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Or rather, I thought I knew.
I simply hadn't imagined he was the kind of man who would throw away even the basic conscience of a gentleman to the point of forcibly grabbing a Young Lady in a secluded spot.
“Uh... wh-who are you?”
Ha. Yulan let out a scoff and answered with a counter-question.
“Who do I look like to you, Young Noble?”
“The Imperial Crown Prince... no, wait...”
While Raymond stammered, shocked that his certainty was wrong, Yevgenia stepped in between them.
“Yulan Artlux, Second Imperial Prince.”
It was a title that revealed Yulan's identity while drawing a perfect line between her and him.
The look in Yevgenia's eyes as she gazed at him carried a very strong message: 'Shut up and do as I say.'
Meeting her eyes directly, Yulan flashed a smile and spoke.
“Zhenya, was I too late?”
“....”
She couldn't for the life of her grasp what concept Yulan had decided on.
'Lovers? Why on earth? What's the benefit in that?'
Because of this, Yevgenia wore an expression that was neither a cry nor a laugh, communicating only through her eyes.
However, Yulan completely ignored her gaze and continued with his own narrative.
“It took quite a while to change my hair color back. I stepped away for a moment because I didn't want to put Zhenya in a difficult position, but I suppose that was a mistake after all.”
Naturally wrapping his arm around Yevgenia's waist and pulling her close, he looked at Raymond with cold, frozen eyes.
“I told you, Zhenya. You are so charming that all sorts of bugs will cling to you.”
“Y-you... did? Because you and I are... lovers?”
At her reluctant answer, Yulan nodded with satisfaction.
Then, as if to show off, he embraced her in a way that made them look like a truly eyesore of a couple.
Raymond must have thought the same, as his face didn't just distort—it crumpled.
“Why is it not the Imperial Crown Prince, but the Second Imperial Prince...?”
His voice trembled, as if he couldn't believe it.
At that, Yulan began to answer—or rather, unfold his own setting—with the excitement of a student who had encountered an expected question on an exam.
“Ah. Perhaps you misunderstood because my elder brother and Zhenya danced at the main ceremony? How surprising. I didn't think the Young Noble was such a short-sighted person.”
“N-no. I wouldn't have known if it were just a dance, but at the Huya Festival, clearly...!”
“Since the Huya Festival, I have been the only man by Zhenya's side. Of course, due to my circumstances, it seems I caused my brother some inconvenience...”
Trailing off, Yulan looked up with eyes that had suddenly grown moist.
Yevgenia was certain he had perfectly calculated the angle at which he lifted his head.
'Look at him. Look at how he aligned his pupils exactly with the lighting! He did that on purpose to make them sparkle more!'
When his trembling voice was added to the mix, it became almost frightening.
His acting was so convincing that even Yevgenia, who knew everything, felt tempted to be swayed.
“As the Young Noble knows, my health is quite frail. I thought that even if I revealed my relationship with Zhenya, it would be a hindrance to her rather than a help.”
“Uh...”
“Zhenya insisted it was fine and told me to reveal it, but how could I? With this body that might leave Zhenya behind at any moment, how could I block the bright path ahead of her?”
Realizing the concept Yulan had adopted, Yevgenia swallowed a sigh inwardly.
'The next line will probably be something like, "But I couldn't suppress my love and eventually wanted to continue our meeting even by pretending to be a commoner." At this rate, he's not a nine-tailed fox, but a ninety-nine-tailed fox.'
She didn't know why he decided to reveal his identity as the Second Imperial Prince, but it was currently very helpful to Yevgenia.
The mere fact that she could escape from the shameless and conscienceless Raymond was practically a lifesaving act for her.
The only thing that bothered her was whether this was worth revealing an identity Yulan had hidden his entire life.
'Still, for now, I should play along. It'll look strange if I just stay still.'
Closing and opening her eyes once, Yevgenia let a look of profound sorrow overflow across her face.
“Oh, Yul. Please don't say that. My only sincere wish is to stay by your side until the very end that the divine allows. Perhaps the problem was that we hid your rank, fearing that those with ill intentions might misunderstand.”
“No, Zhenya. I agreed to that as well. In fact, I was the one who pushed for it so that I could meet you with pride. If so, I shouldn't have hoped for us to meet here in the Imperial Palace... It is all because of my greed.”
“No, it's all because of my greed!”
“Zhenya!”
“Yul!”
Having finished a brilliant act, Yevgenia and Yulan embraced each other tightly.
The follower Young Nobles, as if they had become fans deeply immersed in the play, even dabbed their eyes with handkerchiefs.
Checking the heated atmosphere of the audience(?) out of the corner of her eye, Yevgenia gripped Yulan's sleeve and stepped back slightly.
“I'll handle everything, Yul. I'm already worried that the night breeze might harm your health; if you spend your heart's energy too, you might be bedridden for days.”
“Zhenya, you always make me seem like such an inadequate man. Do you truly not know that leaving the resolution to you like this makes me suffer even more?”
“But, Yul...”
As if he didn't want to hear Yevgenia's rebuttal, Yulan firmly grasped the hand that had been holding his sleeve and turned toward Raymond.
“Young Noble of Duke Larsen. Let me make one thing clear.”
“Y-yes?”
“Even if my relationship with Zhenya is revealed, I will certainly punish the rudeness you have shown her. Even if it costs me several years of my remaining life.”
Yevgenia, believing Yulan was simply acting, let out small snickers inwardly.
'Yulan should become a theater actor or a playwright. Look at how intense those lines are. If I were Raymond, I'd be so startled I'd run away.'
However, Raymond, who was looking directly into Yulan's eyes, could not possibly accept this as a bluff or acting.
He never imagined that a gaze hidden beneath a golden mask could feel so painful.
If one could kill with a gaze alone, Raymond would have been shredded while standing.
That was how tenacious and cold the gaze was.
After struggling to swallow a dry lump in his throat, Raymond stammered a response.
“I-isn't that... a bit too much? Could it not be that I was simply trying to catch a bug on Yevgenia's arm?”
“Ha!”
At such an absurd lie, Yevgenia burst out laughing involuntarily.
“Ahem. No, it's just that it's a bit funny to see someone who was threatening so arrogantly just a moment ago suddenly tuck their tail...”
“Laugh all you want, Zhenya. I am happy when you laugh.”
“Oh my. Then we are a couple who makes each other laugh happily for a lifetime. How wonderful!”
As a conversation full of pretense passed back and forth, completely ignoring the man in front of them, Raymond's face turned red and purple.
Being ignored so thoroughly was likely a first in his life.
Moreover, since they were of a 'higher rank' than he was, his pride was crushed even further.
Slightly lifting her head to look down at Raymond, Yevgenia delivered the final blow.
“Young Noble Larsen, I've endured it out of a feeling of apology, but if you are rude to my lover, I will no longer tolerate it. You had best be well prepared.”
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