NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 100
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When on earth will Edanant hand over the wedding ring with a romantic proposal?
Ludmilla awaited Edanant’s confession with the excitement of a child waiting for candy.
Today?
Or tomorrow?
Since a night has already passed, there should be signs soon.
By now, Edanant must be putting all his effort into preparing the once-in-a-lifetime proposal. Ludmilla giggled at the cute attempt of her younger brother to surprise her.
“You’re really grinning from ear to ear since yesterday. Do you really like Edanant that much?”
Cough cough!
The mood of the Red Dragon was at an all-time high.
She could show mercy for all crimes except betrayal.
Let’s make the day he proposes a holiday.
It might even be okay to ask the Emperor for a large-scale amnesty.
Edanant will definitely propose to me. Ludmilla declared confidently to herself.
What if he ends up giving the wedding ring to the First Saintess instead…?
Elizaveta shot a worried glance at her sister, who was overly joyful, close to arrogance.
After all, the bigger the expectation, the greater the despair.
If the wedding ring ends up with the First Saintess… that would be the day of Edanant’s demise.
“Are you still keeping an eye on Edanant?”
“Yes, I’ve heard he’s been going out quite often lately.”
“I thought as much! It was only natural!”
“When we were tracking Lord Edanant, he tended to disappear every time, so we couldn’t learn his destination.”
Ludmilla was watching Edanant’s every move, knowing it was rude, but wanting to be sure of his proposal.
He’d been going out often.
He was deliberately hiding his destination every time.
The maid’s report made Ludmilla’s shoulders bounce even more. It seemed as if she believed all of Edanant’s actions would lead to a proposal.
“The weather has turned cold. The wind is strong… The candles will go out quickly outside. That’s concerning.”
“Indeed.”
You want to get proposed to under the scattered candles on the ground.
Elizaveta recognized her sister’s true feelings as she murmured, adjusting her outer wear.
‘It’s a little worrisome… but since we kissed, I should be fine. By the way, how lucky to have a romantic kiss on the terrace right after the alliance conference! I really envy you, sis.’
She looked at her sister with envious and admiring eyes.
The first kiss with the man she loves.
What must it have felt like when their lips first met?
Sweet and cherry-flavored, right?
Romance novels always liken the taste of a first kiss to sweet fruit.
What if instead of my sister, I had been kissed by Edanant…? Elizaveta gulped, imagining the scandalous thought of secretly kissing Edanant.
“Liza.”
“Uh, yes?! What is it, sister?”
Ludmilla felt strange about her sister suddenly puckering her lips and grinning.
Then Elizaveta jumped up from her seat.
“We used to bet often when we were kids.”
“Should we bet again? When do you think Edanant will confess?”
“I, I’ll say today.”
“Then I’ll say tomorrow! It must take some time to prepare everything.”
It was a bet without stakes.
Whether it was today or tomorrow… just a promise for certainty.
Ludmilla smiled faintly.
And Elizaveta nodded with a bright smile.
“Ludmilla, my princess!”
While the Valtarian Empire’s princesses were engaged in lighthearted conversation,
this time, an aide who served Ludmilla rushed in with Edanant’s message.
“What’s going on?”
“Um, Lord Edanant… left a message for you and suddenly disappeared with the First Saintess. This is a report from the knights who were keeping an eye on him.”
Ludmilla’s confident demeanor began to crack.
Having flown out of the Imperial City, Edanant’s actions caused her to feel deep bewilderment, leaving her frozen in place.
He touched the dragon’s reverse scale.
No,
He yanked it out with one swift pull.
As if proving this, Ludmilla’s hair began to whip wildly like that of a white-haired witch.
The eyes of the Red Dragon erupted like hellfire. It was the visage of a dreadful vengeance one would fear to encounter in a nightmare.
“He eloped with the White Dragon of the Holy Kingdom? Indeed, Edanant is the brother of the hero Maximilian.”
“It’s not night, so it’s not exactly elopement.”
Her younger sister’s words hardly registered in her ears.
The rage began to tighten its grip as if her reason would snap.
He left the Imperial City?
With the woman he hated most in the world?
If he left alone, she wouldn’t feel this angry. The cunning smirk of the Saintess echoed like a faint whisper in her ears.
Ludmilla gritted her teeth as she cursed the coward who fled without a word.
*
Before the roar of the Red Dragon began,
Edanant arrived at Zebeline’s palace without any prior notice.
It was a completely unexpected visit.
Zebeline, who was preparing for a prayer session at the temple, had a puzzled expression.
“W-What’s going on? You appeared all of a sudden without any message… just wait a moment! I’m not ready to accept a confession yet!”
Realizing it was a proposal from the incredibly serious Edanant, Zebeline showed a panicked reaction and quickly started deep breathing.
Huff, ha! Huff, ha!
She placed both hands on her modest chest and repeated inhaling and exhaling deeply.
The time to receive the wedding ring was upon her.
But to think he would propose so suddenly…
Zebeline’s blue eyes sparkled with strong anticipation.
“I want you to come with me to the Marquisate of Hohenberg. A single day will be enough.”
“Huh?!”
She shouted fiercely, full of surprise.
The Marquisate of Hohenberg.
Could he possibly be planning to propose in his hometown?
It seemed he intended to promise a lifetime of love in the hometown filled with memories. Zebeline tried to settle her wildly beating heart as she listened to Edanant’s voice.
“The apostles of the Disaster God, who responded to Ariel’s call, have gathered in the Marquisate of Hohenberg. I want your help just in case.”
“…What?”
What was that?
It wasn’t a proposal?
No surprise there.
The man before her had no sense whatsoever.
The soaring anticipation came crashing down as Zebeline looked at Edanant with a cold gaze. Her sideways glance at him felt like that of a wife looking at her betraying husband.
“B-But did you just say the apostles of the Disaster God have gathered in the Marquisate?! I know it’s a rude question, but… have you lost your mind to the point of forgetting your most basic rationality?”
“I’m perfectly fine.”
“That’s not something a sane person would do.”
“Of course, I’ve taken every precaution possible.”
She knew the vampire who barely survived the calamity at the Imperial City was now under his command.
But,
To gather the apostles scattered across the continent using the vampires?
What was he thinking?
Did he plan to gather the apostles of the Disaster God and then slaughter them?
If that was his intention, she might have accepted it, but judging by Edanant’s serious reaction, he was up to something outrageous.
Zebeline sighed with a visibly uneasy expression.
“I don’t know what Edan has in mind, but I must politely decline this time. So, go ask the Red Dragon, who even proposed to you.”
Hmph.
Is he planning to give me another difficult task?
While intending to offer the wedding ring and proposal to the empire’s spinster.
He must think of me as nothing more than a supporting character in his story.
Despite lacking a chest, I’ve got my self-respect.
Pouting her lips, she answered the man who always turned away from any confessions with words close to a confession of her own.
“I forced you into it. As if it were something obvious.”
“That excuse won’t work anymore.”
“That’s a sincere statement right now. I’ve always needed you. Please help me, Zebeline.”
“……”
No matter what sweet-talking he tries, I will absolutely refuse this time.
She vowed to herself, invoking the name of the Earth Mother.
However, even with her resolute faith, she could not resist the one-sided love.
As if to show him, Zebeline’s fair face turned redder than ever.
If she accepted outright like this, it would mean she was nothing but an easy woman.
“You’re really hopeless! Edan indeed cannot do without me!”
Even though she knew this, Zebeline pursed her lips as she reluctantly accepted his unreasonable request.