Chapter 130 - A Terrible Hallucination

On the other hand, Dennis was starting to become wary of the sudden change in the crown prince's expression. 'Was it too early for me to mention marriage to him? Well, I guess it wasn't an appropriate thing to say with the rebellion right around the corner.'

There were only two situations on the battlefield when the crown prince went from a straight face to a smiling face. The first was when he heard something funny and the second was when he beheaded the enemy. Based on this knowledge, Dennis tried to fix his words.

"Your Highness, it was presumptuous of me to—"

"I definitely agree with you."

Dennis was taken aback by his commander's sudden words. "I'm sorry?" he asked back in a dumbfounded voice.

Max stared at Dennis with a serious expression, his smile now gone from his face. "As you said, I'll look for her," he responded.

"What? Look for what…"

As if his subordinate was confused about what he was talking about, Max elaborated on his words.

"My bride."

* * *

When I received the completed dress a few days later, I couldn't help the sigh that left my mouth. I definitely wanted a dress that wasn't fancy, but the off-shoulder dress that was made of the finest fabric and white mesh was truly beautiful. There was a subtle gloss to the dress, and it was decorated with shiny beads.

'This isn't what I wanted…'

The maids, who had no idea that I was upset, exclaimed.

"Oh, it's so beautiful!"

"You're already beautiful, Lady Floyen, but if you wear that dress, no one in the banquet hall will be able to keep their eyes off of you!"

"I agree! I'm sure a lot of people will ask you out!"

I frowned as I listened to their compliments. 'I don't want to look pretty to anyone, and I don't want to go out with anyone, either…' I thought for a moment, when I recalled a certain someone's face and felt my heart ache.

'Is Max never coming back? Is he down with an illness? What if something happened to him?' I had thought up many speculations during his absence, and these worries had stirred up my anxiety.

"Do you know that I'm sick and tired of you?" Mikhail had once inquired.

Perhaps Max had left because he was tired of me, just like Mikhail had been. There was no reason for me to cling to him like I had done with Mikhail, but I still felt empty and heartbroken, probably because his presence had been a big part of my life. He was the first friend I had ever made and someone who accepted me for who I truly was.

'I just want to know that he's safe…' I slowly became swamped with fatigue as I tried to ignore the bitter thoughts in my head.

"Merilyn, could you put the dress in the closet and light an incense that will help me sleep?" I asked.

Merilyn's eyes widened in surprise. "It's better to not use the sleeping incense unless you really have to because of the side effects, my lady…"

"It's because I've been so tired these days, but can't seem to sleep. Do me a favor, please."

Merilyn gazed at me with worrisome eyes, then sighed. "I'll light the incense that will induce sleep as you have requested."

"Thanks."

"Sir Geraldine might come by, so I'll let him know in advance that I've lit this incense."

'Oh, my father must be working until late today. No wonder he didn't come to see the dress.'

My father had been working overtime frequently these days and Geraldine stopped by my room on the days he wasn't here to make sure there were no mishaps. Maybe he was trying to fulfill his responsibility for the salary he got paid or he simply did so because of his conscience, being that he was my cousin.

I nodded gently since I was already aware of this. "Okay, thank you."

After Merilyn left the room, I fell back onto my bed. I inhaled the scent emanating from the incense and felt my eyelids start to droop and my mind become foggy. Its effect was indeed strong, just like the high society rumors had said.

'Yes, I should just go to sleep.' I was trying to forget about my impractical thoughts by sleeping when I heard a tapping sound. I shot up out of bed, startled from the sudden sound.

'Did I just imagine that?' It was true that I had been exhausted because I hadn't been able to sleep well for the past few days because of my worries regarding the crown prince. I wondered if that was the reason why I had imagined the tapping sound.

'I should just ignore it and go to sleep,' I thought and went to lay down again, when I suddenly heard the tapping sound again. Hearing it a second time, I gulped nervously. 'It's not a pigeon… is it?' Madam Perez said she would do something about it, but I wasn't aware of whether or not she had done anything yet. 'Alright, even if she did do something, it might have just been something like a scarecrow… which means a fearless pigeon might have flown up here.'

With this thought, I carefully approached the window only to see that there was… 'There's nothing here.' Becoming disheartened, my legs unconsciously gave out. I guess I really was hearing things. When I was about to collapse on the floor, someone caught me.

"Oh, thanks." I attempted to go back to my bed after expressing my gratitude, thinking that it was Geraldine who had helped me up. But the hand that held onto me didn't let me go.

"Dean?" I turned my head as I called my cousin's nickname, then froze in shock. The man who was looking at me with fierce eyes was definitely the person I had in mind until just now.

"And who's that?" he demanded.

I suddenly remembered that the incense had a side effect. I had heard that it worked well, but could dull one's senses and make one feel as if they were intoxicated. 'I'm experiencing those side effects right now, aren't I?' I was surely convinced, when he spoke again.

"Answer me, Jubelian! Have you forgotten about our contract?"

Although he was only a hallucination, I could feel the emotions that I had suppressed all this time surge up the moment I saw his handsome face criticize me.

****

Hope you enjoyed it,

Love,

Biji ^^,

Oct.23.2023