Chapter 27: Chapter 27

“You mean that it is the fate of the Crown Prince to be unhappy?”

“Of course not. However, it is one of the many things that is expected of my position. You, Layla, probably will not know of this and I personally hope that you remain unaware of this reality for the rest of your life.”

Even while explaining his misfortune, the Crown Prince remained concerned for Layla. The kindness and consideration shown to Layla had in turn made her more sad for the Crown Prince.

“Layla, are you worried about me?”

“I’m not worried…” Layla began to deny out of habit but stopped when she raised up her head and saw his bittersweet smile. After a moment of hesitation, she admitted, “Yes, I’m worried.”

“Thank you. Your warm heart remains a comfort for me,” Bioust replied before drinking the wine from his glass.

Layla watched as Bioust drank the wine. She was unable to turn away from the sight of his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down as he continued to drink the liquid.

“If I had a choice in my marriage…”

Bioust said with a face that was slightly flushed from the alcohol.

“If I was able to marry the person I love…”

Bioust held up his glass as he stared at Layla. Although no further words were uttered, it was as if his eyes were explaining the remaining bit of his sentence.

At that moment, it seemed the same for Layla as she stared back into the depths of his eyes, unable to look away. For such a powerful man, there was a sense of sadness and desperation in his eyes.

Seeing that only made Layla want to do something about the whole situation. If possible, she wanted to put a stop to the Crown Prince’s unhappy marriage.

‘I don’t want him to have such a sad expression,’ Layla thought to herself.

‘But there is nothing I can do. I’m not a Duke’s daughter like Elizabeth. I’m just the daughter of a Baron and even then, I’ve been abandoned by my own family.’

‘There is nothing I can do for him; be it to cook, sew, or organize books… If I were a real witch, I can just cast a spell and use my black magic to help him out. But in reality, I’m not a witch. I’ve neither powers nor abilities… All I can do is to look at the kind man with the unsaid affection I feel for him.’

* * *

After much consideration, Layla came to a decision and looked straight ahead only to see that Bioust had been watching her the entire time with the gentle smile he had always given to her.

“Do you have something to say?”

“Yes, how did you know?” Layla asked.

“That’s because you have a somewhat serious expression today,” Bioust replied as his smile widened, causing Layla’s heart to beat faster.

‘He is the first person to ever show kindness to me… The first to ever smile at me…’ Layla thought to herself.

“I want to help you.”

It was natural to want to save a person from the depths of misery.

“Layla, you’re already helping me enough. Cecil has informed me that the library is now very clean. I’m already thankful for that.”

“No, not that…” Layla trailed off in a sad tone.

Noticing the change in Layla, Bioust watched her with a confused look.

“I… I don’t want you to marry her.”

“Ah…”

Bioust exclaimed briefly and there was a moment of awkward silence.

“You will be unhappy if you marry her.”

“That is possible, but it may not be the case.”

“No, it definitely will be.”

“How do you know so well when it is something only a married person would know?”

As if not wanting to continue the conversation, Bioust attempted to make light of the situation.

“I know because I’ve lived with people who didn’t like me,” Layla explained.

“…….”

“I know because I’ve lived with people who hated being in the same space with me. People who looked at me with disgust and refused to even make eye contact with me. The worst part is to be family with the people who hate me.”

“Layla…”

“I want you to be happy because… you’re a good person.”

Layla spoke with as much courage as she could muster. It was the first time she had ever explained her unhappy past, as well as to wish for someone else’s happiness.

‘I will not say that my heart pounded every time I see you and I won’t ask you to marry me so that we could live our lives like this. To just have meals together and enjoy each other’s company… I’ve said all that I’ve dared to.’

“To be honest, I wish I could marry the person I love,” Layla confessed.

Bioust looked at Layla with a solemn expression as if he knew who she was referring to. Layla trembled when she met his gaze.

“However, Elizabeth is already my fiancee. Moreover, she is no small or average aristocrat. She is the daughter of the powerful Remote Duchy.”

“I know…”

‘I am nothing but a powerless, abandoned daughter of a Baron.’

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“Unless something happens, the engagement would be impossible to break.”

“Unless something happens like what?”

“For example, if I die…”

“There’s no point in breaking the engagement if you die!”

“The only way for the Remote Duchy to give up on the engagement is if I were to become lame, blind, or disqualified to inherit the throne.”

“To be disabled…” Layla just said softly.

‘A fate that can be changed at the cost of certain body parts… I’d be willing to do that if it were to change all of my misfortunes… If it is to rid myself of this stench, I’d willingly give away my feet, arms, or even eyes. Whatever it takes.’

‘But that will be my problem. It is different for Bioust. Unlike the ugly me, he is a very handsome man and has a perfect figure. Moreover, the process of making him disabled will obviously be very painful… I hope that Bioust will never fall ill or endure pain.’

“That was just an example, Layla. I don’t want you looking at me as if I’m really going to harm myself.”

“… I didn’t mean to…”

“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that I will not tarnish Elizabeth’s reputation as a means to break off the engagement. If it were to happen, the breakup should be due to my negligence.”

“Can’t you break off the engagement if you don’t love her?”

“It is an engagement without love in the first place. The engagement won’t be broken simply over such an excuse.”

As if wanting the fact to be otherwise, Bioust smiled bitterly.

“The Remote Duchy will never accept if the Imperial family were first to break off the engagement. The same goes for Elizabeth. Thus, I must have a good reason in order to break off the engagement.”

“Then…” Layla looked at Bioust from top to bottom.

‘Should I blind those sweet, golden eyes? If not, should I cut out an ear? I think it would be too inconvenient to cut off an arm… Maybe a leg? If it is too difficult to move about, would it be okay if I worked hard to help?’ Layla pondered.

“Is there no other way?”

‘Whatever I cut, it will be too painful for Bioust. Growing up as a precious prince, he would be unable to withstand pain… It would be better if he were to fall ill instead… Then again, if it were needed from me, I could easily cut off an arm or leg…’ Layla frowned.

“Well, if I do have a flaw and it leads to Elizabeth proposing to break off the engagement, I would gladly accept it.”

“Oh? What is the flaw?” Layla asked as her frown deepened.

“A flaw… Hmm…”

For a short period, both Layla and Bioust were deep in thought as they tried to come up for a reasonable flaw. Although it was unintentional, it was Bioust who broke the silence.

“Where and how should I sire an illegitimate child…” Bioust spoke out loud to himself.

“What?”

“Ah, pay no mind to it.”

“You just said something.”

“I apologize. I was talking to myself.”

“So, what did you say to yourself?”

“It’s not something an innocent lady should hear. I was just in a moment of desperation and inevitably spoke nonsense.”

“Why are you saying that I’m innocent?” Layla frowned.

‘In my opinion, he was the one who was more innocent. I mean… he is the kind of person to be ruthless and of the wilder side,’ Layla thought to herself despite the fact that she has yet to experience much of the world.

“I’m a mature adult. I may have lived in the forest, but I know a lot.”

“What do you know?”

“I know everything except what I don’t know,” Layla replied proudly.

“In that case, I said ‘illegitimate child’,” Bioust replied with a small sigh.

“Illegitimate child?” Layla tilted her head slightly. It was the first time she had heard the term.

“…What is an ‘illegitimate child’?” she asked.

“A child born out of wedlock is called an illegitimate child.”

‘I remember this new phrase… Looks like it is a child…’

“So, I was wondering earlier that if I were to have an illegitimate child, Elizabeth may break off the engagement,” Bioust continued.

“Will she really give up on you if you do have an illegitimate child?”

“Well, it is possible. Elizabeth will not mind if the child was borned from royal concubines as an emperor is allowed to have one or two concubines. However, it will be a different situation altogether if I were to have an illegitimate child before even marrying Elizabeth. She will be more infuriated if the child were to be male with the rights of claiming the throne.”

“Really?” Layla asked and pondered for a moment.

“Then let’s have a baby.”

“Pardon?”

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“Let’s have an illegitimate child,” Layla said as if it was nothing.

However, in truth, her heart was pounding, her legs were shaky, and she had sweaty hands. She was afraid that Bioust would refuse the gesture and not consider her fit for the role.