The Villainess turns the Hourglass

Editor Group: Liber Reverie

“When will Mr. Lohan grow up into such a figure and marry?”

“Unfortunately, he’s already grown up.”

“Oh, that’s very unfortunate.”

Lohan was seated in the hall where the ceremony was to be held, so the nobles of Croa did not hide their words. Since they could not enter the Imperial Palace, hundreds of thousands of commoners gathered outside the gate, cheering for Aria and Asher. Their fondness for Aria was enough to overflow.

‘On top of that, how can they see the Crown Prince who does not value the etiquette very much and who shows mercy for themselves on the surface?’ As if he had not intended to break all the order, Aria and Asher had come out of the wagon and slowly followed the path that was filled with tulips. The scent of fresh tulips filled the Imperial Palace in the warm breeze.

With the warm gaze of hundreds of thousands of people who did not spare their congratulations to herself, and of the nobles who had only cursed and abused in the past, and Asher, who held her hand and walked side by side with her…

‘Is it OK to be so happy?’

Aria took a deep breath, as she felt her heart swell, more than she had expected, and she even blinked several times to see if it was not a dream, and at the same time, she also felt anxiety since she was under pressure. Her lips were dry with tension.

When he glanced at her, he gave a little strength to his grip and asked Aria in a very worried voice. The voice outside the castle was quite loud, but his voice was a little louder.

“You don’t look very well. Are you feeling any pain?”

“No, that’s not it…”

“Then why…?”

Asher’s face darkened as Aria said no.

He seemed to be worried that her mind had changed as she remembered his shortcomings that she had never known before. If it was, as usual, he would have noticed in a single moment that it was not, but he was also as nervous as her. It was not like a contractual marriage with Isis, the eldest daughter of the former Duke of Frederick, but a wedding with a woman who he was truly in love with. It was natural that he would be irritated if she showed any signs of anxiety.

Aria, who confirmed it because it appeared on Asher’s face, realized that he was in the same condition as herself and regained stability on the other hand. It was because she realized that it was natural to be nervous Then Aria, with a soft smile, gave a little strength to her hand that was held by Asher.

“I’m worried that you changed your mind.”

She opened her mouth with composure as if she was fine now. As always, she meant that there was no need to worry. Still full of tension, Asher made a desperate excuse he would never do as he took it seriously.

“I don’t know why you’re worried about that. Of course, I would not… I don’t know what kind of distrust I have dared to give, but I hope you’re not angry and understand my true intentions. I’m never going to change even after I’m dead and my body and soul are gone.”

“Even after you die?”

“Yes.”

‘How can you be so sure of that?’ It was a ridiculous excuse and insistence. ‘Nevertheless, how can I bully you much more than this when you declare that it is so natural?’

Now that they were close to the hall where the ceremony was going to take place, they couldn’t talk anymore. She could not go inside with him while feeling nervous, so she smiled and said, “Please do so!”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do it even if you ask me not to.”

Having relieved their worries, the two continued to walk and entered the hall. The inside of the hall was very quiet and pious, unlike the outside, where the voices of hundreds of thousands of people were making their ears hurt.

The selected high-ranking nobles and officials from other countries, and Annie and Jessie, who Aria had specially asked for a seat, and Baron Burboom and Hans were there.

Focusing their eyes at her, Aria walked slowly forward with Asher. Soon, once she walked to the front podium and put a tiara on her head, she would be recognized as the Crown Princess. She was nervous again when she thought about it, and her back was stiff. But no one noticed that Aria was nervous because it had created an elegant and dignified posture.

And then, under the podium, Aria and Asher stopped walking. It was a destination that she arrived across a truly long and arduous road. It was a moment when the woman who was considered the most vulgar in the empire, on the continent, transformed into the noblest woman.

Aria, who recalled her past and what had happened so far, slowly looked up toward the sound of footsteps coming toward the podium, swallowing her surging emotions. She wanted to see the high priest that would appear with the tiara he had prepared.

However, there was someone else there whose face she had seen before but only for a little while. This was the first time that people would see him as the high priest.

“… The Emperor… His Majesty?”

He was the Emperor whose face she had only briefly seen at the execution of the traitors. It was not strange for the Emperor to appear at the royal wedding, but it was a surprise that the Emperor, who was so careful that he was not showing himself, had now appeared.

“I guess my father is finally relieved. In the meantime, he’s been inside the castle for fear that he would be threatened by any of the nobles.” As if he thought Aria would be surprised, he whispered very quietly in a voice that would only be heard by Aria.

It had been a long time since the traitors had been executed, and now he showed up. ‘Isn’t this saying that he enjoyed a comfortable life in the Imperial Castle, leaving all the difficult tasks to his son? If he had helped Asher at all, the rebels might have ended sooner.’

Aria thought she would have a hard time facing the Emperor, but that thought of hers was so foolish. And it occurred to her that she might have been unhappy because she had lived under such an Emperor without knowing anything.

Soon after reaching the podium, the Emperor began to utter congratulatory remarks prepared by himself at the very sight of the new Crown Princess, most of which was to wish for a bright future for the empire and its prosperity.

He couldn’t make it, so instead, Asher had done in the past. As she listened to the congratulatory message, thinking that, Asher secretly held his hand and whispered to her very quietly,

“My father said he would step down soon and leave the capital.”

‘Is he saying that he will step down after realizing his position? No, as she looks back on what has happened, it is fair to say that he is stepping down to save his life. Now, they say that the peaceful era has come after defeating the traitors, but they may show up again to threaten the imperial power at any time.’

“Give me the tiara.”

The Emperor said in a solemn voice after a congratulatory speech. He took the tiara of the Crown Princess from a servant waiting behind him and handed it back to Asher. He looked as if he was blessed in spite of not having helped to build such a peaceful empire.

As soon as he received the tiara, Asher turned toward Aria. Aria lowered her head a little so that he could put the tiara on her head. With great care, if time had stopped, Asher slowly put the tiara on top of Aria’s head. It was a very caring touch, making sure that the tiara would never fell off.

Even if he didn’t do so, the maids who were standing next to her would make sure that it would not fall off, but he was determined not to create such a situation.

“Blessed be the birth of the new Crown Princess!”

So as the tiara was put above Aria’s head, the Emperor spoke out and made it known to the hall that a new Crown Princess had been born. There was still an order to exchange rings and drink holy water, but this alone seemed to have moved the people there already, and Carin, Violet, and Sarah, who was sitting far away, began to cry.

When Asher and Aria exchanged a ring made of jewels in the color of each other’s eyes, even Annie, who had been by Aria’s side to fulfill her self-interest, took out her handkerchief to wipe her tears.

They did not spare any congratulations on the birth of the new Crown Princess and the companion of the Crown Prince.