Heroine On Strike

“Didn’t you understand what I said? I asked what you meant by your words.”

Ella and Cullan were surprised by the Cladis’s sudden appearance. Next to him was Clara, who looked a bit pale.

‘Why are they here?’ Confused, Ella stared at them. The two of them were supposed to be in front of ‘the Flower of the Empress.’ It was a special flower that blossomed next to the woman who would become the future empress. The flower was supposed to blossom when Ella entered the garden. This event was described in so much detail in the story that anyone who read the book would have remembered. Or else there was no point for her to use Cullan to bring Ella here while she wait for them along with Cladis by her side. By now, Clara and Cladis should have been by the flower talking about destiny. But why were they here instead when they should be looking at the flower blooming and confirm their destiny? Ella could not understand. 

‘Were all my assumptions wrong?’

It was perhaps naïve of her to assume that she knew what was going to happen because she read the book. Maybe Clara wasn’t like her, an outsider. Ella was shocked by her thoughts and almost forgot she was standing in front of Cladis. It would have been great if her body had moved against her will like before. This time, however, her body also froze. Cullan was also shocked. Because no one responded to his question, Cladis walked up to them without any hesitation.

“Cullan, I wish to have a word with my fiancée. Please stay here with Clara for a moment.”

He didn’t wait for Cullan’s greeting and sent Clara over to Cullan. Cullan stood there holding Clara’s hand and looked at Ella. His expression looked as though he was asking Ella if she was going to be alright. Ella barely managed to form a smile on her face.

“I’ll be alright.”

“I’ll be nearby. Call me if you need any help. I’ll run over to you as soon as possible.”

Eventually, Cullan and Clara walked out of their sight. Cladis proudly stood in front of Ella, but he didn’t say a word to her. He appeared to be deep in thought.

“Ella?”

“Yes?”

Cladis continued to stare at her as she answered. Ella wasn’t sure what he was thinking about, then she suddenly realized that she forgot to bow to him. “Luciella of the Constance, glory of the Blue Moon to your highness.”

Just like yesterday, it was the perfect greeting. Thinking about yesterday caused Cladis to frown. “I don’t want that kind of formality right now, Ella. I heard Cullan called you Ella.”

“Yes, your highness. He wanted me to call him Cullan, so I allowed him to call me Ella. Is that a problem?”

Being asked an easy question gave her enough time to calm herself. She was able to fake a smile on her face. Just like last night, she was a perfect lady.

“Well, it’s going to be a problem if you want to cancel this marriage. Is that what you want?”

“I thought that’s what you wanted, your highness.”

“Did I?”

Cladis asked the question as though he had been a loyal fiancé and had nothing to do with this. Ella felt like smacking him on his chin at his brazen expression. Didn’t he know that she had already seen him with Clara? Did he think that Ella hadn’t heard about them yesterday? Considering all that, did he not expect her to become suspicious after his rudeness yesterday? Maybe that was what he was thinking seeing from his look where he did not know anything at all. Thinking about her suffering yesterday made Ella angry. “Of course. I suppose you wouldn’t say no as you already have Lady Mellin in your heart now.”

Ella was direct with her words. She didn’t have the time to be roundabout like many nobles were. She didn’t want to put such an effort into him. Cladis was shocked by her words and suddenly his demeanor became much more serious.

“Did Ethan say something to you?”

“If you’re talking about Ethan, who you sent away, then no. My loving brother didn’t say anything to me. Maybe he thinks of you more than his sister. If he did, I wouldn’t have been appalled by your words yesterday.”

“Were you? You didn’t seem so appalled yesterday.”

Hearing Ella’s hostile voice, Cladis almost smiled. Ella bit her lip and snapped at him. “I wasn’t supposed to show it.”

“And you think now’s the time to show it, right?”

“That’s right. There’s no one around, and there’s no reason for me to be kind to you. Let me be clear. If you agree, let’s end this engagement.”

Cladis flinched at Ella’s declaration. His smile immediately disappeared. Feelings of discomfort and awkwardness began to settle as the prince spoke. “I’m sorry, but I can’t agree to that.”

“Your highness!” Ella shouted in defiance at Cladis’s cold rejections that seemed as if he had no need to even think about. 

However, he ignored her and said, “I don’t know what part of me you’ve misunderstood, but I have no reason to stop this marriage from happening.”

“But you have Lady Mellin in your heart now!” said Ella, reminding him of the fact again.