Chapter 1 – Broken Engagement (Part 2)

Reubellina hadn’t always had her heart set on Inferno – he was a sickly, frail prince. Her ideal man was one who could protect her.

However, the reason Reubellina fell for Inferno stemmed from an incident in the palace’s hunting grounds.

Around the age of twelve, she rode out to the hunting grounds on a pony. One of the other noble ladies there boldly announced that she wanted to ride the large horse, provoking Reubellina’s competitive spirit. Not one to lose, Reubellina said she could ride it too, and eventually the two of them ended up riding the large horse together in the hunting grounds.

Momentarily forgetting her fear of the big horse, Reubellina rode it, galloping across the meadow and reveling in the wind.

That’s when it happened. A wild boar leaped out of the rustling bushes. It was strange for there to be a wild boar in the imperial hunting grounds, but at the time, she didn’t even think about that.

The suddenly emerging wild boar struck the flank of the horse Reubellina was riding, and she was thrown off the horse.

‘It’s dangerous!’

Just before she fell, someone caught her and put her back on the horse, but the accident left her shaken and she soon lost consciousness. Right before blacking out, the only things that remained in her mind were the dazzling golden hair and blue-tinted eyes of the person.

‘Are you okay?’

When she regained consciousness, the person in front of her was Inferno. From that moment on, Reubellina could never forget the clear, blue eyes that had looked at her so warmly.

That was when it began. It was then that Reubellina took an interest in the powerless Second Prince of the Imperial Palace.

After that day, Reubellina never took her eyes off Inferno. Despite the crown prince’s disapproval and the princess’s scorn, she remained by Inferno’s side.

She liked his humble personality, despite being of noble birth. Inferno’s calm demeanor, not boasting even after saving her, was enough to captivate her.

Inferno didn’t want her to mention the incident. Reubellina thought it was Inferno’s way of looking out for her. It would have been embarrassing for a noble lady to almost fall off her horse on the hunting grounds.

‘That’s why I like him. His silent care for me brought me here…!’

Reubellina’s father, Duke Asillious, had not originally seen Inferno, the second prince, as a potential son-in-law. He had tried to find the best husband for Reubellina, who was next in line for the highest title after the princess and had already pre-selected a few candidates.

As soon as she turned twelve, he shoved their photos at her. Inferno was not among them. It took a lot of persuasion to get the Duke to agree to the engagement with the imperial family.

In fact, Reubellina’s personality was quite different from Inferno’s ideal type. She was straightforward and blunt, with a foul mouth, and the type to repay double what was done to her, being of a hot-tempered nature.

But at Inferno’s words that he liked kind and feminine women, Reubellina thoroughly hid her true personality and pretended to be a gentle, mature, and merciful woman, with her whole household cooperating to help her.

‘Do you really have to do this?’

‘Do you not want me to get married and be an unloved wife, Father?’

Reubellina suddenly burst out in anger at her father’s words, who said she could just live according to her own personality and have Inferno accept her as she is, rather than have to go through all this.

She absolutely did not want to be found out. 

For 10 years, no, 12 years, she had been hiding the personality that Inferno deemed unladylike. And now this was the outcome.

“You bastard.”

There was no stopping the words. Reubellina continued.

“Crazy bastard, damned bastard, may lightning strike you, you evil…”

“My lady.”

Startled by the voice from behind, Reubellina clamped her mouth shut. She hiccupped, her shoulders shaking from the fright.

“Hiccup!”

“I did not mean to startle you.”

Reubellina spun around quickly, startled. There stood a handsome man with silver hair and blue eyes. She blinked at the sight of a face she’d never seen before, though she’d been in and out of the palace quite a bit.

But just as she was captivated by his face, a sudden thought flashed through her mind.

‘Could he have seen everything? All the humiliation I just went through?’

Her eyes widened, and she spoke to him.

“Did you… see everything?”

“Oh, no. But you should be asking if I’ve heard it all.”

“So, did you hear everything?”

“Yes, I did.”

Staring at the calm man’s affirmation, Reubellina bit her lip. The man she had just thought was handsome was no longer in her sight.

‘How can I prevent this from becoming a rumor…’

Reubellina’s scrutinizing gaze fell on the man. No matter how she looked, he was a stranger. Which means he probably didn’t know who she was either.

It would be best to get out of this place rather than have a lengthy conversation. Having finished her calculations, Reubellina quickly turned around. If only she hadn’t stumbled and lost her balance, she might have safely escaped that place.

“Kaaaah……!”

Reubellina squeezed her eyes shut as she saw the floor approaching, flailing her arms to try to avoid hitting her face first. It was an unsightly sight, but minimizing injury was the top priority.

Just as Reubellina’s face was about to hit the floor, her body jerked and shifted, and instead of the hard floor, she felt the solid torso of a person beneath her.

The hot summer breeze swept between them. She could feel the heat of a large hand resting on the thin dress she wore for tonight’s banquet. The hand carefully supporting the back of her head seemed to be cautious not to mess up her hair ornaments.

As the hand on her waist brushed her back, a shiver ran down her spine and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Startled, Reubellina pushed her hands against the solid chest, only to freeze as she felt the firm sensation on her fingertips.

With a pale face, Reubellina slowly looked up. At the man’s puzzled expression, she removed her hand from his firm, broad chest. She hastily moved, but the man’s lips spoke first.

“My lady, you are quite… bold.”

“Excuse me!”

A flustered Reubellina abruptly stood up. Noticing her intent to flee, the man spoke first.

“Are you running away like this?”

His words stopped her in her tracks.

“Without even thanking the man who saved your life?”

The man stood up, dusting off his clothes and straightening his back. Reubellina turned back with an awkward expression. The man, now standing directly behind her, was staring at her with a pensive stare.

The towering man exuded an overwhelming presence, something Reubellina had never felt with Inferno. Her fingertips tingled with tension.

She clenched and unclenched her hands nervously as she faced him. The man’s blue eyes on her made Reubellina involuntarily swallow hard.

“I’m grateful that you helped me when I was about to fall.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Reubellina didn’t know whether or not to ask, but she had to make sure, in case this man had seen the whole embarrassing incident.

“Did you… see everything?”

“As I said, I heard everything.”

Right, the man had already said he had heard everything. Reubellina had completely forgotten the question she had just asked, overwhelmed by the embarrassing situation.

Embarrassed, she cleared her throat. The calm-faced man didn’t say anything, and neither did she.

Unable to endure the long silence, Reubellina finally spoke first.

“By any chance, if you were to…”

“There’s no need to worry about that.”

The deep-toned voice strangely reassured her. Reubellina avoided the man’s unwavering gaze, glancing around. She knew her behavior was improper, but she couldn’t focus on etiquette right now. She had no idea how much disgraceful conduct she had shown in front of this man.

Yet, somehow, Reubellina felt a sense of trust in the man’s demeanor and she sighed. She had to try to salvage the situation, no matter how shameful her behavior had been.

“If you could tell me your name, I would like to express my gratitude.”

“You’ll come to know it later, just not now.”

The man looked at Reubellina seriously, holding back his words. As she had noticed from the beginning, he was a man of few words.

‘But what does he mean, I’ll know it later?’

“What do you mean by…”

Before Reubellina could finish speaking, the man had already turned his body and disappeared. She stood there for a moment, watching his silver hair flutter in the wind, lost in thought.

‘So…… today I was broken up with, I was embraced by a man I didn’t know and rolled around on the floor, and that man’s…’

Her face turned bright red. The reddened tips of her ears gave away her emotions.

She wanted to disappear right then and there. However, she had no means to do so, nor the courage to return to the ballroom. The only option left for her was to go home.

In the distance, she could hear the bustling noise of the banquet hall. Tonight’s banquet was for Reubellina and Inferno, yet here she was, one of the main characters, walking alone down the palace corridor in solitude.

She couldn’t help but burst out into a fit of bitter laughter. Without hiding her hollow laughter, Reubellina left the imperial palace.