The Abandoned Prince’s Ghost Bride - Chapter 46

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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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The Forsaken Prince’s Ghost Bride — Chapter 46

“Ugh, I’m bored.”
“…….”
At one boy’s complaint, another who had been leisurely reading a book made a grimace of disapproval.
“Your Highness, do maintain your dignity. What on earth is that posture?”
“But I really am bored.”
A boy with white hair perfectly maintained and eyes golden as precious metal—a face identical to Leopold’s in every way.
The only difference was that unlike the more cynical Leopold, he had not yet lost that innocent mischievousness of childhood.
Of course, he never lost his dignity in public, but now, before his closest friend Harry, such things hardly mattered.
At present, Leopold was sprawled across the sofa in a truly peculiar pose—one leg draped over the armrest, his head hanging off the edge.
It was enough to irritate anyone who looked at it.
“I hear Lilith will be arriving soon. Will you greet your betrothed in such a pose after all this time?”
“Oh! Really? I haven’t seen Lilith in ages!”
Harry shook his head at Leopold, who treated his betrothed like any other friend.
Then, suddenly, Harry remembered a rumor he’d been hearing lately.
‘They say Lilith gets along well with all manner of men.’
He’d told her as the Crown Prince’s betrothed to mind her conduct, but she simply insisted they were just friends.
Though for “just friends,” they seemed far too close.
Still, bound as they were by obligation and circumstance, one couldn’t demand they love each other—but at least they should observe basic propriety, shouldn’t they?
‘At least the Crown Prince is oblivious to it all. That’s something.’
Harry regarded Leopold with darkened eyes.
“Oh—”
Leopold opened his mouth.
“I wish I had a sibling.”
“……Are you still saying that? Wouldn’t the lack of siblings actually be far more advantageous to you?”
“That’s what someone with two siblings shouldn’t be saying.”
At a loss for words, Harry let out a low groan.
“I know, I know. Having siblings isn’t good. The imperial household has a history of bloodshed whenever there are brothers and sisters.”
“…….”
Seeing Leopold grow uncharacteristically serious, Harry closed his book.
“Still, having someone to lean on in such a large court would be nice, wouldn’t it? You’re always complaining about your siblings being a nuisance, but when you’re older, you’ll become each other’s reliable friends.”
“Only if my siblings don’t scheme for titles.”
“Good heavens, born of the same mother, family by blood, yet they all seem eager to devour one another.”
Leopold sighed in lamentation.
At fifteen now, and with adulthood coming in three years, perhaps such talk of siblings seemed strange. But he was always sincere about it.
There was no way Harry or his other friends could understand the emptiness of the imperial household.
‘If I had a sibling, they would understand me…….’
Leopold, lost in thought, waved his hand dismissively.
“Never mind. Just forget I said anything.”
Resignation mingled with his light tone. Knowing this, Harry found he had nothing to say.
Not one for many words, he didn’t know what comfort to offer. He simply consoled him in his own way.
“Since you’re bored, why don’t you play some games when Lilith and the others arrive?”
“Oh!”
Leopold brightened at once, surprised by the suggestion.
Watching him scheme over what games might be fun, Harry felt his heart ease.
‘The Crown Prince doesn’t suit a downcast expression.’
He ought to shine like the sun, brightening those around him. That was the form that suited him best.
And so Harry, setting aside his reluctance, indulged all of Leopold’s chatter.
Time passed, and soon Lilith and the others arrived.
“Your Highness! It’s been so long!”
“I hope you’ve been well?”
“Oh! You lot, it’s been ages!”
Leopold quickly rose to greet his friends.
One was Schlan, the eldest son of House of Neopin, and the other was Amanda, the second daughter of House of Basilion.
They had exchanged letters in the meantime, but it had been two years since they’d met in person.
After exchanging warm greetings with them, Lilith appeared from behind.
“It’s been a while, Your Highness. Two years, I see.”
“Lilith! I hope you’ve been well and——”
Leopold, about to greet her like the others, suddenly faltered.
Her hair, soft as spun candy, caught the light in shades of pale pink. Her eyes, clear as glass, held a crystalline blue.
Though he’d seen these familiar colors countless times before, today they felt strangely unfamiliar to him.
“……Lilith?”
“Yes, Your Highness. What’s the matter?”
As Lilith tilted her head with a gentle, virtuous smile, Leopold instinctively took a step back.
Schlan noticed Leopold’s neck flush a deep red and his eyes widened with delight.
“He’s smitten! Looks like the Crown Prince’s been caught at first sight.”
“But the two of you have been betrothed since long before, haven’t you?”
“Betrothal and love are different things. Though I admit, Lilith has grown considerably more beautiful in these two years.”
This year, Lilith made her debut into society and became a young lady who set countless nobles’ hearts aflame.
But, already long betrothed to the Crown Prince, no one dared approach her easily—they were content merely with a dance or a conversation.
An untouchable blossom of pristine beauty.
That was what people called Lilith.
While Schlan and Amanda whispered to each other, Harry alone watched Lilith and Leopold with narrowed eyes.
‘I didn’t anticipate this.’
He’d been relieved that Leopold saw Lilith as nothing more than a friend. He never expected this complication.
Beneath her gentle image, Lilith was cunning.
She used her beauty, popularity, and power skillfully to ensnare noble youths in her grasp, ensuring they couldn’t escape.
Well, as the only daughter of House of Sevanth, what could she possibly lack in life?
With no princess in the empire, she was the highest-ranking young lady, and becoming the next empress through her betrothal to the Crown Prince was all but assured.
Having lived in comfort without want, the entire world must seem to belong to her.
For someone grown arrogant, to now gain the affection of the future emperor? This was a dangerous sign.
Sure enough, Harry caught the gleam in Lilith’s eyes—dark and covetous.
Meanwhile, Lilith observed Leopold gazing at her with the same longing looks the other nobles gave her, and she smiled inwardly.
‘This is far too easy. It’s almost tedious.’
Truthfully, seeing him again was a surprise even to her. He’d grown far more striking than she’d imagined.
During the two years of his absence abroad, Lilith had fallen into ennui.
Her beauty grew more radiant with each passing day, and the number of suitors multiplied daily.
Wasn’t it a waste to squander such beauty on Leopold alone?
Moreover, having been controlled in every detail—what she wore, what she ate—since childhood, when she first saw a man who pined for her, she felt a thrill of excitement.
Of course, no man ever truly impressed her, so she merely kept them around as amusement for a time.
After all, she hadn’t forgotten her position as the Crown Prince’s betrothed.
When she heard that the Crown Prince would be returning, she’d felt irritation.
Once he arrived, she’d be bound by restrictions—Crown Princess, future empress, all the constraints the court would impose.
But seeing Leopold now, she realized he was far more remarkable than any of the men she’d been toying with.
‘He is, after all, the Odrian Empire’s sole Crown Prince.’
Moreover, everyone supported him—nobles and commoners alike.
His appearance was more than handsome; it surpassed that of any other. His mind was sharp, his reputation sterling, and he held the greatest power in all the world.
There could be no better match for her.
So she should simply enjoy this. And yet……
‘Why does this feel so empty?’
Just as she had viewed him, Leopold had surely seen her as only a friend, nothing more.
But to see Leopold fall for her beauty alone, like those lesser men, left her hollow.
‘You’ve become tedious, Leopold.’
Such was Lilith’s assessment of her betrothed, whom she’d met again after two years.

* * *

The fifteen-year-olds, tightly bonded over their two years apart, conversed with ease.
“Ugh, I’m bored.”
But it was a losing proposition to dispel Leopold’s ennui.
They were all too old now to play with the thoughtless abandon of before, and aware that they must maintain propriety toward Leopold, so a subtle guardedness hung in the air.
Leopold disliked that.
The more he saw people drawing boundaries even as he reached out without pretense, the more his longing for a sibling deepened.
While Schlan and Amanda exchanged glances, Harry fixed him with a cool stare.
“What would you like to do?”
“I don’t know. I’m just bored.”
Honestly, he wanted to do something active—Target Shooting, Horsemanship, Racing—but to do so would make the outcome obvious rather than a fair competition, so his heart wasn’t in it.
On the other hand, quietly playing Chess didn’t suit his nature either.
“Is there nothing amusing we could do?”
“Something amusing…… now that you mention it, I think I heard a strange rumor.”
“A strange rumor?”
At Schlan’s words, Leopold’s ears perked up.
“I don’t know all the details, but apparently there’s an old mansion somewhere in the Imperial Forest. They say it’s haunted.”
“Ooh!”
“A, a ghost?”
“Ghosts don’t exist in this world.”
“That’s why I said I don’t know the details. I only heard it second-hand.”
Schlan shrugged his shoulders.
“Now that you mention it, I think one of my escort knights mentioned something similar.”
With even Lilith joining in, Leopold’s eyes gleamed brighter.
“Tell me the details!”
Lilith recounted what she’d heard.
“So there really is a ghost, and——”
“Knights who went for Courage Training all failed?”
“And some even, well, wet themselves?”
At the utterly unbelievable tale, the children stirred with excitement.
“But seven years ago, an order was issued forbidding anyone from approaching the mansion. Apparently the spirit had been suppressed, and disturbing it would be dangerous.”
“Lilith, you certainly know a lot about this.”
“……Well, my escort knight tells all manner of stories.”
Lilith assumed an innocent expression. Then Leopold burst into brilliant laughter and jumped to his feet.
“Perfect! Let’s go to that haunted mansion!”
“Eek!”
“Y, Your Highness!”
They all looked appalled. Even Lilith, usually so composed, furrowed her brow—but Leopold paid no mind. Unable to bear it any longer, Harry spoke up.
“Are you serious?”
“When have you ever known me to joke?”
Never. And that was precisely the problem.
Suddenly, a dull ache bloomed in Harry’s head.
“But we don’t even know where it is. How do you propose we get there?”
“Your escort knight has been there before, hasn’t she? She’ll know the way.”
All eyes turned to Lilith. The looks they gave her clearly asked: why did you mention something so pointless? Lilith felt unfairly accused.
“It was Schlan’s fault. If not for Schlan, we’d never have known the haunted mansion existed.”
“That’s right! Schlan, how are you going to take responsibility for this?”
With all the blame suddenly turned on him, Schlan broke into a cold sweat.
“Everyone, please. It’s only a cursory tour of the mansion and back. Nothing more.”
All smiles and sparkling eyes.
The four of them, seeing Leopold’s face, threw up their hands in surrender.
There existed no one in this world who could dissuade Leopold once he’d made up his mind.
“Well then, I’ll take your consent as given! Let’s go right now!”
“R, right now?”
“Strike while the iron is hot! If we delay, you’ll all find reasons to back out—I know you.”
Amanda, who’d been turning over excuses in her mind, flinched.
“So, Lilith, call your escort knight at once and get the location. The rest of you, change your clothes.”
Seeing everyone stunned into silence, Leopold flashed a grin.
“We can’t be spotted on the way, after all.”
In that moment, his smile felt like that of the grim reaper himself.

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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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