At that exact moment, the door was slammed open.
[Here we go! The schemer makes her grand entrance, ready to stir up trouble!]
[Phew, that was close. Good thing our Chancellor hit the brakes. I can’t imagine the horror if a crowd had burst in on… that.]
From the doorway, Seraphina’s elegant, soft voice rang out. “We just discovered a villain was at the gala, drugging the wine! It seems Lady Elara was the one who drank it.”
Her voice trembled, as if she were overcome with concern for me. “I believe Lady Elara came this way to rest. Everyone, please, help me look! We must see if she’s been harmed…”
She trailed off, leaving the implication hanging in the air. Everyone understood. They exchanged glances and then surged forward, ready to burst into the room.
They expected to find me disheveled, a public spectacle, the centerpiece of a grand scandal. This was prob- ably the scene they’d planned for after I’d sought out Kaelen. He would have been standing over me, loudly
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proclaiming how I’d shamelessly tried to seduce him, causing the heartbroken Seraphina to flee in tears.
But as the door was thrown open, Julian stepped in front of me, shielding me from every gaze.
“It is late,” he said, his voice dangerously quiet. “Why are you all looking for my cousin?”
Seeing him, the smile on Seraphina’s face froze, then bleached to a ghastly white. “Elara? Why is she with you, Chancellor? I thought she went to find Lord Kaelen.”
Julian’s voice was flat. “She is my cousin. Is it not perfectly normal for her to seek me out?” His eyes narro wed. “Were she and Lord Kaelen so close? Without a betrothal, Lady Seraphina, you should be careful with your words. Do not tarnish my cousin’s reputation.“”
His voice turned as sharp as a shard of ice.
Behind his back, the hand holding my wrist tightened its grip.
[He’s still holding her hand, hasn’t even let go, and he’s already this jealous.】
【Elara, that poison is nasty. One little pill won’t fix it. You better be good and appease your jealous man, oi you’ll be the one crying and begging for his kisses later.]
【Field report! The schemer is in position, and the psycho is on his way. Level one alert!]
Chancellor Julian was a legend. So young, yet so powerful, a man many viewed as a god, utterly unattainab le. To hear him personally reprimand Seraphina for insulting my honor was a shock.
Seraphina, the “female lead,” had likely never been spoken to so harshly. Her eyes instantly filled with tears which began to fall one by one as if she had suffered the greatest injustice imaginable. “Chancellor, you mis understand. I was only worried for Lady Elara, I meant no harm…”
“But… Lady Elara is only your distant cousin. For the two of you to be alone in a room at this hour… it is impr oper. You must consider her reputation, Chancellor…”
The comments were livid.
【I’m so mad! This girl is so two–faced! It gives me this helpless feeling, like trying to slap smoke. I bet she was the one who drugged Elara’s wine!]
【Just stick with your psycho, nobody’s trying to steal him from you! If you ruin our secret ship and I can’t get my fix, I’ll destroy you all.]
I wanted to leap out and tear at her perfectly styled hair. But Julian’s hand held me fast. His long, beautiful fingers began to gently trace circles in my palm.
It tickled.
In front of all these people, he was calmly, deliberately, teasing my palm.
It was… thrilling.
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The heat I had just managed to suppress began to stir again.
Julian fixed his gaze on her. “What does it matter? I can take responsibility for Elara. I will marry her.”
The comments exploded.
[HE HAS A MOUTH AND HE KNOWS HOW TO USE IT! ICE PRINCE SUPREMACY!]
[My forbidden, secret ship can finally come out of the shadows and feast!]
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