126 - Pieces of the Broken Glass Slippers
Shattered Glass Slipper Shards 126
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“She’s a woman who won’t be of any benefit to you if you keep her close. Despite her good fortune in becoming a noble, she’s eerily calm as she peeks around, so she doesn’t seem like an ordinary person. If, as you say, she’s naturally wary of people and finds it difficult to approach them, shouldn’t you keep her even further away? Because you can’t know what she’s thinking.”
The Crown Prince found Cishe de Bishbalz to be an unfathomable girl. When she wore a mask, she was incredibly bold and seductive, but when she appeared with the Bischwartz name, she trembled like a frightened rabbit, her eyes darting around. He wondered what she was hiding in that tiny head of hers.
Suspecting that she might have connected with the Grand Duke behind his back, he deliberately took her to the Witch's house to hear a prophecy. The Witch, who had been bribed in advance by his subordinates, passionately spewed out a fake prophecy related to treason as if it were real. She even babbled strange things that hadn't been arranged beforehand, perhaps because she was too immersed, and even foamed at the mouth, but it was a pretty good performance. Even the Crown Prince, who already knew, felt chills.
Cishe de Bishbalz showed a confusing attitude, as if she knew and didn't know, making herself even more suspicious. He couldn't tell if she didn't even guess the meaning of the prophecy, or if she was so calm because she already knew.
So, the Crown Prince deliberately caused incidents and continued to watch her reaction.
“In just a few months since taking the Bischwartz name, she has become acquainted with quite a few prominent figures, including Chatoul, Princess Dieunzel, Mel, and even you, Lüce. She’s doing it solely through her own power and near-coincidental attraction, without relying on the influence of the Bischwartz Family.”
At his words, Lücette Roshan tilted her head as if she couldn't understand. Her face was full of expressions that showed she couldn't understand why the Crown Prince was so wary of Sis.
“So, shouldn’t you just keep her close and observe her? I’m afraid she’ll go down the wrong path like that child from before. Now that she’s entered high society, she’ll have to endure ridicule, criticism, and comparisons disguised as goodwill, and I doubt whether Sis, who has no power, can withstand it.”
“What if it’s all an act? What if she’s deceiving us?”
“Do you think she’s such a great actress that she can deceive us?”
The Crown Prince shook his head. If you think of her as a girl who has just taken the name of a noble, Cishe de Bishbalz's abilities shown so far are very outstanding, but from his point of view, who had been fighting with his half-brothers to take the position of Crown Prince since he was born, she was still just a child.
She was poking around here and there, but she was wavering without a clear direction and couldn't get a grasp on things, which made it even more so.
Well, judging from her words asking him to respect her and protect her from the Empress, it seems that her goal is to live safely in high society, but according to his senses, which he had been sharpening since childhood, that didn't seem to be the whole story.
“I know people like her well.”
Lücette Roshan says.
“Until they set a goal, they run with a very narrow mind, looking only at one thing. They don’t have time to look around. But if something clear, a desire like greed or avarice, arises, they’ll absorb everything around them to a terrifying degree. That’s what people in high society ultimately pursue.”
“So, what do you want to do?”
“So, don’t touch her. I’ll take responsibility. I want to help her blossom.”
“Is that a friend’s request?”
“Yes.”
The Crown Prince is silent. He narrowed his brow and tapped his thigh with his finger. The occasional sighs that escaped his parted lips showed how seriously he took this situation.
“Okay, Lüce. I won’t touch her, as you say. But that’s only possible if she stays within certain boundaries. You know what I mean, right?”
“All you have to do is not get deeply involved with her.”
“But the Grand Duke, my young uncle, doesn’t seem to think so. Very unfortunately.”
The Crown Prince continues to speak.
“You know what kind of competition I went through to get this position, right? So, if anyone tries to take this position that I worked so hard to get, Lüce, I won’t forgive even you. So, I hope you’ll keep a close eye on her.”
What was in his eyes was a cold chill and a murderous intent so sharp that it made your back tingle.
Lücette Roshan reluctantly nodded and replied, "I'll try." But he didn't seem to like those words, as he urged again, "Not try, promise," and eventually managed to get the word promise from Lücette Roshan's mouth.
“Ah, and this is a secret from Mel. She might go wild if she finds out.”
The world thinks that the Crown Prince is emotional and Michael Ayres is calm to the point of being an emotionless human being, but in reality, the latter is more emotional and unable to control his temper.
Until now, he has been suppressing his temper and showing the image of a knight close to perfection, but once he releases his mind, he is in a precarious state where he may run wild like a horse without reins.
You can tell just by looking at the swordsmanship competition. Idi and Lüce saw Mel wildly swinging his sword like a madman for the first time.
They didn't know what they had talked about at first, but it was surprising that he suddenly entered a state of extreme excitement and ran wild like a wild boar that had been paid in advance.
The way he recklessly charged in as if he didn't care about his own body couldn't be seen as a noble knight who had mastered swordsmanship. Perhaps if he had lost his focus of reason just a little more, he might have engaged in a life-or-death struggle with the Knight of Clear Hearing.
“By the way, why did he run wild like that at the swordsmanship competition?”
“Well, I don’t know either. Biscuits’s rejection might have pushed him to his limit. Or maybe he didn’t like the conversation with Sir Halberd?”
“First love is really hard.”
The Crown Prince asks her in a playful voice as she sighs and shakes her head.
“Lüce, haven’t you experienced first love yet?”
“Your Eminence, the Crown Prince, the only men who approach me are pathetic, so how can I be blinded? Have you ever fallen in love yourself? You pretend to be a libertine, but the way you’re acting these days makes it seem like you’re enjoying it.”
“It’s because I’ve come to know the pleasure of physical relationships. If I’m going to enjoy it, I might as well enjoy it properly, right? Anyway, I pray that you don’t end up like Mel.”
“Me too, Your Eminence, the Crown Prince.”
As they were talking, the carriage arrived at the Roshan estate. Lücette, who had agreed to lend the carriage to the Crown Prince, got out in front of the gate and said to him.
“From now on, I’m going to take Sis with me and take her around to various places in high society. So, please take good care of the defenses against Pulcher.”
“Are you planning to use me as a shield? How audacious.”
“Well, you still listen to everything I say, right?”
“Still? I listen to everything except one thing.”
“You’re joking like this, so you must have missed him again today.”
At her words, the Crown Prince narrowed his brow and frowned.
It has been more than ten years since he was exiled to the provinces due to his position as Grand Duke.
He hasn't been in and out of the city or high society during that time, but miraculously, he manages to slip through the cracks and exert influence over the entire aristocratic world.
In fact, it was ironic that he was receiving both attention and neglect because he was the current Emperor's half-brother - the only one who survived - even though he was only eight years younger than the Emperor.
Even now, if he appeared in the Imperial Palace wearing a mask, there would be more than one or two people who would run away for fear of seeing his disfigured face caused by the burn.
The Grand Duke's hideous appearance was so easily noticeable to everyone. That's why it didn't make sense that the Shadow Order of Knights missed him.
However, even though it has been almost half a year since he entered the capital, they have not even found out which lodging he is staying in. They are also not getting a sense of what he usually looks like.
This time too. He spent the whole day wandering around the city in a strange outfit that seemed conspicuous yet inconspicuous, but no one was observing him or loitering around trying to approach him on purpose. If it were the Grand Duke, he would have definitely observed him, but he didn't.
“Can’t you just pretend you don’t know if you know?”
There is nothing more painful than recalling the fact that a carefully laid plan was nothing more than a futile effort. The Young Lady Lücette, who knows this well but pretends not to know and brings it up, was annoying.
“Please try harder, Your Eminence? Then I’ll take my leave now.”
“If you’re going to take the Bischwartz Young Lady around, do it starting tomorrow. That way, Mother won’t say anything, right? Or visit her under the pretext of checking on her and see what the atmosphere is like. Maybe we’ll find something we missed?”
“Yes, I will obey your command. So, please leave now? I can’t stand the cold.”
“Such a fuss.”
The Crown Prince clicked his tongue lowly and closed the door of the carriage. Lüce lightly tapped the closed door with her palm a few times, and the carriage began to roll as if it had been waiting for that signal.
Lücette Roshan stared at the carriage that was getting further and further away, then turned and entered the house. The first thing she did when she arrived at her room was to write a letter requesting a visit to the Bischwartz Family.
“Deliver this to the Bischwartz Family right away.”
And the next morning, she received a reply that Cishe de Bishbalz had clearly written - a reply that said she was not feeling well, but would be very happy if she still came - and began to urge the maids.
And soon, a carriage carrying Lady Roshan headed to the Bischwartz Family.
The purpose of her visit was to comfort Cishe de Bishbalz, who was unable to move due to a sudden illness.
The Crown Prince told me to pretend to be sick, but he didn't tell me that someone would be visiting because of it.
That's why Lady Roshan's letter asking if she could visit was very embarrassing.
However, I couldn't refuse her polite request, so I reminded myself that I was lying sick in bed and wrote back in a way that would make her give up on her own.
But it seems I wrote it too indirectly, because I heard that Lady Roshan had come to visit, and I had to greet her with only my face washed.
“Your face is orange.”
Because I had to pretend to be sick, I gathered three or four hot water bottles and put them on my face, so it seems my temperature rose slightly.
But it should have turned reddish, not yellowish, so her words sounded very subtle.
Seril, who was attending to me, tilted her head slightly and looked puzzled.
“I must have made Sis suffer too much yesterday.”
“It’s not like that, Lüce. I’m just grateful that you came to see me.”
“I know you might not be able to rest comfortably because of me, but I still wanted to comfort you.”
Lücette Roshan told me to lie down comfortably and personally pushed a pillow behind my back. And while Marie and the others went out for a moment to get tea, she whispered in a small voice.
“From today, if you want to avoid Pulcher’s call, you can either pretend to be sick like this or follow me. Actually, I would choose the latter. Women’s gatherings are very interesting.”
The women's gatherings she mentioned would be tea times where women in high society gather to chat, embroidery gatherings, or things like horseback riding or games.
If I recall the memories of the past, Lücette Roshan often gathered several people and held small games, and the punishments for them were received by their maids.
There was even a maid who died because the pranks were too severe, and Lady Roshan expressed her condolences for her and gave a generous amount of consolation money, which earned her the admiration of everyone.
“Then when should this illness get better?”
“Actually, I want to say right now, but I’ll give you a day’s grace.”
Tomorrow was the time when most of the Founding Day events would be over. The joy and respect for founding the country is only four days.
All I've received during that time are two Floral Crowns, one threat, and an invitation to a gathering that can be called a small high society.
Founding Day is nothing special either. Thinking this, I nodded to show my agreement to her words.
Lady Roshan was very pleased that I readily agreed, and then sat next to me for another two hours, chatting before reluctantly getting up.
I didn't go out to see her off, using my illness as an excuse. Lady Roshan didn't seem to mind that much.
Just as Lady Roshan disappeared after a visit that was nothing special, Blan, who opened the door and came in, hesitated noticeably and said to me.
“That young lady, a child came looking for her because a maid called her, and the way she was explaining it was just like you, Young Lady.”
Did Arina come? I told Blan to bring the child. After a while, the child cautiously entered the room, looking around with an uneasy expression.
And she lets out a small scream as she looks at me. Arina stood there with her eyes wide open, as if she couldn't believe the sight of me lying in bed.
