Chapter 6 (Part 3)

“Juliet, I’m so grateful you’ve changed your mind. When I heard the news that you wanted to marry me, I truly thanked God. Even more than when I was brought back to life.”

Romeo’s voice echoed inside the rattling carriage. As soon as he finished speaking, a short silence followed. She nudged Rosaline, who was sitting next to her. It was Rosaline, not her, who had to answer Romeo. She looked at her with a bit of nervousness. The Lovely Person couldn’t change her voice. Rosaline had to alter her voice herself.

“I’m sorry for being fickle. The reason I rejected you before was because I wasn’t ready. I’ve never not loved you.”

Her worries were unfounded; it was a perfect imitation. Rosaline bit her lip for a moment and then poured out a smooth response. I’ve never not loved you. If nothing else, that statement was surely her genuine feeling without a hint of falsehood. Romeo looked at Rosaline with eyes full of emotion and clasped her hands. Rosaline frowned slightly, as if uncomfortable with the situation, but she didn’t push his hands away.

Sitting fully in a four-seater carriage felt suffocating. William, who was to officiate the ceremony, sat next to Romeo, while she sat next to Rosaline. Of course, she was disguised as Rosaline’s maid so Romeo wouldn’t recognize her. To his eyes, Rosaline would appear as her, so unless she made a significant mistake, her identity wouldn’t be revealed.

Yes. Fortunately, Romeo seemed to be under the effect of the Lovely Person. She stared at Rosaline sitting next to her. To her, Rosaline still appeared only as Rosaline.

It wasn’t like this from the beginning. This morning, when Rosaline sprayed the Lovely Person in front of her, she certainly appeared as Romeo. But the image of Romeo in her eyes soon wavered like a hazy mist and disappeared.

And a vague silhouette appeared. It was the same phenomenon she had seen at the auction house. But the silhouette also disappeared shortly afterward. Since then, all she saw was Rosaline’s face.

“Mr. Shakespeare, we owe you again, following the engagement ceremony. Thank you.”

It was Romeo who spoke again. She felt a bit tense. To be honest, she didn’t have a shred of expectation for William’s acting ability.

“I’m honored to be part of the celebration.”

She was surprised at the unexpectedly fluent words. 

Could playwrights act to some extent too? 

She involuntarily raised her head to look at his face. And she almost burst into laughter. She quickly turned her head to hide her face.

She was thankful Romeo was sitting next to William, not in front of him. He wouldn’t have to face that stiffened face.

Noticing her gaze, William also looked towards her. Then, for some reason, he seemed startled, quickly turning his head with a strangely uneasy expression. It was odd behavior for someone who usually stared at people until they felt awkward.

She looked at him with a dissatisfied face, but he never turned his head back toward her until they reached the church.

When the carriage arrived at the church, Romeo, who got off first, extended his hand to Rosaline. Rosaline placed her hand on his as if accustomed and got off the carriage. William, who followed, naturally turned around.

Realizing what he was about to do, she desperately made an X sign to avoid Romeo noticing. In what world would a maid be politely escorted?

If Romeo hadn’t stepped forward, she would have been the one to first get off and escort Rosaline. William noticed her desperate signal and turned back around. Romeo looked at him curiously.

“I left my handkerchief behind. Haha.”

She wanted to tear her hair out at the contrived laugh. William awkwardly pulled out a handkerchief that had never left his pocket.

“Hahaha. You have a more careless side than I thought.”

Romeo laughed, seemingly unaware of anything. Hahaha. Hahaha. The hearty, or pretending to be hearty, laughter echoed.

She shook her head. She seemed to briefly catch Rosaline’s complicated expression as well. She shifted her gaze to William, who was still awkwardly laughing. For some reason, a smile slowly spread across her face too.

“We should head inside the church soon.”

William, seemingly tired of the forced laughter, quickly changed the topic. Romeo nodded vigorously.

“Indeed. I can’t delay marrying Juliet even for a moment longer.”

At that moment, everyone’s expression, except Romeo’s, twisted slightly. But no one could show their displeasure. Romeo led the way, and Rosaline walked beside him, matching his pace. She closely followed Rosaline from behind.

Seeing this, William, for some reason, looked startled again and turned his head. She glanced forward. Romeo and Rosaline were already lost in their own world. There was no risk of getting caught. She subtly distanced herself from them and approached William.

“Why do you keep avoiding me?”

No matter how lost those two were in their world, if a maid left her master alone for too long, Romeo would find it odd. She asked directly.

“Me?”

William asked back as if he didn’t understand. She made a bewildered face, but indeed, he wasn’t avoiding her now. He was looking at her like a dog hoping for a treat, just like usual.

What was this difference in attitude from earlier to now? She scrutinized William as if looking at a suspicious person. But he only looked clueless.

“Not now, but in the carriage and just now when you were following Rosaline, you turned your head away like someone who saw something they shouldn’t.”

“Oh, that.”

William seemed to understand and was about to say something but quickly shut his mouth again. For some reason, his face turned red. She increasingly couldn’t understand him.

“What is it?”

“That is…”

William’s face turned increasingly red. But soon, as if making up his mind, he spoke.

“Since Rosaline sprayed the Lovely Person, whenever I’m with Miss Rosaline, it looks like there are two Juliets. So I keep getting startled.”

Once he started speaking, he was unhesitant. He was already looking at her with earnest eyes. His flushed face and earnest eyes. No matter how you looked at it, he had a face like a prince, but he only looked like an anxious puppy, making her burst into laughter unintentionally.

He looked at her with a bewildered expression. She didn’t dislike that silly look. The way he prioritized her over the mission, how William always looked at her even without magic, she didn’t dislike it. She liked it.

“Then I’ll prepare for the ceremony.”

The church was empty, as she had requested in advance. William finished speaking and headed straight to the priest’s room. It was usually where Friar Lawrence resided, but today, William was to take his place.

“I’ll go change. Romeo, you can use the waiting room over there.”

“It’s hard to part even for a moment. But for the sake of marrying you, I’ll endure. I’ll wait for you to come out as beautiful as always.”

Watching Romeo speak as if an hour-long separation was like one or two years, she let out a small sigh. Rosaline gently comforted him before moving. She also entered the waiting room, following Rosaline.

“Will everything really return to normal with this wedding?”

Rosaline asked, sitting on the waiting room chair. She looked exhausted.

“Of course. We just need to safely complete this wedding.”

She answered firmly. Rosaline nodded.

“That’s enough. Honestly, playing you in front of you… isn’t exactly pleasant, but I’ll endure.”

Rosaline quickly began preparing after finishing her words. A feather-like white wedding dress, a veil covering her face, a lively wreath made of various wildflowers. She gradually took on the appearance of a bride. And when she was ready, Rosaline was beautiful. Beautiful. There was no other word to describe her.

The wedding dress suited her white skin as if it were part of her, and the silhouette glimpsed through the veil made one curious about the face beneath. The wildflowers in the wreath seemed like flowers that had bloomed from her from the start.

She was truly a beautiful bride. And perhaps, to someone, she would become the most precious bride in the world. Romeo had to be freed from the magic. For the sake of his one and only bride.

“Shall we go out then?”

She had nothing to do, feeling embarrassed at having pretended to be a maid. Rosaline approached her and extended her hand. She awkwardly took her hand and escorted her. It was her role as the only maid present to bring the bride to meet the groom.