126. The Pure Love of the Prince of Benuve

Roselia, not wanting her flushed face to be seen, lowered her head—only for him to pull the hand he was holding.

As a result, she ended up pressed close against his chest, almost as if she were in his arms.

Unlike how she had stared directly at Asif earlier, Roselia avoided looking at Klaus’s face and instead glared at his chest.

Looking down at her, Klaus let out a displeased tone.

“Are you not going to look at my face?”

Startled by his slightly sulky voice, Roselia instinctively lifted her gaze.

“Huh?”

Meeting her eyes at last, Klaus gave her a faint smile.

“Earlier, you had no problem staring at Prince Asif with those sparkling eyes.”

“W-When did I?”

Feeling embarrassed by his teasing smile, Roselia quickly turned her head away again.

Klaus simply laughed and looked at the top of her head, as if that was fine too.

“Even your crown is cute.”

At Klaus’s sudden comment, Roselia instinctively covered the top of her head with one hand and blushed even harder.

As she glared at him with an expression of disbelief, Klaus burst out laughing.

Was it the lights filling the night garden? His smile seemed dazzling to her.

Leaning into his arm and chest, Roselia looked around. Unlike before, everything around her seemed to move in slow motion.

It felt like the world had paused, and only the two of them were dancing.

The warm lights, the people smiling, and those dancing while gazing into each other’s eyes—it all seemed so beautiful.

While dancing, Roselia, as if entranced, glanced around and eventually, her eyes landed on Klaus.

He was gazing at her with unwavering focus, as if he had only ever been looking at her from the start.

Seeing herself reflected in Klaus’s navy eyes, deep as the night sky, Roselia blanked out, completely mesmerized.

Then, as if it were a lie, the music stopped.

Time, which had felt frozen, suddenly surged forward as Roselia snapped back to reality and pulled away from Klaus.

“T-That’s enough now.”

Realizing she had been in his arms like she was under a spell, Roselia hurriedly left the ballroom.

Klaus didn’t try to stop her as she walked away with a flustered expression.

He simply stood there, watching her retreating figure for a long time.

* * *

Roselia, who had fled the scene with hurried steps as if running away, finally let out a sigh when she reached a quiet spot with no one around.

Feeling the heat in her cheeks, she cupped them with both hands and muttered to herself.

“This is insane.”

The words were directed at herself.

She had gone so far as to flee to Raphelios to escape him, and now she was being swayed by him again.

All because of his sweet-talking?

Because of those words about giving up the position of Crown Princess if it meant losing himself?

It would be a lie to say she hadn’t been shaken, but she wasn’t foolish enough to fall completely for such honeyed words.

This was a matter that held both her life and his in the balance.

As Roselia stood there, deep in thought with a serious expression, a familiar voice reached her ears.

“Nora, bring some more dessert.”

It was Princess Tania’s voice.

Peeking through the garden bushes, Roselia could see the princess seated with young noble ladies from the concubine faction, casting a haughty gaze at Nora, who sat at the end of the group.

Startled by the command, Nora opened her lips hesitantly.

“Y-Your Highness, that’s something a maid should do…”

“All the maids seem busy, don’t they? I’d rather not raise my voice and get on the bad side of Countess Langley. Just go. You’ve done this kind of thing before, haven’t you?”

At the princess’s blatant dismissal, Nora clenched her fists tightly in her lap.

As Tania watched her bite her lips in frustration, she added mockingly.

“What, don’t want to? Do you think my brother Alphonse would still marry you if I speak badly of you? Now that a true blood relative has appeared, do you really think someone like you, practically a fake, has any value left?”

At Tania’s words, Nora’s shoulders trembled violently.

The young noble ladies around the princess laughed at Nora as if they had found easy prey.

Watching the scene unfold, Roselia’s brow furrowed.

Dragging Nora around like a servant, and this was the treatment she got?

Unable to watch any longer, Roselia stepped out from behind the bushes.

At her sudden appearance, the laughter of the princess and the ladies instantly ceased.

Roselia gave them a quick glance, then raised her hand deliberately to a maid standing some distance away.

“Over here, please bring some desserts. Her Highness seems to be feeling peckish, so bring a good variety.”

The distant maid nodded and hurried off to the kitchen with another maid in tow.

At Roselia’s actions, Princess Tania let out a scoff of disbelief.

Meanwhile, Nora looked up at Roselia with sharp eyes, clearly displeased at having received her help.

“Did you think I’d be grateful for this? I could’ve gone to get them myself.”

Roselia looked down at her with an indifferent expression.

“What do you gain by belittling yourself like this?”

“What…?”

“I didn’t help you. I just couldn’t stand watching it. Nora, you look far more pitiful now than you did back in that alley.”

At Roselia’s dispassionate words, Nora’s face turned bright red.

Roselia turned away without a second glance.

Princess Tania, once again ignored in Roselia’s presence, fumed in silent indignation.

By the time Roselia returned to the center of the garden, Claucet appeared beside her.

“Where did you run off to after the dance? I’ve been looking for you.”

“I just went to get some air. Where’s Countess Langley?”

“She said the ladies were tired and told the younger ones to enjoy themselves.”

Glancing in that direction, Roselia could see Countess Langley and the other noblewomen waving off any concerns, clearly signaling that they were giving the younger ladies space.

It seemed they felt guilty for monopolizing them for too long.

At that moment, noble ladies approached Roselia, eager to strike up a conversation.

“Um… Miss Roselia, if it’s alright, may we keep you company?”

More ladies gathered around Roselia than those who had initially approached her.

Clearly, there were more of them than those clustered around the princess.

It was likely the influence of Countess Langley.

As Roselia exchanged a puzzled glance with Claucet, she quickly composed herself and smiled gracefully.

“Of course. I was just wondering about the latest popular accessories in Raphelios society.”

“Oh my, are you interested in accessories? Our family is in the jewelry crafting business, and lately…”

Starting with accessories, the ladies eagerly competed to share information.

Smiling at them, Roselia met Claucet’s eyes and winked.

Claucet, thoroughly impressed, gave her a discreet thumbs-up behind the ladies’ backs.

* * *

Asif sat in the coffee shop with a confused look on his face.

It was a café purchased under the name of the Kingdom of Benuve, due to the increasing trade between Benuve’s merchant guild and Pelton Port.

Of course, there was a separate manager and staff who ran the place.

Asif simply dropped by occasionally to drink for free…

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand his reaction in front of Roselia.

Even at the Langley Count’s banquet, after just one dance, his heart had gone haywire, thudding uncontrollably, and he hadn’t been able to approach her again.

It still felt unfair and regretful.

Unfair? Regretful?

What even are these feelings?

Now that he thought about it… he suddenly recalled the time he’d visited the Marquess’s estate, thinking she was a man.

The memory of Roselia, barely covered by a towel, rushed back—and blood surged straight to his face.

“Pffft—!!!”

Asif ended up spitting out his drink, coughing violently, and a startled staff member ran over.

Waving them off to hide his red face, he tried to compose himself.

Then, still flushed, he thought again.

She had even changed clothes behind a thin screen with him right there in front of her.

Good grief… was she insane?

Feeling a nosebleed coming on, he pinched the bridge of his nose and shut his eyes.

Damn it… yeah, that’s where the problem started.

Come to think of it, even when he thought she was a man, his heart had already been racing.

He had blamed it on the scent of her bloodline at the time…

But now that he knew she was a woman, it was clear.

He… liked her.

The 7th Prince of Benuve, who hadn’t even flinched when the most beautiful women from his kingdom threw themselves at him, now liked her.

Yeah, the more I dwell on this, the harder it is on me.

Rather than keep suffering like this, maybe it’d be better to just come clean…

Just then, through the café window, Asif caught sight of Roselia in a casual outdoor dress passing by.

What the—have I been thinking about her so much I’m seeing hallucinations?

Rushing out of the café without thinking, Asif confirmed it was really Roselia walking with Eva and ran straight toward her before he even realized it.

Roselia looked at him with a puzzled expression as he appeared out of nowhere, breathing heavily.

“Prince Asif?”

Now face-to-face with her, Asif found himself at a loss for words, flustered.

“Uh, I… um…”

Roselia tilted her head at his uncharacteristic behavior, and Asif shut his eyes tight.

“Roselia. So… I have five villas in Benuve, and a palace suite all to myself, right? Ah… and three thousand camels, and about five hundred servants under me…”

Asif rattled off nonsense, and Eva, standing beside them, frowned deeply.

“Are you seriously bragging about money in front of the Marquess of Euciliod’s daughter?”

The House of Euciliod, owner of Pelton Port and a pillar of Raphelios, was just as wealthy and powerful.

At Eva’s incredulous stare, Asif finally realized his blunder and glanced at Roselia’s face.

Roselia looked bewildered, unaccustomed to seeing the usually laid-back Asif flustered like this.

Taking a deep breath to calm down, Asif put on a serious expression.

“Let me start over. This probably isn’t the place to say it, but…”

His crimson eyes gazed at her intently.

Then, suddenly, a fan popped open between their faces.

Startled, they both took a step back, and a familiar voice chimed in.

“So here you were, Prince Asif. I’ve been curious about this fan I got from the Benuve merchant guild.”

Klaus, now folding the fan, stared at Asif with eyes full of suspicion.