CH 22

On this particular day in the novel, Cladis fell in love with Luciella, and the day after asked her out at the Glass garden. Like most romance novels, their encounter was special. It was one of the main events in the novel where Cladis accepts Ella to be his destiny. 

At this rate, Cladis will never ask her out. She had only one choice left. ‘If he doesn’t ask me out, then I’ll go there myself,’ Ella thought as she clenched her fist. She felt guilty for using Cullan, but she had no other choice. She couldn’t give up on the perfect life promised to her by marrying Cladis, so she had to do it before it was too late. Fortunately for her, Cullan nodded without much suspicion. He accepted her request as though he expected her to ask him. 

“I see… I’m also interested in Martinic designs. We’ll head there first then. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thank you. I’m looking forward to it.”

Cullan smiled and began walking away from her. After watching him leave, Ella returned to the terrace and pulled the curtain down to hide behind it. She needed time to be alone. As she sank down onto the couch on the terrace, she felt a breeze, which freed her from her thoughts. A sarcastic smile, unfitting for a lady, appeared on her face. 

She should have been wary that things were working out so perfectly for her. Ella remembered seeing Cladis and Clara walking away with bright smiles. It looked like her supposed happy life had now disappeared. It was apparent that she needed to work on a different approach to return to that life. Did she need to court him instead?

“Can I do this?”

She wasn’t good at this at all. Her plan so far had failed miserably. She was hoping that everything would all go according to her plan. Unexpectedly, she now had a date with Cullan, and she wasn’t prepared at all for this. She then thought about Clara flirting with Cladis. It felt like she had the power to make this man fall in love with her. She sighed.

Ella never thought she would have to worry about Clara. Originally Clara was the villain’s best friend. Who would have thought that she was now the protagonist’s best friend? Cladis even looked at her so kindly. It was difficult to believe. From what she read, Clara wasn’t even the prince’s type. In addition, he wasn’t the type to flirt, and the only woman he loved was Luciella. In the novel, many men loved Luciella, but she never paid attention to them. Cladis was the only one for her. It was the same for him too. Their love for each other was strong. Ranhee was envious of such love.

She remembered the way Cladis had looked at Clara. It was the same look that was supposed to be for Luciella. Ella bit her lip. It wasn’t like she only liked him for his handsome looks, or she had feelings for him. He was supposed to be Luciella’s prince, not Ranhee’s. But still, it angered her. She wanted to hold back, but she couldn’t. Her anger caused her to bite even harder, which made her lip bleed. The taste of blood filled her mouth.

‘What went wrong? What made him change so much?’ Ella began thinking about the possible reasons. She tried to think about the events from the novel and compared them to what she experienced since becoming Luciella. What was different? Pretty soon, the answer came to her. 

Clara D. Con Mellin.

“She must be the problem.”

Her instinct was telling her that Clara did something to change Cladis. She wasn’t sure how much this world was deviating from the novel, but it was certain that Clara going to the Academy changed him. Clara becoming friends with Cladis and Cullan must have changed the plot. If so, what changed her so much? She needed to know why Clara entered the Academy. 

“Ethan. I should ask him.”

If Clara was close to Cladis, then that meant her brother knew her. Maybe Ethan already knew the reason. Even if he didn’t, he was the only one who could give her the information that she needed. Ella immediately stood up. Maybe Cullan had told her brother where she was? Even so, she couldn’t wait for him. She had to ask Ethan right away. As soon as she was about to leave, the terrace door opened.