The Slave Is Too Handsome - Chapter 37

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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 slave is too handsome!
037.
The Second Prince, who had said he had something to discuss, stared at Eloïse’s face for a long moment before smiling with undisguised hunger.
‘I can see right through your intention to propose, can’t I?’
Sensing what was coming, Eloïse struggled to keep her mouth from drooping downward.
“You’ll definitely come, won’t you?”
The Second Prince was already lost in emotion, as if he’d already made the proposal himself. Eloïse quickly hid her expression behind her teacup and nodded.
‘Of course. I’ve been counting the days until then myself.’
“I will absolutely attend. I’m looking forward to that day as well, Your Highness.”
That day, Camillo returned to the Imperial Palace with a foolish grin plastered across his face.
It was the first time Eloïse, who had always kept a certain distance whenever she saw him, had smiled so brightly at him. He fully intended to remember this day for the rest of his life.
***
Dusk settled over the Duke’s Residence after a furious tempest had swept through.
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
At the unfamiliar knock, Lucian, who had been lying on a long chair, straightened himself. On the young lady’s instructions, Mary had settled him in the guest room.
The door opened presently.
“Master…… Eloïse.”
Eloïse entered alone and immediately shut the door behind her. After bathing in warm water, she had emerged in a state of perfect grooming—something she hadn’t done in ages, having yielded to Mary’s insistence.
“Did you rest well?”
Eloïse settled naturally beside Lucian. He, too, had washed and changed into clean clothes.
“I was just about to rest when someone came to disturb me…… Just joking, just joking.”
At Eloïse’s sharp stare, Lucian immediately corrected himself. After that, silence fell between them.
‘What a lovely scent.’
Lucian gazed at the young lady’s face as she fell into thought.
He had many questions to ask, and she had much to tell. The challenge was how to begin. It was Lucian who broke the silence first.
“I saw it all.”
Lucian spoke, burying his back against the sofa’s armrest.
“Saw what?”
“The Second Prince. Camillo, wasn’t it? The one who had you dancing on his strings.”
“Not dancing on his strings, exactly. It’s just that Camillo holds real power in the Imperial Palace for now, so I simply accommodated him.”
“So all I need to do is defeat him?”
His eyes, which had been gazing blankly at the ceiling, turned back to Eloïse. Lucian was recalling the Camillo he’d seen at the Harbor.
‘Something’s changed about him.’
Eloïse sensed something like resolve and fervor in Lucian’s blue eyes. Why was that?
‘Did Camillo provoke him somehow?’
Unable to find the reason, she nodded with determination.
“That’s right.”
“I’ll beat a man like that easily enough.”
“Yes, you will.”
“Then I’d like you to share everything with me going forward.”
He closed the distance between them, sitting nearer.
“If you truly want to achieve your goal, I’d like you to trust me a bit more.”
……
Whether it was the proximity or the shift in atmosphere, Eloïse’s heart began to race.
“I will. I was already planning to share everything with you from now on anyway.”
Only then did the tautness in his gaze soften.
“It’s a long story.”
The young lady laid bare everything—the game she had created, Frederick and Mary’s assistance, the subsequent punishment of George and Baron Graham, the Duke’s reaction, and even Camillo’s help.
Lucian listened intently to Eloïse’s account, marveling inwardly several times over.
‘I knew she was clever, but to this degree? No wonder Camillo covets her.’
Thinking of Camillo made his brow tighten. Just then, Eloïse was speaking of the Second Prince.
“The Second Prince intends to propose to me on his birthday.”
At those words, he suddenly lifted his head to look at her, and Eloïse was smiling faintly.
“Why are you smiling, Eloïse?”
Lucian, who had been listening in silence, suddenly interjected. Eloïse tilted her head.
“I was smiling?”
“Look. You’re doing it right now.”
Lucian gestured to his own mouth.
“Ah. It’s just the thought of it that delights me.”
“The proposal?”
Lucian’s expression darkened with displeasure, so she hastened to clarify.
“What are you saying? When I imagine the moment you appear that day, my heart races. That’s why I smiled.”
……
“So much will change.”
He nodded as if accepting the weight of it all. Moving his quarters from the old lodgings he’d shared with Pin, Ned, and Gabe to this elegant guest room was just the beginning.
“Everyone will be curious about you.”
“About me?”
“Yes. They’ll all want to meet you, and they’ll make every effort to exchange even a single word with you. And in the end, they’ll come to like you.”
That night, the two of them talked in secret until late.
Eloïse’s prediction that the Capital—indeed, the entire Empire—would be curious about Lucian proved accurate.
The moment day broke, Mary appeared in the study, cradling an armful of letters.
“My, just look at this. You were right, Miss.”
Letter envelopes were piled high on the desk.
Mary came and went from the study several times thereafter, and the letters covered the entire desk before spilling onto the floor.
“I heard from friends working in the Earl’s and Baron’s houses that everyone’s absolutely dying to hear about you, Miss.”
Unlike the excitable maid, Eloïse examined the sender of each letter with an unmoved gaze. Most of the letters were party invitations.
“Extraordinary.”
Lucian, who had been helping organize the letters nearby, was equally astonished by the situation. Mary assisted them both.
“Well, I’d be curious too. How you survived, and who is this mysterious person who helped you.”
Watching Lucian work dutifully, Mary recalled the letter Eloïse had sent from the Port of Call.

The situation unfolded exactly as Eloïse had intended. The Capital’s social circles, already abuzz with the Kidnapping Incident involving the La Croix young lady, stirred once more.
Eloïse tore open several letters and skimmed through them. Without exception, they began by congratulating George on his departure to Red Fall. As she read the main content that followed, Eloïse smiled slightly.
‘Exactly. This is the reaction I was hoping for.’
The center of attention was no longer George or Eloïse. Everyone was too busy speculating about who this remarkable person could be.
“So, Miss, have you decided where you’ll attend? It’s been ages since I’ve had the chance to dress you up properly. There are so many unworn dresses……”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Pardon?”
“I can’t reveal myself so easily.”
Mary’s eyes widened at the unexpected answer. Then she began waving a bundle of letters as if hefting a fistful of gold coins.
“But they all want to see you so badly, Miss?”
“Tell your friends that after the kidnapping, my health has suffered greatly and I must convalesce for some time.”
“But……”
Eloïse, unyielding, selected only one envelope and settled onto the sofa. It was a plain white envelope with no seal.
The maid’s expression immediately darkened. She’d wanted to show that her young lady was well and whole.
Mary sent every signal of distress toward Lucian, but he merely shrugged.
“The more you hide something, the more curious people become—that’s human nature, isn’t it? I think Eloïse is right.”
Eloïse wanted Lucian to be the focus of attention more than anyone else on the day of Camillo’s birthday party. For that to happen, she needed to lie low for a while.
“Mary, hurry up. Won’t you do me this favor?”
At the sight of her rare, earnest eyes, Mary raised both hands in surrender and left the study with drooping shoulders.
“What letter is that?”
The moment Eloïse opened the white envelope, a large form pressed close beside her. She flinched involuntarily but quickly composed her expression.
“It’s from an Informant in the Imperial Palace. I met them once before.”
“An Informant?!”
Before Lucian could even reach for the letter, Eloïse sprang from her seat. At her gravely serious expression, he sat up straight.
“Don’t tell me…… on George’s birthday party?”
“You’re quick-witted. That day is one of the few times we can meet without drawing anyone’s attention.”
“Eloïse, you really……”
At her thoroughness, he let out a low whistle. A question he’d nearly forgotten suddenly found its answer.
‘So you deliberately maneuvered things to have the birthday party held.’
The two moved to the desk and sat facing each other.
“Who is this Informant in the Imperial Palace? Can they be trusted?”
Lucian rested his arms on the desk and naturally propped his chin on his hand. Eloïse spoke without taking her eyes from the letter.
“They’re asking to meet at the Imperial Palace while the birthday party is happening. Come with me. Then you’ll see.”
After finishing the brief letter, Eloïse pulled a Matchbox from the drawer and withdrew a single match.
“What are you doing?”
Schick. A spark flared at the match’s tip. As she touched the flame to the letter’s edge, the paper quickly turned to ash and vanished from this world.
Lucian hastily opened the window.
“Do you really need to go that far?”
“Contact like this is classified.”
“Now I’m genuinely curious who this remarkable person is. A Prime Minister, perhaps?”
After fanning the smoke for a while, Lucian returned to his seat, and Eloïse spoke casually.
“The Imperial Princess.”
“What?”
“You’ll see for yourself that day.”
As Eloïse smiled mysteriously, Lucian felt something chilling in a way he hadn’t experienced in quite some time.

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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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