Prince and Prince (1)

The atmosphere in the banquet hall instantly fell silent at the curse word that had slipped out of my mouth by accident.

It was a situation where, even just by outward appearance, a Noble Lady had uttered profanity at a Prince.

To those who knew I was merely a baronet’s noble daughter, it was practically a declaration of suicide.

‘I’m fucked.’

I had clearly prepared a proper answer in my mind, but as soon as my mouth opened, it just came out reflexively.

No, but what am I supposed to do when it’s just physiologically fucking disgusting?

When I saw that duplicitous face, relying solely on his looks, not even bothering to hide his gaze as it openly shifted to my chest, and acting all sweet while playing the philanderer with the noble ladies, it was only natural that no pleasant words would come out.

If only Machart had been the only one to hear it, I might have been able to brazenly gloss over it somehow, but unfortunately, the words that came out of my mouth in that instant were not quiet.

At the very least, it seemed to have been clearly heard by the extra noble ladies following this greasy Prince.

“Y-you…! D-did you just dare to utter profanity at Prince Machart-nim?!”

“How could you do such a thing! Do you think everything can be forgiven just because your face is pretty?!”

“Do you think you’re qualified to spout such outrageous nonsense just because your chest is a bit big?!”

‘Fuck, seriously.’

It was already shitty enough to be facing this greasy blonde face in front of me, but it was even more irritating that those women, who called themselves his followers, kept chiming in.

And why the hell did both men and women have to mention other people’s physical features? As if I wanted to possess a character with such big breasts.

Barely suppressing the urge to reach for the dagger tucked inside my dress skirt, I quietly waited for Machart’s response.

Although the reason the atmosphere turned hostile was due to my initial slip of the tongue, this guy in front of me was, after all, the undisputed villain of 『Luminor Academy』.

He was the kind of guy who wouldn’t find it strange to draw his sword right now, citing disrespect to the Imperial family or blasphemy, so I didn’t let my guard down, ready to respond to any threat at any moment.

“You are a bold young lady.”

“……Huh?”

“My apologies. I lack the talent to move a woman’s heart, so if I have offended you, I offer my sincerest apologies. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

“Ah, yes….”

However, contrary to my vigilance, Machart withdrew from the spot with an unexpectedly cool expression.

He retreated so abruptly that I didn’t even have a chance to apologize for my slip of the tongue.

“Y-you! Just because your face is somewhat pretty, you’re arrogant… W-wait a moment, Prince Machart-nim!”

“Prince-nim, why would you bow to a woman like that….”

In addition, the group of noble ladies who had been glaring at me with venomous eyes just moments ago also disappeared, following him. As I stood there, bewildered, wondering what on earth had just happened, Ethan spoke to me from my right.

“Are you alright, Lily?”

“Ah, Ed. Yes, I’m fine for now, but….”

“It’s fine. Lily didn’t do anything wrong. That lecher… no, Prince Machart-nim over there was the one who was in the wrong first.”

Ethan was using quite strong words against the Prince, actually defending me.

Well, if you think about it, he was indeed the one who was in the wrong first.

Things like approaching the woman first instead of the man, even though it was obvious she had a partner, or that lewd gaze of his, openly staring intently at my chest without even bothering to shift his eyes.

If a common noble scion were to act like that in high society, it would be the perfect behavior to be gossiped about behind their back.

It was only because he was ‘Machart,’ supported by his looks and family, that no complaints had arisen from the noble ladies until now. Rather, if he were to direct his gaze towards their chests, there would be countless women eager to strip and show him what was underneath.

But even considering those points, the fact that I was more in the wrong for cursing at the Prince to his face remained unchanged.

“I agree with Ed, but this was definitely my mistake.”

“Huh?”

“I was clearly preparing a proper answer. But I was so flustered that something else just slipped out. I’ll have to apologize to Prince Machart-nim separately later, I guess.”

“Something else…? You mean you didn’t really mean what you said?”

“No, it’s true that I felt displeased. But it’s also true that uttering it out loud, no matter how true, is a transgression in itself.”

“…Then it’s fine, Lily.”

Ethan wore a relieved expression for some reason when I said I felt displeased.

Seeing his reaction, I could roughly tell why he had felt uneasy, so I smiled faintly and asked.

“What’s wrong, Ed? Did you perhaps think I might develop strange feelings for that person?”

“…….”

“You don’t have to worry. As I told you before, I haven’t really considered romance or marriage with any man other than you, Ed.”

“R-right…. Sorry for thinking strange things, Lily….”

It was Ethan, wary that I, his temporary lover, might harbor other feelings for Machart, so teasing him was strangely enjoyable.

Enough to make me momentarily forget how I should deal with the profanity I had uttered at Machart.

“Besides, do you really think I’d like a man who drags women around like that, without any sense of propriety? He’s spouting such ridiculous nonsense as seduction just because he’s handsome; I almost gagged, actually….”

However, my time teasing Ethan didn’t last as long as I thought it would, as this time, two figures rapidly approached me from a slightly distant spot.

“Hey, hey! Are you out of your mind…?!”

“Ah, Agnes-yang.”

“Y-you, what on earth were you thinking saying something like that?! Do you know what his succession rank is?! N-no, succession rank or not, how could you even do that in front of a member of the Imperial family…!”

“…Indeed. The words just slipped out in the moment.”

“That’s not something that can be solved with just words…!”

Agnes, with a very serious expression, grabbed my shoulders and shook me.

Perhaps due to the difference in our centers of gravity, it felt as if she, who was shaking me, was actually swaying more.

But what could I do? The milk was already spilled, and the words had already been uttered.

And a moment later, unlike Agnes who had rushed over, momentarily abandoning her noble lady-like composure, another figure slowly followed and approached me, carefully opening their mouth.

“Lilith-yang, what on earth were you thinking making such a dangerous remark…?”

“…I apologize, Princess Seraphine-nim.”

“Of course, it’s true that our fourth older brother is quite fond of women, but still, uttering… profanity to his face might have been a bit dangerous, don’t you think?”

“…It was a mistake. I had originally intended to greet him normally, but it just slipped out inadvertently….”

“…I don’t particularly like Prince Machart-nim’s behavior either. So, it’s not that I don’t understand Lilith-yang’s feelings, but….”

Seraphine showed a worried reaction to my disrespectful remark towards a member of the Imperial family.

Although she was worried, she surprisingly calmly agreed with the criticism of her own brother.

As expected of the Valtoria Imperial Family, which was truly a dysfunctional household, it was a moment that reaffirmed how poor the relationships were between siblings, even if they were blood-related.

There might have been a time when the Imperial family’s children pretended to have a decent relationship on the surface, but after the death of the First Prince, Phillipson, it was accurate to say that the Imperial family had practically split entirely.

‘And the Imperial family member involved in the death of that First Prince was Machart.’

The fact that the First Prince wasn’t a particularly good vessel to be the next Emperor wasn’t important. What was important was that the First Prince’s death caused a schism within the Imperial family.

Furthermore, there was no room for extenuating circumstances given his connections with the Demon Tribe.

From that perspective, my actions just now might have actually been better. If I were to get entangled with him for no reason, it would only lead to mutual ruin.

It might have been more rational to cut him off decisively rather than giving him ambiguous leeway and letting things get continuously complicated.

Firstly, Machart himself was so engrossed in his womanizing that he hadn’t properly built up any power beyond the blind noble ladies, so he wasn’t a very threatening opponent politically either.

“I apologize for saying this, but I judged Lilith’s decision to be correct, Princess Seraphine-nim. No matter if he is a Prince-nim, approaching my fiancée… directly in front of me did not look good.”

“…I’m not particularly scolding you. I’m just hoping you’ll refrain from overly dangerous actions. Prince Machart-nim himself isn’t a very threatening person, but if Lilith-yang shows this kind of attitude to my other siblings, it would be difficult for me to protect you. It was just a concern.”

“…I-I don’t think Lilith was wrong either. I dislike him too.”

Perhaps because of my recent remark, the atmosphere strangely coalesced into something like an ‘Anti-Machart Alliance.’ It was natural, considering Agnes and Seraphine didn’t particularly like the Fourth Prince in the original story either.

“Thank you for your concern, Princess Seraphine-nim. I will be more careful from now on.”

“…Yes. Please be careful, Lilith-yang.”

Machart and his group of noble ladies disappeared to the opposite side of the banquet hall, and the surprised Agnes and Seraphine also moved back to where Gyeotmwa Jyosyegigot and Celista were, somehow allowing the banquet to seemingly continue peacefully once more.

As a result, the profanity I had uttered at Machart turned out to be nothing more than a simple happening a short while later.

…Because after the main banquet began, an incident that would cause far greater commotion in the hall occurred.