CHAPTER 12……………………………………………………
I gently pulled my arm free from Elian, who was subtly tugging on it, and smiled.
“Out of all the men Elian’s met so far, isn’t Young Lord Balio the best? He’s handsome, from a good family… I think someone like him is more than enough.”
“Ludia…!”
“And besides, he already has someone he likes.”
Elian, who had been frowning, froze at my words. Her gaze wavered for a moment as she looked at me, then her lips slowly parted as she mumbled,
“Who?”
“Who knows?”
Probably the female lead who was about to appear? When did she show up and take her place again? Was it an event that happened after this party? The setup was that the crown prince happened to save the female lead while she was being chased in the forest. Well… who knows how it’ll turn out?
“How do you know that?”
If I said, ‘Because I know everything from an omniscient author’s point of view,’ would she understand? I quietly met Elian’s sapphire-like eyes and smiled.
“Trade secret.”
“…Ludia!”
“Excuse me for interrupting, but…”
Someone spoke up to the two of us, who had been chatting as if we’d forgotten anyone else existed. I rolled my eyes slightly, and there was Balio, biting his lip faintly as he looked our way. Judging by his expression, he seemed pretty angry.
Well, I’d be upset too if I were him. As usual, Elian had probably shown that man all sorts of flirtatious tricks. The young lord of Festinche likely had expectations—if the power of Count Pellioten’s family combined with the Marquisate of Festinche, he could stand at the forefront of the marquis’s faction. There was also the desire to “conquer” Elian, who was the talk of high society.
And now he was hearing that Elian was passionately talking about another man. Just imagining how hard that must be for him made me want to laugh.
You should thank me, Young Lord Balio. I filtered out the trash for you. Next time, meet a woman with a better personality—not garbage like this.
I gave him a faint smile, then grabbed Elian by the shoulders and spun her around.
“Ludia…?!”
“Today I’ll enjoy the party on my own. You seem to have a lot to talk about with Young Lord Balio, so why don’t you go and have a conversation with him?”
“Wait—what do you think you’re doing?!”
I rolled my eyes and looked at Balio. He quietly met my gaze, then gave a slight nod. Smiling back, I tossed Elian straight into the jaws of the beast. I didn’t care how she survived—though I sincerely hoped she’d lose an arm or two.
“Then I’ll take my leave. I hope you all enjoy yourselves.”
After offering an elegant final greeting, I turned away. It felt like tossing a seal that thought itself a predator straight to a polar bear. I wanted to see how she’d get torn apart, but I decided to save that for later. For now, I felt I’d achieved my main goal—at least I’d managed to separate Elian from the crown prince.
Instead of staying in the crowded central hall, I moved to a table along the edge and picked up a few snacks. They were tasty, but… way too sweet. Does this world just use sweet seasonings everywhere? Why is everything so sugary?
I popped something like a round cracker into my mouth, chewed, and sighed.
“This really doesn’t suit my taste…”
“Tteokbokki, udon, sweet-and-sour pork, cup ramen, bibimbap, samgyeopsal…”
I suddenly realized just how many things I wanted to eat. Why are there so many? I missed the tongue-numbing heat of spicy food, the burst of juices from meat. Not steak, but charcoal-grilled pork belly.
Hmm. Come to think of it, I’m rich, aren’t I? If I want to eat them, can’t I just do it? It’s not like pigs don’t exist in this era, or fried food doesn’t exist. Pork belly just needs a pig, rice just needs seeds… tteokbokki might be difficult since chili powder isn’t spicy enough here, but still! I should be able to eat at least some of them.
Hmm… what should I do? Maybe I’ll try ordering them one by one.
“What are you doing here?”
“Huh?”
I looked up at the voice calling me. When I turned my head, ash-gray hair filled my vision, followed by light brown eyes shining beneath it. A familiar handsome face.
“Young Lord Ashrun?”
“It feels like it’s been a while.”
“Does it…?”
Beside him stood a woman. She seemed to be the woman he’d become engaged to yesterday.
Wearing a lighter party dress than yesterday, she looked quite youthful. Was she younger than me?
“Hello. I’m Ludia Mertens.”
I introduced myself first so she wouldn’t misunderstand anything. The woman smiled gently. Despite her youthful appearance, her smile felt very mature.
“It’s nice to meet you, Miss Ludia. I’m Liana, the second daughter of House Shubernia. I’m pleased to meet the famous head of the Astria Trading Company.”
“……”
Shubernia? If I remembered correctly, Shubernia was one of the three ducal houses. Relatives of the imperial family… weren’t they known as imperial blood? When I looked at her blankly, she smiled again.
“I’m Ban’s cousin.”
Ban? That name sounded familiar. I turned to Ashrun, and he grinned.
“It’s a nickname for His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Ah…”
The crown prince’s cousin. And the second daughter of a ducal house. In simple terms, that meant she was the child of one of the emperor’s siblings.
I hurriedly tried to bow, but Liana shook her head and reached out her hand.
“There’s no need for such formality. I wanted to meet you as well.”
“…Me?”
An engaged couple wanting to meet me together… Had I done something wrong? Did they find out about what happened this morning? I glanced at Kabes, and he shook his head slightly—apparently not.
“Kabes told me this morning that he’d met you, Miss Ludia. I wanted to meet you too, but you returned right away, which was a shame.”
She let out a slow breath and continued softly.
“Miss Ludia is quite famous. Do you know why?”
“Because of the Astria Trading Company?”
“That’s part of it. The tremendous achievements Astria has shown over the past three years are beyond what words can describe. And during last year’s great famine, many losses were prevented thanks to you.”
“I was just trying to make money.”
“And that’s why it’s even more impressive. Foresight into the future, accurate judgment of value, and on top of that, honesty. You’re a very charming person, Miss Ludia.”
“You flatter me.”
Hearing such praise directly made my face heat up. I came from a country stingy with compliments, so this was hard to get used to… And besides, they weren’t even my achievements. Strictly speaking, they were Ludia’s. That only made me feel more embarrassed, like I’d stolen them.
“Many people think those accomplishments belong to Lady Elian, not you… but that’s just what the uninformed believe. We’re different.”
We? When I turned my head, Kabes was smiling again. Are you just decorative wallpaper? He only smiles… I looked at him intently, silently demanding an answer, then turned back to Liana. She glanced over Kabes, then met my gaze again. Her smooth eyes shimmered.
As I looked into her eyes, something occurred to me and I tilted my head. Wait—she’s the crown prince’s cousin? She looks younger than me. Then how old is the crown prince?
“…May I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
Encouraged by the confidence in her seasoned voice, I asked directly,
“His Highness the Crown Prince’s age is…?”
“He’ll be twenty-two after his birthday.”
Hmm… that means he’s four years older than me? They say you don’t even check compatibility with just a four-year age gap. Wait—then Elian is also four years younger than him? Ahem. Still, maybe compatibility is important.
I rolled my eyes, and Liana smiled. She looks younger than me, but she’s at least five years older…?
“For reference, I’m the younger one.”
“……”
I stared blankly at Kabes, who spoke up first with a grin. Well, I could tell at a glance he was younger. The young man who’d seemed so composed this morning now looked like a carefree boy beside Liana. She poked his side lightly, shot him a look, then turned back to me.
“We got a little off topic, but without even digging into the past, it’s clear that all those achievements belong to you, Miss Ludia. The other is merely for show. Isn’t that right?”
She wasn’t asking me. She spoke with certainty, not waiting for an answer. Her eyes curved gently.
“I was curious. What kind of person you were, since your name kept coming up…”
“Nothing special, right?”
“Yes. Nothing special.”
Liana answered crisply, then took a step closer to me. She leaned in slightly, bringing her lips close to my ear. At a distance where even her breath felt warm, she smiled softly and whispered,
“Talk to me a little later. I’m shy, so I can’t approach you first.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ll be counting on you.”
As I stood there blankly watching her pull away, I noticed the surroundings had gone quiet. The music stopped, and even the people who’d been dancing froze in place.
They were all looking in one direction.
A man strolled in leisurely through the open doors, wearing a red mask, his jet-black hair striking. The crowd parted to make way for him.
He walked to the center of the hall and slowly looked around.
“We’ll be going now. If we leave him alone, he won’t know what to do with himself.”
Kabes gave a quick farewell and left immediately. As I stared blankly at his back heading straight toward the man, Liana offered me an elegant bow.
“Saying thank you would be a good excuse.”
She smiled faintly when I looked back at her.
“You know what I mean, right?”
Faced with her demeanor—like a sage who had seen through everything and was pointing out the path—I could only nod. Watching her retreating figure, I let out a breath.
Just who were those people I was talking to?
From afar, I quietly watched everyone’s attention converge on the crown prince. As if the world revolved around him, all the efforts people had made—chatting, showing off their worth—felt utterly meaningless.
The most likely candidate for the next emperor. A man who had firmly held the position of crown prince for ten years. The most outstanding among five brothers.
“…Bertasillin Dervan Vattenberg.”
The eyes of the man nicknamed Ban left a strong impression on me as well. His deep, blood-red color could have been frightening, yet it was so beautiful it resembled a vivid ruby. There was no denying that the crown prince’s appearance was extraordinary.
The moment I saw his face, I felt it didn’t belong to this world—it was that breathtaking. I knew “beautiful” wasn’t usually the right word for a man who trained with a sword, but in his case, it felt perfectly fitting.
He seemed to have a good personality, too. I hadn’t really spoken with him at length, but even at our first meeting he used polite, respectful language. So he was probably nice… or was that just my looks-based filter at work?
