Chapter 15

When the entire Silver Duke family was summoned to the palace for a serious matter, I had a premonition. I put on the brooch, a memento from my mother that was always protected by fairies, and faced the situation.

"Margaret, the daughter of the Silver Duke."

Keith, the prince, called my name just as he did the first time we met.

"I am breaking our engagement."

Most people in the room, including me, had anticipated or knew about these words.

Only my stepmother and Cynthia gasped.

Would the fairies lose control?

I was worried, but to my surprise, the fairies were overjoyed.

"Yay, Margaret, that's great!"

"Free from the rotten prince!"

"Should we soak the entire palace in celebratory champagne? Dry or sweet?"

"Prince Keith. I understand."

Relieved that the fairies were happy, I answered with a smile.

Prince Keith was surprised, his eyes wide open.

"May I assume that this has been approved by His Majesty the King and the Duke of Silver?"

It was the Queen, not Prince Keith or my father, who answered my question.

"Margaret, I am truly sorry, even though you worked so hard on your princess education."

"Mother, there is no need to apologize to Margaret.

She was the one who tried to harm Cynthia, the holy maiden of this country."

The room buzzed at Prince Keith's statement.

Cynthia, the holy maiden? What does that mean?

"Cynthia, come here."

Prince Keith called Cynthia gently.

Cynthia, though clearly surprised, stood beside Prince Keith with a joyful expression.

"I, as the first prince, hereby declare that Cynthia, the daughter of the Silver Duke, is the holy maiden!

And I will make her my new fiancée!"

But, what about the holy maiden ceremony?

Isn't it supposed to be determined by the sacred crystal, a national treasure?

What's gotten into Prince Keith all of a sudden?

"Keith, be quiet."

Perhaps realizing that appointing Cynthia as the holy maiden, ignoring the country's history and traditions, was unexpected, the usually calm king hurried to stop Prince Keith's outburst.

"Of course, until next year's holy maiden ceremony, no one can determine if Lady Cynthia is the holy maiden, but I believe the possibility is very high."

"When Keith was 13, he was poisoned at a tea party, remember?"

The Queen looked at me and began to speak.

"What was called 'the miracle of the first prince' was actually the same miracle that all the previous holy maidens performed, enveloped in a sacred light.

And the only women at that tea party who had not yet undergone the holy maiden ceremony were Margaret and Cynthia.

With over 100 years since the last holy maiden passed away, and with the possibility of a new one appearing at any time, one of you must be the holy maiden."

The Queen bowed her head apologetically.

I could understand the general flow of events.

Cynthia is already 15. It's already quite late to start her princess education.

Now that it's confirmed I am not the holy maiden, it is only natural for the country to start Cynthia's education as soon as possible, given her high likelihood of being the holy maiden.

For this reason, breaking our engagement and making a new one with Cynthia is probably the right decision.

However, Cynthia is not the holy maiden.

What should I do? I never expected this to happen.

No matter what, it would be too cruel for Cynthia to be rejected again at next year's holy maiden ceremony.

"Prince Keith, may I make one request?

If Cynthia is not the holy maiden, please do not break the engagement a second time."

"Margaret, I am disappointed in you.

No matter what you say, my feelings won't change.

Cynthia, who has lived earnestly despite being oppressed by you, is the most suitable person to be the holy maiden.

But I want to live with Cynthia, regardless of whether she is the holy maiden or not."

"Prince Keith, I am so happy.

It was worth living hard even when my sister was mean to me."

"Cynthia, how touching."

Cynthia looked at Prince Keith with teary eyes.

... If Cynthia won't be rejected even if she's not the holy maiden, then it's none of my business anymore.

The room was slightly taken aback by the over-the-top behavior of Prince Keith and Cynthia, who looked like they were about to kiss.

"Then, let's sign the official documents."

The king's words brought the atmosphere back to normal.

First, Prince Keith and I signed the engagement cancellation documents, and then Prince Keith and Cynthia signed the new engagement contract.

"Kyaa!"

The moment the king officially accepted the two documents, a scream was heard.

Looking around in surprise, I saw that a large number of bees had appeared only around Prince Keith, my stepmother, and Cynthia.

Could this be... I hurriedly looked at the fairies, who were enthusiastically urging the bees on.

"Go, go, more!"

"Kuki, Shokora, Minto, this is definitely your doing, isn't it?"

"As a trade-off for holding back the crystal's light."

"Margaret promised we could play pranks."

"Let's add more bees."

The guards were trying to drive away the bees, but the bees were not decreasing; they were only attacking those other than Prince Keith, my stepmother, and Cynthia.

"Hey, do something!"

"No, it hurts!"

"It hurts, stop it. Help!"

The usually calm Prince Keith's shouting, and the screams of Cynthia and my stepmother, caused a commotion.

"Hey, only your stepmother's back is being targeted, right?"

"That's the pain from hitting Margaret with a ruler."

"The prince is giving back the pain Margaret erased from the poison."

"Cynthia is being stung as many times as she took from Margaret."

"...Just to be safe, they won't die, right?"

"We can't kill humans."

"The royal doctors can heal them."

"What a shame."

While I was talking to the fairies, I didn't notice the whispers around me.

"Is Margaret really not the holy maiden?"

"It looks like the heavens are angry about the engagement being broken."

"Prince Keith might have made a terrible mistake."

After the bees finished their work, they disappeared naturally, and the royal doctors healed the injuries of Prince Keith, my stepmother, and Cynthia.