Chapter 116: Like Father, Like Son
"Ah… I see."
Marchioness Letium, embarrassed, tried to straighten her back with an air of elegance, and Countess Timberline quickly followed suit.
"What brings you here to see me?"
Marchioness Letium glanced at the Princess Consort sitting across from her. Whether it was true that she had been ill, she had lost weight, and her jawline was sharp, but her eyes were so round that she looked utterly harmless.
Besides, the Prince wasn't here.
What a perfect opportunity!
Marchioness Letium put on a distressed expression and opened her mouth.
"Your Highness… I heard that you were in great pain that day, at that gathering. How agonizing it must have been! I was completely unaware… How could I have known? I had never met you before that day, Your Highness. It wasn't even a planned meeting."
As she teared up and her lips trembled, Countess Timberline quickly added,
"I should have been by your side, Your Highness… As you know, Your Highness, my old friends were 'coincidentally,' very 'coincidentally' there that day. We even asked for your permission."
"Indeed."
Olivia nodded lightly, and Countess Timberline seized the opportunity to plead.
"The conversation went on for so long that I didn't realize you were in pain, Your Highness. You should have told us if you were feeling unwell."
Jonan, who was listening from behind, frowned slightly. He pricked up his ears and carefully stored the words the two women were uttering in his mind.
"Listen carefully and remember whether the people who came to see Olivia are properly apologizing."
Prince Noah had entrusted Jonan, who had a good memory, with a special mission.
At that moment, Olivia, who had been listening, nodded again, readily.
"You're right. I've realized through this experience that speaking up when I'm not feeling well saves a lot of trouble for everyone."
Countess Timberline agreed as if she had been waiting for it.
"Yes, you must, Your Highness. That's why… Prince Noah has a very deep misunderstanding."
Marchioness Letium quickly chimed in.
"We hope that Your Highness will clear up Prince Noah's misunderstanding."
Olivia glanced at Marchioness Letium before turning to Countess Timberline and asking,
"I have a question, Countess."
"Yes."
"What is a Shine Party?"
"…Pardon?"
"I'm asking because I'm curious. To accurately understand His Highness's 'misunderstanding,' I need to know what the Shine Party, which is the point of contention, is."
The Princess Consort, who had seemed harmless with her round, gentle face, suddenly felt like an impassable wall. While Marchioness Letium hesitated, Countess Timberline moistened her dry lips with her tongue.
However, Olivia remained silent, urging a response, and Countess Timberline had no choice but to open her mouth.
"Uh… well… um… it's a party where… someone is… excluded… from the party."
"So, it means isolating a specific person within the party. How do you isolate them?"
"……."
When there was no answer, Olivia smiled as if she understood.
"So, this is where the misunderstanding originated. When everyone is chatting at the table, making one person sit alone and unable to join the party is also one of the methods of a Shine Party. Of course, Mrs. Seymour did come to my table for a while that day."
"Your, Your Highness…!"
"Let me ask you. Is the Shine Party an official event, or is it a kind of behavior that is carried out in various ways depending on the occasion?"
Jonan, who had been tensing his whole body behind the Princess Consort, suddenly relaxed.
Olivia was cornering them in a calm and collected manner.
"Yes. There's no way such a party could be official. It's probably a way of driving someone into a corner at a prepared party. Am I right, Marchioness Letium?"
Marchioness Letium couldn't help but nod, even as she felt like she was being stopped.
"…Yes, you're right."
Olivia turned to Countess Timberline.
"Actions can cause unnecessary misunderstandings. I recall your teaching that as a Princess Consort, I must pay attention to even the smallest of my actions."
"Your Highness…!"
The smile that had been on Olivia's face vanished without a sound.
"Since you once taught me, let me ask you one more thing. In the future, when I feel like I've become the subject of a 'Shine Party'-like behavior,"
"……."
"How should I act wisely, Countess Timberline?"
It was a sharp question.
Marchioness Letium, who had looked down on the Princess Consort because of her gentle face and demeanor, felt a chill run down her spine. The Princess Consort was cornering them, armed with cold reason and logic, as they tried to obtain what they wanted without a proper apology.
When she met the dark eyes that she had thought were innocent, Marchioness Letium felt like she was facing an unfathomable abyss. The Princess Consort was not someone who would simply accept that she was wrong and move on.
"If the Prince doesn't invest, we're doomed, understand?!"
"Whether she was a commoner or not, she's Astrid now. King Leonard's daughter-in-law and Prince Noah's wife!"
In the end, Marchioness Letium had no choice but to accept that the woman in front of her was Astrid. And once she accepted that, it became clear what she had to do in this situation.
Marchioness Letium took a slow, deep breath and then bowed politely, offering a clear apology.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness. Please forgive me."
Countess Timberline was surprised by her proud sister-in-law's actions and widened her eyes, but seeing the determined expression beneath her bowed head, she quickly stood up and bowed.
"Please forgive her, Your Highness. I'm sorry."
Olivia stared at them for a moment before slowly opening her mouth.
"Please both raise your heads."
The two women raised their heads only after Olivia gave her permission.
The contempt and ridicule were no longer present in Countess Timberline's gray eyes. They were filled only with earnestness. Marchioness Letium's expression also held only determination.
Olivia looked back and forth between the two women before raising the corners of her lips in a smile. Perhaps it was because she had realized that they were not easy people to deal with, but even that smile overlapped with Noah's, who would spew out harsh words with a smile.
Without realizing it, the two women swallowed hard, and Olivia said,
"I believe your words that it was not a Shine Party."
As her words fell, Countess Timberline let out a long sigh and closed her eyes tightly.
"Yes… Your Highness."
"If we happen to meet at a banquet in the future, let's chat with each other."
Marchioness Letium bowed politely again.
"Of course, Your Highness. I will be at your service."
"Although it may not be of much help, I will tell Prince Noah that I do not consider that party to have been a Shine Party."
"Thank you so much."
Afterward, Countess Timberline repeatedly apologized for forcing the Corset on her and for the unsavory incidents that had occurred while teaching her.
After the two women left, Olivia casually asked Jonan, who was behind her,
"Do you know what His Highness said to them?"
At that, Jonan scratched the bridge of his nose and replied with an awkward expression.
"He probably didn't say much."
"……?"
"Doesn't he hate long speeches? He probably showed them with his actions, didn't he?"
At that, Olivia fell silent. She seemed to have something to say, but it was clear that she was silent because it was not something she could say in front of the Prince's bodyguard.
Perhaps it was something like, 'Actions shouldn't come before words.'
Jonan simply shrugged and smiled.
It was because the white rabbit sitting on the head of a large male lion and directing it came to mind again.
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Meanwhile, around that time, at the palace.
The reason King Leonard had summoned Noah from the morning was none other than the problem related to the Magic Dome.
The problematic Unit 2 had finally stopped working, and Wilhelm Corporation had notified them that it would take quite a long time to repair it because there were no related parts.
However, the fact that there were no parts was just an excuse, and it was clear that it was retaliation for Noah canceling the investment.
King Leonard's wrath was as cold as the north wind in midwinter.
"This reckless bastard dares to pick a fight with me. He seems to think that Herot will collapse without the Magic Dome."
In front of the King, who was spitting out each word fiercely, the secretaries and aides cowered, and Usher and Noah remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts.
Soon, Usher opened his mouth.
"Wilhelm Corporation must also take risks. Many countries will be watching this closely. And anxiety will take root. The anxiety that Wilhelm Corporation can intervene internally at any time with the Magic Dome."
As his words ended, Noah took over.
"Since there will be no monster appearances for the time being, it would be good to station a warship equipped with the Magic Dome in Herrington Bay next spring to fill the void of Magic Dome Unit 2. And let's refer this matter to the International Fact-Finding Committee to gather public opinion."
"Yes. We need to put pressure on Wilhelm Corporation by using the anxiety of neighboring countries."
Then the secretaries and aides nodded in agreement.
"That's a good idea."
"Let's do as the Crown Prince and Duke Rosemond say."
Leonard, who had been lost in thought for a moment, proceeded with a meeting to further specify the opinions proposed by Usher and Noah.
The two-hour meeting ended with Leonard signing the documents to be submitted to the International Fact-Finding Committee.
As the secretary carefully put away the documents and straightened his back, Leonard suddenly asked him,
"By the way, how is Lucy's cough?"
Then the secretary reported in detail with a serious face, as if he were explaining an important business.
"Her lingering cough has become a little more severe, but she said that it is not a major obstacle to going to school, so she went to school today as well."
"How long has that lingering cough been going on, and it's still like that?! It's not something like asthma, is it?!"
"Three doctors are seeing her at the same time……."
"But why isn't she getting better?!"
Noah, who was sitting on the sofa and looking at his watch, frowned and looked at the King, then turned to Usher, who was sitting next to him.
"…It's an obsession."
Usher whispered with a disgusted face, and Noah nodded slightly.
"If you have something urgent, go ahead and take care of it. By the way, has the Princess Consort's health gotten any better?"
"She's getting better, but she's not completely well yet."
As the brothers were talking for a moment, Leonard suddenly interjected.
"Oh, right, Noah! Did you say you were canceling the money you were going to invest in Letium and Seymour?"
Noah thought about how fast the rumors spread and looked back at his father. Then he replied simply.
"Yes, that's right. However, in the case of Letium, it may or may not be canceled depending on what they do."
Of course, he wanted to cancel Letium as well because of what Countess Timberline had done. However, in the case of Countess Timberline, the Queen Consort had already retaliated, so he couldn't go any further.
"Won't your company's reputation suffer? Neither of them is heavily involved in politics, so I don't care."
At Leonard's question, Noah smiled and replied.
"That doesn't mean I shouldn't do what I have to do."
With those words, he got up neatly from his seat.
"Then I'll be on my way, Your Majesty. Please call me again if you need anything."
Perhaps because he wasn't suffering from the media, he looked much more relaxed than before.
"Alright, go ahead. Give my regards to Olivia too. Tell her to visit the palace too."
"She's not fully recovered yet. We'll come together when she's healthy."
As Noah, who had even politely refused the King's perfunctory greeting, stepped back, Leonard grimaced and twitched his lips before muttering.
"Geez, did I tell her to come to a dangerous place?"
The rest of the people, who had been objectively watching the father and son, shook their heads slightly at the same time and thought.
Whether it was the father who told his daughter not to go to school because she had a lingering cough, or the son. Father and son were the same.
