episode_0022

Ludine’s eyes widened.

“Oh, Lady Isabel?”

“… See the sun of the empire.”

Isabel soon lowered her head to 90 degrees.

This is to show courtesy befitting Ludine, a member of the royal family.

“Lift your head up, Lady Isabel.”

Ludine smiled softly.

It was the smile of an absolutely pure girl, without a single speck of contamination.

“By the way, it’s Kyle… ”

Ludine playfully put her index finger to her lips.

“That’s really strange.”

With the final note raised, Rudine tilted her head as if wondering.

“I heard that Lady Isabel broke off her engagement with Winfred… ”

The engagement was broken off.

Isabel’s eyes hardened at the extremely aggressive words.

Ludine closed her eyes and smiled at Isabelle.

“So, shouldn’t you be careful about your title?”

Ludine’s gaze toward Isabelle was benevolent, as if she were looking at an immature child.

However, the true intention hidden in the words was a clear warning.

You are no longer Kyle’s fiancé or anything, so watch your mouth, a snarky way of speaking typical of a noble lady.

Isabelle’s arms trembled mercilessly in shame.

Luna, who was watching the situation, covered her mouth with her right hand and burst into laughter.

‘Crazy bitches.’

They all have screws missing one by one, so it’s not like they’re biting and tearing each other apart.

I was shocked and watched them with my arms crossed.

At that time, Luna asked back as if she was curious.

“Are you sure the princess will be okay?’

“Are you talking about me?”

“Isn’t today a monumental day when all the people of the empire honor the princess’s coming-of-age ceremony with their wishes?”

The words are unnecessarily long.

In my experience, that is a build-up to attack the opponent with a high probability.

just as expected.

Luna playfully blinked her eyes and added.

“People from all over the empire gathered at the ceremony hall and waited only for the princess.”

“Oh my, is that so?”

“Of course. Anyway, it’s almost time to start eating. The gentleman who will be escorting the princess is truly blessed to be able to serve such a beautiful lady.”

Luna praised Ludine in an exaggerated voice.

Ludine touched her chin with an interested smile.

“It sounds like an invitation to go get an escort at a time like this… Hehe, maybe it’s just my imagination, right?”

“Of course. How dare I have such wrong thoughts.”

“Thank goodness! I also know about the princess’s personality from Kyle. The friendship between family members is so deep, right? I always think it’s amazing.”

“That’s a really shameful story.”

“Hehe, I can’t believe the princess also knew the feeling of shame. You surprised me in many ways today.”

Luna and Ludine fiercely hid their blades between the joints of their words.

They were originally crazy women, but after inheriting their pre-return memories, they became even more amazing.

On the contrary, Isabelle, who was watching the situation with a blank expression, seemed to be at least normal.

I watched their fight in a daze.

There is no reason to intervene right away, because my business is with Rudine anyway.

‘You must not mess things up.’

Now that we have confirmed the existence of the relic, we need to be even more careful from now on.

This coming-of-age ceremony is just a one-time event to build contact with Ludine.

If you build your relationship slowly like you are now, there will definitely be gaps.

At perfect timing, there was an opportunity to kidnap Rudine.

It was then.

“It’s almost time!”

Ludine looked at the clock on the wall and clapped her hands lightly.

“Escort… .”

Her gaze was aimed squarely at me.

I kept a dazed expression, imitating my usual Kyle behavior.

After a while, her tightly closed mouth slowly opened.

“Kyle, if it’s okay, would you please escort me?”

Huh—

A gasping sound came from Isabelle’s open mouth.

Luna also blinked her eyes unexpectedly.

Suddenly applying for an escort.

I glanced at Rudine’s face out of the corner of my eye, but couldn’t read any emotions.

I asked back in a cautious voice.

“… … Are you really saying this to me?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Ludine nodded proudly.

Then Isabel frowned.

“Escort, are you serious?”

“Of course.”

“Hasn’t the nobleman Yeongsik who will be the princess’s escort already been appointed? I really want to believe that you won’t arbitrarily change your partner on the same day.”

“Yes? I don’t know where you heard that story. I haven’t asked anyone to be an escort yet, Lady Isabel?”

“No, what is that… ”

“Stop.”

Ludine cut Isabel off as if it wasn’t worth listening to anymore.

“So Kyle, what is your answer?”

“… ”

“You’re not planning on sending me to the one-and-only coming-of-age ceremony alone, are you? Right?”

In the previous episode, Kyle Winfred did not participate in Ludine’s coming-of-age ceremony.

No, I couldn’t exactly participate.

— If an illegitimate child were to show up at the imperial palace, wouldn’t it only tarnish the family’s name?

— Please take good care of your home while you are there.

— As a guard dog, shouldn’t you be good at that?

At that time, Luna Winfred’s verbal abuse rang in my ears like an auditory hallucination.

Thanks to that, I was stuck in a corner of the room and survived for several days, drinking only porridge and water until Luna came back.

— How dare you pretend to be my escort and not participate in the coming-of-age ceremony?

— I don’t want to hear any excuses!

— Yes, it was my fault for trusting people like you.

Thanks to this, Isabel, who attended the coming-of-age ceremony alone without her partner, was furious.

Thanks to that, the progress rate increased slightly, but I felt quite bad.

And above all.

— Princess Rudine Eckhart.

— The rosary she wears around her neck. That’s the relic you’re looking for.

The rosary around Ludine’s neck sparkled.

It didn’t take long to make a decision.

“I am honored.”

Isabel sighed with a dumbfounded look on her face, as if she had been stabbed in the back.

Her eyebrows twitched as if she felt betrayed.

Luna stood silently and said nothing.

More precisely, he froze in his seat as if speechless.

She pursed her lips as if to say something hesitantly, but in the end she couldn’t say anything.

“Kyle, this way!”

I silently followed Ludine.

****

“Quiet! First Princess Ludine Eckhardt, the rising sun of the empire, is the second son of Duke Winfred… Entering with Kyle Winfred! Be polite!”

With a loud shout from the attendant, Ludine took the hand I held out and slowly moved forward.

Numerous gazes filled with astonishment were focused.

The princess of the empire enters with the infamous Winfred’s illegitimate son.

As the princess enters, she can’t help but make up her face, and it’s not like she can understand the current situation, and her face is very confused.

The sound of reluctant applause echoed throughout the ceremony hall.

Despite the grand scale of the coming-of-age ceremony, the reality is not much different from other general banquets.

Except for the fact that it was hosted by the imperial family, the entire content was just for nobles to gather together, exchange information, and build friendships.

Ludine flowed up the stairs and sat down at the gold-decorated head table.

It was truly a place exclusively for the royal family, with a view of the entire ceremony hall from above.

“Kyle, you sit here too.”

I carefully sat down next to Ludine.

Soon, the emperor and empress of the empire will enter according to the order of entry.

In order to kidnap Rudine in the future, one cannot neglect the favoritism of the Emperor and Empress.

Of course, they will despise me, but that can be done with just a few bits of future information.

It was just a moment to catch my breath.

“Yes, Kyle. Is it okay if I ask you something?”

Rudine’s clear voice rang in my ears.

When I nodded, Rudine continued asking questions as if she had been waiting.

“I didn’t have time to ask you earlier, but how did you end up breaking off the engagement?”

Because I’m going to leave this world anyway.

I barely swallowed the words that were up to my chin.

“Just because of personality differences, there was often friction for various reasons.”

I chose my words carefully to avoid raising as much suspicion as possible.

After a series of simple yet standard answers, Ludine continued speaking with a sullen expression on her face.

“Really? It must have been very difficult.”

“Well, that’s right. It’s okay now.”

“Really? However, Lady Isabel didn’t seem okay at all.”

“… … I guess I’m still in the stage of accepting it. It will get better with time.”

Why are there so many questions?

I exercised patience and answered her questions slowly.

At that time, an unexpected question flooded my ears.

“Ah! Come to think of it, I heard that the engagement ring was also sold at auction?”

Engagement ring, and auction.

It was something I could never find out without investigating myself.

“A ring with a sea gem stone carved into it. Be romantic. It’s really like you.”

“… ”

“That’s right. I heard you personally participated in the auction?”

“… ”

“The next day, as soon as the sun rose, I went to the count’s residence and asked for an end to the engagement.”

A strong warning sound hit my head.

I remained silent because I couldn’t find a suitable answer.

Ludine said playfully, still smiling.

“Oreite.”

“… ”

“I was really curious. Why did they bother to receive orestone in return? wherefore? The Kyle I know would have no interest in collecting ore.”

“… ”

“Luna Winfred is the same, and Isabel Justia is the same. Everything is strange, right?”

Ludine’s eyes were still smiling.

However, there was no trace of laughter on her lips.

The air suddenly became heavy with a chilling sense of discomfort.

“You know. Have I really been waiting for today?”

Phew.

Rudine burst into laughter innocently.

“Kyle.”

“… ”

“Kyle, no. Kyle Winfred. My one and only friend.”

A sinister glow flashed in Ludine’s bright yellow eyes.

“Are you back too?”