Chapter 48
"After she hovered around the Emperor like that..."
A whisper came from behind Elisha and Dante. But neither of them turned. They
simply stared ahead as if spellbound. There was no way the always-smart Eric
wouldn't know what dancing with Princess Primavera meant. Yet, hadn't Eric
rejected Primavera once before? For him to choose her regardless meant...
Either he has a hidden motive, or that woman has something on him.
I truly hope it's not the latter. Having quickly assessed the situation, Dante
finally turned his head to look at Elisha. She was still staring at Eric and
Primavera with a blank expression. He had thought he'd become good at reading
her expressions, but this one was completely unreadable. Dante tilted his head
slightly, staring intently at Elisha.
Regardless of Elisha having broken the engagement and fled herself, seeing her
fiancé dance with another woman had to be annoying. But if it was Elisha... She
might not care, surprisingly. No, she might even be pleased. After all, Elisha
had always wanted Eric to use the vacant Empress seat for political gain.
Anyway, it's not my business. If he got more involved in their affairs, it might
become more than just an annoyance. Hadn't he already done more than enough? It
wasn't enough that he hid Elisha; he said lies he was bad at so she could stay
by Eric's side. And in the process, he even achieved his original goal:
"informing Eric of Elisha's whereabouts." The last part wasn't his doing, but
he'd overlook that.
Anyway, Eric knew everything now, and all he had to do was watch how things
unfold. While he's at it, it would be best to break that completely useless pact
he'd made with Elisha. No matter what happened, all he had to do was wash his
hands of the matter. Yes, all he had to do was wash his hands of the matter...
"Ugh, ah, ak."
But wasn't Elisha too pitiful to ignore? In the end, overcome by an unbearable
feeling of self-loathing, Dante let out a groan, syllable by syllable. In the
meantime, Eric began to dance with Primavera to the tune of the Polonaise. Their
dance was flawless, without a single wasted movement. Their steps were precise
as if measured by a ruler, and they seemed to be conversing leisurely as they
danced. Watching all that, Elisha frowned a little.
"...This is strange."
Thinking about it rationally, there was no reason for annoyance. It was a
position she could never return to anyway, and she had always hoped Eric would
use it to his advantage. Besides, wasn't Nox a trade power? It would surely be
of great benefit to the Cardion Empire. So there was nothing bad about it. In
fact, she should have considered it a relief.
Elisha tended to be blunt about her own feelings, but that didn't mean she was
completely oblivious to them. So she knew. She was not pleased with the current
situation. Although she could not figure out why. Elisha kept her eyes fixed on
them, thinking.
"Maybe I just don't like Primavera."
Her first encounter with the Princess was not a pleasant memory, so perhaps that
was why. Or perhaps the hidden motive behind that mysterious smile was what
bothered her. In any case, there was no time to be swayed by her feelings.
Elisha slowly lowered her lashes. While she was lost in thought, Eric and
Primavera finished their dance and exchanged final greetings.
"It's finally over."
At the same time, Dante, standing beside Elisha, let out a short sigh. He wanted
to escape the vortex of this cursed relationship as soon as possible, but his
status and profession stood in his way. Besides, if Eric formed a connection
with Primavera like this, it meant he would have to endure this awkward
atmosphere for some time. Regardless of how comfortable the three of them were
with it, he himself wasn't ready to accept it...
"Guard His Majesty for a moment."
I'm thirsty. Dante then slowly shook his head and slipped away. Without taking
her eyes off Eric, Elisha gave a routine nod. Even if Dante Renard left, no,
even if every guard here left, Elisha was confident in her ability to protect
Eric. She had lived her entire life that way, for as long as she can remember.
Of course, there was a moment when she failed to protect the one she intended.
The memory of that day, a memory she cannot and should not ever forget.
While Elisha bit her lip—
"Lucy Forte."
Eric called her name quietly. In the brief moment she looked down, he had
approached her. Elisha raised her head to look at the Emperor before her. Elisha
had not met the previous Emperor, Bernard, in his youth. But she could easily
imagine how he looked. He must have looked exactly like Eric today. No, it was
Eric who resembled his father.
Natural dignity and grace, the light touch of playfulness he still cannot hide
even as an adult, the way he seemed cold yet was somehow affectionate...
Ah.
At that moment, Elisha realized. The Prince she had known, that young and
fragile Prince, had grown up a lot. To the point where he now reminded her of
his father.
"Lucy?"
Eric then tilted his head slightly and called her again. Elisha pushed her
thoughts aside and gave Eric a respectful nod.
"Your Majesty."
"And here you are behaving very formally, even though you've been watching me
alone all this time."
His voice, which sounded somewhat pleased and very affectionate, leaked into
Elisha's ears. Elisha silently fluttered her lashes several times. The Eric she
had known would have frowned, hating this kind of event. He had certainly grown
up. Either that, or he enjoyed his dance with Princess Primavera.
"Why the sudden frown?"
At that moment, Eric gently tapped Elisha's forehead and asked. She reflexively
took half a step back, blinking faster than before. A frown? Her?
"I did no such thing."
"No, you did."
"You must have seen wrong."
"As if. There's no way I could be wrong about you."
Eric said and his eyes crinkled in another smile. It was a remark clearly
intended to provoke her, but it elicited no reaction from Elisha. Instead, the
person who was provoked was Dante Renard, who was returning with a drink for
Elisha.
"Your Majesty, wh-atbroughtheresoquickly?"
Dante approached with rapid strides, asking without taking a breath. Eric
frowned and took a step back.
"Nothing."
"That 'nothing' doesn't look like nothing at all."
There are a lot of eyes here, you bastard. He quickly stood between Elisha and
Eric, forcing himself into an awkward smile. The only saving grace was that
everyone was focused on the dancing to the extent they weren't paying them much
attention. Although there was one gaze that followed them persistently.
"Your, Your Majesty."
Exactly like this woman. Dante sighed inwardly seeing Primavera, who approached
them at some point. What kind of tense standoff is this?
"Princess of Nox."
"I told you to call me Primavera."
She finished her sentence, and Primavera's eyes curved in a gentle smile. But
her gaze was fixed not on Eric, but on Elisha. Once again, Elisha found herself
frowning without realizing it.
"Lucy Forte."
Primavera then took another step closer to Elisha and spoke.
"I was just thinking it was a shame we couldn't talk much during the
conference."
"......"
"Since tonight is the last night, can you grant me a little of your time?"
It was a somewhat kind request and an inviting suggestion. To the point where
Dante Renard himself found himself swallowing hard for a moment. Elisha looked
at her with an expressionless face, then slowly opened her mouth to speak. Or
rather, she was about to.
"Go ahead."
Eric answered on her behalf, ahead by a step. Elisha stopped what she was about
to say and stared at him in bewilderment. She was the one being asked, so why
was he answering for her?
"If you're worried about your guard duty, Dante Renard will not leave my side,
so no need to worry. Isn't that right, Renard?"
"Well, yes, that's correct, but."
"Go then."
Eric said again. His tone was so strong it almost sounded like a command. In any
case, Eric was her boss, and he was in a position to give orders to anyone,
anytime, anywhere, so it wasn't strange at all, but. Elisha finally gave a small
nod and looked pointedly at Dante. It was a silent pressure to take care of Eric
properly.
This is exactly the kind of situation I hate. Dante sighed again, long and deep,
and ran a hand through his hair. In any case, for Eric himself to send Elisha to
Primavera, he had to have some kind of plan. Why didn't he give me any signal?
Could it be that he's doing this because we fought? Is the Emperor of the
Cardion Empire a world-class fool to the point where he can't separate his
public and private affairs?
The next moment, when he cast a side glance at the Emperor beside him— Eric
smiled a crooked smile and opened his mouth.
"Get ready, Dante Renard."
Something is about to appear.
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