Searching for the Runaway Princess — Chapter : 1

Prologue

Near future.

Thunk!

A dagger stabbed roughly into the bookshelf beside her shoulder.

Before she realized it, he had already approached her. Holding Elizia as if embracing her, he pulled the dagger out of the bookcase with one arm. Soon, his low voice whispered by her ear.

“Elly, if you wanted to run away from me, you should have hidden yourself until the very end.”

Elly. The nickname he had always called her returned sweetly once more.

Elizia raised her head and looked up at the man surrounding her.

How had things ended up like this?

The man who had once confessed his feelings in a flower-filled garden. The man who used to smile lazily with his face buried against the back of her neck.

But now, he was a madman of war.

The man who had once been so familiar now stood before her with a cold smile, looking completely unfamiliar.

Chapter 1 — First Meeting

Two years earlier, in the royal castle of the Kingdom of Ortigia.

Princess Elizia stared deeply at someone’s portrait.

On the table beside a vase filled with pale pink orchids lay an acceptance letter from the “Royal Academy of the Neutral Nation of Swena.”

It was the school she would enter in two weeks.

Her glossy hair flowed softly over her shoulders like waves.

A gentle jawline, a graceful neck, neatly trimmed nails.

She was an elegant and refined beauty that anyone would look back at twice.

However, her tightly closed lips and the stubborn look hidden in her eyes clearly showed that, unlike her appearance, she had quite a strong personality.

Her nanny pointed directly at the person in the portrait.

“Princess, please remember the face in this portrait well. This brat is the prince of the enemy empire. If you run into him at the Royal Academy, you absolutely must not get into any trouble or fights!”

“Why would I fight him? We probably won’t even meet.”

“Th-That’s… well… with Your Highness’s personality being… rather…”

The nanny awkwardly trailed off.

Elizia roughly understood what she could not finish saying.

Probably something like, “because you’re so fierce.”

But Elizia was not offended.

“Don’t worry. As the proud princess of Ortigia, I’ll behave gracefully.”

The person in the portrait was a prince of the Kashtra Empire.

The First Prince, “Nobila Herve Karund,” from the nation that had once fought a bloody war against Elizia’s homeland, the Kingdom of Ortigia.

After the war, the empire and kingdom had remained in a ceasefire for nearly twenty years, but the two countries still hated each other and had no interaction at all.

Because of that, the only way Elizia could recognize the prince she might meet at the academy was through a portrait painted by a royal artist of Ortigia.

Elizia glanced at the portrait again.

A hideous man with greasy blond hair slicked tightly back, a large bulbous nose, and crooked teeth twisted his lips into a smile.

Exactly two days after Elizia entered the Royal Academy—

Elizia stood inside the principal’s office with sparkling eyes.

Beside her stood a student who seemed to be somewhere between a boy and a man. His expression was elegant, and his posture perfectly straight.

The principal gestured for the two, who were standing apart, to move closer together.

Without meaning much by it, they each stepped about half a step closer.

The principal stroked his white mustache and smiled slightly.

Without much explanation, he immediately got to the point.

“Rakan. Elizia. The reason I called you here… is to inform you that you two have become direct senior and junior.”

“Yes!”

“…Yes.”

Elizia nodded with a faint smile.

So the person beside her was her assigned senior!

She felt slightly happy at the thought of being connected to someone surprisingly handsome.

On the other hand, the boy answered more slowly. His expression had noticeably darkened.

At the “Royal Academy of the Neutral Nation of Swena,” a unique relationship called direct senior and junior existed.

Usually, senior students were assigned to newly admitted juniors for several months to help them adjust to academy life.

They attended some classes together and occasionally met during free time for tea.

Elizia secretly glanced sideways at the person called “Rakan.”

The tall boy with broad shoulders stood confidently with his hands behind his back.

She did not know which kingdom he came from, but he looked extremely self-assured.

The only annoying thing was the slight frown on his face.

‘What’s with that reaction…?’

Elizia’s expression stiffened slightly as well.

Honestly, until just moments ago, she had been a little pleased that such a handsome man was her senior.

But seeing his strangely displeased reaction immediately ruined her mood.

‘Is becoming my senior really that unpleasant for him? …Could he be from the Empire?’

Yes. If he was from the Empire, then maybe it made sense.

Judging by his reaction, he seemed to be imperial nobility, probably at least high-ranking.

If he had been paired with a woman from an enemy nation—especially a princess—then his displeasure was understandable.

The principal looked amused at their awkward expressions and gave them one final remark.

“I assigned you together for a reason, so I hope you get along well. You may leave now.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

Elizia answered shortly and bowed politely to the principal.

It was finally time to leave this unpleasant place.

After leaving the principal’s office, the two walked in silence.

Since there was only one path outside, they naturally walked one before the other.

As Elizia stared at his retreating back, a question suddenly came to mind.

Come to think of it, did the principal usually personally introduce direct seniors and juniors? She had heard students were normally informed by letter.

But she quickly dismissed the thought, assuming it was because she was royalty.

Outside the hallway, sunlight poured down brightly.

Elizia stopped in front of the entrance and blinked.

Sunlight caught beneath her fluttering eyelashes, and the warm spring air brushed against the tip of her nose.

Just as she was enjoying the scent of spring—

A deep, pleasant voice sounded above her head.

“You weren’t the one scheming behind the scenes to make this happen, were you?”

It was Rakan.

‘…What nonsense is this imperial bastard talking about?’

Thinking that, Elizia turned her head.

The man leaning against the entrance wall with crossed arms came into view.

Because of their height difference, he looked down at her slightly, and she disliked that very much.

“What do you mean by scheming?”

“It means you approached me because you wanted to create a connection with me.”

As Rakan spoke, one corner of his lips twisted upward lazily.

Connection? Approach?

Elizia carefully looked over his face.

The dreamy spring sunlight poured over his blond hair.

His hair was not the usual ash blond, but a brilliant golden blond that looked as if melted gold itself had flowed down.

Underneath it, his emerald eyes were almost unreal in beauty.

He was astonishingly beautiful—almost pretty.

But his sharp nose bridge, defined jawline, and slightly cold eyes clearly made him look masculine.

Combined with the relaxed elegance unique to nobility, his appearance and atmosphere naturally drew attention.

For a brief moment, she almost understood his insane level of self-love.

Elizia stared directly into his eyes.

“You’re from the Empire, aren’t you?”

Rakan nodded easily.

“That’s right. And you’re the princess of Ortigia.”

“Right. Thinking about where you’re from, I can understand your reaction toward me. But connection? Approach? Ha! As if. Today is the first time I’ve seen you, and you’re not my type.”

“Really? I don’t think my appearance is something people dislike. And whether you like it or not, I’m your senior. So speak respectfully, Princess.”

“……”

‘What kind of narcissistic lunatic is this? And he wants me to speak respectfully? Seriously? Me, a princess, to some noble from an enemy nation?’

Elizia kept her mouth shut, but her expression clearly said everything.

Rakan did not care in the slightest and continued casually.

“And let me say this in advance—I have no intention of dating women. So stop having pointless expectations. For the next two months, we’ll be nothing more and nothing less than direct senior and junior.”

“……”

Elizia wanted to argue back.

But she felt that if she opened her mouth, only very ungraceful insults would come out, so she chose to stay silent and calm herself.

She took a deep breath.

Honestly, she did not even know where to begin correcting him.

Everything he said sounded ridiculous from start to finish.

“Just where does that absurd confidence come from, Rakan? Or should I say… Senior?”

“Wealth, power, status. And appearance.”

“…Ha.”

A hollow laugh escaped her.

‘The best way to deal with a crazy person is to avoid them. I need to get away from this beautiful psycho immediately.’

Elizia nodded to herself.

To think the first imperial she met here was this awful—it was tragic.

“Whether you fall in love with teacups or pigeons, I have absolutely no interest. So stop saying ridiculous things, and you should stop being interested in me too. I’ll be leaving now. See you next time.”

Elizia spoke coldly but still gave a proper farewell.

She hated it, but he was technically her senior.

It hurt her pride as a princess to use formal speech toward a man from the enemy empire, but there was nothing she could do.

After all, she had entered this academy prepared to follow the rules here, where status and rank were set aside.

If she hated it that much, she could simply kick him in the shin and leave the academy immediately.

But she had no intention of doing that.

Even from their first meeting, Elizia could already tell.

Among all imperials, this man was probably the absolute worst.

Muttering curses under her breath, she turned around irritably.

She wanted to get away from him as quickly as possible.

But then—

As she hurried forward, one of her feet caught on a small protruding stone.

“Ah!”

Her dress tangled around her unstable footing.

She flailed her arms and barely managed not to fall.

She succeeded in staying upright, but—

Riiip!

With a rough tearing sound, the hem of her dress ripped badly.

Perhaps because it was made from expensive fabric, the material tore as easily as seaweed underwater.

‘Why is nothing going right today?!’

Grinding her teeth, Elizia angrily dusted off her dress.

Behind her, a man’s amused voice reached her ears.

“You told me not to pay attention to you, but that behavior looks exactly like ‘Please look at me.’”

Even without turning around, she could practically see his smiling face from the tone of his voice.

That man seriously—!

Elizia dropped her dress with an annoyed expression.

Then she stormed away angrily.

Rakan watched her retreating figure with an indifferent gaze before turning away himself.

The imperial and the princess who had met for the first time that day separated less than an hour later.

Just like the relationship between their two countries.

As Elizia walked toward the dormitory, she kicked a stone and muttered angrily,

“Connection? Dating? Ha! What crazy woman would ever date such an arrogant narcissist?”

Even then, she still had not calmed down and continued grumbling.

“What’s the point of being handsome? I don’t know who’ll end up becoming that man’s wife, but I truly pity her! Future Madam! Please endure him well and live happily!”

It was an intense message of comfort and encouragement directed toward nobody in particular.

But strangely enough—

Her toes had been hurting for a while from kicking stones so much.