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Chapter : 26
“If the two of you were really lovers, there’s no way you wouldn’t have come to at least one party together as partners. But until now, the Duke of Binok’s young lady has only ever been accompanied by young lords.”
“No matter how busy Duke Bethelheim might be, it’s hard to believe he wouldn’t have attended even once as her partner.”
“And the marriage news, too. The Duke of Binok’s daughter only said she was getting married, but it’s already been two months and there’s been no official announcement from either family, and we haven’t seen her preparing for anything.”
“Now that you mention it…”
“That is strange…”
The young ladies who had believed Astella just based on her words began to waver at these reasonable points.
“Then… could it be that the Duke of Binok’s daughter has been lying all this time?”
“That seems quite likely.”
“My goodness…”
“How could she!”
From that conversation on, a new rumor spread that the relationship between the two had been false, and Astella became deeply suspected of having lied.
At the same time, great attention poured onto Freya, who had officially received a letter of engagement from Raiden.
“…These stares are burning. This is uncomfortable.”
Freya was beginning to truly realize how powerful an “engagement letter” was.
On her way to the main palace to report to the Crown Prince, every step she took drew people’s gazes.
Palace staff, servants, and even nobles—news had spread in just a single day. Everywhere she went, people stopped to look at her.
‘As expected of the Duke of Bethelheim’s family. I don’t like being the center of attention.’
But it couldn’t be helped. She had expected this much.
If the engagement became official, the attention would only grow stronger, so she couldn’t afford to be tired already. Letting out a sigh inwardly, Freya kept a calm face and headed quickly toward the Crown Prince’s office in the main palace.
“Welcome, young lady of Marquis Balche. What brings you here?”
“I’ve come to report to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Understood. You may enter.”
After receiving permission from the knight at the entrance of the main palace, Freya went inside and clicked her tongue at the sight of the vast, magnificent corridor.
Every time she came, she felt it, but perhaps because this was where the Emperor resided, everything was dazzling. The frames on the walls and even the window casings were gold, and from the ornaments placed everywhere to the vases, nothing was lacking in color or luxury.
‘It’s all nice, but it’s too blinding.’
The Emperor was nearing sixty—wouldn’t this be bad for his eyesight? He was known to love wealth, and perhaps it was natural for someone of his dignity to have this much, but by her standards, it was a bit excessive.
The Emperor especially loved gold. The Crown Prince wasn’t like that.
“…The light is intense.”
The sunlight coming through the windows reflected off the gold, making her squint. I should hurry. Freya quickened her steps.
“Hey, isn’t that that young lady?”
“Who? Ah…”
“It’s the young lady of Marquis Balche. You know, the one from the Duke of Bethelheim’s family…”
“Oh, I heard. They sent an engagement letter, right?”
The main palace was the busiest place in the imperial palace. Many servants were stationed there, and staff and nobles came and went frequently.
There were several times more people here than on the path she had taken. Accordingly, the gazes and attention poured in even more.
Freya ignored the whispering voices in both ears and continued on her way.
The central room on the second floor of the main palace. Seeing the large door rimmed in gold yet again, she sighed and spoke to the knight standing guard.
“I am the young lady of Marquis Balche. I’ve come to report to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Yes, my lady. Please wait a moment.”
After confirming her face, the knight lightly knocked on the door.
Knock, knock—
“Your Highness, the young lady of Marquis Balche has arrived.”
“Oh, tell her to come in.”
The Crown Prince’s voice came from inside the office, and the knight soon opened the door.
“Please, go in.”
“Thank you.”
Freya nodded in thanks to the knight holding the heavy door and went inside.
The Crown Prince’s office was a room where white wallpaper blended well with refined dark-brown pillars. There were no large decorations—just a single elegant small vase on the table and two paintings hanging on the wall.
Unlike the flamboyant corridor, his room had an elegant atmosphere. It was even a bit modest for a Crown Prince.
‘This is easy on the eyes.’
After walking through the gold-filled corridor that kept dazzling her, she felt a bit calmer upon entering his room.
“Welcome, young lady of Marquis Balche.”
“I pay my respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
Freya greeted him politely as he welcomed her from behind his desk. The Crown Prince, who had been looking at her with a bright expression, suddenly stood up and walked toward her.
“So the star of the rumors finally arrives. How does it feel to become the Duke of Bethelheim’s prospective bride?”
“Not very good.”
“That’s understandable. You dislike attention. You’ll be quite tired from now on.”
“I suppose so.”
“Hm?”
Expecting a sigh or silence, he tilted his head at her response. Freya, unconcerned, held out some documents.
“This is this week’s report. I’ve summarized the matters regarding the supplementary security unit to be formed, so please take a look.”
“Hm. Something’s odd.”
Narrowing his eyes and stroking his chin, he looked at her.
“That’s not the reaction I expected from you. Given the situation, you should be irritated since it’s hardly welcome, but you don’t seem like it.”
“Your Highness. Please take the report.”
“Why? There’s no way the Bethelheim duke’s engagement letter didn’t shake you. Did something else happen?”
“Haah…”
At the Crown Prince’s sharp analysis, Freya sighed. He was perceptive in the strangest ways.
Jeiros Eserk Capphilia. With red hair and blue eyes, he resembled the Emperor and Empress equally, yet there was one thing he didn’t resemble them in at all.
His personality. Observing people was both his specialty and his hobby, and he was extremely sly. How someone like that could be born from a passionate Emperor and a gentle Empress was beyond Freya’s understanding.
“I told you, nothing happened. So please check the report.”
“Come on, that can’t be true. You can’t fool my eyes. Even if you hide everything behind an indifferent face, when I look with these wide-open eyes of mine—”
“……”
“All right, all right. I’ll stop.”
At Freya’s chilly gaze, Jeiros laughed and took the report from her hand. Sitting comfortably on the sofa, he gestured for her to take a seat as well.
“You sit too. That spot on the floor is a bit weak, so if you keep standing there, a hole might open up and you could fall through.”
“Is that supposed to be a joke?”
Given how solidly the main palace was built, how could the office floor collapse? The marble floor beneath her feet felt perfectly flat and firm.
She could tell even through her shoes, so what kind of ridiculous joke was that? Knowing it was just his way of making her sit made her sigh even more.
“I’ve heard that joke every time I come, but so far not once has a hole opened in the floor.”
“Strange. Is it because you’re too light? As light as a leaf blown by the wind, as light as the feather of that white bird flying over there!”
“…Haah.”
She couldn’t listen to any more. Freya gave up and sat across from Jeiros.
Having achieved his goal, he grinned.
“If you don’t want to hear my joke every time, you should just sit down with me before I say it.”
“But you are the Crown Prince. How could I sit with you? That wouldn’t be proper etiquette.”
“I told you not to be so stiff about those things, my lady.”
Even where no one is watching, let’s be comfortable.
Saying that, Jeiros stood up and took two teacups from a display cabinet set beside his desk. He lifted the teapot on the table and poured tea into the cups.
“I poured the water to match your arrival, so it should be steeped just right now. Have a drink.”
“…Thank you.”
Freya carefully lifted the teacup. The pale, clear color looked pure as warm steam rose.
Breathing in the fragrant herbal scent, she took a sip.
“It’s delicious.”
Unlike other teas, the herbal tea Jeiros poured didn’t have a heavy feel on her tongue. The subtle flavor lingering in her mouth suited her taste perfectly.
