Chapter 213: Chapter 107 (1) – I Love You, Your Majesty
Petronilla followed Rothesay out of the banquet hall. She wondered what he was up to, since he was a little more tense than usual. His nervous behavior was infectious; Petronilla’s heart pounded in her chest as well.
Rothesay held Petronilla’s hand tightly as he led her to a garden inside of the Outer Palace.
A long time passed as they walked in silence. Petronilla wondered, -Is taking a stroll in the garden the ‘important thing’ that we must do?-
As she continued to think about that, she felt this was all a bit absurd. -I mean, what is this? Of course, it is not possible for just the two of us to take a walk in the palace garden at any time, so today would be the ideal time to do so…- Petronilla tilted her head, looking confused.
At that time, Rothesay called out, “Nil.”
“Yes, Ro?”
“Just for a moment, would you please close your eyes while standing right here?”
“My eyes?”
“Yes. It will only take a minute, Nil.”
“Alright, I will.” Petronilla was very curious about what was going on, but she faithfully followed his request. How many seconds did she have her eyes closed? Petronilla grew tired of the wait, and carefully asked Rothesay, “Ro, can I open my eyes now?”
“Ah, wait! Wait a moment please!”
-What is he up to?- At this point, Petronilla began to feel anxious, but she faithfully trusted in and followed Rothesay’s words. -More than that, what in the world are you trying to accomplish with this?-
“Nil,” after a while, a soft voice shattered the silence. “You can open your eyes now.”
At Rothesay’s words, Petronilla opened her eyes after waiting ever so impatiently. At the sight, she had no choice but to gasp, “Ah…!”
“This feels quite awkward.” Rothesay was standing in front of Petronilla holding a bouquet of roses – it looked like there were around a hundred of them. All about them was a heart shape drawn around with some candles.
At this sight, Petronilla could not utter a single word, and simply gazed into Rothesay’s eyes. “What is this…”
“I wanted to do this romantically during the daytime.” Rothesay explained self-consciously, his face reddening. “However, I did not think I could do it properly during the day. If I looked straight into Nil’s eyes and whispered about my love, that would be enough to get my heart pounding violently, and my chest would be ready to burst.”
“Ah…” Petronilla thought, -So this right now is a…is this a proposal right now? This cute man!- Petronilla looked at Rothesay, her expression so moved that she did not know what to do. Despite being obscured by darkness, she could sense that he was very embarrassed. Petronilla covered her mouth, a dazed expression on her face. She called out his name in an emotional voice, “Ah, Ro…”
“Lady Petronilla,” he called out, using her full name after a long time of not having done so.
Petronilla nodded and took a step forward to him.
“I do not come from a family that is better than my Lady Petronilla, and I am not that much of a capable or affectionate man.”
-What are you talking about.- Petronilla clicked her tongue in silent disagreement while continuing to be touched by his gesture. If this man did not come from a good family, was not capable, or not affectionate, then all the good-natured men in the world would have to go die. -I have been thinking about this for a long time, but this man is ridiculously humble when it comes to me,- Petronilla thought to herself.
“Nevertheless, I will do my best to make Lady Petronilla happy.”
“… ”
“I want to remain by your side forever as a man who shares all of your pain, happiness, and sorrow.; who comforts you when you are going through a difficult time, and congratulates you when you are happy.” After Rothesay said all this, he took out the ring he had prepared, and placed it on top of the bouquet of roses while finally asking, “So please… will you allow me to take your hand in marriage?”
“Of course,” Petronilla answered without any hesitation and quickly approached him to accept the bouquet of roses. She quickly grabbed the ring on the top of the bouquet and slipped it on the ring finger of her left hand, then threw herself into his arms with a thrilled expression. Her ecstatic voice rang into Rothesay’s ears, “There will be nothing in my life that is as important and such a blessing as meeting a man like you.”
“Thank you so much for providing remarks like that to a man like me, Nil.”
“No need to cut yourself short, or continue with all that humility. Because you are the coolest man in this whole Marvinus Empire; no, in the whole wide world!” Until now, Petronilla had thought that all her tears would only come forth when she was feeling sad, and in fact, her tears had always been exposed only when she was sad. But today, for today at the very least, tears drunk with excessive joy flowed down her cheeks. Her cheeks seemed to be like a slide or a sleigh that children could ride on, with her tears gliding down full of happiness. Petronilla sobbed as she confessed back to him, “I love you, Ro. Thank you so much for proposing.”
“For accepting my proposal, I thank you more, and I love you more, Nil,” Rothesay confessed his love in a desperate voice to her, as if he could not give up on this at the very least, and looked into Petronilla’s eyes with a tender gaze.
Petronilla accepted his stare as it was, and smiled as she kissed Rothesay first. Naturally, he did not turn away as she kissed him.
—
“Are you crying?”
At Lucio’s voice, Patrizia replied with a quiet nod, “Even though I am happy, I guess I can still tear up.”
“Lord Bradington is a good man. Lady Grochester has won the lottery when it comes to her husband.”
“My sister is also a good woman, and quite the catch.”
“Of course, that is the case. She will also be a splendid bride.”
“The two of them will be able to live happily and well together.” Patrizia, who had been looking at everything that was unfolding under the terrace from her position above, immediately changed the topic in a casual manner, “If she marries Lord Bradington, she will still be able to continue to hold her post and serve me.”
“You must have been worried that she might end up marrying a nobleman from the countryside.”
“Because she is my precious, one and only older twin sister.” Patrizia was still in his arms, and asked quietly, “Will it be a difficult matter for me to attend the wedding ceremony?”
“Officially, it would be difficult.”
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Translated by Haeli
Edited by RED