Chapter 35. I Like You, Let’s Go On A Date

 “Have you all heard the news?”

 “You mean that news?”

 “I heard Her Majesty the Empress rushed back to the imperial palace because of that rumor.”

 “Oh my, is that true?”

 “……”

 Aria found the current topic of conversation very uncomfortable.

 She had already experienced an unpleasant incident recently.

 All along, she believed without a doubt that she would marry Edmund.

 There had been no one beside Edmund except her.

 She too had thought there was no one else she could marry except Edmund.

 But then someone else appeared between her and him.

 ‘Why not me?’

 She wondered.

 It was hard to understand why he had chosen Clea Odoi instead of her.

 ‘After what she did to me. And you, who saw it all, why!’

 Who was Clea Odoi?

 She was a vicious woman who had tormented Aria throughout their days at the academy.

 Already fragile due to the curse’s effects, Aria valued herself above all else.

 That’s why she hated Clea.

 She had been afraid of getting seriously hurt by Clea’s excessive bullying.

 So she was deeply shocked.

 By Edmund, who smiled beside the person who had always tormented her—a smile he had never shown before.

 “What does the lady think?”

 Someone directed a question at her as she sat quietly.

 Suddenly the room fell completely silent.

 Everyone was looking at Aria.

 She bit her lip under their gaze.

 She understood perfectly well why they had deliberately singled her out.

 Until now, people thought Aria Hersher would be Edmund’s marriage partner.

The reason for thinking so was simple.

 Because Aria was the only woman who could be considered to have a close relationship with Edmund.

 People subtly promoted her as the Crown Prince’s consort or tried to get on her good side.

 Though there were clearly people who found it uncomfortable, Aria never pointed it out.

 She too firmly believed she would become the Crown Prince’s consort.

 “I’m not sure. What rumor are you referring to?”

 Aria smiled calmly as she asked the lady who had questioned her.

 Though she clearly showed she wanted to avoid answering, the lady forced a smile and said,

 “You haven’t heard? The news that His Highness the Crown Prince had a secret meeting with someone.”

 Realizing she couldn’t avoid it, Aria tried her best to maintain a bright expression.

 If she frowned here, it would reveal that she was concerned about the matter.

 “It’s just a rumor.”

 “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, isn’t there?”

 “If it were true, the imperial palace would have made an announcement.”

 “Perhaps there’s a reason they haven’t announced it?”

 “What kind of answer do you want from the lady?”

 The atmosphere completely sank at this pointed question.

 In the heavy atmosphere, gazes of concern, worry, and curiosity crossed.

 Those who were friends with Aria glared at the lady who had asked the question.

 Meanwhile, those who weren’t close to Aria remained neutral in this situation.

 They weren’t worried about Aria, but they were curious about whether the rumor was true.

 “Since it’s widely known that the lady has the closest relationship with His Highness the Crown Prince, I simply wanted to ask if you knew any details about the rumor.”

 Despite the sharp gazes from Aria’s friends, the lady remained calm.

 Her calm attitude made others feel something was strange.

 Even if the rumor was true, Aria was a lady of the Hersher family.

 Few people would not fear someone of her status, so they thought:

 “This is the first time I’ve seen you at tea time. Are you perhaps a daughter from a newly rising viscount or baron family?”

 “Indeed. We’ve never seen you before. How long has it been since you came to the capital?”

 “It seems like a few years.”

 “Visiting the capital after several years. How pleasant that must be.”

 She appeared to be from a powerful provincial family who had just come to the capital and didn’t know her place.

 They approached with an overbearing attitude, intending to put the lady who didn’t know her place in her proper position.

 But the lady continued to smile and laugh.

 She hadn’t expected the atmosphere to have changed like this during the years she’d been away from the capital.

 Tired of watching their unseemly behavior, she stood up from her seat.

 “I won’t be coming here again.”

 “Lady, let me give you some advice.”

 When the lady who had asked the uncomfortable question tried to leave on her own, Aria’s close friends, clearly annoyed, openly showed their displeasure.

 Seeing this, Aria called out to the departing lady.

 The lady turned to look at Aria, wondering if she would answer her question.

 Then Aria, with a coldly frozen expression, left one comment for the lady:

 “I hope you realize that social circles are not generous enough for you to survive alone.”

 ‘Ha, is that all she has to say?’

 Though she didn’t show it in her expression, the lady could hardly hide her disappointment.

 That the only thing Aria could say was a threat to be careful in the future.

 ‘It doesn’t matter anyway. I can just ask Brother Oberon if the rumor is true.’

 She hoped the rumor was true.

 After seeing Aria with her own eyes, she thought Aria was less suitable to be the Crown Prince’s consort than she had imagined.

 ‘Even if I’ve been away studying abroad for several years, how is it possible that not a single person recognized me?’

 She was shocked that not a single person had recognized her.

 She had just arrived in the capital the day before and had been dragged to this tea time by her mother.

 Still, she found it absurd that even the host of the party failed to recognize her.

 “I’m a lady from a family no less prestigious than the Hersher family.”

 Her name was Ruphia Philip, a lady of the Philip family and Oberon’s younger sister.

 * * *

 “Clea, do you have a moment?”

 “Are you sure you have time?”

 “I’ve almost finished my work, so it’s fine now.”

 “I see.”

 Recently, she had been thinking.

 That he visited her room too often.

 ‘Is it really okay for him to visit this much? I heard he has a lot of work to do.’

 Oberon had told her that he was quite busy.

 She had been asked to tell him to go back to work if he came to visit, as he had no time to play, but…

 ‘I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.’

 She smiled and approached Edmund who had come to see her.

 Reaching right in front of him, she took his hand.

 “It’s warm.”

 “Your hands are cold.”

 “You’re right about that.”

 She had no intention of arguing, so she held his hand.

 Edmund shivered momentarily at the cool sensation, but he didn’t pull his hand away.

 As if afraid her hand might break, Edmund carefully applied pressure.

 “Would you like some tea?”

 As usual, she suggested having some tea.

 Clea was satisfied just talking face to face.

 But Edmund was not.

 “How about going outside this time?”

 “Outside?”

 He didn’t want her to stay in this gloomy palace for too long.

 Though Clea didn’t find the Crown Prince’s palace gloomy at all, Edmund was concerned.

 Thinking it wasn’t good for mental health to stay indoors too much, he suggested going outside.

 “Let’s go out. Let’s enjoy a casual date.”

 “People will see us.”

 “Let them. It doesn’t matter anymore.”

 Edmund no longer cared about that aspect.

 Rather, it was what he wanted.

 He wanted to go outside and create good memories with her.

 He didn’t think it was entirely bad to keep her in the safe imperial palace for protection, but he still wanted to see her smile in a bright place.

 “Is that really okay? Our relationship isn’t anything official yet.”

 The person he loved—the person he would share his future with—was already firmly decided.

 “It’s too late to try to escape from me with words like that, Clea.”

 Edmund gently placed his lips on hers, briefly and carefully.

 Despite approaching without warning, his kiss was so tender that Clea embraced him.

 When their lips parted, Edmund looked somewhat disappointed.

 Clea smiled at his expression, then briefly looked at the back of her hand.

 ‘Not today, I suppose.’

 She had been frequently looking at the back of her hand with this thought lately.

 The thought that today wouldn’t be the day this happiness ended.

 The thought that she still had plenty of time left.

 “Okay. Let’s go on a date.”

 Hearing Clea’s answer, Edmund smiled happily and hugged her.

 He had actually been a bit nervous, thinking she might refuse. He was delighted to receive her approval.

 Meanwhile, seeing Edmund rejoicing so innocently, she felt extremely happy.

 She felt her troubled heart calming at his warm presence.

 Thinking about the enjoyable time she would spend with him, Clea swallowed the words she had wanted to say to him.

 ‘I don’t want to let you go either.’

 Before death separated their relationship, Clea resolved to escape this curse using everything she knew.

 It was a moment when she found the will to live longer, to spend more time with him and share moments like this.