Chapter 52: Chapter 52

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Chapter 52

Azela, who was standing nearby, heard Princess Livia’s small cry.

…Savior?

She gazed looked at Zagnac and shouted, ‘savior.’ The devil, a savior? It was incomprehensible.

As she stood next to Princess Livia and glanced at her, the girl was blushing with a hopeful look as if she had found light in her darkness… No, now she was blushing even to her ears. At the same time, somewhere in the corner of her chest made Azela furrow her eyebrows.

“I heard you were looking for me.”

Walking towards Princess Livia, Zagnac uttered with a polite look. It was completely different from when he burned the letter from Princess Livia. Azela turned her head to see him, who was full of pretense. She didn’t want to see his face like this.

“Did you read the letter I sent you?”

Livia made her voice sound cute as Zagnac approached her.

“Yes, I read it.”

What did he mean by reading it? He burned it, actually.

At the thought, Azela turned her head and furrowed her eyebrows with a sly smile. The nobles, who were looking at the terrace, coughed at the conversation between Princess Livia and Zagnac, and all went away.

Then, the sound of music played again from inside the party hall and the sound of friendly conversation was heard.

“…You read the letter, but you did not give me an answer.”

“I have already conveyed my opinion to the Emperor. I thought the Princess would have heard of it, too.”

“Duke Ferial, no matter how long I waited, I received no reply from you so I came here personally, secretly from the Emperor.”

The conversation between the two, which seemed sweet and hot, was somehow cold. But still, Princess Livia’s face was as blushed as her pink hair. As she took turns gazing at the two of them, Azela opened her mouth and paused her steps.

“I…will go. Please, feel free to talk.”

Neither Princess Livia nor Zagnac stopped her, who had stepped forward. He was still smiling as usual, like he was joking. However, it was a little different from usual. It wasn’t a smile because it was really funny.

It was just an artificial smile that looked like it was drawn on a canvas.

At the oddity, Azela left the terrace feeling uneasy and sat in the corner of the party hall with a glass of champagne.

When Zagnac, who was next to her, disappeared, no one came to her. Everyone just wanted to catch the eyes of Zagnac, Duke Ferial. Still, to some extent, she thought that she had succeeded in the business on her own, though that was not the case at all.

…She was just sitting next to the dazzling light called ‘Duke Ferial.’ When he disappeared, Azela was left alone, as if she was just in the dark.

“Your triumphant expression is gone.”

Daniel came to Azela, who was drinking champagne to hide her complicated heart.

Unlike when he first attended the party, his well-groomed appearance had vanished. Azela furrowed her eyebrows at the sight of him enjoying the party more than anyone else with his two buttons on the top loose.

“It sounds like you’re having fun… Why don’t you go play some more.”

Paying attention to her surroundings, she turned her gaze into the air and muttered softly. It was because she didn’t have to make a bad impression with him in front of a lot of people.

“Do you see your worth now? I told you, you are nothing.”

Daniel leaned against the wall, sipping a sip of champagne and smiling mockingly. Darkness permeated her heart, which was still complicated and twisted.

Azela, who was staring at him with trembling eyes, drank the champagne in her hand and replied.

“Still, I’m a more useful person than you. So, rather than worrying about me, why don’t you worry about yourself?”

“Think of it that way, Azela, as long as it puts your mind at ease. Though look, now that Duke Ferial is gone, no one cares about you except me.”

“….”

“You are different now. It’s completely different from when you were the center of a lot of attention alone.”

Daniel growled low and moved closer to her face.

There was a strong smell of alcohol from him. It was the smell of bitter alcohol, not the sweet smell that she liked to smell. With the stench close to her, Azela covered her nose with her index finger and turned her head.

“Azela, you can be here because of the position of ‘Countess Todd.’ How could ‘Azela Vellista’ be in a place like this without that position?”

“….”

“What? Become a thorn under my nails…? Haha. Do you really think I’ll be hurting because of you? You tend to overestimate yourself sometimes.”

Saying so, he reached out and ruffled her hair. Although it was obviously the same thing Zagnac likes to do, goosebumps appeared all over her body.

Daniel, who gently brushed her hair, leaned his torso down and whispered in her ear.

“Because darkness like me is by your side, it just makes you, who’s nothing, look brighter. So, be Countess Todd forever, Azela… because you’ll never shine without me.”

Daniel’s green eyes were shining and smiling as if he knew everything. A foul odor emanated from him.

“Daniel.”

Azela furrowed her brow and pressed his chest against her palm. Even though she didn’t put too much force on him, he was drunk and was pushed back quite a bit.

Losing his focus, he staggered, but Daniel managed to grab hold of the wall and avoid falling. As he was about to scream, he had to gather his expression with a clumsy smile toward those around him who stared at him strangely.

“Creating a situation like this… You were the one who broke me like this, right? What are you talking about now?”

She then lifted a glass of champagne that was passing by and stepped closer to his arms. Daniel, startled, nodded his head and spread his arms wide as Azela obeyed his offer. It was a look that said, ‘As expected, you too are forced to come back to me.’

The next moment, she held in Daniel’s arms before quietly pouring the champagne she was holding on onto his unbuttoned chest without a moment’s hesitation. Because the two were so close, no one else could see her actions.

Daniel lowered his gaze down as his chest suddenly got cold and wet.

“Azela.”

“But, you know what? You’d think you abandoned me by bringing Sylvia…”

Azela, who had poured the empty glass, placed the empty glass into Daniel’s hand and smiled at him. He frowned as the champagne became gooey and damp. Nonetheless, he could not shout at her even once, perhaps because he was conscious of the gazes around him.

“Though by bringing Sylvia… You have been abandoned by me.”

Drawing a pretty smile as if she had expected Daniel’s reaction, Azela whispered in a seductive voice. She continued her words towards Daniel, who was speechless and bewildered by her voice.

“Are you saying that I am shining because you are by my side?”

“….”

“Daniel, you really… tend to overestimate yourself sometimes.”

She covered her mouth with her hand, clenching her fist lightly as she let out a small sneer.

Daniel wanted to push Azala, who was close to his arms, right away, but for some reason, he couldn’t easily push her away. It was because she stood strong on her two legs, as strong as when she was a knight in the past.

Seeing that, he frowned. She wouldn’t even have a training ground to practice, and he’d never seen her practice her sword…

…Nonetheless, when did she get so strong?

Daniel stared at Azela bewilderedly. Come to think of it, her face looked different from her usual one, perhaps because she had gained weight recently. When did she get back to her past like this…?

His green eyes fluttered.

“Daniel.”

At the same time, Azela stared straight at him with unshakable blue eyes and continued, “I was a bright person from the beginning. I just met you and got overshadowed for a while.”

“….”

“I will return to my shining place again.”

“Azela.”

“You’re going down, and I’m going to go up.”

She lifted her toes and whispered softly and sweetly into Daniel’s ear.

“Even if you go and get down on your knees and beg me…”

“….”

“There is no place for you there.”

—

Thank you so much for always supporting the novels I work on, even if you don’t buy me a coffee, I really do appreciate it a lot. ❤︎

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