“Allow me to reintroduce myself,” he said with a calm yet rather infuriating smile. “I am Julient of Setus, otherwise known as the Third Prince or the Scholar Prince. I’m sure you’ve heard of me from Professor Karvin?” His voice was smooth, confident, almost playful.

I blinked, trying to keep my composure. “Y-Yes, I have…”

He took a half-step closer, enough to make me shift back instinctively in my seat.

Why was he here?! Unannounced, no less! This was my birthday, not some impromptu royal visit.

“Y-Your Highness,” I stammered, trying to regain control of the situation. “If I may ask, what purpose are you here for?” My tone was polite but strained. Royals don’t just show up without reason, especially uninvited.

He tilted his head, his golden hair swayed gently as he did. “Why, I’m merely attending your birthday party!” he exclaimed with mock innocence, his grin widening. “Am I not allowed to?” He stared deep inside me, waiting for my response.

You’re not even invited! I shouted internally. Outwardly, I was still wearing my default, “indifferent” face. “That is not true. I am honored to have you attend my party, Your Highness but, surely that couldn’t be all?”

His eyes lit up, similar to Professor Karvin’s when I amazed him that long ago. “Perceptive, indeed!” He clasped his hands together. “I knew those eyes of yours held something in them!”

Is he teasing me? I fought the urge to frown. What was he playing at?

The Third Prince straightened up again, brushing a stray strand of hair behind his ear. “I’m sure there will be plenty of time for both of us to talk after everything’s settled,” he continued, his tone suddenly softening, as if we were old friends. “Would it be fine if I lounge around here for a while?”

Like I had a choice. I glanced around the room, where every guest had fallen completely silent, eyes downcast, waiting for my response. If I said no, it would only make things worse. “Yes, feel free…”

Not that anyone would be able to stop him anyway.

“Splendid!” He gave another flamboyant bow, one arm extended to the side for that extra flair, before straightening up. “I shall see you again soon, Lady Carine.”

With that, he turned and walked away at an infuriatingly casual pace, his steps deliberately slow, as if he wanted everyone to watch him leave. The heavy silence that had settled over the room lingered for a few more moments, before being shattered by the collective sound of hundreds of sighs of relief. That’s right, the entire hall had been kneeling since his arrival.

He didn’t even bother to give them the order to raise their heads…

Father and Mother rushed up the small set of stairs, practically flanking me on either side. Their usual composed expressions were replaced with barely concealed shock.

“C-Carine, my dear!” Mother’s voice was a whisper, though the urgency in it was unmistakable. “How did you gather the Third Prince’s favor so?”

Father nodded, his brow furrowed. “Y-Yeah, I didn’t think you’d have any dealings with the royal family until you were at least 18.”

“I… have no idea,” I answered truthfully.

Mother leaned in closer, her grip on my arm firm. “Listen carefully, Carine. The Third Prince seems to have taken a great interest in you.”

Did he though?

Father crossed his arms, his tone serious. “It’s best if you make your own decision on this. Whether or not we align ourselves with him is no small matter.”

They were really jumping the gun here, huh? I mean, sure, it wasn’t every day a prince just showed up at your birthday party out of the blue, but wasn’t this a little premature?

Even I had no idea why the Third Prince was so intrigued by me. Maybe it had something to do with what that old professor had mentioned before, that I was the ‘proof’ the Third Prince was looking for. Something about me being an example of the success of early education or whatever.

Was I really that different compared to other nobles? Surely they too have strict schedules to adhere to, right?

But still, the very idea of more responsibility made me want to curl up and vanish. Did they even know how stressful my lives already were?!

On the other hand, though… being in the Third Prince’s good graces could bring some serious perks. House Sareid’s influence would grow exponentially, and as the future Duchess, that could make things a lot smoother down the road.

But, it could also bring dangers. What if there was political unrest? Or worse, a civil war? Anyone who backed the prince would get caught in the crossfire, or worse, sent to aid in the war.

Okay, okay, I was probably just overthinking things here, but I am Carine Sareid! The future heir of the Sareid Dukedom. How I interact with the Third Prince would change everything—whether I liked it or not.

I looked back at the guests who were still in the hall, they were all now whispering to each other. I didn’t have Feyt’s ears here, but even I could tell they were gossiping about the Third Prince.

His presence completely dominated everyone else’s spotlight, including mine. My birthday party would no longer be remembered as my party, but as a party the Third Prince attended uninvited.

Give me a break man, can a rich girl have one relaxing day?

—

The greeting part of the party had pretty much ended, and I was now “free” to wander around and socialize with whomever I wanted. Of course, that was a lie. I had no freedom in who to talk to, since I was immediately swarmed by parents who seemed determined to emphasize again how awesome

their sons were.

I also began seeing several families discreetly slip out after the formalities were over, even though they were enthusiastic just moments before. These were probably the ones who had no intention of aligning themselves with the Third Prince.

Of course, the opposite was also true, as those desperate to jump on the royal bandwagon began doubling their efforts to spice up their sons in front of me, even ones who were subtle before grew desperate.

“M-My son said that mastering the Sareid Swordstyle was his dream!”

Wait—wasn’t he a ‘master poet’ ten minutes ago?

“Hah! My son will become a future general of the Royal Knights! He will bring in honor upon honor to his House and Kingdom!”

I glanced at her son. He was cowering behind her skirts, clearly not used to this much attention. I doubted he would become a general, but I still wished him the best.

I could only stand there, surrounded by parents and their sons. I stopped listening after the first round of boastful declarations, throwing in a “Hmm… interesting,” or “Is that so?” every now and then. They didn’t seem to notice that I was mentally light years away, so I considered that a win.

When will they see that I wasn’t interested at all in their sons? I’d rather not think about anyone in that kind of sense, Fray’s teasing was still fresh in both of my minds.

As the swarm of parents kept closing in, I found myself seriously considering fleeing to Mirabelle. Sure, she was insufferable, but at least she didn’t have a son to marry off.

Suddenly, a familiar voice cut through the chaos. “Carine.”

“Mother!” I used it as a chance to slip through the circle surrounding me. I practically leaped toward her, and for a second, I considered hugging her out of pure relief for rescuing me.

“What is it, Mother?” I asked, composing myself quickly.

“The gift-giving ceremony will be in an hour,” she said in her usual calm tone. “Be sure to freshen up and prepare to receive every single one gratefully, understood?”

The unspoken meaning behind that sentence was clear: Even if someone handed me a pile of shit, I would have to smile and act like it was a precious jewel. It was all about saving face, making sure no one felt inferior for bringing an objectively terrible gift, but it didn’t make it any easier.

Smiling wasn’t exactly my strong suit as Carine, especially not the natural kind. But Mother’s orders were absolute. “Of course, Mother,” I said, bowing slightly.

Carine Sareid was the embodiment of perfection, at least in the eyes of others, I needed to fit into that shoe if I wanted things to go smoothly.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep