were right. Meaning is something we assign, and the body has little value… it doesn’t matter when or how it’s used.”
My voice trailed off slowly. The last few syllables were barely audible.
“Enough talk. You should rest now. Sleep.”
A small hand emerged from beneath the covers, grasping Lucian’s collar.
“Don’t go. Stay.”
“I won’t leave.”
Lucian pulled a chair over and sat beside the bed.
Iolet poked her head out from beneath the blanket to confirm his presence, then closed her eyes wearily.
Drained from the intensity of their encounter, she fell asleep almost immediately.
“….”
Lucian waited until The Princess’s breathing had settled into an even rhythm before washing his face with cold water.
As clarity returned, a wave of regret washed over him.
His lips burned as though marked by an invisible wound.
Lucian absently touched his lips and exhaled a long breath.
He tilted his head back, eyes closed, and anguish flickered across his features. Yet the traces of his turmoil soon faded, leaving only the memory of that brief, tender, beloved touch.
It lingered through the rest of that dawn.
The next morning arrived—the day of the wedding.
* * *
The ceremony took place in the small Chapel as the sun climbed halfway into the sky.
There were no grand fanfares, no elaborate vestments, no precious gifts. The affair was simple and austere.
“Two souls who have walked separate paths now become one in this place, and whether in joy or sorrow, shall walk together always….”
The Priest conducting the ceremony intoned the marriage vows in a measured voice.
Benedix did not appear at the ceremony. Yet Iolet was certain he watched her from somewhere unseen. She could feel his gaze even in his absence.
“Before the Lord, this couple now pledges eternal vows. Let them exchange the tokens of their covenant.”
The ceremony drew toward its conclusion.
“You seem unwell today.”
Kairon Winterbark stepped closer to her, his eyes unusually cold.
“Focus, will you?”
“Ah, yes. I apologize.”
Iolet snapped to attention. This was a wedding, after all—she had been terribly discourteous to her partner.
Kairon Winterbark lifted her left hand.
Iolet felt something delicate slip across her ring finger. Something glimmered on her left hand.
Kairon Winterbark spoke flatly.
“The token of our contract.”
Iolet gazed at the ring now adorning her ring finger with an unfamiliar sense of unreality.
A modest ruby sat atop a band of pale platinum. Its hue seemed to echo the crimson of Kairon Winterbark’s own eyes.
The red stone cast a luminous glow that was utterly captivating. For some reason, she could not tear her gaze from its radiance.
Mother’s pendant had once shone with this same light. A glance at Kairon Winterbark’s left hand revealed he already wore a ring.
His ring bore no stone, far simpler in design than hers. Though not exquisitely crafted, it was clearly a piece of considerable value.
“I thought we agreed to keep the gifts modest.”
“This one holds special meaning for me.”
“What meaning?”
“A new beginning. And a long journey.”
Kairon Winterbark emphasized the words “new” and “long journey” as he spoke.
In that instant, her muddled mind cleared as though a veil had lifted. The tasks that lay ahead, beginning from this moment, unfolded before her like a panorama.
Today was a crucial day. A day when she and Kairon Winterbark could afford no weakness before their enemies.
Their fates hung in the balance of this marriage, yet where had her mind wandered?
I glanced at the guest section. A witness from the Kalande Royal Court was watching me with sharp eyes. He would record every detail of today’s wedding and report it to the court.
‘I have to make this look like a genuine marriage to Kalande.’
The Priest officiating the ceremony spoke solemnly.
“The groom and bride shall prove your sacred vows with a kiss of oath.”
I placed my hand on Kairon’s shoulder. Perhaps because so much had happened yesterday, even this felt surprisingly effortless.
Even on my tiptoes, I couldn’t reach his height. I pulled him down with force.
“There are many eyes watching. Act naturally.”
The moment Kairon awkwardly bent his upper body, I kissed him.
Kairon’s pupils dilated.
Her lips were warm and soft. His breath, feather-light, tickled the space above my upper lip.
It felt as though all the sounds of the world had vanished.
The kiss was brief. I slowly lowered my heels as I pulled my lips away.
Lucian had been right after all. I thought I would never be able to kiss anyone else, but that wasn’t true.
The kisses, the pushes, the memories we shared—they meant nothing unless I chose to give them meaning.
What value did my lips have in the first place?
Once I realized this, a sense of liberation washed over me, like a child who had successfully committed their first act of rebellion.
The guest section fell silent. The witness from the Kalande Royal Court nodded slowly and scribbled something on the document he was holding.
‘I managed to get through it well.’
I glanced sideways at Kairon and was slightly startled. He looked as though he’d been struck by lightning.
Like someone whose understanding arrives slowly after an event has occurred, Kairon’s gaze moved sluggishly to follow me.
Kairon unconsciously raised his hand and touched his own lips.
It was merely a childish kiss. Not much different from what Lucian had done to me just yesterday.
Yet something strange was happening. Kairon’s ears were slowly turning red.
“Hie—ack….”
Kairon’s Adjutant made a peculiar sound before hastily closing his mouth.
Commander Marcel Lefebvre, sitting in the row ahead, wore a similar expression without making a sound. Even Lucian, leaning against a pillar on the second floor of the chapel, had a strangely rigid expression on his face.
Kairon seemed entirely indifferent to their stares. He let out a sudden, bursting laugh and approached me with the urgency of an impatient man.
“Iolet. What did that mean?”
His broken speech made my heart skip for a moment.
Kairon seemed to have forgotten where he was and what we were doing. His gaze was fixed on my lips.
I quickly grabbed his hand.
“Sir, we still have the procession left.”
“What you just did, do it again—.”
“Let’s go!”
I hurriedly pulled his arm and placed his hand on mine.
The seated guests began to applaud, one by one. The scattered applause quickly grew louder.
“I hereby declare that these two are now husband and wife. Please bless the couple’s future together.”
I headed toward the chapel entrance where light was pouring in. I felt his gaze burning into my profile, but I pretended not to notice. The back of my neck burned as if scorched by fire.
Thus ended my second wedding.

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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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