Chapter 4.1
Ariel stared blankly at the Prince’s face.
His blonde hair contrasted with the dark sky stood out—brilliant golden color, a genetic symbol of the royal family.
‘Imperial family! That’s right. I need to be polite…’
Ariel, who belatedly realized the fact, calmly lowered her head. Taking a step back swiftly, she held the hem of her dress in her hand and opened her mouth.
“Ariel Huckley, the eldest daughter of Count Huckley, greets the Prince. Welcome to the Count’s mansion, Your Highness.”
“….”
Despite the courteous greetings, he remained silent. Still, his eyes were fixed on her.
Just as she admired the Prince, he admired Ariel who faced him as well.
The comital princess* was beautiful enough to cause a stir in the Prince’s frozen heart. The small face between the black hair reminded him of a crescent moon in the night. White and fine things had the magic to make the opponent’s eyes become persistent.
[ T/N: The title ‘princess’ here meant princess of the county/of or relating to a count, not an actual imperial princess title. Though since ‘the comital princess’ title is too long, I’ll be shortening it to only ‘princess,’ so just a heads up! ]
So, he didn’t understand the situation.
It was an appearance that would be remembered even if you wanted to forget, a face that would be talked about even if you wanted to be quiet, and a beauty that would benefit you even if you didn’t want to use it…
Still, he couldn’t remember the Count’s daughter at all. It meant that, as the Countess had said, it was true that this Princess confined herself to the house and that she had never participated in any event or party hosted by the Emperor.
It was a look that would attract all sorts of praise even if it showed itself in a social world, even for a moment, but it was not known what serious flaw she had caused to be confined to the room with such an appearance.
Still, to say that there was a problem with sociality, didn’t she quickly show courtesy and a calm expression swiftly?
It was strange.
She had a fragile appearance, like a porcelain doll, and was consistent with a calm response. Because of that, he was more concerned than necessary because an unexpected person in front of him had an expression that was difficult to predict.
Although he shot his eyes at her with the momentum to pry her apart, the Princess didn’t easily raise her head.
The silence, like a battle, was prolonged beyond necessity. Sensing the strange current flowing between the two, the people around them began to notice one by one. Even the aide of the imperial family glanced over at the Prince’s condition.
“Your Highness.”
He called out cautiously as if asking for his intentions. Only then did the Prince look away from Ariel, and he coldly passed her and headed for the door.
At the sight of him passing by, Ariel lifted her bowed head.
Through the maroon-colored double doors, the backs of the Countess and the Prince were quickly moving away.
Ariel, who raised her head completely then, stared at the open door for a moment.
Not knowing what kind of intention the Prince’s behavior, which was just staring at her just now, had, needless to say, she was nervous. In addition, because he was someone most likely to be the target, she should at least give a good impression. And how he would accept her words and actions was another story, although she didn’t commit any disrespect at the first meeting.
‘I don’t think my personality is that limited… but I don’t think it’s going to be easy to have a conversation.’
Difficulties were expected in raising favorability.
The Prince, who reached the end of the corridor before he knew it, showed off his loftiness and didn’t look back. His steps ahead of the Countess were dignified. All of his movements were so arrogant. Like a preview that things in the future wouldn’t go smoothly for her.
Ariel was distraught.
The thunderous noise outside the window, which even struck lightning, became more raucous.
As the Prince entered the mansion and talked with the Countess alone, a few minutes later, only his aide entered the drawing room where he was. Ariel wasn’t given a chance to join as she was only allowed to sit in the waiting room while waiting to share dinner.
‘…I’ve been waiting for two hours already.’
Peering through the glass at the growing rain, boredom gradually accumulated on her face. It was the moment she remembered the cell phone she had hidden in the mahogany drawer in her room.
‘Are they going to come out around dinner time?’
Thinking that, she turned her gaze to check the longcase clock in the corner. Seeing that the current time was 5:50 PM, it must be time for the downstairs to get busy with the dinner preparations.
‘I’d rather be downstairs.’
Ariel expressed her displeasure with a slight frown. Even if the seat was comfortable, after waiting for two hours with nothing happening, it couldn’t be helped that she would feel frustrated.
As her patience was about to reach its limit…
“Young Lady, the Countess is calling for you.”
Finally, someone appeared in front of the door.
When she stood up straight away and opened the door, the maid at the door seemed quite startled. Still, she quickly smoothened her expression.
“…The Countess is waiting for you in the dining room downstairs.”
“I see.”
“Young Lady, before you go, please take this first.”
Saying so, the maid stopped Ariel, who was about to head downstairs, and held out a little gift box to her. Plain black velvet box, seemingly containing expensive jewelry.
Ariel immediately recognized what the box meant.
“It’s a present for the Prince?”
“Yes. The Countess requested that you hand it to him when you’re alone with him. The contents are square-cut sapphires.”
The Countess’s request, conveyed by the maid, was quite specific. It seemed that the teatime remarks about being close to the Prince weren’t empty words.
Picking up the box without saying anything, Ariel tucked it into the pocket of her dress, which was hung from her waist. The weight of the jewelry box was heavier than expected. And after checking that the jewelry box was well in her pocket, she then tied a strap around her waist.
Since she was in a position to raise the Prince’s favorability anyway, there was nothing wrong with following the Countess’s intentions.
“I’ll take you to the dinner table.”
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