Chapter 120 At The Eastern Cottage
Robert, who had made up his mind, was heading to the training grounds when he was suddenly stopped by a young butler. The butler was holding a memo from Sara.
'If you don't want to get rejected in front of a lot of people, you should think carefully about the proposal location. I've instructed them to set up the eastern cottage, so please head there.'
"Ah, yeah, being rejected in front of everyone would be terrible. Um, which eastern cottage is it?"
"It's the one in the middle courtyard. Shall I guide you there?"
"No, I'm fine. Just tell Sara thanks for me."
"Understood."
The butler bowed respectfully.
Robert hurriedly carried a large bouquet of flowers and headed towards the eastern cottage.
When he arrived, he saw a white cross on the table, surrounded by roses and gerbera flowers. Upon closer inspection, the bouquet he was holding matched the ones on the table. Next to the flowers was a small, velvet-covered box, and the steward was waiting beside the cottage.
"What's this box?"
"It's the late madam's ring. This is the ring that the master gave to the late madam when they got engaged, and it's been instructed to be given to Lady Orson by Sir Robert."
"Is this my mother's ring..."
When he gently opened the box, a small but high-quality sapphire ring glimmered in the light.
'I've been pushed this far by the two of them, I won't back down either!'
"Sir Robert, is it okay to call Lady Orson now that everything is ready?"
"Uh, yeah. And can I ask you to clear the area? I think Revi can come here alone."
"Understood."
The steward and the maids all bowed and left, leaving Robert alone in the eastern cottage. Suddenly, a small green dog appeared on the table.
"Whoa!"
"Hello, Sir Robert."
"Who are you?"
"I'm Pochi, Sara's friend. This is the first time I've shown up in front of you, Sir Robert."
"Ah, so you're Pochi. I was helped by you during the ergot incident."
"You're welcome."
"Why are you here? You shouldn't be at Sara's place, right?"
"I was asked by Sara. Just wait a bit, okay?"
As Pochi walked around the eastern-style cottage, a golden light sparkled and poured down, ignoring the seasons and making various flowers bloom all at once, filling the air with a sweet fragrance.
"How's that?"
Pochi, sitting on the table with a cute pose, tilted its head. If Sara saw it, she would say it looked like a "BITTER dog" or something.
"Thanks, Pochi. That's amazing!"
"The rest is up to Sir Robert. Do your best!"
"Uh, yeah!"
Even the fairy was putting pressure on him, and his voice was completely shaking.
Then, Pochi suddenly disappeared, and Rebecca's voice was heard in Robert's ear.
"What's going on, Rob? You're calling me out during class? What's this?"
Rebecca also noticed that the surroundings and Robert's outfit were not normal.
"Uh, that... what's this..."
Rebecca quickly realized that Robert was trying to propose to her. However, even after waiting, Robert didn't say anything clear.
Rebecca waited for about 10 minutes, but the situation didn't change at all. No, to be exact, she had been waiting for years.
'It's about time she got angry, isn't it? This is...'
"If you don't need me, I'll go back. We're still in class, you know."
"Revi, will you marry me?"
With great effort, Robert finally managed to say the words and handed her a bouquet. But Rebecca was already furious.
"What? Why?"
"That... Sara said that even if she becomes my adopted daughter, she will not have a mother..."
And Robert poured oil on Rebecca's anger, making it even worse.
"What?! You want to marry me because you want to make Ms. Sara your adopted daughter?!"
"No, it's not like that..."
"That's exactly what it is! You're feeling sorry for me, a 27-year-old who's still not married, right?"
Robert was flustered. Extremely flustered. He never thought he'd make Rebecca this angry, so he didn't know what to say.
"No, I'm 30 years old too!"
"So you want to marry someone just because we're both leftovers? Are you kidding me?"
'What do I do... This wasn't supposed to happen...'
"Cut the crap! You're just a womanizer!"
Rebecca took the bouquet Robert handed her, and with a swift motion, she swung it at Robert's face, knocking him down. Unconsciously, Robert had strengthened his body, so he flew backward.
Rebecca approached Robert, who was still reeling, and grabbed his collar, pulling him up. She then landed 2 hooks on his face and finished with a straight right punch. Robert fell backward, rolling on the ground, crushing the beautiful flowers Pochi had carefully arranged. It was a magnificent display of her skills, proving that her nickname "Little Prince" was no joke.
"If you say something like that again, I'll quit being governess. We've been together for over 20 years, and I owe a debt of gratitude to the late Marquis's wife, so I'll forgive you this time. But think carefully about our friendship."
Robert, still bleeding from his nose, slowly got up and finally looked at Rebecca properly. To his surprise, Rebecca was crying, tears streaming down her face.
"Revi, what's wrong? Did you hurt your hand?"
Despite his own pitiful state, Robert was worried about Rebecca, who was crying.
"It's not my hand that hurts. It's my heart. I'm so pathetic."
"You're not pathetic at all, Revi."
"Don't say that! I've been waiting for you for so long, and it's pathetic, so I'm crying."
"Huh?"
Robert's face turned pale.
"Revi, you were waiting for me?"
"I was waiting."
"But didn't you get engaged to another guy?"
"It's a political marriage, so there's no choice, right? I mean, when the proposal came, my parents said, 'If the young master of the Grandchester family is proposing, prioritize that.' But, of course, there was no proposal in the first place."
Rebecca didn't even wipe away her tears, and continued to scold Robert.
"What's with 'let's become adventurers together'? You're so weak you'd get beaten up easily. You're really stupid."
"Yeah... I'm really sorry. I didn't see reality. But I didn't want to let Revi go to Roisen."
"Why not?"
"Because I wouldn't be able to see Revi anymore."
"It's the same if I marry another man."
"It's not the same I won't be able to protect Revi anymore. Even if I can't stand by Revi's side, at least I wanted to see them."
"What's with that? Are you satisfied just by seeing them?"
"It's not that. My heart hurts a lot, but that's all I can do..."
As Robert hung his head in shame, his nosebleed dripped onto the white flower blooming below him.
"Ah, geez. Turn this way a bit."
Rebecca cast a healing spell on Robert, beautifully curing the wounds and bruises she had inflicted.
"Thanks."
"I'm the one who hit you, but if I say it like Ms. Sara, it's no problem if I hit and heal you, right?"
"Heh... haha. But my heart is broken just like my nose bone from earlier."
"That's too bad. Well, I'll be off. I've been skipping class, and I need to fix my makeup before I go back to my room."
Rebecca wiped away her tears with a handkerchief and adjusted her skirt.
"Revi... can't you marry me after all?"
"I'm going to marry someone who loves only me. So, the woman who will become Ms. Sara's mother is someone else."
After hearing Rebecca's response, Robert finally realized what he had to say.
"I'm really stupid."
"You're only realizing that now? I've known that for about 20 years, and you're pretty stupid."
"Yeah. I've finally come to terms with it."
Robert brushed off the dust from his clothes with a pat-pat, grasped the small box on the table, and walked over to Rebecca on his knees.
"Lady Rebecca Orson, I've loved only you since a long, long time ago. Please marry me. I don't think I can bear a life without you."
Then, he opened the small box and presented the ring.
"..."
However, there was no response from Rebecca. Robert, who felt suspicious, looked up to see Rebecca crying even harder than before, with big tears streaming down her face.
"Huh, Revi? Did I say something unnecessary again?"
"You're too late. Way too late! And it's a lie!"
"It's not a lie!"
"Then why did you go to all those ladies' places and flirt with them? And you even went to the brōtḥel!"
"Ah, no, that's... ."
"I've been waiting for you all this time. After Prince Adolf passed away, I thought you would propose to me..."
"I thought I wasn't good enough for you, Revi..."
"It's up to me to decide who's good enough for me! Why did you decide on your own?"
"But I'm just the second son..."
"I'm just the second daughter, too?"
"But Revi, you're incredibly beautiful, loved by the spirits, and seem like a saint..."
"So, are you giving up again?"
Robert let out a bitter smile as he approached Rebecca and gently wiped away her tears with his handkerchief.
"It's no use. I've poured out all my feelings that I've kept hidden in my heart, and if you reject me, I think my heart will shatter into pieces."
"Maybe someone will pick up the pieces of your broken heart?"
"I don't want anyone else to pick them up except you."
"That's it, then. I have no choice."
Rebecca held out her left hand. Robert kissed the back of her left hand and put the sapphire ring on her ring finger. In the Grandchester family, it's a tradition to put an engagement ring on the left ring finger of their betrothed. Of course, there's also a ceremony for exchanging wedding vows. Perhaps it was started by their ancestors, who had memories from their past lives.
"Well, shall we go report to our daughter?"
"Will she become our daughter?"
"Probably, yeah. For me, Ms. Sara is a friend, a student, and a daughter figure. That's the best, isn't it?"
"Yeah, definitely the best."
But Robert stopped in his tracks, gazing at Rebecca.
"Revi, I love you. I've loved you since we were kids. So tell me, what do you think of me? Are you going to marry me out of pity?"
"I'm not stupid enough to wait for someone who doesn't love me back."
"Then..."
"Yeah, I love you."
As Robert said that, he smiled and Rebecca smiled back. Robert couldn't resist anymore and hugged Rebecca tightly, holding her in his arms.
Fey, Mike, Pochi, and Sedrick, who were secretly watching from above, poured down a golden light on the two, and countless nameless fairies fluttered around them. Pochi secretly used the bouquet that had been thrown away and the flowers Robert had trampled to restore them to their original state, and even scattered petals around the two.
It took a considerable amount of time for the lovers to notice, and even the fairies didn't report it to Sara.
He's really a hopeless guy, but since being a failure is a Grandchester guy's family tradition, Rebecca can't help but give up on him.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)