Chapter 67
- Blanchett VS Seymour
2023.12.06.
Evangeline, catching her breath, scanned the audience, her gaze settling once more on the VIP seats.
The cold gazes of haughty noble ladies pierced her.
Evangeline massaged her tingling wrist and tucked her chin in. Then, she turned her gaze to the other side.
Olivia Blanchett, having received a new ball, resumed her serving stance.
This won't do.
She had to stop this unfavorable momentum.
Sweat poured down Evangeline's spine like rain. She felt hot and thirsty.
If she was like this, could that woman be any different? It was then that Olivia slightly bent her knees to throw the ball.
"Let's take a break."
Evangeline requested a break from the referee.
It was time to turn the tables.
A mid-game break was declared.
In the stadium, surrounded by the lush greenery of Dumblin in early July, the suppressed exclamations of the audience burst out in small pockets.
If the momentum hadn't been interrupted, Olivia, who had been relentlessly pushing forward, would have seized the victory.
Those who were disappointed by the interruption of the refreshing play that seemed to blow away the summer heat watched the two players taking a break, hoping for the game to resume quickly.
Olivia and Evangeline's eyes naturally met as they headed to their respective benches.
Evangeline, responding to Olivia's smile with a soft, sparkling gaze, erased the mask-like expression that had settled on her face the moment she turned away.
Parched, Evangeline drank water as soon as she sat down, her eyes fixed on Olivia Blanchett.
Drink water, Olivia.
She murmured inwardly, as if casting a spell.
Olivia picked up a towel neatly folded on the table.
Next to it stood a water bottle with the Lancelot Company's golden logo emblazoned on it.
Olivia carefully wiped her forehead, neatly folded the towel again, placed it to one side, and sat on the bench.
Then, she leaned forward and retied her shoelaces.
Evangeline grew anxious.
Olivia, having tightly fastened both shoelaces, now smoothed her hair.
Evangeline felt as if her insides were burning, worried that Olivia wouldn't even touch the water.
After taking a moment to catch her breath, Olivia smiled brightly, her gaze fixed on something.
Evangeline's eyes naturally followed.
Edgar Lancaster Lancelot. The two were smiling, their eyes locked.
Please!
Evangeline was getting impatient. Only about three or four minutes of the break remained.
Unable to bear it any longer, Evangeline wanted to jump up, grab Olivia's chin, force her mouth open, and pour water down her throat.
Drink it.
Olivia's gaze, which had been endlessly intertwined, finally seemed to reluctantly break away and reach the water bottle beside her.
"……."
Olivia slowly reached out her arm.
"!"
Evangeline's heart began to pound.
Please…….
Finally, she lifted the water bottle.
Hurry.
Olivia slowly twisted the cap. Placing the lid on the table, Olivia stared at the water bottle for a moment.
Drink!
Evangeline, holding her breath, stared intently at Olivia.
The hand holding the towel and touching her nape trembled with tension.
When Evangeline's lips, pressed against her pearly white teeth, turned red as if about to burst, Olivia brought the water bottle to her crimson lips.
As if time had stopped, all of Olivia's movements were incredibly slow.
"……!"
In the next moment, Olivia Blanchett's smooth Adam's apple moved slowly.
Evangeline shuddered at the sight.
It's over!
\\
The port city of Wailo, known as the heart of the navy, was in a festive mood ahead of the launching ceremony of the world's first dreadnought battleship.
Aside from that fact, the city, which Yohan had revisited after completing his royal service and being discharged, seemed unchanged.
Yohan got out of the Carriage.
The King Trafalgar Battleship, standing tall and revealing its majesty towards the azure sea, was the first thing that came into view.
"You've arrived. This way."
Yohan nodded lightly to the officer and placed the officer's cap he had been loosely holding on his head.
The golden laurel wreath decoration at the center of the white peaked cap sparkled in the clear sunlight.
On the platform, the officer in charge of today's event was introducing the key figures.
The admiral, along with the navy's commander-in-chief and the captain, took turns going up on the platform, gave short congratulatory speeches, and took their seats in the designated area.
"His Excellency Duke Yohan Edinburgh Leopold."
The domestic and foreign dignitaries invited to the launching ceremony and the crowds filling the port began to stir.
"Wasn't His Royal Highness the Crown Prince supposed to attend?"
The navy had only been notified of the matter this morning.
It was sudden, but since the unreliable Crown Prince had often been absent in this way, his aides did not take it seriously.
Amidst the confusion, Yohan, dressed in a navy uniform, ascended the platform steps. The sunlight glided over the insignia and the golden buckle of the belt that adorned the uniform in a formal manner.
Standing in front of the platform, Yohan slowly scanned the crowd looking up at him.
'Having been born into royalty, the only moment you can be free from its duties and responsibilities is death, Yohan.'
As the unwelcome voice echoed like an auditory hallucination, a sneer escaped him.
Yohan lightly shook his wrist and glanced at his wristwatch. Eleven o'clock in the morning. The time Olivia's match would have ended.
Did she win?
If he had boarded the ship from Lemonde last night as planned, he would have leisurely watched the match, but he was constantly curious about the result.
On the other hand, the audience was curious about the reason for the Crown Prince's absence.
What could it be? As words of speculation passed between them, Yohan slowly raised his head. The massive warship came into view directly in front of him. The Rondos flag, the red royal flag, and the naval flag fluttered vigorously in the sea breeze.
'Fulfill your duty.'
"Dear citizens of Wailo."
Yohan's speech began. His unhurried, relaxed yet weighty voice carried on the sea breeze.
As always, Yohan concluded his speech briefly.
The godmother of the King Trafalgar Battleship was the admiral's daughter.
A woman with a youthful face who had just celebrated her coming-of-age ceremony threw a Champagne bottle tied to a rope against the ship's hull.
With a loud noise, sharp shards of glass reflected the afternoon sunlight.
Amidst applause and cheers, the King Trafalgar Battleship slid down the slipway.
Flashes of light flickered from all directions to record the spectacle in history.
The warship, creating a violent spray of water as it entered the water, tilted as if it would capsize, but soon regained its balance and stood upright.
The eardrums were numb from the earth-shattering cheers under the hot summer sun.
Did she win?
Yohan, gazing at the vast ocean, turned away.
"The next event is the unveiling ceremony of the former Prime Minister Rumsfeld's monument, Your Excellency. ……Here, the speech."
He was on the train heading back to Leiden. The aide flinched and stepped back without realizing it at Yohan's gaze.
The Crown Prince Christian was also very tall, but Duke Leopold added an unapproachable sense of intimidation to it, making his spine tingle.
Yohan casually scanned the speech he had been handed and cast a listless gaze out the window.
He rubbed his eyes as if he had a migraine. He loosened the neck button of his uniform that was constricting his neck.
In the golden-tinged scenery of the capital, the bridge across the Daphne River could be seen in the distance.
The statue of Arche, the goddess of love, revealed its graceful figure under the ripe sunlight.
'……Kiss. I want to.'
'There.'
That day, if we had stopped the Carriage and kissed in front of the goddess Arche. What would have become of us then?
It was a meaningless assumption.
Even if that had happened, Yohan Leopold would not have fallen in love.
Because he did not know what form it took.
The Carriage, which had changed at Leiden Central Station, stopped at Greenwood Park.
Yohan silently rebuttoned the button he had unfastened.
Yohan entered the venue and gave a speech in front of the public.
Cutting the tape, taking commemorative photos, drinking celebratory drinks, and chatting appropriately. And then, to the Royal Hospital charity party venue.
A resourceful guy.
Yohan, getting into the Carriage, cursed, closing his tired eyes. Already, the outside of the window was completely evening.
He could only admire the Crown Prince, who had lived such a dissolute life amidst this murderous schedule.
Did she win?
Even in his fatigue, he thought of that woman, Olivia Blanchett.
For the first time since meeting his wife, he wanted to see her but couldn't.
\\
It was strange.
Was it because of the tension?
"……."
Evangeline's heart suddenly began to beat rapidly. As she reached out to hit the incoming ball, she suddenly felt dizzy and her legs faltered.
Her limbs felt heavy, as if all the strength had been drained from her body.
Olivia, who had the serve in the second set, quickly hit the ball she had thrown up.
Evangeline shook her head violently. The ball appeared as two, no, three.
What's wrong with me?
She swung her racket, but the ball had already passed her by. Her breathing became rapid.
"Haa, haa……."
Something's wrong.
Cold sweat began to break out all over her body.
That woman is fine, so why am I…….
Evangeline shook her head violently to clear her mind. The hairpins that held her hair in place wobbled.
Strands of hair that had fallen down clung to her forehead and cheeks, where beads of sweat had formed, like cobwebs.
Ha! With a roar like a beast, the ball flew again.
Ping, her vision blurred. Evangeline, whose legs gave way as she ran towards the ball, stumbled and fell to the ground.
Oh, dear! Exclamations poured out from the audience. The buzzing noises sounded muffled, like mockery and ridicule.
'I think Miss Seymour is skilled enough to join our group.'
Princess Anne Boleyn's kind voice faintly echoed in her ears.
I can't be humiliated like this here.
Evangeline used her racket as a support to stand up. No, she tried to stand up, but her half-raised body leaned weakly.
No way.
Lying on the grass, Evangeline felt her heart, which had been pounding as if about to burst, slow down rapidly. She saw the bright blue sky.
The intense sunlight, as if piercing her eyes, gradually turned black.
No way…….
In her fading vision, that woman suddenly appeared. In the woman's sky-blue eyes, bewilderment and worry were mixed together.
They were eyes that seemed endlessly harmless.
"Are……you okay? Miss……."
With the woman's voice, which had been cut off in fragments, as the last thing she heard, Evangeline lost consciousness.
