Lin Hwa’s insides were boiling. The soft sound of gold instruments echoed here and there, but even the music didn’t properly reach her ears.

The banquet hall was spacious, but not so much that you couldn’t find people. If you wanted, you could survey all the other guests from one spot.

Lin Hwa poured herself half a glass of alcohol at a time.

‘How annoying.’

Lin Hwa’s seat, as a newly arrived noble, was far removed from the emperor.

On the opposite side sat imperial relatives with their family members or fiancés, and as luck would have it, the 9th princess was seated directly across from Lin Hwa.

Moreover, next to the 9th princess sat Sun An, whom Lin Hwa had long admired, slightly distanced but side by side.

Sun An didn’t even look in Lin Hwa’s direction. He carefully offered food to the 9th princess through a court lady, and when the princess accepted and ate it, he smiled shyly.

The 9th princess chewed her food like a squirrel, smiling brightly whenever her eyes met Sun An’s.

“The 9th princess’s fiancé is really handsome. How can he be so tall and fair? And I hear his family is very good too?”

Lin Hwa overheard Seolbin whispering to a beautiful lady next to her.

“Her Highness seems to like her fiancé. She keeps smiling. They’ll probably get along very well when they marry.”

Lin Hwa poured herself another half glass of alcohol.

‘Why are they grinning like that?’

She couldn’t stand the sight of the 9th princess and Sun An smiling at each other.

It was also frustrating that the 9th princess was prettier than expected. How nice it would have been if she had an ugly face, given her noble status.

Just then, the 9th princess, who had been chatting with Sun An, suddenly burst out laughing and patted his shoulder, then unexpectedly stood up and approached Lin Hwa.

Bringing Sun An along.

“Is something the matter?”

Suppressing her burning heart, Lin Hwa asked, and the 9th princess replied with a smile.

“You are this foreign envoy’s sister, aren’t you?”

Her tone was quite friendly.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

When Lin Hwa answered in an equally friendly voice, the 9th princess laughed again.

“You look a bit like this foreign envoy.”

So what? Lin Hwa thought to herself.

“Elder brother Sun An is this foreign envoy’s closest friend, and I’m also acquainted with him. This foreign envoy is the savior of my life. I’m glad his sister has come here.”

The 9th princess lightly patted Sun An’s arm again, and Lin Hwa wished they would just go away from in front of her. Couldn’t they display their affection somewhere far away by themselves?

“If you have any troubles, tell me, noble lady.”

The 9th princess seemed quite sincere, but Lin Hwa couldn’t help but take it negatively.

‘Things turned out this way because you insisted on marrying my elder sister. If it weren’t for you, elder brother Sun An would have married me. And if you really wanted to be close to me, you would have come to see me before the banquet.’

The 9th princess had already had time but didn’t send anyone to Lin Hwa or come to see her. Only now, on New Year’s Day, when she was with Sun An, did she come to greet her.

Lin Hwa couldn’t help but think the 9th princess’s friendly attitude was only due to Sun An’s presence.

“Thank you, Princess.”

But instead of showing her resentment, Lin Hwa smiled back at her. It wasn’t that difficult.

Hwa Ryeo quietly rose from his seat and went outside.

“Your Highness. Please use an umbrella. It’s still snowing.”

As Hwa Ryeo was about to leave the pavilion, a eunuch approached and offered a white umbrella.

Hwa Ryeo looked up at the sky. The heavy snow that had been falling in the morning had reduced in size, but it was still steadily fluttering down.

“Thank you.”

Hwa Ryeo took the umbrella and slowly climbed up to the elevated garden overlooking the banquet venue.

It was torture to sit forcibly in a chair knowing that no one wanted to be with him anyway.

“Don’t cry, noble lady.”

Hearing a low voice from below, Hwa Ryeo tilted his umbrella and looked down.

A short distance from the banquet hall, his master’s sister and his master’s friend were talking.

Hwa Ryeo observed them expressionlessly.

The master’s sister was crying, and the master’s friend was awkwardly trying to comfort her from a distance. The 9th princess, who was married to the master’s friend, was nowhere to be seen.

“For elder brother to call me ‘noble lady’. I hate it.”

The master’s sister sobbed, covering her face with both hands.

“If it weren’t for elder brother Yo Yohwa and the 9th princess, you and I were originally supposed to marry. But now I’ve become a concubine and you’ve become the 9th princess’s fiancé.”

At those words, the master’s friend quickly looked around. If he had looked up, he might have seen Hwa Ryeo.

But the master’s friend didn’t look this way.

“But wasn’t it you, noble lady, who immediately put your name in for selection while Yo Yohwa was looking for a fiancée for the princess?”

At the master’s friend’s words, the master’s sister lowered her hands from her face and asked.

“Did elder brother tell you such things?”

At her sharp voice, the master’s friend fumbled.

“It wasn’t intentional. It just came up briefly while looking for a suitable man.”

The master’s sister was no longer crying. She just stood there silently, like a volcano about to erupt.

The master’s friend sighed and said.

“Noble lady. Even if it weren’t for the 9th princess, I would never have married you.”

“My parents were planning to send a marriage proposal to elder brother Sun An’s family.”

“If that had happened, I would have asked Yo Yohwa to withdraw the proposal.”

“!”

“I am Yo Yohwa’s closest friend, noble lady. To me, you are just a friend’s sister, and I have no desire to become family with my closest friend. Don’t take offense. Even if I had a sister, I would have prevented her from marrying Yo Yohwa.”

The master’s sister stood motionless for a moment, then asked.

“Did you never have any feelings for me? Elder brother Sun An said I was the most intelligent and cute child in the world. He asked how someone like me could have an elder brother like Yo Yohwa.”

From this distance it wasn’t clear, but from her voice, it seemed she was crying again.

“I have never once had feelings for you, noble lady.”

The master’s friend hesitated for a moment, then drew a firm line.

“I said those things not because I had feelings for you. I was just complimenting my friend’s sister.”

“!”

“The one I admire is Her Highness the 9th princess. Please refrain from any behavior that might cause misunderstandings. From now on, even if we meet at family events, don’t follow me.”

After speaking so sharply, the master’s friend turned and immediately disappeared.

The master’s sister remained in that spot for a while, standing blankly before burying her face in her hands.

She stayed like that for so long that snow piled up on her head.

“How lonely the house will be if you get married too.”

Mother sighed and muttered.

After the New Year’s guests had left, when only family members gathered for the last meal of New Year’s Day, Lin Hwa’s empty seat seemed particularly noticeable.

Hearing those words made me worry too.

I’m going to try hard to impress the 13th prince and then stay in a hideout at an appropriate time.

I won’t stay in the hideout forever, but I’ll have to do so for a few years, watching the situation. How will she endure then?

‘I’m sorry, Mother. But it’s better than dying, right?’

Only the clattering of dishes echoed in the room.

It is quiet. Usually, Lin Hwa was the one making noise.

‘I wonder if Lin Hwa is okay after running into Sun An.’

But when we were about halfway through the meal, Sugil’s wife came in and said to Mother.

“Madam. The young master’s friend is here. What should we do?”

Since she didn’t say ‘young master Sun An’ but ‘the young master’s friend’, it seemed Sugil’s wife didn’t know the person’s name.

Mother answered with a puzzled face.

“Tell them to come in.”

After Sugil’s wife left, a moment later. As the door slid open, a large person entered.

“!”

It was my disciple.

At the unexpected appearance of my disciple, Father spat out his food, and Mother choked and coughed.

I too stared blankly at my disciple with chopsticks in my mouth. Why is he here?

My disciple nodded in greeting towards Father and Mother, then turned to me and asked.

“Master. Are you busy?”

Unable to answer, I stared at him blankly, then asked in a hushed voice so the servants outside wouldn’t hear.

“No, why has Your Highness come here?”

Belatedly, Father and Mother stood up.

Oh right. I should stand up too.

“I came because I missed you, Master.”

My legs suddenly lost strength, and I staggered, grabbing the back of the chair.

Mother and Father gaped, looking back and forth between me and my disciple.

“Pardon?”

Why is he like this, we’re not that kind of relationship? I asked back in bewilderment, and my disciple pulled up the chair next to me, sat down, and said as if this were his own house.

“I came without eating anything. Please give me something.”

My disciple spoke looking at me, but my parents reacted first. They immediately stood up and went outside. When they returned, they both had plates of food in both hands.

“Thank you.”

Even though my parents put food in front of my disciple, he spoke in a bland tone.

As expected of a prince. He’s really arrogant.

“Your Highness, Your Highness. Please enjoy the meal.”

But because he held my lifeline, I also smiled warmly and urged him.

My disciple hesitated for a moment, then picked up his spoon.

‘What’s this? Did he really come to eat? That can’t be. He’s already drawn several of his subordinates to his side. There’s no way he came just to eat……’

“I came because I was bored.”

Left alone by my parents’ consideration, my disciple revealed his true intentions more honestly. As I expected, he didn’t come because he was hungry.

But his honest answer was even more annoying. If he had come because he was starving, I might have felt sorry for him. What is he saying?

“You won’t be bored if you come to me?”

I asked back in bewilderment, and my disciple put the back of his hand on my forehead.

“Your Highness?”

As I froze in surprise, he removed his hand and said.

“Your fever has gone down. You must take your medicine regularly. It seems when you return home, you don’t receive proper treatment or take your medicine.”

My disciple’s expression as he said this was not much different from when he first appeared.

But I asked in genuine surprise.

“Did you… come because you were worried about me?”

I felt a bit hopeful too.

Though it wasn’t very noticeable on the outside, had my disciple’s hostility towards me actually been decreasing layer by layer? Had his hostility dropped to the level of worrying about me when I was sick?

How wonderful that would be! I held my breath and looked up at my disciple.

“Is that really why?”