Then I exclaimed curiously.
"Are you crazy? Don't go!"
Carol's eyes widened.
"...Are you sure? His Highness the Crown Prince, who was so close to the Princess, invited you."
"Yes, I mean it. I completely forgot about it."
'Carol, please. Shouldn't you trust me now?'
I pleaded with her desperately.
Carol looked into my eyes and nodded reluctantly, raising a new question.
"Still, His Highness sent you a personal letter saying that he would personally invite you. Wouldn't it be a problem if you ignored it like this?"
"I'm a mad dog. A mad dog is going to do something crazy."
I replied to Carol's worries.
However, Carol's face suddenly turned red.
"What?! Oh, no, a mad dog? And if there is such a beautiful mad dog, tell her to come out."
Carol excitedly retorts.
Watching Carol get angrier than I was, I scratched my cheek.
'She's a bit unusual, too.'
Is Yvonne's brainwashing outstanding, or is Carol's loyalty really extraordinary?
After all, Yvonne's maid was different and reassured Carol.
"Anyway, don't worry, Carol."
I was able to take a bold action because I was sure that it wouldn't be a big deal.
First of all, the organizer of this tea party is not the Crown Prince, but Cordelia Mare.
Unfortunately, FL was not properly recognized as a Princess because she was the illegitimate child of the Mare Kingdom, but I am of a higher status than Cordelia on the surface.
So it doesn't matter if I refuse to attend the meetings that Cordelia is hosting now.
"Well, when you become the Crown Princess, it's different from then on."
I clicked my tongue short, imagining Cordelia, whom I had never met yet.
'The heroine should be happy with Adrian. Once again, I also have a stone nose.'
I had to deal with my own affairs first.
I decide to decline both men's invitations.
I grabbed a piece of stationery and quickly began to write a reply.
A long and polite letter of refusal to Rudnine.
And for Adrian, who keeps doing strange things in hindsight, I wrote it in a short and serious way.
The letters were of different lengths, but the essence was the same.
[ Unfortunately, I have an appointment tomorrow, so I decline. ]
Well, of course, I don't have any appointments.
In fact, I spent the morning a little relaxed waiting for Randy's report, but I'm going to be very busy from now on.
'Honestly, I don't have time to be lazy anymore.'
Because of yesterday's public confrontation, I had to take all the backlog of classes, do homework, plan to process the Rhodia grass, and plan other ways to make money.
I laughed bitterly and muttered.
"Do the love affair between yourselves. What is romance for a villain in crisis?"
Carol left the room to send the reply I had written.
I looked at the door and thought.
To be honest. My hands were indeed shaking when I replied to Rudnine with a refusal.
... It seems that I sent the lottery ticket that was supposed to win the first prize to the incinerator with my own hands.
'I am sorry for the Duke of Rudnine. No, I shouldn't even look at a tree I can't climb.'
It is right not to start with false hopes and torture.
I shook my head and came to my senses, and then I took the assignment that my teacher had given me the other day.
I hurried to meet the teacher who was waiting for me in the study.
Let's focus on my life now.
Because they are people whose interest in me will soon fade anyway.
***
The next afternoon, the palace.
Adrian, who was sitting at a tea party in the beautiful garden of the Crown Prince's palace, was speechless.
It seemed uncomfortable to plant.
"The summer garden is really the most beautiful, so it deserves to be called the 'Palace of Fresh Green'."
"Yes, the summer flowers are blooming vividly and are very gorgeous."
"Right?"
Except for Adrian, everyone had a conversation over tea.
Cordelia kept noticing Adrian, who was silent, but the Crown Prince didn't notice at all.
Everyone was in trouble because of Cordelia, as well as Adrian, who did not participate in the conversation of the nobles present.
Today's tea party had a clear purpose.
A place where Adrian formally introduces Cordelia to a high-ranking nobleman close to the Crown Prince and asks them to support her in the future.
However, Adrian's mood was low and he didn't lead the conversation, so the atmosphere at the tea party was not very good.
The nobles, who were accustomed to social circles, smiled and talked on the surface, but began to notice each other.
'Something, it's strange.'
"I think I heard that the Crown Prince is infatuated with Princess Mare."
'Did you two fight?'
A mixture of suspicion flowed among the gathered people. Cordelia broke out in a cold sweat.
As Adrian, who was supposed to be a reliable supporter for him, was constantly immersed in other thoughts, she became even more troubled.
However, Adrian was not interested in Cordelia.
'I don't understand.'
Adrian, who was touching his chin and tapping the handle of the chair, ended up biting his lip roughly.
'Really. He didn't come here. Is Princess Argenthoz finally crazy?'
He was actually in a very bad mood.
Yvonne sent him a letter of rejection of the invitation he sent, and she didn't really attend the tea party.
'If she were where she was, the Princess who had managed to get an invitation and appeared at the end... Why?'
In addition, he even invited her to the Crown Prince's palace.
Her public self-made play, which she started on purpose to provoke him, was funny, but her efforts were hypothetical, and she responded appropriately.
He went to the scene where he personally confronted her.
But Yvonne rejected her then, and this time as well.
He didn't understand. He can't believe a person can change so suddenly!
'...Am I crazy!'
As Yvonne, who had been feeling tired, held the Duke of Iels' hand and watched her disappear across the square, he was overwhelmed with a filthy sense of defeat.
'Duke Rudnine lels.'
Moreover, the eyes of the Duke of Iels, who had looked at Yvonne very affectionately, were still vivid.
It was so cold and cold that he got goosebumps.
As the Crown Prince of the empire, he lived the life of a protagonist who was always in the spotlight, but for the first time, he met a man who stimulated an inferiority complex that was difficult to express in words.
That's why he didn't want to admit it even more.
That Yvonne left him behind and took the hand of the Duke of Iels.
Returning to the palace, he was looking for an excuse to meet Yvonne and invited Yvonne to a tea party held by Cordelia.
But what came back was a letter of refusal.
At first, he didn't believe it.
It must be a reply written out of pride.
But today, when Yvonne didn't show up in the end, Adrian realized.
Yvonne Argenthoz.
That the villain who asked for it didn't have a heart for him after all.
'Haha. Was Princess Yvonne such a funny person?'
"...Your Highness, isn't it? At that time, you were really dangerous on the battlefield."
Cordelia gently grabbed Adrian's arm and said softly.
"Hmm?"
However, Adrian, who was constantly immersed in Yvonne's thoughts, was unable to concentrate on the conversation.
'This man is real!'
Cordelia gritted her teeth inwardly.
However, she smiled kindly without showing it on the outside, and calmly reassured Adrian again to lead the conversation.
"On that plain, Your Highness."
She once again emphasized the incident in which she saved and healed Prince Adrian from an attack by monsters.
It was an event that they will never forget for each other.
"That's right. Cordelia is my benefactor."
Adrian nodded suddenly, then thanked Cordelia again.
When the Prince, who had been silent until now, spoke, the nobles present praised Cordelia's achievements on the battlefield at this time.
"You are so good at recovery magic."
"After all, it's the Mare royal family."
"I respect you."
Cordelia smiled shyly, but quietly.
The lineage of the Mare royal family originally produced outstanding white mages, especially proficient in recovery magic.
Cordelia's achievements on this battlefield spread far beyond the continent and even to the Islands.
Therefore, the Mare royal family had no choice but to recognize Cordelia, who was an illegitimate child but showed excellent recovery magic.
Cordelia said.
"No, it is not. It's a power passed down from my ancestors."
"You are humble, Princess."
"...I have not yet been officially recognized as a Princess, so I would appreciate it if you could call me Cordelia."
"Oh my God. Yes, Cordelia?"
"Oh, that's so good. I'm glad! Please call my name a lot."
The pobles were fascinated by Cordelia's innocent appearance, soft voice, and calm speech.
However, only one person was the problem.
Prince Adrian was once again lost in other thoughts.
Cordelia was convinced.
That he is definitely opening his heart to her.
She took a sip of tea to calm her anxiety.
At that time, the nobles sitting across from each other brought up another topic.
"But you heard about it, didn't you? It's a public confrontation between the Duke of Iels and Princess Argenthöz!"
"Yes! The Duke of Iels still hasn't left the Iels townhouse. What the hell happened?"
"Princess Argenthoz was also very calm in front of Duke Iels. I was very curious about what was going on."
The nobles who attended this meeting were also more curious about the public confrontation between Yvonne and Rudnine.
'What... Really!'
It was not receiving full attention.
Cordella had to muster all her patience so as not to break the teacup she was holding.
Contrary to the plan, she was anxious about the situation that kept going awry, but she managed not to show it on her expression.
'It's okay, it's okay. Yvonne, that woman is arrogant and will eventually achieve nothing and will destroy herself.'
Having barely endured her anxiety, Cordelia smiled brightly at the nobles.
And naturally, the topic changed.
"Marchioness Celia has very good skin. Lady Alant, too. I don't know... I feel like I really sprinkled pearls."
"Oh my God, is that so? Whoa."
"Hoho. It's getting better lately."
The Marchioness and the young lady looked at each other and secretly exchanged glances.
The two shared the secret of firm skin care that only the upper class had access to.
But Cordelia knew why, so she just smiled silently.
She deliberately complimented their skin and thought about the current situation.
'Now it will be my will.'
The skin disease deliberately spread by those who shared Cordelia's intentions will soon spread exponentially among the upper class of the empire.
And she knows the only cure.
These arrogant imperial nobles have no choice but to cling to her.
'I checked it two weeks ago, so I can buy it early next month.'
She grinned to herself, saying that she already had a plan.
Comments
Post a Comment