103 - The Evil Husband (15th Anniversary Edition) Chapter 103
103
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As she frantically read the academic journal, Aileen's tightly closed lips softened on their own. Aileen wanted to share the incredible fact she had learned with Cesare.
Careful not to rattle off too many difficult academic terms, she cautiously began to explain what she was reading.
"Cesare, this is the academic journal I'm reading. It contains information about herbal medicines made from plants. Ah, plant-based herbal medicines are medicines made by using plants as they are, without extracting components, or by processing them only to the extent that their properties are not altered. This paper deals with whole-plant herbs, and what whole-plant herbs are is..."
However, Aileen's lips, which had been moving busily, gradually slowed. The moment she lifted her gaze from the academic journal and turned to Cesare, her eyes met his.
She had expected him to be reading documents as well, but that was not the case at all. Cesare's gaze was entirely on Aileen. He opened his mouth with a smile in his eyes.
"In the military, the outpost placed at the very front is called the outpost."
"Ah..."
Aileen made an ambiguous sound and lowered her eyes diagonally. She fixed her gaze on the arm that wrapped around her waist and muttered.
"The whole-plant I'm talking about... refers to the entire plant."
"I see."
Cesare buried his head on Aileen's shoulder. He kissed the collarbone revealed through the loose Night Robe and asked.
"Was the Tea Party fun?"
His question snapped her back to reality. Now was the perfect moment to express her gratitude.
"Yes, um, thank you so much for coming today."
"How much?"
"Uh..."
Aileen, momentarily taken aback by the unexpected question, hesitated and said.
"Really a lot. It was nice that you brought the cake too... It was a cake I wanted to try."
Mentioning the cake, she subtly asked if he had been planning to come from the start.
"It's my Grand Duchess's first social gathering, I had to do at least that much."
Cesare's hand slowly caressed her waist. A faint tickling sensation spread wherever his touch reached, and Aileen shivered.
"Did anyone bother you?"
At his question, which sounded like a joke, Aileen smiled without realizing it. If she said there was, it felt like he would scold the noble ladies.
"No, but I did think that social gatherings aren't easy. Everyone was nice to me, but it's still a place where they evaluate me. I have to act appropriately for the position of Grand Duchess, and I was so nervous that I might not be able to... You even came and helped me, Cesare, but I don't know if everyone saw it favorably. Oh, and by the way."
Aileen, who had been excitedly recounting her Tea Party exploits, cautiously brought up the words she had wanted to say earlier.
"That... I think I made the decision about the Hunting Festival too arbitrarily."
Her voice trembled slightly. It wasn't just from anxiety. It was more because Cesare was pressing his lips firmly against her neck. The sound of his lips briefly sucking on her skin before releasing it rang vividly in her ears.
"It would be nice to attend the Hunting Festival after a long time. You've never been before, so."
Cesare had decided to attend the Hunting Festival solely for Aileen's sake. Aileen, who had been imagining some enormous political significance, was taken aback and looked at Cesare.
"I asked if there were any who bothered you."
However, Cesare had already lost interest in the Hunting Festival.
"You always say there aren't."
His voice, lowered softly, was referring to events even before the Tea Party.
Aileen recalled the past. She had exchanged similar words with him when she gave up university and returned to the capital.
'You asked if anyone bothered me at university.'
Aileen briefly recalled the past.
It was the summer when Aileen was 17 and Cesare was 24.
Aileen, who had returned to the capital, entered the Imperial Palace to meet Cesare. Cesare, whom she was meeting after two years, had become a fully grown man.
Aileen realized that she could no longer treat him as she had before. The young girl was now on the verge of adulthood. She was old enough to see The Prince, who had been the object of pure admiration, as a man.
Her heart had changed as much as her body had grown. Aileen was busy hiding her face, which kept turning red in front of Cesare, and the sound of her pounding heart.
The best way to hide her infatuation was to avoid meeting The Prince. The situation of having to pay off the family's debt was also enough to hold Aileen back.
Aileen began to reduce the number of times she entered the Imperial Palace. Compared to the past, when she made excuses to go in and out of the Imperial Palace, she hardly ever visited. Cesare told Aileen, who rarely entered the palace, to visit often, but he never forced her.
'Maybe our relationship will naturally end like this.'
It was a sad thought just to imagine it, but Aileen had no idea what to do.
That day, she entered the Imperial Palace after a very long time. She had been forced to enter the palace after several months at her mother's request.
Her mother, weighed down by deep depression, was slowly withering away. No matter how hard Aileen tried by her side, it was useless. She had even tried to make her medicine that could improve her depression, but her mother only got angry, accusing her of treating her like a sick person.
The only time her mother, who was holed up at home and only talked about negative things, brightened up was when she talked about Cesare.
How great The Prince, whom she had raised as a wet nurse, was, how specially he regarded her... As if he was the only glory left to her, she desperately clung to mentioning The Prince.
Aileen was sometimes sick of her mother's stories. She shouldn't be, but she wanted to get angry and argue. She wanted to shout at her to pull herself together and take her medicine properly.
But she held it all back. She patiently comforted her mother, sold medicine to earn money to pay off the debt, and prevented her father, who came home drunk, from treating her mother badly.
She felt better because she thought less about The Prince when she was busy. It was one of those days when she was spending her days like that. Her mother handed Aileen a letter.
"Lily, take this to The Prince."
She smiled, saying that it was okay if she didn't get a reply because he was busy, but she had to take her letter and tell her everything about how happy and glad The Prince was.
Aileen couldn't refuse her mother's request, who was smiling for the first time in a long time. Aileen felt helpless and promised to do so.
"..."
Aileen, who had entered the palace with the thick letter envelope, anxiously bit her lip. Even though she had requested to enter the palace after a long time, The Prince had readily agreed. She was relieved that his affection hadn't changed, but she was also uneasy.
The new clothes she had bought for today, scraping together the little money she had, felt awkward. It seemed to be because she had starched them too stiffly and ironed them. She kept tying and untying her hair, but eventually decided to leave it down, but she was worried that there would be marks left on her hair from tying it up.
Her glasses kept slipping off her nose because she was nervous and sweating. Aileen fidgeted with her bangs and waited for Cesare in the Imperial Palace garden.
There were no maids or servants around. It was Cesare's thoughtful instruction so that Aileen could comfortably look at the plants while she waited, but Aileen couldn't see a single leaf.
It was then that her heart was pounding all alone. Suddenly, a shower began to fall. Aileen was startled and ran to the nearest tree.
She was able to avoid the rain under the tree, but she was already soaked. As Aileen checked to see if the letter she had put inside her clothes was wet, she suddenly felt like crying.
'I prepared so hard.'
She had been looking forward to meeting The Prince for days, even staying up all night, but she was going to meet him in such a pathetic state...
Her nose tingled because she resented the sky. As she wiped away the tears that were rolling down her face with her wet sleeves, she saw The Prince holding an umbrella. He had seen her crying and wiping away her tears.
Cesare, who had been staring at Aileen, folded the umbrella he had been using perfectly. Aileen's eyes widened.
He walked slowly towards the tree where Aileen was, getting rained on. Cesare swept back his hair, which was wet with rain, and smiled.
"Why did you come only now?"
