“Your Highness, did you forget that I am also here?”

In the meantime, Leonard, who was ignored, pursed his lips and looked at the two of us alternately.

“Sorry, brother. Let’s go!”

“You should have left us on your own if you had any sense.”

“Why are you kicking my brother out?”

“Rosetta…”

As I stood in front of Leonard and defended him, his eyes stained with emotion fell on my face.

Don’t think too much. It’s because it’s burdensome to be alone with Sihael.

Sihael twisted the corners of his lips, perhaps offended by my attitude of taking Leonard’s side.

“Leonard, are you going to stay like that?”

“You don’t have to tell me to leave.”

“…Are you going?”

Leonard pulled my hand from his arm.

‘No!’

I clung to Leonard’s arm to keep him from running. I don’t know about anyone else, but I knew that Leonard would not abandon me.

That’s what I believed!

“Rosetta. I’ll go first.”

“Brother? You’re really leaving. How can you leave me like this!”

Leonard forcibly removed my hand and tapped my shoulder. What? What do you mean?! I reached out my hand toward his back as he walked away, but Sihael grabbed me by the chin. When I turned my head to face him, Sihael smiled and took my hand.

“Then, My Lady, shall we go?”

I couldn’t say no. While I was in a daze, I had already stepped into the banquet hall. I was already drawing attention because I was the main character, but when I showed up with Sihael, the banquet hall became agitated.

“His Highness the Crown Prince is escorting…”

“I think the rumors are true.”

“The presents His Highness sent to the duke’s residence yesterday…”

Look, lowering your voice doesn’t mean I can’t hear you, okay?

I pulled Sihael to a corner away from the noisy crowd. Sihael, who was obediently taken by my hand, seemed to be quite satisfied with this situation, and a deep satisfaction appeared on his face.

“What happened? What did you do without me?”

There’s no way that Leonard abandoned me for no reason. It was clear he had a reason.

“Leonard asked for you.”

“You asked for it?”

“The empress is not serious, so I ask you to become a knight for one day.”

No matter how it is, I knew for sure what rumors would spread if I went out with Sihael!

I scanned the banquet hall while being wary of my surroundings.

‘The Empress… Isn’t it?’

Out of courtesy, I couldn’t have refused to invite her, so she didn’t come. I was glad if that was the case.

‘Still, I’ll have to check until the end.’

The last time I glanced at the entrance, a person caught my eye.

‘Liliana! You came!’

As I stared at her gladly, Liliana turned her head, perhaps sensing my gaze.  When she shyly waved her hand, I waved back at her.

‘Cute.’

I was smiling brightly at Liliana’s flushed cheeks when a ragged voice sounded in her ear.

“Is it her again? How did she come here?”

“…!”

Surprised by his face at a close distance, my cheeks grazed against his, I drew in a breath.

“I thought I could have you alone today.”

I tried to calm my beating heart and pushed away Sihael’s face. It was so natural that I forgot about it for a moment. That Sihael is the next person to watch after the empress.

Taking a step back from him, I took a defensive stance.

“I called her. We decided to be friends before.”

“Hmm, okay? I mean friends.”

I swallowed nervously when I saw Sihael muttering the same thing. That was a premonition right before he started talking nonsense.

“Rosetta, do you like her because she’s pretty?”

“Do you think that I like all pretty things?”

Wait, do you think Liliana is pretty?

“His Highness, isn’t she pretty to look at?”

“No, she’s not pretty at all.”

Oh, she’s pretty. In less than a minute, I frowned at the changed words. As much as I stepped back, Sihael, who had shortened the distance, whispered softly in my ear.

“I am the prettiest.”

I shrugged my shoulders at the hot wind that touched my ears, but I nodded tremblingly at the words that followed.

“Ah, yes…”

Yes, you are pretty. Embarrassed by his unexpected words, I chewed on his words without even thinking about extending my distance from him.

‘I’m sure this is true, but why do I feel defeated?’

Don’t they usually say you’re prettier at times like this?

If I had heard that I was pretty from Sihael, that would have been a problem, but not being able to hear that, even with empty words, created a strange sense of defeat.

‘Why am I still disappointed and upset…’

It seems that he has been assimilated to Sihael, who pushes him like a bulldozer. The moment I calmed down my shaking heart, my body was pulled back.

“Good enough, too close.”

Lanoa, who hid me behind his back, gritted his teeth. Lanoa frowned at Sihael’s conquest.

“The clothes are too much.”

He stuck out his tongue, saying that anyone who saw him would think that he had come to marry.

“I thought Rosetta would be satisfied with something like this.”