If I suppress Duke Bikander, next in line would be Olivia standing there.

Seeing the expressionless face, the shame from a while ago surged back.

If the support of the Duke, who was a hindrance, disappeared, then I would definitely not leave her alone.

The princess’s azure eyes looked at Olivia once again, as if observing from a distance, like watching an opera.

Just a while ago, Olivia was not even worth watching. In the meantime, to break this atmosphere, two attendants approached.

“Viscount of Katangta, and Viscountess. Could you please accompany us for a moment? Will you show your invitation?”

It was a welcome ending.

The princess looked at the attendants with a thoughtful expression. The compassionate smile was enough to win the favor of the nobles. Everything had returned to the way she desired.

“Just a moment.”
In the soft-spoken voice, the princess reflexively paused. The only one who should intervene in this situation was the Duke…. However, the Duke’s voice seemed too close. The princess raised her head, wondering. Soon, her sea-blue eyes were filled with astonishment.

“I accompanied them as their guarantor.”

Why now, of all times?

“Ah, D-Duke, did you say that directly, sir?”

The attendant stammered in confusion. And when Jade Madelayne nodded, the princess couldn’t believe the situation unfolding before her eyes.

“W-What? Kyung……!”

She should say something, but her tongue stiffened. Jade Madelayne looked at the princess with an indifferent face.

“As the vice commander loyal to the palace, to dispel misunderstandings, I came to this banquet with these two. According to Viscount Katangta, Your Highness personally invited them to the summer banquet after forming a connection last month.”

A connection formed last month.

The voice echoing through the venue made the princess swallow her breath with a pale face.

No more nobles should think of ‘Katangta’. The princess urgently called him.

“Le, Lord Ree. Kyung, no, Mr. Madelayne.”

Madelayne, his family gained power.

In response to the call that felt like a threat, Jade paused for a moment.

The princess didn’t miss that hesitant moment.

Then, step by step, she approached him. A deliberately and subtly spoken voice addressed Jade.

“Whatever you say here, you have to take responsibility. Here……”

“……. ”

“……It’s not just a gathering of nobles from our Franz Empire, is it?”

“……. ”

“Of course, I don’t think Mr. Madelayne, the leader of the Empire, would say anything unfavorable to me, Princess. Wouldn’t Mr. Madelayne think so too?”

The princess, who whispered like having a secret conversation, smiled gracefully and took two steps back.

As if Jade Madelayne was the trusted envoy, both Viscount Katangta and his wife were trembling.

Jade Madelayne, a loyal servant of the imperial family, could not betray himself in front of all these nobles.

“……Whether or not, as ‘Madelayne,’ I will pay the price for the dishonorable incident.”

So, when Jade began to speak again, the princess blinked as if she had received a blow to the back of her head.

Jade’s gaze, speaking monologues, was directed far away. There was no need to pay attention to each strange word.

The muted voice echoing through the venue was expressing the intention to surrender to the princess herself.

“Whether you know it or not, the rumor that Your Highness has already visited Katangta and not Bikander Territory has spread as much as it could.”

“What……!”

The princess gasped and blinked her eyes.

How did the Duke’s mouth…! Jade Madelayne was not expected to do this.
The surroundings turned pitch black. The fingertips chilled with confusion, causing a shiver. Overwhelmed, the princess could only make a soundless breath, unable to utter a single word.

With the dignified appearance of the princess, there was nothing she could do. Someone had to intervene. Strangely, today, even playmates like the Viscountess Libeorn and others did not step forward.

Until a moment ago, the nobles who surrounded and protected me, forming a circle, seemed to vanish, not uttering a word, as if they had put on lip balm.

A sense of frustration surged like a tidal wave. Left alone in a deserted place, under piercing glares, the princess could only lower her head.

Meanwhile, Jade continued speaking smoothly without interruption.

“Isn’t it inappropriate for Your Highness, who always dedicates herself to the empire, to say such things? So, how about clearing up misunderstandings here and now?”

“Mr. Madelayne!”

A sharp voice interrupted Jade’s words. The princess looked at Jade with earnest eyes.

The indifferent amethyst eyes revealed nothing of what he was thinking. Jade, like someone adding water, fell silent.

In the now-silent banquet hall, the princess desperately gazed at Jade Madelayne as if hanging on a cliff.

The mining operation would end with the emperor’s anger. But this, this was a burial within high society itself.