195: Not hidden anymore

Not hidden anymore

Music Recommendation: Trance - Rupert Gregson2

—

Emily stared at Marshall Travis with a look that suggested she hadn't heard what he had just said, as she hadn't expected him to know about the situation. She hadn't expected anyone to know anything about it and had earnestly hoped for it to never surface. She suddenly remembered hearing someone sneeze when she was talking with Janelle. 

"I believe you got the wrong person, Mr. Travis. I don't have a soulmate," Emily said with a polite smile, addressing the persistent man. "You must have mistaken me for someone else."

"I think not, milady," Marshall responded, returning her smile with his own enthusiastic one. Her gaze involuntarily drifted towards his thickly quilted coat, which hung prominently in front of her as if he were doing her a favour when she never asked for his help. 

Within the corridor, there was no one else present except the two of them. As Marshall took a step towards her, Emily's expression became guarded, and she heard him say, 

"Lady Emily, there's no need to act brave in front of me. I am aware that your heart has been broken by Nathaniel's choice to be with Lady Layla. You are King Raylen's niece, which only means that you will eventually need to seek a man to create a new soulmate connection with, and I promise you, the Travis family is one of the most distinguished demon bloodlines you will find across these lands." 

Just because Raylen, Janelle, and Nathaniel were aware of the situation didn't mean everyone else would believe it. As a princess, Emily was brought up by her mother never to openly reveal her emotions, regardless of how rudely someone behaved in her presence. This upbringing was the reason she had always been tolerant of her younger sister. 

Emily maintained her smile without faltering, and she asked him, "Mr. Travis, are you attempting to intimidate me?" 

Marshall chuckled in response to her question and shifted his gaze to the delicate gown that clung to her slender figure. The woman was undeniably beautiful, akin to a scrumptious apple hanging from the highest branch, and he relished the challenge. He replied, 

"I would never dare to intimidate you, Lady Emily. After all, you are the precious niece of King Raylen." He paused for a second and then continued, "But I would be deeply upset if something were to happen to you or your family's reputation." 

Although Marshall continued to wear a smile, Emily discerned the implicit threat in his words, which he subtly conveyed. The smile on her own lips waned slightly as she responded, "I sincerely hope, for your own good, that you don't do anything that you will regret, Mr. Travis. It would be unfortunate for both you and the reputation you have worked so hard to build." 

Saying this, Emily took another step backwards and began to turn away, intending to continue walking. However, Marshall wasn't done talking, as he was determined to get the woman to accept his coat. He continued, saying, 

"We must agree that if word were to spread about your status as the unwanted woman, you will have a lot to lose. You will no longer have the privilege of choosing your partner freely." 

It would be a lie if she said his words didn't hurt, for he had spoken the truth. Before being disowned, she had been an invisible presence to the man who hadn't even been willing to give her a chance to speak before rejecting her. 

"You claim that I am the one at a disadvantage, but you seem to behave as if you have something to lose, Mr. Travis. Desperation never looks good on anyone," Emily remarked in a calm and even tone. "I appreciate your concern, but your assistance won't be necessary." 

The man was too full of himself, and just the thought of him left Emily with a bad taste in her mouth. She had encountered many individuals like him who wore disguises merely to gain access to opportunities through her. And that was not the kind of man she was seeking for herself. 

Emily's words seemed to have angered Marshall, as though her few words had embarrassed him, and he didn't take it too well. He let his hand, along with his coat, drop to his side, his eyes flashing with an evident glare, but he continued to smile at her as he said, 

"I couldn't help but wonder about the reason you were disowned by your very own soulmate. But I can now tell that one of the reasons must be because you are an uptight, prudish woman," Marshall remarked with a taunting tone. "Mr. Lynx must have recognised it, and he wisely chose Lady Layla over you. It must have been either you or your family that he found unappealing. Where are you going? I am talking to you, lady," he continued, growing slightly irritated, and he reached out to catch her hand. 

SLAP!

Emily's palm left a visible print on Marshall's cheek, and he stared at her in shock and horror. 

Her patience, already worn thin by her encounter with Raylen, had finally reached its breaking point with this persistent man who kept pushing her into a corner while discussing a topic that deeply upset her. Her hand throbbed as a searing heat spread to the tips of her fingers. 

"Lady Emily?" one of the men addressed her with a frown. 

"Is that Mr. Travis? Did he just get slapped?" inquired a female guest, her curiosity piqued. Just behind her, Janelle appeared, with her eyebrows slightly raised in surprise. The sound had been loud enough to echo in the minimally decorated corridor, drawing the attention of the nearby guests who had begun to gather to see what the commotion was. 

"Mr. Travis and Lady Emily are alone together, unchaperoned," someone attempted to whisper to another, but the words carried enough for Emily to hear them clearly. 

This wasn't good, Emily thought to herself. Before Marshall could fully recover from the shock, she put on a composed smile for the other guests and said, "There was a persistent mosquito that had been buzzing around for a while, and I believe I finally got it." She then turned and asked him, "Isn't that right, Mr. Travis?" 

The man had turned red, partly due to the humiliation and partly as a result of the slap. 

Janelle, who stood on the opposite side of the corridor, let out a laugh in an effort to diffuse the heavy atmosphere and responded, "I was wondering what was bothering me earlier, but it seems like the mosquitoes have found a way in. We should inform the servants to close the windows and doors."

"If a man thinks he can coerce me into taking his coat with such words, I can only imagine how much lower he can sink," Emily stated firmly in a low voice. "I believe it would be best for us not to converse again, Mr. Travis." 

Emily offered him a slight bow before gracefully retreating to the powder room while sensing his angry gaze on her back. Once she entered the room, she leaned against the wall and she muttered to herself, 

"Crap. What did I do?" 

She hadn't intended to slap the man, and causing even the slightest scene was the last thing on her mind. But she hadn't expected him to pursue her with such persistence and in such a forward manner. She could still feel her hand tingling from the force she had used. 

Marshall Travis was a contemptible man who had gone as far as to sully her family's name in front of her. She scrunched her face and muttered to herself, 

"I hope Mother doesn't hear about this." It was the first thing that crossed her mind. She knew she would never hear the end of it for expressing herself through her actions rather than words. However, her words had failed to penetrate the thick walls of conceit that surrounded the man. 

"Lily?" Janelle entered the powder room, pushing open the door to find the princess leaning against the wall. "Did you slap Mr. Travis?" 

"Did he tell everyone about it?" Emily asked, and Janelle shook her head. 

"Do you really think a man like him would admit to being slapped by the king's niece? I highly doubt it. What provoked it?" Janelle closed the door behind her and stepped further into the room, her curiosity evident. 

"He overheard us talking about… Nathaniel yesterday," Emily replied, realising that each mention of the man's name seemed to make her feel even worse. 

Janelle briefly covered her mouth with her hand and then said, "I would have never guessed… He must have said something truly terrible to evoke such a reaction from you." Because throughout all the years she had known the princess, she had never been one to condone violence and often tolerated people's pompous behaviour. 

Emily wished she was back home and let out a heavy sigh. She admitted, "You were right about the man."

Janelle shared, "I heard from my neighbour that four years ago, he was supposedly engaged to a woman. However, he broke it off after finding out that she was pregnant with another man's child. And now, he attends gatherings, pursuing or seducing woman after woman, solely to ruin their reputation for the anger caused by one."

"That's utterly despicable of him," Emily replied with a disapproving frown. She could understand the pain he might have felt, but it was no excuse for harming innocent women who had done him no wrong. "Why hasn't anyone stopped him from attending these events?" 

"Because he's the son of a well-known minister, and no one has ever reported him. The families of the women involved never came forward, and instead blamed them for engaging with a man before marriage," Janelle explained, wearing a grim expression. 

Emily couldn't help but feel a little unsettled, and struggled to calm her nerves, unsure of which male to blame for her current state. She pondered how much time she had before her soul would fade from this world. The encounter with those creatures in the woods had shaken her focus. 

When they exited the powder room, Emily asked Janelle, "How is Mr. Hurbert treating you?" 

"As a gentleman should." Janelle smiled at the mention of the man, and Emily didn't miss the excitement in her friend's eyes. "He even agreed to visit my home to spend some time with me. We have planned to have tea together." 

"I am truly happy for you, Janelle." Emily smiled warmly, genuinely hoping that everything would go well for them. 

"How about you, Lily? Judging by how many people were eager to cover you in a pile of coats, it seems your time will be quite occupied tomorrow," Janelle responded with a small laugh as she recalled what occurred a while ago. "Mr. Ardolf and Mr. Valentin seem to be the most sought-after men here, although Mr. Valentin stands two inches shorter than you." 

"So I've noticed," Emily replied as they walked through the corridors, eventually arriving at the room where the guests were enjoying one another's company. 

The moment Emily stepped foot inside the room, her eyes met Marshall's, who stood there quietly staring at her. He absentmindedly massaged his jaw, as if still feeling the pain from the earlier slap, and a subtle smile crept onto his lips. This expression made her cautious, prompting her to become increasingly aware of something being amiss. 

Several guests discreetly observed her as if casting judgmental glances from the corners of their eyes. Among them, one envious woman remarked, 

"I cannot believe she had the audacity to show up here. If it were me, I would have stayed home." 

"Why do you think it happened?" another woman inquired from a distance. "Look at that, no man is approaching her," said the woman with a slight scoff, interpreting it as a sign of less competition and more opportunities for themselves. 

Everyone knew about Emily. 

No one had raised their hand against Marshall before, and the slap had deeply wounded his pride. Not to mention, he couldn't openly retaliate against the woman who was related to the king himself. Hence, he had slipped the story to a gossipy woman known to be a blabbermouth, ensuring the news would spread to every corner of the kingdom by tomorrow's sunset.

pqdm.com