I Became The Younger Sister Of A Dying Woman - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: There’s No Radiance!

⌜…… I miss you. ⌟

He wrote, “I miss you”.

What kind of expression did Hernan have when he wrote “I miss you”?

Linzel couldn’t really picture it.

She cherished his letters and kept them. She wanted to read them again after many years.

‘Especially the ones with the word “miss” in them,’ Linzel thought, ‘I would definitely reread them later.’

‘And I will smile as I recall the innocent anecdotes of our pre-marriage days.’

It was predestined happiness.

“By the way, I miss you too,” she whispered to the empty carriage. The bumps of the cobblestones somehow felt painless against her weak thighs, today of all days.

Maybe it was because she saw him almost every day, but a week without him felt really long. Even as she giggled over her silly chats with Letty and Mini, a part of her felt empty.

It was a void that only Hernan could fill. Linzel had been feeling his absence.

But now she was just a few minutes away from seeing him.

Just as she was thinking about that, the coachman called out, “We have arrived at the palace, miss.”

Linzel jumped out of the carriage as soon as it came to a stop. She was in such good shape that she didn’t mind running a few meters.

Today was the day of their wedding.

* * *

According to the palace maid who greeted her, Hernan’s preparations were not yet complete.

Perhaps Linzel had arrived too early.

She followed the palace maid to where Hernan was getting ready. Hernan’s room was not far from the banquet hall where their wedding would be held.

Linzel knocked cheerfully.

“Your Highness Hernan, it’s me. May I come in?”

“Come in,” a pleasant voice came from inside.

As soon as she heard the voice, her heart twitched and rang in her chest, and for some reason, it even skipped a beat.

Linzel threw the door wide open before the maid could even touch it.

She really wanted to see him.

Hernan, standing in the middle of the room in front of a full-length mirror, made an exclamation of surprise.

“Your Highness! Isn’t this too excessive of a welcome?” Linzel joked as she ogled him.

He seemed to be in the middle of putting on a shirt, fastening its buttons, so his well-trained body peeked out through the opening.

“I was just changing clothes….”

“I guess I came at the right time!”

Did she answer too honestly? Linzel realized her mistake only after speaking.

” …….hah,” Hernan let out a small laugh and then dismissed the maids around him. “You all can leave for a moment. I’ll call you later.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

And so, it was just the two of them.

Linzel stood before Hernan.

“Your Highness, how do I look today?” She asked coyly as she presented him with the look she’d been preparing since early in the morning.

Her wedding gown, a memento of her mother the duchess, her pink hair neatly styled, and her veil cascading down to her waist.

In her eyes, she was the perfect bride. Or should she say, like a perfect female protagonist.

In the world of the book, where Letty was the main character, Linzel wanted to be the heroine, just for today.

Maybe Letty would give in for a day.

A small smile appeared on Hernan’s face.

If he didn’t smile, Hernan’s atmosphere could be somewhat intimidating. Today, his comment was short and simple.

“Beautiful.”

And Linzel didn’t feel disappointed by the brief comment. It was Hernan’s blunt way of saying things.

He had probably put a lot of thought into that one word.

Linzel was about to compliment him on his appearance when she noticed something.

“……!”

Her face, which had been smiling, began to harden. A stern voice emerged from her now straight lips.

“Your Highness…something…bad has happened, hasn’t it?”

Panic spread across Hernan’s face.

“How…do you know?”

She already knew. Linzel gazed at Hernan’s face carefully.

“Your face…there’s no… radiance! If your face is withered, it’s evidence that you’re suffering, isn’t it…?”

Hernan’s majestic body trembled.

“Ugh. I can’t hide anything from you,” he confessed, holding his forehead.

As expected! My guess was correct.

“I told you; the face is the mirror of the heart.”

What kind of event killed the liveliness in Hernan’s face… Linzel felt like she couldn’t forgive whoever was responsible.

“This might take a while,” he sighed. “Let’s sit down.”

Hernan walked over to the sofa and took a seat first.

Was the sofa too small? Or was it because Hernan was too big? The seat next to Hernan’s was barely big enough for her.

But then she noticed his wide thighs. Something about them made her feel like it would be comfortable to sit there.

“Shall I get off?”

“No, I’m fine. This seat isn’t so bad.”

He was flustered, but he didn’t push her away.

Linzel chuckled and asked about his story.

“So, now tell me what happened that made your Highness so troubled.”

“It happened at the palace.”

She listened intently to his words.

Hernan told her that he had announced his intention to marry Linzel to the emperor and his knights.

The emperor and his wife made light of their relationship, and the knights suspected that there was something ulterior about her. Although the reasons for their disappointment in him were different, one thing was certain.

They were convinced that there was no woman who could ever truly love Hernan.

Still, Linzel thought she had made it pretty clear to the Imperial couple that she liked Hernan.

Was she still perceived by them as someone who was only interested in Hernan’s face?

” ……That is what happened. I suppose it’s the result of not paying attention to the rumors that have surrounded me all these years.”

“Rumors of Your Highness?”

“Yeah. Rumors that I’m a murderer, for example. They assume that’s why women don’t like me.”

Hernan let out a short sigh. The crushed mood was palpable.

Linzel was speechless.

If Hernan’s nickname was murderer, it was only on the battlefield; in private, he was sweet and gentle.

Mmmm… Although sometimes, very occasionally, he was misunderstood.

As Linzel pushed aside the tension between her and Hernan, she thought of Mini, who was afraid of Hernan.

Mini was a little reluctant to show Hernan her backside. But Mini was a complete stranger to Hernan.

His family and his knights were different. It was strange that anyone would think that of Hernan after being so close to him.

And to think that it would make her man’s face turn dull!

“Let’s show them what is right!”

“How?”

“Leave it to me.”

“It would be nice if you gave me a hint of what you’re going to do.”

It wasn’t that he distrusted her, but that he was worried about the possible consequences.

“I’m going to show everyone how much I love you.”

Linzel made up her mind. She couldn’t forgive those who hurt Hernan’s feelings.

She wished for his face to regain its glow. Desperately and passionately.

Desperately, desperately, desperately.

* * *

Meanwhile, Letty and the Duke of Valencia arrived at the palace later than Linzel.

They went to the bridal chamber and looked for her, but she was nowhere to be seen. That was when Linzel went to find Hernan.

There was another ducal maid in the bridal chamber, though not Mini. Mini had followed Linzel.

“Excuse me, where has Linzel gone?” Letty asked. 

The maid answered, “We heard she had arrived at the palace, but it seems she stopped somewhere else before coming to the bridal chamber. Unfortunately, I don’t know exactly where she went either, I’m afraid.”

“I see…….” Letty looked up at their father. “Father, shall we wait here for Linzel then?”

“Of course.”

They sat side by side on the sofa in the bridal chamber.

The Duke of Valencia stared down at Letty, who was looking a little grim today.

‘It must be hard for you, to be without Linzel, who has been with you since you were a child.’

As a father, the duke himself felt a great sadness, and he couldn’t imagine how Letty, who had been so close to Linzel, must be feeling.

Or perhaps it was the fact that Linzel wore the wedding dress that the duchess had left behind.

“Letty. Are you okay?”

“Yes. I’m fine, Father.”

But to the duke, Letty’s face was far from fine.

“Is it……. by any chance that you’re heartbroken over that wedding dress of your mother’s? You’ve always wanted to wear it so badly.”

Letty didn’t deny it. She just locked eyes with him with a pitiful smile.

As if he were right.

“It’s okay. Linzel wanted to wear it.”

“Letty…….”

“It’s Linzel, not someone else. Even if you gave it to her, I’m fine. So, Father, please don’t mention anything about the wedding dress to her. I don’t want to upset her.”

The Duke of Valencia nodded his head as if telling her to continue.

“Please don’t bring up anything related to the wedding dress to Linzel. I don’t want to create any discomfort.”

“I understand.”

***

Linzel glanced ahead and saw the Virgin Road, prettily decorated with red roses.

She and Hernan were standing in front of the wedding venue’s Virgin Road. The wedding ceremony would soon take place.

There were about fifty guests on either side of the Virgin Road. About twenty of them were our family and high-ranking nobles. The other thirty men were dressed in the same uniforms.

‘Oh my. So those are Hernan’s knights?’

Each and every one of them was looking at her with unfriendly eyes. As if she were a witch out to get Hernan.

It was nerve-wracking.

But Linzel couldn’t keep worrying about them.

She was out of breath even though she wasn’t walking fast.

“Whew, deep breaths. Deep breaths.”

Linzel pressed her lips together, which had long since dried out.

Was it normal to be this nervous at a wedding?

She didn’t remember being this nervous when she got married before…….

At that moment, a question popped into her head.

‘…Huh? Why am I thinking like someone who has experienced a wedding before?’