Letier felt her face heat up in an instant and shook her head.
“Guess I was wrong!”
“Huh? Oh wow! This is the first time I’ve ever seen your face turn so red, milady!”
“……”
Letier didn’t reply—she just blinked.
Lucy looked at her with a fond smile, then burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Is that what you thought he meant?”
“I just got a little confused…”
“Oh no, poor milady! That must’ve been so awkward and stressful!”
“Huh? It wasn’t that bad, really…”
Letier trailed off.
Was it… stressful?
“Don’t worry! As a self-proclaimed love expert, I can tell you—the prince definitely doesn’t see you that way!”
Lucy lifted her chin proudly and stuck out her chest.
“I didn’t know your nickname was ‘love expert,’ Lucy.”
“Of course you wouldn’t. The best experts are always hidden gems.”
Letier, remembering what Dante had said about Lucy and Efron maybe being a thing, started to think it might not have been such a lie after all.
“I must’ve just misunderstood. I really don’t have any experience with this sort of thing…”
“Of course! You’re still pure and innocent, milady!”
Lucy smiled sweetly as she spoke.
She started to circle around Letier, clearly trying to reassure her.
“Still, I’m glad you realized it before the confusion got worse!”
“Yeah, if it weren’t for you, Lucy, I might’ve said something weird in front of the prince.”
Letier shuddered at the thought.
If the misunderstanding had gone on any longer, it would’ve been a huge mistake—and terribly rude to the prince.
I’m really lucky to have a love expert by my side…
Letier breathed a sigh of relief and looked up at Lucy, who looked like she was dying to spill all the knowledge she had.
“So, Lucy, you’re saying the prince just sees me as a trusted companion, right?”
“Yes, exactly! To gain the trust and reliance of someone as picky as the prince—that’s really impressive!”
“I see.”
It wasn’t love, but feelings like trust and friendship were still precious.
Though she felt strangely disappointed and a little heartache, Letier quickly pushed it away.
“So, how exactly are those two feelings different?”
“You mean romantic feelings and companion-type feelings?”
Letier nodded.
Lucy glanced up at the ceiling, thinking hard.
“Hmm… how do I explain this… It’s tricky to describe unless you’ve felt it yourself.”
“Yeah.”
“Romantic feelings are, how should I say… thicker? More intense?”
“Thicker? Intense?”
That was possibly the vaguest explanation Letier had ever heard.
What does it even mean for a feeling to be thick?
Still clearly confused, Letier waited, and Lucy generously stepped closer.
She raised two fingers and pointed them right at her own eyes.
“Watch their eyes! Look closely at their eyes!”
“Their eyes…!”
“If the way they look at you is sticky and deep, that’s the sign!”
“Sticky and… deep?”
Were romantic feelings supposed to be this abstract and vague?
Letier seriously wondered whether words like “sticky” or “deep” could even be used to describe someone’s gaze.
“Once you notice the eye signal, then watch their behavior closely!”
“How does their behavior change?”
“They’ll keep trying to get close to you! Like, hanging around whenever they can or trying to get even a little closer!”
Oh, that was easier to recognize than that whole “eye gaze” thing.
Letier nodded with a dazed look on her face.
So that’s how it works…
“Now, picture the prince! Did he send you any of those eye or behavior signals?”
“Hmm…”
Letier furrowed her brows as she recalled Dante’s face.
Those red eyes that stared right through her…
And the constant brushes—shoulders, arms, hands…
“You don’t know, do you?”
Lucy pressed again, watching Letier lost in thought.
“Is… is that so?”
Still unsure, Letier looked at Lucy.
I’m not really sure, but if the love expert says so, then maybe that’s how it is?
“Just remember! The kind of emotion that makes your heart flutter never confuses people! When it’s the one—it feels like the one!”
“Lucy, I seriously have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Hehe… You’ll understand someday.”
Lucy gave her a mysterious smile and slowly walked away.
Letier nodded and began fiddling absentmindedly with her skirt.
Yeah, there’s no way the prince would feel that way.
Right.
****
The evening banquet held in the second-floor hall of the Justian Palace was smaller in scale than expected.
Letier, dressed neatly in a formal gown and arriving early, walked toward the long rectangular table placed at the center of the hall.
The people scattered around the table appeared to be a select few: members of the royal family and officials from the Kingdom of Justian, along with high-ranking delegates from the Trillante Empire.
Among them, the only face Letier recognized properly was the prince’s—and even he had not yet arrived at the banquet hall.
‘Looks like the prince isn’t here yet.’
Standing awkwardly for a moment, Letier turned her eyes toward the plate.
On the table, which was covered with a clean white linen cloth, were simple but appetizing dishes served on blue plates.
‘Dishes I don’t really know…’
Showing interest, she began walking slowly alongside the table.
She figured she’d browse the food until the banquet officially began.
Just then, the brisk sound of high heels clicking echoed nearby, and someone quickly approached her.
Along with them came a sweet perfume scent that tickled her nose.
“Hello?”
Turning toward the voice, she saw Princess Rubia looking straight at her.
Letier met her green eyes for a moment, then quickly bowed in greeting.
“Ah, hello, Princess. Thank you for inviting me to the evening banquet.”
“Oh, don’t mention it. When I was with the prince earlier, I heard a lot about you, Lady Letier. I heard you played a big part in helping treat his skin disease.”
“I only did what I was supposed to do.”
Letier responded with a composed smile.
So she was with the prince the whole time…
She felt oddly unsettled by the way her mind fixated on something so trivial.
Rubia, smiling sweetly, offered Letier a glass filled halfway with a red liquid and said,
“Seeing Prince Dante’s face up close, it was like all those rumors of a terrible skin disease were lies—there’s not even the faintest trace left.”
Letier, feeling a twinge of guilt, accepted the glass she handed her.
That’s because…
There was never anything in the first place…
Rubia picked up another glass from the table and held it out toward Letier like she was offering a toast, then spoke again.
“Thank you so much for treating our prince. As his fiancée, I wanted to express my gratitude once more.”
Letier, who had been absentmindedly staring into her own glass, froze.
Fiancée…?
It felt like her heart dropped.
The heavy word that entered her ears didn’t seem to reach her brain—it just spun around in her head.
Fiancée…?
“My lady?”
Rubia, noticing Letier had suddenly gone stiff, gently shook her glass and asked.
“Sorry? Ah, I-I’m sorry. What did you say?”
“I said, out of gratitude, I’d like the chance to repay you.”
“I-I’ve already received enough reward from Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness. You really don’t need to trouble yourself further.”
Letier stammered as she lightly clinked her glass against Rubia’s.
She wasn’t sure what kind of expression she was making right now.
“Hmm… Is this the first time you’re hearing about the engagement?”
Then Rubia tilted her head slightly, watching Letier’s face, and asked.
Letier forced the corners of her mouth up as she answered.
“Yes. It’s late, but congratulations on your engagement.”
“Ah… is that so? Well, thank you.”
Rubia replied with a faint, curious smile.
Still gazing at Letier with a mysterious look, Rubia finally turned her head only when she noticed someone entering the hall.
Dante, dressed in a bright ceremonial uniform with his hair neatly swept to the side, was stepping into the banquet hall.
His expression subtly softened as he spotted Letier right away.
Letier gave a small nod in greeting when he saw her, then turned away without hesitation.
“……”
And that was enough to completely sour Dante’s mood.
“Your Highness, please sit over here.”
Rubia, who had been quietly observing the two, walked over to him, took his arm, and gently led him toward the table.
“What kind of nonsense was that?”
Being pulled along, Dante muttered under his breath.
“I never told you to say you were my fiancée.”
Rubia also spoke in a voice low enough that no one else could hear.
“……”
“I find this kind of thing so entertaining.”
“You really haven’t changed one bit, Princess.”
“Try being trapped all alone in this cramped palace. Tell me where else I’m supposed to find fun.”
With a look of annoyance, Dante took a seat next to King Peres.
Letier quietly sat at the far end of the table—and for some reason, that bothered him far more than it should have.
