ISTL CHATER 30

“……”
Count Joselin glared at Max and Anais in turn, his expression one of disbelief.
“Lies! No matter how I think about it, I can’t see any connection between them. I’m already annoyed by Prince Max’s arrogance because of his royal status, and now it’s him again. And Anais Brien, who’s supposedly here to watch the play with him? Just the two of them in this royal box?”
‘Has he become a consort to the Queen Mother, or something?’
Max warned Joslin, who was glaring at him.
“Unless you’re testing my patience, you should get out of my sight.”
“……!”
“Is the embarrassment from the tea party not enough? Since there are many prominent people here, would you like me to make you wish you were dead?”
“That arrogance is truly… unchanged!”
“Ah, why? Have you finally decided to stop enduring the insults?”
Joslin, grinding his teeth, glared at Anais.
“We’ll discuss what’s left unsaid later, Lady.”
He clasped his nose, which had swollen up to the size of a fist, with both hands and hurriedly adjusted his hat. Then, making sure no one was watching, he quickly exited the private room.
As the two were left alone, the silence in the room was punctuated by the faint sounds of the play that was still ongoing. It would soon come to an end.
‘What about Lady Bastian? Did she come knowing my situation?’
Though many questions arose, they couldn’t be pondered for long. Blood was dripping from Max’s hand.
“Prince! You’re hurt!”
Anais rushed over and pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket to wipe Max’s hand. The injury was clearly from the broken doorknob.
“Why do you always swing your fists so recklessly? Even if you’re strong, you can’t overcome metal.”
“Oh, Anais. So you still have the energy to scold me?”
“Pardon?”
“If you have the energy for that, you might want to start tidying up your surroundings.”
“Tidying up my surroundings?”
“You don’t know anything about Otto Joslin.”
“Ah. Count Joslin is a close friend of my father…”
“Close friend, huh?”
“……?”
Anais tilted her head at Max’s consistently abrasive tone.
“Please explain. What do you mean by ‘tidying up the surroundings’?”
Hmm. Max regarded her with a rather indifferent expression before snorting dismissively.
“Forget it.”
He clearly didn’t want to repeat the vile things Joslin had said.
“Ugh!”
Max, avoiding the question, swept his hair back with his other hand while Anais tightened the handkerchief around his injury with all her might.
Seeing him glaring with eyes wide open, it seemed he still had some energy left for a tantrum.
“But what about Lady Bastian?”
The moment Max cunningly avoided Anais’s gaze, the sound of applause erupted. The play, The End of the Day, had concluded.
“If you leave a lady alone like this…”
Anais’s face was full of worry, which caused Max to chuckle.
“Now you’re worrying about a stranger you haven’t even spoken to?”
“What about the handkerchief? Have you wiped away the tears?”
He seemed completely unaware of his current situation, casually worrying about someone else. What a trivial concern.
‘Should I call this naivety or insensitivity?’
This was just the kind of thing that got him into trouble. Max found her behavior to be both hypocritical and foolish, and his frustration grew. He decided it was time to give her a reality check and took a step forward.
Anais flinched.
Her body instinctively reacted.
‘Looks like she was startled by what happened earlier. She’s trying to act fine.’
Noticing Anais’s heightened wariness, Max took a step back. He then provided the answer she wanted.
“Right. Well, more or less as you said.”
“……”
Anais looked at him with a slightly bewildered expression.
Though she had flinched when he approached with large strides, it was purely a reflexive movement. It was clearly different from her reaction to Count Joslin.
Even though they were both similarly large and intimidating figures, why did the feeling they gave her differ so much? If Count Joslin had been uncomfortable and unpleasant, what about Max…?
‘Why did I feel warmth from His Highness?’
She had never imagined getting entangled with Prince Max, let alone feeling any comfort from him. Had she come to feel at ease with him, even in the brief time she had known him?
Lost in thought, Anais couldn’t help but scrutinize Max’s subtle attitude.
“Wait a minute. Did you just avoid my gaze, Your Highness?”
“Avoid? When did I?”
“Specifically, when I asked if you had wiped Lady Bastian’s tears. You looked away from me. Your Highness, could it be that…”
“Don’t jump to conclusions. Do I look like someone who would avoid eye contact?”
“Well, if you’re avoiding it, it must be because something’s bothering you!”
“What? Bothering me? Anais Brienne. You really think I’m that uncomfortable?”
“Am I doing this for my own benefit? It’s all for Your Highness’s sake.”
Of course, it would be beneficial for her as well.
Anais spoke with a deliberately stern tone.
“You should avoid being so intimidating in unfavorable situations. Understand? Walls have ears too. If someone sees you acting like this and spreads gossip about Lady Bastian, it could be a big problem.”
“Come on, there must already be plenty of gossip.”
“Past is past. While we’re working together on this mission, think of it as a chance to start anew and be cautious. No more feeding the gossipmongers! Do you understand? Don’t give them material to talk about. So always keep this in mind…”
As Anais continued her endless reprimands with a stern face, Max suddenly took a step toward her.
One step slowly. Another step.
As the distance between them narrowed, Anais did not flinch this time.
However, as the distance between them shrank to about a step’s width, Anais began to slowly back away. It wasn’t long before she was pressed against the wall.
Max’s unwavering gaze was fixed on Anais. She held her breath at the proximity.
‘So close…’
Although it wasn’t the first time she faced him up close, it didn’t make it any easier. Objectively speaking, his chiseled features being so near made it hard to stay composed.
Max’s expression was inscrutable. His languid eye corners and blue eyes certainly held a pressure that seemed to press down on her.
‘Why, why is this happening?’
Was he displeased?
Anais replayed her recent scolding in her mind. It seemed that something she said had touched a nerve. Realizing this, her neck tensed up in anxiety.
Oh no… I might have been too informal with His Highness…
“……”
She wanted to ask why he was acting this way, but her lips felt paralyzed. She worried that her breath might come out unevenly and her voice might tremble embarrassingly.
All she could do was swallow nervously while staring at his long, thick eyelashes. His dark blue eyes were so close that she had trouble focusing on them.
Unable to endure his intense and penetrating gaze any longer, Anais turned her head away.
“Anais Brienne, why are you avoiding eye contact?”
“……”
“Is there something bothering you?”
“W-what do you mean…”
“You said that avoiding eye contact means you’re hiding something.”
Max echoed Anais’s earlier words, a smirk curling at his lips.