Unrequited Love is Over, Fend for Yourselves (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 16
“Alright?”
At Crown Prince Reinhart’s question, Fernando, unusually, showed a bright smile. Back when they had met outside the castle walls, the two hadn’t seemed particularly close.
Seeing Fernando smile, Etienne briefly wondered if the two had grown closer in the meantime. She then turned cautiously toward Reinhart and asked,
“Your Highness the Crown Prince…”
Unable to finish her sentence, Reinhart, apparently understanding her thoughts, simply shrugged his shoulders.
“I came alone.”
He tilted his champagne glass to take a sip and added one more word.
“Lonely.”
Etienne, once again realizing just how formidable Crown Prince Reinhart truly was, deliberately looked away as if ignoring him. At that, Reinhart’s eyes narrowed slightly as he swirled his champagne glass.
Just then, someone took hold of his champagne glass. Reinhart’s gaze followed the hand to its owner—Fernando. His challenging look toward Reinhart carried a clear warning.
‘Don’t make Etienne uncomfortable, is that it?’
Goodness, those without partners truly had reason to feel pitiful.
Reinhart chuckled and withdrew his hand from the champagne glass. As it naturally passed into Fernando’s hand, Reinhart pointed toward the table.
“Since you’re still a child, you shouldn’t be drinking alcohol. Put it over there.”
“…”
Instead of obeying the Crown Prince’s words, Fernando simply stared silently down at the champagne.
His face was lost in thought—so deeply, in fact, that only Reinhart in the entire banquet hall noticed Fernando was seriously considering whether or not to dump the champagne right onto the Crown Prince’s face.
Having taken minor revenge for not being chosen as Etienne’s partner, Reinhart refused to leave the two alone.
People kept glancing their way, clearly eager to approach him, and finally, unable to bear it any longer, Etienne asked,
“Are you planning to stay here the whole time?”
She had already decided that if that were the case, she and Fernando would have to excuse themselves. But as expected, the Crown Prince was far from easygoing.
“Could it be that others can’t approach because of me? Then I’ll just call them over. Hmm? Have we met before? Your face seems familiar…”
Reinhart addressed someone in the crowd, who immediately came forward. He deliberately drew others in to prevent Etienne and Fernando from leaving. Etienne clicked her tongue inwardly at his clever scheming.
“Hello, Your Highness. I’m Hana Josh.”
‘Of all people, why Hana?’
Etienne shot Reinhart a look full of unspoken words, then quickly turned her gaze straight ahead. It was already too late to say anything—Hana had already arrived.
“It’s been a while, Lord Fernando. And… Etienne.”
“Hello.”
Etienne greeted her, noticing Hana’s shy smile.
‘Why do I keep getting tangled up with both Fernando and Hana?’
Thinking this, Etienne fell silent. Soon, the conversation naturally shifted back to Reinhart and Hana.
“Have we met somewhere before?”
“We’ve passed each other a few times.”
At Reinhart’s question, Hana answered with a flushed face, clearly delighted by his attention. Seeing her expression, a mischievous smile crept onto Reinhart’s lips.
“What did you think of me the first time you saw me?”
Etienne, who had been looking elsewhere, barely managed to stop herself from glancing at Reinhart. Still, she couldn’t completely suppress the slight tremor in her body upon hearing his question.
‘He asked me that exact same question.’
Back then, she had immediately pictured a cherub on a toilet and blurted it out, making the Crown Prince laugh.
“The first time I saw Your Highness? Hmm… I thought you were incredibly handsome—dignified, like an angel sent by the gods.”
“An angel? Really? When exactly was the first time you saw me?”
So caught up in conversing with the Crown Prince, Hana answered without much thought.
“It was five years ago.”
“Quite a while back, then?”
Hana nodded in response to Reinhart’s question, apparently eager to show she’d been watching him since that time.
“So the thirteen-year-old me looked dignified to you? I was still growing then, and actually shorter than most of my peers…”
Reinhart chuckled as he spoke, and Hana’s smile froze instantly. She’d been tricked by a childish wordplay even a child wouldn’t fall for.
Normally, she would never have made such a foolish mistake—but flustered by the Crown Prince’s attention, she’d blundered badly.
‘I have to fix this somehow.’
As Hana considered how to cover up her blunder, her eyes landed on Etienne.
She subtly moved her hand on the table, nudging the champagne glass.
“Oh dear.”
Hana feigned surprise as the glass tilted, and Etienne stared blankly as it leaned directly toward her.
Though she realized what was happening, her body momentarily refused to move.
‘Did I bump it? But I’ve been sitting still…’
That was all she could think. Just as the glass fully tipped over, Etienne’s body was swiftly pulled backward, and someone’s hand shot forward.
Reinhart caught the champagne glass in an instant, returning it upright with a faint smile. Hana, witnessing this, looked at him admiringly.
“That was a close call! Etienne, are you alright? You really should be more careful…”
“Be careful, Hana.”
“…Yes?”
Caught off guard by Reinhart cutting in, Hana blinked in confusion.
“You almost got hurt.”
Then, upon hearing his next words, she covered her mouth as if deeply touched.
“You caught it because you were worried I might get hurt… Thank you, Your Highness.”
Reinhart merely shrugged and said nothing more.
“But it looks like your dress got a little stained. Is that alright? Here, use this to wipe it off.”
Only then did Hana notice the stain on her skirt and grew flustered. Taking the handkerchief Reinhart offered, her face turned red.
“Why don’t you go clean it off?”
“Yes, I’ll be right back.”
Hana left without protest. Right now, she was so overwhelmed by the Crown Prince’s attention that she couldn’t think of anything else.
Once Hana was gone, silence fell. Etienne was still processing what had just happened. Reinhart was the first to speak.
“I’m sorry.”
Since he had drawn Hana into the situation, he offered a sincere apology. In response, Fernando didn’t say a word—instead, he pulled Etienne’s shoulder gently, signaling they should leave.
“Shall we go? Alright.”
Etienne replied with slight surprise, then walked off with Fernando, glancing back at the champagne glass, now standing upright once more.
She recalled the time Hana had dropped a rose and scratched herself on its thorns. This incident felt similar yet different. Back then, despite Hana being at fault, Etienne had been the only one seen as overly sensitive…
Because of that, her mood felt strange. Between Fernando, who had pulled her back protectively, and Reinhart, who had caught the glass and averted disaster, Etienne couldn’t tell which one felt more unsettling.
[This is the timeline separator]“Thank you all for attending tonight’s banquet. We’ve prepared something especially rare for you to enjoy.”
As Count Pigmen stepped onto the platform at the center of the hall and began speaking, everyone turned to look at him.
Until now, the evening had been for nobles to renew acquaintances—but now was the time to hear why Count Pigmen had summoned them.
“The east door of this hall will open shortly. Beyond it, you’ll find an exhibition of displayed items along the corridor. And right now…”
As Count Pigmen paused dramatically to capture the audience’s attention, Etienne spotted a man standing at a distance.
‘The Second Prince.’
Currently the second prince—but the very man who would swiftly ascend the throne after the Crown Prince’s death. The same man who had utterly ruined her parents and their entire marquisate.
She couldn’t forget his arrogant gaze as he sentenced her to death.
‘Stay calm.’
Etienne took a quiet breath. For now, she would merely observe the Second Prince. Keeping quiet and watching him carefully was far wiser than risking suspicion by showing any unusual reaction.
Yet, contrary to her intentions, her heart pounded loudly in her chest.
Her eyes kept scanning the Second Prince. It was a good thing she hadn’t come as the Crown Prince’s partner—he kept glancing toward the Crown Prince every so often.
“And here it is.”
By now, Count Pigmen had built the atmosphere to its peak. He pulled off the cover from something beneath it, and gasps of admiration immediately rose from the crowd.
Etienne finally looked toward the object—just as the Second Prince, Ludvi, looked directly at her. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment.
“What is that?”
“It’s something brought over from across the sea.”
Fernando kindly explained for Etienne’s sake.
“Apparently, it was discovered by chance during foreign trade and acquired.”
Etienne examined the object closely.
What Count Pigmen revealed was a piece of milky-white porcelain. Painted on its surface was a design that felt more refined than ornate.
What made it particularly unusual was the golden glow emanating from the seemingly plain white porcelain—apparently the reason it was regarded as so precious.
“Hmm?”
Etienne let out a sound of confusion as she studied the porcelain, prompting Fernando to look at her.
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh, nothing.”
Though she replied as such, her expression remained tense.
‘What is it?’
There were no cracks or chips—it was intact—yet something about the porcelain felt subtly off.
But since she wasn’t close enough to inspect it properly, and it was only a vague sense, Etienne assumed she must be mistaken.
After staring intently at the porcelain for a moment, Etienne shifted her gaze back to the Second Prince. Just then, the man—who had been standing quietly—leaned to listen to someone’s whisper and began walking away.
“Fernando, just for a moment…”
Etienne asked for his understanding and slipped away to follow the Second Prince.
“Etienne?”
Fernando tried to follow her, but the path she had just made closed again as the crowd pressed in around him.
Frowning, Fernando stared in the direction where Etienne had vanished.
“Didn’t Count Pigmen bring something fascinating?”
Just then, someone approached Fernando to speak. Suppressing his frustration, Fernando snapped curtly,
“What do I care about that junk?”
His sole purpose for being here was Etienne. He had no interest whatsoever in some porcelain vase.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
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