Previously
During their dance, Helio shocks the ballroom by declaring that Liliana's child will be the future King of Niita, effectively bypassing Princess Riley's succession. After the dance, Bestie confronts Liliana and mocks her for using a fan to hide her face, a gesture of politeness in Niita but a sign of weakness in Carlo.
The Empress Dowager said this to Liliana, who was hesitating.
Bestie opened her mouth as if trying to stop her, but Liliana promptly bowed to the Empress Dowager and nodded to everyone present.
She had no idea why Duke Philom was looking for her, but she was certain this would give her a way out of the situation.
Duke Philom’s servant led her downstairs to the garden outside the banquet hall. As she rounded a corner, a trace of unease began to creep in, but then she spotted someone standing on one side of the garden.
It was a tall figure clad in a black cloak. The servant bowed to him and quietly retreated, his duty done.
Liliana asked cautiously. She could not fathom why he was waiting here dressed like this, but she had no choice but to ask.
When the man suspected to be Duke Philom turned around, she caught the gleam of bright blue eyes beneath the dark hood, shining in the moonlight. He was not Duke Philom.
Liliana’s eyes went wide with shock, and she cried out,
Helio closed the distance in an instant and clamped a hand over her mouth.
Liliana fell silent, blinking up at him.
Liliana nodded, signaling that she understood.
Helio let out a faint sigh paired with a smile as he took his hand away.
Heeding his warning to keep quiet, Liliana asked in a hushed whisper,
He was certainly supposed to be handsome, so Liliana had been somewhat curious. Knowing she might get a flick to the forehead if she admitted that, she vigorously shook her head. Only then did Helio smile with satisfaction.
Helio picked up a black cloak resting on the ground and handed it to her. Though looking thoroughly bewildered, Liliana accepted it and draped it over her shoulders.
Helio then pulled the hood over her head, concealing her pink hair.
He extended his hand. Liliana did not fully grasp what was happening, but the man before her looked so oddly innocent that she laughed. Despite her bemused chuckling, she took his hand.
Helio said as he led her toward a carriage waiting in the shadows.
Once they were inside, the coachman set the carriage into motion.
Riding through the pitch-black streets made Liliana slightly nervous, and she shrank back into her seat. Helio, on the other hand, appeared thoroughly amused, smiling the entire time.
Watching him, Liliana asked,
Liliana tapped her crossed feet in mock irritation. Remembering how every pair of eyes in the hall had fixed on them made a lingering chill wash over her. She frowned and said,
Helio rested his arm against the carriage window frame, watching her intently. Even in the dim glow of the carriage lantern, his gaze was sharp and striking. Feeling increasingly self-conscious under it, Liliana lowered her head.
Helio’s tone when he addressed her was far quieter than before. A slight tremor of apprehension went through Liliana, and she answered meekly,
A bitter smile touched his lips as he finished.
Liliana felt she ought to say something, anything. She needed to tell him that he truly was different from the Late Emperor.
Yet what did she really know about Helio? Any wrong word might touch a sore wound.
Her lips parted, and she whispered softly,
Helio raised an eyebrow, staring at her in bewilderment. As though he thought he had misheard, he leaned forward slightly.
Helio chuckled softly, watching her as he spoke.
Helio stretched his long legs out casually. Even in such an offhand posture, he looked striking enough to make Liliana’s heart flutter with nervous awkwardness.
With an amused grin, Helio looked over her features, from her pale forehead framed by loose pink strands down to her delicate chin. Then he made his decision without hesitation.
Liliana answered with gusto, biting her lower lip in sheer excitement. Helio leaned back into the carriage seat, his fingers tapping a slow, rhythmic beat against the window frame.
Instead of answering with a yes or no, Liliana simply smiled, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
She turned her gaze toward the window.
In her pink eyes, a resolute will would flicker to life from time to time.
Helio’s evaluation of her past was blunt and unvarnished. In truth, her life had been steeped in hardships impossible to gloss over.
Yet Liliana only met his remark with a fleeting smile.
A spark of curiosity flitted across Helio’s face at her reply.
Right then, a distant boom echoed through the air like a detonating bomb! Liliana’s eyes flew wide,
and she pulled her slender frame back into the carriage, unable to hide the sheer wonder spreading across her face.
Her laughter sounded like that of an excited kitten, and the tip of her nose flushed pink with delight.
Even though her hair had fallen into an untidy mess, she paid it no mind.
Liliana pointed toward the fireworks lighting up the night sky outside, grinning at the bemused Helio.
“Even if life is bad, beautiful things always happen.”
It was nothing more than a burst of fireworks. Colors scattered across the dark canopy like falling shooting stars, pretty enough in their own right.
Yet that was all it was. Fleeting moments of amusement, a mere distraction. And yet Liliana was relishing every second of it with all her heart.
She was someone who knew how to find joy.
To Helio, it was an unfamiliar sight. He found himself realizing that the happiness of this small, seemingly insignificant woman held genuine worth.
It was not a value measurable in gold or silver, nor was it like honor or renown. It belonged to an entirely different realm of worth.
Helio rapped on the partition leading to the driver’s box. Moments later, the carriage pulled up by the roadside, and Helio stepped out.
He gently offered his hand to escort Liliana down.
After quickly smoothing down her disheveled hair, she pulled the hood over her head once more.
The fireworks display was still underway, allowing Liliana to watch more bursts blossom across the wide night sky.
Her lips parted slightly, her eyes widening as the vibrant reds and blues reflected clearly in her gaze.
Liliana answered right away, and Helio asked with an amused smile, clearly finding her endearing.
It wasn’t just distant in time. It was from her previous life. As Liliana smiled at the thought, her expression suddenly froze.
‘Wait… How did I die in my past life? When did I even see fireworks?’
She knew for certain this was not her first time seeing them.
She could only remember watching them from a great distance, somewhere high up, but the exact details eluded her entirely.
When Liliana abruptly went rigid, like a child startled in the snow, Helio took her by the shoulders. She looked up at him in surprise, then shook her head.
Liliana chirped, instantly snapping back to her usual, chick-like self. Helio noticed the fleeting shift in her mood, but he had no intention of pressing her on it.
He held out his hand to her.
Liliana rubbed the back of her neck, her cheeks flushing.
Liliana put her hands on her hips and let out a huff of amused indignation.
Helio replied as he took her hand. Though she grumbled under her breath, she quietly followed along.
Having attended the banquet without getting to eat a thing, both were ravenous. Yet Liliana hesitated to ask him for food, especially since ordinary street food might be unbefitting an emperor.
Before she could say anything, however, he spoke up.
Liliana chuckled, taking it as a joke. But Helio calmly pulled out some coins and walked toward the vendor to pay.
He then took two skewers of steaming food, keeping one for himself and handing the other to Liliana.