May Every Wound Be Fatal - Chapter 32.2
Cassian’s smile looked, for a fleeting moment, almost sad.
He glanced briefly at the restless sea and then finally, as if he had made up his mind, turned back to Elizer.
“Elizer.”
“Yes, Prince. Speak.”
“Leonard has proposed a marriage alliance.”
The words sounded completely unexpected. Above all, Elizer could not understand why Cassian was bringing this up to him.
As if noticing his confusion, Cassian added,
“He wants to unite us by marrying his daughter to you.”
Elizer found Cassian’s words even more difficult to comprehend.
Leonard’s daughter meant Reyna. As far as Elizer knew, she was supposed to marry Prince Tiberian. So, the idea of her marrying a lowly illegitimate son like him…
“That is impossible.”
“They say Leonard’s daughter wants you.”
“……”
“I like you, Your Highness.”
For a moment, Elizer remembered her confession, given without the slightest trace of embarrassment. Heat rushed to his face. He could not help but lower his head and clench his fists.
Cassian, quietly observing this, soon turned his gaze to the distant sea and muttered,
“The minor duke says that the duke cannot refuse his daughter’s requests… I am not so sure.”
Leonard was a man desperate to make his daughter queen.
Cassian had come into conflict with the duke because the duke had not waited for young Reyna and instead married a princess from the small southern island nation of Orensa.
Even though the duke did not particularly like the childish Prince Tiberian, he chose him to make his daughter queen. Even a child could understand that.
Thus, Cassian did not trust that the duke was proposing a marriage purely for his daughter. The duke never did anything that did not benefit him, so Cassian suspected there was another scheme behind it.
Nevertheless, Cassian could not outright reject the alliance offered by the duke.
Wars over the throne had always brought bloodshed in every era.
Just looking at the death of his grandfather, King Talion, proved that. He had lost all the children he loved and was killed by the youngest son who had allied with the duke.
Only the one who ascended the throne survived.
Cassian wanted to protect his beloved wife and the hundreds of people who followed him. To do that, he needed strength.
Of course, Leonard had threatened Cassian’s life for years. Noel opposed allying with him, saying Leonard could not be trusted.
Yet Cassian had, in his heart, nearly made his decision. Summoning Elizer separately was just to ask for his opinion one last time.
“Elizer, what do you think?”
“I…”
“Do you want to marry Leonard’s daughter?”
“……”
Elizer could not answer immediately.
It felt awkward to admit he wanted something. At a time like this, he felt uneasy, as if he held something that was not truly his.
Cassian seemed to understand his thoughts. Silently, he patted Elizer’s shoulder and, teasingly, whispered,
“Do not get your hopes up too high.”
Not long after, the engagement between Elizer and Reyna was decided.
Elizer felt as if he were dreaming.
At that time, nothing was certain. If Leonard did not keep his ‘promise,’ the engagement would break immediately.
Still, the fact that he could meet her again kept Elizer awake. He could not lie still, filled with excitement and anticipation.
All day, he imagined the moment he would meet her again. When they met, there were so many things he wanted to say.
Thank you for wishing me victory.
I am glad you said that it did not matter who I was.
I want to tell her that I like her too, and that I feel as though I fell in love at first sight.
I might not be able to speak as beautifully as Reyna, but I wanted to somehow convey these feelings to her.
Then, she would surely answer with her clear, bright laughter and tell him that she was happy.
Their engagement was certain to be the greatest fortune of his life.
And that day came far sooner than Elizer had expected.
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