Chapter 33 – The Crown Prince and the Jealous Boy
I had barely escaped from between the Empress Dowager and Sharon Abner when—
“Nice to meet you, Lady Annelia~!”
“Did you receive the gift I sent?”
Before I knew it, Arwin and I were surrounded again.
“By the way, who’s this gentleman?”
“Oh my, don’t you know? He’s Baron Dennis’s younger brother!”
Several young noble girls were staring at Arwin with shining eyes, clearly dazzled by his looks.
Arwin greeted them kindly, his polite smile never fading, and then leaned down to whisper to me.
“You okay, Ria?”
The crowd made my head spin, but I nodded quickly.
“Y-yeah, I’m fine.”
“You don’t have to stay here if it’s too much.”
I looked around.
We were standing in front of a gazebo decorated with flowers and balloons, surrounded by children from various noble families.
“I’ll stay a little longer,” I said thoughtfully. “I already received their presents, after all.”
But then—
“Hey there, Annelia.”
A boy with a rather mean-looking face stepped forward.
“Can I call you Annelia? I’ll speak casually since I’m older than you.”
I frowned slightly but smiled brightly anyway.
“Sure! Let’s both talk casually then!”
His face stiffened.
He hesitated for a moment before speaking again, his tone dripping with arrogance.
“…So, I heard you’re from an orphanage.”
The chatter around us immediately stopped.
Everyone went quiet and turned to look.
“I also heard you don’t have parents… must’ve been tough, huh? Especially at your age.”
I could feel Arwin watching my face carefully.
I said nothing and just looked straight at the boy.
“The kids there were probably… not very smart, huh?”
The boy smirked and shrugged.
“I heard you’re a genius. So smart that the Abner family decided to sponsor you. Must’ve been hard to live with all those dumb commoner brats.”
Then he stretched out his hand toward me.
“Oh, I’m James Darwin. I was given the title of Sub-Marquis a few months ago. I thought maybe you’d like to be friends.”
“…”
“There’s a private club for heirs of capital nobles. I was thinking of recommending you.”
When I didn’t react, he waved his hand in front of my face.
“What’s with that look? Are you nervous?”
Then he laughed—an ugly, mocking sound.
“Well, considering you’re a poor orphan, I suppose that’s understandable. But you’re clever, right? If House Abner’s sponsoring you, you’ll probably end up a scholar someday.”
“…”
“Our club members are very open-minded, you know. We don’t reject people just because they’re commoners or orphans. That would be so… backwards.”
James chuckled to himself.
Around us, the other noble children shifted uncomfortably, glancing between him and me.
He gave me a smug once-over, smirking.
“What, you don’t understand what I’m saying?”
“…”
“Or are you just nervous because I’m a Sub-Marquis?”
Still, I didn’t reply.
James muttered under his breath, annoyed.
“Tch. Guess she’s not that smart after all. Just another clueless five-year-old brat.”
And then—
“Lord Darwin. You’re being extremely rude.”
“What the—?”
Two cold voices spoke at the same time—
one beside me, the other from behind James.
Startled, I turned toward the first voice—Arwin was standing right next to me.
Then I looked past James—
‘Tian?’
The Crown Prince himself was standing there, glaring.
***
“Sub-Marquis Darwin…?”
Tian’s voice was icy as he stared at James.
Even though they were close in height, Tian’s presence was far more intimidating.
“Y-Your Highness, the Crown Prince!”
Realizing he was in trouble, James went pale.
Tian’s fists clenched tightly beneath his cloak.
A boiling anger rose inside him.
‘A moment ago, he was mocking Ria like that—and now he’s groveling?’
The sight reminded Tian of someone else—
that disgusting servant, Jacques, who used to bully him after his mother’s death.
When no one was around, Jacques would shove him, even hit him,
then pretend to be loyal in front of others.
“I-I was wrong! Please, have mercy! Mercy!”
Tian’s eyes narrowed at the memory.
It was because of Annelia’s words that he’d finally broken free from that fear.
“If I were you, I’d fight back! You have power, right?”
“Why let anyone treat you like that? You’re strong, Your Highness—really strong!”
At the time, he hadn’t believed her.
Power? Him?
He couldn’t even win his father’s favor—he was a useless prince.
But when he had gone to the Empress Dowager and told her everything,
everything had changed.
“P-please! Spare me! I don’t want to die!”
Jacques had begged on his knees for mercy.
Seeing that pathetic sight, Tian had felt something shift deep inside.
The chain of fear that had bound him all his life was finally cracking.
He also remembered what Annelia had told him before he left for the trial a few days ago.
“You’re an amazing baby elephant, Your Highness!”
“…A what?”
“When hunters catch a baby elephant, they tie a heavy chain around its leg.”
“…”
“At first it struggles and struggles, but it can’t break free, so it gives up.”
“…”
“And even when it grows up—strong enough to break any chain—it still never tries. Because it learned it can’t.”
She’d told him that failure itself becomes the strongest chain of all.
“But you, Your Highness, broke that chain! That’s amazing!”
Those words had stuck with him.
And now, looking at James, that same protective anger rose again.
‘How dare he talk to her like that?’
With a cold, steady voice, Tian said,
“There was a punishment for criminals who misused their tongues in the ancient royal courts, Sub-Marquis.”
James flinched and stepped back.
“Y-Your Highness…”
“They would cut out the criminal’s tongue and sew their lips shut—so they could never speak again.”
He had read about that dreadful sentence in the Imperial history books.
At once, not only James but every other young noble nearby turned pale.
Tian didn’t stop.
“After that, their lips would rot together until they died, unable to say a word.”
“I-I’m sorry! Please forgive me!”
James nearly collapsed, trembling in fear.
Tian simply raised an eyebrow.
“Why are you apologizing to me?”
“Wh-what…?”
“If you’re going to apologize, do it to Annelia.”
But before James could speak, Tian suddenly froze.
Because he noticed something strange beside Annelia.
“Ria, don’t listen.”
A boy with brown hair was gently covering her ears with his hand.
Silver strands brushed against his fingers as he leaned close.
Tian’s expression darkened instantly.
“…What is this?”
His voice dropped, sharp and cold.
The bad mood that had been simmering suddenly worsened.
***
“Are you sure it’s fine to just let him go?”
I glanced at Tian, the Crown Prince, then at the trembling James, who had just fled.
“And if we don’t let him go…?”
Was he seriously thinking about using that terrifying punishment?!
I stared at him cautiously.
Arwin’s hand moved again, coming near my ear, as if to shield me once more.
I quickly shook my head to tell him not to.
He hesitated, then slowly lowered his hand.
Tian looked between us, clearly irritated.
“What was that?” he demanded.
“What was what?”
“That boy.”
He pointed directly at Arwin, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
“Who does he think he is, touching your face like that?”
I blinked, glancing back and forth between them.
Then I finally said, “Oh! He’s my teacher’s…”
But Arwin smoothly cut in.
“I’m Arwin Dennis,” he said calmly, meeting Tian’s gaze head-on.
“I came here with my older brother, Baron Dennis, who works for House Abner.”
Then, with a polite but faintly smug smile, he added,
“I touched her face because we’re very close, as you can see.”
“…”
“Very close indeed.”
