CHAPTER 66…..
“Is it the princess’s hobby to get injured?”
“My apologies…”
I had no words and hung my head low. After that incident, Ilia and Mullin were so shocked that they fussed all night trying to cool the heat on my cheek.
Unfortunately, there seemed to be a very slight burn, and the stinging sensation hadn’t gone away by morning.
Ilia, who had been the reason Dmitri was late, was feeling down in self-blame.
At the emperor’s voice, Ilia’s shoulders slumped, and Mullin, standing nearby, secretly patted Ilia’s shoulders.
“I heard from Dmitri about what happened at the empress’s palace yesterday.”
“Oh, yes…”
“Is this the wound from then?”
“It’s not that severe. If I apply ointment well, the palace doctor said it should heal within two days—”
“The second prince is getting more and more reckless. I’ll have to give him a warning.”
“…”
I closed my mouth and carefully sipped the orange juice in front of me.
‘That voice of anger…’
Even though it wasn’t directed at me, chills ran all over my body. When I shivered slightly, Renald noticed and cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Your Majesty, since this is time with Her Highness the princess, please restrain your anger.”
“Tch…”
With that, the harshness in his eyes visibly softened. Breathing a little easier, I exhaled faintly and the emperor spoke again.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier? If I had known that Isabel was attending your first tea party, I would have stopped it myself.”
“It was the empress’s order. And since she asked me to keep it a secret, I had no choice but to stay silent.”
“You used your first social event as an excuse to bring Isabel back…”
“Still, Dmitri punished him severely, so I’m fine—”
The emperor cut me off.
“How insolent. There is a limit to how much I can overlook. It’s not even a challenge to my authority.”
He was genuinely angry, so I decided to stay silent. Renald gave me a regretful smile, probably because the emperor was untouchable at times like this.
Then came his words.
“Take care of yourself. You keep getting more wounds, it’s unpleasant to see. Is the forehead wound still not healed? Refrain from tea parties for a while and focus on healing.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Indeed, it would look strange to hold tea parties covered in wounds, even to young ladies.
‘I was worried about damaging the imperial image, but this works out.’
Even if the forehead wound was somewhat healed, the cheek burn would take at least a week to fully recover…
I gently touched my face, covered in gauze, and glanced straight ahead. The day was bright, and intense sunlight shone down on the emperor. Just then, the maids made a shade over the table to prevent the sun from dazzling me.
“Your Majesty, may I ask something?”
“What is it?”
“The invitation list I gave to Sir Renald.”
At this, the emperor stopped raising his teacup. Unaware, I continued.
“I’m sure I invited the young nobles, but none of the nobles I included in the list showed up. Did something happen to them all at once?”
Renald laughed awkwardly and twitched the corner of his eyes unnaturally.
“Y-yes? Perhaps Your Highness is mistaken. The list I received from Her Highness did not include any nobles’ names.”
“That can’t be… Could it be that I mixed up the list?”
“Sometimes people… make mistakes. Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?”
“…”
The emperor said nothing but kept drinking tea, perhaps to soothe his dry throat.
‘Surprisingly, he drinks hot tea well.’
As I thought this silly thought, Renald asked,
“Wouldn’t it be better for Her Highness to play with nobles of the same gender rather than those of the opposite?”
“Hmm, that’s true. But I want to expand my social circle…”
“It’s too early to worry about that already.”
“But Your Majesty, when Yevgeni held a tea party, you had no complaints?”
“That was…”
“Next time, I’ll make sure to deliver the invitation list correctly without mistakes. Why did it happen? I usually don’t make such mistakes…”
“…”
“Haha… Well, these things happen.”
“Yes… that’s true.”
Still, it didn’t seem like I completely confused the list… After thinking about it, there was no solution for the past, so I stopped worrying.
The emperor’s mood that day was inexplicably the worst.
Is His Majesty going through menopause?
One week later.
The wounds on my face were almost healed. Ilia happily touched my hair and beautifully styled it up.
Meanwhile, Mullin came over and carefully read out today’s schedule.
“In the morning, you can spend leisure time as usual. And at around 3 PM today…”
“The young ladies are coming, right? Nothing like last time, where someone didn’t receive the invitation?”
“That’s right, Your Highness. I visited several times where Sir Bishop works to confirm.”
“Well done.”
After finishing the styling, I spent the free morning studying the language of the Tae and Wang kingdoms or reading books recommended by the young ladies.
But I frowned at the strangely persistent gaze.
“Why is that person acting like that over there?”
“Who do you mean— oh.”
Ilia looked out the terrace window and uttered an exclamation as if she realized something.
In the backyard, visible through the terrace window, a large tree was planted, and behind its trunk, brown fur fluttered gently in the wind.
The only people with brown hair in the palace were either the empress, the second prince, or the maids.
But maids wouldn’t roam the backyard carelessly, and the empress isn’t that short, so judging by height, it was Isabel.
Mullin also glanced outside and shrugged.
“Perhaps she wants to apologize?”
“That stubborn Isabel? Pride is all she has.”
“It’s not impossible. Perhaps His Majesty reprimanded her, or warned exile if she didn’t apologize for that day. The prince might have arranged so she would swallow her pride.”
“Still, I can’t imagine that wild girl apologizing…”
And the look she gave was so cold and fierce it seemed she might storm into the princess’s residence and grab my collar at any moment.
I took a sip of my drink on the prickly chair and ordered Ilia,
“Ilia, draw the curtain. My face feels itchy, I can’t take it.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Ilia quickly pulled the curtain. Blocking Isabel’s gaze, I finally relaxed and waited for time to pass.
But until then, I didn’t know how stubborn Isabel really was.
That day, she would follow me around endlessly without me realizing, and so time passed until the guests invited to my second tea party at the imperial palace arrived.
Unlike last time, it seemed there were no mistakes, and various guests had gathered in the palace garden.
Some faces were familiar, others were strangers.
As I awkwardly approached, the crowd quickly noticed me and bowed politely.
Some young ladies I knew giggled and blushed lightly.
“Your Highness, we missed you. Have you been well? I heard you were unwell…”
“I’m better now.”
“You shouldn’t have gone through that. I brought plenty of good medicine through my father. Please accept it.”
“It’s from you all, how could I refuse?”
The young ladies laughed sweetly again. I smiled happily at these cute faces I hadn’t seen for a while.
“Nice to meet you, First Princess. I am Peters Montbed of the Montbed family.”
I had often seen him at Yevgeni’s tea parties. He was also a friend of my beloved younger brother, so I greeted him back.
“Nice to meet you, Lord Montbed. I hope you enjoy your time. Are you getting along well with Emin?”
At the mention of Emin, Peters Montbed smiled faintly and nodded.
“Yes, I’m quite close to the third prince. We even exchanged letters just a few days ago. But it’s been a while since I last saw him… Is Your Highness doing well?”
“Of course. Though sometimes I feel sorry for causing him worry.”
“Prince Emin wouldn’t think so. Rather, he would be pleased to be relied on more by Your Highness.”
“Thank you for saying so.”
I smiled, and Peters Montbed bowed politely in response. He then smiled kindly at the young ladies gathered around me and gracefully stepped back.
As Peters Montbed distanced himself, one young lady sighed dreamily.
“Lord Montbed is still so sweet. How can he be so considerate?”
“His face is handsome too! By the way, isn’t Lord Montbed engaged to Lady Robit, the baron’s daughter?”
The young lady who was named blushed and smiled awkwardly.
“At first, I disliked him, but Lord Montbed was so kind… Now I like him.”
“I envy you. I wish my fiancé were as kind.”
“Me too. But I don’t want an engagement or marriage yet! I want a better father!”
“I want to marry a beautiful-faced bard!”
The topic soon turned to engagements. The young ladies expressed their ideal types or hesitated with “not yet…” But mostly, their answers fit their age.
I deliberately did not join the conversation.
‘Maybe because I already know my fiancé. Not very interesting.’
But since the future keeps changing this life, the engagement to Richard might not even happen.
Tilting my head thoughtfully, someone gently tapped my shoulder.
When I turned, golden eyes met mine.
It was Jeron.
Startled, he smiled brightly and kissed the back of his hand.
“Your Highness. How have you been? It’s been a while.”
“Oh, yes, yes.”
“You’re the one who invited, but why do you seem reluctant?”
“Must be a misunderstanding.”
It would be strange to invite everyone but not you.
‘If he were openly hostile, he wouldn’t have been invited.’
Unlike the previous life, Jeron Idrea showed interest in me, so I had no choice but to include him.
Looking reluctant, Jeron was asking the young ladies behind me for their consent.
“I’d like to have a private conversation with Her Highness. May I take her with me?”
He didn’t miss a dazzling smile.
“Of course!”
“Duke Idrea’s son requests, how can we refuse?”
Well then.
‘So easily falling for Jeron just because he’s handsome.’
I’d known, but seeing the young ladies so easily yield made me feel betrayed. Jeron boldly asked for their consent and gently held my hand.
We soon reached a quiet place and started talking.
“So, what did you want to talk about?”
“Is this finally interest from Her Highness toward me?”
“You were the one who called me…?”
Jeron gave a mischievous smile and said,
“Nothing special. I just want to know if your feelings have truly not changed.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Didn’t you say so at the banquet honoring your achievements?”
“Will you be my partner, Your Highness?”
The memory of that day I had completely forgotten suddenly resurfaced. I looked at Jeron with a wary face.
“Was that serious…?”
“Would I dare to propose a fake engagement to a royal?”
If it were you, there might be a chance.
Seeing my expression, Jeron
’s smile softened.
“I’m just kidding, Your Highness.”
I gave a small smile back and said,
“I’m glad you’re well. Please enjoy the party.”
“…Yes.”
Jeron bowed deeply and left.
I returned to the crowd and looked around.
The guests enjoyed themselves, and the atmosphere was good. The young ladies’ chatter filled the garden, and the warm breeze rustled the trees gently.
Suddenly, Isabel appeared at the garden entrance, holding a small bouquet of wildflowers.
Her eyes met mine, and this time, no fierce expression—only a gentle one.
She slowly approached and extended the flowers.
“For you, Princess.”
I accepted the bouquet and smiled.
“Thank you, Isabel.”
