Chapter 18
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Translator: Diva
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: They Say Age Gaps Don't Even Check Compatibility
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Just a brief hesitation, and the crown prince reached out, cupping my cheek.
"My name is Aurell Herza Cradion. If Ser wishes it, I'm a man who can give you the whole world."
Out of instinctive alarm, I tried to seal the crown prince's movements using my Authority if need be, only to realize a disconcerting fact.
'I can't use my Authority. The demons aren't responding.'
This was no ordinary matter.
It meant there was a demon lurking in that man's shadow—at least as powerful as the ones who'd submitted to me, or even stronger.
Or perhaps the crown prince himself was a demon.
'Mana too... it's frozen in place.'
Like it was paralyzed by fear, not moving a bit.
That left me no choice but to use my own abilities.
'...But then I won't be able to hide anymore.'
Given how flashy the nature of my power was, my true identity would be exposed in an instant.
'Even so, wouldn't it be better to deal with him decisively right now?'
"You're hesitating."
The crown prince, now right in front of me, met my eyes and spoke.
"No helping it, then. You don't seem like the type to just let this slide."
My face reflected in those brilliant blue eyes that reminded me of Mikhail.
My body stiffened as the distance between us narrowed until our breaths mingled.
An unbearable disgust welled up inside me.
"Ser, the truth is..."
It was then that the lounge door burst open with enough force to nearly shatter it.
"Ser!"
Eh...? Did that thing really just break?
The man rushing toward me, leaving the door panel to crash to the floor in its open position, was...
"Elhart?"
How did he know I was here?
In an instant, Elhart closed the gap, yanked me out of his grasp, and pulled me back from the sofa.
Then he snapped sharply.
"What are you doing to my maid?"
...I could hardly believe all this had happened in a single breath.
Only now did the door panel hit the floor with a loud thud, and the crown prince blinked twice, still leaning toward me in the same pose.
"Ah..."
Letting out a deflated sound, the crown prince stared at his now-empty hand before rising from the sofa.
"To think I'd be interrupted like this."
Oh, he's pissed.
The corners of the mouth of the man who hadn't batted an eye no matter how rudely I acted in the crown prince's palace twisted oddly.
"Clueless as you are, always getting in the way..."
"Ser, put this on at least."
Elhart shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it tightly around my upper body.
This guy's so huge, I can't even see the crown prince anymore.
'Is he deliberately blocking my view?'
The crown prince let out an incredulous chuckle before speaking in a leisurely tone.
"Elhart, do you even grasp your position? Do you know where this is, or what right you have to be here?"
I tilted my head up to look at Elhart.
I no longer cared about the crown prince's true nature.
All that mattered now was Elhart's expression, his mood.
"Of course I do."
With me behind his back, Elhart turned and replied calmly.
"Until now, I've fought for my country. I never lost once, and no knight in the empire could defeat me."
Well, that went without saying.
He had the most monstrous physical prowess of anyone I knew.
"But what if from now on, I turn my back on the country that abandoned me and fight solely for myself?"
He sneered coldly, in a way that made it hard to believe he'd silently endured such humiliation.
"Does Your Highness the noble crown prince have a way to stop me? I wonder if you're confident enough to bring me to my knees with your own power and take my head."
"You're abandoning Bardia? That's ridiculous..."
"When you have someone you want to protect, even at that cost."
Have you ever imagined a fire boiling over in brilliant blue?
"People can do anything. I didn't want to find out, but now I know."
And there it was, right before my eyes.
I quietly gazed at Elhart's back, which filled my entire field of vision.
Those astonishing words he'd just uttered... they seemed like...
'He's fallen for me, huh.'
Not a bad excuse to get out of this mess.
'No need to tell him it wasn't necessary.'
Either way, I'd bought myself some time to think.
Yes.
The crown prince had no choice but to back off here.
Elhart possessed a physique that was the natural counter to mana users.
If the crown prince's talent lay in mana control, he'd never beat Elhart.
'He'll pretend to yield a step and try to herd us back to the annex.'
That would be his best option.
"You, and her?"
The crown prince murmured that, then fell silent for a long while.
Curious about his thoughts, I tried leaning this way and that, but Elhart shifted with me each time, blocking my view.
Frustrated, I tapped his back, and he reached one arm behind him, offering his hand.
'Huh? What?'
Does he want me to hold it?
When I poked his palm with my index finger, he grabbed my hand in a flash.
'Well...'
It wasn't like I'd lost in reflexes.
I just let him catch me.
"How about this, Elhart."
After a long pause, the crown prince finally spoke, his voice as serene as ever.
Whether it was feigned calm or a genuine shift in his feelings, I couldn't tell.
"Seems there's a misunderstanding. I was just trying to return her dress. You wouldn't want her in her undergarments catching other people's eyes, would you?"
With that, the crown prince approached us and held out the dress.
"Once she's properly dressed, we'll head back to the banquet hall together. Then tonight's little commotion can end quietly, without any gossip. And..."
And what else?
"As payment for standing watch, I'd like to ask her for one dance."
"...What nonsense is this now."
I could tell without looking that Elhart was gritting his teeth.
He didn't even take the dress from the crown prince. He was clearly on guard.
"Ser, we still have unfinished business, don't we?"
The crown prince addressed me directly.
"Give me a chance to answer your question."
Question... you mean about his identity?
'He doesn't seem like he'd give a straight answer.'
How likely was it he'd reveal the truth?
As I hesitated, lost in thought, Elhart glanced back at me.
"Ser..."
His golden eyes looked down at me, long lashes trembling pitifully.
'Ugh...'
The sharp twinge in my heart was definitely not my imagination.
'Ah, no, this won't do.'
I hurriedly reached up and covered Elhart's eyes.
"...?"
If I danced with the crown prince, Elhart would be left alone.
'There's still synthetic poison left.'
I couldn't shake the worry about the trap the crown prince had set.
Requesting a dance was surely to exploit that opening.
Normally, I'd dive right in and go for the throat.
But not this time.
'I just don't feel like it.'
It bothered me that the one being pushed into the trap had to be this man.
"Your Highness."
"Yes, Ser."
Elhart's lashes tickled my palm, making me keep drawing my hand back.
"I'd like to talk again next time."
"Pardon?"
The crown prince stared at me, eyes widening as if he'd heard something completely unexpected.
'...Yeah, not like me at all.'
"I'm not feeling well today."
"Not feeling well?"
"Yes, my stomach hurts from overeating... and I think I might be coming down with a cold..."
I even threw in some fake coughs.
"Ah..."
The crown prince gaped at me, looking utterly shocked.
"A cold...? You...?"
Was it that surprising? As if he knew I wasn't the type to get sick easily.
But anyone would be thrown off if a perfectly healthy person suddenly started complaining of illness.
Pulling a fake sick act as Iserna Airbaine— even I found this version of myself a bit strange.
But what could I do? No better ideas came to mind.
When I pressed a hand to my forehead and swayed weakly, the crown prince flinched.
As if he might reach out to me any second.
'Did I fool him?!'
Guess my acting skills are pretty top-notch.