Chapter 27

‘It’s going to hurt! It’s going to hurt so much! Like dying!’

I was sure the whip would strike my back, so I squeezed my eyes shut, ready to scream.

“Duchess Philina. Are you alright?”

But what touched my back wasn’t a whip—it was warmth, and a gentle voice.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince!”

Lukas was carefully holding my shoulders. When I turned, a knight had already snatched the coachman’s whip and was holding it himself.

I was so shocked that my heart kept pounding wildly. Even imagining that I could have been struck made my hands tremble as if I had been hit.

“You’re safe now. Rise.”

Lukas held my arm and helped me up. The knights lifted Margaret and the child who had collapsed.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I wasn’t hurt.”

Seeing that Margaret and the child seemed unharmed, I first turned to Lukas to thank him.

“You… do you always throw yourself in like that…? You almost got hurt…”

He glanced at my face, looking upset, and then checked me up and down as if making sure I truly wasn’t injured.

“Your Highness, I’m really fine. The child must be far more frightened. Please comfort him.”

I was an adult, and with Lukas’s help I had already calmed down. When I looked at the boy, I saw that his hand was bleeding a little.

“Are you alright? You’re bleeding. Here—take my handkerchief and wipe it.”

Lukas bent slightly to look at the boy, then offered his own handkerchief.

The boy stared at his face in fear, then took it with both hands. Poor thing—he must think all nobles are terrifying.

‘The Crown Prince really doesn’t know how to comfort children…’

Well, it made sense. Service staff had always done such things for him. I went to the boy, wiped the wound myself, and used my own handkerchief to wrap his hand.

“There. Better? Keep both handkerchiefs. Tell someone if it hurts.”

“Huh? …Y-yes…”

His fear seemed to fade a little as his cheeks warmed, staring at the expensive handkerchiefs.

Inside the carriage, Sylas scowled as his aide described the incident—and informed him Lukas was here.

‘How annoying.’

He forced a pleasant smile, stepped out of the carriage, straightened his clothes, and approached Lukas.

‘Black hair? Hah. So we meet again.’

The corners of Sylas’s mouth curled up naturally when he saw the black-haired girl he had met at the Luna Empire’s New Year’s banquet earlier that year.

‘Ian. So you failed to obtain the black-haired girl… They sent a substitute princess who happened to be a black-haired noble girl.’

Sending a child with not a drop of imperial blood as hostage instead of their princess—how ridiculous the Luna Empire was.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince, an honor to meet you here.”

Sylas greeted Lukas, who was still watching Philina tend to the boy.

“Grand Duke Sylas. Is that your carriage?”

Lukas spoke casually, but anger was simmering beneath the surface.

‘Driving a carriage at that speed in a busy street?!’

Even if he wasn’t of this empire, Sylas had visited Topaz Street several times for diplomatic meetings. There was no excuse for charging down the road.

“Yes, Your Highness. The child suddenly ran out, and the horses and coachman were startled.”

Sylas spoke confidently as if he bore no fault whatsoever. The gathering crowd watching him only irritated him more.

“He didn’t ‘run out.’ Your carriage was too fast.”

Lukas clenched his jaw. As the Nebula Empire’s diplomatic representative, Sylas was supposed to behave properly. Lukas desperately held back the urge to pluck out every red hair on the man’s head.

If the child had been hit, he might have died. Sylas would have probably tossed a few coins to the parents and considered the matter done.

“Since no one was injured, I shall settle this here and continue on my way.”

Sylas spoke politely, making it clear he didn’t want to waste more time on this. And surely Lukas, who seemed to have slipped out of the palace secretly, didn’t want to attract more attention either.

“Be more careful next time.”

Lukas also wanted the unpleasant interaction to end.

“Please wait, Grand Duke Sylas.”

Just as Sylas turned away after bowing, Philina stepped forward with the boy.

“Now. It was wrong of you to dash into the street where carriages pass. Right? Let’s apologize first.”

Philina gently patted the boy’s back and guided him to apologize.

“I’m sorry for running out so suddenly.”

He bowed deeply, then tried to hide behind Philina’s skirt.

“Come here. You should receive an apology too.”

Philina placed the boy beside her and signaled at Sylas to apologize.

‘Ha. You expect me to apologize to some filthy commoner?’

Sylas glared at her in disbelief. That shameless black hair—so clearly common-born. And those impudent black eyes staring right back.

The Luna Empire nobles—whether noble or not—always irritated him.

Rich only by luck, blessed with fertile southern lands… and they squandered it all on pointless culture. Then they had the audacity to declare war on the Abel Empire and lose. Arrogant fools.

“Philina, was it? The adopted daughter of the Agnis family of the Luna Empire? And you want me to apologize?”

The coldness in his voice startled the boy into hiding again.

I was honestly dumbfounded. Why did every jerk I met speak down to me?

I held a noble title too. Why were these rude men everywhere around me? I was close to making “men who use formal speech” into my new ideal type.

“Yes, Your Grace. You should apologize. The child is injured and frightened.”

Sylas continued to glare at me as if the simple act of apologizing was the greatest burden in the world.

“Fine. I’ll apologize. But my horses must be compensated for being startled.”

He released a wave of icy hostility, making it clear he wanted any excuse not to apologize. If his aura were visible, cold vapor would be pouring from him like dry ice.

“Apologize first.”

My stubbornness rose. I smiled sweetly—but my eyes glared back at him.

The boy was bleeding, nearly whipped, and had already apologized first!

I wasn’t about to back down. If he demanded money, I could throw some at him later.

“Very well.”

Suddenly, Sylas brightened his expression and smirked with one corner of his mouth. I knew that smile. Calis used to smile like that. Rotten to the core.

“I’m sorry, child.”

His voice was gentle, but his eyes never left mine—cold and venomous.

“Y-yes…”

The boy answered weakly from behind my skirt. Margaret led him away, soothing him.

“Now, Lady Philina. About the compensation for my startled horses—”

“Agh—! My heart… Your Highness… my chest…”

The moment Sylas spoke, I clutched my chest and collapsed dramatically.

“Philina? What’s wrong?”

“Philina! Are you alright?”

Lukas, Belita, and Stella all rushed to support me.

“Your Highness… I must have… been shocked by such a dreadful sight… My heart… Please allow His Grace Sylas… to compensate me for startling me…”

While acting, I took my chance and leaned fully into Lukas’s chest, closing my eyes.

‘Oho! This is different from Calis!’

Unlike Calis’s hard, muscular chest, Lukas’s was… slightly softer. Calis’s embrace squeezed tight with overwhelming strength. Lukas’s had more room. More comfort.

“You heard her, Grand Duke Sylas. Our Duchess is quite shaken today. Apologize and be on your way.”

Lukas snapped irritably.

“…Very well. My apologies for startling the Duchess Philina. And we’ll forget the matter of my horses.”

His voice was dripping with disbelief.

I opened my eyes slightly—and his red eyes were glaring straight into mine.

‘Ah—! Shouldn’t have opened them! Why do all red-eyed men look like they want to devour me?!’

Red eyes—public enemy number one.

“Thank you, Your Grace. Then… I must rest… My heart still pounds…”

“…Your heart still pounds…?”

“Yes, Your Grace… I am very delicate…”

Well, hearts do beat. It wasn’t a lie. I confidently buried my face back into Lukas’s chest.

“We shall meet again, my lady. And Your Highness.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“See you at the palace, Grand Duke.”

Sylas finally departed.

Even after his carriage disappeared, I stayed clinging to Lukas.

“Can you… let go now…? Everyone is staring.”

Tch. So he figured out I was acting.

His voice, warm before, turned slightly cold. I wanted to stay longer, but I slowly stood, looking around…

Ah. If Calis ever found out, I’d die.

People were glancing, then quickly hurrying away.

‘Well… I hugged him once. Surely he won’t kill me… right…?’

In romance novels, the heroine would get swept off her feet and carried away somewhere secluded by now…

…But I guess I wasn’t the heroine.

“Thank you, noona.”

While I was wallowing in that thought, the boy approached and bowed.

“Thank me? You must be really shaken. Be careful near carriage roads, alright? And why are you out here alone? You seem too young.”

I ruffled his hair gently. He smiled—