Chapter 06

“What does that mean?”

I asked Ferian.

“Just act as you normally would. His Highness intends to accompany the young lady anyway.”

A hollow laugh escaped me at his blatant hostility.

Truthfully, the person who despised me most was Kies, but Ferian was no pushover either.

He absolutely loathed incompetent people who threw their weight around relying solely on their family name.

The prime example of that was Lady Fry.

And in the original story, she was nothing but a nuisance on the return journey—so of course she’d be a thorn in his side.

‘But she hasn’t actually done anything wrong yet, has she?’

If anything, she’d been helpful. She’d let me meet Kies sooner and even helped take down the pirate captain.

I wasn’t the type to back down when someone picked a fight while I was minding my own business.

“Wouldn’t it be your loss if I acted as I normally do?”

“Excuse me?”

Ferian’s face crumpled.

“Were you hoping I’d throw a fit about how a lowborn dared lay a hand on me? Ah—you wanted me to act like a tyrant so the Crown Prince would abandon me, is that it?”

“Lady, this is not the Empire.”

Meaning status meant nothing here now.

“Just a moment ago you said to act normally. So which tune am I supposed to dance to now?”

“……”

Perhaps realizing his own contradiction, Ferian fell silent, fixing me with a piercing gaze.

Meanwhile, I relaxed my expression and smiled softly.

“We have a long way to go, don’t we? I know you don’t like me much, but wouldn’t it be better if we just wore our masks and got along decently?”

Ferian’s brow twitched.

It seemed my words struck a nerve—people who knew his temperament had once joked about him swapping out his ‘mask,’ and I’d used that exact phrasing.

“You really have changed a lot.”

He eventually spoke, his expression smoothing back into the gentle one he always wore.

“Surviving the Black Sea seems to have had a positive effect on you. You can now suppress your anger and deliver cutting remarks with composure.”

What good is a mask when your words are even more irritating?

“Did you hear about the form of address from Kies?”

“I’m not sure if it’s appropriate for me to be casually uttering such a noble person’s name.”

“Just hold out until we return. I’ll call you by name too, Ferian.”

Instead of answering, Ferian offered only a chilling smile.

“Then I’ll bring your meal now.”

“Thank you.”

After Ferian left, I flopped back onto the bed. Honestly, Kies’s suspicious nagging was easier to deal with.

“Ugh, I’m tired.”

A gentle breeze slipped through the window crack.

‘I slept so much, but I’m drowsy again.’

The clear sunlight turned into a cozy blanket, and the birds chirped a soothing white noise.

Then—BANG!

Someone shattered this peaceful moment.

“Why are you waking up so late!”

“You’re…”

The child who came running in, huffing and puffing, had tear-filled eyes.

“Oh, it’s you from yesterday.”

It was the kid who’d been caught by the pirates. The one who’d told me not to worry about him and just deal with the pirates.

“Who are you calling a kid!”

“You, you little brat.”

I flicked the child’s forehead with a thwack.

“Ouch!”

“Are you crazy? Why didn’t you run away and stay nearby instead? You could’ve been seriously hurt.”

“I can’t leave the village to an outsider! I’m going to protect it!”

The child rubbed his forehead and shouted.

He’s going to be something big one day.

“You’re still young. It’s the adults’ job to protect the village.”

“Tch, the adults have too much to protect. That’s why they can’t.”

Oh? This little brat says some profound things too, huh?

His sulky face was adorable. The word ‘troublemaker’ practically written on his forehead confirmed yesterday’s actions.

“What’s your name? I’m Tatiana.”

“Luke.”

“Nice to meet you, Luke. Did you come all the way here because you were worried about me?”

“Hmph, I just felt responsible. Because of me, you got caught by that pirate and got hurt.”

Luke grumbled, but Ferian, who’d soon arrived with a tray, interjected abruptly.

“He stayed by Tatiana’s side crying all day yesterday. The village head had to come and drag him away because he refused to go home, you know?”

Ferian set the tray on the small table and spoke.

“What? You cried?”

I asked in an exaggerated, theatrical tone, and Luke’s face turned bright red.

“No, I didn’t!”

The child bolted out.

I giggled at his cuteness, and Ferian gave me an odd look.

“What?”

“…Eat your meal.”

With that one sentence, he left with a stiff expression.

“What’s his problem.”

Probably mimicking Luke.

“Thank you.”

Ferian had just purchased herbs from the shop to stock on the ship.

The clerk was flustered, her face reddening at his gentle smile, eager to offer him something extra.

This was normal.

The tyrannical lady’s attitude—cursing at him and looking at him like a bug—that was the abnormal reaction.

And her changed demeanor was likewise strange.

Tatiana was someone who threw tantrums when displeased, not someone who delivered snide remarks.

And she always used to say:

‘Commoners and the like don’t scheme.’

Unlike those who had to use every trick to bring down their enemies, a lady could simply crush them with her status.

‘So now that she can’t use her status, she’s resorting to using her head.’

Wearing a mask, was it.

Just because that tyrant had changed didn’t mean he had to tuck his tail and back down. Adaptability was, after all, Ferian’s forte.

‘I’ll expose all her schemes.’

Berto was loyal, but clumsy in matters like this.

“In the end, I’m the only one fit for this job… Huh? What is that…”

Ferian, who had been heading to the dock with the herbs, stopped at something he saw and rubbed his eyes.

“No, Berto. Don’t talk to her like she’s a servant. Talk to her like you would a friend.”

Wasn’t that Tatiana holding one of Luke’s hands, scolding Berto?

Ferian stared blankly at the two, as if he’d been hit on the back of the head.

He’d thought Berto would have even more difficulty approaching her than Kies, who shared a messy history with Tatiana.

But the scene before him looked nothing if not intimate.

Realizing that his predictions kept going awry whenever that woman was involved, Ferian felt a burning competitive spirit rise.

“……Are you, feeling alright?”

Berto, holding Luke’s other hand, addressed Tatiana as if she were an academy colleague.

“No, no!”

Tatiana pounded her own chest.

“Brother, you sound like my grandpa, not a brother.”

Luke hopped around as he spoke, and Berto looked dejected.

“Alright, then this time, like a lover… Ferian?”

Ferian, who’d been caught off guard by Tatiana’s startled expression as she noticed him, composed his features and spoke.

“Are you two up to something?”

She seemed flustered for a moment, then, excited by the question, tattled as if reporting something.

“No, Ferian. Listen to this. Berto is way too stiff even when using my name. So we decided to drop the formalities.”

It was unlikely that the rigid Berto had proposed it, so Tatiana clearly had another motive.

‘So she’s trying to get to Berto first.’

Determined to uncover her intentions, Ferian spoke in a soothing tone.

“It seems dropping the formalities isn’t going well.”

“Do you know what he said to me earlier? He said ‘Hey, you.’ I told him, how old are you to be using that kind of language.”

“You asked me to treat you like a friend…”

As Berto tried to defend himself, Tatiana shot him a sharp glare.

“……”

Ferian felt an inexplicable sense of crisis, a feeling that he was somehow falling behind Berto.

“How about this? I’ll drop the formalities with you too, and Berto can just mimic how I treat Tatiana. Wouldn’t that be easier?”

Tatiana, who had been grumbling with her feathers all ruffled, paused at Ferian’s suggestion.

“We have a long way to go anyway. It’d be nice to get along comfortably. What do you think?”

Tatiana didn’t answer right away, her eyes darting around.

Her thoughts were written all over her face. Just as she’d said earlier, she’d probably think wearing a mask of familiarity was better than being constantly mocked.

“Well, fine.”

“Looking forward to working with you, Tatiana.”

Ferian smiled, his eyes curving, and Tatiana flinched.

“By the way, where were you heading?”

“Uh, to see Kies.”

“Oh, then I’ll guide you. I saw him a little while ago.”

“Berto said he knows where he is too. The luggage looks heavy, we can manage on our own.”

Despite the clear refusal, Ferian naturally fell into step beside her.

“It’s just herbs—bulky but not heavy.”

He lightly lifted and shook the sack, and Tatiana, with a hesitant expression, followed him as if she had no choice.