Chapter 111
Standing before him were the Crown Prince, his face full of displeasure, and the Crown Princess, who looked worried in stark contrast.
At Gerald’s light greeting, the Crown Prince’s expression darkened even more. For someone who had miraculously woken up after being comatose for days, he looked far too calm.
“You pathetic fool.”
“I suppose I am, Your Highness.”
“Still running that mouth, so I guess you’re back to normal.”
At the angry tone, Gerald let out a deflated laugh.
“Be honest. Do you break out in hives when you’re worried or something? If you’re worried, just say you were, Chris.”
“When did I ever…!”
As the Crown Prince flared up, a hand suddenly stretched out in front of him. The Crown Princess stopped her husband with ease, then stepped closer and scolded Gerald.
“Don’t be too hard on my husband. He couldn’t sleep at all on the way here. He sobbed in Coco’s arms on the train.”
“When did I ever…!”
The Crown Prince shouted, face red, but the Crown Princess paid no mind and asked,
“Anyway, did you manage to win Mia’s heart?”
“Oh, that. It’s okay now.”
“What do you mean ‘okay’? What’s okay?”
The Crown Princess Coco’s black eyes sparkled with curiosity. Gerald pouted his lips, then opened his palm.
“My small and pretty bird with a bad temper has already flown far away. To a place so distant, I’ll never be able to reach her again.”
“Oh no! After surviving such a near-death crisis, it ends this sadly?”
Seeing her sympathetic gaze, Gerald gave a surprisingly refreshed smile.
“I thought maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, watching her fly alongside her partner. They’re such a beautiful pair, just looking at them.”
“Fine. Keep thinking that way, and reflect for the rest of your life.”
The response was unexpectedly sharp. Gerald, dumbfounded, asked,
“Isn’t that a bit too cold? You wanted her to be part of your family too, Your Highness.”
“Well, actually, I just saw the two of them at the train station earlier. And I could tell right away, there’s no room for you anymore, Gerald.”
Coco crossed her arms and sighed.
“Mia’s head over heels for her husband. She kept looking at him like she didn’t know what to do with all that love.”
“Hermia, looking at Walter like that?”
“You didn’t know? She had the face of a girl completely in love. She wasn’t even like that at the wedding. If she’s more into him now, it probably means the bedroom’s been…”
“Cordelia!”
The Crown Prince couldn’t hold back and clamped a hand over his wife’s mouth. The Crown Princess slapped his hand playfully, saying fine, fine, while Gerald only gave a self-mocking smile.
He’d had a vague sense of it, but hearing it out loud made it feel real. Strangely enough, it didn’t make him completely sad.
Was it because a woman in love looked so beautiful? Or was it because the man who smiled at her was so handsome it made him jealous?
Gerald felt a strange sense of peace seeing the two people he loved looking so happy.
If he could watch over them forever, if he could laugh beside them, that wouldn’t be such a bad life.
Just then, a commotion in the hallway came through the door and echoed into the hospital room.
“You don’t need to know who I am. I’m just here because His Highness told me to come.”
Right after the guards issued a warning, a young man’s disgruntled voice followed. Gerald turned to the Crown Prince and Princess and calmly said,
“Open the door. I did call for the author.”
“Author?”
“You know, Joel Bright. The one who had a warrant out for him.”
Why would he be here… the older brother trailed off. Gerald gave a meaningful response as he wrapped up the conversation.
“Don’t you want to know how the villainess in the novel ended up? We should at least see the ending, don’t you think?”
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Hermia made a decision.
Rather than rushing into some random store and buying anything, it’d be better to wait until next year’s birthday.
She had gone out to the nearby city with Emily and the other maids, but instead of luxury shops, the area was full of souvenir stores. Even simple things like cufflinks all looked strange in design.
After wandering around for a while, she found gloves made of decent material and excitedly picked them up, only to almost throw them across the room when she spotted an adorable little dog printed on the palm.
The other items weren’t much different from the gloves.
She couldn’t give her Duke husband a coal-shaped cushion, natural stone magnets, or a cheap pocket watch decorated with colorful ornaments for his birthday. (Though she did buy them to give to the Duke household’s staff.)
The plan to go even farther to find a better gift was ruined thanks to the Crown Prince and Princess, who had come to visit in secret. Hermia accompanied Walter to bring them to the hospital, then immediately attended the birthday dinner the hotel had prepared.
She greeted the local officials, their wives, their children, and their relatives, over and over again… endless greetings.
Walter had told her to go up to the room halfway through, but Hermia stubbornly stayed until the end, making sure she received birthday congratulations. She couldn’t leave her husband alone on his first birthday after their marriage.
This decision was the result of walking around all day until her feet were sore.
It was too late to buy anything today. There was no choice. Therefore, the gift was herself.
When her face had started to twitch from exhaustion, the party finally ended.
She dragged her tired body up to the hotel room. After receiving the maids’ service, she bathed and prepared for bed. By the time she finished, the clock’s hands were approaching midnight.
‘No, I can’t!’
Once midnight passed, Walter’s birthday would be over. She hurried Emily, who was busy with her hands, and peeked past the dressing room.
“Almost done, Madam!”
Emily left the suite with a quick step after leaving her with the words that it was perfect.
Hermia, feeling her heartbeat pounding in her fingertips, forgot all about her exhaustion. The hand holding the cloak revealed a firm determination.
As she entered the bedroom, Walter, who had been sitting by the head of the bed reading a book, lowered his hand. His earnest gaze was fixed on the large ribbon headband.
“I went into town earlier and bought this. Isn’t it pretty?”
The red ribbon falling gracefully from the crown of her head was enough to make Hermia herself look like a present. Walter, with a playful voice, asked,
“Seems like you took longer than usual. Did you prepare this?”
“Do you like it?”
“I do. It’s almost a waste to keep it just for myself.”
He reached out his hand, signaling for her to come closer. Hermia smiled and slowly removed the thin cloak that covered her entire neck. At the same moment, Walter’s smile suddenly disappeared.
“What about this?”
“……”
Since there was no answer, Hermia spun around in place. The ribbon on her head fluttered gently with the movement before softly settling down.
“Why are you silent? Do you not like it?”
“No, I just didn’t expect this.”
Walter mumbled, nervously adjusting his lips. It was a natural reaction, after all.
What she was currently wearing could hardly be called clothes, it was more like a netting. Everything was connected by strings, with the fabric barely bigger than the palm of his hand. She hadn’t even known it was an outfit until the storekeeper explained it to her.
This was a place frequented by a diverse group of tourists, so the design was extremely open.
“Even though Emily explained it to me, it was hard to wear, so it took longer than expected. But it’s still not midnight, so it’s not too late.”
She smiled mischievously and slowly approached him. The more she moved closer, the more she enjoyed watching Walter’s eyes tremble uncontrollably.
“Tell me what you really think. Do you like the gift, or not?”
“……”
“Or is it something you don’t want anyone else to see?”
“That’s not it.”
With a single word breaking in his ear, Walter’s vision turned upside down. Hermia was drawn in by his hot gaze, looking up at him.
When their eyes met in mid-air, they didn’t hesitate to kiss. The romantic atmosphere they had expected was nowhere to be found. The warm and cozy night was far from them. They hadn’t even had a sip of alcohol, yet her body felt tingling from head to toe.
She almost feared that her heart might burst, but when she regained her senses, she found herself in Walter’s arms.
Hermia, watching him comb her hair through his fingers, whispered softly,
“Happy birthday, my love. But you know…”
“Yeah?”
“For my birthday, you have to wear this.”
His eyes, which had been gradually closing, opened wide.
“That…?”
He raised his upper body slightly, looking at the pile of red strings on the carpet, then looked back at her. His expression was one of hoping he had heard wrong.
Hermia smiled as if to say there was no chance.
“I also bought one for men. I’ll show it to you later.”
“I… I’m fine.”
Walter, flustered and stumbling over his words, was clearly embarrassed. Seeing him like that, Hermia burst out laughing.
“I want to say it’s a joke, but you know how it is. Everything I say is the truth.”
Suddenly, her laughter stopped, and she fixed her gaze on his eyes, silently commanding him. It was one of the abilities Hermia had often used against Walter lately.
Wear it.
Without needing to say a word, Walter, feeling the unspoken voice, relaxed and pulled her close. Only she, the one person in the world, could make him show such vulnerability.
Realizing this, Walter tightened his embrace. The moment he held her, it felt as if there was nothing else to worry about. His world was clearer and more definite than ever.
“Hermia, let’s go home now.”