The prince’s letter was more of a note.

“To the astonishing Ariadne.

Did you get home well that day? The royal garden is full of hydrangeas, so I thought of you. It would be nice if we could meet at the palace.

A.”

The message sent by the prince was unexpectedly romantic. Even the secret nickname they had decided on in the past was written.

But for Ariadne, who had to enter the onceinalifetime debutante ball with a fake cousin she despised, she had no time to read between his lines. She hurriedly wrote a reply saying only what she needed to say.

“Dear Alfonso.

I didn’t think I’d use the wish card so soon. I need your help. Will you be my debutante partner? I must make my debut with the prince. I will explain the details later.

Ariadne.”

The reply came surprisingly quickly. Ariadne sent a letter in reply in the late afternoon of the day Janobi arrived, and the prince’s courier arrived at seven the next morning.

It was an impossible speed unless ordered to send express from the palace the next morning.

“Dear Ariadne,

You don’t need to use a wish card to make your debut with the prince. Let me know the date and place.

Alfonso.”

Ariadne, receiving Alfonso’s note, stood dazed for a moment. The first thing that struck her was the difference between her past life and her current one.

She had started her life being treated almost like a married woman at a young age, without even having a debutante ball, but now she was in the position of having a solo debutante ball escorted by the prince, a dream of all girls.

“Is this not a dream?”

She pinched the back of her hand slightly, but it definitely hurt.

And the second thing that struck her was the strangeness of the prince’s unconditional favor. Since her mother passed away a long time ago, no one has bestowed unconditional favor on her.

Even the few acquaintances of Ariadne in her previous life only exchanged conditional favors or interactions with her.

Because Ariadne could give them some benefits, or because Ariadne listened to their complaints with sincerity, they comforted Ariadne’s feelings or listened to her story.

Speaking of the stories of Cesare and the de Mare family, they got nothing in return compared to what they gave up to the point of complaining. Love, affection, youth, faith, dedication, effort, and loyalty were all betrayed and used.

For Ariadne, who was accustomed to such relationships, the prince’s favor brought a little gratitude, mostly awkwardness, and a bit of fear.

While Ariadne was standing in a daze, Sanca ran up and nudged her head.

“Miss, what did the prince say?”

Sanca, who received the note in Ariadne’s hand, read the content stutteringly, showing off her recently learned reading skills, and then screamed.

“Kyaa!!!! Is it really, Miss?!”

“Shh, shh, be quiet.”

“It’s great! That Janobi guy… no, let’s press the gentleman’s nose flat!”

Although Ariadne’s debutante partner was decided in this way, Ariadne and Alfonso decided to keep this fact secret until just before the ball.

For Ariadne, if she officially announced that Prince Alfonso had agreed to be her debutante partner, she would first have to spend a few weeks at home under the jealous eyes of Isabella and Lucrezia, which was a headache.

Isabella would have persecuted Ariadne out of pure jealousy, and Lucrezia would have added to it because the event of handing over money to her nephew inlaw had disappeared.

Although it was not a legal obligation, it was a convention that the partner of the debutante was usually found through the parents’ network if not a relative, and in practice, it was customary for the parents to decide.

If Lucrezia knew in advance that she had changed her partner to Alfonso, she could have said, ‘Mom does not agree’ and flipped over. If that happened, there was a risk that the prince’s escort would be in vain.

Lucrezia was not a person of quick wit, so it didn’t seem like she could raise an objection if the prince showed up that morning and said he would be the partner.

Ariadne decided to crush Lucrezia’s opposition with the prince’s authority and surprise cooperation.

In addition, Isabella was the kind of person who would certainly do something nasty if she was irritated. It was impossible to predict what kind of mischief she would come up with. The fewer variables, the better.

And then there was Janobi. It would have been better to inform him in advance for the sake of Janobi’s dignity, but he needed to experience some hardship.

The thought of Janobi shaking with shock upon being informed that morning that he had been replaced by the prince made her feel better.

“You’re too presumptuous, you unpleasant man.”

Alfonso also liked the idea of keeping it a secret that he had become her escort partner at Ariadne’s debutante ball.

He had a small problem with his schedule, and a big problem with diplomacy.

The schedule of Prince Alfonso was, in principle, to be determined by the prince himself, but so far, Queen Margaret, his mother, had been involved in everything.