At the end of Ariadne’s gaze, following the voice, there was a zelkova tree, blossoming with leaves next to an abandoned fountain. The owner of the voice, Prince Alfonso, was lying on a branch with a book in hand.

He gestured to Ariadne as he closed the book he had spread over his face and placed it beside him.

“Come up here?”

The prince nodded.

“People are less likely to notice us up in the tree.”

There was still plenty of time before the queen’s arrival. There was no need to rush to pick the peonies.

She nodded, then used her strength to step onto the base of the tree to crawl up to the prince. However, due to the full skirt of her dress, she couldn’t jump up with force.

“Do you need help?”

She was in no position to refuse. She stretched her hand towards Prince Alfonso, and he took her hand. His unusually thick and large hand touched Ariadne’s long, slender fingers.

“This way, right.”

Just by holding her hand, Ariadne couldn’t safely sit on the branch. As the prince lifted her up by her arm and seated her on the branch of the zelkova tree, he discovered a problem.

“Oh no, your dress is white.”

Ariadne burst into laughter and responded.

“What, did you invite me up without even looking?”

Alfonso laughed along cheerfully. He was so happy to see her face that he called her without even considering her clothing.

Alfonso, after contemplating for a moment, took off his cape.

“Can you come up here for a moment?”

What the prince pointed to was his own knee. Ariadne’s eyes widened.

‘This is too straightforward.’

But again, she was in no position to refuse. Prince Alfonso’s favor was a golden ticket for Ariadne to live freely and safely away from Cesare and the De Mare family in this life.

As Ariadne obediently shifted her weight onto Alfonso’s knee, he spread his cape over the vacant branch and seated Ariadne back on it.

“Now, is it alright?”

His movements were clean, without any unnecessary touch.

It seemed that the sentimentality was only in Ariadne’s heart. Ariadne simply nodded, her face flushed.

“Alfonso, why were you here?”

Alfonso responded with a smile.

“I should ask you the same. How did you come to be here?”

Right, it wasn’t strange for the prince to be in the palace. Ariadne laughed awkwardly at her foolish question.

“I am here for Queen Marguerite’s audience today.”

“Ah! Today was the day!”

It was common knowledge that the second daughter of the Archbishop De Mare, who defeated the apostle of Aseto, would come to the palace and receive the praise of the King and Queen and the gifts of the Queen.

“The queen spoke highly of you.”

“Really?”

Ariadne couldn’t be purely happy upon hearing she was highly regarded by the king.

It was true that a high reputation would increase the scope of her movement. But King Leo III was a ruler with many unique ideas. One might even say he was cunning. Ariadne was not sure whether catching his attention was entirely good.

“He said it’s a shame he couldn’t award you the Order of Chivalry.”

Prince Alfonso was the sole heir to the throne, and for now, he maintained a good relationship with the king.

The king adored his young son. Therefore, the king’s courtiers had no qualms about informing Prince Alfonso about the king’s affairs.

“What a shame. It was a chance to become a knight.”

She laughed as if it was a joke, but she truly felt regret. If only she had that title, she could have escaped from the De Mare family and lived freely on her own.

“Do you want to become a knight?”

Prince Alfonso’s eyes lit up. He was proficient in all the skills required of a knight, including jousting, horse riding, swordsmanship, and shieldsmanship.

He was also evaluated as having well embodied the seven virtues of a knight, namely courage, righteousness, generosity, purity, reverence for God, and abstinence and moderation.

A knight among knights, he dreamed of becoming the ruler of the central continent, receiving the respect of all knights.

“Someday, I will bestow knighthood upon you.”

“Do I have to take an oath of allegiance?”

“I swear on my soul, from this moment forward, I dedicate my loyalty to my lord. I will protect him and express my respect in the face of any adversity, putting the safety of my lord before my life. I will live for a greater good than personal gain. I will always speak only the truth to my lord, keep my promises to him, without change, without leaving, I will always guard the lord’s side.”

Ariadne knew well the oath of allegiance a knight swears to his lord. She thought it was an incredibly romantic oath that was impossible to keep.

‘And a knight who took his lord’s life, just like Judas Iscariot, the traitor in the holy book.’

Ariadne thought she should never take an oath of allegiance to Alfonso.

Ariadne had once trapped Alfonso. It was because she was Cesare’s person. If she became Alfonso’s knight after committing such a sin, she would have no words to say even if she burned in hellfire forever.

“I can’t give it now because I’m not the ruler. When the day comes, I’ll give you the honor of becoming my knight.”