Awakening Love Reborn to Be His Duchess (Elowen Hale) novel Chapter 619

Chapter 619 The One He Chose

Finished

A thoughtful look settled over Elspeth’s face. “He’s been gone far too long,” she murmured after a moment. “I wouldn’t be surprised if His Majesty decided to keep him at the palace.”

The words made Elowen’s chest tighten unexpectedly.

Elspeth noticed the subtle change in her expression almost immediately, and the teasing warmth in her tone softened into concern. “Do you want me to go speak with His Majesty myself? If he’s planning to bury Cassian under another pile of royal duties, I can still drag that boy back home whether he likes it or not.”

Elowen lowered her gaze briefly, fingers curling around the warmth of the porcelain cup in her lap while she considered it carefully. In the end, though, she simply shook her head. “No, Aunt Elspeth. Cassian can handle it.”

Then, not wanting the conversation to linger too long on the subject, she poured another cup for her aunt with steady hands. “At least try the coffee before it cools. I haven’t even tasted it myself yet.”

Elspeth accepted the cup. “I’m only worried His Majesty trying to force something else onto him again. You know what Cassian’s like where his brother is concerned. Sometimes I swear that boy’s spent his whole life living for the throne instead of for himself.”

The remark caught Elowen completely off guard.

For several seconds, she genuinely did not know what to say.

Meanwhile, inside the royal study at the palace, the atmosphere had grown so tense that even the attendants waiting beyond the chamber doors barely dared breathe too loudly.

Theodric stood near the long council table beneath the glow of iron wall lanterns, his expression dark and restrained as he fixed his gaze upon the man before him. “Cassian,” he said at last, his voice carrying unmistakable authority, “you should understand better than anyone that everything you possess today was granted by me. Are you truly prepared to defy my wishes now?”

The warning already carried enough weight to terrify most men at court.

Yet Cassian merely lifted his eyes calmly toward him, his expression utterly devoid of fear.

“Your Majesty,” he said quietly, “you know better than anyone that I was never a man with grand ambitions. When we were young, Mother used to complain that I didn’t behave like the other princes at all. While everyone else was out racing horses through the castle grounds or sneaking into the falcon mews looking for trouble, I could sit beneath the stone arcade for an entire afternoon doing nothing except staring into

space.”

A faint smile crossed his face.

“If you hadn’t told me you intended to claim the throne one day, I probably would’ve drifted through life without caring much about anything. You were the one who taught me that a person ought to devote himself to something meaningful, or to someone worth protecting. From then on, wherever you chose to go, I followed without hesitation.”

Theodric’s expression shifted slightly at the words before hardening again almost immediately.

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Chapter 619 The One He Chose

Cassian continued speaking in the same steady voice,

Finished

“Later, I saw Ella for the first time from across the tournament grounds. Truthfully, I barely even saw her face back then. What stayed with me was the way she rode across the field with the wind catching her cloak while she drew her bow as naturally as breathing, every arrow striking true as though she’d been born beneath a lucky star.”

The moment Elowen’s name left his lips, warmth surfaced unmistakably in his eyes.

“I remember thinking there couldn’t possibly be another person in the world like her. She was bright enough to make everything around her feel alive. The more I learned about her afterward, the deeper those feelings became, but even then, I buried them because I never once imagined I’d truly be able to marry her. In all the world, only you knew any part of what I felt. If you hadn’t arranged that marriage, Ella and I would’ve continued missing each other for the rest of our lives.”

Theodric remained silent.

Cassian’s voice stayed calm, though every word carried unmistakable sincerity.

“Whether it was becoming the Duke of Duskmoor or leading armies into battle, every choice I made was because you needed me to make it. If rebellions rose, you ordered me to crush them, and I did. If you wanted someone to command the armies of the realm, then I took up residence at Duskmoor Manor and accepted that responsibility without complaint. For nearly thirty years, I’ve lived according to your will. Whatever you asked of me, I never hesitated, and I never feared dying for it.”

As Theodric listened, the severity in his expression finally began to loosen.

Every word was true.

Perhaps he had simply grown too accustomed to Cassian’s obedience over the years, because only now. hearing him say it aloud so plainly, did Theodric realize just how much his younger brother had sacrificed without ever once asking for anything in return.

“But now I have Ella”

The moment he spoke her name again, something in his composure finally cracked.

“Your Majesty,” he said, his voice roughening slightly, “I have Ella now.”

A faint redness appeared around his eyes beneath the candlelight, though his gaze remained astonishingly Meady

“We already lost too many years together. Without your decree, we would’ve continued missing one another until the end of our lives. Back when I was accused of assassinating the Nordian prince. I never rushed to dear my name because part of me genuinely thought that if losing my title and command meant I could stay beside her every day instead, then maybe that wouldn’t have been such a terrible Gutcome alter all?

He paused bully motion tightening in his throat before he continued

“You said Ella depends on me now because she’s carrying our child, but the truth is that I’m the one who cannot bear to be without her

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Chapter 619 The One He Chose

gisstened red, yet the conviction in his voice never wavered.

I love her. I can’t let her go. No matter how many times I’m forced to choose between the entire world and Ella, I’ll choose her every single time.”

The confession settled heavily into the silence of the chamber, carrying a depth of feeling so overwhelming that even the air itself seemed to still around them.

Theodric stood motionless for a very long time without speaking.

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