Chapter 268: The Words I Never Wanted to Hear
[Lavinia’s POV — Everheart Estate—Later—Living Room]
I was sipping my tea happily and decided that... let’s take all this ’caught in broad daylight’ act as a positive sign. Now... I can romance with Osric openly... (if Papa ever agrees, that is).
Meanwhile, Grand Duke Regis, of course, was in full war-general mode, plotting his "strategic battle plan" to convince my papa that his son was the perfectly reasonable candidate for me.
He gestured wildly at scrolls, maps, and what might have been Osric’s old armor (I dont know what the use of all those is, anyway...just like I said...ley’s take it a positive sign.)
Osric leaned closer, elbows on the table, chin in his hands, smirking like a mischievous cat. "So... what do you want for your upcoming birthday?"
I blinked.
. . .
"Oh... right. I totally forgot."
Seventeen. I’m going to turn seventeen.
My sixteenth year had been a mess—a dramatic, mystery-filled, fate-tangling disaster of near death, magic, and people kissing at the worst possible moments.
Now... it wasn’t just about growing up. I needed to find out who stole my fate in my previous life. If it was truly taken by black magic, then... did it vanish completely? Or was there still a fragment left—somewhere, waiting to be found?
"Lavi?"
Osric’s voice pulled me back. He was watching me with that quiet concern of his—the kind that made my heart do inconvenient things.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked softly.
I looked at him for a moment, studying his face in the golden light of the garden. The wind brushed through his hair, and for a second, he looked like the painting of a hero from an old myth.
"Can I ask you something, Osric?" I said, leaning forward a little.
He smiled faintly. "You always can."
"Do you... recall everything from our previous life? Before my death?"
His expression stiffened. He flinched just slightly, and then silence fell. Thick. Heavy. Suffocating.
. . .
. . .
"...Yes," he said finally, his voice flat, almost dull.
I swallowed, heart thumping. "Then... do you remember something... odd from Eleania?"
He nodded slowly, eyes narrowing. "Yes. I knew... she and Marquess Everett were conspiring against you."
I murmured, almost to myself, "But... Marquess is dead. And even Caelum... gone. So... did Eleania have the power to... steal someone’s fate?"
Osric blinked, clearly confused. "Steal fate?"
I leaned back, crossing my arms, my expression tight. "Oh... I haven’t told you, right?"
His eyes widened slightly, and he leaned in closer. "What—what happened?"
"Someone stole my fate in my last life," I said, voice low, almost bitter. "That’s why... you chose Eleania over me. And why... Papa cast me aside, like I was never meant to matter."
For a long moment, Osric just stared. Frozen. His jaw tightened, and his brows furrowed like he was trying to piece together some impossible puzzle.
"So..." he finally whispered, voice rough, "you’re saying... the danger... it’s still there?"
I nodded grimly. "Yes, Osric. Someone is still playing a dangerously twisted game... against the throne."
He clenched his fists, jaw tight. "But... who? Who would dare do something so... sinister?"
I let out a dry laugh, sharp and humorless. "That’s what we need to find out. Whoever it is... they’re not just threatening me. They’re threatening everything. The empire. The throne. Us."
Osric leaned back in his chair, eyes shadowed with concern. "Then... we need to be careful, Lavi. No... very careful. Whoever’s behind this... they must be planning something far darker than we realize."
I nodded, exhaling softly. "You’re right..."
But before I could say more, he moved. He walked around the table and stopped in front of me—his presence always so quiet, yet so consuming. Then, to my utter surprise, he knelt.
"Lavi..." he said, his voice low, his eyes locking onto mine.
He took my hands in his—calloused, warm, trembling slightly.
"I swear," he murmured, bringing my hand to his lips and pressing a soft kiss against my skin, "this time... I’ll protect you from everything. From anyone. I won’t let anyone hurt you again. Even if I have to sacrifice myself for you... I’ll do it. I’d do it a thousand times over if it meant keeping you safe."
. . .
For a moment, my brain stopped working.
Did he just say—sacrifice himself? So...he’s saying he will die for me?
. . .
. . .
The air left my lungs like a punch. My heartbeat twisted painfully in my chest. I stared at him—the man I loved, the one who made my world brighter, the one who once left me alone in a lifetime of betrayal—and now he was saying he’d die for me?
No.No, not again.
"Osric..." I whispered, but my voice came out broken, trembling.
I could see it in his eyes—he meant it. Every single word.
How... how could he say that so easily? That he’d die for me?
How dare he.
Did he really think throwing his life away for me would make him some noble sacrifice? That leaving me behind in despair would somehow make it romantic? How could he say such words like they meant nothing—like his life was something he could just hand over without a second thought?
Does he not understand what happens to those who are left behind when someone they love dies?Does he not know how it shatters you—how it leaves you breathing but never really alive again?
. . .
. . .
I trembled in rage and a lump rose in my throat. I wanted to shake him. To scream. To beg him not to say those words ever again.
Because I couldn’t—I don’t want to lose him. Before I even realized what I was doing, I shot up from my seat. My hands trembled, my vision blurred, and my chest hurt.
Then—
"HOW. DARE. YOU!!!!!"
My voice tore through the air like thunder. Birds fled from the trees. Even Solena flinched somewhere in the distance.
Osric looked up at me, startled, his expression flickering between confusion and concern. "Lavi—?"
I stepped closer, grabbed his collar with both hands, and yanked him up with every ounce of strength in me. My heart was pounding so hard it hurt to breathe.
"How dare you say that to me, Osric! How dare you even think about dying for me!" My voice cracked at the end, fury melting into something raw and desperate. "Do you think I went through two lives just to watch you die?! Do you think I’d ever forgive you for this—"
My words choked in my throat. My eyes burned.
He tried to reach for my face, gentle as ever, whispering, "Lavi... wait—listen to me—"
"No!" I pushed him back hard—he stumbled, hitting the ground with a thud. "You don’t get to talk right now! You don’t get to throw your life away and call it love!"
"Lavi—"
"Enough!" I shouted, my voice trembling. "If you have such a death wish, then get out of my life, Osric! Because I don’t need a hero who dies for me—I need someone who lives with me!"
He stared up at me, stunned, lost for words.
My breath came in ragged bursts. My hands shook. I could feel the tears threatening to fall, but I bit them back—hard.
"We’re done for now," I said, my tone icy, but my heart breaking inside me. "Don’t follow me. I need to think. Alone."
And before he could rise, before I could let him see how shattered I was, I turned and stormed out. The doors slammed behind me with a sound that echoed through my bones.
Outside, the air was colder. But my heart—it was burning.
Because no matter how furious I was, one truth haunted every step I took: Osric Everheart was still the man I loved. And that was exactly why his promise to die for me terrified me more than any enemy ever could.
I rushed toward my carriage, fists clenched, teeth gritted, muttering through gritted teeth, "I hate him..."
Then, throwing caution—and decorum—to the wind, I flung my arms toward the sky and yelled, loud enough for the birds to scatter.
"I HATE OSRIC VALERIOUS EVERHEART!!!!!!!!!!!!"
The echo of my own roar chased me as I slammed the carriage door, leaving behind the golden garden, the shocked servants... and the boy who claimed he would die for me.