I Became the Cure for the Cursed Prince - Chapter 143

Andrea surprised everyone by turning her sparring session with the knights into a beautifully choreographed dance. Elisha, true to her position as the heir to the Northern Grand Duke, freely controlled intricately carved ice, shaping it into a rainbow that shimmered in the air.

Dea performed together with the Rai couple, making a wide loop around the venue. She avoided obstacles with grace, leaped into the sky, and released fire, creating a dramatic and powerful display.

Lucas looked over at Leon, who stood beside him with a soft smile. Leon’s gaze was fixed on Elisha, his eyes warm and slightly lowered with emotion.

To love someone so deeply, someone who must have been connected to him even in a previous life, and to choose to let her go with his own hands… What could that have felt like?

Lucas gently reached out and held Leon’s hand. This was a feeling he believed should never be forgotten.

Leon turned his head and looked at Lucas.
“I hope next year will be like this too.”
“It will be. No, it will be even better.”
“Rather than hoping for better…”

What he truly wished for was just that things wouldn’t get worse. He wanted to say it, but the words didn’t come out. He remembered what Leon once told him that even negativity can become a habit.

“No. You’re right. I want it to be better. I think we can make that happen.”

Leon smiled brightly and placed a gentle kiss on Lucas’s cheek.
“More than the event… I just want the night to come quickly. I already…”

Beneath the table, Leon’s hand wrapped around Lucas’s wrist. His palm was filled with the weight of Lucas’s desire.

“…”

“Even if the event is the same every year.”

The voice that followed, saying the night was always different, was low and unsettling.

From that moment on, Lucas could no longer focus on anything.

But Leon’s wish for the night to come quickly so they could finally be alone did not come true so easily. Friends from the North had come to celebrate Lucas’s tenth wedding anniversary. Although it was only Sion, Cappucci, and the captain of the knights, to Lucas, they were people as close as family.

Lucas looked outside and saw that darkness had already fallen. Then he glanced at Leon, whose expression showed clear displeasure. The guests from the North were waiting in the sitting room. Of course, this anniversary should have been all about Leon. But Lucas could not bring himself to neglect the friends who had come such a long way just to see him.

As Lucas fidgeted, unsure how to excuse himself, Leon spoke first.

“Go on and welcome your guests. It has been a long time.”

“Then I will not take too long. I will be back soon.”

“You will probably have a lot to say to Cappucci about Elisha, right?”

Leon was not wrong. Now that Elisha had moved to Rion, she would constantly beg to be taken to Cappucci’s house or say she wanted to invite Oliver to the Rion palace. There were many things Lucas needed to explain so that Cappucci would not be caught off guard.

“I will wait for you. Just make sure you say everything you need to. This is about Elisha, after all.”

Leon gave Lucas a light push on the shoulder, pretending to be fine. His back was already damp with sweat from forcing himself to act composed. He was straining so hard to avoid frowning that his cheeks trembled slightly.

As soon as Lucas promised to return quickly and stepped out, Leon let out a heavy breath, as if releasing all the frustration he had been holding in. Then he began talking to himself, trying to stay calm.

This is the right thing. It is fine up until dinner. If they cling to him after that, then it becomes a problem.

The reason he did not join the reception himself was to avoid unnecessary formality. He wanted Lucas to wrap things up quickly. Still, that did not make the sinking feeling in his chest go away.

Lucas joined his friends and enjoyed the meal and conversation, but his thoughts remained with Leon the entire time. If he had known it would feel like this, he would have brought him along from the start.

His heart felt uneasy, like a child left too close to the water’s edge. He wanted to return as soon as possible, but his friends would not let him go so easily. It had been such a long time since they were all together. They said that one drink would not hurt.

Lucas declined several times, then glanced toward the room where Leon was waiting. He eventually nodded, knowing he could not leave just yet.

Lucas, Sion, Cappucci, and Enik sat in the sitting room and started drinking together. Time passed too quickly, even though they only spoke in short turns, one by one.

Enik had never had the chance to sit so close to Lucas and share a drink with him before. His eyes welled with emotion.

“Your Highness… no, Your Majesty. I still cannot believe I am sitting here with you. It feels like a dream.”

“I have been back to normal for quite a while now. But to think we never met during that time… I feel sorry.”

“You must have been busy.”

Enik’s voice carried no resentment. It was filled with longing, and more than anything, quiet sorrow. Lucas gently placed his hand on the back of Enik’s and gave it a soft pat.

At that moment, a cold and heavy presence entered from the doorway of the sitting room.

“Lucas?”

“Y-Your Majesty…”

All four men stood up at once.

Leon’s eyes were fixed on Lucas’s hand, still resting on the back of Enik’s.

As Leon’s presence filled the room with quiet hostility, everyone instinctively straightened and showed their respect with nervous expressions. Leon waved a hand with a calm smile, pretending everything was fine.

“This is a friendly gathering. There is no need for formalities. I would be hurt if you treated me that way.”

Leon sat down beside Lucas. At that moment, Enik refilled Lucas’s glass and tried to raise his own the moment the wine reached the brim.

“You have been drinking since the afternoon. That is enough.”

Leon gently took the glass from Lucas’s hand. Lucas, whose face was now flushed red, stared blankly at Leon for a moment before slowly nodding.

To ease the sudden tension in the room, Leon turned to Cappucci and asked with a smile, “Cappucci, what do you think of Elisha?”

He meant to lighten the mood, but somehow the atmosphere only grew colder.

Cappucci, relying on the courage from his drink, answered honestly.

“I think she is too good for Oliver. That is why… I worry even more. I wonder if our Oliver will live his life feeling overshadowed.”

A father’s heart is the same everywhere. No parent without ambition would easily offer their child to royalty. Cappucci had always hoped for a quiet life for his family, so his worries were even greater. Still, to speak so frankly like this surprised everyone.

Lucas, who had become slightly drunk himself, sobered up instantly.

Trying to ease the awkwardness, Lucas gave a stiff smile and glanced toward Leon.

“She is not even just a duchy’s adopted daughter anymore. She carries the name of Teian and is a royal heir. That makes things even more burdensome, I suppose.”

“I see.”

Leon downed his drink in one gulp. Enik moved to refill his glass, but Leon stood up from his seat.

“I only stopped by to greet everyone. I will not get in your way any longer. Please enjoy yourselves.”

“Thank you very much.”

Enik responded brightly, though Leon’s icy tone had made everyone uncomfortable. Lucas wanted to tell him that if he lacked awareness, he should at least have some sense, but he held his tongue.

Leon glared pointedly at Sion, who at least understood him well, then left the room without another word.

Sion picked up on Leon’s silent message and quickly began refilling everyone’s glasses.

“Let us have one final drink and end things early. It would not be right to keep the couple separated too long on a night like this.”

Enik laughed and teased him.

“Are you sure it is not just that Your Highness wants to leave early?”

“Well, you could say that.”

Lucas was grateful for Sion’s subtle help and drank the last glass. After another round of well wishes and farewells, the gathering ended with a sense of unfinished warmth.

Lucas walked quickly back to his room. He had planned to return early from the start, but now he felt guilty for having kept Leon waiting for so long.

Standing in front of the door, Lucas took a deep breath, knocked lightly, and slowly opened it. Inside, Leon was reading a book. He turned his head slightly to glance in Lucas’s direction.

“What’s with the knocking? You can just come in.”

Lucas stepped inside and asked, “Were you reading?”

“I was waiting for you. It is our anniversary, after all. I wanted to say good night properly.”

Lucas sat down close and reached for Leon’s hand. Leon’s expression stiffened slightly.

“Did you really just come to say good night?”

“I am feeling a little tired today. I guess I was tense all day.”

Leon, who usually insisted that rest could wait and always pushed closer even when he was tired or busy, now claimed he was too tired to do anything. It was clear that Leon was never good at lying.

Whenever Lucas had refused him and pulled away in the past, Leon would always act like this the next day. It was his usual quiet way of expressing dissatisfaction.

Not long ago, after they argued about sending Elisha to the North, Lucas watched Leon come to his own answer.

It was then that he understood. Leon’s behavior was not just stubbornness. It was his way of protecting their relationship, of freeing himself from the kind of possessiveness that could one day tear them apart.

Lucas gently cupped Leon’s cheeks in his hands. As Leon looked at him with a confused expression, silently asking what was going on, Lucas leaned in close.

He pressed his lips softly against Leon’s, then slid his tongue between them. A warm breath escaped from Leon as if something inside him had been released.

“I’ve been waiting for tonight.”

Leon looked away, his eyebrows tightening.

“It’s going to be hard to stop tonight. But we have to send Elisha off in the morning.”

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