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~Chapter 37~
“Lady Ria, have you ever felt that way too?”
“Yeah. When I was young. Sometimes, your own status becomes a shackle rather than a privilege.”
Annie realized she could never truly understand the heavy burdens of royal blood.
“So, what will you do now? Honestly, I thought you’d rush over to the princess’s palace right away.”
Dahlia shook her head, her face a little bitter.
“I want to, but I’m still a guest here. If I just barge into the princess’s wing in the middle of the night, they’ll only try harder to hide Monet. I need a different approach.”
“But isn’t it strange how quiet everything is, even though the princess has disappeared in the night?”
“No… I think things are just getting started.”
Dahlia’s violet eyes grew darker with anger as she looked toward the window.
Outside, she could see a group of people approaching, their torches flickering ever closer.
Maidservants, accompanied by knights, arrived in front of the Crystal Palace in full force.
A middle-aged knight marched to the doors and banged loudly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Startled, the palace maids hurried to open the door.
“What’s going on?”
“Is Princess Viviana here?”
The knight glared down at the maid, voice sharp.
“Princess Viviana? No, only two noble ladies from Poeverne Kingdom are staying here.”
The maid answered quickly, her face stiff.
“Bring them here.”
“They must be sleeping…”
“Now!”
Intimidated, the maid glanced at her companion, who hurried off to fetch the ladies—only to find Dahlia and Annie were already coming down the stairs, now dressed and composed, with Cole at their side.
The lobby quickly filled with palace maids, the princess’s servants, and knights—all crowding the Crystal Palace’s entrance.
Dahlia turned to the maids and gave a gentle order.
“I’ll handle things here. You all should go back to bed.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Obediently, the maids left, leaving more space in the lobby.
“This is the residence of Poeverne Kingdom’s diplomatic guests. Is this how the Empire of Luusefon treats visitors—storming in unannounced in the middle of the night?”
Annie’s cold eyes swept the crowd.
The knights exchanged uneasy glances—this wasn’t what they’d signed up for.
Then, Silvia stepped forward, forcing her way past the knights.
“How dare you act innocent after kidnapping the princess?”
“Watch your words,” Annie retorted icily, as if Silvia wasn’t even worth the argument.
“Then what reason could Her Highness have to go out at this hour? It’s a kidnapping, obviously.”
“Oh, so the palace security is so useless that a weak noblewoman like me could sneak past all the guards and kidnap the princess? Amazing.”
Dahlia’s sarcastic comment made the knights grimace.
“You have no manners. No wonder you’d do something like this.”
Trying to redirect the anger, Silvia targeted Dahlia.
“Who’s being rude? Who comes breaking in at dawn, then asks about manners?” Dahlia replied, tilting her head with an innocent look.
“You—!”
Silvia fumed.
“I’m Ria Hurdarn. And you are?”
Dahlia stepped forward, meeting Silvia’s eyes directly.
“Silvia Yuse. Now, is the princess here or not?”
“Why are you asking me? Shouldn’t you be checking the princess’s wing?”
“If you have nothing to hide, you’ll let us search, right?”
Silvia’s face was full of confidence.
“No, you can’t.”
Dahlia smiled brightly.
“So you did kidnap the princess, after all.”
Silvia’s eyes flashed like a snake that had caught its prey.
“Knights! This lady keeps calling you all incompetent—aren’t you worried about what His Majesty will say?”
The knights, paid off by Silvia, started to regret their involvement as things grew tense.
“Are you just going to stand there in front of these young ladies?”
Silvia snapped at the knights.
“Would a big man help?”
Cole, silent until now, moved to stand in front of Dahlia and Annie protectively.
Silvia retreated a step under Cole’s glare.
“Lady Hurdarn! Return the princess immediately, or else—”
“Or else what? Are you threatening to hit me?”
Dahlia cut her off, voice low as she stepped close.
“W-what?”
Her purple eyes shone fiercely.
Silvia swallowed nervously, instinctively stepping back.
She’s just a branch noble, but she has the same aura as the emperor himself…
“Are you planning to hit me too?”
Annie, watching, thought, She’s reached her limit…
Dahlia always cherished children—and hated those who hurt them.
When Silvia stepped back, Dahlia stepped forward.
Just seeing her, I knew. She was the nanny who’d hurt the princess.
No one who hits a child can be forgiven. No one.
“What are you talking about?”
Cornered, Silvia lashed out.
“You beat Monet, didn’t you? So, by your logic, people with high status can beat those beneath them? Like this.”
SMACK!
Dahlia slapped Silvia hard across the face.
Silvia touched her cheek in disbelief as it swelled and reddened.
“Does it hurt, now that you’ve felt violence for yourself? Remember—positions can change at any moment.”
Dahlia glared coldly, her hand clenched.
Silvia, furious and humiliated, shouted,
“Seize her! Arrest that crazy woman!”
But the moment someone from Poeverne’s side struck first, everything changed.
The knights prepared to act, but Dahlia reached her hand toward Cole.
He understood immediately, drawing his sword and handing it to her.
Dahlia took the sword and dragged it across the marble floor, drawing a line.
Screeech—
The sharp, grating sound echoed in the lobby, drawing everyone’s eyes.
Standing proudly in the center, Dahlia’s eyes sparkled with determination.
“I invoke diplomatic immunity. As Ria Hurdarn, I declare: Anyone who crosses this line will be seen as a threat to Poeverne Kingdom and I will report directly to His Majesty the Emperor of Luusefon.”
Returning the sword to Cole, Dahlia met Silvia’s gaze steadily as Silvia seethed with rage.
“Except for you, of course. You’re welcome to cross this line by yourself. Will you?”
Silvia glared at Dahlia as if she wanted to kill her, grinding her teeth in fury.
