Chapter 5

On a clear, sunny day.

"Goodbye, Lady Ermyn!"

"Blessings to the princess!"

Many citizens had gathered at the port, waving flags and pennants adorned with the flag of the Sarei Kingdom, seeing off the ship that Sara was boarding. Sara, dressed in a luxurious rose-pink dress, stood on the deck, smiling gracefully and waving. As the ship began to move, the people and the town's scenery gradually grew smaller.

"Thank you, Lady Ermyn. From now on, we will be sailing towards Ferrie, so please rest in your cabin."

"Yes, I will do that."

Sara nodded at the attendant and walked toward her cabin with a leisurely pace. On the way, she passed by some burly men who seemed to be sailors, and she greeted them warmly, saying, "Good day" and "Please ensure a safe voyage." The men were initially startled but soon smiled sheepishly and bowed.

Sara continued to walk with a calm smile and entered the room assigned to her. Feeling a bit tired, she asked the attendant to leave her alone. Once she was by herself, she sat down on the bed with a sigh.

She took a deep breath and opened her trunk, pulling out a thin wooden box.

Inside was the portrait of Prince Richard, which had been sent from Ferrie. Sara propped it up against the pillow on the bed and smiled in a way that seemed to fit the onomatopoeic word "nitaru."

"...Now, I will make you mine... Prince Richard."

She poked his cheek, which looked at her as if she were a piece of trash, and smiled slyly.

Five days ago, upon hearing the shocking news, even Sara had been overwhelmed. It was a relief that those who knew the situation left her alone.

Surprisingly, she hardly shed any tears. For a moment, she was worried that she might have lost her ability to feel sadness, but that wasn't the case.

She realized the next morning that her anger and a strange sense of exhilaration had surpassed the sadness of being betrayed and insulted.

(I have been betrayed. By my lover and by my gracious lord.)

She was still sad, but she wasn't the kind of delicate princess who would collapse in tears and lose her appetite.

The next morning, she ate her breakfast more heartily than usual, spun around so much during her morning dance lesson that the middle-aged instructor nearly fainted, and in the afternoon's lace-making class, she created a hideous pattern that left the female instructor speechless.

(How infuriating! How frustrating! Unbelievable! Filman and Lady Ermyn are so uncouth! Traitors! Worthless!)

Once she snapped, her six years of loyalty to Ermyn and her ten years of affection for Filman were completely gone.

Sara had been abandoned by her lover, her lord, and even her own king. Now, what should she do?

"...I will! I will definitely, definitely be happy in Ferrie!"

While pressing her fingers into Prince Richard's cheek in the portrait, Sara raised her voice with a refreshing smile. She then took out a small cubic wooden box from her trunk and held the item inside it. It was a corsage about the size of a child's fist, made by layering several thin slices of crystal to resemble a rose, and it was surprisingly heavy for its size.

This corsage, it seemed, was a gift from her father to her mother on their wedding day. Sara had often admired its delicate craftsmanship since childhood. It was the only heirloom she received from her mother, who had been wearing it on her chest when her body was folded in a way that protected it from damage in a carriage accident.

Her parents, who were baron and baroness, had always told her, "It's okay to cry and feel down when you're sad, but you must always get back up."

If you want to be happy, you should say it out loud.

If you have feelings to vent, dig a hole in the garden and shout into it.

In times of hardship, stand tall and declare that you will definitely be happy someday.

(Father, Mother, I won't be disheartened!)

Holding the corsage in both hands, Sara spoke to her deceased parents.

If she were to cry and lament or take her own life because of being betrayed by someone she trusted, she would have no face to show her parents. To ensure that her parents could rest peacefully in heaven, Sara wanted to be happier than anyone else. She had the right to be happy.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Sara was heading to Ferrie, a country of extraordinary people. She had no idea what kind of people, what kind of country, or what kind of welcome awaited her. Some might look down on her as a princess from a defeated nation.

...But at least in Ferrie, there was no one who had betrayed her.

Perhaps the masked eccentric prince was a better person than those who had betrayed her. Even if he looked at her as if she were a piece of trash, it would be better than seeing the faces of Ermyn and Filman.

"Prince Richard... my husband."

She had meant to say it casually, but it felt strangely embarrassing. Feeling a bit flustered, Sara inadvertently flipped over the portrait of Richard.

(Prince... I hope you're a good person.)

If she could be happy in Ferrie, she would no longer have any lingering attachment to her homeland. And perhaps, one day, if she were to meet Ermyn and Filman again, she could laugh it off.