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Even though she was horrified inside, it had already happened. Selina smiled shyly and clung to the Crown Prince’s arm.
“Ah. Your Highness, you surprised me.”
“You asked me for an escort, and now you’re so surprised.”
“I’m sorry, I don’t know what to do.”
A pleasant smile lingered on the Crown Prince’s lips. It was a good thing. It seemed that he was trying to drive Selina into her corner.
Meanwhile, Kalcion was blowing the winter wind alone from a little distance away.
While Kalcion, who did not yield at all to the Crown Prince, was still Kalcion, the Crown Prince, who pretended not, was really evil. Even though he usually appeared alone without a partner, he did the same thing as announcing that ‘I’m interested in this woman.’
…Especially with Kalcion’s public lover.
If this was not a quarrel, what was it? It was as if he slapped Kalcion on the cheek first, saying that whether he owned this woman or not, the Crown Prince could keep her by his side if he wanted to.
On the contrary, for the sake of justification, anyone could be a partner, whether it be the Crown Prince or anyone else, so the one who argued that it made them feel bad would become the narrow-minded fool.
Fortunately, there was no sword on Kalcion’s waist.
Although there must have been at least one weapon hidden somewhere in his body, he thought somewhere that there was no knife to pull out right away. Still, not having a knife does not mean there are no problems because he was glaring at the Crown Prince with his eyes instead of a knife.
As he was attacked by Kalcion’s bloody eyes, the Crown Prince’s eyes were curved in satisfaction.
The feeling of being used as a tool to touch Kalcion’s temper was just dirty. But at the same time, Selina was also thinking of using the Crown Prince, so she was fine with it. As she thought so, Selina, who did not forget her original purpose and saw Rosalyn, smiled with joy quietly.
Rosalyn was glaring at Selina with eyes that were worse than Kalcion’s.
“Oh my, what is it? Why is His Highness with that woman…”
“What is this? The one who always entered without a partner…”
“Even if he was going to bring a partner, it should be Miss Rosalyn. How can that be? She is a low-class vulgar woman.”
The people around Rosalyn whispered, but she smiled. She didn’t even seem to be in the mood to respond. However, seeing Rosalyn’s trembling fists even from a distance, it was obvious how hot she was on the inside.
Nonetheless, her accumulated resentment was not so shallow that she was satisfied and withdrew.
“How can I dare to act like Your Highness’s partner?”
“If you are the one who won first place in each competition, shouldn’t you be able to take my escort, who is the highest in status, as a matter of course?”
“If Your Highness says so…I guess so. I can just be comfortable with it, right?”
Selina squinted at Roselyn once more, who was slightly biting her tongue and shrinking her shoulders. While Selina felt sick to her stomach at her excessive charm, which did not fit her personality, seeing the shaking Rosalyn was refreshing. There was no other reward better than this.
Even though she wanted to do more, she stopped because she felt it would be a battle of patience between Kalcion and Rosalyn if she went any further. This was enough to provoke Rosalyn.
“I am thirsty, so I will go get something to drink. Thank you for the escort, Your Highness.”
“Yes, see you later.”
Saying so, the Crown Prince kissed Selina’s hand and turned away. People immediately surrounded him and lined up to say hello.
In the meantime, Selina stepped out of the crowd, took a glass, and wandered around the garden where it was relatively secluded.
Perhaps she had been waiting, Rosalyn approached.
“You…!”
It was a growl.
She knew Rosalyn was agitated, but it looked like her eyes were turned upside down as she didn’t keep her politeness as she usually was. In the unusual atmosphere, the attendant who was guarding the table quietly noticed and withdrew.
“Oh, Miss Rosalyn. What can I help you with?”
Selina laughed innocently, the way Rosaline always did.
“I can’t let you see someone who doesn’t know your place any longer. How could someone like you hang around next to the Crown Prince?”
“Someone like me?”
“Do you still have to ask? It is still impossible for you to understand your place. You act like a duchess, but you’re not engaged, you’re just a mistress. Mistress.”
As long as she knew Kalcion’s heart, it tickled her to hear those words. She wasn’t hurt at all.
“Isn’t it the same for you that you couldn’t even get the position of the Duchess, Miss Rosalyn? By the way, I don’t think you’ll get that spot just because I’m looking for another spot.”
Rather, those words were also Rosalyn’s weakness. The Duchess and the Crown Princess, all of which Rosalyn was aiming for but could not get. Selina, someone who didn’t need to be considerate of her, dug into her sore spot without mercy.
“I turned it down because I knew my place, but is it okay just to keep refusing? As you said, the Duke and I are not married. After all, you have to go to the wedding hall to know whom he will end up with.”
If Rosalyn took the place of Duchess Renbird as she originally planned, someone would surely become the Crown Princess. Still, it seemed that she couldn’t tolerate it if it were Selina.
Rosalyn finally exploded.
The glass she was holding flew toward Selina.
‘Normally, isn’t it just the contents that come flying at times like this…?!’
If she had been splashed with water, she would have been hit even if she had stopped though the glass flew, and Selina was able to evade the whole glass.
The glass on the back of her hand flew towards Rosalyn.
Rosalyn, unlike Selina, didn’t have the motor nerves to stop the flying glass. Fortunately, the angle was off, and the glass hit the chest of her dress, not the face. As it was made of thing glass, the glass shattered with a crash sound as soon as it touched her chest.
“This, this…”
As Rosalyn’s dress, dressed in an innocent white, was stained with reddish stains, she got tearful.
“You dare! How dare you…!”
She yelled like a madman and lunged at Selina with her arms outstretched. Selina had expected it from the archery context the other day, but even Rosalyn seemed to have learned some martial arts, so she thought she would attack with brute force.
Unfortunately, Selina was no ordinary lady. She was the owner of unusual stamina and skills, training every morning with Kalcion, the strongest in the world. Because of that, she easily avoided Rosalyn’s attack by moving one foot.
Rosalyn’s hand, which should have been grabbing Selina’s hair, lost its direction, and she fumbled. However, Selina had no reason to help her.
“Uuhh, uh!”
Falling on her torso, Rosalyn’s arms outstretched like a little child. It was so shocking that the haughty and elegant image she had built up so far collapsed at once. Meanwhile, it seemed that she couldn’t get herself up, as if she herself was in shock as well.
“Oh, my goodness.”
Although they were in the back where people could not see them, there were also people who leisurely wandered around the garden. Those who happened to pass by and discover the disaster were surprised to see Rosalyn lying on the floor but did not come to help.
One person was surprised to see the scene, while the others were like, “What’s going on?” and flocked.
Only then did Rosalyn get her body up in haste and disappear behind the tall garden trees, running away.
“Oh my God, what is that supposed to be?”
“There is nothing more unsightly than collapsing on your own while overdoing it.”
She heard people whispering.
People were already feeling keenly that Rosalyn’s power was getting weaker and weaker. Naturally, their unconditional support was bound to fade. It was a criticism to her opponent, but Selina didn’t want to hear it either so she walked away.
It felt bitter.
* * *
The Crown Prince appeared in front of Rosalyn, who was wandering through the garden.
“Your Highness!”
Rosalyn ran with a tear-stained face. She forgot that her face and dress were covered in dirt. Her face, in particular, was a mess, as if she had washed her face with mud as it was smeared with tears and snot.
The Crown Prince stopped one step ahead and glanced at her with a troubled look.
“Rosalyn, what is wrong with you?”
“That, Selina… Selina insulted me and took her glass and threw it, and even tripped me over.”
Rosaline wept bitterly.
“She did something so violent? As expected from where she is from, her behavior is also unbelievable.”
The Crown Prince cursed Selina, frowning. Even though he didn’t come and hug her, the comforting words that flowed from his mouth were as sweet as always.
Gazing at the man in front of her with white clothes, Rosalyn couldn’t bear to rush in and hug him.
Whenever she wanted to meet him, he always allowed her an audience and he smiled and forgave trivial grievances, but his kindness ended there. She never asked for more… no, she couldn’t ask for more.
Rather than getting rejected, she didn’t do anything to get rejected.
No matter how intimate they were, there was a line that couldn’t be crossed. The line existed between parents and children as well as between husband and wife. It was a very natural line.
Suddenly, she wanted to cross that line.
Wasn’t she close enough to say that she and the Crown Prince were close? They were a solid union of destiny that couldn’t even be concluded with light words like lovers.
“How long are you going to leave Selina alone? It is very difficult for me to endure this humiliation.”
Selina was just a means to annoy Kalcion. She was a passing woman. He could fool around with her and when her usefulness was over, he would throw her away… He would throw her away someday, so there was no big deal if the date was sped up a little.
“Well…”
However, the Crown Prince did not give an immediate answer. Rosalyn blinked her eyes in disbelief when he smiled vaguely as if troubled and blurred out his words.
“…Your Highness? Why don’t you give me a confirmation?”
“I’m still thinking about it.”
“Thinking…about it?”
The world in her head that had found its solid foundation cracked.