Chapter 255: Standstill
There was a stunned silence as Rafael’s rejection echoed through the room. Soleia shot her husband an incredulous glance before turning her head to witness the shell-shocked expression on her new father-in-law’s face. Clearly, he had not imagined Rafael’s rejection.
King Recaldo’s face had darkened considerably, and he seemed three steps away from leaping down from his throne to sock Rafael in the face despite his age. Beside her, Orion tensed imperceptibly, keeping an eye out for the nearest exit that he could haul Soleia out of.
The priest blinked, his face paling tremendously. Never before had he experienced someone rejecting a marriage that was personally arranged by King Recaldo himself.
"Excuse me, Prince Rafael? I must have misheard," he croaked out, his voice trembling minutely. He dared not turn around to look at King Recaldo’s face. He wanted to live.
"Rafael, you cannot be serious―" Elinora’s mouth fell open, and her eyes were wet with unshed tears as her mouth twisted with anger and hurt. "This is a joke, isn’t it? You cannot even bother to put on an act?"
"I’m not acting. I do not want to marry you with every fibre of my being," Rafael scoffed.
"Besides, now you can have first-hand experience of how humiliating it was for Soleia when you snatched Orion from right under her nose," Rafael added, crossing his arms as he stared impassively down at Elinora. "Part of me wishes we had invited everyone to witness this momentous event, just so that there would be more eyes feasting on your humiliation."
"Y-You― This is just a way for you to take revenge!" Elinora spluttered, her cheeks red at the audacity of Rafael’s actions. Her head swiveled between Rafael, his father, and Orion, before it finally came to a stop at Soleia’s befuddled face.
A manic glint entered her eyes, and she jabbed a finger so closely at Rafael’s face that he became cross-eyed trying to keep the whole of it in view.
"You have some nerve putting the blame on me!" A wicked smile crossed her face as she thought of a way to strain the relationship between this disgusting couple. "Does your precious darling know you were the one who handed me the amethyst to begin with? Without you, my entire plan to steal Orion at the wedding would never have come to fruition!"
Soleia gave a theatrical gasp, barely restraining the urge to roll her eyes at Elinora’s attempt to sow discord between the two of them. "You don’t say! Rafael, how could you betray me like this!"