Chapter 324
What he drew from his inner pocket was—just as she’d guessed—a ring case.
“How did you know?”
“Don’t underestimate my intuition.”
At her triumphant reply, Dehart’s lips parted soundlessly. He looked as if he had a thousand things to say, but when Sebelia blinked at him in question, he simply shook his head.
“Later. We’ll talk later. That’s not what matters right now.”
Gone was his earlier deflation; his whole face glowed with joy as he whispered:
“Hurry and make me yours, Bella.”
This time he didn’t kneel. He demanded it while looking her straight in the eyes—as if he had every right to claim his place by her side, as if he deserved every bit of love she would give him.
“Give me your promise.”
With that sweet whisper lingering in the air, Sebelia opened the box.
A silence fell. She slowly lifted her gaze toward him, eyes hard with accusation.
“Dehart.”
Inside the box lay a ring nearly identical to the one Maya had stolen. Even the gem looked the same—clearly intentional.
Meanwhile, Dehart let out a long breath with a You still haven’t realized? kind of expression.
“I’ve been trying to hide it because bringing it up now is ridiculous… but I suppose there’s no choice.”
What began with weary eyes quickly spiraled into pure shock.
Everything had started the moment Maya opened the jewelry box and stole every piece of the ceremonial jewelry set.
“Those pieces belonged to my grandmother—passed down for generations. Uncle Byron inherited them when he married, then handed them to me. I planned to give them to you, so I had the old gems replaced with new ones.”
Sebelia was speechless as Dehart continued.
“The jewelry box was just a decoy. The real pieces were inside it. I finally sourced a blue diamond worthy of you and had everything remade… and that dustball of a cat went and did that…”
His voice grew darker at the end, but the utterly stunned Sebelia didn’t even notice.
“Then… then what is this?”
She managed, lifting the ring.
Dehart answered with a forlorn expression:
“I know it’s not exactly your taste, but as a Ducal heirloom, it has to retain some of its traditional design.”
“That’s not what I meant. Wait—are you telling me you remade the entire bridal set from scratch?”
“Yes.”
As if it were the most trivial thing in the world.
Sebelia blanked for a moment, then shook her head vigorously.
A noble family, especially this Ducal Family, wouldn’t commission heirloom jewelry from anywhere but the finest artisans. At minimum, master craftsmen… or suppliers to the Imperial Household.
Tarien Merchant.
Realization hit her, widening her eyes. Seizing his coat, she demanded.
“Was that why?”
Dehart blinked at her intensity, and she pressed again:
“All those rumors about Lady Doreen, was that because of Tarien Merchant?”
“…Yes.”
He confessed with a mournful look.
“Every family mentioned in the article has ties with Tarien. They require recommendation letters from those families in order to open a trade line. A petty requirement—but unavoidable. I had no choice but to visit in person.”
He added, in a quiet, almost sulky voice, that he truly didn’t know each household had a marriageable daughter in residence.
“And I swear to God I’ve never met anyone other than the heads of the families.”
“Even Lady Doreen? You seemed to get along well enough with her.”
“Me?”
His face twisted as if personally insulted by the suggestion.
“If you’re referring to what you saw in my office, that’s a misunderstanding. I only treated her politely because I already knew she belonged to a family close to Tarien.”
He clicked his tongue, adding reluctantly:
“And she’s Rosalyn’s friend.”
His frown was so sincerely vexed that Sebelia couldn’t help believing him. After all, the man despised meeting strangers—it would’ve been weirder if he had been chatty with noble ladies.
“Are all the misunderstandings cleared now?”
His tone pushed her a little. Wondering why, Sebelia followed his gaze—back and forth between her and the ring—and realized:
“You want it?”
“Very much. Yes.”
If she didn’t put that ring on him right this moment, he looked ready to devour her whole. Polite words, but everything else radiated pure beast.
Sebelia only laughed.
In front of the white altar, beneath flowers and silver branches that would never wither, she spoke the words that promised forever:
“Then will you marry me?”
His golden eyes crumbled instantly. His broad chest rose sharply. Warm sunlight spilled behind him as he tried to hold back a ragged breath.
“With pleasure.”
His trembling lips pressed against hers.
“I will marry you.”
His voice trembled along her lips, sending a shiver through her. She slipped the ring onto his thick finger, unable to suppress a quiet laugh.
But Dehart growled low in his throat.
“Everything is yours now.”
“Mhm.”
“I’ll give you everything. All of it.”
Feeling the thunder of his heartbeat beneath her palm, Sebelia closed her eyes.
“I will never take any of it back. And you… you’ll never be able to return anything to me…”
His voice fell heavy against her ear, but not a single word frightened her.
The arms around her were strong and unshakeable—something to lean on, not something to fear.
“Alright.”
Repeating that one simple word, Sebelia lifted her arms and embraced him in return.
Yes.It was good.
She could fake her death, run away, disappear entirely—but in the end, the only thing he ever wanted was her.
The only person he needed was her.
And now the world would finally know it too.
“Let’s have a big wedding.”
Sebelia murmured into his suffocatingly warm embrace.
“So even the ones who don’t know us will have no choice but to see.”
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