Chapter 6

Two days after the graduation party, Tiara Roses, accompanied by her father, the Marquis Clamentiel, went to the castle to meet the king.

Tiara, who rarely met the king, was nervous and had a stiff face from the morning. She carefully fixed her hair to avoid any rudeness and chose a clear, calm dress.

Even though she didn't think it was her fault, she had been told to break her engagement with Prince Hartnitz and was informed of her exile from the country. Perhaps there had been a game correction after the graduation party.

—What if I'm surrounded by knights and thrown into a cell as soon as I enter the castle? Maybe I should escape on my own right now...?

Her thoughts spiraled into negative territory, and her face clouded over.

"What's wrong, Tiara? Don't worry, I'm right here."

"Father..."

"It's okay. I'm sorry, Tiara, for putting you through this. I thought the engagement to the prince would be good for you, but it ended up hurting you."

"No, I'm not upset."

Seeing her father's face twisted with anger, Tiara hurriedly reassured him that she was fine.

It was obvious to anyone that the Marquis Clamentiel doted on his daughter. There was probably no noble in the country who didn't know this.

It was even said that it would be better to win over the daughter before the father—such a ridiculous statement had been made, making it a well-known story.

"Well, it's for the best that we learned about the prince's true nature during the engagement period. I can't marry my dear Tiara to someone like that."

"..."

He snorted and, taking advantage of Hartnitz's absence, said various things.

Does Father even realize that we're in the castle, not our mansion...? Tiara was anxious, but she knew it would be futile to say anything to her father, who was a powerful figure in the country. She sipped the tea prepared by the lady-in-waiting and waited for the king to arrive.

◇ ◇ ◇

The red, luxurious carpet easily absorbed Tiara's footsteps.

The long corridor was decorated with colorful flowers, and portraits of the kings of the past were displayed. The current king, Alexander, is also Hartnitz's father.

Next to him, Hartnitz's portrait will surely be displayed.

"..."

—But why did I come here?

Tiara, who had been summoned by the king, was brought to this place with her father.

This corridor, where the portraits of the kings of the past are displayed, is deep within the palace and rarely visited. Moreover, permission from the royal family is required to enter.

Not knowing the reason for her visit, Tiara was anxious and tilted her head in confusion.

"The portraits of the kings of the past are displayed here, and mine is the last one."

"Yes, of course I know that."

The Marquis Clamentiel, who had been nodding in agreement, was speaking. Not the face of a father, but the face of a marquis who had been given the Lapis and was known as the king's right arm.

"Miss Tiara Roses, I hear you came here with Hartnitz."

"Yes, once when we were young..."

—How old were we then? Before we even entered the academy.

"I believe that was... when I and Prince Hartnitz were 10 years old."

Tiara and Hartnitz, who were 16 when they got engaged, had been engaged for 10 years since they were 6. They had met a few times with their parents, but they never played together.

The first time the young two held hands and explored the castle innocently was when they were 10. It was a cute memory. At that time, Hartnitz brought Tiara to this corridor and showed her the portraits of the kings.

He boasted about his father, King Alexander, and proudly said that his own portrait would be displayed next to his.

—He was so cute back then, why did he grow up to be such a fool, Prince Hartnitz? If she could have said that, Tiara would have been much happier.

"Did you get excited about having your portrait displayed here?"

"Yes, he talked about the king with great pride."

"I see."

The king narrowed his eyes and relaxed his mouth, seemingly reminiscing about the young Hartnitz. Tiara held back, not wanting to say anything more.

However, the king soon broke the silence, slowly turning to Tiara and touching the spot where the unseen portrait would be.

"But Hartnitz's portrait will never be displayed here."

"Wh-what...?"

"Miss Tiara Roses, my son has done something very wrong this time. I'm sorry."

"..."

He bowed deeply. The king, bowing deeply to Tiara.

Not displaying the portrait meant stripping Hartnitz of his right to the throne.

Tiara gasped at the words but didn't know what to say, so she looked at her father. His eyes told her that he already knew everything.

—Father must have known about today... But now is not the time to worry about that.

"Your Majesty, please raise your head! There's no need for you to apologize to me!!"

To make the king, a royal, bow—no matter how wrong the king might be, Tiara did not approve. She hurriedly asked him to raise his head, but the king did not immediately do so, waiting for about 10 seconds before returning his gaze.

"I appreciate your magnanimity. ...I had this matter thoroughly investigated. Miss Tiara Roses, you have truly suffered. I'm sorry."

"No, I should have talked more with Prince Hartnitz."

"Indeed, the more you talk, the more you realize how unworthy my son is of you."

Tiara told the king that she also had a part in the problem, as she had not approached Hartnitz. Her father, standing beside her, was making a face that said it wasn't her fault, but now was not the time to worry about that.

She thought about how to respond to the king's words.

"Um...?"

"Hmm?"

"About not displaying Prince Hartnitz's portrait here..."

"It's true. Hartnitz is not suitable for this place."

Surely, that was too harsh a punishment. Tiara thought so, but the king's resolve seemed firm, and he did not nod.

Indeed, it was unlikely that the opinion of a mere noble, especially a young lady like Tiara, would be heard by the king.

However, Tiara was the victim in this situation. She was trying to assert that she did not need this, but neither the king nor her father showed any sign of changing their stern expressions.

"Both Prince Hartnitz and I are still 16. Prince Hartnitz will surely grow."

"...You are truly kind. Even after what happened at the party, you still care about my son. But this is my decision, and it will not be changed."

"...I understand. I will follow your will, Your Majesty."

Repeatedly advising the king would be impolite. Tiara conveyed her acceptance and bowed to the king, indicating that the matter was over.

She thought she could hear about other decisions from her father later at the mansion. She couldn't monopolize the busy king's time.

However, the king continued to speak, disregarding her consideration.

"By the way, Miss Tiara Roses, what do you think of Prince Aquasteed?"

"Wh-what!?"

Tiara involuntarily gasped and quickly covered her mouth. Her cheeks flushed slightly at the sudden and unexpected question.

—Why did the conversation suddenly turn to this!?

She turned to her father, who nodded and said, "Well, let's see." She had hoped he would stop the king, but it seemed impossible.

"I respect Tiara's will, but Prince Aquasteed is returning to his country soon. Honestly, what do you think, Tiara?"

"Father... Prince Aquasteed is too good for me."

"Hmm. So you don't dislike him?"

The Marquis Clamentiel nodded with a smile, understanding Tiara's modest words. The king, standing beside him, also laughed and said, "Oh..."

—These two seem very pleased, which makes me uneasy.

"The engagement between Miss Tiara Roses and Hartnitz has been officially canceled."

"And Prince Aquasteed has formally proposed to her."

"..."

The sudden turn of events made Tiara stumble. She had thought it would take more than a month to officially cancel the engagement.

She wanted to shout about how quickly the process had been handled.

Moreover, her father had announced a formal proposal from Prince Aquasteed. Tiara didn't realize that Aquasteed had been working behind the scenes to cancel the engagement.

"To be honest, I thought you suited each other better than Hartnitz. At the graduation party, Prince Aquasteed protected Tiara and looked forward. He will be a good king."

"Most importantly, he likes you. If you're okay with it, we can proceed. But I won't force you to decide immediately. Prince Aquasteed is willing to wait."

"...I appreciate your consideration. If I were to answer now, Prince Aquasteed would not be satisfied. I will give you a proper response."

Her father nodded, saying, "Of course."

The proposal had been made, but Prince Aquasteed wanted to hear the answer directly from Tiara. He had made the proposal early due to time constraints, but it was a gesture of respect to the Marquis Clamentiel, not a joke.

The Marquis Clamentiel had a good impression of Prince Aquasteed's attitude.

The king nodded and said, "I hope you find happiness."

His words, as if he were thinking of his own daughter, warmed Tiara's heart.

She would likely leave this country, ruled by the good king Alexander, even though she hadn't yet given an answer to the proposal.