Chapter 9

Hearing that, I merely shook my head for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh.

"Honestly, this is truly beyond my expectations," I said casually.

"I have no intention of wasting my time on trivial things like this."

"So you should move aside."

I had already said that much, yet his body still showed no intention of letting me pass.

"I said... move."

"Oh? Is that really how you feel, Princess?"

His hand began to toy with my left hand. Meanwhile, his face slowly lowered itself closer toward mine.

"Let go."

I turned my face away from the sharp intensity of his gaze as I spoke.

"Let go, you mean?"

His grip tightened further, as though nothing I did would ever allow me to escape from his grasp.

"Let go of my hand, womanizer. What? Do you still enjoy playing rough with women?"

That provocation was insignificant compared to what he was doing to me. Yet his grip only grew stronger, enough to hurt the pulse beneath my wrist.

Part of me wanted to whimper in pain.

But no. I simply endured it.

There was no way I would let him enjoy my misery—especially not my weakness.

He was the one who should yield, not me.

As a man, he should have understood the most basic etiquette when approaching a woman.

Not behave like this instead!

"You've gotten quite bold lately, haven't you? You beautiful, sexy little thing."

Then he whispered something no prince should have ever uttered aloud.

"Tell me..."

"Have you ever tried learning how to look weak? Wouldn't it be more interesting to become the victim for once? Especially while being treated like this?"

"My hands could easily touch far more than just yours. Even your first kiss could be stolen away whenever I please."

"And beyond that..."

"I could probably take your purity just as easily."

"So? Do you want to play rough... or play nice?"

The moment those words reached my ears, my eyes widened.

This bastard was not joking about his threats whatsoever.

"Go ahead and scream... like the way any woman would do, darling."

What an arrogant scumbag.

That dark, chaotic atmosphere wrapped around me with an overwhelming sense of gloom.

Because for the very first time...

I—someone who once possessed nothing attractive about her body whatsoever—was being harassed solely because of the body I had now.

"That is enough, Prince Cornelius."

I flinched violently, my eyes turning toward the voice almost at the same moment Cornelius calmly glanced over as well.

And the face standing there instantly brought those memories flooding back.

"Oh?"

"So, it's Duke Lockhart. I see..."

As sudden as it was, Cornelius immediately released my wrist effortlessly just like that.

"Relax. I only wanted to play around a little after what happened earlier."

Hearing that, the man who had interrupted the scene merely closed his eyes briefly before opening them once more.

"There are manners that must be upheld as a royal noble."

"Even by a prince." He said, calmly.

Wait, wait...

Isn't this way too cool?!

He seriously looked exactly like some kind of anime protagonist!

My eyes instinctively drifted toward the name embroidered neatly onto his black shirt.

[K.A. Lockhart]

Keiji Arataka.

That name surfaced inside my head once again.

"Oh, Kieran. You're way too stiff. Don't tell me you've forgotten our friendship all this time..."

"Ahh... how boring."

"You really ruined my mood."

The faint grinding of teeth could be heard before Cornelius casually began walking away with lazy, relaxed steps.

"A boring ass duke paired with a princess who can't even take a joke."

"Meh, you two really are perfect together."

He said that while passing by us before casually waving one hand without even glancing back.

I finally let out a relieved breath, though I still tried my best not to appear weak.

"Princess Victoria."

"Are you alright?"

His hand gently held my wrist. He looked genuinely worried, as though I had just encountered some kind of monster.

I could see it clearly from the faint exhaustion hidden within his gaze as he quietly stared at me.

If you keep looking at me like that, I'm seriously going to get nervous, you know...

I swallowed quietly before finally answering him.

"Yeah... I'm fine."

"And thank you. Really."

he atmosphere suddenly fell silent for several seconds before he finally responded to what I had said earlier.

"What he said wasn't entirely wrong."

Hah?

How did he even hear what Cornelius said earlier? Or was he merely guessing?

"So next time..."

"There is nothing wrong with asking for help whenever you need it."

Almost instantly, I pulled my hand away from his before holding onto my own arm instead.

"It's... nothing serious."

"By the way..."

"How did you know?"

I asked quietly, my voice lowered with curiosity.

"Oh? Did you forget already?"

"Every duke is equipped with a magical tool capable of reading someone's lips and converting it into readable text."

"Wasn't that taught back when we attended the academy together?"

Ah...

School.

It must have been a very enjoyable academy.

My thoughts drifted back toward those bleak days once again.

Back when nobody seemed to care about me at all.

"Oh, right... I forgot."

"Sorry about that."

Hearing my response, he smiled.

It still felt strangely unfamiliar seeing him like that, but...

he looked genuinely relieved.

"You really haven't changed at all, have you?" he said while gently stroking my hair.

So he truly was still the same as before.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke again.

The warmth from his hand still lingered faintly within my hair.

How annoying.

Why did he always act as though comforting me was the most natural thing in the world?

"You should get some rest for now, Princess Victoria."

Kieran slowly withdrew his hand before stepping back slightly.

Meanwhile, I merely stood there in silence.

Watching him.

Honestly...

that calm personality of his had not changed at all since back then.

And somehow—

that irritated me more than Cornelius ever could.

"Enjoy your rest."

After saying that, he finally turned around and walked away just like that.

Without hesitation.

Without looking back.

Leaving only the faint sound of his footsteps echoing quietly throughout the quiet corridor.

...

Truly, what a weirdo.

I gently touched the same spot he had stroked earlier before letting out a small sigh.

Thus, before I even realized it—

a faintly smug smirk escaped from my lips.