Ch. 15:
After thinking for a moment, Liana bent the heel of her shoe. The shape was a little strange, but it was the only way she would be able to fit her bandaged feet inside of them.
‘It’s alright. Nobody will be able to see them under my maid uniform, anyways.’
Unlike earlier in the evening, when she had been very careful so as not to damage her new shoes, she stood up without worry. Her feet still throbbed, but it was much better than before.
Liana left the building with a much less noticeable limp, trying to remember how to get back. If she went straight and then around the fountain, she would definitely find the ballroom.
“…Huh?”
Liana was hurrying to the banquet hall when she saw a familiar head of silver hair. It was him- that ridiculous man!
The handsome foreigner standing in front of the fountain was the same man she had seen the last time she was here. The one who had asked her over and over to come to his room like some sort of perverted parrot.
He turned his head as if he sensed her hesitation, and Liana quickly lowered her head, hoping he wouldn’t recognize her. She didn’t want to get involved. Based on their previous interaction, she had little doubt he would insist on her company again.
Liana kept her head down as she walked past, praying he would say nothing, but it seemed the man had already seen her.
“Hello.”
Liana frowned at the man’s clumsy greeting. If she ignored him, he would surely follow her…
Turning around with a stony face, Liana returned the greeting bluntly. “Hello again.”
She merely intended to be polite and leave, but it seemed the man did not have the same intentions. Without hesitation, he walked towards her.
Because he was so tall, it took almost no time before he was standing right in front of her. The man with silver hair as pale as the moon and bright golden eyes peered down at Liana from where he towered above her.
It seemed he had been sitting by the fountain, for the smell of cold water mixed with the exotic scent that came from him.
‘He’s too close…’
Liana took a few steps back, feeling a little intimidated by his approach. The foreigner clearly still hadn’t learned about keeping a respectful distance from others.
“Ah!” Not looking where she was going, she had stepped on a wayward rock directly where her blister was. She staggered, losing her balance.
Behind her was a fountain. Just before she fell into the water, the man caught her. “Careful!”
Liana gasped. She had been moments away from getting soaked.
The man’s right hand had a firm grip on her wrist, and his left hand was around her waist. Liana turned her head to look at the fountain behind her and saw that it was made of pure white marble. If she fell in there, her problem wouldn’t have been getting wet; it would have been a concussion.
“Th-thank you…”
Liana turned to the man and thanked him, genuinely grateful that the pristine water hadn’t been stained with her blood. “Thank you so much. That could have killed me…”
As she regained her balance, the man slowly let go of his grip on her.
He wore exotic clothes that left his arms bare. Etaila was a desert kingdom in the west, so its garments were much lighter than those worn in the Empire. Unlike in Kadogan, where one was expected to cover one’s body and had to be heavily decorated, the man’s tunic was as simple as a piece of fabric.
Liana rubbed her wrist as she looked up at the copper-skinned man. Her conscience was too strong for her to just walk away from a man who had now helped her twice, even though both times had been her mistake.
“You help me every time we meet. How can I ever repay you..?”
“Hand.”
“What?”
Liana had been deep in thought searching for something to say, but she raised her head at his sudden remark. The man was pointing to her wrist, a look that seemed like anger on his face. “Hand.”
Belatedly, she looked at her arm. In his surprise it seemed the man had not properly controlled his strength, and a red handprint had been left behind.
No wonder her wrist was tingling. Even as she noticed the discomfort, Liana shook her head, unbothered. “It’s alright. It was an accident, and you were just trying to help.”
“Sorry.” It was now clear that what she thought had been a look of anger was actually guilt.
The large man apologized once more, his eyebrows lowered in contrition. “Sorry. Purpose.”
“…you mean it wasn’t on purpose? It’s okay, really.” Feeling more charitable towards him after he had apologized, she waved her hand casually.
The man, still looking distressed, pointed to the ground this time. “Feet.” He stared at Liana’s bandaged foot, frowning. “Fix.”
“It’s okay, I already fixed it.”
He continued to stare at her ankle for a while. He pursed his lips, hesitating, and after much deliberation spoke again. “Servant.”
“Servant?” Liana paused for a moment, confused at what he meant, before shaking her head. “I’m not a servant, I’m a maid.”
“I. Valet.”
“Oh. You’re a valet?”
“…Valet. Fix.”
“Oh! Yes, I will fix how I address you, Mr. Valet. I see, you serve one of the Etailan envoys, don’t you?”
She had wondered how he had come to be at the ball, but it seemed he was an attendant to one of the foreign visitors. In that case, he certainly wasn’t an incorrigible idiot like she had first thought. Relieved, Liana curtsied politely. “This comes quite late, but it’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Liana Siodo, and I serve a young lady from House Baldwin. Welcome to Kadogan.”
At her greeting, the man looked uncertain. After a moment’s hesitation, he responded, “Arcangelo von Etaila.”
Liana tilted her head. Wasn’t it true that only royalty could use their country’s name as a surname?
Then, she remembered Phoebe’s words. Her niece had said that it was funny how Etailan had a different word order than the Imperial language.
‘I guess the word ‘von’ means ‘from’!’
In that context, if the grammatical structure meant the verb was in the middle, the man’s words must mean ‘Arcangelo from Etaila’.
Not once considering the possibility that the man in front of her was royalty, she curtsied once more. “Thank you, Mr. Arcangelo. I am Liana Siodo of the Kadogan Empire. You can call me Liana.”
The servant continued to look uncertain. Sensing his predicament, she pointed at herself. “My name. Liana.”
“…..Riona.”
“No, it’s lee- ah- nah.” Liana said it one syllable at a time, going slowly and exaggerating the movement of her mouth to help his poor pronunciation.
Arcangelo stared at her lips for a moment before quickly turning his head, his ears red. “….Liana.”
“You got it! That’s right, Liana.”
The man muttered it to himself several times, as if trying to memorize it.
She watched him repeat her name with a strange feeling she couldn’t define before turning her gaze to the clock tower behind him.
“Oh! It’s this time already?” Even if Deborah was by Lady Natasha’s side, she had been gone far too long. Liana took a hurried step back, saying, “I have some work to do, so I’d better get going. Thank you again for your help, Mr. Arcangelo.”
As she turned to leave, Arcangelo frowned, blocking her way. He then pointed a finger towards the ballroom. “Valet.”
Liana looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a large man with copper-colored skin. Her eyes widened at the sight of another person wearing exotic clothes similar to Arcangelo’s.
“Ah, you’re his servant. Then is he an envoy from the kingdom of Etaila?”
“Me. Valet.”
“I see… As an envoy, he does look quite elegant, and his clothes are different from yours. Is the prince around here, too?”
The man spoke again, beginning to sound frustrated. “Valet. Fix it.”
“Yes, valet. Mr. Arcangelo is his valet.” The parrot asking her to come to his room last time seemed to have become a parrot telling her to fix it. Is he really so proud to be an attendant that he must keep correcting how I address him? Well, if he serves a noble high-ranking enough to serve as an envoy, he must hold status as well.
As if to disprove all of her thoughts, Arcangelo pounded his chest in frustration.
What the hell?! Liana quickly took a step back at the threatening behavior. Sensing danger, she spoke in a wary voice. “Well, then, Mr. Valet, please serve your master well. I must attend to my lady, so if you’ll excuse me.”
As she turned away, Arcangelo shifted his feet as if to follow her. The sound made Liana turn to face him again, and she pointed her finger at him sternly. “Don’t follow me!”
The man frowned and opened his mouth to speak, but Liana didn’t give him a chance. “I’ll scream if you do. I mean it, don’t follow me.”
The harsh warning stopped Arcangelo in his tracks. He watched as she walked away, occasionally glancing back at him suspiciously.
It was the second time he had to stare at the retreating back of the woman with wheat-colored hair.
“Master. Did you call?”
Haron, always a beat too late, kneeled in front of him. Arcangelo looked down, an irritated look on his face.
“Liana Siodo.”
“…What?” The servant’s eyes narrowed at his prince’s unexpected words.
“Liana Siodo, Lady Baldwin’s maid.” The fourth prince of the millenia-old kingdom of Etaila, his royal highness Prince Arcangelo von Etaila, swept his gaze over the area where Liana had disappeared.
Noticing his master’s gaze, Haron turned his head as well.
The prince, who had come to Kadogan with a mission of grace importance, smiled. He seemed amused, despite the burden he carried, as he said, “Liana, huh…”
TL/N: Here we go, the first substantial interaction with our 2nd male lead… I kinda love him already, rip ;-; Wonder how long it’s gonna take for her to realize he’s a prince lollll. Sorry for not updating Monday, I got super sick and just couldn’t get through it, but I hope you guys like this one! Things are getting interesting ^.^
