Chapter 24
Iella quickly rose from her seat and bowed deeply.
“I’m sorry. I was so worried about my lost item that I couldn’t sleep all night. The moment I saw the card, I thought His Highness had taken it, and… to be honest, I felt resentful. Please forgive my rudeness.”
Her words were nothing but frank and her tone respectful. Iella did not lift her head until the prince told her to. She could feel his gaze on her, but she didn’t know what to do, so she stayed still.
Franz looked down quietly at her trembling hands. She seemed so pitiful that if he pressed her a little more coldly, she might actually start crying. And he hated nothing more than tears.
It was about time to show some magnanimity.
He didn’t know why, but he felt unusually inclined to be lenient today. After a short silence, he spoke.
“Forget it. I just thought you were an amusing person. But you should be more careful. I’ve thought this many times before—you’re far too unladylike. Makes me wonder what you were doing during etiquette classes. What do they teach you at the Academy?”
Franz’s face softened into a smile, replacing his earlier sarcasm.
Although she had acted suspiciously first, he could understand why she had complained—after all, he was the one who had set up this situation.
“Thank you.”
She had shown him nothing but an unsightly side of herself, so being scolded by the prince was only natural. She had no excuse, even if she had ten mouths to speak with.
When Iella finally raised her head with some relief, her gaze met his—watchful, as if examining her every expression and movement.
“So, you came here this early in the morning to find it?”
Considering she had even left him a letter, the prince’s expression was annoyingly nonchalant. Iella felt a flash of irritation but obediently held out the card. He simply stared down at it, as if he’d never seen it before.
“I went to Mazello early this morning—oh, Mazello is an art supply shop on Manches Street.”
When Iella began rambling in flustered explanation, Franz chuckled softly.
“I know.”
Of course I know where you got it.
He nodded for her to go on.
“Um… I heard you left this letter for the person searching for the item. So… I came to reclaim what’s mine, Your Highness.”
She hadn’t thought it would be so difficult to state what was simply her rightful claim.
The prince didn’t speak for a long time. Silence stretched, and she felt as though there wasn’t enough air to breathe. Just when it became unbearable, he finally said—
“That’s right. Just as you thought, I took it.”
Iella looked at him with an expression that clearly asked, Why? She couldn’t understand why he would take something she had left neatly on the table.
Why? Why on earth?
“Because I was curious why you were following me.”
Franz’s smile turned far softer than before.
‘I don’t know if it’s me who keeps showing up where you are, or you who keeps showing up where I am… What do you think?’
Right. The prince had known all along that she was tailing him.
“You knew from the start?”
“Probably?”
“Then why didn’t you say anything and just let it go?”
It made her uneasy—why ignore it for over a week, only to bring it up now?
“Because I couldn’t ignore it anymore. Why were you following me?”
“You know why.”
Franz’s ocean-blue eyes shone with an almost mysterious light as he studied her in silence, as though observing every detail.
‘So you won’t tell me what you’re hiding, after all? Even though I gave you the chance? Fine. No matter—you’ll reveal it eventually.’
His lips twisted into a cold smile.
“Return my property,” Iella said again, her voice firm. Her tone was laced with indignation, but her gaze was steady and unhesitant.
Franz’s arms uncrossed. He stood and tugged the bell cord.
‘I thought I was going to suffocate.’
To Iella, that one second felt like an eternity. Only when she was freed from the suffocating weight of his gaze did she unconsciously let out a short sigh.
Hans soon entered the study.
“Did you call for me, Your Highness?”
“The item that was on my desk yesterday—where is it? A brown leather organizer with a notebook inside.”
The last words were spoken with emphasis as he locked eyes with Iella. She brightened instantly—he had described her property exactly.
“Huh? That was on your desk yesterday…”
Hans trailed off, catching the prince’s look. He knew perfectly well that the prince had seen it—together they had even looked at it yesterday.
And yet the prince now wore a look of total ignorance. If Hans hadn’t known better, he might have been fooled himself by the convincing act.
The prince’s thoughts were usually unreadable, but today he was even harder to gauge. Still, Hans had no choice but to play along.
“My apologies, Your Highness. It must have been mistakenly tidied away by the cleaning staff—it was an unfamiliar item.”
“Find it.”
Franz’s order was curt and imperious.
“Yes, understood.”
Hans left the study, frowning slightly. Had he imagined it, or had he actually seen a rare trace of mischief on the prince’s cold, aloof face?
‘What is His Highness thinking? In any case, he’s awfully mischievous. But now… what am I supposed to do?’
Iella felt relieved, thinking she would soon have her notebook back.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Don’t mention it. Sit down while you wait.”
Franz gestured toward the wing chair at an angle from the couch she had sat on earlier.
This time, she sat carefully. Though having the prince beside her was a bit uncomfortable, she could endure it for a short while.
Thankfully, he no longer seemed to be watching her intently as before. Hoping Mr. O’Neill would return soon, she stared absently at the glass in front of her.
A short while later, Franz picked up his own glass—its surface beaded with condensation as the ice melted—and took several generous swallows of fruit punch.
Iella’s gaze unconsciously followed the movement of the glass… and then she saw the bobbing of his Adam’s apple as he drank.
‘Oh no.’
She froze, as though she’d just witnessed something scandalous. It was a sight she had never seen before, and it made her oddly flushed and uncomfortable. Her mouth felt dry, so she hastily picked up her own glass of tea and took a gulp.
‘Shameless.’
Suppressing her inner turmoil, Iella tried to appear calm.
Franz had noticed her watching him, but pretended not to as he asked casually—
“So what is it?”
“Pardon?”
“The notebook. Is it important? Does it have some kind of spy code in it?”
Though his tone was light, his expression suggested he didn’t particularly care.
“Haha, spy code? No, the notebook itself isn’t important, but the leather organizer was a gift from my father when I came of age. It’s precious to me.”
“Ah.”
Franz nodded slightly, as if wondering what could be so special about it.
“By the way…”
Iella hesitated for a long moment, wondering if she should ask. Franz, catching her hesitation, met her eyes.
“It’s fine. Speak.”
Emboldened, she smiled faintly and asked, trying to sound nonchalant—
“Since Your Highness is a gentleman, you didn’t look inside, did you?”
Franz paused, glass still at his lips, and stared at her. Then he gave a small chuckle.
“Why do you think that?”
“Because… Your Highness is a gentleman.”
“Do you really believe that?”
Once again, she couldn’t answer.
“…”
Iella’s lips pressed together as her eyes darted. She hadn’t expected him to throw the question back at her.
“Yesterday, you looked at me as if I were some kind of ruffian, not a gentleman. Who was it that followed me first? Is that how you treat a man you like?”
Franz smirked, one corner of his mouth curling. Even the mocking smile looked handsome on him.
Not that Iella was willing to admit it. Knowing a man is good-looking was different from actually feeling attraction to him.
“I was so flustered yesterday that I was rude.”
Her eyes lowered, head bowing slightly. Unknowingly, her cheeks flushed, and she had to hide her face.
“It’s odd for you to become so meek overnight, but I suppose you have your reasons.”
He smiled meaningfully.
“So does that mean you’ll forgive my rudeness yesterday?”
Her head shot up, her voice bright with hope.
“That depends on how you behave.”
Her expectant sparkle faded instantly.
“Besides those arrogant eyes of yours, how will you explain tailing me—a member of the royal family? Do you actually like me or something?”
“Is there anyone in Lapland who doesn’t like Your Highness?”
“Then why do I keep feeling like you’re not one of them?”
“What must I do for Your Highness to forgive me? Please tell me.”
She deftly deflected the question. Franz knew it, but let it slide.
He also knew she was stubbornly insisting on something that didn’t quite match her actions, but chose not to press her.
He wasn’t so dull as to fail to read the mind of this small, awkward woman—he was simply pretending not to notice.
It was only a fool who got tricked.
“You wouldn’t want this matter reaching Count Clarence’s ears, would you?”
Her father.
Iella’s eyes widened as she stared at Franz in shock.
