Transmigrated Into The Body Of The Cursed Prince Wife
Chapter 43: Announcement at the dinning hall

Chapter 43: Announcement at the dinning hall

Slowly, Ave made her way to the empty seat beside him and sat down. Then, she leaned toward him when no one was looking and whispered, "Thank you..."

He ignored her, sitting still like a statue, not even blinking. Ave was tempted to talk more with him, hoping to appease him with her words and make him see that she had no bad intentions against him or any of his family, but just then, the servants began walking in with trays of dishes and setting them on the table.

The sweet aroma that wafted to Ave’s nose was enough to distract her from Lucian for the moment. Since she’d arrived here, she hadn’t eaten anything good—just grain soup and bread. From the scent, she could tell there was chicken among the dishes and many more delicious meals. But, remembering the rules from last time, she clenched a handful of her dress to stop herself from reaching out to open the trays while she salivated.

’Why do they always waste time when it comes to eating?’ she thought as she looked around. Everyone sat there patiently without making any attempt to touch the food, their heads all turned toward the Emperor.

Ave pursed her lips as she could no longer wait, then she nudged Lucian’s thigh under the table. But if he felt it, he didn’t react or look at her. She leaned over and asked, "Sorry to bother you, but when do we get to eat?" She nudged him again twice.

Lucian closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he’d really strangle the woman beside him. He had even more reasons to kill her now that he knew she wasn’t Selene. He could tell the royal family about her being an imposter, but he hadn’t—for his own personal reasons. Instead of avoiding him as he thought she would, she was bothering him again.

He decided to keep ignoring her, but it seemed this woman didn’t know when to read the room and that it was one of the royal rules to wait until the Emperor gives permission to eat or touch the food. The more he ignored her, the more she wanted his attention by nudging him repeatedly.

He silently anticipated when she’d nudge him again. Lucian swatted her hand under the table with the back of his own, causing her to gasp in surprised pain.

Ave clutched her stinging hand as she glared at him. What a wicked man he was, hitting her that hard for simply asking an innocent question. But before she could say more or do anything to bother him further, the Emperor cleared his throat.

"I am glad we are all here tonight to eat together as a family," he remarked good-naturedly before his gaze landed on Lucian. "The last time we were supposed to sit as one, there were a few misunderstandings with the second prince, which have been cleared up now." The Emperor spoke carefully, not wanting to offend his second son in any way that might lead him to betray the Empire as he’d been hearing words.

He took pride in each of his sons for various reasons, and for the second prince, it was his skills on the battlefield that had brought them victory many times, despite him not being a leading general.

Lucian barely acknowledged the Emperor’s words with a mere nod. The Emperor continued to speak about important matters concerning the Empire, making Ave yawn repeatedly, tears filling her eyes. She had never been this bored in all her life. Why were they discussing politics at the dinner table instead of eating? Did they enjoy cold meals or something?

Ave was forced to listen as the Emperor spoke to each of his children, eventually returning to Lucian again. It seemed the Emperor was hellbent on appeasing this particular son after downgrading him the other day.

"I heard you want to take another wife, Lucian?"

Ave’s eyes widened at that. Take another wife? Since when? Not that she cared if he took another wife—he wasn’t even her real husband—but wouldn’t that ruin her own plans for returning? Though she wasn’t sure if he was still her key to going back, now that he knew she wasn’t Selene, taking another wife would certainly complicate things. He might not pay her any attention at all and give her the chance to fall in love.

Ave glanced at Lucian, and when he nodded in confirmation, her head grew heavy. She cautiously turned to look at the Empress, who was now glaring at her. She had promised the Empress to make Lucian fall for her and trust her again. The Empress had said she wanted to see her effort, but if Lucian was taking another wife, wouldn’t that mean Ave had achieved nothing? The Empress might get rid of her before even discovering she wasn’t Selene.

The Emperor continued with a laugh in his voice, "That’s a good thing. You’re just like your father. When I was your age, I had already married the Empress and Aiden’s mother," he said proudly. He then looked at his third son, who had been sitting quietly regarding Ave the whole time with a frown on his face.

"Since you will be taking a bride as well, it would be wonderful to have a double wedding ceremony."

Prince Caelan forced a smile. He hated the idea of marrying on the same day as the brother he disliked most, but he replied, "That would be great, Your Majesty. I look forward to having my ceremony with Brother Lucian." He then glanced briefly at Selene, hoping to see jealousy in her eyes. But just as she had done since entering the hall, she didn’t spare him a glance and was instead looking at Lucian.

What had happened to her? He thought grimly. She hadn’t been paying him any attention lately, and the fact that she had knocked him out that night without even coming to apologize struck him as strange. Before, she would have run after him and done anything to please him, and now, he hated that her attention was on his brother instead of him.

"Alden," the Emperor said, looking at his first son. "It would be wonderful if you also decided to take a bride. You’re not getting any younger, and if your mother were alive, she wouldn’t have allowed you to reach this age without marriage."

Alden, who had never shown interest in marriage, gave a polite nod. "Your Majesty, with our land preparing for an upcoming war with Valarie, marriage is the last thing on my mind. But I will inform you when I find someone who piques my interest." He replied polity, trying to get his father off the topic of marriage, as he knew that was something he would not get involved in anytime soon.

Emperor Alaric laughed and nodded. "Very well." He then turned to his fourth son. "What about you, Orion? Have you decided if you want a wife yet?"

Orion, who wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation, was taken aback when his name was mentioned in the context of marriage. "Marriage?" he asked with a small chuckle, but before he could reject the idea, his mother interjected.

"Orion plans to take a bride as well, Your Majesty. We can have three weddings at the same time when they’ve chosen the women they like." Seraphina smiled as she pinched her son’s thigh when he looked ready to refuse.

Orion yelped, then quickly composed himself with a strained laugh. "Y-yeah, I’ll choose a bride as well."

As the Emperor continued discussing matches for his daughters, Ave’s mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. She could still feel the Empress’s gaze on her after Lucian announced he would take another wife. The Empress wouldn’t want him to take someone she couldn’t control, especially someone who might help Lucian take the throne. While taking another wife could bring Lucian closer to the throne, it would also ruin Ave’s plans of using him to return home.

Now that she had the Empress glaring at her, Ave realized she had to prove her efforts immediately. She had to show that Lucian was under her influence.

Finally, when the Emperor finished speaking, the servants began opening the dishes.

Ave’s eyes widened at the array of delicious food lining the long table. None of it looked familiar, but it had to taste better than grain soup and bread. She couldn’t wait any longer and reached out to pick up her spoon, only for Lucian to swat her hand away without even looking at her.

Ave gritted her teeth in annoyance, her patience wearing thin. "What is wro—!" She cut herself off when she realized all eyes were on her, and then it hit her—no one had touched their food yet because they were waiting for the Emperor to take the first bite. His spoon had now stopped midway to his mouth because of her sudden exclamation.

Shit! Lucian was trying to stop her from making another mistake. She smiled nervously and quickly pretended to scratch her arm. "What is wrong with my arm?"

"I told you princess Selene is going mad," Whispered Isolde to Celeste with a giggle.

"Good Lord, Selene. Are you sure you’re not about to spread your madness to us?" The fourth consort said with a sneer. "If you’re not feeling well, you should leave before you infect the rest of the family."

"I think that would be a better idea," agreed prince Orion with a glare directed towards Ave. "She’s not of our class anyway."

Ave would have retorted if the Emperor hadn’t interjected. "You may all proceed with your dinner."

Finally, Ave thought as she began piling food onto her plate. She ate without a care in the world who was watching. Though the food wasn’t as good as it was in her time, it wasn’t bad either.

She was about to reach for a whole chicken when she met the Empress’s gaze and quickly smiled nervously. It seemed she had to put on a show tonight to prove herself to this woman. She had to show her effort in making Lucian trust her.

With a sweet smile, Ave turned to Lucian, holding a spoonful of soup to his lips. "Have a taste of this, babe. It’ll cool your mind," she said sweetly.

The word ’babe’ drew a different reaction from the people around the table, as some burst into laughter.

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