Chapter 41

“I probably won’t be the one to approach the Princess first.”

“…”

After hearing my words, the Princess, who had been staring at me with her mouth agape as if she had heard something shocking.

“…What is that?”

She quickly composed her expression and gave me a blank look.

As if to say that even if you did something like that, it wouldn’t affect me at all, as if it didn’t matter to me whether you did it or not.

“What does it matter to me if you don’t approach first?”

Even though she had clearly said that she had stayed by my side out of worry while I was unconscious from the poison arrow, it was so like Rebecca not to admit it in this situation.

She truly was the Princess with the highest pride.

“…Is that so?”

I had no intention of losing to Rebecca either.

If she says it doesn’t matter, then there’s no reason for me to insist.

Of course, I already knew that the Princess, who was full of pride, was just saying things she didn’t mean because she didn’t want to lose.

“Then today, I will follow the Princess’s wishes.”

“…Huh?”

“Today’s banquet is for those who are new to the social circle. Let’s enjoy it separately.”

At times like this, it was necessary to play the role of a clueless fiancé.

Perhaps today, I might see a side of Rebecca that I had never seen before.

I was already looking forward to the Princess’s reaction.

“…As you wish.”

Rebecca still wore an indifferent expression.

I wasn’t sure how long that expression would last.

But I didn’t think it would last very long.

“Let’s go first, the terrifying Princess of Valencia.”

“…”

I smiled and sent the Princess off.

*

After sending off Rebecca with her blank expression.

“…Sigh.”

I was feeling a bit of regret.

Earlier, I had sent the Princess off with a smile, saying it didn’t matter.

But without Rebecca by my side, I had nothing to do.

Thinking about it, it was only natural.

Even though I was a transmigrator who had entered the world of a novel I had read, here I was just a noble who had just stepped into the social circle.

The opportunity to make friends before entering the social circle had long been lost because I had been spending all my time with Rebecca.

With no one I knew, it was only natural that I became a lonely island, eating the banquet food in a corner.

But I couldn’t go looking for Rebecca either.

If I couldn’t stand the boredom and went to find the Princess.

– I told you, didn’t I? You can’t do without me.

I could already imagine the expression and words Rebecca would have when she saw me coming to her.

The slightly raised corner of her mouth and the satisfied voice that would accompany that expression.

To protect my pride, I absolutely couldn’t let that happen.

“…It’s delicious.”

The only saving grace was that the food laid out was delicious.

As if to prove that this was not just any banquet but the Imperial banquet held once a year, the food was incredibly splendid.

As I quietly ate the food and watched the other nobles mingling.

“Hello.”

Someone approached me, who was alone.

“…Hello, Lady Bluebell.”

I already knew who this person was.

“Oh, you know me?”

She seemed surprised that I knew her name.

“…Yes, somehow.”

She was someone I couldn’t possibly not know, having read [The Crown Prince Wields a Sword].

Isabella Bluebell.

The name of the woman standing in front of me, slightly covering her face with a fan.

To borrow the original work’s description of her, the flower of the social circle.

In romance fantasy novels, the flower of the social circle is a common cliché, and in this novel, it referred to Isabella Bluebell.

There are two ducal families in the Empire.

The first is Rebecca’s family, the Valencia Duchy, and the second is Isabella’s family, the Bluebell Duchy.

Although it is said that her family’s power is slightly weaker than the Valencia family. In other words, it means that except for the Valencia family, her family bows to no one.

With such an impressive background and.

“I didn’t know you knew me, what a strange thing.”

Isabella’s unique friendliness made her the flower of the social circle and the second heroine of Mikhail without any shortcomings.

“…It doesn’t seem that strange.”

Although I didn’t particularly like the character ‘Isabella Bluebell.’

I don’t think it’s an unreasonable statement.

As I said before, I didn’t particularly like Mikhail, the protagonist of this novel, either.

“…Is that so? Well, everyone thinks differently.”

There was no way I could like a Princess who had a completely different expression on the outside and inside, like a snake.

Some readers might like that type of heroine.

But at least, it wasn’t me.

Look now.

While she smiles outwardly, saying that everyone thinks differently.

The slight trembling at the corners of her eyes easily shows that Isabella is not satisfied with my answer.

She probably thinks she’s not showing any signs.

But having watched the most capricious Princess for three years, it was easy for me to see the trembling.

“…So, may I ask why you came to me?”

“Are you planning to send away a lady who came to you first like this?”

“…”

Isabella, who didn’t answer my question about why she came, pouted and talked nonsense.

I thought it wasn’t easy to accumulate dislike points with someone you just met.

But there was no dislike like this.

Fortunately(?), Isabella also didn’t seem to have the confidence to keep watching my rotting expression, so she quickly revealed the reason she came.

“It’s nothing much. I saw you dancing quite well yesterday, so I thought I’d ask you for a dance.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes, so will you accept?”

“No, why should I?”

“…”

Of course, even though she revealed the reason, I had no intention of accepting Isabella’s request.

“…What did you say?”

Isabella looked incredibly stupid after hearing my words.

As if she had never thought I would refuse her request, as if she thought I would naturally accept her request.

“Why should I dance with the Princess?”

But that didn’t change my answer.

“…”

Now, Isabella didn’t even try to hide her expression.

I learned for the first time that a person’s expression could swing between extremes like that.

In a way, it was also my fault that Isabella was making that expression.

“Isn’t it natural?”

I decided to kindly explain the reason for my refusal, with the heart of a reader who had enjoyed the original work.

“If you saw me dancing yesterday, you should know that I have a fiancée.”

“…Of course.”

“You know what it means to ask someone with a fiancée to dance, don’t you?”

She couldn’t possibly not know.

Even though Isabella had just entered the social circle, there was a reason she would later be called the flower of the social circle.

Isabella, who had clearly been educated by her family from a young age to dominate the social circle, couldn’t possibly not know such simple etiquette.

“I know, I also know what it means to ask someone with a fiancée to dance.”

“Then why on earth…”

“But… I hope you remember that today is the ‘Imperial Banquet.'”

“…”

Isabella’s words were simple.

The place where we were standing was the venue of the Imperial Banquet.

The nobles who came here were here to build friendships.

That wasn’t a wrong statement.

Rather, it was a very logical statement. Any other noble would have no rebuttal.

What noble of the Empire would stupidly argue when the daughter of a ducal family wants to build a friendship with them?

“It’s natural for a noble who has just entered the social circle to ask for a dance to build a friendship…”

“Why should I build a friendship with Lady Bluebell?”

“…”

It was just that the opponent was bad.

“Isn’t it strange? To suddenly demand building a friendship when the other party has no such thoughts.”

“…You do know who I am, don’t you?”

“I do. Isabella Bluebell of the Bluebell Duchy.”

“You know who I am and yet you speak to me like that?”

Isabella seemed unable to understand my answer.

‘How can someone like you refuse my request?’, ‘You know who I am and yet you refuse my request?’ She was probably thinking something along those lines.

Any noble she had spoken to before would have knelt if she asked.

It was only natural that she would react like that, and it wasn’t that I didn’t understand such an Isabella.

But.

“Yes, I said that.”

“…”

As I said before, it was just that the opponent was bad.

It was just that the person in front of Isabella happened to be me, who had no interest in anyone but my fiancée.

It wasn’t particularly Isabella’s fault.

“…We’ll see.”

Seeing that her words had no effect on me, Isabella left with a line like a third-rate villain.

“You might be the only one who can speak to the great Lady Bluebell like that.”

Soon after, Mikhail’s low voice came from beside me.

…Since when had he been there.

“…How much did you see?”

“I didn’t see everything. From when you refused Lady Bluebell’s dance request?”

“…”

He basically saw everything. The previous conversation had no important content.

I was taken aback by the Crown Prince’s unexpected slyness.

“…So, why did you come, Your Highness?”

“Ah, I forgot to say why I came in a hurry.”

The Crown Prince pointed somewhere with his finger, and I followed his finger like I was hypnotized.

At the end of Mikhail’s finger was Rebecca.

“Do something about your fiancée.”

“…”

“I can’t handle her.”

Rebecca, whose face had turned completely red as if she had been drinking heavily.

It was really one mountain after another.

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