Chapter 6

The Duchess Valencia was faced with a very embarrassing situation from the morning.

Although she was a bit late due to the alcohol she drank yesterday, she had simply come to have breakfast with her daughter Rebecca as usual.

“…”

“…”

She never imagined she would see her daughter eating breakfast with her mouth slightly open.

The one feeding her daughter breakfast was none other than Prince Albert.

Perhaps because Count Zernias and his wife had collapsed after drinking with her and her husband, Prince Albert had to stay here for another day.

But she didn’t expect they had already become so close that he was feeding Rebecca.

She still remembered how Rebecca had said something rude to Prince Albert yesterday.

And Rebecca’s face, red as a ripe apple, seemed to know exactly what she was doing.

Feeling pleased by this, she watched for a moment but then quickly thought she should leave.

If she stayed any longer, they wouldn’t make any progress.

“Have a good time.”

“…”

Leaving just that one sentence, she hurried off to her husband.

She wanted to share this joyful news with him.

“Finally… our Rebecca has grown up…”

It wasn’t until much later that Rebecca found out this news had reached her father as well.

***

In the dining room of the Valencia Duchy Mansion after the Duchess had left.

“…”

I was blankly staring at the door the Duchess had exited through.

‘What timing…’

Why did the Duchess have to come in at that exact moment?

Originally, I had planned to feed Rebecca and slowly enjoy her embarrassed reaction.

But when the Duchess suddenly entered, I was so startled that I froze.

“Have a good time.”

After briefly looking at me and Rebecca, who were frozen like statues, the Duchess left with those mysterious(?) words.

The result was a dining room filled with silence.

It wasn’t loud to begin with, but at least Rebecca and I would occasionally bicker.

Now, it was just eerily quiet.

‘…What about Rebecca?’

I started to worry about the princess, who hadn’t said a word.

Rebecca’s face, which had turned red the moment she noticed the Duchess entering, was still flushed.

“…”

She covered her face with both hands, as if she didn’t want me to see it.

Seeing her like that…

“Princess, didn’t you say earlier that it didn’t matter?”

I couldn’t help but tease her more.

It was like giving poison instead of medicine to someone already in pain.

But since I’m someone who holds grudges and, as Rebecca said, this situation was really bothering me, I didn’t think much of it.

“…”

Rebecca glared at me silently, her hands now lowered, but the blush on her face remained.

“You clearly said earlier that it didn’t bother you…”

“Is this fun for you?”

Rebecca’s cold voice and the icy atmosphere that began to fill the dining room.

Caught off guard by the sudden change, I stupidly asked back.

“…Huh?”

“Is this situation fun for you?”

As she said this, tears welled up in Rebecca’s eyes.

And I instinctively realized.

‘…I’m in trouble.’

I had gotten too carried away teasing the princess and had crossed the line.

Thinking about it, we had only known each other for two days, even though we had already fought so much that it felt familiar.

The blush on Rebecca’s face wasn’t just from embarrassment—it was clear she was on the verge of tears.

“Someone is so embarrassed they could die after being seen like that by their mother.”

“…”

“And you were having fun teasing that someone?”

“…”

“…I really hate you.”

With those final words, Rebecca left the dining room, just like her mother, the Duchess Valencia.

SLAM!

Of course, unlike the Duchess, who quietly closed the door, Rebecca slammed it shut.

After Princess Rebecca left, I was overwhelmed with a very troubled feeling.

“…What do I do?”

I only wanted to tease her, not make her cry.

I just wanted to tease her back since she was having fun teasing me.

“Why did you do that, you idiot.”

I hit my own head in frustration.

I crossed the line for no reason. Because of me, the princess couldn’t even finish her breakfast…

‘…Breakfast?’

Looking at the food Rebecca had left behind, a good idea came to mind.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if this would work on the sulking princess. But calming the princess who had left in tears was the priority.

I immediately put my thoughts into action.

***

In a luxurious room filled with extravagant decorations and furniture.

The room’s colors were mostly pink and red, similar to its owner.

“…”

The owner of the room, Princess Rebecca, was lying face down on the bed.

In her mind, she was replaying the events that had just happened.

After thinking it over, she concluded that she might have been a bit too harsh.

She was the one who started teasing, and she was the one who made the provoking remarks.

But when her fiancé did the same, she ended up crying and saying she really hated him. It was very unlike her.

But even so, she had her reasons.

Her fiancé, who actually fed her when she told him to.

At first, she thought it was just a joke, a retaliation for her teasing.

But how could she have known he would actually come over and feed her soup?

Even her heart, which she couldn’t control, was pounding.

With her heart racing, she obediently opened her mouth like a baby bird being fed by its mother and ate it.

Just yesterday, they were fighting so much.

Didn’t she vow to get revenge, hitting the sofa cushions in frustration?

Surely, she should hate her fiancé…

So why was her heart beating so fast just now?

In fact, this was another reason she had run out of the dining room.

Of course, being caught in such an embarrassing situation by her mother and Albert’s teasing were also factors.

But more than anything, she couldn’t admit to her heart racing so wildly.

She couldn’t admit to herself that she had obediently eaten the soup like a baby bird or that her heart was racing because of her fiancé.

So she ran away.

She seriously thought she needed to reconsider her ideal type.

Her fiancé wasn’t ugly, but he wasn’t exceptionally handsome either.

Far from treating her warmly, he had been openly hostile from their first meeting.

He wasn’t particularly handsome, didn’t say warm words, and didn’t stand out in any way that would catch her attention.

So why was her heart racing so much?

Could it be that she had fallen for her fiancé…?

SLAP!

She slapped her own cheeks.

It was a punishment for her head for even thinking such nonsense.

How could she have fallen for that annoying fiancé? What nonsense.

Instead of treating her well, he had immediately started a fight and even brought up annulment.

But then again, the shock of crying earlier must still be affecting her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be having such ridiculous thoughts.

Remembering that she had cried earlier, her mood darkened again.

She remembered Albert looking at her at the end.

His expression, usually smug, was genuinely panicked this time.

He probably hadn’t expected her to suddenly burst into tears.

And after she told him she really hated him, it was only natural he would be hurt.

In a way, it was a good thing.

Just yesterday, she had wanted to annul the engagement so badly that she was determined to win their staring contest.

Even though Albert had used a cheap trick to win, her determination showed how much she wanted to annul it.

If her fiancé was hurt by her, maybe he would convey his intention to annul without any further confrontations.

It was a good thing.

But despite thinking it was a good thing, her heart felt heavy.

It should have been a good outcome.

It should have been what she wanted.

So why did her heart feel so stifled?

Knock knock-

Just then, she heard a sound from outside the door.

“Dorothy?”

At this time, the only person who would come to her room was her maid, Dorothy.

So she called out to her maid, asking what was wrong.

“It’s me.”

But the voice that answered was that of her fiancé, Albert Zernias, who had been filling her thoughts just moments ago.

“…What is it?”

“I came to apologize for earlier.”

Hearing her fiancé say he had come to apologize.

Ignoring her heart, which had started racing again.

“…Come in.”

She allowed her fiancé to enter her room.

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