CH 18

A few days later, I was attending a party celebrating the return of Prince Aiden Rolaud who had been away from the royal palace for six months.

While the party was being held, a delicate tension was flowing around the royal family, the supposed main actors of the event.

Despite the subtlety, there was no doubt that the cause was His Highness Feld.

“…He’s with Baroness Abazn, again.”

“…It seems that he’ll be late as usual.”

Perhaps because the king and the queen had already given up, they looked a bit moody.

However, the second prince was different.

“…To delay public affairs for the mere reason of playing with a baroness, what the hell is my brother thinking? Why would he leave mother and father alone?”

The second prince, who hadn’t been informed of anything, approached the king and the queen with a frustrated expression.

His fiancée, Duchess Natalie Melliere, was anxiously watching the situation unfold. I approached her.

“Everything will be alright, Duchess Melliere. They’ll surely understand where the second prince is coming from.”

“That’s fine, but…”

“Worrying won’t achieve a thing. Would you talk with me for a change?”

“Sure.”

The Duchess of Melliere nodded, so we started walking together.

After we had walked around for a while, we returned to the venue. It was nearing the end of the party. The amount of people had lessened. That was when I stopped and whispered to her.

“Duchess of Melliere, despite the many rumors swirling around us, keep this in mind—His Highness the Second Prince and I will remain friends for the rest of our lives.”

“What does that mean… no, could it be?”

“Now, I don’t know what you’re referring to, but I want you to stand next to the second prince and support him firmly.”

“…Is it alright? To be honest, I didn’t expect that from you…”

“The only thing I can say is that His Highness the Second Prince and I are friends. It’s not the kind of friendship His Highness has with Baroness Abazn—it’s real.”

When I said that and smiled, Duchess of Melliere nodded with a bitter smile.

“I understand. I will do my best to stand next to Aiden.”

“There’s nothing for you to worry about, Duchess of Melliere. However, let me warn you—His Majesty might tell you a nasty story. Still, be assured.”

“Fufu, I now understand why you called out to me.”

“Well, it’d be troublesome if Duchess Melliere ended up misunderstanding and casted me away. So, please…”

“Alright, I will return to Aiden.”

“Yes, follow His Highness the Second Prince.”

When I thanked the lady and smiled, the Duchess of Melliere also thanked me and returned to the second prince.

I was relieved by Duchess of Melliere’s response.

“Another problem has been cleared up. Alright, that leaves me with the most cumbersome task.”

While muttering, I spotted the crown prince of the neighboring country. He was wandering around the corner of the garden with an escort.

His black hair was shaved, and his appearance was rugged. To put it bluntly, he didn’t look like a prince.

He’s as the second prince described…

Well, it didn’t matter how he looked like.

I had to warn him of the imminent danger.

With that in mind, I went to approach the crown prince of the neighboring country—Aldam Neonhart. Of course, I didn’t forget to politely bow towards him.

“Good day to you, Crown Prince Aldam Neonhart. My name is Violet, also known as the Duchess of Samaria. By the way, it seems that the party isn’t to your liking…”

When I said that and smiled, the crown prince of Neonhart was visibly surprised. His servant, who had long black hair, put his hand under his chin.

Honestly, I was worried that I had approached him at a bad time. But immediately, Prince Neonhart smiled.

“Haha, I’m merely nervous from having just arrived to this kingdom. However, it sure was worthwhile. I was approached by such an enchanting woman.”

“My, His Highness the Crown Prince of Neonhart is such a charmer.”

I was relieved by his answer.

Good.

Maybe, I can start conversing with him.

While I was contemplating, the crown prince of Neonhart scratched his head and smiled.

“Whenever I say such things, ladies scatter right away. I’m glad that Duchess of Samaria is different.”

“I’m sure the ladies who escaped are blind to your personality. I envy His Highness Neonhart for being able to eliminate shallow people right away.”

When I said that, the crown prince of Neonhart laughed boisterously.

“Hahaha! That’s one way to see it. This is such a great learning experience.”

His Highness Neonhart laughed for a while, until his servant jabbed him with his elbow.

“…I’m sorry, that was unsightly of me.” He said while lowering his head.

“I don’t think so. After laughing so much, you must be thirsty. Let me fetch you a drink.”

I signaled to Luria, who was far away. She proceeded to bring me a glass of champagne on a tray.

That was when I realized how tense both the crown prince and his servant looked.

I inadvertently tilted my head.

Why are they becoming so guardedt…?

While the crown prince of Neonhart did ingest a drink laced with poison, that wasn’t to until a month before the graduation party. It shouldn’t have happened, yet…

…Or was he inherently a cautious person?

But then, how did he end up drinking the poison in the end?

When I was thinking about that, the servant slowly reached the glass as he began to stare at me. So, I took a quick sip of the glass in front of the servant and smiled.

“It isn’t poisoned.”

When I returned the glass to the surprised servant, the servant also gave the glass to the crown prince after taking a sip.

“It’s alright, Your Highness.”

“I see, thank you…”

Crown Prince Neonhart was relieved and drank the champagne with a smile.

“Forgive me, when I came to the Kingdom of Rolaud, I accidentally drink something that ruined my stomach, ahaha…”

“…I see, if that’s the case, then I have something good for you.”

I took out a pouch from my pocket and showed it to the two.

“There’s a small piece of paper inside. Try placing it within each drink you’re about to have. If it’s harmful for your body, the color will turn red. You needn’t worry about ruining your stomach anymore.”

As soon as I said that, the servant took the pouch and bowed to me.

“…This is a great help.”

“All I require you to do in exchange is to never tell a soul about the existence of the pouch.”

“Of course.”

The servant replied, nodded, and jabbed the crown prince with his elbow again.

In a hurry, the crown prince bowed.

“Thank you, Duchess of Samaria.”

“No, it’s nothing. Then, I shall greet the others.”

I said so and tried to leave with a bow. But I stopped immediately, and the surprise on my face was apparent because I didn’t have time to conceal it with a fan.

It was because His Highness was walking over.

Moreover, with his entourage…