🔊 TTS Settings
CHAPTER 47
Oh no, I must have offended our little Crown Prince.
“That’s right. Your Highness is very brave. If you were scared of me, you would’ve run away without saying a word.”
Rudian nodded confidently, as if to prove he wasn’t frightened.
As I looked at him with a warm gaze, I suddenly realized something strange—people who should’ve been nearby were nowhere in sight.
“By the way, where’s your nanny? Why are you alone?”
“She went home today.”
“What about the other maid?”
“Belita said she went to the bathroom.”
His answer sent chills down my spine.
‘This must be when the accident happened.’
If I’d arrived even a little later, I might not have been able to save him.
Relieved, I swept my hand across my chest and gently asked Rudian,
“Then… until your maid returns, would it be okay if I stayed with you?”
“Why?”
“Because I only have one friend, and I get lonely easily.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be at the banquet?”
“The banquet is too loud. I’d rather be here with you, Your Highness.”
Rudian nodded his little head as if he understood my feelings.
I crouched down under a nearby tree and struck up a conversation.
“Have you ever attended a banquet before?”
“No.”
“Then would you like to go see one? If you’d like, I can take you.”
His eyes sparkled briefly at my suggestion but then dimmed again. He replied quietly.
“…I’m not allowed to go to the banquet.”
“Why not?”
“Because people don’t like me…”
Ah.
Considering Rudian’s background, his feelings made perfect sense.
The people of the empire disliked Empress Vanessa, Rudian’s mother, because she was the illegitimate princess of a hostile nation.
Even though the Emperor had accepted and embraced her as his wife.
After giving birth to Rudian, the already frail Empress’s health worsened.
And then…
‘The moment the Empress dies, the nobles will swarm like vultures, pushing their daughters as candidates for the next Empress.’
Rudian, then, would be seen as an obstacle—his position extremely precarious.
‘And Rudian senses that too.’
Adults assume children don’t know their own circumstances, but sometimes, it’s because they are children that they feel it more deeply.
Even if they don’t understand it intellectually, they instinctively sense when they’re not wanted.
‘Just like I did when I was young.’
I saw my younger self in Rudian’s downcast expression.
A sick mother. A father who was always away. Attendants who wished for my mother’s death. And…
The one dear friend who helped me endure those years.
Smiling bitterly at the memories that surfaced, I reached out to comfort him.
“The people who dislike you, Your Highness, do so not because you are bad, but because they’re greedy.”
“Greedy?”
“Yes. They’re jealous because you have things they want. In other words, they’re the villains.”
“Villains…”
“And when you grow big and strong, you can scold those villains.”
“…”
“So don’t let it get to you. There are far more people who like you—like me.”
“…You like me?”
“Of course. You’re brave and mature—you even waited here alone for your maid.”
“Then… will you be my friend?”
“If Your Highness permits it, I’d be honored.”
At that, Rudian’s golden eyes lit up with hope.
“This is my first time having a friend!”
Those beautiful eyes were unmistakably his father the Emperor’s, yet also bore a striking resemblance to Idris’s—his uncle by blood.
“I always wanted a friend. Uncle said he had a friend too.”
“He did?”
“Mhm. He said his friend was super pretty. That they might even get married one day.”
At Rudian’s words, I recalled a conversation I once had with Idris.
“How do you think you’d feel if the friend who once hurt you came back to find you again?”
And that fleeting moment when Idris couldn’t hide his emotions.
That emotion hadn’t been mere friendship.
It had been something deeper. More tender. More painful.
And at last, I understood.
Why Idris avoided marriage.
Why he agreed to a contract relationship with me.
‘He’s waiting for that person…’
His gentleness… was like a passing breeze.
Still, it didn’t matter to me who Idris was waiting for or whom he eventually married.
He and I were bound only by business. Eventually, we would go our separate ways.
That was all. It wasn’t something to be sad about or surprised by.
As I sat there lost in thought, Rudian took a step closer and asked,
“Then… what’s your name?”
It seemed all his suspicion had finally melted away.
Though my heart dropped strangely at the question, I pushed that feeling aside and focused on the moment.
“My name is Leticia Cloel. You can just call me Leticia.”
“Leticia…”
Rudian repeated my name softly, tasting it on his tongue.
Then he asked another question.
“Hey, Leticia… Are you good at swimming?”
“Um… no, I’m sorry. But why do you ask?”
Rudian pointed toward the center of the pond with his tiny finger.
“I dropped Eddy in the water while crossing the bridge. But I can’t swim.”
Following his gaze, I spotted a wooden horse figurine floating in the middle of the pond.
‘So that’s why he fell in. He was trying to get that toy.’
Scanning the area for something to retrieve it with, I spotted a shiny object—a long tree branch reflecting the moonlight.
It was dark, so if it hadn’t caught the light, I might’ve missed it.
I smiled brightly and picked it up.
“I’ll get your toy for you.”
Just as I stepped toward the edge of the pond—
“No!”
Rudian suddenly grabbed the hem of my skirt in panic.
I turned, startled, and saw his face filled with firm resolve.
“You said you can’t swim. It’s dangerous. Don’t go near the water!”
“Then what about your toy?”
“I’ll ask Sir Philip to get it tomorrow. He’s good at swimming.”
Sir Philip must’ve been one of the knights assigned to the Crown Prince’s palace.
Rudian clung tightly to my skirt with his little hands, as if afraid I might take a risk.
His demeanor was mature—like a big brother protecting his younger sibling.
That thoughtful gesture made me question something.
Rudian didn’t trust strangers easily, avoided dangerous actions, and was cautious and clever.
‘So how did that Rudian end up falling into the pond?’
More importantly…
‘It’s been over thirty minutes since I started waiting with Rudian here. Why hasn’t Belita, the maid, returned?’
No matter how smart he was, he was still a child.
Children could act impulsively, and accidents could happen at any time.
To leave such a child—the Crown Prince, no less—alone for this long was suspicious.
‘Could the maids also be neglecting him?’
Even if the nobles looked down on him, surely the Emperor had carefully selected the servants closest to Rudian.
‘Unless… something happened to the maid who was supposed to be with him?’
Just then, a chill crept up my spine. I sensed someone approaching behind us.
Judging by her attire, she was a palace maid.
But hidden by the shadows, she didn’t seem to notice me standing near the tree. Her eyes were fixed solely on Rudian as she quietly crept closer.
At first, I thought she was trying to surprise him.
But then…
‘…Wait.’
Her expression twisted into something cold and chilling as she reached out both arms—toward Rudian’s small back.
It didn’t look like she was trying to surprise him.
‘It looked like she was about to push him in…’
