The Reason Why She Can’t Get Married - Chapter 57

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Chapter 57

Maximilian’s reply came slowly. Displeased with himself, he frowned and snapped, “Who said I was concerned? I just didn’t want to deal with the fallout later.”

“Oh…”

“Besides,” he added, glancing at Selena with a grudging look, “my intervention did manage to separate Gabriella and Dominique Dixon.”

She almost mumbled, “And I did save Her Highness, even at the risk of my own life.”

Selena gave a small nod. Gabriella was his sister, after all. He must have been worried.

“Now that I think about it, Your Highness must have been quite worried.”

“Of course. Losing Gabriella would mean losing one of my pawns.”

“….”

Selena decided to ignore the latter part of his statement and focus on the fact that he’d been worried about his sister.

“….”

The conversation died abruptly. Selena wondered if she should thank him again or try to find something else to say. She wasn’t sure what exactly to thank him for, and nothing else came to mind.

‘Should I thank him for apologizing? But that’s something he should have done anyway.’

Finally, she broke the silence.

“Anyway, thank you for coming today. Please be careful on your way back.”

Having settled on expressing gratitude for his visit, she placed a hand on her chest and bowed her head.

“Sure.”

Caught off guard by Selena’s natural farewell, Maximilian rose to his feet. He’d said what he came to say, and there was no reason to stay any longer.

“I’ll be going then.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Reaching the door with his long strides, Maximilian suddenly half-turned and hesitantly said, “If you were that ill…you should rest more.”

“Pardon me?”

“Don’t go meddling in other people’s relationships and running around. Just stay home and recuperate.”

With that, Maximilian opened the door and swiftly departed. Left alone in the drawing-room, Selena blinked, then shrugged.

‘Well, I suppose I should take that as concern.’

‘Better than being threatened with a sword, I guess.’

***

Peace had returned. Selena lay in bed, cuddling a pillow and reading a romance novel. Tears were welling up in her eyes as she became engrossed in a particularly poignant scene when a white envelope suddenly appeared in her line of sight.

“What’s this?”

“It’s from Duke Ratliffe, my lady,” Lucy replied, holding the letter out to her. Selena flinched, then sat up.

Noel had been sending her letters regularly since his return to the capital. One of the first things Selena had done after regaining consciousness was to reply to his letter.

She’d written a long, rambling message of gratitude and returned his flute along with it. However, Noel’s reply the next day contained the flute once more.

[There’s no need to rush returning it. Keep it, and use it if something similar happens again.]

He’d written that as the reason for returning the flute in his letter. She should have been touched by his thoughtful gesture, but…

‘This isn’t good. I’m too uncomfortable around the Duke.’

The image of Noel slashing at people with his sword kept flashing before her eyes. She knew he’d done it to save her, but she couldn’t help how she felt. Selena sighed, a wave of complex emotions washing over her as she looked at Noel’s letter. The memory of that day resurfaced.

‘He seemed so…used to hurting people…’

She knew he’d spent years on the battlefield, so it made sense, but at the same time, it made her afraid of him, like he could easily kill someone.

‘It’s like he could kill the bride right at the wedding.’

The two memories had become intertwined in her nightmares while she was ill, which probably contributed to her feelings.

‘I try to forget, but I can’t.’

The more she tried to suppress the memory, the more stubbornly her mind replayed it. Perhaps this was the aftereffect she’d mentioned to the crown prince. A horrific memory that wouldn’t fade, making her uneasy around the person involved.

Selena unfolded Noel’s letter and began to read. As always, it was filled with lengthy and affectionate greetings.

[…So, if it’s alright, may I visit you? I’m worried that you’re still unwell.]

Staring at the polite inquiry written in elegant script, Selena picked up a pen and began to write her reply.

[Thank you for your constant concern, Your Grace. However, due to certain circumstances, I’m afraid it won’t be possible for you to visit. I appreciate the thought.]

Polite yet firm words of refusal filled the page.

‘…In any case, I want to avoid becoming entangled with any of the marriage candidates as much as possible.’

Having already sent several letters of gratitude, Selena sent this latest one off to Noel. At this point, Duke Ratliffe was the most unsettling of the three candidates.