Chapter 243: Chapter 243

At that time, Crown Prince Gueuze sought to satisfy his lust rather than kill Carynne. And further, he was more focused on killing Prince Lewis.

However, the current Gueuze seemed to have no idea who she was. The reason Carynne and Isella ended up here was sheer bad luck. Unlike before, he saw Carynne as just another material for his work. He calmly prepared for his task without excitement.

“I’ll figure out who you are slowly.”

Crown Prince Gueuze tapped Carynne’s head lightly, smiling slightly.

“I’ve been very frustrated lately because I haven’t been able to enjoy my hobbies. And your face… it’s quite to my liking.”

Crown Prince Gueuze’s eyes gleamed.

Carynne spoke up.

“I suppose so. I look just like my mother.”

“Is that so? You have to thank your mother then. I’ll carve your face off.”

Crown Prince Gueuze seemed in a hurry.

Carynne blinked slowly.

“My mother spoke a lot about you, Your Highness.”

“…Who is your mother?”

“Catherine Nora Enide.”

Crown Prince Gueuze stood up.

His face twisted strangely. It was a name he hadn’t expected at all.

“…What a coincidence.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

Crown Prince Gueuze covered his mouth.

He paced around the room, trying to calm his thoughts and excitement. Though he covered his mouth, it was clear he was grinning widely behind his fingers. He looked extremely delighted. Small chuckles could be heard.

“I have a lot to say… Catherine, Catherine. Yes, it’s been seventeen years… This is delightful. Ha, haha.

How amusing.”

“Yes. My mother, she…”

Carynne desperately tried to remember anything about Catherine. She needed to think of something to divert Crown Prince Gueuze’s attention. What had Catherine said about him?

But nothing significant came to Carynne’s mind. While she was pondering, Crown Prince Gueuze stood in front of her, waiting.

“What did Catherine say about me?”

“If you want to hear more, I have a condition.”

“Sorry, but I have no intention of letting you go.”

“I expected that.”

Carynne nodded.

The only difference she could bargain for was between dying now or staying alive a bit longer. Crown Prince Gueuze wouldn’t let her go.

“Please spare this woman instead of me.”

“That’s not possible either.”

Carynne bowed her head.

“Then I won’t say a word about my mother.”

“There are many ways to get answers from people.”

Crown Prince Gueuze whispered as he brought a dagger close to Carynne. The fabric near her chest was sliced like paper by the sharp blade. Her cleavage was exposed, and a trickle of blood ran down. It stung. Carynne frowned and spoke.

“I don’t expect to live, but I’m not afraid of dying either. I know I won’t get out of here alive.”

Carynne took a deep breath.

Let’s think carefully. The previous Crown Prince Gueuze had once said, ‘I wonder if you also think you’re too old.’

Also, he said. Carynne recalled his words. Catherine must have told Crown Prince Gueuze that she could live again.

“Didn’t my mother ever talk about living again?”

“……”

“You probably didn’t believe her.”

Crown Prince Gueuze fell silent.

His excitement subsided, and his expression twisted. Carynne looked up at his face.

“Don’t you think my mother refused you because she wasn’t afraid of death? My mother and I aren’t afraid of such things.”

She dared to refuse a royal proposal.

If a man was strong or wealthy, a woman refusing his affection often faced danger. The love professed by men with a need to show off often came with violence.

For someone like Crown Prince Gueuze, it wouldn’t be surprising if he had killed both Catherine and her child for daring to refuse him. But in the end, he had allowed Catherine to marry and have a child. He didn’t kill her after all.

“In this life, I am prepared to end my days in this room. But please listen to this. Just throw this woman back where she came from.”

“I think having an ally would also benefit you.”

“I don’t want to share my mother’s story with anyone else.”

And Carynne looked up at him with slightly teary eyes.

“To be honest, I am quite ashamed.”

“…Ha.”

“You wouldn’t treat me like a daughter, would you?”

“Struggle all you want.”

Crown Prince Gueuze pressed on the wound he had made on her chest. Carynne let out a faint groan. The pain flared up. She could feel Isella trembling behind her.

“I know the girl behind you is awake.”

“……”

“Heh, haha.”

Only then did Carynne realize that Isella was not pretending to sleep properly. Despite being told to feign unconsciousness.

* * *

Zion scratched his head in contemplation.

‘It seems like she’s pregnant, doesn’t it?’

Isella hadn’t said it directly, but Zion Electra, who had lived a life loved by many women, could easily guess the situation with a little thought. The fact Isella couldn’t speak about Carynne was easy to deduce.

They had gone to the hospital together, and Isella had been worried about not being able to tell her the examination results. The words Isella almost said before denying them. Zion guessed that Carynne was pregnant. There was no other reason for Carynne to have a condition she couldn’t easily disclose to others.

The problem was what to do next. Should he tell Raymond or not? Whether Carynne was pregnant or not didn’t concern Zion much. Speaking about it would only create nasty gossip.

But Zion scratched his head, troubled by the fact that the presumed father was his close friend, Raymond. Would it be better to tell Raymond in advance? Isella’s worry had transferred to him, but he couldn’t find an answer either.

Maybe Raymond already knew.

If so, his recent actions made sense.

Raymond’s reluctance towards Isella, his care for the penniless Carynne, his awkwardness in front of her, his hasty retirement from the military, and his unprecedented emotional fluctuations could all be explained by that.

But the idea that Raymond had touched a woman he wasn’t married to, and even got her pregnant, was hard for him to accept. Especially since it was someone like Carynne. Though poor, she was still a noble lady.

Zion was worried that if he acted as if he knew first, he would get entangled in troublesome affairs. For now, it was important to see Carynne’s reaction after Isella spoke to her. He had come to ask about it, but…

Isella was nowhere to be seen.

“Where on earth did she go?”

Zion had been lingering around the Grand Cathedral where Isella and Carynne were staying since early on, but neither of them had come out yet. Priests came and went, but he didn’t want to face those who didn’t approve of him flirting openly with Isella.

‘Did the conversation not go well?’

He thought Isella would definitely tell him the result.

“Pardon me, Reverend.”

Eventually, Zion stopped a passing priest to ask about Isella.

“Excuse me, I would like to see Miss Isella Evans, who is staying at the cathedral. Could you call her for me?”

“…How should I know that?”

The priest’s expression looked slightly annoyed.

“How far are we responsible for Miss Isella’s behavior?”

“…I’m not sure what you mean…”

“We have repeatedly advised her about the curfew. What can we say to someone who doesn’t attend worship or volunteer at all?”

The priest was clearly averse to getting involved in personal disputes.