Awakening Love Reborn to Be His Duchess (Elowen Hale) novel Chapter 605

Chapter 605 The Princess Waiting Outside

After sitting in silence for quite a while beneath the dim glow of the carriage lanterns. Flowira finally turned toward Valessa and spoke carefully.

“Aunt Valessa, are we still not leaving? Are you waiting for someone?”

Valessa kept her eyes fixed on the palace gates beyond the stone courtyard, her posture unmoving.

“You already know the answer to that.”

Flowira hesitated briefly.

She did know.

After moistening her lips, she lowered her voice a little more cautiously. “Are you waiting for the Crown Prince?”

At the mention of Alaric, visible disgust crossed Valessa’s face at once.

“Avenlor no longer has a crown prince,” she said flatly. “That fool lost the title and got sent right back to being an ordinary prince.”

Flowira blinked in surprise. “You wasn’t able to save him?”

Valessa let out a cold laugh, the sound edged with contempt.

“Why would I save him? He wasn’t even the same man anymore. If we’re being honest, my uncle died because of him. The only reason I didn’t have him killed myself was because I respected my uncle’s dying wish and refused to drag Nordia and Avenlor into another war.”

Flowira struggled to absorb the meaning hidden within those few blunt remarks before finally asking, “Then what you mean is…”

Valessa answered without the slightest hesitation.

“The man who captured me years ago and deceived me from beginning to end was the Duke of Duskmoor.”

Flowira’s pupils trembled faintly.

Cassian?

If the matter had only involved resentment over being tricked after capture, perhaps things would not have become so complicated.

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water bus ine Princess Waiting Outside

But Flowira understood her aunt too well. What had started as hatred had long since twisted into something far more dangerous.

Love.

If the man had truly been Alaric, maybe there would still have been some room to untangle the situation cleanly.

But Cassian already had a duchess.

Flowira unconsciously curled her fingers together before speaking in a careful voice. “Aunt… His Grace is already married, and Her Grace is expecting a child now. Besides, the Duchess of Duskmoor herself is…”

“I know.”

Valessa cut her off before she could finish, her expression stubborn and completely unapologetic.

“So what if he’s married? So what if she’s carrying his child?”

Then she turned fully toward Flowira, pride blazing openly in her eyes beneath the night sky.

“I met him first. If anyone ought to be called the late arrival here, it’s the Duchess of Duskmoor.”

Flowira stared at her in stunned silence.

There’s actually someone who thinks this way?

Still, after another second, she realized it was entirely in character for her aunt.

Valessa had practically raised her. She had taught her how to ride, how to draw a bow, how to hold herself proudly in front of nobles and warriors alike.

Yet Flowira had never once imagined that when it came to matters of love, her aunt could be this wildly fearless.

Valessa folded her arms calmly and lifted her chin.

“I stayed here tonight because I intend to speak with them face–to–face. Some things deserve to be said plainly.”

Flowira blinked. “What exactly do you plan to say?”

Valessa relaxed her shoulders slightly before answering with complete confidence.

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“What else would I say? Ever since I met Cassian, I’ve never forgotten him. I love him. The fact that he already has a duchess changes nothing for me. I’m willing to compete fairly if Her Grace is generous enough to allow it instead of turning the whole thing into a scandal. And if she’s agreeable to it, I wouldn’t mind sharing his household and serving at his side together with her.”

Flowira nearly lost control of her expression.

Before she could gather the courage to argue, Valessa suddenly gave her a meaningful look.

“If you’d learned even a little of this boldness from me, your sweetheart wouldn’t have been stolen away by that little snake back then.”

Flowira’s face changed immediately.

At that exact moment, Valessa suddenly looked toward the palace entrance, and a bright spark lit her eyes.

“They’re finally coming out.”

Flowira instinctively followed her gaze.

Under the golden light spilling from the palace archways, Elowen and Cassian emerged side by side through the gates, speaking softly together while making their way toward the line of waiting carriages beyond the courtyard.

Their own carriage happened to be stationed nearby as well.

Valessa’s eyes locked firmly onto Cassian’s tall figure, and for the first time all evening, genuine nervousness surfaced in her expression. A faint sheen of sweat dampened her palms.

After taking a steadying breath, she stepped forward decisively.

Flowira hurried after her at once, suddenly feeling uneasy herself.

Valessa crossed the courtyard in only a few strides before stopping directly in front of Cassian and blocking his path without hesitation.

Only then did Cassian finally pull his attention away from Elowen and look toward Valessa instead.

His expression remained cool and restrained.

“Is there something Your Highness needs from me?”

The distance in Cassian’s tone was impossible for Valessa to miss, and her brows drew together

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slightly.

you the Princess Waiting Outside

Back in Nordia, she had always been the brightest jewel of the royal court. Her father spoiled her endlessly, her brothers indulged her every whim, and the young lords and knights around her treated her with eager admiration whenever they saw her.

Only Cassian had ever met her with this kind of indifference.

The realization bruised her pride more than she wanted to admit, but she still straightened her back proudly before speaking with complete honesty.

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