The Eldest Daughter Walks Down The Flower Path - Chapter 204
Chapter 204
Translator: Yonnee
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After the banquet, feeling pleasantly drunk, Charles was surrounded by affectionate noble ladies and was heading towards a gambling den where, according to himself, ‘money has been set aside’ awaited.
Unintentionally drinking too much, Olivier walked through the cool breeze to the garden in front of the banquet hall to sober up.
The garden, still awaiting the arrival of spring, felt dark and chilly, with only the evergreen trees.
But soon, spring would come to this place too.
A perpetual and beautiful spring…
With closed eyes, Olivier called her name.
“Radis…”
As he recalled her, his heart, which had stood still, began to beat again.
He tried to remember the sensation of holding her in his arms.
It felt both warm and cold.
Feather-like softness, yet the firmness of embracing a beautiful, sturdy tree.
Every moment’s memory was too intense.
Emotions he had never experienced before overwhelmed him like a grand waterfall, and he couldn’t separate them.
Only the shock, like being caught in rain for the first time after birth, remained.
‘Radis, every day, tell me one by one…’
Lost in happiness, a strange sound intruded on Olivier’s ears.
“Hiic…”
It was the sound of a woman crying.
Waking up from his trance, Olivier realized he had walked to the center of a small garden attached to the banquet hall.
And someone nearby was crying in a gazebo.
Annoyed, Olivier sent a disdainful look toward the one who rudely disturbed his tranquility before trying to leave.
But it seemed the other person had no intention of letting him go.
“L-Lord Olivier…!”
Sighing irritably, Olivier turned around.
“What’s the matter?”
Sitting in the gazebo, crying, was Elizabeth.
Her beautiful golden hair was disheveled, and her makeup was smudged, indicating how much she had cried.
As she breathed heavily, the deep cleavage of her pale chest became more dramatically pronounced as she spoke.
“How can you just pass by a lady like this? Isn’t it inappropriate to ignore someone who is in tears?”
Olivier said with an icy, indifferent expression.
“I apologize. It is dark, and I failed to notice Your Ladyship. Then, I shall take my leave.”
As Olivier turned away, Elizabeth suddenly stood up.
“O-Olivier!”
Unable to ignore her tearful plea, Olivier reluctantly stopped in his tracks.
Elizabeth spoke in between sobs.
“Please lend me a handkerchief.”
And Olivier responded coldly.
“I don’t have one.”
It was a lie.
There was always a handkerchief in the pocket of his coat. However, Olivier didn’t want Elizabeth’s tears or anything else to soil his belongings.
“You’re so mean…”
Elizabeth, already soaked in tears, had no choice but to wipe her tears with a handkerchief that was already wet.
Observing her, Olivier sighed briefly and offered advice.
“Lady Ruthwell, the priests who serve the gods may lack sufficient reverence for the future emperor. His Highness the First Prince’s discomfort is not unreasonable.”
Wiping her tears, Elizabeth looked at him with wide, tear-filled eyes.
The clear eyes, somehow made more poignant by the tears, made Olivier feel discomfort, so he avoided her gaze and continued speaking.
“If you also aspire to the throne of the empress, try to understand His Highness the First Prince’s feelings a bit more…”
At that moment, Elizabeth interrupted him.
“Ollie.”
It was the name Elizabeth used to call him during their childhood.
“If I pull too much, he just wants to avoid me even more. If I push him away, he’ll just stray farther and farther away from me. And you’re treating that Char as more and more of a huge buffoon…!”
Olivier did not say anything else, his lips pursing into a straight line.
Elizabeth could do nothing as she observed Olivier’s beautiful face being tainted by a sour expression.
He seemed a bit surprised, and visibly disappointed.
His gaze, already cold, was now icy enough to make her cheeks feel numb.
Elizabeth unconsciously covered her mouth with both hands.
After a moment of silence, Olivier lowered his gaze and spoke coldly.
“Lady Ruthwell.”
“……?”
“The First Prince who would wipe away your tears has already left this place.”
His words were refined, but his tone was as cold as his gaze.
“The garden is still too cold for you to shed tears alone. I shall ask someone to prepare a carriage for your departure.”
After saying this, Olivier turned around and began to walk away quickly.
His demeanor conveyed that he didn’t care whether Elizabeth followed or not.
Holding a handkerchief stained with tears, Elizabeth spoke with determination.
“…Even if you hadn’t said that, Your Highness the Third Prince, I had already planned to leave.”
Her words were akin to self-defense that would protect her last remaining dignity.
However, Olivier didn’t seem to hear her.
Or even if he did, he probably didn’t feel anything.
Just as it had always been from the very start.
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