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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Reversing the Roles
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A bewildered Ryan hastily shook his head.
“You’re the one I love. How could I think such things when I have you…?”
He wanted Marso Etoile to stay the way he'd always known her.
“But that’s not what I see.”
He wanted that blind adoration from her youth to remain fixed on him forever.
“Just as I’ve come to face my own feelings, I hope you will take the time to do the same, Your Highness. I believe it’s the best advice I can offer you, who has always treated me with sincere respect and care.”
Ryan stared blankly at Reshuan.
Ironically, her words to face his heart made him think of Marso’s face.
‘What is this?’
He had so many plans with Reshuan for today. He'd wanted to have a good time with her, to comfort her. He'd thought they would have grown closer, especially after he'd saved her.
But instead, Reshuan had drawn a line between them. She'd remained cool and composed, even offering him advice.
Just when he thought they would finally become true lovers, their relationship had become even more of a maze.
Where had it all gone wrong? He truly couldn’t understand.
It seemed impossible to continue the conversation like this.
“…It seems you have a lot on your mind, so let’s end our talk here for today.”
He couldn't know what Reshuan would say next, and there was no telling what his own muddled head would think.
As Ryan stood up, he spotted a familiar figure walking toward them.
“Kaysen.”
The sight of him walking through the servants looked more familiar than he expected. Reshuan greeted him naturally.
Ryan let out a bitter laugh.
‘…Ha, what is this?’
It was impossible not to be angry.
Ryan muttered in a low voice.
“Are you pushing me away because of Kaysen?”
“No, Your Highness. I know that you both care for me, but my meetings with the Captain of the Knights are not like that.”
“Then what are they?”
“The Captain has been helping me with my exercises lately. He suggested it because I seemed unwell, and it was a good offer.”
Reshuan answered in a calm, soft voice. There wasn't a single flaw in her explanation.
The anger he had just spewed came from his own petty jealousy.
It was a side of him he hadn’t wanted to show Reshuan. Realizing his perfect image was shattered, Ryan’s face flushed with heat. He was truly embarrassed.
He pressed his lips together firmly and turned his back on Reshuan.
“I’ll come back later.”
After leaving Reshuan, he thought deeply.
Reshuan had told him to face his own heart. If he followed her advice, would he be able to love sincerely?
He sorted out his thoughts about Marso.
He didn’t believe Marso’s words that she no longer loved him.
‘…No, is it that I don’t want to believe it?’
Why was he so obsessed with Marso’s feelings? No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand.
‘I don’t know what these feelings I have for you are.’
The once-clear emotions had all shattered to pieces.
The woman he'd courted had spurned him, and the one who now occupied his thoughts was Marso—the very woman whose affections he had never once accepted.
To him, Marso’s heart was like a gift he had received long ago.
Only after a very long time did Ryan accept one fact.
“It means you believe me, of course—that I no longer love you, Your Highness.”
He constantly recalled the look on Marso’s face when she’d said that. He couldn’t stand how much that expression bothered him.
He wanted her feelings for him to return. It didn’t matter if he accepted them or not.
Marso Etoile’s love was something he had taken for granted.
‘If I go to her, talk with her a few times, and give her a gift, she’ll come back.’
It had always been that way. Didn’t she always seem to pull away when hurt, only to snap right back into place the moment he reached for her?
This past year, her change had truly gotten under his skin, which was part of the reason he'd tormented her more. Her drastically different attitude had put him on edge.
You stay right where you are.
Finally, his selfishness began to sprout.
Besides, hadn’t Reshuan told him to face his feelings?
Moreover, he was in a position where he had to use Marso.
He had to make Marso love him…. This was also an order from the Emperor for the sake of the future.
This wasn’t a choice made solely for himself. Furthermore, it was part of the plan to push Darcy aside and for him, the true prince, to find his rightful place.
It's not a bad start. Ryan recalled what he had said to Marso.
“It meant that I believe you won’t bother Reshuan anymore.”
He had even acknowledged that Marso had changed. The old grudges should have softened a bit.
So, what he had to do now was….
‘I’ll make you love me again.’
Just put everything back in its place.
His relationship with Reshuan, and his relationship with Marso, were no exception.
***
‘Why is Ryan here?’
There was no way he didn't know that a tea party comprised only of Darcy's followers... no, supporters, was taking place.
The fact that he had chosen today of all days to visit was the most irritating part.
“So you’ve accepted.”
Ryan entered with a triumphant look on his face and greeted the young ladies. I sighed.
“…It seems we were mistaken about someone.”
Werna whispered to me. It was a moment where we, rivals who once fought as if to tear each other apart, felt a sense of solidarity. I agreed wholeheartedly.
“I must once again express my admiration for your aesthetic eye, Princess.”
“I just have a thing for pretty things.”
“Prince Ryan is also quite renowned for his beauty.”
I subtly pushed Ryan toward her.
“I like long hair. It’s not often you find a man who looks good with long hair.”
Unfortunately, it didn’t work.
…Darcy is just too handsome. With that doting thought, I rose from my seat.
It was time to show the uninvited guest out. For some reason, Ryan kept his mouth shut. It seemed he had finally realized something was wrong.
“A prince has come all this way. You know it would be rude to send me away just like that.”
Ryan laid down a warning.
“You’re quite silver-tongued for someone who’s walked into the enemy camp.”
“Enemy camp? Prince Darcy and I are brothers who share the same blood, so you could say we’re on the same side. It’s only natural for me, as his older brother, to welcome him.”
It was nonsense to anyone who heard it, but I couldn’t kick him out.
‘Besides, Darcy is the older brother.’
I never knew Ryan could be so thick-skinned….
Just as I was thinking of any way to get out of this situation, a thought suddenly struck me.
The reason Ryan came here is clear. It’s to sway me and pull me away from Darcy.
Couldn’t I use this to my advantage instead?
He must know that Darcy and I are closer than he thinks. To separate us, he’ll have to drive a wedge between us.
That means he’ll have to reveal the information he knows to me.
Of course, I hate being with Ryan.
But for the sake of getting information for Darcy, I could offer him a cup of tea. That was the most I could offer.
Ryan, who had timed his visit perfectly, seemed to have planned for after the tea party as well. In the end, I offered Ryan the drawing room. Of course, this was after I had seen all the other young ladies off.
As Werna, the last to leave, climbed into her carriage, she gave me a calm farewell.
“I’ll write to you later, then. Look forward to it—I’ll write the best letter for Prince Darcy.”
“…I’ll be looking forward to it.”
Seeing as she paid Ryan no mind, she was no different from her old self. After seeing her off, I headed to the drawing room.
‘I was planning on organizing the magic tools with Eaton after the tea party….’
I could only hope the conversation would end quickly.
I sat down and kept my lips sealed. There was no reason for me to speak first.
Ryan was the desperate one here, not me.
Ryan followed my lead, remaining silent and observing the atmosphere. The reversal of our roles was absurd. Was he really capable of showing such a dignified side in front of me?
“…If I apologize for my past actions, will you recognize my sincerity?”
So this is why he came. To spew more nonsense.
“An apology won’t make what you’ve done to me disappear, Your Highness. And isn’t it unreasonable for someone who is apologizing to demand their sincerity be recognized first?”
Sighing, I pictured Darcy’s face. Right, I have to coax Ryan and get some information out of him somehow.
Honestly, it was uncertain whether it would work.
Ryan doesn’t like Marso, and his current attempt to win my favor is likely just part of his plan.
“…However, if you were to truly show me your sincerity, Your Highness, I believe things could be different.”
I uttered words I didn’t mean, barely managing to lift the corners of my mouth.
Thanks to my tireless efforts to smile and please them over the past year, I had grown accustomed to hiding my feelings behind a forced smile. So it wouldn’t look awkward.
Ryan gazed at me intently.
Seeing him stare at me with a somewhat placid face made my insides boil. What was he going to say now?
Just as I expected, Ryan soon opened his mouth.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you smile.”
“…Pardon?”
But the words that came out of his mouth surprised me.
‘I did hear that he hasn’t been seeing Reshuan lately… has he really gone mad?’
Whether she had truly decided to change after our conversation, Reshuan had all but disappeared from high society.
‘Not that it’s any of my business anymore.’
As I was sighing, I spotted Eaton through the window behind Ryan.
A chill ran down my spine.
