Bellia did not answer and raised an eyebrow. Seeing this, Callid quickly wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close.

“Do you think I’ll regret it?”

As she said this, Bellia naturally wrapped her arms around Callid’s neck.

At her provocative response, as if his barely held reason had snapped, Callid urgently sought Bellia’s lips.

“Eek!”

“Oh my…”

Acid, who had been watching, let out a sigh.

Somehow he thought they would behave properly.

As Acid had observed them up close in the Kingdom of Ronica, he had been on guard, but.

How could they lull people into a false sense of security and then blindside them like this!

“Bellia…”

Callid’s eyes looked unusual as he called Bellia’s name in a somewhat husky voice.

If left alone, this will really become a big problem!

“Ahem!! Hmm! Hmm hmm!!”

Acid desperately fake coughed.

‘This absolutely cannot happen here!’

The princess Bellia’s position is completely different! What kind of rumors are you trying to create here again!

“Pfft.”

“Hmmm…?”

Acid looked around at the sudden sound of laughter.

“Ahahaha.”

It was a clear and melodious sound.

The owner of the laughter was Princess Bellia.

“Let’s stop and go inside. Thank you for welcoming me, Callid.”

Bellia, who had been giggling while leaning on Callid’s chest, gently pushed him away.

“Where is my room?”

At Bellia’s nonchalant question, the strange tension that had built up between them melted away.

“…Haa. I’ll guide you.”

Callid ran a hand over his face once before extending his hand to Bellia.

Bellia lightly grasped his hand and stepped onto the stairs leading to the Second Prince’s palace.

In her past life, she had stayed in the palace given to the First Prince, so this was her first time seeing the Second Prince’s palace.

When she was the First Prince’s consort, she naturally had no reason to come here, and even after becoming Empress, there was no reason to visit an empty prince’s palace. So she had vaguely expected it to be similar to the palace where Raul stayed.

“It’s neat?”

“I don’t like clutter.”

While the First Prince’s palace where Raul stayed was wrapped in splendor, the Second Prince’s palace where Callid stayed was clean and simple with nothing unnecessary.

But it didn’t look empty, it just felt comfortable because it wasn’t cluttered, as he said.

Then Callid stopped walking and asked.

“…Do you perhaps like cute things? Should I redecorate the room?”

At that careful question, Bellia covered her mouth and laughed again.

“Why are you laughing?”

“You seem to have changed a bit.”

“Me?”

He’s become more affectionate.

There was warmth in his words.

Is it because we’re meeting after a long time? Why do all his words seem so sweet?

But Bellia decided not to answer him, just chuckling. Let him be more curious.

“Is this where I’ll be staying?”

Bellia quickly changed the subject.

As she entered the room he guided her to, Bellia let out an exclamation at how it was decorated more meticulously than she had expected.

In the small dressing room connected to the room, newly made dresses and various types of accessories were packed tightly. Everything was prepared so that she could be perfectly dressed even if a party was held tonight.

“When did you prepare all this?”

“Right after I returned?”

“How did you… without even measuring me?”

When tailoring clothes, measurements must be taken to make them fit the wearer’s body perfectly. So how did they make dresses without that process?

When Bellia expressed her doubt, Callid proudly explained.

“I smuggled out a few clothes in advance. Your sister helped.”

Oh my.

He conspired with Closet to smuggle out clothes in advance.

Bellia’s jaw dropped in astonishment.

“Princess Closet seems to have a good personality. I like her.”

“…Callid.”

“Didn’t it reduce your trouble thanks to her? You would have had to get all new clothes fitted anyway.”

As he smiled saying he wanted to gift all the clothes she would wear in the empire, she couldn’t even get angry.

Bellia ended up smiling slightly and thanking him.

“Ah, and we’ll go greet His Majesty together later.”

“It’s okay if we don’t go today?”

Although the Kingdom of Ronica was an ally of the empire, it was a small country compared to the empire, so formally Bellia should go greet the emperor.

But Callid shrugged his shoulders and replied as if it was no big deal.

“I already conveyed that. He didn’t seem to mind much. And you must be tired today, so you should rest well.”

In fact, Bellia didn’t particularly want to meet the emperor either. But she thought it would be better to quickly show her face once rather than do something that could cause gossip.

“There’s also a party to welcome you in a few days, so there’s no need to overdo it from now. You won’t have much free time for a while after the party.”

Bellia nodded slightly.

“What about Her Majesty the Empress?”

She also needed to greet the current empress who was confined to the empress’s palace. She wanted to properly greet her since she was also Callid’s mother.

“You don’t have to go.”

But Callid refused a bit stiffly, avoiding Bellia’s gaze.

“I should greet her. After all, I’m the person marrying your son.”

Callid did not give an answer to that, as if he was reluctant.

Bellia sent out all the maids and servants who were organizing her luggage and pulled Callid’s hand to sit him on the sofa. She realized she had never talked in detail about the empress before.

“Callid. Do you not want me to meet Her Majesty the Empress?”

Bellia asked carefully.

“But we’ll have to meet eventually at our wedding ceremony, right? Besides, she’s the one who helped us get engaged, isn’t she?”

“…I’m afraid you’ll be scared.”

“Of whom? Her Majesty the Empress?”

“She has quite a temperament, so she might treat you rudely. And she helped send the marriage proposal because it fit her own purposes. Her Majesty the Empress is… very different from the typical image of a mother.”

Watching Callid explain in a bitter tone unlike his usual confident demeanor, Bellia recalled meeting the empress in her previous life.

When she went to greet her as the person marrying Raul, how harshly she was treated.

‘Back then, I was slapped. And had tea thrown on me.’

But thinking back, the empress at that time showed a very cold and calculating side, unlike the rumors.

‘When no one was around, she didn’t even look at me.’

When the empress hurriedly appeared after hearing that Raul and the First Princess were heading to the empress’s palace alone, she struck Bellia with exaggerated gestures.

How surprised she was by the empress’s cold gaze at that moment. It was certainly not the gaze of a madwoman.

When she tried to find out more about the empress afterwards, she suddenly died.

“I’ll go see Her Majesty the Empress alone.”

The empress certainly had a mental illness. But something was bothering her.

Judging from what happened back then, it was clear that the empress chose to stay in the empress’s palace as if dead.

Bellia could not understand why she was hiding like that, even bearing the stigma of being called mad. There must be some hidden reason.

“It seems difficult to visit today, so please just arrange a meeting sometime soon.”

After finishing their conversation, Bellia slowly looked around the room and noticed a peculiarly shaped door. She grabbed the handle and tried to turn it. But with a click, the door did not open.

“What kind of space is this?”

At that question, Callid made a strange expression.

It was like the expression of a child wanting to be praised.

‘Hmm?’

Bellia tried moving the handle of the unopening door a few more times with a click click.

“Curious?”

“Yes. I’m curious.”

“Just a moment.”

Callid left the room swiftly without answering.

Left alone in the room, Bellia was bewildered, trying to figure out what was going on, when suddenly the doorknob she was holding turned smoothly.

“Huh?”

As the tightly closed door opened, Callid was standing on the other side, smiling mischievously at Bellia.

“What is this?”

“What do you mean what? It’s a door.”

Bellia burst out laughing at the scenery barely visible behind him.

“Is this your room?”

Callid silently moved away from the door. As if saying ‘come in’.

“Then excuse me.”

Bellia entered Callid’s bedroom without any embarrassment. It was a simple room with a large bed, sofa, and desk.

“There’s not much here?”

Bellia sat naturally on the bed and smiled brightly. Callid leaned on the desk and stared at Bellia with a blank expression.

“You don’t seem to care much about me.”

At his powerless voice, as if deflated, Bellia asked back.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You don’t know how much I’m holding back right now?”

Callid opened his eyes wide as if asking if she really didn’t know.

“I know.”

“You know and still act like that? How cruel.”

He grumbled in a voice full of sincerity.

“You pushed me away when I tried to kiss you earlier too. Are you aware we’re meeting after a month?”

Seeing him looking dejected as if resentful, Bellia turned her head and burst out laughing.

“Ahaha.”

Watching Bellia laugh prettily with her eyes curved, Callid tilted his head crookedly as if feeling mischievous.

“So did you find out a lot about me during that time?”

How did you feel while finding out about me?

Did you learn more about me than you know about that Raul guy?

The questions hidden in his blue eyes were clearly readable.

“How cute…”

Bellia got up from the bed and approached Callid. Then she placed her hands on Callid’s shoulders and pressed her body very close.

“You hid many things, didn’t you?”

Bellia asked him with a faint smile on her lips.

“You must have had a lot of fun?”

Her tone was very cheerful.

But the content was not so light.

“It seems we have a lot to talk about… What do you think, Callid?”

Callid’s gaze followed her hand as it lightly brushed from his shoulder to his chest.

His gaze, which had moved from her forehead to her long eyelashes slightly covering her eyes, her sharp nose, and finally her red lips, grew hotter little by little.

“…I hoped you would be curious about me.”

“That’s right. I became very curious about you.”

Callid placed his hand on Bellia’s waist. Then he lifted her up and sat her on the desk.

“How is it? You must not have had all your curiosity satisfied. Are you thinking of proposing new conditions to me?”

Callid asked with a provocative smile.

But Bellia shook her head at his words.

“No. Rather, I’ve been thinking a bit about what you want from me.”

Why do you keep acting like a child whining for attention.

“Do you really want my heart? Or are you pretending to want it?”

“Bellia.”

Every time she heard him call her name, her heart tingled. Just like Closet said, as if she had become a naive young girl experiencing her first love.

“I’m suspicious of you. I can’t trust you.”

People are bound to change someday.
You too. Me too.

“But…”

As if she could no longer hold back, Bellia grabbed Callid’s face and kissed him briefly before pulling away.

“If you just wanted me to be curious about you and pay attention to you. Yes. It happened as you wanted.”

Callid grasped Bellia’s hands that were holding his cheeks.

“As I wanted?”

He smiled very deeply.

“Bellia. You seem to be mistaken.”

Then he whispered, coming close enough to almost touch Bellia’s lips.

“You don’t seem to have any idea yet how greedy I am.”