The fake princess hides her scheme

Episode 9

Anyway, I recognized Jane at a glance, and Jane probably did too, so now Raphael can hear from me.

If possible, you can trust that you are doing well and that you are in good physical health… … .

I looked up at Calrissian and spoke softly.

“Your Majesty, I heard that the Justinian lace is so beautiful, I would like to see it in more detail!”

Calrissian said with a kind smile.

“If you are interested, I will order the best quality. We have a separate supplier who supplies items to the royal family.”

I looked over the race and answered naturally.

“I appreciate your kind words, but I’m fine with it. I just wanted to give it to my maid as a souvenir.”

“Oh, you brought the fairies?”

“Yes, that kid has been really timid since coming to the palace.”

“Let me tell you the exact opposite about the desired fairy,” Calrissian asked with a twinkle in his eye.

“Really? Are you a fairy with magical powers?”

Clementine, you were acting like it was some kind of special thing for me to have magic powers, and I guess it was true.

Surprised, I smiled awkwardly and answered.

“Just one thing. My maid has the ability to teleport. Of course, there are some conditions and restrictions. But now that she can’t use her power, I guess she’s depressed.”

For some reason, Calrissian laughed happily.

“It’s a feeling that I couldn’t imagine if I were born as a normal person, but it must be quite uncomfortable in its own way.”

“It must have been really uncomfortable. For her, it would have been as natural as walking or running.”

I ended up answering as if I was speaking for the rat.

The rat’s ankle was broken, and I, who had lost the use of my fingers, understood 100% how he felt.

“hmm.”

Calrissian nodded thoughtfully, then glanced at the lace on the table.

“What would be a good gift to give to a foreigner?”

At the crown prince’s question, Jane lowered her head, which had been bowing the whole time, even more deeply.

“It is an honor to have you come to me, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

She greeted him rather politely and carefully lifted the lace in the center.

“This is a specialty of the Empire, made with the tatting lace technique. If you like it, I would like to recommend it to you.”

This time, Calrissian asked me.

“Are you okay?”

I was having a bit of a flirtation with the crown prince in front of Jane, so I didn’t really mind the lace pattern.

“Yes, I really like it. Take this.”

As Jane quickly wrapped up the lace and handed it over, the Crown Prince paid the price for me.

“Oh, this is a gift for my maid… … .”

Calrissian smiled.

“I’ll take it as my gift. I’ll prepare a better gift for you later.”

“Really? Can I look forward to it?”

When I asked him playfully, he shrugged his shoulders.

“Who do you think I am? You can expect a lot from me.”

Well, it doesn’t look like a morning star.

Justine’s rising star is beautiful, kind, and extremely wealthy. Although he is sickly, he is a man who is perfect in every way.

I smiled brightly as I accepted the wrapped lace.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. My maid will be pleased.”

***

We spent quite a long time on the Princess’ path after that.

The Crown Prince also bought me a colorful imperial almond and aniseed candy and a sugar rose.

“Wow.”

The almonds and candies, which had always been white or pink all my life, turned into a rainbow of colors, like glass beads, and the sugar roses were so elaborately shaped that at first glance you would have thought they were real flowers.

“I heard that the Empire’s sugar crafts were famous, but I didn’t know it was this good.”

In fact, I was truly amazed, to the point where I wondered if Bayswater, where I lived, was really part of the same empire.

“Sure, I like it better than real roses.”

I blushed slightly as Calrissian brought up the mistake from the day before.

“Yesterday, I was… … rude. I’m sorry, you were guiding me so diligently.”

“I’m joking. Actually, I find this place more fun than the garden.”

“Really… …?”

When I asked him a little dubiously, he smiled brightly.

“really.”

As I was picking off the rose leaves one by one and melting them, the afternoon seemed to have passed, and one side of the sky began to turn red.

“I must see the ailing Emperor this evening. Shall I go to the banquet hall now?”

I quickly shook my head at Calrissian’s words.

“Can I go back to my room? I’m so… embarrassed, thinking about the mistakes I made to people on my first day.”

“Haha, I heard about that. Everyone seemed to be having fun, huh?”

He continued,

“If His Majesty had been in good health, we could have come to see him together. It is just a pity.”

The Emperor had been ill for several years, and now it was his turn to utter the very lines that Rat-Ball had taught him to memorize.

“We are always praying for Your Majesty in Bristol.”

After sitting back in the carriage to return to his original position, he asked slyly.

“Haven’t you found anyone you like in Justine? Lady Green seems to be taking a liking to the princess.”

Nina Green was cute, but that was it.

Rather, the Crown Prince’s intentions in suddenly bringing up the topic of social circles were suspicious.

Do you care if I simply say I won’t attend the banquet?

Or is he saying that since he’s already given me two days of his time, I should figure out the rest?

He added, “How did you take my silence?”

“Of course, if you want to enter the center of the social world right away, I would recommend Lady Hillis. After all, she is the one who leads the trends in Justinian.”

Vivian Hillis, who according to my preliminary research would be my greatest rival!

When I heard the name Hillis, my mind snapped to its senses.

Actually, there was a rumor that Vivian held tea parties almost every day starting the day after the banquet, but I was never invited to one.

According to Rat’s voice, Lady Green is also being marginalized like me, so she may be shunning her potential rivals and gathering friendly forces.

Anyway, I’m not the only one who wants to stay by the Crown Prince’s side.

In this atmosphere, he could spend time with other ladies as soon as tomorrow, and the more he does, the more my chances of being invited to his palace will be pushed away.

Since you’re praising Hillis right now in front of me, I don’t know when it’ll be your turn after today.

“They are really attractive ladies. I would like to get to know them.”

So after giving him a little backlash, I quickly changed the subject.

“But, there was one thing I was most looking forward to when I came to the Imperial Palace… … .”

“Really? What is that?”

I can’t believe I have to say such revealing words while looking up at Calrissian’s purple eyes, which are as calm as a lake.

“I’m going to see the observatory.”

He laughed softly at my shy answer.

“Ah, April.”

My heart fluttered for a moment when he called my name as if it were loving.

More than any other reason, it was simply because my conscience was so prickly.

Calrissian added sensitively.

“You don’t have to try so hard to please me.”

In fact, while he was sick and confined to the Crown Prince’s Palace, he spent his time observing the constellations.

It is said that he was so absorbed in it for a while that he even built an annex right behind the Crown Prince’s Palace and moved the observatory, which was originally located elsewhere, to it.

This is information I had read in the newspaper before, and it was something that any citizen of the empire would know. Naturally, it would be widely known to the international community.

Of course, it did fit my intention of getting closer to the Crown Prince’s Palace, but it was absolutely true that I was interested in the observatory.

During my unfortunate childhood in the orphanage, there was an attic where I would be kicked out if I did something wrong.

And being locked in the attic was a punishment that had to be received alone.

The director probably wanted me to cry in the dark there, but I didn’t. As I lay there in the dusty attic, I could see the star-studded black night through the skylight.