272/274 To Sober Up


    :


    +25 Bonus


    272/274: To Sober Up


    Uriel could not believe his eyes when Ri summoned him over and he saw Beatrice sitting at their table, giggling to herself as if she were the only person in the entire pavilion.


    “What happened? Why did you call for me?” he asked his cousin with a frown, though his gaze never left


    Beatrice.


    He had only stepped away for a short while, and now she was already drunk? Where were those men hovering around her earlier? His jaw tightened. He would make sure to deal with them personally.


    “Bring her back to her quarters,” Ri said casually, taking a slow sip from her ss as though she had just asked him to pass the salt.


    “What? Why me?!” Uriel burst out. He turned sharply to look at Arturo seated beside her. “Why not him?


    He’s her uncle!”


    Ri merely shrugged. “Arturo is keeping mepany. If you refuse, I can always ask Lord Danie over there.”


    Her gaze shifted deliberately toward a group of noblemen who were clearly stealing nces at Beatrice. Uriel knew very well that any one of them would leap at the chance to assist her.


    His expression darkened.


    “Then have your maidservants do it,” he insisted, his voice still edged with resistance.


    He was not naive.


    He knew exactly what Ri was trying to do. She had that same calcting glint in her eyes that Aunt Wilma wore whenever she decided two people belonged together whether they liked it or not. Ri was ying cupid. Deliberately. Shamelessly.


    And the worst part? A part of him wanted to let her.


    He wanted to be the one to carry Beatrice away from prying eyes. He wanted to be the one she leaned on. The one she trusted. The one she clung to when the world blurred around her.


    But that was precisely the problem. He did not trust himself. Not when she looked like that. Not when she was flushed from wine, herughter loose and unguarded. Not when she would be soft and pliant in his arms, unaware of how dangerously close she already was to breaking the fragile restraint he had spent days building.


    He inhaled sharply.


    If he carried her, if she wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his chest… Would he still remember where the line was? Or would he finally cross it?


    That was what he feared.


    272/274: To Sober Up


    +25 Bonus


    Not Ri’s scheming. Not the gossip.


    Himself…


    “I dismissed them early so they could enjoy the festivities,” Ri replied smoothly. “And even if they were here, do you think they could carry Beatrice in this state? She needs someone strong to handle Otherwise, she will create a scene. Look.”


    Uriel followed her line of sight.


    Beatrice was no longer at the table.


    She was standing in front of one of the ornatemp decorations in the pavilion, staring up at it with childlike fascination.


    “I like your bright colors,” she told themp solemnly, swaying slightly. “But can you change them? Maybe blue me? Or green? Come on… I want to see prettier lights. The fireworks are not in the sky yet, and I want different colors twinkling already.”


    Uriel closed his eyes briefly.


    For a moment, he considered pretending he did not know her. Then she reached out and gently tapped themp.


    “Don’t be shy,” she whispered to it. “Show me something magical.”


    His temples throbbed.


    Without another word, he strode toward her.


    If he did not retrieve her now, she might very well start negotiating with the furniture next. And that, he absolutely refused to witness.


    Beatrice’s eyes brightened the instant theynded on Uriel.


    “Oh! Look who’s here?” she announced far too loudly. “It’s the coward mage!”


    Several nearby guests turned their heads.


    She quickly pped a hand over her mouth, blinking as if she had just remembered something important. Then she leaned closer to him and giggled.


    “Ah, right… you’re not a mage anymore. There’s no more magic to ess.”


    Her eyes narrowed mischievously before she whispered, though not quietly enough, “Then I’ll just call you the coward man. A man with no balls.”


    Uriel’s face burned crimson.


    He caught her wrist before she could stumble away. “That is enough,” he muttered tightly. “Come with me. You need to sober up.”


    272/274: To Sober Up


    +25 Bonus


    Beatrice swatted his hand off as if he were an annoying fly. “No. I want more wine.”


    She reached for another ss from the table, but before her fingers could close around it, she suddenly gasped.


    Uriel had lifted her straight into his arms.


    “Hey! What are you doing?!” she hissed, squirming against his chest.


    He ignored her protests and began striding toward the grand hallway, fully aware of the curious stares following them. Whispers were already rising behind his back, but he did not slow down.


    “I am taking you back to your bedchamber to sober up and rest,” he said sternly. “Who told you to drink


    so much?”


    She pouted up at him, cheeks flushed and eyes shimmering from too much wine. “Those boring men,” she grumbled, her words slightly slurred, “kept talking about how beautiful I am. And asking to visit me. And saying they would bring gifts. And praising my smile. And my hair. And my-” she waved her hand vaguely in the air, nearly smacking his chin, “-everything.”


    Uriel’s jaw tightened.


    “It was overwhelming,” she continued, frowning as if she had suffered a grave injustice. “They kept leaning closer and closer. Smiling like that.” She attempted to mimic a charming grin but ended up looking more mischievous than elegant. “So I had to drink to keep up.”


    “To keep up?” he repeated tly.


    “Yes,” she nodded seriously. “If I drank, I did not have to answer properly. I could justugh. See?” She demonstrated with a bright, exaggerated giggle that echoed faintly in the corridor.


    Uriel felt something dark coil in his chest.


    “You could have walked away,” he said, his voice lower now.


    “They would have followed,” she replied immediately, poking his chest with her finger.


    For a moment, he had no response. She squinted up at him, studying his face as if trying to read something there. Then her expression softened slightly.


    “They were loud,” she added quietly. “And I do not like when they look at me like I am something to win.”


    Support


    Share


    Editorial board


    Editorial Board: Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.