The Slave Is Too Handsome - Chapter 66

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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 far too handsome!
066.
The squares and streets of the Capital were packed with crowds.
The empire’s treasure, the Crown Prince Valensio, had returned as if by miracle—and the entire nation had rushed forth to glimpse him.
The Royal Guard Knights led the way, a soldier bearing the imperial standard at the forefront, and the crowd parted before them.
Those watching felt a surge of anticipation. Then someone cried out in astonishment.
“There’s the Crown Prince!”
Every eye turned as one. And then Lucian appeared, dressed in his Formal Uniform.
The people gazed at him in rapt silence, as if a halo surrounded him. A few recovered their wits and began waving both arms toward him.
“Your Highness! Look here, please!”
“Prince Valensio!”
When Lucian heard himself called, he smiled and waved, and exclamations erupted from all sides.
He made an effort to meet the eyes of each person who had come to see him. Whether they felt that affection or not, the crowd’s reaction was, in a word, explosive.
Only then did Lucian truly feel that he had become the Crown Prince.
After circling through the city streets, he returned to the Imperial Palace and formally greeted the royal family, distant relatives, priests, and foreign dignitaries who had come to celebrate his return.
By the time all the ceremonies were finished, the sun was already setting.
Lucian returned briefly to the Crown Prince’s Palace to change into his Tailcoat, and the moment he sat on the sofa, his attendant’s voice reached him.
“Your Highness, the banquet will begin shortly. You must prepare at once.”
Lucian, who had meant to rest his eyes for just a moment, rose with a weary expression.
At the attendant’s signal, attendants approached and quickly set about grooming him with practiced hands.
Glancing at the full-length mirror, Lucian saw a man who had naturally settled into the Imperial Palace.
…….
When he had stayed in Eloïse’s Separate Quarters, such attentions had been dreadfully awkward.
They say humans are creatures of habit, and he no longer found such treatment strange.
“Prince Valensio enters!”
At the resonant announcement, all eyes turned toward Lucian.
Those filling the Banquet Hall sent admiring glances, yet the evening’s principal figure remained unmoved.
‘Nothing’s wrong, is there?’
On a day as important as this, Eloïse had been nowhere to be seen since morning, and he was beginning to worry.
The attendant cleared his throat meaningfully, and Lucian quickly moved to stand beside the Emperor and Empress.
Across from them stood Camilo and the other princes and princesses. All except one—Danae.
“Valensio.”
At the Emperor’s call, Lucian put aside his troubled thoughts. The Emperor, smiling at his eldest son, raised a cup of celebratory wine toward the ceiling.
“Today is more meaningful than any day before. I am deeply honored to celebrate the Crown Prince’s safe return with all of you. May God’s blessing fall upon us all!”
Everyone raised their cups in accord with the Emperor, toasting Valensio’s safe homecoming.
Even as Lucian sipped the celebratory wine, his eyes searched for Eloïse,
…….
but she was nowhere to be found.
Afterward, he followed the Emperor through the Banquet Hall, exchanging pleasantries with important guests.
Among them was Duke La Croix, who offered Lucian a gracious smile.
“Congratulations on your safe return, Your Highness.”
“Thank you.”
Lucian’s reply came stiffly. Whether it was Eloïse’s influence or not, he found himself surprisingly tense whenever he stood before the Duke.
“You must be overjoyed to have your son back, Your Majesty. And returned so well, at that.”
“Ha, indeed. Now I can sleep soundly.”
As the Emperor and Duke conversed, Lucian discreetly cast his eyes about—but Eloïse was not at the Duke’s side either.
Afterward, Lucian continued to pay respects alongside the Emperor. It seemed the rumors were true: even nobles from distant provinces, who rarely ventured to the Capital, had attended to see him.
His face ached from smiling continuously.
Once the greetings ended, at last the time came for the Ball.
Lucian’s eyes sharpened as he watched the soulless smile fade from his own face.
‘Surely you won’t do that?’
Camilo, suddenly all bright grins, was heading toward the dance floor. His partner was, remarkably, Eloïse.
Deliberately turning his gaze away, Lucian approached Monica, the young noblewoman who had been subtly hovering near him.
“Miss Monica, would you do me the honor of dancing a dance with me?”
He offered his hand with a deliberately bright smile, and Monica’s face flushed as red as a ripened apple. Eager not to lose the opportunity, she nodded several times over.
The two moved to the dance floor amid envious glances from the crowd.
The orchestra began playing a lively piece suited to the evening’s mood. Lucian and Eloïse, though not far apart, danced each with their own partners.
Though he appeared composed, Lucian troubled Eloïse’s thoughts just as much.
‘It’s not as though his feelings have changed so quickly……’
Eloïse lifted her head, having danced absently. Camilo stared at her intently, as if trying to read her mind.
“Why didn’t you refuse my dance invitation?”
His eyes narrowed with suspicion, but Eloïse said nothing.
‘Yes, why did I?’
She too had wanted to be alone and not dance at all today. She had planned to converse casually with others and then sit quietly in a corner.
That was the plan—but when she saw Lucian, far across the hall greeting people, smile warmly at Monica, she took Camilo’s hand without hesitation.
Even though it was what she had hoped for, the feeling brought her no joy. And this unexpected shift in her own emotions troubled her.
“Don’t tell me you two had a quarrel?”
When it came to such moments, Camilo was not entirely without perception.
“……That could hardly be. Prince Valensio and I are not close enough for that.”
“Lady Eloïse, surely you don’t take me for a fool? Stop acting in front of me.”
For all his sardonic tone, Camilo seemed delighted. Whatever the reason, the joy of having Eloïse choose him over Valensio far outweighed any other concern.
So it was that he made no effort to hide his bright smile.
“At last, my chance has come.”
Eloïse was about to protest that that wasn’t the case, but she closed her mouth. There was no point—he would hear only what he wished to.
‘Think what you will.’
Camilo, mistaking her silence for assent, grinned outright.
“You’ll come watch the Horseback Tournament tomorrow, won’t you? You can look forward to it.”
In an instant, Eloïse’s mind cleared. Camilo winning the Tournament—that was something she had to prevent.
“Please don’t overexert yourself, Your Highness.”
“Even if I have to push myself, I’ll take first place. Though for me, winning is hardly a challenge.”
“Ha, ha……”
She forced her lips upward in a smile, and the moment the music ended, she slipped from the dance floor as if fleeing.
She retreated to a sofa half-hidden behind a thick column.
Her gaze naturally found Lucian. Dancing with one noblewoman after another following Monica, he already cut the perfect figure of a Crown Prince without her coaching.
The change was gratifying in one way, and hollow in another.
“Sigh……”
As Eloïse turned her eyes away to clear her mind, a shadow fell across her. Looking up, she saw the noble ladies from the tea party and their sons.
“Ah, hello there.”
“We’ve been looking for you, Miss Eloïse.”
“If you wouldn’t mind, would you have a conversation with our Jeremy? He’s quite interested in diplomacy and trade, you see.”
“And before that, wouldn’t you dance a piece with my son? He’s been waiting all evening.”
The noble ladies thrust their sons forward relentlessly.
Eloïse’s face suddenly brightened as she racked her brain for an escape. She stood up abruptly.
‘That’s right—I promised!’
The clock was nearing eight. This was no time to linger.
“I have a prior engagement. If you’ll forgive me, perhaps we might continue our conversation another time?”
“What? An engagement at this hour? ……Miss Eloïse? Miss Eloïse!”
Eloïse maintained her composure while withdrawing from the scene with haste. The noble ladies watched her retreating figure with disappointed expressions.
Eloïse’s destination was Princess Danae’s Palace.
The first day of the Harvest Festival was not only a celebration of Valensio’s return, but also the day Danae made her debut in society for the first time.
Eloïse had suggested that Danae enter the Ball naturally alongside the royal family, but the princess had firmly refused.
‘I don’t like being the center of attention. I’d prefer to slip in quietly at an odd hour, unnoticed.’
And so Eloïse had deferred to the princess’s wishes. Around eight o’clock, she would bring Danae to join the festivities.
Eloïse arrived at the Dressing Room right on time and, catching her breath, opened the door.
“Your Highness!”
…….
The first eyes that met hers were not those of Princess Danae, but of Lucian—the very person she had been avoiding all evening.

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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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