I Will Become the Queen of the Enemy Country

“Please come this way.”

After their conversation with David, Karan and Elise were guided outside by a royal servant.

The hallway was filled with nobles and administrators who had come to meet David, and they kept stealing glances at Karan and Elise.

To shield Elise from the mocking gazes, Karan moved closer to her.

Elise was in a quandary. David’s aversion was stronger than she had anticipated.

‘His Highness David cared more for Chase than I thought.’

Yet Chase was such a brother…

“Elise.”

Perhaps because she was thinking of Chase, she seemed to hear Chase’s voice.

“Elise. It’s been a while.”

Elise lifted her head. It wasn’t a hallucination.

Chase had appeared before them.

“How are you here?”

Elise asked in surprise. Then she immediately looked at Karan.

She was worried that Karan might misunderstand, thinking that she and Chase had been in contact separately.

Fortunately, there was no sign of misunderstanding from Karan. Instead, his brow furrowed, as if he wasn’t pleased to see Chase appear so suddenly.

“I heard you were in the palace. Have you been well?”

Chase acted as if he was meeting an old friend after a long time.

“Is it time to ask how she is?”

Karan intercepted the conversation.

“I wasn’t asking you.”

Chase replied, looking Karan up and down. Chase sent a blatant evaluative gaze and lifted the corner of his mouth. It was a mocking smile.

The wrinkles between Karan’s brows deepened.

The atmosphere between the two was not normal. Elise quickly pulled Karan aside and greeted Chase.

“I didn’t expect to see you here, Your Highness Chase. Then, I’ll be going…”

Elise wanted to leave this place quickly.

But Elise’s wish did not come true. Chase grabbed her wrist as she passed him.

“Your Highness!”

The moment Elise shouted, Karan slapped Chase’s wrist.

Chase’s hand fell away from Elise abruptly.

Chase clenched his throbbing wrist.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Chase’s escort knights all drew their swords at once.

Elise’s heart sank.

Even though Karan is a great warrior, could he face more than five of the prince’s escort knights without a weapon?

Even if he subdues all the escort knights, can he safely escape the royal palace?

No matter how much Lange cherishes his son, Chase is a prince of Bedrokka.

When a fight broke out between the prince of Bedrokka and the prince of Tetris, it was clear who Lange would support.

“Can’t you even go to the front yard without escort knights?”

The distance between Karan and Chase got closer. Karan taunted him.

“Everyone, put away your swords.”

Chase, whose pride was hurt, ordered his escort knights. When the escort knights hesitated, Karan raised his voice as if to make sure they all heard.

“It seems your fistfight is quite shabby.”

“Put away your swords! Everyone, back off!”

Chase shouted. Only then did the escort knights slowly lower their swords and step back hesitantly.

The knights, standing still in a tense manner, watched them attentively from a distance where their conversation wouldn’t be heard.

The atmosphere between the two was very hostile. Even Elise found it difficult to casually intervene between the two.

But she couldn’t leave it like this. Elise pulled at Karan’s clothes.

“Your Highness, please stop.”

Chase’s cold gaze met Elise’s hand pulling Karan. Noticing that gaze, Karan defiantly held Elise’s hand and spoke.

“It seems you have something to say?”

Chase bit and released the inside of his mouth. His canine teeth made a hole in the inside of his cheek. Thanks to that, Chase was able to keep his sanity.

“There seems to be a brute who prevents greeting an old friend. Or maybe barbarians don’t have the concept of friends?”

The old friend must refer to Elise. Karan didn’t implore.

Ignoring Karan, Chase turned his body towards Elise. He narrowed his eyes and smiled.

“Elise, it’s nice to see you in Bedrokka. I’m really glad to see you again. Will you make time to visit my palace? I’d like to offer you a cup of tea.”

Even with narrowed eyes, Chase’s malice could not be hidden.

Unable to bear it any longer, Karan hid Elise behind him and raised his fist.

“Your Highness!”

Elise clung desperately to Karan’s waist.

“Your Highness, no!”

Elise whispered earnestly. Karan’s chest swelled and deflated heavily.

“Is it not okay?”

With a distinctly different temperature from when he was conversing with Chase, Karan asked Elise.

“Yes, it’s not okay.”

Even though Chase started the provocation, Karan absolutely should not hit him first.

Elise hated the situation where she had no choice but to stop Karan. But since she couldn’t make the problem bigger, Elise sighed.

“Did I make it difficult for you?”

“The difficulty is…”

“Elise, it’s useless to teach. It seems that the people of Tetris don’t know about friendship or manners. Let’s leave the ignorant person and have a conversation for a while?”

Is Chase crazy?

He acted like a person who was impatient to fight. Karan’s breath began to quicken slightly.

“Elise, I won’t cause an accident. Will you trust me and let me go for a while?”

Karan’s voice was calm. Elise hesitated for a moment and then let him go.

She had to trust him. Elise’s arm smoothly loosened.

Karan narrowed the distance with Chase. Elise watched Karan with a nervous heart.

“Is it jealousy?”

Karan, who was close, looked down at Chase with a cold expression and spoke.

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“Chase, you’re ugly. Let me give you some advice. If you provoke me like this, you won’t get a glance from Elise.”

Chase glared at Karan. Karan smiled defiantly.

“What I’m curious about is how deep and genuine the friendship you shared with Elise was.”

“Our friendship was deeper and more genuine than you think!”

“A deep and genuine friendship, how touching. Do you boast that you know each other inside out?”

“Of course!”

“How she gets all disheveled on the bed?”

Karan’s words evoked a very peculiar imagination. Chase’s face turned pale.

“Isn’t getting too worked up over childish pranks a bit much? Let’s move on from juvenile play. Elise has grown up, but you’re still whining like a child.”

Chase’s eyes flashed with anger.

Karan was bragging about spending the night with Elise.

Unable to control his jealousy, Chase’s eyes turned fierce.

“Bastard!”

In the blink of an eye, Chase swung his fist.

Karan staggered. Elise quickly covered her mouth with both hands to muffle her scream.

“That was a good one.”

Karan ran his palm over the slightly bleeding corner of his lips. Despite being hit, he was smiling, and quite joyfully.

Chase stood his ground.

“Elise, I have my pride to maintain.”

Muttering towards empty space, Karan then struck Chase straight on.

****

 

“Everyone, stop it!”

Elise intervened between Karan and Chase.

Eventually, the most dreadful thing that could happen between Chase and Karan happened.

Karan and Chase, looking at Elise who was pale and trembling, calmed down.

“Elise, I can win.”

Karan whispered, pulling Elise closer.

Chase is an excellent swordsman. But Karan was one of the recognized warriors in the rough and barren Tetris.

Elise expected Karan to be the winner of this brutish fistfight.

But this place was the palace, so she couldn’t just watch the fight and predict his victory.

Even if Karan won here, or lost, the problem would get bigger.

“Karan, please stop.”

At Elise’s desperate request, Karan stepped back, glaring at Chase.

“Your Highness!”

The atmosphere, which had cooled down a bit, flared up again as the knights rushed in.

The knights drew their swords towards Karan. Some of the swords were pointed at Elise.

“Step back.”

Chase commanded, but the knights did not obey him. Their lord had been punched. They were angry as if they had been hit themselves.

“Put down your swords and step back!”

Chase shouted. Only then did the knights distance themselves from Karan and Elise. But they still had their swords drawn.

Elise bit her lip anxiously. Seeing that, Karan wrapped his arm around Elise’s shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Elise. Even without a sword, I can suppress these knight guys who are like Bedrokka’s runts.”

Shall we try? Karan whispered into Elise’s ear.

Elise looked up at Karan. He was smiling affectionately.

‘He’s really angry.’

Karan was expressing his anger in a twisted way.

If Karan were to beat the knights soundly, it would be irreparable.

Elise had to make a decision. She sighed deeply and held her head.

“Your Highness, my head…”

She staggered. Chase reached out in surprise, but the knights blocked him.

Elise spun around and fell into Karan’s arms.

“Elise?”

Karan’s eyes widened.

“Your Highness, ah, my body, it’s not…”

Elise let her hand drop completely. Karan caught her.

“Elise!”

“What are you doing! Call a doctor immediately.”

Chase and Karan made a fuss.

A big commotion arose and the fight between the two ended in a vague way.

Elise’s audacious acting worked perfectly.

****

Karan laid Elise down in the bedroom. Soon, the royal physician of Bedrokka’s palace came.

“It seems she fainted from shock. There’s nothing wrong with her body.”

The physician briefly left his opinion and prescribed a medicine to calm her nerves.

Soon, only Elise and Karan were left in the room.

“Elise, get up now.”

Karan knew that Elise was acting.

He didn’t notice when she fell because he was too surprised, but he realized it while carrying her to the bedroom.

“Your acting was perfect. So don’t blame yourself for being caught by me. Others won’t know.”

There was a rustling sound from the bed. Elise threw off the blanket and sat up.

“Why did you do that, Your Highness.”

Elise scolded Karan.

“Did you get into trouble?”

“I’m worried about you, Your Highness. If His Majesty were to escalate this into a diplomatic issue, it would harm you.”

“He won’t be able to do that.”

Karan was emotional, but he wasn’t so stupid as to swing his fist without thinking.

Karan had made enough room to escape.

Hadn’t he been hit first in front of everyone?

On top of that, Lange was in a position where he needed the help of Tetris.

So, they might express regret to Karan, but they wouldn’t be able to expel him or hold Tetris accountable for this incident.

“But still…”

“Don’t say that I should have held back, Elise. You saw it too.”

“Chase was rude.”

Elise thought that Karan was angry because Chase didn’t keep his manners.

To that extent, Chase behaved terribly.

Karan frowned. Elise knew nothing about Chase.

‘Chase hasn’t given up on Elise.’

Karan, who didn’t want to help Chase by revealing that fact, glossed over it.

“Can we return to the lodging?”

“We have to. This place is…”

Elise looked around the room. It was a guest room in the palace, where Elise often stayed in the past, as Chase’s lover.

The room she used to stay in was a bit more glamorous than this one, but the structure and size were the same, reminding her of that time.

Elise’s past that she wanted to erase.

“It’s going to be noisy for a while.”

Elise said as she left the room with Karan.

Ah. Karan had a stricken expression.

He should have calculated that Chase and Elise would be on everyone’s lips side by side.

‘Should I have secretly dragged him away and beaten him up?’

On the way back to their lodging, Karan was restless.