196 What Did You Say?

Emma had weighed everything before she came to her decision tonight. She had calculated the pros and cons and alternatives for herself, her family, and Haoran.

However, it was only when she heard about Leon's death that she finally realized that there was no other way for her but to make this choice.

Emma took a deep breath before she finally asked this all-important question to the crown prince.

"Therius ... if I asked you to punish your grandmother, Queen Ygrit, for her crimes against my family ... would you be on my side?" asked Emma with a hoarse voice. She looked at the man with a deep gaze. "Are you willing to kill Queen Ygrit once you take the Akkadian throne? I want to see her suffer... That's how deeply I hate your grandmother."

Therius nodded without hesitation and replied firmly, "I will."

Emma took a deep breath. "Then ... I am willing to marry you."

Therius couldn't believe his own hearing. He stared at Emma with a pair of gleaming eyes.

'What did she say? Did I hear it right?'

Instantly the young man's chest was pounding hard.

"I ... didn't hear you just now," said the young man hoarsely. "What did you say?"

"I'm willing to marry you ..." Emma said softly. She stared at the man intently. "But ..."

Somehow the word 'but' at the end of Emma's sentence became meaningless to Therius. For him, the important thing was that Emma already realized that marrying him was her best choice.

Unexpectedly by Emma, ​​the young man immediately grabbed her by the shoulders and hugged her very tightly.

"I'm so happy to hear that," the crown prince whispered over and over. "I won't disappoint you."

"Uhm ..." Emma was about to continue her words, but Therius placed his index finger on her lips and shook his head.

"Can you delay saying the word 'but'?" he asked her gently. "I will accept all of your terms and 'buts'. But I don't need to hear them now."

Emma was stunned at the prince's words. Somehow, she felt a little guilty since Therius always said yes to her words and did whatever she asked; and she almost always took advantage of this. 

Therius was only stubborn when it came to Haoran. But the rest, Emma had the impression that she would always get whatever she wanted from him.

Emma felt guilty for always trying to find a way to scheme Therius, while the man had always kept his words.

Therius' actions today, where he relentlessly defended Emma and took her side in front of his grandparents, the king and queen of Akkadia, managed to touch Emma's heart.

She was touched even more when the man offered to become collateral to make sure Emma returned to Akkadia. If Emma disappeared, then Therius didn't mind stepping down as the future king of Akkadia. She knew how much the throne meant to him.

The last straw for her to give up on her scheme to runaway was when Emma heard that her only hope to cure Haoran was already dead. That was when she finally gave up and accepted reality.

Emma realized that if she continued running away, not only would she always be on the run, she would also witness a war break out between the two countries, saw how the war would claim so many lives, including her family back in Thaesi ...

What was worse was that she would not be able to take her revenge on Queen Ygrit who had caused her father's death. The old hag would have the last laugh by having Therius marry Yldwyn and Thaesi destroyed.

"All right ... We will talk about the terms tomorrow," said Emma thoughtfully. They still had time to go over the details later, she thought.

Therius breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Emma's words. He loosened his embrace and looked into the girl's eyes with a solemn expression.

"I ... love you, Emma Stardust," Therius said in an earnest voice. "I promise to be a good husband for you and make you happy."

This time he confessed his feelings while he was sober, without the influence of alcohol from wine. During dinner at the king's palace, Therius made sure he took only a few sips of wine out of courtesy, but he kept himself alert. He never lowered his guard and got drunk in front of other people.

Emma was in a daze when she heard the love confession coming from the crown prince's lips for the second time. The first one was when Therius got drunk on his birthday while drinking in the lounge of The Coralia. Therius had forgotten about it the next day and Emma pretended nothing had happened.

Tonight, when he confessed his love to her, he thought it was the first time.

The prince looked at Emma with a smiling face. He would not force the girl to respond to his love confession right away. He knew Emma was hard to get and she wouldn't easily return his love.

Just with Emma declaring that she was willing to marry him, it was enough for him. Therius was sure that slowly the girl's heart had started to melt. 

They had spent every day together for over six months. Now each had got to know each other very well, including their characters and personalities.

Therius was sure that, if given more time, he would win over her heart completely. He just needed to be patient. And patience was one of his virtues.

Emma looked down to hide the tears that started forming in her eyes. Tonight, she finally made a life-changing decision. She would give herself to Therius, trust him with her life, and carry out all his plans together.

What mattered to Emma now was that the war could be prevented, her mother and little brother would stay safe, and she would be able to get her revenge on Queen Ygrit. 

Come to think of it, Emma was actually lucky that Therius loved her and treated her well. This was not a forced political marriage between the two of them. They both consented and did it after giving it a lot of thought and various considerations.

Therius loved Emma, and she did not hate the prince.

You could say they were actually friends. It seems, marrying one's own friend was not too bad.

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From the author:

You can just check my profile and find it. The Indonesian version is ongoing, but the English version is completed. I will show the cover in the comment section.