Episode 160. Epilogue. Ever After (1)
“Do you happen to know where the ‘Rose Villa’ is?”
Mark got out of the carriage and politely asked the people in the field.
Everyone answered with smiles.
“You’re Chris’s guest, aren’t you?”
“Come to think of it, you were at Chris’s wedding.”
“Excuse me~ If you go straight down the road next to the Garden Lake Church, you’ll probably see it.”
“Thank you!”
As Mark climbed back into the carriage, Casey, who was riding inside, giggled. Casey was Mia’s daughter, the same age as Aaron.
“I guess no one really knows who His Majesty is.”
Mia, riding next to him, said with a cheerful expression.
“I see. He's successfully led a perfect double life.”
“Well, we shouldn’t make mistakes either.”
Mark urged the people in the carriage, and a loud “Yes!” was heard. The voice was filled with excitement and anticipation.
Inside the carriage were Mark and Mia's family. Only Mia's husband, Viscount Bonita, couldn't join them, having been unable to take a vacation.
Christine and Adele often spent their summer vacations at Russwolf's villa with their families. The villagers simply thought they had achieved great success in the city. The small villagers never got to see the Emperor.
While they were at the villa, Adele worked at the "Most Delicious Bakery." While she was away, the village women who had learned her recipes ran the shop. Word of mouth spread, and orders for bread had recently poured in from neighboring villages.
And Christine went hunting in the forest with Aaron.
Here, they were enjoying life as ordinary villagers, neither the Emperor nor his family. Christine's father, Danny, had been with them until last year, but had recently passed away from a chronic illness.
That's why they had invited Mark and Mia's family for this vacation.
It had been four years since their wedding when they had all gathered together.
Meanwhile, the children had grown up, and Pauline was helping out at Mark's clinic, promising to marry a girl named Eliza.
Jade, having survived death's embrace, had grown even stronger and recently become the youngest apprentice knight.
Mia's daughter, Casey, had become a stylish and demure young woman.
"Lizzie must be quite grown up now."
Mia smiled, thinking of Adele's daughter.
While the children were growing up, Christine and Adele had a beautiful daughter named Lizzie. When Adele gave birth, Mia came to the palace to be with her. And at Adele's request, she became Lizzie's godmother.
Everyone was filled with happiness, thinking about the person they would soon meet again.
Various emotions filled the air.
Meanwhile, the carriage passed by the Garden Lake in midsummer. Roses were still in full bloom along the lakeshore.
Because Russwolf was located at the northernmost point of the continent, summer came late, and the heat was mild. This made it a perfect place to spend a summer vacation admiring the roses.
As the carriage passed the lakeside church, a beautiful villa, literally covered in roses, appeared.
Christine's family was already there to greet them. In his arms was a little girl with dazzling silver hair and deep green eyes like rose petals.
That child was their daughter, Lizzie.
And a dazzlingly beautiful boy with dark black hair galloped towards their carriage.
"Welcome, everyone!"
At that moment, Casey unconsciously hid behind Mia, not wanting to be seen with her suddenly flushed face.
But Jade and Pauline quickly opened the door and jumped out before the carriage even stopped.
"Aaron!"
The three boys giggled and played like brothers who had only recently been separated.
They looked incredibly fresh under the summer sky.
"What are you doing, Casey? Aren't you going to say hello to Aaron?"
Inside the carriage, Mia, sensing her daughter's intentions, teased her mischievously.
Casey replied coolly, looking at the chattering boys.
“I should just say hello slowly. I don’t know why you’re all making such a fuss.”
“Whatever. But Aaron seems to have completely forgotten about you because he was talking to his brothers.”
“No way... Whoa!”
Casey screamed as she quickly stuck her head out of the carriage. She almost bumped into Aaron, who was still on horseback, and their faces almost met... No, their lips almost met... I don’t know!
“Hi, Cat.”
Cat was Aaron’s nickname for Casey because her name and appearance resembled a cat.
“Uh, hi, Aaron.”
Casey greeted him as haughtily as she could. But Aaron stared at her for a moment, then tilted his head.
“But what hurts?”
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Embarrassed, Casey demanded, almost accusingly. It wasn’t enough to be told she looked pretty, but she looked sick.
“Your face is red. I was wondering if you had a fever.”
Feeling her true feelings exposed, Casey felt angry, embarrassed, and her mind was spinning.
“You idiot! It’s because I’ve seen too many roses!”
She didn’t know if this was an excuse, but she decided to insist.
“Oh, so that’s why your face turned into a rose?”
“Good! If you can handle it tonight. But if I don’t like this gift, you prepare dinner tomorrow. I’ll have fish you caught yourself.”
“Good!”
The two men, with solemn expressions like people preparing for a duel, entered the bet.
And a moment later, when Mark pulled the gift from his bag, Adele let out a soft gasp.
“Oh my gosh, this is!”
“I found it while we were renovating my old house. Adele, is this yours?”
“Yes.”
Adele’s voice trembled, as if she were sobbing.
What Mark had brought was Adele’s jewelry box and key.
The day Christine abandoned her while she was pregnant and marched to Russwolf, Adele, feeling abandoned, had thrown the key out the window. And the jewelry box, which had been hidden deep in the attic storage, had disappeared somewhere, never to be found.
Mark had found it again.
“Thank you, Mark. Thank you so much.”
Looking at Adele, whose eyes were filled with tears, Christine thought he knew what was inside the jewelry box.
Adele had once said with regret. She'd thrown the key to the jewelry box where their memories were stored far away, and the box had vanished without a trace.
"Open it, Adele."
At Mia's urging, Adele carefully inserted the key into the lock on the jewelry box.
Click!
The lock disengaged, and the lid opened, revealing the pink velvet interior filled with memories of Christine and Adele.
Adele opened the small ring case inside. Inside were a neatly dried flower ring and an engagement ring.
Also neatly stacked were the green ribbon Christine had given her and a note he'd sent to Adele.
"My goodness, did you give all of these to Adele?"
Mia exclaimed in awe. She knew Christine was a devoted lover, but his cold demeanor had sometimes made him unbelievable.
But now, looking at him, she wondered if there was another man so delicate and romantic.
Adele whispered to Mia,
"He even tied my hair up nicely with this hair tie."
"Really?"
When Mia turned around and asked, Christine coughed awkwardly.
“Ahem, I’m so quick to learn.”
Meanwhile, Mark looked at the folded paper at the bottom of the jewelry box with a puzzled look.
“But what’s this...”
Mark tried to pull it out curiously, but
“No!”
Christine and Adele reached out at the same time.
However, Mark, surprisingly nimble, quickly took out the paper and unfolded it. Mia, curious about the couple’s secret, blocked them with her whole body and looked with Mark...
“Phew!”
She couldn’t hold back her laughter.
“What’s so funny?”
“Don’t laugh. It’s an order.”
Adele and Christine, their faces flushed, snatched the paper from Mark’s hand.
However, the moment they saw the contents, they couldn’t hold back their laughter either.
“Yuck!”
“Pfft!”
In the end, the four of them held their stomachs and laughed together.
Inside the paper were Christine, with his chest hair bulging, and Adele, with her eyes half covered in her face, wearing a stern expression.
“Do you happen to know where the ‘Rose Villa’ is?”
Mark got out of the carriage and politely asked the people in the field.
Everyone answered with smiles.
“You’re Chris’s guest, aren’t you?”
“Come to think of it, you were at Chris’s wedding.”
“Excuse me~ If you go straight down the road next to the Garden Lake Church, you’ll probably see it.”
“Thank you!”
As Mark climbed back into the carriage, Casey, who was riding inside, giggled. Casey was Mia’s daughter, the same age as Aaron.
“I guess no one really knows who His Majesty is.”
Mia, riding next to him, said with a cheerful expression.
“I see. He's successfully led a perfect double life.”
“Well, we shouldn’t make mistakes either.”
Mark urged the people in the carriage, and a loud “Yes!” was heard. The voice was filled with excitement and anticipation.
Inside the carriage were Mark and Mia's family. Only Mia's husband, Viscount Bonita, couldn't join them, having been unable to take a vacation.
Christine and Adele often spent their summer vacations at Russwolf's villa with their families. The villagers simply thought they had achieved great success in the city. The small villagers never got to see the Emperor.
While they were at the villa, Adele worked at the "Most Delicious Bakery." While she was away, the village women who had learned her recipes ran the shop. Word of mouth spread, and orders for bread had recently poured in from neighboring villages.
And Christine went hunting in the forest with Aaron.
Here, they were enjoying life as ordinary villagers, neither the Emperor nor his family. Christine's father, Danny, had been with them until last year, but had recently passed away from a chronic illness.
That's why they had invited Mark and Mia's family for this vacation.
It had been four years since their wedding when they had all gathered together.
Meanwhile, the children had grown up, and Pauline was helping out at Mark's clinic, promising to marry a girl named Eliza.
*( I think Pauline is a girl 😂 )
Jade, having survived death's embrace, had grown even stronger and recently become the youngest apprentice knight.
Mia's daughter, Casey, had become a stylish and demure young woman.
"Lizzie must be quite grown up now."
Mia smiled, thinking of Adele's daughter.
While the children were growing up, Christine and Adele had a beautiful daughter named Lizzie. When Adele gave birth, Mia came to the palace to be with her. And at Adele's request, she became Lizzie's godmother.
Everyone was filled with happiness, thinking about the person they would soon meet again.
Various emotions filled the air.
Meanwhile, the carriage passed by the Garden Lake in midsummer. Roses were still in full bloom along the lakeshore.
Because Russwolf was located at the northernmost point of the continent, summer came late, and the heat was mild. This made it a perfect place to spend a summer vacation admiring the roses.
As the carriage passed the lakeside church, a beautiful villa, literally covered in roses, appeared.
Christine's family was already there to greet them. In his arms was a little girl with dazzling silver hair and deep green eyes like rose petals.
That child was their daughter, Lizzie.
And a dazzlingly beautiful boy with dark black hair galloped towards their carriage.
"Welcome, everyone!"
At that moment, Casey unconsciously hid behind Mia, not wanting to be seen with her suddenly flushed face.
But Jade and Pauline quickly opened the door and jumped out before the carriage even stopped.
"Aaron!"
The three boys giggled and played like brothers who had only recently been separated.
They looked incredibly fresh under the summer sky.
"What are you doing, Casey? Aren't you going to say hello to Aaron?"
Inside the carriage, Mia, sensing her daughter's intentions, teased her mischievously.
Casey replied coolly, looking at the chattering boys.
“I should just say hello slowly. I don’t know why you’re all making such a fuss.”
“Whatever. But Aaron seems to have completely forgotten about you because he was talking to his brothers.”
“No way... Whoa!”
Casey screamed as she quickly stuck her head out of the carriage. She almost bumped into Aaron, who was still on horseback, and their faces almost met... No, their lips almost met... I don’t know!
“Hi, Cat.”
Cat was Aaron’s nickname for Casey because her name and appearance resembled a cat.
“Uh, hi, Aaron.”
Casey greeted him as haughtily as she could. But Aaron stared at her for a moment, then tilted his head.
“But what hurts?”
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Embarrassed, Casey demanded, almost accusingly. It wasn’t enough to be told she looked pretty, but she looked sick.
“Your face is red. I was wondering if you had a fever.”
Feeling her true feelings exposed, Casey felt angry, embarrassed, and her mind was spinning.
“You idiot! It’s because I’ve seen too many roses!”
She didn’t know if this was an excuse, but she decided to insist.
“Oh, so that’s why your face turned into a rose?”
Aaron seemed to agree with her innocent expression. Even in Casey’s eyes, who was the same age as him, his clumsy expression was adorable.
“What, you haven’t changed at all, you little brat.”
Casey finally felt like she was meeting her childhood friend again, and quickly got out of the carriage, wondering when she’d ever acted haughtily.
“You must be pretty good at riding, huh?”
“I’m really good at it.”
“Tch!”
“Want a ride?”
“Well, whatever.”
Aaron held out his hand while still mounted.
“Take it.”
“You idiot, I have to get off and escort a lady... ugh!”
Casey, who had been grumbling as she grabbed Aaron’s hand, finally screamed. Aaron had pulled her onto the saddle with a strength far greater than she had expected. Even after just experiencing it, Casey couldn’t believe it. Where did Aaron, who was probably still shorter than her, get such incredible strength?
“Go, Cat. Hold on tight!”
“Ugh!”
Mia, watching the two children, shook her head.
“I never knew my daughter would go ‘ugh! Ugh!’ like that.”
“It’s because Aaron is still awkward around ladies.”
Mia looked up at Adele’s voice.
“Oh, Adele... I really missed you.”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at Adele.
“Me too, Mia!”
While Adele and Mia embraced each other, sharing the joy of their reunion, Christine and Mark also shook hands with ease.
“Come in, Mark!”
“Thank you for inviting me.”
Then, the little lady in Christine’s arms joined in.
“Lizzie, Lizzie, you want to say hello too.”
***
As darkness fell, the children disappeared somewhere on their own. Lizzie, who never left Christine and Adele’s arms, followed her older siblings around well. Thanks to her, the adults were left alone on the garden terrace, enjoying a comfortable time. Sadly, Zimmer and Tanya were absent. Tanya had recently given birth to twins. The couple who had so annoyed everyone around them had a daughter soon after their marriage, and now twin sons. And now, they were a couple who threatened Adele and Christine with goosebumps.
“So, what’s the surprise gift?”
He asked, putting down his wine glass as if thinking of Adele. Mark smiled, saying he had been waiting.
“I wasn’t going to give it to you if you didn’t ask.”
“No way. I’ve been curious ever since I received your letter.”
Needless to say, Christine’s gaze grew fierce at that moment.
“Letter?”
The voice held an unspoken question, as if to say, if they had been exchanging letters continuously. Mia laughed teasingly.
“You’re still incredibly jealous.”
“Ahem, I was just curious.”
Mark added one more comment, trying to tease Christine.
“Oh, Adele, haven’t you told me yet? That we exchange letters every now and then?”
Christine narrowed his eyes, as if to say, and Adele looked dumbfounded.
“Did you forget? You read the letters from Mark with me. You mentioned the gift in them, too.”
“Oh, I see.”
Adele and Mark exchanged letters regularly, mostly about Jade and Pauline. Letters from the two children were also included, which she and Christine would read together. And in this letter, Mark promised Adele a surprising gift.
"Perhaps it'll be something His Majesty would like even more,"
Christine retorted curtly.
"I don't particularly like gifts from men."
"Then shall we make a bet?"
"A bet?"
"If you like this gift, you will grant me a favor."
“Good! If you can handle it tonight. But if I don’t like this gift, you prepare dinner tomorrow. I’ll have fish you caught yourself.”
“Good!”
The two men, with solemn expressions like people preparing for a duel, entered the bet.
And a moment later, when Mark pulled the gift from his bag, Adele let out a soft gasp.
“Oh my gosh, this is!”
“I found it while we were renovating my old house. Adele, is this yours?”
“Yes.”
Adele’s voice trembled, as if she were sobbing.
What Mark had brought was Adele’s jewelry box and key.
The day Christine abandoned her while she was pregnant and marched to Russwolf, Adele, feeling abandoned, had thrown the key out the window. And the jewelry box, which had been hidden deep in the attic storage, had disappeared somewhere, never to be found.
Mark had found it again.
“Thank you, Mark. Thank you so much.”
Looking at Adele, whose eyes were filled with tears, Christine thought he knew what was inside the jewelry box.
Adele had once said with regret. She'd thrown the key to the jewelry box where their memories were stored far away, and the box had vanished without a trace.
"Open it, Adele."
At Mia's urging, Adele carefully inserted the key into the lock on the jewelry box.
Click!
The lock disengaged, and the lid opened, revealing the pink velvet interior filled with memories of Christine and Adele.
Adele opened the small ring case inside. Inside were a neatly dried flower ring and an engagement ring.
Also neatly stacked were the green ribbon Christine had given her and a note he'd sent to Adele.
"My goodness, did you give all of these to Adele?"
Mia exclaimed in awe. She knew Christine was a devoted lover, but his cold demeanor had sometimes made him unbelievable.
But now, looking at him, she wondered if there was another man so delicate and romantic.
Adele whispered to Mia,
"He even tied my hair up nicely with this hair tie."
"Really?"
When Mia turned around and asked, Christine coughed awkwardly.
“Ahem, I’m so quick to learn.”
Meanwhile, Mark looked at the folded paper at the bottom of the jewelry box with a puzzled look.
“But what’s this...”
Mark tried to pull it out curiously, but
“No!”
Christine and Adele reached out at the same time.
However, Mark, surprisingly nimble, quickly took out the paper and unfolded it. Mia, curious about the couple’s secret, blocked them with her whole body and looked with Mark...
“Phew!”
She couldn’t hold back her laughter.
“What’s so funny?”
“Don’t laugh. It’s an order.”
Adele and Christine, their faces flushed, snatched the paper from Mark’s hand.
However, the moment they saw the contents, they couldn’t hold back their laughter either.
“Yuck!”
“Pfft!”
In the end, the four of them held their stomachs and laughed together.
Inside the paper were Christine, with his chest hair bulging, and Adele, with her eyes half covered in her face, wearing a stern expression.
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