Chapter 79: Chapter 29. Just for you

At that moment, while Mag was shifting uncertainly from one foot to the other, Jacob Osman spoke up for the first time in all this time. He came forward and spoke with a gloomy face.

— Your Highness, we accompanied the lady on a walk.

— A walk? — Kaena asked, frowning.

— yes... We went out for a while, just to walk around the neighborhood, — the knight added after some hesitation.

«.....»

The pause that followed these words was quite heavy.

Kaena de Ronan did not take her eyes off her subordinate. And, to be honest, if the main villain’s gaze had been directed at me, I would have fainted from fright a long time ago. But Jacob, surprisingly, stood firm and only bowed his head obediently.

I couldn’t figure out what caused this strange atmosphere. Unless the Crown Princess was unhappy that her subordinates had taken her prisoner outside the castle without her permission. In that case, I could have been dealt out because of this prank.

However, at the moment when even I was starting to worry, the princess finally looked at me again. The next moment, she smiled softly.

— Camille.

— Y-yes? — I stammered.

— You’ve just returned from a walk, and you must be tired. You should go to your room and rest.

"Huh? What?"

I blinked my eyes absently.

Did everything work out and I really won’t be punished...? It seems like I got lucky, and the Crown Princess returned from her trip in a pretty good mood. So it was right for me not to take this chance.

— In that case... Please forgive me, Your Highness.

Kaena nodded curtly. After that, I hesitantly looked back once more and headed back to the castle. Kaena and the knights of the Dark Host were left alone in the middle of the courtyard.

— You can go now.

The main villain said it almost immediately, without even looking in his direction. Mag, blinking in surprise, was ready to exhale with relief. Without wasting a second, he also hurriedly retreated from here.

However, there was no similar order for Jacob Osman. Kaena de Ronan stared at her commander for a long time, and he was ready to meet that gaze.

— What’s that supposed to mean? — The princess asked after a while.

— ...

— Do your recent actions mean that you have decided to resign your position and die? — Kaena softly pronounced each word in a cold tone.

Jacob shuddered involuntarily, and he had nothing to say to that. Of course, the Crown Princess was already aware of what had happened since she returned to her residence. Since the lands of Haylos belonged to her, there wasn’t a single place here that wasn’t under her supervision. In other words, the shadow spies had already informed the woman about the incident.

So there was no point in Jacob making excuses right now.

— Your Highness, I... — the man paused.

— At what point did you start to forget about your place? Do you really think you have the right to make such decisions?

Kaena de Ronan’s every word was like a thunderclap. And the knight could hardly resist him.

— me...

— Do you have anything else to say? Should these be the last words before your death?

Jacob Osman finally made up his mind and looked up. In the next moment, he looked at the Crown Princess firmly.

— Your Highness, I only did this for one reason... And that’s the only reason I came back for this woman, — he said after a moment’s hesitation.

Kaena de Ronan frowned.

— Do I really have to ask about that reason?

— Your Highness. In this life, everything I’ve ever done has been just for you.

— .....

— Therefore, even if you want to take my life, I will accept it with honor. After all, it is my duty as a knight of the Dark Host to serve you from beginning to end.

The cold wind that was blowing at this time swept by.

— I just hope that the woman you’re going to marry really deserves it...

— That’s enough.

Kaena coldly cut him off before the knight could finish. She gave the next order almost without hesitation:

— Take him away. Jacob Osman will be sentenced to death tomorrow morning for going against my orders and betraying me.

***

It has been several days since the organization of the unsuccessful birthday party of the northern Duchess. And since nothing worse had happened these days, Jeremy decided that he had managed to avoid trouble.

"It looks like this woman isn’t going to kill me for what I’ve done..."

Exhaling with some relief because of this, the baron’s youngest son returned to his usual rhythm of life. While doing the routine work with the archives in the library, the guy had at least something to do to distract himself from the same thoughts.

However, what he definitely did not expect was that one day the butler would pay him a visit. At first, Jeremy thought it was related to his duties.

— Sir Phillips, I haven’t finished with the documents you gave me two days ago...

But to his surprise, the pedantic old man expressed something completely different.

— My Lord, Her Ladyship would like to see you at dinner tonight.

— what? At dinner?

For a moment, Jeremy thought he’d misheard.

— yes. So please don’t be late.

A not very pleasant expression appeared on the butler’s face.

— ...Good.

As a result, this unexpected announcement occupied all of Jeremy’s thoughts for the rest of the day. He couldn’t understand why the northern duchess would suddenly decide to meet him, and even for dinner. Is it really because of the incident that happened a few days ago...?

In other words, this thought made the northern prince quite nervous.

Arriving at the dining room at the appointed time, Jeremy saw that his wife was already there. So the guy just quietly took his place.

— Why did you sit so far away?

Selina noticed that Jeremy sat at the other end of the table, which was quite long, which made such a distance really seem big.

— Ah... I... — the guy hesitated.

— Are you really afraid that I might eat you?

The Duchess of the north chuckled icily.

— no... Not at all!

Jeremy got up and hurriedly pushed the cutlery closer, after which he sat down at the table with a frozen heart. When the food began to arrive in the dining room, Jeremy couldn’t even focus on it, continuing to think about only one thing.

— Your Highness... Why did you suddenly invite me to this dinner? — after hesitating, he finally decided to ask about it.

Selina replied without taking her eyes off her plate, on which she was butchering fish.

— You haven’t brought me reports on your work for several days, — the woman remarked, — so I decided to invite you.

— Ah... that...

— Besides, I didn’t have any other time to talk today, so I decided to do it over dinner. Do you have something against it?

— no! Absolutely not!

Realizing the reason for this unexpected meeting, the baron’s youngest son calmed down a little and began to behave more calmly.

They talked for a while about Jeremy’s work, and then there was silence in the dining room for a while. And then Jeremy noticed that there was something sparkling on the Duchess’s finger. "Is this really the ring I gave her?"— Jeremy was stunned by this.

Of course, he didn’t expect Selina de Loon to actually wear it.

— Why are you looking at me like that? — very soon, or almost immediately, Selina noticed her husband’s gaze directed at her.

Jeremy hesitated for a moment.

— It’s simple... I didn’t expect you to actually wear this ring. I’m glad you like it! — He exclaimed excitedly.

«...»

The woman gave him a strange look.

— It’s not that, — the Duchess furrowed her brows, — I’m only wearing it because you said it belonged to your mother. It’s customary in the north to pay homage to one’s ancestors, and I decided to do it this way because I can’t see her in person.

After Selina’s patient explanation, the guy opened and closed his mouth several times.

— Ah... so that’s how it is, — Jeremy finally nodded understandingly.

At the same time, an involuntary smile appeared on his face. That was a good sign. It seems that his efforts to improve their relationship were not as futile as it might seem at first glance. In that case... Was it possible to go a little further now?

After hesitating for a moment, Jeremy Seibel decided to approach the Duchess of the North again, but this time with a proposal:

— Your Highness... Maybe we should have lunch together more often.

«.....»

The woman’s bluish-purple eyes flashed at his words.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read