The Slave Queen - Chapter 52: Chapter 52

The two of them turned to see that Edgar had somehow wandered over without them noticing.
"Edgar."
"Edgar."
Raelynn greeted him with a polite curtsy. Shawn, true to form, gave a curt nod, his expression unreadable.
Fortunately, Edgar wasn't the kind to fuss over such things.
He seemed long used to Shawn's cool demeanor.
Smiling warmly at Raelynn, he said cheerfully, "I was just thinking of dropping in on the excitement. Why don't we head over together?"
Raelynn let out a soft laugh, a dimple flickering at the corner of her lips.
"Is it possible... that you are the guest we are talking about, Lord Shawn?"
"What?"
Edgar turned to Shawn, then quickly shook his head. "No way."
Shawn raised a brow. "Oh? And what makes you so sure, Edgar?"
Edgar gave him a knowing look and stroked his beard with exaggerated wisdom. "Word is, today's guest is here to propose. If it were you... wouldn't that mean you came to propose?"
He chuckled and waved a hand. "Come on. You, Shiny, get married? That I've got to see to believe."
Shiny was Shawn's nickname.
At that, both Shawn and Raelynn let out quiet laughs, covering their mouths.
As he saw their reaction, Edgar's confidence began to crack.
He looked back and forth between them, his expression slowly shifting to realization. "Wait... you're both here... you're both..."
After a long pause, it finally clicked. His eyes went wide. "You two are actually—?"
"Edgar," Shawn said with a small, wry smile, his voice low and smooth like aged wine, "don't forget to come have a drink at the wedding."
Edgar stared at them, slack-jawed, his gaze darting between the two.
Suddenly, he remembered that day in the little mountain hut—Shawn's offhand comment. "She's not an outsider." At the time, he'd thought it was just a polite turn of phrase.
Who knew there was something more behind it?
He gave a loud, theatrical huff. "You little brats—so you've been hiding this from me all along!"
"We wouldn't dare, Edgar," Shawn replied smoothly.
"Then why didn't you say anything before?" Edgar grumbled, clearly feeling a bit left out.
"The way you two were making eyes at each other right under my nose—I didn't notice a thing."
Raelynn grinned. "Well... Edgar, you never asked."
That shut him up. He pointed a finger at her, mock-scolding. "You little rascal! Lying in wait to ambush me, weren't you?"
Raelynn laughed out loud.
Her smile was bright and unrestrained—like sunshine breaking through the clouds. It was a far cry from the somber, guarded expression she wore around the Lennox family.
Even her features seemed to come alive.
Edgar looked at her beaming face, then at Shawn, still reserved but noticeably softer when standing beside her. Strangely enough, he thought—they really did suit each other.
As if fate had meant for them to end up this way.
From a senior's perspective, the more he looked at them, the more satisfied he felt.
"Good. Very good."
He nodded, then pulled a thumb-sized vial from his robe and handed it to Raelynn.
"Since you're marrying Shawn, that makes you family now. I left the mountain in a hurry and didn't bring much, but here—three Soul-Restoring Pills. Consider them my wedding gift to you both."
"Soul-Restoring Pills?"
Raelynn's eyes widened as she stared at the little bottle in disbelief.
These were legendary—rare beyond measure.
Said to bring the dead back from the underworld, even if the soul had already departed.
So long as the spirit hadn't reincarnated, just one pill could summon it back and give a person a few more years of life.
And he was just... giving them away?
She snapped back to her senses, flustered, and quickly waved her hands. "This is far too valuable. Thank you, Edgar, but I really can't—"
Before she could finish, Shawn had already taken the vial from Edgar's hand and placed it directly into hers.
"He gave it to you—keep it," he said firmly. Then, looking back at Edgar, he added with a deadpan expression, "Only three pills for such a major occasion? Edgar, isn't that a little stingy?"
Raelynn stared at him in shock.
She thought, 'Is he... trying to shake him down?
'And not just anyone—Edgar, of all people.'
This completely overturned her impression of Shawn.
She'd thought he was all moonlight and elegance—refined, reserved, far above worldly concerns.
And here he was... extorting a wedding gift. It was oddly entertaining.
She studied his profile—so sharp and dignified—and noticed how much gentler his expression seemed when he was around his Edgar.
He was nothing like the rumored Prime Minister, the cold and ruthless strategist of the court.
Edgar, meanwhile, clutched his pocket tightly, clearly familiar with this particular side of Shawn.
"Just one Soul-Restoring Pill could buy twenty whole chests of betrothal gifts. I'm giving you three—that's already priceless. Don't push it, boy. You keep this up, and I'll stop supplying you altogether..."
His voice suddenly cut off.