Chapter 140: Two Dates, Two Fates

Chapter 140: Chapter 140: Two Dates, Two Fates

Elysia watched calmly as the triumph in Deborah’s eyes swiftly dissolved into anger and humiliation.

A slight smile touched her lips.

She had not intended to provoke Deborah.

But if Deborah insisted on treating her as a rival, Elysia saw no reason to make herself smaller merely to accommodate her.

"Don’t you agree?"

Deborah swallowed the disgust rising in her throat.

For a moment, she wanted to refuse.

But with Ilara sitting beside her, she could hardly lose her temper.

"Yes..."

The answer was reluctant and stiff.

Only then did Elysia feel satisfied.

She had no intention of making an enemy of Deborah.

She simply wanted her to understand that whatever grievances she carried, Elysia would not be intimidated by them.

"Duchess, please, sit."

Ilara smiled benignly, apparently oblivious to the tension between the two young women.

Having made her point, Elysia said no more.

She gracefully took a seat to the side.

Deborah, however, could no longer sit comfortably.

She bit her lip before rising.

"Your Majesty, if I may be excused for a moment..."

"Of course, my dear."

Ilara permitted her with a gentle smile.

Deborah bowed respectfully.

The moment she stepped outside the hall, the compliant expression vanished from her face.

Her features twisted with resentment, and the pleasant smile she had worn before Ilara disappeared completely.

She gritted her teeth.

"That damned bitch..."

"My lady."

Her maid, Gwen, hurried towards her.

Deborah turned sharply.

Gwen lowered her voice.

"Why don’t I swing by the entrance of the Crown Prince’s Wing?"

Deborah gave her a suspicious look.

"Why go there? Are you trying to catch the Crown Prince’s eye yourself?"

Gwen immediately shook her head.

"I wouldn’t dare!"

She glanced around before continuing.

"I’m not going to meet His Highness. I only want the people from the Crown Prince’s Wing to see me."

Deborah’s expression changed as she understood.

"That way, His Highness will know you’re in the palace." Gwen said.

A calculating smile appeared on Deborah’s lips.

"If His Highness knows I’m with Her Majesty, he’ll surely come to see me immediately."

"Yes, my lady."

Gwen nodded eagerly.

"And if His Highness sees the Duchess treating you unkindly with his own eyes, he will feel even greater sympathy for you."

Her smile became more knowing.

"And greater dislike for her."

Deborah’s lips curved upwards.

The irritation she had felt only moments ago began to fade.

If Vaelen came to see her now, she could make him understand just how poorly Elysia had treated her.

Perhaps then he would remember who the woman he was about to marry truly was.

She glanced at her maid.

"Then what are you waiting for?"

"Yes, my lady!"

Gwen smiled and hurried away.

---

At the Crown Prince’s Wing, Vaelen was in his study.

He sat behind his desk, but the documents before him had received very little attention.

His brows were furrowed as he stared distractedly through the window.

Rain continued to fall outside.

The sound was soft against the glass, yet it only added to his irritation.

The words Donovan had spoken yesterday still echoed in his ears.

Vaelen, while her knee pain may have nothing to do with me, they do have something to do with you.

You should visit her more or atleast send her something as a gesture.

After all, she was injured saving you.

Vaelen’s fingers tightened slightly against the edge of the desk.

The events of that day on the street remained vivid in his memory.

He remembered Elysia shoving him aside.

He remembered her being tossed into the air and her legs striking the ground with a sickening thud.

He remembered the way she had been unable to stand afterwards.

And, most annoyingly of all, he remembered his own reaction.

The panic.

The worry.

The anxiety before she opened her eyes and then the moment she did, his own impassioned declaration.

He had gripped her hand and promised loudly, "I’ll be responsible for you!"

Vaelen’s expression darkened.

Why did he keep remembering it?

He pressed his fingers against his temple.

It was only because the incident had been so sudden.

Anyone would have been shaken after witnessing something like that.

That had to be all it was.

He was still trying to convince himself when hushed voices drifted in from outside.

"On my way back just now, I saw Lady Deborah’s maid outside..."

Another servant responded,

"Shouldn’t Lady Deborah be at Everbloom Hall? Why would her maid come here?"

Vaelen sneered inwardly.

Deborah was at the palace to select a wedding date with his mother.

Everbloom Hall was some distance from the Crown Prince’s Wing.

So why would Deborah’s maid come here?

The answer was obvious.

She was trying to lure him over.

Such a crude tactic.

Vaelen had always disliked rain.

Walking outside for even a short while would soak his shoes and stockings, and the thought alone was enough to make him uncomfortable.

He had no desire to leave his study.

The servants outside continued speaking.

"I heard Her Majesty also invited the Duchess of Draevenor today."

Elysia?

Vaelen stiffened.

His gaze shifted towards the door.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Then his mind returned to the scene from that day.

Elysia lying on the bed.

Her legs in splints.

The pain she had tried to hide.

And Donovan’s words.

They do have something to do with you.

Vaelen’s jaw tightened.

He did not know why the thought of Elysia being at the palace suddenly made him restless.

Perhaps she would leave before he had a chance to speak to her.

Perhaps—

Screech!

The sharp sound of his chair scraping against the floor interrupted his thoughts.

Vaelen shot to his feet.

"Attendant!"

A servant hurried inside.

"Your Highness?"

"Fetch a cloak."

The servant looked puzzled.

"Your Highness, are you going out?"

Vaelen gritted his teeth.

"I..."

He hesitated.

Then forced the words out.

"I am going to pay my respects to my mother."

The servant blinked.

"But it’s afternoon..."

Respects were usually paid in the morning and evening.

An afternoon visit was unusual.

A flicker of guilt crossed Vaelen’s eyes.

He immediately covered it with an irritated expression.

"What? I need your permission now?"

The servant quickly bowed his head.

"I wouldn’t dare."

"Then fetch the cloak! Now!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

The servant hurried away.

Vaelen glanced towards the window.

The rain was still falling.

He frowned.

Any later, and Elysia might leave.

---

Back in Everbloom Hall, Elysia made polite, intermittent conversation with Ilara.

She held a cup in her hands but had not taken a single sip.

She had little interest in the tea.

Her attention remained on the room and the people within it.

Before long, the doors opened again.

Deborah returned.

There was a smile on her lips as she resumed her seat beside Ilara, her earlier anger carefully concealed.

Elysia looked at her calmly.

Here comes another nasty scheme.

She did not need to know what Deborah had been doing outside.

The sudden change in her expression was enough to tell Elysia that she had certainly not gone out simply to compose herself.

"Your Majesty."

A well-dressed senior maid entered the hall, carrying a tray.

Ilara turned towards Elysia with a smile.

"I had them select several auspicious dates for the wedding. Today, Deborah and I will choose a suitable one."

Elysia lowered her gaze to the tray.

There were two slips of paper.

The senior maid carefully placed them before Ilara.

"November the Sixteenth."

"February the Twenty-Second"

Elysia’s brow arched slightly.

Both dates were familiar.

Far more familiar than they should have been.

The first date was deeply imprinted in her memory.

November the Sixteenth.

It was the day she had pushed Vaelen aside on the street.

The day that began all the pain she had been enduring.

It was also the date of her homecoming visit after marrying Vaelen in her previous life.

Elysia’s fingers tightened slightly around her cup.

That day, Caelvyr had been besieged by a terrible storm, even worse than the one that had struck on the thirteenth.

The rain had come down relentlessly.

The roads had been nearly impossible to travel.

Vaelen had accompanied her to Hartwell Manor despite the weather.

And when they returned, he had developed a high fever that lasted for several days.

At the time, Elysia had been deeply worried about him.

She had stayed by his side and cared for him without complaint.

How ironic that such an ordinary date could now carry so many memories.

Her gaze shifted to the second slip.

February the Twenty-Second.

That date was significant as well.

Unlike November the Sixteenth, it was associated with clear skies and bright sunshine.

There had been reports of auspicious signs discovered in the northern mountains that day.

Everything had seemed favourable.

Even the weather had appeared to bless the occasion.

Elysia looked at the two dates in silence.

One carried memories of storms, pain, and a fever that had lasted for days.

The other had once been associated with sunshine and auspicious omens.

Yet both dates now sat quietly on the same tray, waiting for Deborah and Ilara to decide which one would become the wedding day.

Elysia’s expression remained composed.

She simply waited to see which date they would choose.