Chapter 6.1

Chapter 6.1

Sensitive temperaments weren’t limited to the kind of screaming and destroying objects.

The Prince of the Lévretin Empire was famously known for being extremely sensitive, and his sensitivity wasn’t just fussy and overbearing. He tested and evaluated his opponents, measuring their limits. And if they didn’t meet his standards, he would become frighteningly ferocious.

The process was so coarse that it often drove people’s egos into the ground.

Rumors derived from it were, unsurprisingly, the worst, and the Prince’s notoriety quickly grew. Nevertheless, people flocked to his side because they knew that if they could only satisfy his foul temper once, the honeydew would fall.

Even the Prince was unaware of their intentions, so he didn’t act more lightheartedly but rather took advantage of their inner hearts.

Though he didn’t always test people for self-defense reasons, sometimes he preyed on people’s desires and envy as a stepping stone to resolve his temper.

Still, wasn’t it the benefit of that high power and outstanding appearance?

The handsome face beneath the blonde broke its expressionlessness and smirked. The sight of Ariel’s back as she ran out into the rain gave him a familiar sense of amusement.

‘My first target has a personality that’s too… difficult for me to handle. Would I be able to attack him?’

Ariel lamented.

Today’s weather was anything but typical. The rain was so strong that it was difficult to keep her eyes open, and the occasional rainstorm was often enough to make anyone stagger.

Ariel put her straightened hand over her brow, creating a ridge and scanned her surroundings. Still, the plunging droplets continued to obscure her vision. Her clothes were soaked within seconds of running out as she dragged her water-soaked dress through the darkened backyard until her legs felt like rocks.

‘…How could I find a gem the size of two knuckles when darkness was everywhere, and I could barely discern what was right in front of me?’

Ariel gasped in despair and hung her head.

It must have fallen to the ground. Even though she rolled my eyes diligently, there was no blue glimmer. The ground where the grass was trodden was all gritty.

‘Where should I start looking for…’

Dropping to her knees, Ariel groped the ground. It was a disgrace to her nobility, but she didn’t hesitate. Who could see her in this rain but the Prince, who was watching her from the doorway in the distance?

He must be looking at her. Regardless, she didn’t hesitate to do anything to be seen by him.

‘I’m doing all this, but what if he’s not the target?’

As a dizzying thought ran through her head, Ariel’s grip tightened. The reason why she endured this situation was that the probability of him being the target was very high. He was most definitely the target… He had to be.

‘If only I had a cell phone, I could check it…’

Even though she regretted leaving it in the room in case someone caught her and aroused suspicion, she couldn’t just go get her phone right now.

‘Stop thinking about it. It’s hard enough to focus on the task at hand.’

Even if he weren’t the target, it would be at least helpful to keep him in sight. The Prince’s connections would be valuable anywhere, so it would be useful for meeting other targets and advancing the story.

Despite struggling like a drowning mouse, Ariel became increasingly determined rather than miserable.

After a few minutes of gritting her teeth in bad weather like this, her whole body began to tremble. Not only that her skin turned ghostly pale and cold, but it felt as if she was being blown away by the rain.

Ariel raised her body up for a moment, almost like she was crawling on the ground.

The green dress she had spent fussing over in the morning was now covered in mud. Devastated, she felt sorry for Canon, who had done her best.

‘What’s the point of dressing up…’

In the end, all the decorations were for naught.

It wasn’t her appearance that she had to prepare to meet the prince… it was the patience to put up with his personality.

Ariel glanced back toward the mansion, stupefied.

Even though she could see the door with a light leaking through in the distance, she couldn’t tell if the Prince still stood there because the rain was falling hard, and it was difficult to see.

Still, she somehow thought he might still be there. The glimmer of light confirmed her suspicion. Because of that, she didn’t want to give up even more. Ariel didn’t want to go back empty-handed to the Prince, wanting to show him that she had worked this hard for him.

She needed to earn his trust.

Trudging through the mud while soaked in rainwater now just felt like her will. She had to find the sapphire, no matter how long it would take. Ariel wanted to finish what she had started.

In the rain, she bent down again.

Under the endless sky, the raindrops grew thicker.

Swiissshh—

The wind blew through the water, making a soft, eerie sound.

As the prince brought a chair to the door and sat down, water had soaked through the seats under the foot of the stairs, which were protected by the roof of the building’s porch. Sometimes, the water splashed even inside the mansion, so it was obvious what was happening outside.

He became strangely agitated.

‘How long is she going to look for it?’

What was supposed to be a boring ten-minute game had already passed the two-hour mark. Initially, he thought that the princess named Ariel would get tired first or that she would end it quickly because she was bored.

…But what is the situation now?

The diminutive princess, who looked as if she was about to break, didn’t return from the rain and wind. Was she obstinate or stupid?

The princess was one thing, but him waiting was another thing.

Even though he could have just ignored it as usual, he was still too worried about her to leave his seat.

Perhaps, it was because it was the first time he had seen the only daughter of a noble family behaving so desperately. To be honest, it was strange that she wanted his connections, clinging to menial tasks that only slaves would do.

‘But, is that really all…’

Another question ran through his head.

So far, those who have gone this far have made such great demands, but they never acted with their bodies until they had been thoroughly calculated and documented.

That was fundamental.

And yet, the princess just jumped into the heavy rain empty-handed without receiving any documentation. As the Countess said, it was clear that she was inexperienced and naive. So, she must have done this just to gain his trust with no promise of anything in return.

He should have laughed at her for being stupid… that was what he would have done under normal circumstances. But now, he wasn’t laughing at all. Whereas earlier, he had raised the corners of his mouth and watched the amount of work Ariel was doing, he was now biting his lip.

No one was to approach the area unless the imperial family called them… that meant that as soon as she gave up and came to this door crying, he would call for someone, and it’d be over before it got any worse.

Right now, he was hoping as if begging for it.

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