Chapter 12
“So what do you want from me? When have I ever cared about such things?” Khalid asked mockingly.
His wife’s bright red lips trembled with anger, but Khalid casually turned his head away from her and focused on me as if she no longer existed in his sight.
“It’s pitiful,” he whispered into my ear as he leaned in closer to me, his neatly tailored suit seemingly unaffected by the dampness.
He reached out his long arms and draped them over my shoulders.
“You can go alone.”
Our proximity made it easy for me to speak softly, but Khalid acted as if he couldn’t hear me.
Well, there’s no helping it then. I was not immune to receiving his care in this manner, so I awkwardly accepted his support, clutching onto the edge of his wet coat with trembling hands. Walking in sync with Khalid’s long strides was difficult, especially with the dampness of his clothes making it even more challenging.
“Khalid, can’t we go a little slower?”
“What did you say? I didn’t hear you.”
Khalid had never walked beside anyone other than women in his life, so it seemed he had never considered the need to walk slower to accommodate someone else.
As he took long strides forward, he bent his head towards me and grumbled. I lifted my pace and tried to speak, but I staggered momentarily as I reached out to grab Khalid’s ear to get his attention. To justify, perhaps it was because Khalid was too close for me to find a stable foothold.
As I stumbled forward, Khalid, startled, tightened his grip on my shoulder with the hand that was wrapped around it.
“Hey, Renata, watch out…”
Fortunately, with Khalid’s help, I managed to regain my balance just in time. But in that moment, I couldn’t prevent the sound of something tearing underfoot.
Did I step on something wrong?
I glanced down and saw someone’s garment caught on the pointed heel of the shoe I was wearing.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. Um, Mrs. Sinaba, you’re the wife, right?”
“Could you please move out of the way, Renata? You’re stepping on my dress!”
As I looked up in confusion, there stood Mrs. Sinaba, looking even more bewildered than I did. She nervously pulled at her hemline and stepped back.
Then, at that moment, with a tearing sound, her dress ripped apart.
As the layers of purple thin fabric cascaded to the ground, Mrs. Sinaba was now fully exposed, wearing white lace-trimmed undergarments.
“Ah! What is this madness?”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, ma’am. My shoes were wet, and I couldn’t move properly.”
“This, this apology now, what a situation, Mrs. Sinajang! Mrs. Sinajang!”
Mrs. Sinaba’s complexion turned as red as her lips. She frantically tried to pull what was left of her dress forward to cover her undergarments.
As she blinked rapidly and glanced around, it seemed she was checking if anyone was daring enough to be staring at her embarrassing attire.
The nobles gathered in the reception room averted their eyes in fear of meeting the lady’s gaze.
But a few of them, both those who covered their faces with fans and those who frowned at the sudden disturbance, didn’t belong to either category.
In the midst of it all, Isillia, who belonged to neither group, approached Mrs. Sinaba.
She hesitated, unsure of what to do, but attempted to cover the lady’s attire with her small hands.
“Um, um, what should we do? Where is Mrs. Sinajang? Could someone please help cover her until she arrives?”
“I, I will call for her.”
“Lady, please put on my jacket.”
As Isillia gathered her courage and took the lead, the other nobles began to chime in one by one.
However, as a nobleman attempted to offer his jacket, the sleeves got stuck on his chubby arms, and Mrs. Sinaba’s embarrassment only grew.
As the noble who had gone to call for Mrs. Sinajang opened the door to the banquet hall, another figure emerged as soon as it swung open. It was Casian, whom Isillia had been eagerly awaiting.
“Did I… arrive late? Um, why is the atmosphere like this? Did I come to the wrong place?” Casian entered the reception room, exchanging glances with the nobleman at the door.
Quickly grasping the somber atmosphere inside, his gaze settled on me. Casian maneuvered through the divided nobles like a crimson sea and walked over to me.
“Renata, why are you so soaked?” Casian inquired before exchanging nods with Khalid, who stood beside me.
Then, he turned his attention back to me and swiftly removed his jacket, revealing cufflinks adorned with sea jewels at the ends of his white shirt sleeves.
“You might catch a cold. It was windy outside.”
Casian approached from the opposite direction of where Khalid stood, attempting to help me put on his jacket. However, he paused slightly, his expression stiffening as Khalid’s hand blocked his path.
Casian seemed surprised by Khalid’s unexpected action.
“Prince Khalid?”
“Yes, Highness Casian. What are you doing suddenly appearing here and trying to help Renata take off her clothes? Are you cold? Your lips seem to be trembling,” Casian quipped.
Caught off guard by Casian’s words, Khalid glanced down at me with a puzzled expression. He had been so preoccupied with rushing me along that he had forgotten his gentlemanly duties.
Realizing his oversight, Khalid hastily removed his own jacket with a sheepish “Oops.” Before I knew it, a sizable coat was draped over my shoulders.
“Now that it’s settled, Highness Casian, please put your clothes back on.”
“It seems Your Highness still has a mountain of things to learn.”
“Alright, I get it. Since I’ve learned my lesson this time, I’ll step aside.”
Khalid’s tone grew curt as if the prolonged conversation was bothersome.
In response, Casian gave a wry smile and gently touched my forehead with the hand that held his jacket. Then, with a lopsided grin, he turned to me and spoke.
“This… isn’t the rhythm I expected. No, it’s too much. I’ve been delayed too much in this case.”
Still, I’m grateful for Casian’s kindness. And since the jacket is already off, how about using it to cover Mrs. Sinaba?”
“Yes? Why would I cover the lady, ah… hmm, I see now…” Casian’s gaze followed my gesture as I subtly indicated towards Mrs. Sinaba. He seemed to register her attire only then, with a reaction that suggested a lack of inclination.
But soon, he shifted his footsteps towards Mrs. Sinaba, his expression suddenly turning sour.
“G…” A loud sigh escaped from nearby. When I looked up, it was Khalid.
He gave me a displeased look and then gestured with the hand on my shoulder, urging me.
“How much longer are you going to keep doing this? Go and change your clothes already.”
“Hey, Khalid. Your tone is annoying.” I walked towards Khalid, pushing him lightly, and this time, I whispered properly into his ear.
In response, Khalid snorted.
“It’s not like you didn’t deliberately step on the hem…”
“…It wasn’t deliberate?”
To be honest, it was deliberate. But I shrugged it off.
“It looked like an accident to you too, didn’t it?”
“Well, you’re quite talented at it.”
As we stepped out of the reception room, Khalid let out a hearty laugh.
“Anyway, good job. I couldn’t stand that woman anyway.”
“You couldn’t stand her…”
Since Mrs. Sinaba and Khalid were both part of the same royal family, there might have been some behind-the-scenes information I wasn’t aware of.
I glanced at Khalid. He chuckled and, after leaving Mrs. Sinaba’s palace, stopped in front of my carriage.
As we stepped outside, the cold wind blew fiercely, making it noticeably chilly.
“Get in. We’re going to the prince’s palace.”
“No need. I brought my own carriage.”
“So what? Just come over later then.”
“But why are we going to the prince’s palace?”
“Because you have some spare clothes there.”
I was speechless. I avoided Khalid’s gaze by rolling my eyes around.
As if to say no more delays, Khalid opened the carriage door and pushed me inside.
Before I knew it, I was already seated inside Khalid’s carriage. He quickly took the seat opposite mine.
“Forget it. If anyone asks, I don’t know anything about you two.”
