Chapter 33
33. I'll Propose to Her
Usher tilted his gaze downwards, looking at Noah's feet. Judging by his furrowed brow and slightly biting lip, he seemed to be choosing his words carefully.
Then, as if having made up his mind, he sharply raised his eyes to meet Noah's gaze. With a distinct, deep blue glint in his eyes, he uttered even clearer words.
"I'll propose to her."
"...What?"
Taken aback by the unexpected words, Noah frowned and belatedly asked again. Usher then added a more detailed explanation.
"The Pulder situation is not light. Father is not wrong. I have also been asked to consider the survival of the royal family. And I have come to the same conclusion. The reason I just visited Father was to tell him that I would propose to Miss Olivia Liberty."
"......"
"If a commoner woman who is publicly loved and widely known becomes a royal, it could shift the atmosphere in the long term. Of course, I have to succeed in my proposal."
"......"
Silence settled over the brothers.
Noah stared intently at Usher. Usher, as if wanting him to read his sincerity, did not avoid his gaze.
His usually gentle, deep blue eyes were deeply sunken and unwavering.
He really seemed to want to propose to her.
"Haa..."
The tension drained from Noah's shoulders.
How much better it would have been if he had been the older brother by even a year.
The reason Noah had obeyed his father's orders, despite loathing the media so much, was because of Usher.
The one who had silently caught him whenever he tried to stray was Usher, who quietly did his job.
Usher was his anchor and his guide, and at the same time, an insurmountable mountain.
As Noah's expression crumbled, Usher carefully hugged him tightly, then stepped back and patted him on the shoulder.
"Compose yourself. I'm going to tell Father now."
Noah blankly watched Usher's back as he passed him and entered the building.
Through the rows of windows, he could see Usher walking quickly. Noah, forgetting that he wasn't even breathing, watched him and thought of her.
Olivia Liberty.
A familiar yet unfamiliar name.
He wished he could forget it, but he couldn't.
The moonlight that tore through the darkness, the white face filled with tears, and the smooth, black eyes that reflected his own image like a mirror.
The moment the woman's name came out of his father's mouth, he was transported back to that night, that autumn night.
A night that meant nothing, a night without any special events, a night that even felt pathetic.
But if Olivia Liberty appeared holding Usher's hand...
Usher Astrid would be a much better choice than someone like him, but still, if that woman became Usher's wife.
The leaden weight in his chest burned fiercely.
Noah exhaled roughly, desperately, and hurried into the building. He ran down the long hallway.
The servants, who had never seen a prince running inside the palace, watched in surprise.
When Usher returned to the office, Leonard was standing by the window, calming his anger, and Beatrix was sitting on the sofa with her eyes closed.
It was as chaotic as a place that had been ravaged by a storm.
The King and Queen Consort didn't even glance at the returning Crown Prince, preoccupied with resolving their own emotions.
Usher glanced at his parents in turn, then declared quietly.
"I will go."
At that moment, the royal couple quickly turned to him.
"Usher."
Simultaneously with Beatrix's sigh-like call, Leonard's firm refusal came.
"No."
Usher faced his father head-on.
"Why not?"
"Don't ask if you know the answer. Your wife is the future Queen Consort. Queen Consort is a title."
"So why not? If I don't know, you can teach me."
"It's not a matter of knowing or not. The important thing is recognition. The Queen Consort should have dignity rather than friendliness."
It was natural for Leonard to consider public sentiment, but that was on the premise that he had the support of the aristocratic forces in both hands. If he were to weigh the recognition of the commoners against the recognition of the nobles, the latter was still overwhelmingly more important.
It would be very difficult if the Queen Consort was not recognized by the nobles.
Leonard, who had been standing by the window, approached Usher.
"The Princess Consort can hide behind the Prince, but the Queen Consort cannot hide behind the King. So you can't go, Usher. You must know that bringing Olivia into the royal family as Noah's wife is the best choice."
"......"
The father keenly examined his eldest son's eyes.
A heavy silence descended over the father and son. Unable to bear it any longer, Beatrix muttered.
"That selfish Astrid. If Olivia knew that the Herot royal family was discussing this about her, how absurd would she feel?"
"......"
"......"
It was then. Someone burst into the room without warning.
While wondering what this rude behavior was, all three of them guessed who the person who opened the door was.
"Noah."
Noah politely greeted his mother, who was getting up from her seat, then looked at Usher and his father, who were facing each other.
"You..."
Usher trailed off, looking as if he had something to say, but Noah didn't look at him.
Noah looked directly at his father and opened his mouth in a steady voice.
"I have a condition."
Leonard desperately resisted the urge to raise both hands and cheer.
"Tell me."
"If I succeed in proposing and Olivia Liberty becomes a member of the royal family, that alone will be enough of a topic. You want that symbolism, right?"
"That's right."
Noah nodded and quickly presented his condition.
"The condition is one. If I marry her, I will not attend any events or interviews, except for those that I must attend."
"...Not even as Princess Consort?"
Noah desperately suppressed the laughter that was about to burst from his lips and answered concisely.
"No."
Leonard didn't like that part, but he nodded roughly for now.
"Okay, I promise."
"Noah."
Usher approached him as if he had something to say, but Noah continued to speak to his father.
"I will leave for Pulder tomorrow or the day after. Give me the information you have investigated now. I'll take care of the rest."
The King of Herot wouldn't have thought of making her a member of the royal family without any prior investigation.
As expected, Leonard chuckled and took out a document from the safe and placed it on the table.
With this, Lawrence's words that Olivia Liberty could become Olivia Wilhelm were proven false. If there was even a slight possibility of that, the King would never have chosen her.
As Noah picked up the document without hesitation, Beatrix grabbed his hand.
"Noah."
Her eyes trembled like a turbulent sea.
What should she do with this child who couldn't find a place to settle his heart?
This child who was offering conditions regarding his marriage...
Wouldn't both Noah and Olivia go through hell if they got married?
Noah gave his worried mother a brief smile, then took the document.
Then, he glanced at the blank cover of the document, bowed politely to the King and Queen Consort, and turned around.
It felt as if a torrential rain had followed the storm.
Usher, who had been blankly staring at the place where Noah had disappeared, quickly followed him.
As her sons disappeared, the Queen Consort let out a long sigh and covered her eyes with her hands. She couldn't just blame her husband.
It was a very difficult and terrible position.
But then, Leonard's hesitant voice was heard.
"Still, it's a bit unexpected."
"What is?"
Beatrix was still covering her eyes with her hands.
"That he's being proactive."
"......?"
What nonsense was this?
Did he misunderstand the meaning of the word 'proactive'?!
As Beatrix raised her head sharply with a dumbfounded expression, Leonard coughed repeatedly and made excuses incoherently.
"Of course, I ordered him to. What I mean is, if it were Noah normally, he wouldn't come back like this. He would have just gone straight to his house. I would have had to gather the materials and tickets and send them to Noah's house, and then push him one more time to go now."
And even then, he would have gone with all sorts of unpleasant expressions, like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
"Oh, really?"
"Oh, really, Trixie? Noah's current reaction is very, very proactive?"
"Just keep your promises. Don't think about glossing over them."
With those words, Beatrix got up and left the office.
"...Does anyone want to be hated by their son and do this..."
Leonard drank water in frustration and opened the window.
"Still, it's unexpected..."
The King's muttering scattered on the spring breeze with summer on it.
"Noah!"
At the urgent voice, Noah stopped walking. Looking back, he saw Usher quickly closing the distance.
Then, looking at him with a cautious gaze, he whispered.
"It's not too late now."
"Then will you go?"
"Yes. I'm serious."
Noah took a deep, long breath under the pouring sunlight.
Realizing that the air seeping into his lungs was not mixed with cold air, he realized that it was spring. He didn't even know that spring had come.
Soon, when his eyes, filled with sunlight and greenery, turned to Usher, Usher found that his eyes were calm.
"Usher."
"......"
"I'll do it."
Even though his expression was as casually relaxed and as casually dissipated as ever, it was felt that he was speaking sincerely. That was why Usher couldn't stop his brother, who had bowed politely and was turning away.
And the very next day.
Noah left Herot for Pulder.
