Chapter 47

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I am led to a room a little away from the grand hall where the party is being held. The castle is vast, and it seems to be intentionally designed to be difficult to remember and easy to get lost in. Without a guide, it would be difficult to reach this room or return to the grand hall.

"The king will be here, so please wait."

After bowing deeply and perfectly, the guide left the room. As soon as we were alone, a sigh escaped the three of us.

"You must be nervous."

"You were more proper than the etiquette teacher."

"Working in the castle... I don't think we can do it."

Only high-ranking nobles or those who have excelled in their studies at the academy can work in the castle. We passed by many well-mannered people on our way to this room, people we rarely see in the palace.

"Ah, I wore Joshua's jacket..."

The king only summoned the three of us, so we parted ways with Joshua in the party hall, but I kept his jacket.

For Emma, who grew up in the southern palace, the capital is still cold even in early spring. Emma's dress is designed to minimize exposure, but the young ladies in fashionable dresses must be even colder. I idly think about developing a warm dress for the next winter. I finally understood what Joshua said about the one-horned rabbits being popular in the capital. The fur of the one-horned rabbit is probably warmer than down jackets from my previous life.

Ideally, I would spend the winter not attending parties, curling up with Komai, drinking hot chocolate with plenty of whipped cream, designing Low's dresses, and studying insects. However, it seems that things don't go as planned.

According to my mother, since coming to the capital, I have been receiving invitations to tea parties almost every day. Emma, who is busy with cats, insects, monster card games, and silkworms, has been feigning illness to decline them. Apparently, this is where one is supposed to make friends, decide on classes to take together, and exchange information about the classes chosen by the desired young men.

I thought, "Why can't I just choose the classes I want to take?" But then I recalled that even in my previous life, girls often wanted to do things together. In middle school, everyone acted as if it was normal to go to the bathroom together. I wanted to decide my own bathroom timing, but at that time, I believed that going with the flow and not standing out was the best way to avoid danger.

I think it was somewhat fun, but the Emma who is not a port is not the same as before... and probably can't be.

Even with the memories of the port, Emma is still Emma. Emma is Emma, but she is also the port. In any case, since I have been reincarnated in a different world, it's impossible to be in the exact same situation as before.

From the outside, it might look like Emma is just spacing out, but while she is thinking, the door opens with a click.

...Didn't you knock!?

Reflexively, the three of us bow as subjects, but the presence approaches without hesitation.

"Emma-chan!"

Something soft is pressed against Emma's face, and she is hugged tightly. This wonderful elasticity can only be one thing.

She raises her face from the soft elasticity and responds.

"Low-chan! It's been a while!"

Even through the veil, the radiant and beautiful smile of Rose Alicia Royal can be seen.

"Emma-chan!"

Next, Princess Jadwiga hugs her.

"Princess, it's been a while!"

The slightly grown Princess Jadwiga smiles. William, standing next to her, subtly extends his arms, waiting for Jadwiga to hug him, but he is gently ignored.

"Emma-chan! I finally get to see you!"

Rose casually touches the veil covering Emma's face, showing a concerned gesture.

"You wrote in your letter that you are completely recovered, but how is the wound? Does it still hurt?"

At Rose's words, the bodies of Georg and William, standing on either side, twitch. Although Emma is truly completely fine, every time she meets someone who flinches at the sight of her scar, these two seem to be hurt. Georg feels responsible for not protecting her, and William feels responsible for not being able to do anything.

This year, they have been overly kind and disgustingly overprotective. Emma's injury is due to a slime. The Stewart family, who understand the threat of slimes, did not blame the two. On the contrary, if they had been blamed, scolded, and punished, it might have been easier for them.

Even when Emma says that the scar is a result of her own actions and that she quite likes it, their attitude does not change. She wears the veil to hide the scar for their sake. However, being treated like a princess all the time makes her uncomfortable and restless.

She takes off the veil and shows the scar. She wants to show Rose the fashionable spider web scar, which she really likes.

"Yes, I have no problems in daily life... but..."

While answering Rose, she comes up with a cunning... no, a good idea. She lowers her gaze to her right arm and forces a smile.

"Dancing... is... impossible."

Georg and William suddenly look at Emma. "You did it!" "What a sneaky move!" "You're doing great!" Their faces say it all, even if they don't say it out loud.

"Well, that's the case... That's why everyone was on the balcony, not dancing. Georg and William were so kind."

Rose misunderstands that they were on the balcony to avoid dancing and to keep Emma company.

"That's... not kindness... It's just what we should do..."

"Hai. We won't leave our sister alone."

Stammering, they both go along with Rose's misunderstanding. The Three Brothers No-Dancing Alliance is born. They will keep quiet about leaving Emma alone in the party hall.

If they can use this scar without hesitation, they might return to their old selves. Emma is tired of being treated so carefully.

Rose touches Emma's right cheek with a beautiful frown. The smooth sensation is gone, but the fact that the damaged skin has regenerated means she can be touched without flinching.

"Low-chan! This scar looks like a spider web, doesn't it?"

Smiling proudly, Rose notices the scar.

"Really. And this purple is the color of the Stewart family."

There are many shades of purple, but the purple of Emma's scar is very similar to the eye color of her father and brothers. The eye color that Emma did not inherit is accidentally etched on her right cheek. As expected, Rose has a keen eye.

Georg and William look as if they are noticing it for the first time.

A gentle knock is heard.

"Is it the king and Edward?"

At Rose's words, the three brothers quickly bow. Rose gracefully bows next to Emma as the door opens.

"The three brothers of the Stewart family."

Rose introduces them, and they state their names in order, starting with Georg.

"I am Georg Stewart, the eldest son."

"I am William Stewart, the second son."

"I am Emma Stewart, the eldest daughter."

A hand reaches out to Emma's chin, lifting her face, which was looking down. A strong man's face appears in front of her. The hand remains on her chin, and he looks at her closely.

"...Um... Your Majesty?"

Unable to hold back, she speaks, and the man in front of her laughs heartily.

"Emma Stewart! You're cute. If I were 10 years younger, I would have tried to woo you."

"Hey, Your Majesty!! What are you saying!!"

Behind the king, Prince Edward calls out anxiously.

"No, it might be interesting to become my son's rival..."

"Hey, Your Majesty!"

The king playfully teases the unusual sight of the usually calm second prince. He releases the bow and greets Georg and William.

Emma watches the scene blankly.

"Hey, Emma! What the king said just now... Emma?"

The prince hurriedly speaks, but he sees the scar for the first time. The deep purple scar suggests a significant amount of pain. However, he did not expect the wound from that time to heal so beautifully.

"Emma...?"

Thinking it might be rude to look too closely, he notices that Emma is not reacting. She is still staring blankly at the king.

"......He's so cool..."

Emma's soft murmur is clearly heard by the prince alone.

I apologize for the king's minimal appearance despite the title. Stay tuned for the next preview.