The Prince Who Loved Me - Chapter 59

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 59

‘Psychologically speaking, people tend to feel affection born from superiority toward those they teach.’

In Damien’s mind, he had assigned the Countess as an ally to prevent high society people from treating Bada carelessly.

Damien recited the words the Countess had said.

‘Crown Jewel.’

He briefly indulged in imagining Bada becoming the Crown Princess and staying by his side. But he soon shook his head.

He had long decided to end the monarchy in his generation.

Although he was in the position of Crown Prince who would inherit the throne, being an insider, he knew better than anyone about the duplicity within the royal family.

But to bring down the royal family that still received the people’s support would require a very big blow.

Simply exposing the disgrace of a royal family member would not be enough.

At best, it would only replace the person sitting on the throne.

To make the conservative parliament pass a bill to abolish the royal family, he would need to uncover disgrace at a level that would overturn the system.

But recently, one concern had arisen for him who was thinking such thoughts.

Namely, the existence of Bada, who had unexpectedly been swept into this whirlpool.

Looking back at history, the fate of fallen dynasties was mostly not good.

From France’s Bourbon dynasty that was beheaded at the guillotine to the Romanov dynasty that was shot to death. There were countless such examples.

Of course, such violent incidents were unlikely to happen in modern times, but still, if the royal family collapsed, he would become an exile.

And if Bada married such a man, it was obvious that her life would be swept into a great whirlpool in an instant.

He couldn’t imagine life without Bada. But at the same time, he couldn’t force her to make sacrifices.

The desire to keep her by his side.

And the reason that he should let her go when the contract ended for her freedom were in sharp conflict.

‘I thought it would be right to keep distance so that someday Bada could easily leave me.’

Unable to sort out his own emotions like this, he had repeatedly acted cold then warm toward Bada.

‘Being by my side might make Bada’s life difficult. But…’

Damien’s gaze fell on the beautiful flowers in the garden.

There are two types of people in the world.

Those who, liking a flower, pluck it and put it in their own vase, and those who watch from afar so the flower can breathe outside air and live out its share of life.

Damien thought he was closer to the latter. At least until now.

He unconsciously plucked a hydrangea that had bloomed most beautifully and brought it to his nose.

After inhaling the flower’s scent, he took the flower thinking to place it by his bedside.

‘There must be a way.’

Gazing at the blood-red sunset coloring the flower garden, he moved his heavy steps.

* * *

Two days later, Bada received a letter from the royal family sealed with red sealing wax.

When she inserted a paper knife into the envelope gap and cut it open, she saw a message written in elegant serif font on luxurious ivory paper.

『You are invited to the Royal Summer Gala hosted by the Bernhardt Royal Family.

The ball will be held from 6 PM on June 8th in the Royal Ballroom of Windmere Palace.

Dress Code: Men – White tie or formal uniform.

Women – Evening gown.

R.S.V.P.

Please reply to the Royal Secretariat by May 20th.』

Having received the invitation, Bada immediately began preparing for the event with Lea.

The first thing to do was to create an evening dress to wear to the ball.

“Custom evening dresses require a total of three fittings to match the silhouette and fit. It’s quite time-consuming work, so we need to start preparing right now.”

Therefore, Bada decided to take a car with Lea to visit a famous tailored shop.

Since it was a rare outing after a long time, Bada was quite excited.

* * *

The place they arrived at by car was ‘Bloomsbury Row’ located in Old Town.

This was a place lined with tailored shops with over 300 years of history. Old gas lamps and antique buildings lined both sides of the road, and shops had golden lettering signs hanging.

Gentlemen in sophisticated suits were walking the streets.

Bada followed Lea into a shop called ‘Aldridge & Sons’.

This tailored shop, the oldest in Bloomsbury Row, had obtained a Royal Warrant by creating custom clothing for royalty for generations.

Since the Summer Gala was Bada’s first high society debut, the strategy was to make a safe choice rather than take risks.

As they opened the door and entered, the scent of freshly pressed wool fabric spread to their noses. At the same time, waiting staff politely greeted her.

“Welcome, Lady Yu. Welcome to Aldridge & Sons.”

Guided to a private room, Bada began consulting with the head designer.

The head designer, who resembled a young Yves Saint Laurent, presented image sketches.

“We specialize in creating evening dresses for the Royal Summer Gala. If you trust us with it, you’ll get satisfactory results. We’ve thought of several ideas in advance considering the Lady’s image.”

“Wow… They’re all so wonderful I don’t know which to choose.”

After much deliberation, Bada chose a midnight blue dress that revealed the shoulder line. After confirming the design, she carefully checked small details like fabric type, embroidery patterns, and train length.

After finishing the measurements, two hours had already passed.

While Lea discussed the fitting schedule with the tailor, Bada sat in a chair located in one corner of the shop and opened her notebook. Just then, someone approached and spoke to her.

“Oh my! You’re His Highness the Crown Prince’s fiancée!”

When she looked up, a middle-aged man with a generous build was standing there.

He had a black beard and was expressive with good complexion.

“I am Count Artudo. The most famous opera singer in Bernhardt.”

His voice carried a thick Eastern European accent. But somehow his name was reminiscent of French or Italian origins.

‘Is it a stage name?’

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Count Artudo.”

“But seeing you in person, you’re truly much more beautiful! I can feel the dignity of the Crown Prince’s fiancée…”

Arturo was very talkative and had a cheerful personality.

He constantly bragged about what a great opera singer he was.

Bada pretended to go along with his rhythm while devising a way to escape the situation.

Just then, she saw people gathered like clouds outside the window.

Seizing the opportunity, Bada said.

“Oh my, are those people over there fans who came to see you?”

“Oh my, it seems so. How did they all know I was here! Having too much popularity is quite troublesome.”

“Still, since they came all the way here to see Count Artudo, wouldn’t it be good to go give them autographs?”

“Hmm… I suppose so? Fan service is very important for an artist.”

“It would be inconvenient when you’re signing autographs, so please leave that umbrella you’re holding with me and go.”

“Oh my, how thoughtful of you. Then I’ll ask you to hold it, Lady!”

After handing her the long umbrella, Arturo took out throat spray from his pocket and sprayed it on his throat with a hiss.

Bada took the umbrella and quickly hid herself between the curtained archway.

But she ended up bumping shoulders with someone coming out of the door.

“Oh no. I’m sorry…!”

“Lady Yu?”

“Lord Lucien!”

When their eyes met, Lucien’s green eyes curved gently.

“I see you’ve come to create an evening dress to wear to the ball?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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