Chapter 81

Chapter 81

Florence was despondent. This emotion had constantly followed her like shadows ever since she embraced the grand honor of being the Crown Princes fiance.

When Richard first nominated Florence as his fianc, she was full of dreams.

She felt like she wanted to boast to everyone that she would become the partner of that noble man and, in reality, sometimes did so.

All the young ladies were jealous of Florence yet feared being out of her favor; the world seemed already half hers. She really thought so back then.

But it wasnt.

It didnt take long for Florence to snap out of her delusion.

Despite the fact that Richard chose her himself, he was always indifferent to her.

Whenever she visited him, he would always brush her off, saying he was busy, and he never cared about her stance in public events.

If she could have considered him merely as a partner of a political marriage, it would have been easier for her. But Florence loved him.

That was the root of all the tragedies she faced.

Because she loved Richard, Florence tried to understand him, no matter how cruel he was to her. She thought she could understand.

She knew from the start what kind of person he was.

Richard was inherently a beautiful but unpredictable man.

He possessed angelic beauty, to the extent that there were jokes saying that the most beautiful woman in the empire was the Crown Prince, but the nature hidden beneath his skin was greatly twisted.

Sensitive to others mistakes, he often replaced his subordinates and always showed arrogance in front of his ministers.

Many ministers raised their voices claiming he was not fit to rule the country, but as the emperor only had him as a child in the palace, such nominal opposition had no meaning.

Richard was a bad person to everyone equally, and with that thought, he wasnt particularly cruel to her.

Florence found solace in just that fact.

Until she learned that there was an exception to Richard.

Iona Modrov.

The Crown Princes escort knight,

His own loyal dog who had served Richard from a young age,

A woman who, always with an expressionless face, looked even more beautiful like a doll

When Florence first met Iona, she didnt pay much attention to her.

Florences maids expressed considerable concern that the princes close aide was a young and pretty woman, but after actually seeing her, Florence was rather relieved.

If Richard was the type to show hostility to everyone, Iona was the opposite, indifferent to everyone equally.

She didnt even seem to be sincerely devoted to Richard.

She didnt have the passionate zeal that one with blind loyalty to their lord would typically emit.

Even if questioned why she followed, she could excuse it by saying she went out to play in the water; thus, there was nothing to worry about.

The maids, excited, started preparing to go out immediately.

Once the maids and a few serving girls gathered, a plausible excursion procession was formed.

Florence rode a white horse, whose fur shone brilliantly, and headed straight for the lake.

Once they arrived at the destination, realizing it was too much to bring everyone along, Florence ordered them to play in the water and started looking around alone.

The thought of possibly being scolded when encountering Richard made her anxious belatedly.

If Richard was glad to see her, she planned to bring him to the water play spot. If not, she intended to act as if she hadnt seen him and withdraw discreetly.

Florence found Richard when she had circled about half the periphery of the lake.

The sound of talking nearby caught Florences ear.

Like being drawn in, Florence approaching the direction of the sound, felt Iona turning around and unconsciously hid behind a tree.

Why is that?

I think I heard someone.

Dont do that, come sit next to me, its an order.

Its hard to respond to sudden attacks in a seated position.

Even if were attacked unexpectedly, Ill sacrifice you and run away quickly. So sit down with ease.

Iona hesitated, as if persuaded by those ridiculous remarks.

Seizing the opportunity, Richard grabbed her hand and pulled her.

Losing her balance, Iona fell over the cloth laid on the ground.

Iona tried to get up again, but Richard didnt let her go.

... I will sit, so please let me go.

Relax your shoulders and take a nap if you can. I will let you go once you seem to be relaxed.

I came here to escort Your Highness.

Are you defying my orders?

To anyone, it was clear that Richard was being unreasonable, but his unreasonableness had authority.

Eventually, Iona did as Richard ordered, lying next to him and closing her eyes.

--- End Of The Chapter ----

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