“Louise! ”
Someone called from outside, so I didn’t have to answer Ren’s difficult question.
“Louise! Has anyone seen the Princess?! ”
Even without confirming, I knew the owner of the voice was Lurick.
Although it was clear he was about to cause a scene, Ren immediately got up and opened the door.
“Your Highness. ”
Although his voice wasn’t loud, Lurick’s shouting abruptly stopped.
Before I could even figure out what kind of magic Ren had used, the door burst open with a bang.
“How dare you let the Princess lie in your bed?!”
At the same time, Lurick lunged at Ren.
Even though Ren could have easily defended himself, he allowed himself to be caught.
” ……She wasn’t feeling well, and since I didn’t know her accommodations, I did what I had to do. ”
“Is that the truth?”
Lurick asked ferociously without even looking back at me.
Exhausted just from watching the two of them, I muttered.
“……It’s true, brother. ”
He let go of Ren and walked towards the bed with heavy footsteps.
“We were supposed to go for a walk together! The maid said you were going with me! What in the world is going on?!”
His words made my face turn pale, and I asked,
“The maid? I must have been confused because I wasn’t feeling well today. I sent the maid…… What did you do to her? ”
Lurick frowned.
His blood-red eyes trembled with anger.
“Are you saying the maid is the problem now? You called me all the way to the waterfall, and you were lying in the Mage Tower Master’s room?”
“Your Highness! ”
Just then, Phoebe appeared and bravely blocked the Prince’s path.
“P, Please kill me! It’s my fault. I made a mistake and conveyed the message incorrectly. ”
“……Ha! ”
However, my eyes couldn’t see the male lead who was burning with anger, nor the maid who was risking her life to save me.
‘𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘢.’
I was so worried that Lurick, in his anger, might have hurt her, might have treated her harshly.
Because, more than anything else, both Lurick and I needed her right now.
“Brother, what did you do to her? Helena, what did you do to that maid? ”
🔹🔹🔹
At that moment, Helena appeared with a ragged breath.
“Your Highness! Your Highness, are you alright?”
In that instant, Phoebe slapped Helena across the face in front of everyone.
The sharp sound pierced through the precarious room.
“You should have taken better care of Her Highness!”
I was so startled, my heart nearly leaped out of my chest.
Of course, Phoebe knew I was supposed to meet with Helena.
‘𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩.’
As I was thinking this, my eyes met Phoebe’s.
The faithful maid was trembling, her face full of distress.
Seeing her like that, I understood why Phoebe had stepped forward.
‘𝘚𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘢𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬’𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳.’
My brother had a temper that could have a servant beheaded if he wished, so Phoebe must have acted courageously to prevent a bigger scandal at the monastery.
‘𝘐𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘵, 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥.’
Helena didn’t offer any excuses.
She simply knelt down and begged for forgiveness.
“……I apologize.”
Her usually neat attire was disheveled.
Perhaps lost during her hurried arrival, the camellia I had placed in her hair was gone.
In that small room, with everyone angry and fuming, I had to accept that this trip had gone terribly wrong.
🔹🔹🔹
It was natural, of course, that Lurick would be the first to leave the room in that awkward atmosphere.
‘𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘢 𝘯𝘰𝘸.’
I couldn’t let my extremely agitated brother go like that.
So I spoke while still lying in bed.
“Don’t go, brother.”
“……What?”
Lurick turned to me with a belligerent look in his eyes, as if daring me to try. But I couldn’t back down.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise. I must have been confused because I wasn’t feeling well this evening.”
Phoebe looked at me urgently.
It was a clear sign to let Lurick go and wait for his anger to subside, but I ignored it.
“But it’s true that I collapsed from dizziness. It’s not Ren’s, Phoebe’s, or Helena’s fault. Why are you angry at everyone and leaving without even caring that I’m sick?”
It was a counterattack, but there was no other way.
‘𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘓𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬.’
Phoebe gasped as if she were about to faint, but I looked straight at Lurick.
“Aren’t you worried that I’m sick?”
“How could…….”
Finally, Lurick took a step toward me.
An instinctive fear surged through me as he got closer.
The man in front of me was too dangerous right now.
“How could you dare say such a thing?”