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Chapter : 24
Ron, with his neat and well-groomed blond hair, captured everyone’s attention. The young ladies blushed and cast curious glances at him as he appeared unexpectedly.
“Your Highness, who is this gentleman?”
“Oh, you haven’t met him yet, right? Let me introduce him. This is my bodyguard, Ron.”
“Bodyguard…”
Could a bodyguard really be this handsome? Rena, Melkin, and Cecilia exchanged envious looks toward Frisia.
“Ron, say hello. These are my friends. Starting with Rena, then Melkin, and Cecilia.”
At Frisia’s introduction, Ron responded not with words but with a gentle smile and a slight bow toward the young ladies.
Ron’s rare smile instantly captured their hearts.
“But… what’s going on all of a sudden?”
“I was told there’s a suspicious person around the mansion. Is everything alright?”
Ron’s friendly smile vanished as he carefully observed Frisia’s expression. The young ladies, startled by his words, quickly set down their teacups on the table.
“W-what do you mean?”
“A suspicious person?!”
“Oh my! Shouldn’t we be going now too?!”
At their reactions, Frisia hugged herself in fear.
“Could it be… an assassin again?”
“No, I already checked. Fortunately, it’s nothing serious, but I was worried.”
“Sigh… again…”
“Just in case, I’ll stay by your side.”
Ron bowed slightly to Frisia and stepped back toward one side of the table.
Watching the conversation, Rena cautiously asked,
“An assassin… Did something happen before?”
The young ladies looked at Frisia with eyes full of concern and curiosity. Frisia hesitated, letting out a soft sigh, and at that moment, Peach clapped her hands together in realization.
“Oh! That’s right! Your Highness, your cheeks were swollen last time too! Did someone hit you then as well? And if it was an assassin…”
“……”
“Eek! Could it be that someone is trying to harm Your Highness?!”
Although Peach had never coordinated with anyone, her sharp mind was playing its role faithfully.
At her words, the young ladies’ eyes widened in shock.
“My goodness!”
“R-really?!”
“Who could it be?!”
“Ugh…”
Frisia, unable to speak easily, had tears welling up in her eyes. Cecilia handed her a handkerchief with a worried expression.
“Your Highness, what exactly happened?”
“I’m sorry, everyone.”
Frisia accepted the handkerchief and dabbed at the tears streaming down her cheeks.
“The truth is… my stepmother hates me so much…”
“What?!”
“I don’t understand why she keeps treating me this way… sob!”
“Are you saying the new empress tried to kill Your Highness?!”
The young ladies were taken aback.
From widely circulated rumors, everyone knew that the new empress had driven out the princess. But they didn’t know the details; they could only guess. They assumed that since Empress Rocerin had tormented the new empress so much, she could not get along with her daughter, and thus sent her away.
Because the emperor left her title intact, she was merely a discarded and disliked daughter. Furthermore, the emperor had already finished all his calculations—eliminating everyone from Empress Rocerin’s family.
Although the fate of Empress Rocerin was regrettable, no one dared to take sides. Any wrong move could have branded them as traitors, so they were merely relieved that the situation had quietly settled. The peace of the empire was also their peace.
They had no particular complaints as long as the palace remained stable and the emperor handled politics as he always had. Some nobles initially opposed the appointment of the new empress, but once Bloé assumed the position, they did not dislike her as much as expected.
Besides, Bloé was beautiful and deeply loved by the emperor. As soon as she became empress, people tried hard to get noticed by her. To some young ladies, she was even an object of admiration, showing that even the poor could rise in status if they had love.
Rena, Melkin, and Cecilia were aware of this too, which is why they sometimes ignored Frisia. But an assassin… they felt that was too much.
Empress Rocerin had already paid the ultimate price. Yet to try to take the life of this fragile, pitiable princess was far too cruel. At this point, the new empress seemed truly villainous.
“Oh my…! How could this happen?!”
“My stepmother really hates me. A month ago, when I went out to the night market, I was suddenly attacked by assassins. It turned out it was her doing. If it weren’t for Ron and Hatz’s men here, I would have lost my life on the spot.”
Frisia turned to Ron as she spoke, and naturally, the young ladies’ gazes followed.
They admired Ron’s handsome face and fit physique. Feeling their intense stares, Ron almost frowned but managed to suppress it and cleared his throat.
“Hmph! That’s not all. She set fire to the princess’s mansion, and when you begged for your life, she slapped your cheek.”
“My goodness!”
The young ladies covered their mouths in shock at Ron’s words. Peach, especially, could not contain her excitement and jumped up from her seat.
“So that’s why! Your Highness’s cheeks…! You didn’t even tell us what happened!”
“How could I tell you it was her, Peach…”
“That’s too cruel! How could someone hit such a delicate princess!”
“It’s okay. The wounds have all healed now.”
Despite her words, Frisia shivered, curling her delicate shoulders in fear. Then she gave everyone a bitter smile, gently stroking her teacup.
“You were beaten badly? How badly…”
“Not joking! Her face was a mess. She must have been hit terribly.”
“Oh my! How could someone do that?!”
Frisia, listening silently to Peach and the others, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“I’m sorry you had to hear this.”
“Oh, no, Your Highness.”
“Let’s forget that conversation. Today is a very happy day for me. I’ve always been lonely, but to have such good friends like you… it feels like a dream.”
“Your Highness…”
Frisia showed Cecilia the handkerchief.
“Cecilia, is this handkerchief valuable?”
“Huh? No, not really…”
“Then may I keep this one and send you a new one as a gift? I’m sorry for getting it dirty.”
“No! Absolutely not! It’s nothing at all, Your Highness!”
“Thank you for understanding. I’ll prepare a new one and send it to the mansion.”
“That’s really okay… thank you.”
The young ladies felt a mix of emotions. They looked at Frisia with pity.
The princess, though exiled, had captured the heart of the young marquis. They had struggled just to see or speak to him, and now Frisia had him despite everything. They realized how petty they had been gossiping about her recently and felt a wave of regret and guilt.
Then Melkin spoke in a dissatisfied voice:
“I… have met the new empress before.”
“What? When?!”
Rena exclaimed in surprise.
The young ladies, now comfortable in the setting, spoke as freely as in private.
“She hosts parties almost every day. I was so curious that I begged my father to let me go once.”
“How was it?”
“She was beautiful, but not so great. She looked down on me as if I were beneath her.”
“What? Really?!”
“Yes. I didn’t say anything because I was so upset, but she scanned me up and down, judging me.”
“That’s awful! How could she behave so shallowly?”
Rena and Cecilia’s expressions sharpened instantly.
The three had been close since childhood. Ignoring Melkin felt like ignoring themselves.
“She shouldn’t act like that! She was just a poor baron’s daughter!”
“People like that are even worse than expected. Really terrible.”
“Yeah… very different from the rumors.”
They then turned their attention back to Frisia.
“Your Highness, you need to be careful. You can’t let another assassin get near you.”
“I doubt she’ll send her men so openly anymore. That method won’t work now. But I’m still worried. Falling asleep is hard every night.”
“Poor princess…”
Frisia looked exhausted. Rena, Melkin, and Cecilia nodded weakly as if they understood. Peach also looked at her with sympathy.
Watching this, Ron’s lips curved slightly.
“After about an hour, when the mood’s better, run in urgently, alright? Watch the timing and deliver your line well. Not hard, right?”
It was the acting Frisia had been practicing for days. He wondered why she needed this, but she insisted, so he did as told.
The result shone brightly. The young ladies’ hearts had already shifted toward Frisia. Watching her pretend to be scared and pitiful, Ron thought:
‘Since when did she become so good at acting?’
Ron secretly smiled.
Comforted by the young ladies, Frisia smiled brightly, genuinely happy. Peach also seemed relieved when Frisia smiled. Peach, who had an appointment, carefully left the mansion first.
Even after Peach left, the chatter continued. With Frisia smiling, the atmosphere improved. She listened to gossip from society, scolding from parents, and love stories of the young ladies. Talking with her peers in this tea party felt surprisingly pleasant.
“I didn’t expect the mood to be this nice.”
As the conversation reached its peak, Hatz suddenly appeared.
“S-so, young marquis?!”
“Oh, hello!”
The young ladies jumped in shock, their faces turning red.
Hatz nodded lightly, acknowledged the greeting, and naturally went to stand by Frisia.
“Having fun? I could hear your laughter all the way to the entrance.”
“Of course. Hatz, these people have agreed to be my friends.”
“Oh, really?”
Hatz, who hadn’t looked at the young ladies before, finally turned his gaze toward them. He studied their faces for a moment and gave a light, friendly smile.
“Take care of them. Frisia’s friends are like my acquaintances too.”
“Y-yes, young marquis!”
It was attention none of the young ladies from noble families had ever received before.
Their ears and cheeks flushed instantly at the thought of being acquaintances of the young marquis—a dizzying, thrilling feeling.
“Young marquis, was the recent accident handled well? I was worried.”
Cecilia asked shyly.
“Accident? You had an accident, young marquis?”
“Oh my! Was that when your hand got hurt?”
Hearing this for the first time, Rena and Melkin were also surprised. They widened their eyes seeing Hatz’s left hand wrapped in bandages.
Frisia looked at Hatz with a puzzled expression.
“When did this happen?”
“Nothing serious.”
“But…”
“Really, it was nothing. I’ll go inside now. Let the friends enjoy their time.”
Without giving them a chance to ask more, Hatz entered the mansion.
Frisia tilted her head in confusion as she sat back down.
Meanwhile, Rena and Melkin leaned toward Cecilia.
“Cecilia, what accident are you talking about?”
“Didn’t you know? About a week ago, I heard from my father that there was an explosion at the young marquis’s vineyard.”
“My goodness! That’s serious!”
“Luckily, no one was hurt.”
“The Duke Dude must have had a hard time. So much work…”
“My father is always busy. Didn’t Your Highness know?”
Frisia lightly nodded, picking up her teacup.
When exactly did the accident happen? An explosion wasn’t something easily overlooked. But even trying to recall, Hatz hadn’t shown any unusual behavior recently.
“He probably didn’t tell to avoid worrying us. He’s considerate like that.”
“Rena, you’re funny.”
“What?”
“You talk as if you know the young marquis too well.”
“Just guessing! I thought he’d be like that because he’s admirable.”
“That’s disrespectful to the princess.”
Frisia just smiled gently at the young ladies’ chatter.
It was strange that Cecilia was the daughter of Duke Dude. The Duke was the same man Hatz had invited to the mansion recently. Did he come urgently because of the accident? Frisia guessed.
But something didn’t add up. If the explosion happened about a week ago… the Duke had come to the mansion two weeks ago.
