The Abandoned Prince’s Ghost Bride - Chapter 6

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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 6

Tap-tap-tap-tap—
From the Kitchen came the sound of a blade striking rhythmically, mingled with appetizing aromas. Someone was unmistakably cooking.
“I need to find out who it is.”
Ever since someone had visited earlier that day, Lucian had been wrestling with the decision.
Should he cower in fear and hide his discovery, or should he confront it and humbly accept whatever truth awaited him, no matter how far it strayed from his expectations?
In truth, regardless of who it was, he wanted to say thank you.
They were his benefactor—the one who had saved him from starving to death—and the only person in this forsaken place who showed him any kindness at all.
Steeling himself with this thought, Lucian took a shaky breath and began moving toward the Kitchen, one hesitant step after another.
The Kitchen door stood wide open, as if in invitation. Even though he’d prepared himself, actually stepping inside frightened him.
Rather than walk in boldly, Lucian decided to peek his head around the frame and observe first.
“Hup!”
Lucian clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle the yelp that had nearly escaped.
Just as before, an array of cooking implements and ingredients hung suspended in the air, and food preparation was well underway.
A Ghost? Magic?
Whatever it was, one thing was certain: no ordinary person could do this.
His legs trembled despite himself, but Lucian swallowed hard and pressed forward with determination.

* * *

Clap!
Hearing the sound of his presence, I stopped my work and turned around.
Lucian stood pale-faced in the Kitchen entrance, trembling visibly.
For a moment, I wondered if I should step aside, thinking he might bolt like before.
[Fine! I don’t care anymore! Run away, faint, do whatever you want!]
I dismissed the thought and turned my focus back to the cooking.
Fresh ingredients had arrived today, which meant more possibilities.
But given my irritation, I planned to stick with just an Omelet and Goulash.
[You hate vegetables, don’t you? Well, today is vegetable party—your least favorite vegetables!]
I deliberately selected only the vegetables he disliked—bell peppers, onions, and the like—and chopped them with exaggerated flourish.
By now, Lucian had stepped five paces inside the Kitchen.
“I, I actually prefer meat…….”
Lucian glanced around nervously and whispered softly. Since he couldn’t see me, his words seemed directed at empty air.
[Oh, so he’s not fainting this time?]
He looked like he might wet himself at any moment, yet he still had nerve. A sudden urge to tease him bubbled up inside me.
I raised the blade I was holding and waved it deliberately left and right.
[Tough luck. No meat today.]
Then, with dramatic flair, I split an onion cleanly in half. Lucian let out a small shriek and stumbled backward.
I expected him to run away giggling, but instead—surprisingly—he edged toward the Island Table.
“When will dinner be ready? I’m hungry.”
[……Well, well. Now he’s talking?]
I laughed despite myself, caught between amusement and exasperation. But this was better than him running away constantly.
My earlier excitement deflated, I picked up the Spatula and pointed it toward the clock, indicating the number six.
[I always serve at six. Wait.]
“So I just wait? Understood.”
For a moment, it felt as if we were having a real conversation.
Fearing I might get drawn in further, I chose to ignore him and concentrate on cooking.
Lucian settled into a seat and watched me work.
It was probably nothing, but I felt the back of my head prickling with attention.
A child’s humming echoed through the Kitchen, a space that had known only silence until now. Unsettled by it, I finished cooking earlier than planned.
I quickly plated the Omelet and Goulash and set them in front of Lucian.
“Wow, I’ve never seen anything like this before.”
[Those are the vegetables you hate, so make sure you eat every bit.]
“Everything you make is delicious! This will be too, won’t it?”
I wasn’t sure how to respond, but Lucian finally began eating.
“Mmm! It’s delicious!”
Fortunately, the food pleased him, and he ate with gusto.
[Eat slowly. No one’s going to steal it from you.]
“It’s so fluffy! It’s like eating a cloud.”
So said Lucian about the Omelet. The childlike observation made me laugh without thinking.
He was eating so frantically that Goulash sauce nearly dripped from his mouth onto his clothes.
I pulled out a Napkin and placed it in front of him.
Lucian hesitated, then swallowed everything in his mouth at once. The Napkin then moved of its own accord, wiping his mouth clean.
“……Are you wiping my face?”
[Yes, you slob. What are you doing making such a mess?]
“He-he-hehe…….”
His innocent laughter bothered me for some reason, so I wiped his mouth roughly with the Napkin.
Lucian squirmed and whimpered in protest.
After the brief commotion, his plate gradually emptied.
“Phew…… I’m full now.”
Lucian leaned back in his chair and rubbed his stomach. Seeing the messy table and the food around his mouth, I sighed.
[Goodness, you’re a handful.]
I finished clearing the table. As I carried the dishes to the Sink, Lucian’s gaze continued to follow me.
[You can’t even see me, so why do you keep looking? Go wash up and get to bed.]
“Are you really here, Benefactor?”
[If you’re calling me your benefactor, then yes, that would be me.]
“Why won’t you show yourself?”
[I’ve already shown myself. You’re the one who can’t see.]
“Are you a Mage?”
[I’m not alive, so I’m not a Mage.]
Lucian probably thought he was asking questions to himself, but I answered each one.
Even if my words never reached his ears.
“……I want to meet you, Benefactor.”
[You’d pass out if you saw me. You’re afraid of scary things, remember?]
A heavy silence settled over us afterward, broken only by the occasional clink of dishes as I washed up.
Yet for some reason, in that moment, it felt as though our hearts were speaking to each other.
[……I want to talk to you too.]
Since he couldn’t hear me anyway, I confessed this shameful truth. But the moment the words left my lips, I regretted them.
[Ugh, this really isn’t like me.]
I shuddered, suddenly embarrassed, and snapped loudly.
[Hey! Say something! You’re chattering away and then suddenly go silent?]
Our eyes met in that instant. Or rather—was he looking in the direction where my eyes were?
Lucian’s golden eyes widened in shock.
“G-ghost!”
Lucian tumbled from his chair.

* * *

“……I want to meet you, Benefactor.”
I’d expected some response, but my Benefactor simply continued with their work in silence. It felt cruel somehow.
Lucian assumed he was alone in his longing, and he closed his eyes, preparing to leave.
[……I want to talk to you too.]
A beautiful voice reached him. It was a voice he felt he’d heard before, somewhere.
Lucian immediately turned toward the source.
A form that had been invisible mere moments ago now appeared before the Sink.
But the form was so translucent that he could see right through it to the Sink beyond.
A woman in a simple dress, her long, wavy hair flowing down her back.
[Ugh, this really isn’t like me.]
The woman shuddered, as if shaking something off.
[Hey! Say something! You’re chattering away and then suddenly go silent?]
The woman suddenly turned around, her voice sharp with irritation.
Contrary to what Lucian expected—a frightening visage—the woman was strikingly beautiful.
Among everyone he’d ever met, she was easily the most beautiful. He found himself staring at her, transfixed.
But the realization that she wasn’t human made his heart drop.
“G-ghost!”
He lost his balance and fell from his chair, though the pain barely registered before he scrambled to his feet.
The woman’s semi-transparent form was still plainly visible.
After holding each other’s gaze for a moment, the woman’s eyes widened, and she moved to the opposite side of the Island Table.
[……Can you see me?]
Lucian felt a chill of fear, but he slowly nodded. The woman’s eyes grew even larger.
“…….”
[…….]
“……Um, Benefactor?”
[KYAAAAAAAH!]
The woman screamed at the top of her lungs. She then darted around the Kitchen, her floating form dashing here and there.
It reminded him—chillingly—that she wasn’t human.
And yet……
‘She’s not really scary, is she?’
The Ghost seemed far more panicked than he was, so Lucian quietly watched her fly about.
After some time, she hid behind the Sink, peeking her face out.
[Y-you, you, you……! How can you see me!]
“……I just can, so what can I do about it?”
[Wh-when did you start! No! You couldn’t see me until just a moment ago!]
“…….”
[This doesn’t make sense……!]
Ahhhhh!
The woman shrieked so wildly and bounced around so frantically that Lucian’s expression turned blank.
“Be quiet!”
At Lucian’s command, the woman froze in place, staring at him blankly.
“Calm down a bit, okay? So you’re my……Benefactor?”
[Benefactor? Don’t you know who I am?]
“Um……Benefactor?”
[That’s not it!]
“But you cooked for me, cleaned for me, did my laundry. Didn’t you?”
[Well…… that’s true, but that’s not what I……!]
“Then what is it?”
[I’m……that is…….]
She opened and closed her mouth, hesitant to speak, but suddenly shrieked.
[I’m your bride!]
“……What?”
Bride? The Ghost Bride? The one he’d had a Spirit Marriage Ceremony with?
Lucian’s mind flashed back to that catastrophic day. Strange and terrible things had happened during that ceremony.
The coffin had moved on its own, a sudden gale had erupted inside the chamber, and—most of all——
“That ghost’s legs back then…….”
[Huh? You saw my legs?]
Seeing Lucian’s face drain of all color, the woman pressed her lips together.
[……I didn’t mean to frighten you.]
Her voice had grown quieter, and Lucian looked up. The woman looked crestfallen.
[That son of a—! No, I can’t curse in front of a child. Those vermin wouldn’t shut up, spouting nonsense, so how could I just stand there!]
“……So you weren’t trying to eat me?”
[Why would I eat you?]
“Because I’m a Sacrificial Offering, right?”
The woman’s expression made it clear she thought he was talking nonsense, so Lucian closed his mouth.
[In case you’re misunderstanding, I didn’t ask for you as my groom.]
“What? Then why am I……?”
[How should I know! I was just minding my own business when you people suddenly showed up!]
Lucian sank into a chair. The wind had gone out of him completely.
So why had he come here at all? He’d been told it was to be the groom—to appease the Ghost’s spirit.
‘Who am I supposed to blame?’
When he first arrived, he’d resented the Ghost Bride for drawing him here.
Then he’d resented his family for abandoning him as a Sacrificial Offering, and later, the people who viewed him as an obstacle to be disposed of quickly.
But now, learning that the one he’d hated so much had actually treated him with kindness—showing him no harm at all—he felt confused and, strangely, tears welled up in his eyes.
As Lucian wept thick tears, the Ghost Bride fidgeted nervously, pacing nearby.
[Why are you crying? Did I say something thoughtless?]
“N-no…….”
Lucian shook his head. It wasn’t because of her.
The sorrow came from the harsh truth that no one cared about him—no one except this Ghost.
Lucian wept quietly for a long time, and the Ghost Bride, unsure what to do, crouched down beside him in silence.

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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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