The Broken Ring: This Marriage Will Fail Anyway Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Luciano was someone who merely provided support for a woman's movements. It didn't make sense that Ines's brother, who was relatively small in stature and appearance compared to him, could make her dancing more beautiful.

Without realizing it, he found himself remembering Dante Ihar's words and giving a messy rebuttal. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Dressed in somber attire, she projected an aura that seemed to push away attention, as if she would curse anyone who dared to meet her gaze.…

But now, looking at her, who could easily remember the girl from before? It was hard for him to match what he knew with what he saw. Even though he hadn't thought about her constantly, the shock was, indeed, to be expected. Irritation began to rise within him again.

Dressing up so prettily, dancing so prettily, smiling so prettily… It didn't sit well with him. The uneasy feeling that had been burning since they danced the first dance at this celebratory banquet was confirmed when Luciano directly asked his sister to dance during the party.

The moment she was gently held in his arms and lightly moving her feet, the face that smiled sweetly even if it was pretentious, the pointless grievances she whispered as she placed her lips in his ear... If she hadn't criticized his dancing skills like that, he would have shown it off in the middle of the wedding celebration venue and exhibited that fact for a lifetime.

The straight, beautifully flowing collarbones, the raised chest and enticing valley underneath, danced in his view throughout, as if mocking him. The fact that everyone could see it drove him insane.

Cárcel let out a low sigh. Just the thought of it made his blood rush downward.

Time stubbornly refused to pass quickly. There was still time before they leave the banquet hall and go to the bridal room where they would spend the night...

"You look bored."

Oscar, who had suddenly appeared behind him, smoothly took the wine glass that was in front of Cárcel. It was a new glass that Cárcel hadn't even touched.

That was also the rare wine produced 43 years ago in a particularly sunny year from the famous vineyard of the Duke of Valeztena.

Now, there were only about three bottles left, and the Duke of Valeztena himself insisted that someone like you should savor each precious sip with gratitude throughout the banquet - pouring a generous glass personally.

At Ortega's wedding, the best wine was exclusively reserved for the bride and groom, with even the parents of the bride or groom not allowed to drink the same wine according to tradition.

However, would such a tradition be worth a damn to a Crown Prince who considers himself the most precious among all living beings?

Cárcel brazenly glanced at the empty glass that had been set down instead of a new one, as if it were not worth mentioning, then turned his gaze back to face Oscar as if there was nothing to say.

As the uninvited guest arrived, the music changed, and Ines, who had only expected to return this way, seemed to have spotted Oscar and was conversing with Enrique Osorno, who happened to be approaching.

The grandson of the Duke of Osorno, whom the Duke of Valeztena had mentioned as his top priority.

"Indeed, Valeztena's wine is the best. Even though I begged him to bring out just one bottle until I died, he wouldn't, but now he gladly offers it as a son-in-law to someone like you."

Even after Oscar was violently rejected by Ines at the age of ten, he continued to court her in secret. It was an irrational obsession that no one, not even the Emperor and Empress, let alone those around him, could understand.

With nothing left but his pride, he seemed to oscillate between resentment and desire, unsure whether it was spite or longing. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] If it was an attempt to make up for his first failure at such a young age, he was truly a tiresome individual... As always, Cárcel listened to Oscar's petty sarcasm with one ear and let it go with the other.

As in the year Cárcel attended the military academy, there were moments when he seemed to be taking a more serious turn, even personally traveling to Pérez, but before he could fully commit, Inés somehow managed to thwart him Oscar became frustrated with Ines's efforts and returned and became engaged.

And now, at the age of twenty-seven, he still hasn't married, causing turmoil in the Empress's heart.

The granddaughter of the Marquis of Barca, to whom he was engaged, was already twenty-two and had passed the age of marriage, but he endured the palace's pressure with the excuse that the fiancée he met at the age of sixteen when he was twenty still looked too young.

And the more he endured, the more he expressed his regret to Cárcel. How he had been rejected by Inés at that time, unable to say a word to her.…..

Cárcel casually threw back some insincere responses to Oscar's teasing, such as ‘yes’ and ‘I'm sorry,’ and turned his gaze away once again.

His gaze wandered, searching for her. Inés wasn't where he had expected her to be, but she stood out enough that he could find her with a single glance. Cárcel's eyes narrowed.

She was clearly engaged in conversation with Enrique Osorno, albeit a little apart from the dancers.

"...If only she had chosen Enrique Osorno, I might have respected her even just a little.”

Oscar's murmuring voice didn't just brush past his ears as it usually did; it pierced them like a needle.

"Why did Inés choose someone like you?"

".….."

"Look, she would have suited the Duke of Osorno's grandson much better.”

Before they knew it, they were dancing in the midst of lively music.

"Sure, being a bit rough around the edges might be a flaw, but there are women who like that kind of look... What's more manly than being all sunburnt from working in the fields?"

"…..."

"That someone is you. You get it, right?"

"I understand, but I'm not going to respond."

"Are you jealous?"

"No.”

"Dancing is nothing special. A lady who can't dance properly at a party where she's the center of attention isn't charming at all. Ines rarely dances with other people, so even I would be annoyed by it, but it's a ritual activity that everyone does. It’s narrow-minded, do you understand?”

Listening to him lecture as if he were teaching an obvious fact to an ignorant person only fueled his irritation.

Perhaps the reason he joined the navy was not to avoid marriage, but to avoid this voice. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] The fact that he had to devote his entire life to an annoying lord rather than living with one woman for the rest of his life put him in a pessimistic mood.

"Inés is predictably stunning, and you, who are not worth a penny, probably want to keep her tied to your side alone, but that's not how a marriage should work."

"What do you know if you’re not even married?”

"For some reason, there is a fact that I feel like I know without having to do it.”

Sure you do. As if you could possibly... Oscar suddenly patted his shoulder as if he were becoming a good cousin.

"It's okay. Because Enrique Osorno is now making your wife happy instead of you.”

Being of a status that couldn't even dare to tell him to shut up like he did with Dante Ihar...

"Look, she's smiling."

"…..."

"I've never seen her smile like that when she's dancing with you. Is it because of Enrique Osorno's exceptional charm? Did those two practice beforehand, so they're more in sync?”

Like a f*cking cousin. Even in the part where he catches the same detail as Dante Ihar, Cárcel felt a serious inflammation. If he could tie them both together and throw them from a bridge, he wouldn't have any more wishes.

"When we danced the first dance earlier, she smiled."

"Oh, really. For the first time. Very hypocritically."

As if to say, ‘Is that all you can hold on to?’ Oscar chuckled happily, then subtly took the wine glass that had been left at Inés's seat.

Cárcel snatched it away like a knife. Unlike his own, it was a glass that Ines' lips had already touched. He downed it in one gulp.

The alcohol went down his throat without a chance to savor it, and his head briefly throbbed. This was clearly a stress-induced reaction.

"Strange."

"If it was mine, maybe, but it's not."

"So, what did Dante Ihar say earlier?"

"Nothing important."

"But your face didn't agree."

".….."

"The expression on your face was very sh*tty.”

"You haven't been much help since earlier. Can you just leave please?"

"A master doesn't help his subordinates, Cárcel. I'm just here for fun. It's the best view from here."

"Then enjoy it alone."

"No need to worry about Dante Ihar. He'll surely end up bald like my father."

Of all the things Oscar had said so far, this was the most poignant.

"Of course, you should also be a bit careful. After all, your mother-in-law belongs to the risk group.”

"Please, only give comfort in one direction."

"Look at Dante Ihar's forehead. He's the spitting image of his father."

"Are you saying that His Highness inherited the same forehead as our father?"

"…...You b*stard."

"I was just wondering if appearance really does get passed down exactly like that when I listened to Your Highness’ words...”

Cárcel looked for Ines again, muttering 'no, not’ And sure enough, she was smiling once more. What made him suddenly feel so bitter... As he watched with a twisted perspective, her smile seemed not just a smile but almost like laughter, audible laughter.

He didn't like it... Enrique Osorno's widening eyes, suddenly caught his attention.

It was a well-known fact, almost like an unwritten rule, that Inés Valeztena didn't dance with anyone except her family and fiancé. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Since she had refused the prince's request several times before, whether one sensed danger from her attire or not, all the nobles, who might have applied for her hand out of necessity for family alliances, could only roll their eyes uncomfortably from a distance, unable to approach her. That was everything.

And Enrique Osorno became the first exception.