Chapter 89

***

Evening came, and Ellea and Bellea went out together for dinner with Terban.

The cool breeze felt good.

“Aren’t you nervous because it’s an official meeting with His Majesty?”

“Actually, a little. This is the first time I’ve been to a foreign country on behalf of father. Father asked me to do this so I must never make a mistake in front of His Majesty.”

“Is father worried about you by now?”

Ellea laughed and said so, Bellea knew she was trying to relieve his tension.

“Are you saying that on purpose?”

“Are you relaxed?”

“Thanks to you.”

However, it did not change that Terban was not an easy opponent. (*I doubt it, Bellea. He’s just dumb.)

It was a brief moment when they first met, but he felt that the emperor of Rubain could not be easily approached. Words could not explain the feelings.

‘After all, the emperor is the emperor.’

Bellea knew he would be no match for the Emperor Terban, but he was determined not to back down easily as long as he had something to protect. (*have confidence in yourself, Bellea. You’re actually much smarter than him. You already figured out who was the culprit even though you live a thousand miles away!)

He moved to the promised supper, with only his one goal in mind.

When the two arrived, the knight guarding the entrance politely opened the door.

When the door opened, the first thing they saw was a long table where many people could be seated.

The lights on the ceiling and the candles on the walls created a subtle yet solemn atmosphere. The two sat facing each other on either side of the top seats, guided by the maid. Terban had not arrived yet.

The thought of having a meal with only three of them in this spacious place reminded Ellea of the first time she ate with Terban alone.

‘Even then, I felt like I was suffocating.’

Bellea had similar thoughts.

“I feel like I’m going to get an upset stomach today.”

“You think so, too. Even though it looks gorgeous, it isn’t Zevenica. The atmosphere is different when you eat with your family.”

“Well, it’s how it is with your family.”

“I miss it more than anything else. The time we all ate together.”

No matter how busy they were, it was their daily routine at Zevenica to end the day with family at least for one meal.

She felt firsthand that the atmosphere itself was different from when she was able to eat comfortably.

Then the door opened again and Terban came in, and the two siblings got up and greeted him with courtesy.

“I see you, Your Majesty.”

“It’s okay, sit down.”

As the two of them sat down, Terban asked Bellea.

“Are there any inconveniences where you are staying?”

“I had come so unexpectedly, but it was well prepared.”

“I’m glad you’re satisfied.”

After a few words of conversation, the servants began to place food on the long table.

“You must be hungry, so let’s eat.”

“Thank you.”

The conversation was paused and the three began to eat slowly. The food was as delicious as it looked.

“Does the food suit your taste?”

“Yes, it’s very good.”

Bellea was eating delicious food without knowing that he was nervous.

Terban strangely could see Ellea in that figure.

Perhaps because they were twins, but they were familiar not only in appearance but also in behavior.

In particular, the way they eat enthusiastically, even in very uncomfortable places, was very similar. Even though they were adults, their innocent appearance as children still remained.

‘The Crown Prince is still the same.’

Terban looked at the two of them in turn and ate the food, barely holding back his laughter.

Bellea opened the door to the conversation first in a more relaxed atmosphere than at the beginning.

“I can see why Ellea liked it here so much.”

“Did the princess say that?”

“Yes. Sometimes she tells me stories here, and I also enjoy reading her letters.”

All of a sudden, Ellea was embarrassed and wanted Bellea ro stop talking. She was afraid he would say something strange.

It was because it was like secret stories she had only told him. Sometimes, she wrote a lot of complaints. 

‘Earlier, you said that you would be careful.’

Ellea gave up stopping him and concentrated on eating. At first she ate it without thinking much, but there was something that stood out.

‘Come to think of it.’

Unlike last time, the food was cut into small pieces for easy eating. Meat, vegetables, and seafood.

‘No way…… .’

It seemed that Terban was considerate of her injured shoulder. Ellea’s head turned to Terban, who was talking to Bellea. Did he feel her gaze?

Their eyes met. She was slightly embarrassed and pointed to the food she was eating. Then she made a shape of her mouth, saying.

‘Thank you. ‘

Terban also had a smile that only she could tell as he knew what it meant.

As Ellea predicted, Terban had given instructions to the chef in advance

Seeing Ellea smiling while eating, Bellea, who was sitting opposite her, was just puzzled.

“Why are you smiling all of a sudden, Ellea?”

“Yes? It’s because the food is delicious. Haha.”

“You must have been very hungry.”

Bellea thought it was just because she was hungry, so he gave her some food that she might like.

“Eat a lot. You are still not well.”

“I’m fine.”

“When you are sick, eating well is the most important thing.”

Terban only watched the two wrestling in front of him. It was an unfamiliar situation for him, who was used to being alone until now.

It was interesting to see the siblings taking care of each other, but there was also a feeling of envy on a corner of his heart.

It was something that he had never experienced in his family.

During her conversation with Bellea, Ellea expressed her apologies to Terban.

“I’m sorry. Did we make too much noise?”

That’s fine. You two are still on good terms. Then and now.”

“Then?”

“I saw it often when I was in Zevenica.”

“Your Majesty remembers it too. I too remember when I was young, but not everything.”

Bellea seemed to be glad that Terban remembered him. At that time, Terban seemed mature even though he was very young.

“You followed me to the point of embarrassment, so you can’t not know even if you don’t remember.”

“I also heard it from my parents. At that time, I followed Your Majesty constantly. I don’t even know why I did that.”

At that time, Terban had spent more time with Bellea than with Ellea, who was ill.

From his point of view, he couldn’t treat Bellea recklessly, but he only had a hard time figuring out how to treat him, seeing the innocent child’s eyes.

He might have been comfortable with the fact that he didn’t care that he was the prince of another country. And the years went by like that. 

“Even then, he came to me and told me that he was worried about the Princess.”

“Did I? It’s a little embarrassing.”

“Well, it was when you were young. How are the emperor and empress of Zevenica?”

“Yes, both of them are doing well.”

After dinner, it was tea time. Naturally, the topic of conversation moved on to something else.

***

“On the border between Zevenica and Rubain…..”

The atmosphere at the dining hall was also quite serious. Bellea continued the conversation with Terban calmly, even though it was a rather heavy topic.

‘It’s better than I thought.’

Ellea was also paying attention to the conversation between the two of them, but it was then that Bellea brought up an unexpected subject.

“As you know, the reason I wrote that I wanted to visit Rubain was because of the accident that injured Ellea. To be more precise, it should be said that it was intentional, not an accident.”

Ellea tried to stop him when he tried to mention what had happened at the riding competition.

“Bellea, about that… .”

“Ellea, you stay still. I want to hear what His Majesty has to say.”

As if he had made up his mind, he firmly stopped Ellea and stared at Terban.

He wanted to get a definitive answer from Terban.

“Now that the culprit is dead, Ellea didn’t want things to get bigger anymore, but I do. Ellea is as precious as the entire empire.”

“What do you want to say?”

“Honestly, I was upset when I heard about this. Of course, I was worried.”

Bellea had made a decision from the moment he decided to come to Rubain. Even if his opponent was the emperor, he would never give up if it was for the sake of Ellea.

Terban calmly waited for him to speak.

“If Ellea gets hurt or injured again, I plan to take her back to Zevenica.”

“Then you’re breaking the promise, do you know how dangerous that statement is?”

At Terban’s overbearing voice, the atmosphere at the banquet hall subsided in an instant. But Bellea didn’t retreat easily.

“Yes, I know what it means better than anyone.”

In the tense atmosphere that seemed like they would fight at any moment, Ellea felt suffocated.

‘Bellea came here with this in mind from the beginning.’

Despite Terban’s warning, Bellea carried out his thoughts without wavering.

“If I can’t protect my family, how am I going to protect and rule Zevenica?

“Bellea…..”

Ellea also felt Bellea’s will and faith, so she couldn’t stop him anymore.

The only thing she was worried about was what would happen after this talk.

Terban, who had been silently listening until then, finally opened his mouth.

“I don’t know if you’re reckless or brave.”

Surprisingly, there was a slight laugh in his voice. With that alone, the tense atmosphere that had just filled the space had subsided. 

However, Bellea did not slow down until the end.

“I’d say it’s both.”

“After all, the Crown Prince hasn’t changed at all.”

‘Is it better than that?’

Bellea, who was a child in Terban’s memory, had become an adult, but her heart still remained as time passed.

That determination to become strong to protect his younger sister.

“You rushed in to try and beat me even though you knew you couldn’t have done it at all. Just like now.” 

“I don’t know in the past, but now I am much stronger than I was then. Obviously.”

Bellea wouldn’t know.

At that moment in the past when Terban faced Bellea’s resolve, Terban himself was ashamed and couldn’t look at his shining eyes.

***

(*well, it’s the same now Terban, you should be even more ashamed because as an adult, you’re sucked. I’ve never seen any ML as weak and dumb as Terban. Chaylen and Bellea have all the qualities to be MLs, which Terban lacks. Does this author want to go against all the strong and smart, caring MLs and create a new history of a weak ML actually existing? If that’s his purpose, he succeeded.)