Chapter 51
She ended up not being friends with anyone.
“Ha.”
Maybe she should rethink this plan.
She pondered this as she languished in the exercise hell that punishes anyone who doesn’t walk at least two thousand steps a day.
“Arellin, why are you sighing?”
She doesn’t look like she is sighing now.
“Did you not sleep last night again?”
“No, I slept…”
“What did you eat?”
“I ate three good meals.”
“Did you stretch?”
“Yes, I did, twice.”
“Good job!”
Pession (the manager of Hell, the Crown Prince, a bit of a cutie) smiled broadly.
His smile was as bright as the morning sun and could melt an ice cap, but she still felt uncomfortable.
‘What is he smiling about?’
“Is he more… better than me, Aaron?”
“Arellin doesn’t like me, because she doesn’t…”
Pession disappeared and returned to his usual behavior.
She still remembers the darkened expression on his face, like he was hurt, and she didn’t know how to treat him because he was acting so casually.
Does she just treat him like normal?
‘No, how is that possible?!’
Doesn’t it bother her? Doesn’t it make her uncomfortable?
Whether or not he knew what she was thinking, Pession looked at her with a big smile.
“Arellin is a good girl today.”
“…”
“You’re not screaming for help.”
‘That’s because…’
It’s because she’s uncomfortable, man!
“Help me.”
“Yes. I’ll spare you.”
Pession laughed briskly.
“So let’s do one more lap.”
“You devil…!”
“For Arellin’s sake, it breaks my heart, but I can be a devil!”
“Don’t say that with a smile on your face, I know you’re actually enjoying it!”
“No, I’m not, it’s really hard and painful, just one more lap.”
“Alas, this is really the last one!”
“Yeah, yeah.”
She walked slowly, feeling her legs cramp up, and glanced at Pession.
‘Is he really okay?’
He was smiling the whole time, so she wasn’t sure.
“By the way, Arellin, why were you at the collection meeting yesterday?”
“Huh?”
“Well, the truth is, I saw you go back the other day, all pale, and I thought you wouldn’t come to the collection meeting again.”
Pession confessed that that was why he’d barged into Halbern Manor.
“So I was kind of, like, curious.”
She didn’t think she’d ever leave again, either.
‘Should I tell them I was out looking for a friend?’
The ultimate goal was to escape exercise hell.
“I’ll be honest,” she thought.
But!
He gave her that look yesterday, and she couldn’t say anything to hurt his feelings.
“…I just wanted to get out.”
She’s not good at public speaking, after all.
“It would be embarrassing if I didn’t go anymore.”
She glanced at Pession’s face.
“And it’s been a while since I’ve seen you outside of Halbern Manor.”
“Arellin…”
Pession blurted out, looking oddly impressed.
“Can I hug you?”
“No!”
“Just once!”
“Ew.”
Pession’s eyes were too bright. Hard to look away.
“Only once?”
“Arellin!”
Pession swept her up in a hug.
It felt different than when she was hugged by Mehen. The cool, clean scent of his perfume drowned out the chaos in her mind.
“You like it that much?”
“Yes!”
She really doesn’t understand.
Why does he like her so much? She was puzzled and intrigued by this unwavering affection. It’s so mysterious.
Pession’s eyes narrowed.
“But I still like it best when Arellin and I are alone.”
Suddenly, she was worried about Pession’s social skills.
“Then you’ll get bullied just like me.”
The Crown Prince’s little circle of friends.
These social gatherings, commonly referred to as collections, had no official name, but they were more important than most noblemen’s social clubs.
No wonder.
Originally, the role and title of “Prince’s Lover” was reserved for powerful families who had been in power for generations and were in a league of their own.
Traditionally, the person chosen to be the Crown Prince’s confidant traveled with him almost everywhere, and grew to become his confidant and loyal understudy.
In this case, the ‘friend’ was Aaron of the Dukes of Mubisk.
But.
“The Crown Prince needs to grow up with a wider range of people. If he’s going to lead the Empire, he needs to see the world.”
It was at this point that Empress Ageni suddenly opened up the position of Little Friend, once reserved for the great nobility and powerful families, and made it a social gathering.
There are only three criteria to become a Little Friend.
- be from a noble or powerful family.
- A genius in any field of endeavour.
- The Crown Prince’s recommendation.
Forty children were thus gathered.
The children were also divided into three categories.
First, the children of the great nobility.
“We’re treated the same as commoners? We are?”
“Even if you’re a genius, aren’t you still just a commoner with a brain?”
The second, the geniuses.
“Look at the way you rely on your bloodline.”
“You can’t do anything without family and power.”
“We’re different! We’re the real deal, the ones who have proved our worth through our own strength.”
The last group were the ones no one cared about.
Except for them, the first group and the second group had one goal in mind.
<To be a true friend of the crown prince.>
Any child who came to the collection meeting knew.
There were only three people who could truly be called the Crown Prince’s childhood friends.
Aaron from Mubisk and the twins from Sperom.
“I thought so, but…”
Recently, one more person was added.
‘Arellin Sigria Halbern.’
Arellin was the one who didn’t have a presence.
When she first came to the gathering, her Halbern bloodline drew attention, but only briefly.
“She’s a Young Lady of Halbern?”
“She’s pretty, but…”
“Why is she so different from the Confucius of Mubisk and the Sperom Lesser Devils?”
Her fragile presence and timid nature quickly drew attention away.
“My mum says they’re bastards.”
“He doesn’t know her.”
“She’s on her deathbed.”
The children didn’t hesitate to belittle and ignore Arellin. If anything, they bullied Arellin of Halbern even harder because they could speak ill of her.
But Arellin could only smile pale and laugh, unable to say a word.
So.
“Arellin, do you know anyone?”
The first time Arellin was mentioned in Pession’s mouth, no one came easily to mind.
“Who’s Arellin?”
“Is she one of the girls who comes here?”
“Do you know Arellin?”
“Who is Arellin and why is the Crown Prince looking for her like that?”
Occasionally, the children she ‘played’ with remembered Arellin.
“How does Your Highness know Arellin?”
In fact, the most negative reaction came when Arellin’s name came out of Pession’s mouth.
It must have been then.
Arellin had gone from nothing to something to be wary of.
“Don’t worry too much. I’m sure it’s nothing.”
“You’re right, Lady Leslie. There’s no way His Highness would take a liking to such a lowly girl.”
Lady Leslie, Marquise de Belfort, was a girl who had it all.
The only thing she lacked was that the Belfort were marquises, not dukes.
‘But it doesn’t matter.’
Of all the five duchesses, only Arellin is a young lady.
And aside from Arellin, there was no one of higher rank than Leslie.
“My daughter, you will be a Crown Princess.”
“No child is more worthy of the crown princess than you.”
“I will make sure you are.”
Leslie had never doubted that she would be a princess.
Her father, whom she honoured and loved, had assured her that she would, and everyone around her had said so.
‘But.’
Something had changed.
All because of Arellin, the one person they never thought would stand in their way.
Leslie glared at Arellin, who was still surrounded by the Crown Prince, Aaron, and the twins, and thought back to her answer at their last meeting.
“They take care of me from morning till night.”
“My manager from hell.”
Taking care of her from morning till night.
Her manager from hell?
She had to be kidding herself.
Did he think she wouldn’t realize he was secretly flaunting his closeness to the crown prince?
‘You think I’m gonna let that slide!’
Leslie stalked up to Arellin, intent on giving her a hard time. She was blatantly flirting with the crown prince.
“Lady Arellin.”
Gazes snapped to her.
Leslie smiled, pleased with the attention.
“Why don’t you come over and have a chat with us?”
An irresistible offer.
Now she wouldn’t be able to monopolise the i Prince and the Confuciuses all by herself!
But.
Arellin’s eyes, which had been pale for a moment, sparkled.
“Saviour…!”
“?!”
Leslie couldn’t understand why Arellin was so happy.
