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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Slap
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I was having tea with Romeo. Suddenly, another visitor arrived.
When Lellia showed a look of welcome at the sound of a knock, Romeo asked.
“Expecting someone?”
“…Yes, I’m supposed to receive something from Sir Lute.”
“……”
But the person who entered when the door opened was not Lute.
“P-Princess?”
It was Princess Yuriana.
Lellia, flustered, took a few steps toward her. Yuriana’s expression was as cold as ice.
Her frigid demeanor, which seemed to exude a cold vapor, also felt as though it were spewing flames.
Indeed, fury was blazing in her eyes.
Yuriana glared at Lellia for a moment before striding forward and abruptly slapping her across the cheek.
Smack!
It didn’t hurt, but the sound was loud.
However, just because it didn’t hurt didn’t mean it wasn’t shocking. Lellia was so dumbfounded she could only move her lips without a sound.
Tears welled in Yuriana’s eyes.
*I’m the one who got hit, so why are you crying?*
Lellia wanted to ask, but she squeezed her eyes shut. Yuriana’s palm was flying toward her other cheek.
Thwack!
But the hand never reached Lellia’s cheek. Romeo, who had closed the distance, had snatched Yuriana’s wrist.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“How dare you grab a princess’s wrist?! Let go of me!”
“What is this unruly brat…”
“Let go! I said, let go! Guards!”
As Yuriana struggled, Romeo held her arm and gave her a light push.
The force of it made Yuriana stumble backward, nearly falling.
Perhaps because a dizzying memory surfaced, Lellia quickly reached out and caught Yuriana’s arm.
“……”
Thanks to her, Princess Yuriana didn’t fall, but the situation became a bit ridiculous.
Lellia let go as soon as Yuriana regained her balance.
It wasn’t like a cat showing mercy to a mouse; watching her catch the very person who had just slapped her, Romeo was utterly baffled.
The words ‘what an idiot’ rose to the tip of his tongue.
“……”
Lellia took a step back, touching her swelling cheek.
She had her reasons.
The moment she saw Yuriana about to fall, a terrible memory from the past had resurfaced.
When they were children, Lellia had been forced to offer a tremendous apology for the crime of pushing Yuriana.
The memory of that day remained a trauma, which was why she had instinctively grabbed Yuriana to keep her from falling.
She was afraid that day’s events would repeat themselves.
Of course, since it was Romeo who had pushed her, such a thing wouldn’t happen.
There was no way they could inflict the same punishment on Romeo, a prince, as they had on Lellia.
But Cedric, Damian, and Emperor Perseus were all people who lost their reason when it came to Yuriana’s safety.
She wanted to prevent even the slightest harm from coming to Romeo.
If it did, she felt she would truly never be able to forgive them.
“How rude!”
Yuriana huffed and then suddenly shouted at Lellia.
Lellia had no idea what was going on. If she at least knew why she deserved to be slapped, she wouldn’t feel so frustrated.
Fortunately, Yuriana soon explained the reason.
“It wasn’t enough for you to side with Lady Grace to put me in a difficult position…!”
Tears trickled down from her brimming eyes. Princess Yuriana looked as if she were the most wronged person in the world.
“…Have I committed a rudeness so great that I deserve to be slapped?”
“The fact that you don’t even know is even more absurd!”
Princess Yuriana clenched her fists.
She had never been so humiliated in her life.
In truth, she hadn’t been this angry even when Lellia had openly taken care of Grace at the ball.
Back then, she had found it rather amusing and cute.
It was entertaining to think he was doing it to get her attention.
So she had asked her father to consider him a candidate for her betrothed, just to see what kind of person he was.
But Sir Raymond had apparently returned after doing nothing but praise Lute.
He had told them to connect Lute and Yuriana.
Hearing that story, Yuriana was dumbfounded, and her pride was deeply wounded.
It was essentially a blatant rejection. Besides, who did he think he was, daring to meddle in the princess’s marriage affairs?
Yuriana had liked Lute from the beginning.
And yet, she had been willing to give him a chance.
Seeing him go this far, it was clear that Sir Raymond truly had no feelings for her.
As soon as she realized she had been deluding herself all this time, Princess Yuriana was so embarrassed she couldn’t lift her head.
Ever since hearing the news yesterday, she hadn’t even been able to speak with her ladies-in-waiting, suffering alone.
And yet, Sir Raymond had sent no word, let alone come to apologize to her.
That was why she couldn’t stand it any longer and had come to find him.
Having been raised and revered as a princess since childhood, her pride was immense.
“……”
She had thought he wasn’t interested, but seeing him support her to keep her from falling made her confused.
If he truly had no feelings for her, he wouldn’t have caught her after she had just slapped him.
‘Is he hiding his feelings because of his friendship with Lute?’
If so, she disliked it even more.
She couldn’t stand cowardly, foolish men.
Princess Yuriana huffed for another moment before turning around and storming out.
Lellia and Romeo, who had been accosted, stared blankly at her retreating back before looking at each other.
Romeo furrowed his brow and asked.
“You… don’t tell me you actually like that princess, do you?”
He asked just in case. Since ‘he’ had ‘that thing,’ maybe he had lost his mind as a man and genuinely liked Princess Yuriana.
“…No.”
Lellia answered, holding her cheek.
To be honest, she truly despised them.
Emperor Perseus, Cedric, Damian, and Princess Yuriana.
She despised them all to a horrifying degree.
It was then.
The door that Princess Yuriana had slammed shut burst open.
Lellia flinched reflexively, and Romeo stepped forward to shield her.
Fortunately, the person who opened the door and entered was Calix.
Lellia let out a sigh of relief at the sight of him. She had flinched, thinking Yuriana had come back…
But the moment her eyes met Calix’s.
Sounds of popping fireworks and a fanfare echoed in Lellia’s ears.
*Bbara-bam-bambam!*
[Quest Complete! ✧*.◟(ˊᗨˋ)◞.*✧ Claiming rewards!]
∙ 10x Affinity Check Tickets
∙ 5x Special Recipe Puzzle Pieces
∙ 2x Lv. 3 Random Gift Box[?]
∙ 1x Quest Jump Coin
Lellia was dazed by the sudden fanfare.
It seemed Calix’s affinity had risen quite a bit since she last saw him yesterday, completing the quest.
[Raise Special Affinity Target ’s affinity to 75 or higher!!(•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑]
※ Quest Story Progress: 40%
As the next quest appeared, Lellia mentally gave the command to accept it.
Meanwhile, Calix stood there blankly.
“…What? Why are you just standing there?”
He looked so foolish that Romeo scowled.
“……”
Calix blinked, then narrowed his eyes. He had spotted the redness on one of Lellia’s cheeks.
“…What’s this. Who did it? What son of a bitch hit you?”
He stomped toward Lellia like an angry bear.
“W-Well…”
“The princess just stormed past like an angry bear. Was it her? Did she hit you?”
Lellia, who had just been thinking of an ‘angry bear’ when she saw Calix, guiltily pressed her lips together.
When Lellia didn’t answer, Calix looked at Romeo. Romeo nodded, confirming it.
“She dared to touch my little brother?”
Calix growled and was about to pull out the dagger he kept in his tunic. It was the greatsword he had managed to shrink with Lellia’s help.
Romeo calmed him down.
He had to stop the impulsive Calix before he caused a major incident.
Lellia, noticing this as well, also tried to calm Calix.
“You don’t have to worry about it. It’s because I acted like such a playboy at the ball… That’s why.”
Even though she deliberately took the blame, Calix’s gaze remained murderous.
“Anyway, where’s Griffith? Did you handle what he asked?”
As Romeo changed the subject, Calix finally calmed down a little.
“…Yeah. I looked into it, more or less. Hey, you. Open your mouth. The inside of your mouth isn’t cut, is it?”
“N-No, sir. I’m fine.”
“I said open up.”
Calix insisted on making Lellia open her mouth to check inside.
Romeo watched them, tilting his head.
‘Has Calix figured something out, too?’
Was there any reason to be so concerned and treat him so well?
It seemed he really thought of him as Leo’s younger brother. Calix was acting like a little kid excited to have a younger brother for the first time.
Like an older brother stepping up because his little brother came home after getting beaten up somewhere.
“Jeez… getting hit by a girl. I told you to tone down the playboy act, man. Don’t go around hurting women’s feelings. Just avoid them altogether like me. Huh?”
“…Yes.”
“A man shouldn’t be so reckless with his body. You… just because you’re confident in… you know… doesn’t mean you can act like that. You need to be more careful. Got it?”
“Yes… brother.”
Lellia replied as such, sensing that Calix was hoping for that title. Calix’s expression immediately brightened.
‘Simple guy.’
Oblivious to what Lellia was thinking, Calix spoke cheerfully.
“If anyone bothers you again, just tell me. Your big brother will take care of everything. Understood?”
“Yes, yes…”
Watching Calix, Romeo rubbed his forehead, a headache coming on.
