I was taken aback by the sudden appearance of a white rectangular window. I had no idea such a quest existed, as I hadn't participated in the hunting competition even in Normal Mode.
As I was pondering what to do, new text appeared in the white rectangular window.
〈SYSTEM〉 This is a main quest and will be automatically accepted in 5 seconds.
〈SYSTEM〉 5
〈SYSTEM〉 4
〈SYSTEM〉 3
With the countdown rapidly decreasing, I hastily pressed [Reject] without much thought.
The white rectangular window disappeared immediately. However, in its place...
"Long time no see, Lady."
A blood-red eyeball appeared.
'Crazy.'
I barely managed to suppress a scream that almost escaped reflexively. My eyes shook as if in an earthquake.
'How did he...!'
I had taken my eyes off the Crown Prince for just a moment to check the system window.
In that brief moment, he had approached silently.
The Crown Prince, leaning forward with his arms supporting his body on the opposite side of the table, looked at me with the eyes of a predator eyeing its prey and smiled.
His white teeth were visible between his red lips.
It was a scene more terrifying than a ghost, making my breath catch in my throat.
"I... I greet the Empire's Little Sun."
I forced out a trembling voice.
"It's quite hard to see your face."
"..."
"Your fever was said to be boiling due to the poison, are you feeling better now?"
Instead of acknowledging my greeting, he spoke of something else, his tone bordering on mockery.
It was true that I had suffered for a few days after he cut my neck.
I wanted to snap back that I wasn't feeling well, but I was a possessed person who valued my life.
"Thanks to your concern... I have fully recovered."
I strained to pull the corners of my mouth into a smile.
Then the Crown Prince said something that made me gasp.
"If I had asked you to visit me, I would have rushed over, putting everything aside."
"..."
"Even after waiting for so long, I never heard from you."
"Me? What...!"
How could he spout such terrifying nonsense so casually?
I shook my head frantically and desperately shouted something I didn't mean.
"How could I, a mere commoner, dare to summon the busy Crown Prince? I'm really fine, Your Highness. Really."
"That's disappointing. In a relationship that might develop into something more, isn't it acceptable to do that?"
"Me?!"
I finally understood what it felt like to faint.
'What is this guy talking about?'
I put aside my forced smile and, with trembling lips, asked.
"Who... who with?"
"Of course, me and the Lady."
Boom. I heard a thunderous ringing in my ears.
The Crown Prince, who had leaned in, stood up and walked around the table.
He then plopped down in the seat where Derrick had been sitting.
I froze. He rested his chin lazily on his hand, his blood-red eyes staring at me.
"You haven't forgotten our agreement, have you, Lady?"
"..."
"Didn't we agree that the next time we meet, you would explain in detail why, how, and for what reason you fell in love with me?"
He recited word for word what he had said when he let me go last time.
"Of course, you must have prepared your answer, right?"
"..."
"Go on, tell me."
The Crown Prince tilted his head, urging me to explain. At the same time, his radiant blonde hair began to shimmer.
[Goodwill 3%]
A mere 3%.
A value that could drop to a game over before he even drew his sword if I made a wrong move.
My vision went white.
"That... that..."
"There's no need to be embarrassed, just speak freely. After all, there's no one around to hear us."
As he said, no one was within a meter of the table.
They were all watching from a distance, fascinated by the meeting between the Crown Prince and the mad dog of the Duke's family.
"Hurry up and tell me."
The Crown Prince urged me again.
"That... well... it's just that..."
I desperately wracked my brain for something to say, tears of frustration welling up inside me.
'No matter how scared I was of dying, why did I say such ridiculous things?'
No matter how much I thought, I couldn't come up with anything to say.
We had only met twice.
Moreover, he had no redeeming qualities except for his striking hair color. What reason could there be?
"Lady."
The Crown Prince called me again. His voice had grown cold, as if he was losing patience.
"That... I'm sorry!"
I closed my eyes tightly.
Ah, I don't care anymore.
"I don't like the Crown Prince anymore."
"..."
The Crown Prince's eyebrow shot up.
I was afraid he might draw his sword at any moment. I rapped out my words like a machine gun.
"I realized that unrequited love should be abandoned early as a sign of respect for the other person."
"..."
"I'm truly sorry for causing you trouble with my one-sided feelings, Your Highness! I plan to find a more realistic and suitable person for my position."
My mind was a whirl of fear.
"I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry..."
I muttered these words and delivered my speech quite successfully without stuttering.
'Everyone must have heard that.'
I made sure to speak loudly.
Love can change.
No matter how capricious the Crown Prince might be, he wouldn't kill a lady apologizing in front of all the nobles, right?
Even if this game had a baseless story, they wouldn't have set him as such a madman.
But I was wrong.
"Ha!"
After a long silence, the Crown Prince suddenly burst into a loud, hollow laugh.
"Have you found someone else already?"
"..."
"Who is it?"
Swoosh.
Suddenly, he stood up and drew the sword from his waist.
Indeed, a madman who brought a combat sword to a hunting competition.
"Tell me who you whispered your love to this time with that seductive mouth of yours."
His blood-red eyes glared at me sharply.
The tip of his sword, poised to strike me at any moment, emitted a chilling aura.
'Damn, why is this game like this!'
I screamed inwardly.
"I don't have a very good temper, Lady."
"..."
"So it's better to answer quickly."
"Ah, I haven't decided who to love yet..."
I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead and reluctantly replied.
[Goodwill 4%]
It was a decent answer, as my goodwill increased by 1%. But I wasn't happy at all.
While the number above my head increased, the Crown Prince's eyebrows twitched menacingly.
"Is love, as you describe it, really that easy and light, Lady?"
"Yes."
Afraid of giving him another excuse, I answered quickly.
"I tend to fall in love easily..."
"Does that mean there are better men in the Empire than me?"
"Um..."
It was true. Everyone except him was fine.
But I felt that answering that way would be disastrous.
As I hesitated, the Crown Prince dramatically clutched his chest.
With the hand holding the sword.
"You're really too much, Lady. I've been looking forward to this day, losing sleep over it."
The sword grazed his face dangerously.
As I stared at him, feeling like I was looking at a madman, someone appeared as if sent by fate.
"What are you doing?"
"Brother!"
A shield that had left me heartlessly had arrived.
It seemed as if a halo was shining behind Derrick as he walked toward me.
'Why did you come now?'
I muttered a cry in my heart and hurriedly hid behind him.
"Oh, it's the young Duke."
The blood-red eyes that had been staring at me strangely finally acknowledged him.
Derrick was unexpectedly hostile toward the Crown Prince.
"What are you doing, Your Highness?"
"I was having a close conversation with my sister."
"With a sword drawn?"
"Oh, this?"
The Crown Prince glanced at the sword he had drawn and grinned.
"It's nothing. There are always flies buzzing around in the forest."
He swished the sword a couple of times in the air as if to catch a fly and then sheathed it.
From a distance, it might have looked like a cool trick, but to me, he just looked like a madman.
"Has Penelope offended Your Highness in any way?"
Derrick asked coldly, apparently sharing my thoughts.
"Offended..."
The Crown Prince stroked his chin thoughtfully and then snapped his fingers.
"That's right. She has committed a grave offense."