Chapter 4

"……Prince Leonhardt?"

Cordelia muttered in astonishment.

Prince Leonhardt, the second prince.

He was 20 years old.

A prince renowned for his excellence in both literature and martial arts, and for his amiable personality.

And now, he stood before Cordelia, drenched in wine, having shielded her from the harassment of Katharina.

"Are you alright?"

A pleasant, deep voice resonated from Leonhardt.

(Oh, he's amazing.)

Cordelia was genuinely impressed as she turned to face Leonhardt. She had never thought a man's face could be so beautiful. His golden hair shone like a crown, and his narrow eyes sparkled in his perfectly symmetrical features. Even her ex-fiancé, Topaz, had a handsome face, but Leonhardt was in a different league.

His beauty, unmarred even by the wine, was directed at Cordelia. He was a prince of unparalleled beauty, one who could captivate any maiden's heart.

"I am unharmed. I offer my heartfelt gratitude for your kindness, Your Highness."

Cordelia had already regained her composure. With graceful movements, she performed the highest form of courtesy to express her gratitude to the royal family.

Before she knew it, silence had fallen around her. The onlookers were captivated by Leonhardt's sudden appearance and Cordelia's impeccable manners, which remained unshaken by his dramatic entrance.

The silence was shattered by a high-pitched, shrill scream.

"It's not true! It's not what you think! I didn't mean to!"

It was Katharina, the duke's daughter, her hair disheveled. She clutched her dress tightly, shaking her head vigorously as if to deny the reality before her. As a mere noble, she had just harmed Prince Leonhardt in public. Shocked and trembling, she let out screams without a care for her surroundings.

"No, no, no!! Why did this happen—ahh?!"

Cordelia approached Katharina, raised her right arm, and drew it back. Katharina squeezed her eyes shut and cowered, expecting to be hit by Cordelia in retaliation for the wine.

—A sharp, high-pitched sound of flesh hitting flesh.

The source was Cordelia's two palms. She had slapped her hands together loudly.

"Princess Katharina, are you calmer now?"

"Y-Yes...?"

Katharina nodded, her mouth agape. The loud noise had stopped her screams, and a bit of her sanity seemed to have returned.

"I'm glad. It was an accident, after all. The glass slipped and flew, and Your Highness happened to be in its path."

Cordelia gently held Katharina's hand, as if to calm her trembling.

"It's understandable that you were startled. But anyone can stumble and nearly fall—"

"Ridiculous!! I would never lose my composure in public, never!!"

Cordelia tightly gripped Katharina's hand, interrupting her protest.

"Princess Katharina stumbled and her hand slipped, causing her to drop the wine glass. That's what happened, right?"

She tightened her grip and spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear. It was all an unfortunate accident. Katharina finally seemed to realize that she needed to handle the situation this way to protect herself.

"Yes, that's right!! I was careless!! I apologize for causing trouble for Your Highness!!"

In a flustered manner, Katharina bowed to Leonhardt in apology. Her movements were far from graceful, but fortunately, Leonhardt didn't seem to mind.

"Raise your head. Fortunately, only I was drenched in wine. As long as Cordelia is unharmed, there's no problem."

Leonhardt said this with a beautiful smile directed at Cordelia.

Returning his smile with a bow, Cordelia was slightly impressed that he knew her name. While they had sat together at balls and ceremonies, they had never spoken directly. Even though she had become somewhat famous due to the annulment of her engagement, she was just a countess's daughter, and it was surprising that her name would come up so quickly. Perhaps the rumors were true, and he was indeed a very capable prince.

"Cordelia."

Hearing her name, Cordelia raised her head and turned to face Leonhardt.

"It was all an unfortunate accident. ...Are you really satisfied with that and can forgive Katharina?"

Leonhardt's amber eyes flashed with a sharp light, piercing Katharina. She began to tremble again under his calm but piercing gaze.

"If you can't forgive her—"

"I forgive her. Because, Your Highness doesn't want to punish her, does he?"

"Hmm? Why do you think that? Don't you think I'm angry about being drenched in wine?"

"On the contrary. I thought that precisely because you were drenched in wine."

As she spoke, Leonhardt's eyes twinkled with amusement. He leaned in and whispered softly, so that only she could hear.

"Interesting. Why did you come to that conclusion?"

"Because Your Highness had other options. When Katharina raised the glass, you could have called out her name to stop her, or grabbed her arm directly. If your only goal was to stop her, there was no need to deliberately get drenched in wine."

But by standing in front of Cordelia and receiving the wine, he had done just that.

"If you had stopped Katharina's movement while she was raising the glass, it would have been impossible for her to deny that she was trying to pour wine on someone. She would have been humiliated, and she might have harbored resentment against you for stopping her."

Moreover, this would not have been just a problem between Katharina and Leonhardt. Despite her rash and careless nature, Katharina was still the daughter of a duke.

"If she harbored resentment, it could create a rift between the duke's family and the royal family. I thought that you, in this situation, chose to get drenched in wine to make it look like an accident, thus resolving everything."

If he had thought that much in the moment Katharina raised the glass, he was truly remarkable. Cordelia silently applauded his quick thinking as she continued her reasoning.

"It's a pity that your clothes will be ruined by the wine... But by sacrificing this one outfit, you prevented a rift between the duke's family and the royal family. By handling the situation as an 'unfortunate accident' and being the victim yourself, you also did a favor for the duke's family."

Even if Leonhardt and Cordelia called it an 'unfortunate accident,' the onlookers, who knew about the tension between Cordelia and Katharina, would not believe it was an accident. However, presenting it as an 'unfortunate accident' had its significance. It was much better for the duke's family to be publicly criticized for 'a duke's daughter trying to harm a countess's daughter' than to be seen as the aggressor.

Precisely because everyone knew it wasn't an 'unfortunate accident,' the duke's family would be in a weaker position when Leonhardt forgave Katharina for the 'unfortunate accident.'

"The royal family and the duke's family were certainly at odds over the tariffs on the duke's territory next year. They also disagreed on the succession of the distant relative, the Baron of Blanshweig. Your Highness's actions have given you a significant advantage."

As she explained the situation surrounding the royal family and the duke's family, Leonhardt's eyes narrowed.

"You are very capable. Not only the tariff issue, but you also know about the Blanshweig baron's succession, which hasn't even been a topic of discussion."

"Thank you."

"Your ability to deduce my intentions in such a short time is impressive. You are truly wise."

"That's not true. I just thought there must be a reason for Your Highness to help a mere countess's daughter, and it became clear quickly."

She had been puzzled. Leonhardt had no reason to get involved in the conflict between Katharina and the Cordelia sisters. There was no close relationship between the Cordelia sisters and Leonhardt, and the countess's family had no significant power. There had to be another motive for him to protect Cordelia and get drenched in wine. Once she considered this, the rest was simple. He had protected Cordelia to do a favor for the duke's family.

She thought Leonhardt would understand her line of thinking, but—

"...I'm displeased."

"Huh?"

"You think I helped you only because of some calculated plan, don't you?"

Thank you for reading. I would be grateful for bookmarks, ratings, and reviews. The next part will be posted tomorrow, so I hope you will look forward to it.