Our household is indispensable to the governance of this kingdom, and with that comes the responsibility expected of the family’s children.
My parents indulge me, granting me anything I desire because they believe I will rise to those expectations. The fact that there’s nothing I wish for that I cannot have—it’s simply reality.
But…
I gaze at the prince, who has yet to meet my eyes even once.
“I see.”
I murmured unintentionally, and for the first time today, His Highness turned to face me.
His porcelain-white, smooth skin, his eyes gleaming like fresh spring leaves, and his silvery hair shining like morning dew—it had been quite some time since I last saw his beautiful face directly from this angle.
“Fineria?”
Hearing him call my name felt even more unfamiliar—it had been such a long time.
“Your Highness,”
It hit me then. The willful and greedy villainous noblewoman was already disliked by him.
Standing before me was a prince of breathtaking beauty who had no interest in me whatsoever. Naturally, the only future I could envision was one where he would be stolen away by some charming heroine.
The real problem was that while I didn’t believe myself to be entirely in the right, I also didn’t think I was in the wrong.
I had never thought of myself as selfish.
And so—
“Your Highness, should there be someone else who has captured your heart, please ensure that I never find out. When the time comes to annul our engagement, make sure all arrangements are complete beforehand.”
“…What are you saying?”
If that were the case, I would need to discard the part of me that swooned over the roses he gave me.
If you don’t trust, you can’t be betrayed.
If you don’t hope, you won’t be disappointed.
And if you don’t fall in love, there’s no room for jealousy.
Otherwise—
“I would undoubtedly ruin whoever that person is,” I said with a soft smile.
And surely, I would destroy myself as well.
* * *
“Despite all of that, look at this mess!”
I slammed both hands against the table. The former novice maid, now a seasoned attendant, simply smiled sweetly.
“My lady, such behavior is unseemly.”
“There’s no one here to see it, so it doesn’t matter!”
Accustomed to my outbursts, the maid responded with a nonchalant “Yes, yes,” utterly unfazed.
Seven years had passed since that resolution. I was now fourteen.
But not just any fourteen—I was a stunningly beautiful fourteen-year-old, almost miraculously so.
The only thing that hadn’t changed was my color palette, but everything else—my elegance, my beauty—had been polished to a brilliance beyond comparison.
“And yet…!”
As I clenched my gloved fists in frustration, the maid gently placed a hand on my shoulder and sighed.
“My lady, I understand your feelings, but if you don’t return soon, people might start to believe that your extended absence is because you couldn’t bear the curious stares and fled.”
“Who—do you think—would flee?!”
With an indignant flourish of my dress, I marched forward, the maid smiling wryly behind me.
I had refined myself into a proud and beautiful young lady of fourteen.
Falling in love? Absolutely not.
I had dedicated myself entirely to self-improvement, determined not to lose my heart to that beautiful prince.
* * *
And yet, now—now of all times!
I was adorned with exquisite peridot jewelry, chosen specifically for this occasion!
And yet, the sight of that insufferably carefree girl smiling beside His Highness Julius filled me with seething frustration!
That this girl—this airheaded creature—could spark rumors that she might steal His Highness away from me! The very thought was maddening!
Suppressing the urge to stomp my heels, I returned gracefully to His Highness’s side.
With a radiant smile, a delicate charm, and a regal poise that turned heads, I walked.
This—this is who I am. This is what a soirée is meant to be.
But as I approached His Highness, she was already there, hovering at his side with that incessant grin.
“Well, Lady Eliza. I didn’t realize you were here too,” I said sweetly, keeping my smile in place. I swallowed the urge to add, How does a commoner like you even get into a noble’s soirée?
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