Chapter 96: Direction

In a quiet park in the city.

Two people sat side by side on an old bench.

To an outsider, they might have looked like an ordinary couple enjoying a date, but in reality, they were a prince and a princess who wielded significant influence over the affairs of their respective kingdoms.

Clarisse held down the chicken skewer she had been holding. It had gone cold and lost its flavor, and since the prince was here, she felt somewhat embarrassed to continue eating.

…This is unexpected.

Meanwhile, Prince Raphael was watching her with a complex feeling.

Naturally, he had received some information about Clarisse beforehand.

When he first heard that she had personally proposed this marriage, he thought that she was some kind of extraordinary woman.

Looking at her like this, she doesn’t seem much different from other women.

Feeling ashamed of his preconceptions, Prince Raphael awkwardly cleared his throat.

He wanted to wait for her to finish eating the skewer if possible, but…

Currently, he was sneaking out of the palace.

He didn’t have time to wait, after all, he wanted to go to the bakery quickly to meet her.

“Could you elaborate on your words earlier? About you being dissatisfied with this marriage yourself?”

“Ah, yes.”

Clarisse hastily ate the rest of the skewer.

Then, she began to explain calmly.

“I understand your feelings, Prince Raphael. Suddenly being told to marry a woman you’ve never met before must’ve displeased you.”

“…”

“I feel the same way. I’ve been told that I’m an emotionally dry person, but even so, I want to marry someone I’m compatible with if I can.”

“Then—“

“But Prince Raphael, we are royalty. We have a responsibility to our subjects.”

“…”

Raphael had no response to that. As she said, this marriage was the right choice for the good of the kingdom.

Seeing his conflicted expression, Clarisse let out a slight smile.

“I think I might have been too pushy.”

“…No, not at all.”

“You should go now. Your lover is waiting for you, no?”

“Ah.”

With that, Clarisse concluded the conversation, and turned her gaze to the flower bed nearby.

Prince Raphael hesitated for a moment, then slowly bowed his head before leaving, thankful for her consideration.

The moment Prince Raphael completely disappeared from view.

“Well done.”

Isaac, who had been hiding outside the park, quietly approached Clarisse.

He took the finished skewer from her hand with a satisfied smile.

“You did well.”

“Did I really? I was just expressing my thoughts.”

“And that’s enough. Just telling him that like him, you also don’t want this marriage, will make him feel much more comfortable being around you.”

“Well, if you say so, I’ll take your word for it. What’s next?”

“From now on, running into him by ‘accident’ won’t work anymore. That was our strongest move, but if we do it again, he’ll grow suspicious of us.”

“Hmm.”

“Fortunately, there are many pretext that we can use to make your meetings look more natural, so don’t worry too—”

“Hey, Isaac.”

“Yes?”

Still sitting on the bench, Clarisse looked up at him with a subtle expression.

“Could you try to seduce me?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Well, I don’t know much about love. Seeing you handle this so meticulously, I’m wondering if I could learn something like that too.”

“I’m doing this because this is a mission. Honestly, I won’t approach my own romance this methodically.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

When it came to romance, Isaac was someone who loved the flow of life.

He believed that love between men and women should follow the flow and fate, hence why he used to wait by the riverside, praying that he’d be reunited with a certain red-haired woman.

“Anyway, you have quite a lot to practice from now on.”

“Do I need to?”

“Of course. That prince, from what I’ve seen, is quite faithful to his emotions.”

Situation, dialogue, emotions, and atmosphere.

If even one of these strongly appeals to him, it wouldn’t be strange for him to mistake it for love.

“Shall we go?”

Seeing Isaac extending his hand, Clarisse took it with a smile and stood up.

Naturally, finding a suitable space for practice wasn’t easy.

The palace had countless eyes and ears, and if the prince were to find out about the practice, then everything would be over.

In that sense, the only place for practice was the private room that they had specially prepared for her.

Because it was the only place that wasn’t exposed to the outside.

“You’re scheduled for a garden walk tomorrow, right?”

“Well, if Prince Raphael shows up, that is.”

“He will.”

They planned to meet with him today under the pretext of a chance encounter.

Now that he knew that she was someone he could talk to, he wouldn’t reject her one-sidedly again.

“The most important thing is conversation. Have you thought of any conversation topics?”

“What about the current situation of each country? Or the meaning of our political marriage and how beneficial it is?”

“He’d run away immediately.”

“…”

Isaac nodded, as if he had expected this.

“The best topic to talk about are light ones. Don’t you often talk about such things when you visit my mansion?”

Honestly, he wasn’t too worried.

Because he knew that Clarisse was quite talkative.

As evident from how she’d come to the mansion and talk about various things with him.

“That’s because it was with you, Isaac.”

But, his words made her frown.

“I’m not sure if I can do that with Prince Raphael.”

“Hmm.”

Maybe it’s too much to ask her to talk to the prince as comfortably as she would with a close acquaintance.

“Then, we’ll do this. I’m gonna create a situation for you.”

Free-flowing a conversation required a certain level of skill.

If that wasn’t possible, then, creating a situation that could narrow down the conversation topics will suffice.

“I’m gonna play the role of someone pressuring you to go through with the marriage.”

“Hmm?”

“From now on, I’ll use my gaze to pressure you. This will allow you to close the distance with Prince Raphael and have a conversation with him.”

“Ah!”

The strategy was to push her from behind.

Using his gaze, he’d force her to stay close or maintain physical contact with the prince.

On paper, it didn’t seem like a bad idea.

They could also use the excuse that he was under Princess Adeline’s orders.

“Let’s start our practice. We must make it look as natural as possible.”

“Yes! Sounds good!”

Next day. In Brentarion Kingdom Palace’s garden.

Prince Raphael and Princess Clarisse were out on a walk together.

At a glance, they seemed to be enjoying the flowers with their eyes and noses, but Prince Raphael seemed understandably displeased.

I’m sorry, Del.

As he inwardly apologized to the baker’s daughter he held in his heart…

Prince Raphael felt a chill run down his spine, as if his back was not just hot, but also eerily cold.

“…?!”

He turned around with a jolt to see a man with a sword on his waist, standing at the garden’s entrance.

The man had a black ponytail and was handsome enough to surprise even Raphael, but…

He had an ominous aura that could make people’s hearts shrink.

W-What kind of man is that?

Is that Aura?

No, it’s something else entirely…

It was a tingling sensation that instilled fear in him.

At that moment, Clarisse gently took Raphael’s hand as if to comfort him.

“He’s my escort. Isaac Logan. He’s on my sister’s side.”

“Isaac Logan…? Logan? Could he be the Baron Logan who carried out the Volten Massacre?”

“Y-Yes. I see the rumors have spread this far.”

“It was such a shocking incident, after all.”

Hearing that, Prince Raphael understood the chilling aura he was emitting. How many humans have he killed to exude such an aura?

It was like the presence of a battle-hardened veteran who had crossed the line between life and death countless times.

“He’s in a position to see this marriage succeed no matter what. Like I said, he’s on my sister’s side.”

“Ah…”

He made an understanding expression.

Then, Clarisse ran forward a little while not letting go of Raphael’s hand.

“Wanna run away from him?”

She led him playfully with a small smile.

Since he felt burdened by Baron Logan’s gaze, Raphael didn’t refuse to follow her.

The two walked through the fresh flower beds.

A beautiful princess with a youthful smile…

Bound by an unwanted political marriage, they shared a feeling that only they could understand.

“Hehehe.”

After running for a while.

Clarisse gently laughed and let go of his hand.

[If you keep holding on to his hand, he’ll start to suspect you doing it on purpose, so let go of it when the time’s right.]

It’s good we practiced, Isaac.

She had been worried about what to do if Raphael let go first, but…

It seemed he was more intoxicated by the flowers and her than expected.

Raphael flinched before awkwardly withdrawing his hand.

“Baron Logan is so forceful—“

“Indeed.”

[Use me as a topic. The prince will sympathize with you.]

[Have confidence, Princess. You are charming enough.]

Just as Isaac had said.

The plan was progressing step by step.

Clarisse inwardly let out a sly smile.

This is much easier.

When practicing with Isaac yesterday, she strangely stumbled over her words and her hands got sweaty.

But with Prince Raphael as her partner, everything flowed much more smoothly.

As expected, I’m the type who shines in real situations!

After Prince Raphael and Princess Clarisse’s garden outing ended, Isaac headed into the town.

“What’s the occasion?”

Sharen, who had been bored since she had nothing to do, hopped over to join him.

“There’s a place I want to visit. I thought you might like it.”

Besides, having Sharen along might make things look more natural.

“Place to visit? Where?”

“A bakery.”

“Yay!”

To proceed with the plan…

He had to make contact with another crucial person.

The woman who had stolen Prince Raphael’s heart.

Del, the baker’s daughter.