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Chapter 32
Inside Claude’s office.
Claude had summoned Rai, but even after Rai entered, Claude didn’t spare him a glance, his eyes busy scanning documents.
“I greet Your Highness, Prince Claude.”
Even at Rai’s greeting, Claude’s gaze remained fixed on the papers.
Normally, the moment Rai walked in, Claude would have met his eyes warmly. He would have joked around, teased him, and laughed at his flustered reactions.
In the palace—where showing weakness was forbidden—they were the only ones who could relax and reveal their true selves to each other.
But now the atmosphere had completely changed. Rai, too, said nothing, simply standing at attention, waiting for Claude to speak.
“Did you escort the young lady home that day?”
Though Claude gave no clear name, Rai understood instantly.
“Yes. I escorted Lady Eva, who felt faint during the dinner, safely to the palace gates.”
At Eva’s name, Claude’s pen suddenly froze.
For the first time, his gaze lifted to meet Rai’s.
“Rai.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“The one you claimed to like so much that you fell sick with lovesickness… was it Lady Eva?”
Claude’s blunt tone made it clear he had no intention of beating around the bush. Rai stared back quietly.
“Why do you suddenly ask that, Your Highness?”
“I once told you that the girl behind the black cat mask at the masquerade was Lady Eva. I didn’t want secrets between us.”
“…That is true.”
“So now I’d like you to tell me.”
Claude was asking, but his tone suggested he already knew the answer. That alone made Rai press his lips tightly shut.
Because he had promised Eva.
‘I don’t want others knowing about our personal matters and gossiping about them. So please don’t tell anyone.’
Recalling her words, Rai replied firmly,
“I cannot tell you, Your Highness.”
Claude’s sharp eyes narrowed.
“Rai, I’ll ask you again.”
“……”
“What is your relationship with Lady Eva?”
“I cannot say.”
With the same unwavering tone as before, Rai refused again.
“So the woman you went on a date with, asking me about restaurants beforehand—that was Lady Eva, wasn’t it? When I said I liked her, were you laughing at me behind my back, thinking it was impossible?”
“I cannot—”
“Yes or no. Answer with one or the other.”
Claude’s voice had shifted into a command. The air in the office grew colder.
Claude’s gaze pierced him, demanding an answer, but Rai remained silent.
He chose neither “yes” nor “no.”
“Hah.”
Claude let out a mirthless laugh, covering his mouth with his hand.
“Your silence is already an answer.”
“……”
“Judging by your inability to give me a straight word, your bond with her isn’t all that deep after all, Rai Castro.”
At Claude’s slightly biting words, Rai’s brow twitched.
“I only wish to be cautious with my words. That’s all.”
“So now speaking to me has become ‘reckless,’ has it?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then why can’t you answer me? What exactly have you and she talked about that makes you hide it so desperately?”
Pressed harder, Rai opened his mouth, then closed it again. His silence made Claude’s displeasure deepen, his brow furrowing.
After a moment of thought, Claude lowered the hand covering his mouth.
His frown smoothed out, replaced with a smile.
It was the kind of smile Claude wore only toward people he considered enemies within the palace.
“Since you won’t answer, I’ll take it to mean you have no relationship with her.”
The brightness in his tone unsettled Rai.
“Which means, if I make her my crown princess, it won’t concern you at all.”
“Your Highness!”
“How dare you raise your voice to me.”
Claude’s smiling face turned ice-cold in an instant. Rai bit his lip hard, unable to say more.
“As you know, I like that young lady very much. Enough to want her by my side forever.”
Rai’s fists clenched so tightly his hands trembled. He couldn’t control his emotions.
“Soon, there will be a dinner with His Majesty the Emperor. It’s meant to welcome Julian, but it’s also the perfect chance to bring up the matter of the crown princess.”
Claude looked calmly at Rai’s shaking hands, his own eyes sharp.
“I’ll even tell His Majesty that you personally vouched for Lady Eva as a worthy crown princess. You know he trusts your word.”
He was deliberately provoking Rai—pushing him to confess those carefully hidden feelings.
What had happened between Eva and Rai, that he kept his heart so tightly locked away?
Claude grew uneasy at the thought that there might be something just between the two of them.
“……”
But Rai still refused to speak. His jaw tightened as he suppressed his anger, staring back at Claude.
“Leave. I have nothing more to say to you.”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
Bowing, Rai strode out of the office. His heavy, furious footsteps carried him not only out of Claude’s wing, but out of the western palace altogether.
Only when the palace disappeared from sight did he finally stop, dragging a hand through his hair with a long sigh.
“Haa…”
Even as he exhaled, the anger roiling inside didn’t fade. The word “crown princess” kept echoing in his ears, burning him up inside.
There was only one way to calm his heart—recalling Eva’s words.
Leaning back slightly against a large tree, he remembered their last conversation.
“Ugh, seriously, it’s maddening. I have absolutely no intention of marrying His Highness.”
“I’ll trust her. That’s the only choice.”
Thinking of Eva’s firm denial, Rai’s rage subsided. Just thinking of her calmed him.
“This is serious… I can’t even function unless I think of her now.”
A small laugh escaped him. He wondered just how far he could possibly fall for her.
And his resolve grew stronger.
Claude had openly revealed his feelings for Eva.
If he tried to use his power to force her into becoming crown princess, Rai now had the courage to stand against him.
Placing a hand over his chest, Rai thought of Eva for a long time.
“Lady Eva, thank you so much for coming to the tea party today.”
Rosie carefully clasped Eva’s hand with heartfelt gratitude. Eva, finding it cute, interlaced their fingers.
“I truly enjoyed it as well. Next time, I’ll invite you to my home.”
“Gasp, really? I’m already so happy just hearing that!”
“But before then, we need to make sure Chase remembers your name. You haven’t forgotten the order I told you, have you?”
Rosie nodded eagerly.
“Yes! First, on the day our family offers desserts to the palace, I have to go there with my parents.”
Seini and Yujur, standing nearby, clenched their fists in solidarity, listening closely.
“Then, I’ll pretend to get lost in the palace again, so I can run into Sir Chase and get his help. After that, I’ll tell him I’d like to repay him for helping me before.”
“That’s right! You remembered it perfectly.”
“But what if I don’t meet him this time?”
“Then you keep trying until you do!”
“But… what if he starts thinking I’m just someone who keeps getting lost on purpose…?”
“That’s fine. As long as you don’t lose your way to his heart.”
The young ladies gazed at Eva with admiration.
“When’s the next dessert offering day again?”
“Next week!”
“Then that’s your chance. Wander around near Prince Claude’s west palace. You’ll definitely meet Chase there.”
Rosie blushed just imagining it, her heart pounding wildly.
“Just meeting him makes my heart feel like it’ll burst… Will I even be able to speak properly?”
“There’s no need to rush. For now, even just telling him your name will be huge! Fortune favors the bold in love!”
“She’s right, Lady Rosie! You said yourself you’d regret it if you got engaged without trying.”
Encouraged by their support, Rosie pressed her lips together, summoning courage.
“I’m so glad everyone’s cheering me on! I’ll be brave and approach Sir Chase.”
Thus began Rosie’s secret plan—Operation: Free Chase from Solitude—though he remained entirely unaware.
When it was time to part, Eva brought out the gift she had prepared.
“This is a small token of thanks for inviting me to the tea party.”
“Oh my, these are Hilton’s exclusive tea leaves! Thank you so much.”
“I love them too. I went yesterday to buy some for myself, but they were sold out. I was disappointed.”
She had only prepared one gift, not knowing how many would attend, so Seini and Yujur looked on enviously.
“Sold out? But when I went two days ago, they had plenty in stock.”
“I went yesterday. They said Princess Julian bought them all.”
At Julian’s name, Eva’s eyes sharpened.
“The princess?”
“Yes. Lately, Hilton shops often sell out, but I heard it’s because the princess is buying everything.”
“Do you recall what other shops she went to?”
Seini thought back.
“Recently, yes. I remember a boutique and a jewelry shop.”
“Would that be Opel Boutique and Lejus Jewels?”
“Oh my! Yes, that’s right. Lady Eva, you know them?”
Of course she knew. She had visited those exact places just days ago.
For the tea party, she had bought a pale yellow dress and a bracelet there. And Julian had come afterward?
So that was why she’d kept staring Eva up and down, as though appraising her. She had only been planning to copy her purchases?
Just recalling Julian’s gaze made Eva feel uneasy.
Wait—how did she even know I went there?
Had she set people to follow me? Or planted spies inside the Blanche estate?
The unease grew into irritation. But she didn’t yet know Julian’s intent.
If that was the case—then she would find out.
Eva began planning how to uncover the schemes of the princess who was shadowing her every move.
