TMLOP 64

Chapter 64

The Male Lead Is Obsessed with Proposing

58. The Reason I Can’t Trust That Love

“Marianne, no matter how close you are to Her Highness the Duchess, it’s inappropriate to behave like this,” the head maid said, frowning.

Marianne gasped for breath and apologized.

“I’m sorry… huff… Your Highness, Duchess… huff… there’s something urgent I must convey…”

“Wait a moment, Head Maid.”

Senelia stepped in front of Meizia to stop her.

Marianne had always been cautious since coming from the townhouse to the Dafnen estate, worried that she might inconvenience her lady.

It was unthinkable for someone like her to suddenly act so rudely.

“Marianne, what is it?”

Senelia asked, handing a glass of water to Amelia.

Only after gulping down the water did Amelia finally speak.

“Milady, they said the wedding has been postponed unexpectedly.”

Senelia’s expression immediately stiffened.

All sorts of scenarios ran through her mind.

“Could it be that Ben has reconsidered marrying me…?”

Among all the possibilities, the worst-case scenario Senelia imagined was that.

But fortunately—or unfortunately—Marianne’s explanation that followed was not the worst Senelia had feared.

“The palace just informed us that due to the hunting festival being moved up, His Highness the Duke’s wedding will have to be postponed to next month,” Marianne said, visibly uneasy.

Senelia’s expression stiffened as well.

The royal hunting festival had originally been scheduled for next month.

Since the Venelucia family had been preparing the wedding ever since the initial proposal, and had poured in all kinds of resources to expedite it, the Duke’s wedding had been planned for the end of this month.

When the nation had many events, the treasury could be excessively drained.

So, the Empire had laws stipulating that events should be spaced at least one month apart, preferably two months, to prevent overlap.

As a royal event, Venelucia’s wedding was naturally considered a state affair.

Thus, the hunting festival and the Duke’s wedding could not be held in the same month.

The reason Cliff had deliberately sent Lukalina to the royal hunting grounds in the first place was for this very reason.

The festival had only been scheduled for the end of next month.

Without ulterior motives, there was no need to send knights to check the hunting grounds a whole month in advance.

But since things did not go as planned, Cliff ultimately moved up the festival, forcing the wedding to be postponed.

Either way, this would spark rumors among the nobles.

That the Emperor did not favor the Duke’s wedding.

Such rumors were never beneficial.

Who would celebrate a marriage not blessed by the Emperor?

“…What did His Highness the Duke say?”

After a long silence, Senelia asked.

If the news reached her, Venelucia would have already been informed.

“Well…”

Marianne hesitated even more than before.

Not just Senelia, but the head maid and other maids froze, watching her closely.

“It’s alright, you can tell me,” Senelia said gently, asking again.

Marianne closed her eyes tightly before replying.

“He… just said he understood… that’s all,” she said.

A cold silence fell over the room.

Everyone except Senelia anxiously awaited her reaction.

“…I see,” Senelia said quietly.

For a moment, everyone held their breath until she quietly gave her answer.

Her calm response, however, only puzzled the servants.

“…Milady, are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

Marianne asked cautiously.

Senelia nodded calmly.

The young lady Senelia had known at the Dafnen estate had not been like this; she realized how much she had changed since coming to the capital.

Otherwise, how could she be fine in a situation like this?

“This… doesn’t feel right,” Meizia stepped forward as if she would immediately confront Venelucia on Senelia’s behalf.

Even if the Emperor had acted this way, Venelucia, as the Duke, could have objected.

But she had simply accepted it.

Meizia could not understand.

In fact, the head maid was one of the few people at the Duke’s residence who did not overly fear Venelucia. If left unchecked, Meizia might have stepped in to speak to him herself.

“There’s nothing we can do if His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Duke are set on this. We must accept it.”

Yet Senelia did not allow Meizia to intervene.

The head maid was Venelucia’s nanny and was on good terms with him.

Senelia did not want to create a rift between them for her own sake.

“But, Your Highness the Duchess…”

Meizia trailed off.

Senelia was sincerely trying to stop the head maid and appeared unbothered.

This only made everyone else more bewildered.

“Besides, I’m sorry for troubling all of you with the preparations,” she said.

The preparation period, which had been slightly less than a month, had now stretched to nearly two months.

Even if they prepared now, by the time a month passed, trends would change, and the bride would need fresh and more intense attention.

Senelia felt guilty for increasing the workload of her staff.

“No, Your Highness…! The more we care for the Duchess, the more beautiful she becomes—it’s our pleasure!”

One maid quickly contradicted Senelia.

Then the other maids joined in, speaking in unison.

“The short preparation period was already a concern, so this actually helps.”

“Now that we have more time, we can prepare even more perfectly for the Duchess.”

“That’s right, it’s for the best, isn’t it?”

The maids spoke without thinking, feeling compelled to do so.

Senelia had always said she was fine, whether after a night spent with Venelucia, during his scandals, or at all other times.

Unfortunately, the staff could no longer simply trust her “I’m fine.”

So unconsciously, they hoped that their little fuss might lift her spirits even a bit.

“…Thank you,” Senelia smiled at her maids, appreciating their efforts to lighten her mood.

With Senelia appearing fine and the maids speaking cheerfully, the atmosphere during her care was manageable.

After finishing, Senelia dismissed the maids and took some time to rest alone.

Looking at her well-groomed face in the mirror, her smile was gone.

“…So this is how it turns out,” she muttered softly.

Perhaps from the moment she narrowly escaped being dragged away by Cliff, she had already imagined a situation like this.

Perhaps she had protected herself from Cliff because she didn’t want to be taken, and thought that over time, Venelucia’s feelings might change.

Senelia studied herself in the mirror, a different person from the sparkling Lukalina.

Perhaps one day, Venelucia would regain his senses and return to Lukalina.

In truth, she had always thought this since he first said he loved her.

Even if it became reality now, it would not be strange.

Senelia rose from her seat.

A woman neither bright nor lovely.

She no longer wished to see the reflection in the mirror.

So she walked to the window.

Her chest felt tight; she needed fresh air.

“Are you really that confident? That you’d love me so much, not Lukalina, the one he truly loves?”

Cliff’s words came to mind.

Senelia couldn’t help but snicker.

Confidence?

She had none when it came to Venelucia.

As always in stories, interfering with the main characters only made one a hindrance—or a villain.

Knowing this, she had no choice but to cling to Venelucia like a leech.

And yet, she did it, every time.

“Ugh…”

Senelia suddenly clutched her mouth.

She had eaten lunch not long ago, and now dinner time was approaching, but she felt like her lunch might come back up.

Why did she have to live like this?

It was truly—tedious.

At that moment, her eyes caught the terrace below.

The Duke’s residence was a four-story mansion.

The floor height was significant, taller than most four-story homes.

Impulsively, she stared down.

“Seneli!”

Suddenly, Venelucia, whose entrance she hadn’t noticed at all, spun her around.

“What on earth were you doing just now…!”

His voice was filled with shock and alarm.

Then, seeing her face, he was momentarily speechless.

Misunderstanding that she had intended to jump, she hastily explained.

“I was just looking because it seemed quite far to the first floor, that’s all.”

It was not a lie.

Senelia had never intended to die.

If she died, the fate of Dafnen was obvious; she couldn’t allow herself to die.

She was merely curious how high it was from here to the first floor.

However, despite her explanation, Venelucia’s expression quickly twisted.