The Reason Why She Can’t Get Married - Chapter 73

Schedule: Thurs and Sun

Chapter 73

Ten years ago, Rio, the second prince, was vying for the throne against his older brother, the first prince. Feeling threatened, the first prince plotted to eliminate Rio before he returned from his studies abroad.

During the nighttime festivities celebrating the founding of the Carlton Empire, Rio, enjoying what he believed to be his last celebration in the empire, was ambushed by assassins.

The night was dark, the moon hidden behind thick clouds. Wounded in the side, he fled through the alleyways, disoriented and lost.

“Gasp… pant… gasp…”

His only thought was that if he were caught, he would die. He pressed his hand against his bleeding side and ran. But running injured had its limits. Breathless and dizzy, Rio stumbled, pausing to catch his breath against a wall. The assassins quickly spotted him.

“He’s this way!”

“Follow me!”

Rio glanced back, despair washing over him as he forced his legs to move.

‘Is this the end…?’

He grimaced, accepting his fate, and lowered his head. Just then, a small hand appeared in his field of vision.

He looked up and saw a young girl, bathed in the white moonlight that now peeked through the dispersing clouds. She had jet-black hair, dark eyes, and freckles.

“What are you doing? Grab my hand and get up!”

“Huh? Uh…”

At her urging, Rio instinctively grasped her hand. The girl knew the alleyways well. Holding his hand tightly, she expertly led him away from the assassins.

After a long chase, they hid in an empty warehouse. Holding their breath, they listened as the assassins searched outside, their voices fading as they moved on.

The girl peeked through a crack in the boarded-up window, checking their surroundings. She let out a sigh of relief and turned around just as Rio collapsed to the floor, clutching his side, his face pale.

“Hey! Are you alright?”

“Ugh…”

“Oh my, look at all that blood. This won’t do. Wait here!”

Leaving Rio groaning in pain, the girl hurried outside. She returned shortly with bandages and medicine. Thanks to her rudimentary first aid, Rio’s life was saved. Sweating profusely, he watched as she bandaged his wound.

“What’s your name…?”

“Me? I’m Belle. Call me Belle.”

With Belle’s help, Rio was eventually found and rescued by his knights who had been searching for him. A few days later, under the pretense of repaying his debt, he met Belle again at the same spot.

“Thank you for saving me. I would have died if it weren’t for you.”

“It’s nothing. You were being chased by bad people because of your family, right?”

“Um… right.”

Rio knew his brother had sent the assassins. He simply agreed with Belle.

“By the way, what’s your name? You didn’t tell me.”

“Ah, my name is… Jacob.”

Rio lied to Belle. He hid his identity, afraid that a commoner like her might be intimidated or scared off if she knew who he really was.

“Nice to meet you, Jacob. Let’s be friends!”

Belle beamed. Rio felt as if he were staring directly into the sun. He continued to meet with Belle, maintaining the charade of being Jacob.

His return home was imminent, but he couldn’t bring himself to reveal the truth.

He planned to confess his true identity the day before his departure, but strangely, Belle didn’t show up.

She had never missed a meeting before. Rio waited until nightfall, but he never saw her, and finally, he had to leave.

Instead, he left an ivory cameo necklace on the windowsill of their usual meeting place, the warehouse.

Ten years passed, and he returned to the empire, this time not as a threatened prince, but as the crown prince.

“It was only after I returned home that I realized… Belle was my first love.”

Rio smiled faintly. Clink. He set down his teacup and looked at Selena. His gaze was clear, earnest, and direct.

“To be honest, I don’t know much about Belle. It’s embarrassing, considering she’s my first love and my savior.”

“….”

“But… couldn’t you help me find my first love?”

Before answering, Selena wanted to clarify something.

“Why us?” The Carlton Empire and the Tifae Kingdom were long-standing allies. Someone of Rio’s stature could easily find Belle using resources within the empire.

She wondered why he had come to Serenade with his request. Serenade handled all matters of the heart, but it was a couples matching agency, not a detective agency.

“Because Serenade is the only place I can trust.”

“Pardon?”

Selena looked bewildered. They had met for the first time today, and this was Rio’s first visit to Serenade. She was puzzled by his declaration of trust.

“I’m currently in the empire on official business. I’ll be returning to the Tifae Kingdom in a week.”

“Yes.”

“I need to find Belle discreetly within that timeframe.”