Chapter 101: 101 — Meeting Her Previous Fiancé

"King Alistair De Luminas, son of the eleventh king of Eldoria, Caylan De Luminas and the twelfth Queen of Eldoria, Gloria De Luminas Dorlan, do you take Saya Ramsel, daughter of Duke Ramsel Jihan..." The priest paused, not finding the mother’s name.

He glanced towards Duke Ramsel, his expression clearly asking for an explanation.

Whispers began to circulate among the crowd whose smiles dropped, perplexed.

"What is going on?"

"Why did the priest suddenly stop?"

Standing among the crowd, Lucian and Cynthia glanced at each other, also wondering what happened for the priest to suddenly stop performing the ritual.

"Proceed," Alistair commanded.

"But—"

"Keep going," Alistair smiled at the priest. He did not want any hindrance in this marriage. "Or I can ask another priest to perform the ritual."

"I beg your pardon, Your Majesty... I shall continue," the middle-aged man bowed softly before proceeding.

"King Alistair De Luminas, son of the eleventh king of Eldoria, Caylan De Luminas and the twelfth Queen of Eldoria, Gloria De Luminas Dorlan, do you take Saya Ramsel, daughter of Duke Ramsel Jihan as your wedded wife? Do you vow to hold onto her hand for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?"

"I, Alistair De Luminas, take Saya Ramsel as my wedded wife."

"Saya Ramsel, Daughter of Duke Ramsel Jihan, do you take King Alistair De Luminas as your wedded husband? Do you vow to hold onto her hand for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?"

Saya nodded, before parting her lips.

"I, Saya Ramsel take King Alistair De Luminas as my husband."

"Now, bring the rings," the priest ordered the servants standing beside the king.

The ceremony ended briefly after the vows. The priest had asked them to exchange rings and share a kiss to seal their vows.

The crowd cheered for the new queen along with the king. Their joy couldn’t be hidden for a reason Cynthia couldn’t understand.

She stood at the side, her lips curling into a grin. It seemed the marriages she hated so much were as bad as she believed them to be. Perhaps it was because no one had picked on her nor tried to look down on her as they did in her past life.

"My, we meet again, Your Highness," a familiar voice spoke.

Raising an eyebrow, Cynthia turned to face the man behind her.

"Duke Dorian?"

"Have you forgotten my face for you to act as if you are unsure if it is me?" Duke Dorian chuckled, stepping closer to Cynthia.

"I have faces to remember from my past life. You are so irrelevant in both of my lives," she wished to say, the words threatening to escape her. Her eyes flickered with irritation at the sight of him although she kept a smile on her face.

"Strange... you have never smiled before. You always had that gloomy expression whenever we met," the man narrowed his eyes, clearly scanning her face closely.

Cynthia did not reply to him. She could easily answer back to his every taunt but he wasn’t worth her time or effort.

"Is that illegitimate prince any better than me? To have you smiling like that, Your Highness?" Duke Dorian reached for her face, causing Cynthia to step back, the smile she forced on her face disappeared in the blink of an eye, her gaze intensifying.

"Hah! That’s the look you always had back then."

"I doubt it’s any of your concern."

"I’m certain that man is with you only because he cannot afford another war."

Cynthia pursed her lips, her gaze dropping for a second. He was right. The only reason why Lucian hadn’t divorced yet was because he did not want another war. Otherwise, he would already have divorced her.

Clenching her fists, she looked up at the taller young man.

"How is your lover?" She asked. "Did she leave you because you were incompetent in bed?"

Duke Dorian’s face flushed red, his body trembling in fury.

"Y-You are as vulgar as always!"

Cynthia grinned, satisfied to see him frustrated.

Lucian, who had been watching from afar couldn’t help but wonder what was happening.

That man...

"It’s her fiance. I mean, he was her fiance before she married you," Vincent walked towards Lucian.

"Is that so?" Lucian’s gaze did not shift toward the man standing beside him. He kept staring at Cynthia who showed expressions he did not see on her apart from her smiling one, and sometimes the frown she would occasionally let show on her complexion.

For a brief moment, she seemed... sad about something, making him wonder what it could be. His mind raced as he tried to figure out an answer.

"Is it because she is married to me, instead of him?" He mused.

"You should go and see her, don’t you think? She might be having trouble dealing with him alone."

Lucian scoffed, his gaze finally shifting towards Vincent.

"She can’t handle him? Why do you think so? Did you not train your sister to be good at fighting?"

Vincent narrowed his eyes, trying to make sense of Lucian’s words.

"Did you... see her fight someone?" The hesitation in his question could not be hidden. It was evident Cynthia never mentioned anything about it to her brother.

"A demon."

Vincent chuckled, confusing Vincent. He was certain he would get mad at him for putting his sister’s life in danger, such as he did when Arisia had gone missing.

"Aren’t you afraid she had gotten hurt?"

"It’s alright. She can handle that much," Vincent smiled, crossing his arms proudly.

He watched his sister fight countless times however, seeing even her husband didn’t seem to dare stop only showed how strong Cynthis was. He always wanted her to be the commander of the royal knights, however, it wasn’t possible as she had gotten married as soon as the war ended. He tried to object to it but Cynthia refused to listen to anyone. Not only could she wield a sword, she could now use magic as well.

"My sister is the best!" Was all he could think.

Once he snapped out of his thoughts, he realized Lucian had already left.

"Where did he go?" He wondered, looking around but in vain.

Letting out a deep sigh, he grabbed a glass of wine.

"Let’s enjoy the ceremony while it lasts."

***

"Your Highness," Lucian called out, rushing towards Cynthia. His furrowed brows made it evident that he was furious.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing here? I have been looking for you," he stood beside her, facing Duke Dorian.

"I was having a small talk with Duke Dorian, isn’t that right?" Cynthia grinned, wrapping her arms around his. "Oh! Duke Dorian, I don’t see Lady Valentine with you," she sneered.

"She is..." Duke Dorian clenched his fists, averting his gaze.

"What is it?"

"It’s all because of you!" The man shouted, causing those around them to look their way.

Acting as if she was taken by surprise, Cynthia placed a hand on her chest.

"My, you are scaring me, Duke. What could I have done to you?"

"The king has exiled her! And he..." Duke Dorian clenched his jaw, clearly trying to talk about it further. "I’m certain you know about it! You evil woman..." He gritted between his teeth.

Cynthia parted her lips to speak but halted once she felt her hands slip from Lucian’s arm. He deliberately pulled himself away from her grip, causing her expression to darken.

Does he hate me touching him that much? It’s not like I want it...

Just as she was about to try speaking again, Lucian grabbed Duke Dorian by the collar.

"You should not insult her like this, Even if she is now married, she is still the princess of Eldoria. How dare you show her such disrespect? Do you not value your life... Duke?"

Cynthia blinked repeatedly, confused by Lucian’s sudden reaction. She had never seen him furious enough to grab someone by their collar.

However, she quickly pulled him away from the duke, glaring at him.

"What are you doing, Your Highness? People are looking. Remember why we are here," she spoke in a low tone.

"Why aren’t you saying anything? He is insulting you as he pleases," his voice softened compared to earlier when he spoke to the Duke.

Cynthia shook her head in disbelief. What was wrong with this man?

"Duke Dorian. I hope we never meet again," she glared at him. "If you ever see me, I hope you remember that night," she curled her lips into a smile.

Feeling shivers run down his spine, recalling the night she held a sword at his throat, Duke Dorian rushed out of the wedding hall.

"What night?" Lucian demanded, his voice turning icy once again.

"It’s nothing important. However, you need to explain your behaviour just now."

Lucian stepped closer to hear, leaning against his ear, whispering.

"You asked me to come here so that we can show that our marriage is working just fine. However, do tell me, which husband would stand by and watch his wife being looked down upon?"

"You," Cynthia replied, looking up at him.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read