“Oh, I guess I’m a bit nervous seeing Prince Tesla after a long time. Haha.”

“Well, that could be.”

As I awkwardly changed the topic and laughed, Lionel responded with a slightly uneasy expression.

Prince Norton, after giving me a sidelong glance, continued to walk with us.

Though the wind was blowing, it was a dazzling sunny day.

As we stepped outside the main palace, in the distance, the Shat’ol Royal carriage came into view.

“There it is.”

Lionel nodded towards the carriage.
The Shat’ol Royal carriage was circling around the lake at the center of the palace.

The sounds of horse hooves and the carriage wheels were getting closer.

After a while, the carriage stopped in front of the palace stairs.

“What’s this?”

Suddenly, the carriage window opened, and a small hand popped out towards us, waving innocently.

Then, another hand from inside the carriage appeared, giving the small hand a pat before closing the window again.

The first hand that appeared was probably Princess Lyselia’s, and the one that patted it down seemed to be Prince Tesla’s.

Ah, I wonder who she was so excited to greet with such a vigorous hand wave.

Me? Or Lionel?

Turning my gaze to Prince Norton, who stood silently next to me, nonchalantly sniffing and holding back a laugh, he was staring at the Shat’ol Royal carriage.
It was a puzzled expression, whether he was squinting due to the sunlight or forming an impression upon seeing the carriage.

“Just now, what do you think popped out of the carriage window?”

Lionel pointed at the Shat’ol carriage with his finger and asked me.

“It looked like a tree branch?”

I replied, staring through the carriage window.

He chuckled briefly and then asked Prince Norton.

“What’s your opinion?”

“I think it was a hook used by commoners.”

…Is he seriously saying that?

While I did mock Princess Lyselia, Prince Norton’s response seemed quite twisted.

“That makes sense.”

In the midst of this, Lionel took our absurd answers seriously.

A few seconds later, the door of the Shat’ol Royal carriage opened.

Prince Tesla and Princess Lyselia descended from the carriage one after the other.

Facing the siblings climbing the palace stairs side by side, I made eye contact.
It felt quite dirty, like an exchange of glances between accomplices.

“As long as the radiant sun rises, the glory of the La’fion Empire will be endless. Tesla Hale of the Shat’ol Kingdom greets His Imperial Majesty and Her Imperial Majesty of La’fion!”

The siblings bowed to Lionel and me.

Interestingly, the sun, which had been shining brightly just a moment ago, hid behind the clouds as soon as Prince Tesla finished speaking.

“Welcome.”

“Long time no see.”

Lionel and I also greeted them.

It was truly unfamiliar to see the two people I had always looked up to bowing their heads in front of me.

“Prince Tesla, the sky has darkened now. If we go by your greeting, does it mean that today’s glory with the Empress and Queen is over?”

It was a joke, but Prince Tesla, unfamiliar with his humor, took it seriously.

“…Yes?”

The bewildered expression on Prince Tesla’s face was worth seeing.
Princess Lyselia was no different.

When her joke didn’t land, Lionel, losing interest, turned his hand with a disinterested expression.

“Nope. Looks like rain.”

Lionel looked up at the sky and spoke.

With the sound of thunder, lightning flashed here and there across the sky.

‘Come down for a moment on the foreheads of the two people in front of me!’

I silently exclaimed, gazing at the lightning.

“Oh, right. Let’s exchange greetings with the 3rd Prince of the Patsia Empire, who arrived from the Southern Continent last night.”

I glanced at Norton Prince, momentarily forgotten due to Lionel’s introduction.

Why is he behaving like that?

For some reason, the prince had turned halfway around.

“I am Norton Asalman, Prince of the Patsia Empire.”

He slowly raised his head, gesturing regally to Prince Tesla and extending his hand for a handshake.

“Nice to meet you. I am Tesla Hale, Prince of the Shat’ol Kingdom.”
The prince who was standing in front of Lionel moved to Norton Prince and approached, saying, “Thank you for coming out to welcome me……!” At the moment Tesla Prince tried to shake hands with Norton Prince, he stopped talking, inhaling a breath with a ‘gasping’ sound. Responding to this, Princess Lyselia, who had been looking down as if shy, also raised her head. “Kyaaak!” Oh, startled. This time, she let out a short scream of incomprehension. As if shocked as if seeing a ghost, she recoiled and swayed backward, seemingly forgetting about the stairs behind her. I instinctively reached out to her, but Norton Prince’s hand was much faster than mine. “Please be careful, Princess Lyselia!”
Norton Prince’s indifferent expression and tone showed no kindness, but his actions were quite courteous.

“You almost fell down the stairs.”

“T-Thank you for, for helping……”

Princess Lyselia spoke to Norton Prince with a trembling voice. In response, the prince replied calmly.