Chapter 82: How Shall I Kill You?

Xavier came galloping madly on horseback with Eaglin behind him. A terrifying black aura was hazily emanating from his body.

“Whew, he’s really burning up.”

Unlike me who was startled, Lucas casually whistled.

“How can you say that? This all happened because of you!”

I ended up yelling at the Crown Prince without realizing it.

“Oh, come to think of it, it is because of me. Sorry, sorry.”

He waves his hand while smiling with his eyes.

Oh geez, he can’t even apologize properly… Why is my fate so twisted?

Kicking up dust as he rode, Xavier jumped off his horse in the blink of an eye. With lightning speed, he rushed forward and grabbed Lucas by the collar.

“You dare kidnap my woman?”

“Duke Xavier, calm down. It wasn’t kidnapping.”

Those words only fueled Xavier’s killing intent more. His teeth ground together.

“How shall I kill you?”

“Hmm, I don’t feel like dying today. The weather’s not good, and my mood isn’t either.”

“I’ll slice that mouth of yours!”

Xavier lifted Lucas up with his left hand while drawing the sword at his waist with his right.

Not to be outdone, Lucas revealed his teeth while emitting a dark energy. His appearance was gradually showing signs of transforming into a raccoon. Not a cute raccoon, but one in battle mode.

What if Xavier were to draw his sword against Crown Prince Lucas here?

The peace treaty would be broken, and war would break out again. I had to stop that.

“Xavier! Don’t!”

When I grabbed his arm to stop him, Xavier finally came to his senses and looked at me.

Ssssh, his aura weakened and his teary gaze met my eyes.

He looked like a big puppy caught doing something bad.

“I’m sorry, for suddenly disappearing…”

Xavier roughly threw Lucas aside and ran to embrace me tightly. His rough breathing and the hands holding me were trembling. I could feel his heart pounding against my cheek where it touched his chest.

“I told you not to go anywhere.”

“I didn’t go willingly.”

“I know. When the coachman told me the Crown Prince had taken you, it felt like… the world was disappearing.”

“I’m sorry for making you worry.”

“Thank goodness.”

He repeated those words several times while burrowing into my arms like a child. I gently patted his shoulder.

Over Xavier’s shoulder, I could see Lucas watching us. Instead of the stern expression I expected, he wore a bitter smile.

*

A chilly silence fell during the journey back to the ducal residence.

Xavier and Yuria rode Friedrich, while Lucas and Eaglin took the horse Xavier and Eaglin had arrived on.

“Your Highness!”

“What!”

Seeing Eaglin’s angry face, Lucas steered his horse away to escape to the roadside. However, it was only wide enough for one carriage to pass, so there wasn’t far to run.

Eaglin grabbed Lucas’s reins and moved ahead several meters away from the ducal couple. After dropping the reins sharply, she began questioning him in a sharp tone.

“How could you kidnap the Duchess? We almost had another war! If we cause trouble here, we’ll have no excuse even if we’re all killed.”

“It wasn’t kidnapping… We just talked.”

Lucas pouted like a duck without even looking at Eaglin. At his behavior, Eaglin hit her own chest repeatedly as she replied.

“You talked after kidnapping her, right? Please, Your Highness. We just paid reparations a few days ago!”

“But neither the Duke nor the Duchess would listen to me.”

Lucas’s face turned toward Eaglin. His expression showed he felt very wronged.

Momentarily feeling sympathy at his appearance, Eaglin softened her tone slightly.

“That’s because Your Highness is being unreasonable.”

“That obsessive duke never gives me a chance! He sticks to her all day, and if I even glance at his wife, he glares at me with those fierce eyes like this.”

Lucas pulled back his eyelids with his fingers.

“That’s why I acted impulsively without thinking.”

In truth, Eaglin agreed with his frustration.

They had come to tour the Empire, but because of Xavier’s excessive wariness, they were stuck in the ducal residence instead of seeing the Empire.

Of course they were being well treated, but this wasn’t right, was it?

The Xavier Auguste that Eaglin knew was the enemy’s commander-in-chief, but he was a clever and cool-headed person. To see him unable to separate public and private matters and obsessing over his wife like this…

She was wondering if she needed to reassess her evaluation of him.

“I’ll have to make an official request to the Duke. Since he’ll cause trouble if I go, you should go.”

“Yes. That’s a good idea, Your Highness.”

“I’ll go ahead.”

Lucas tightly gripped the reins with an expressionless face.

*

As soon as they returned to the ducal residence, Eaglin requested a private audience with Xavier who had gone to his office. Of course, Lucas did not accompany her.

“According to the treaty, the Empire has an obligation to sincerely guide the Moirai delegation. Isn’t that right, Your Grace?”

“That’s right.”

Whether Lucas had been unreasonable or not, Xavier, as the meeting coordinator, had an obligation to follow the treaty.

Damn Crown Prince.

While internally grinding his teeth about the Crown Prince, Xavier listened as Eaglin continued.

“Surely you didn’t accept the Imperial tour proposal for this? His Highness Lucas has only stayed in this ducal residence for days. Do you see no problem with this?”

Xavier quietly looked into her yellow eyes at Eaglin’s polite but pointed criticism.

‘The Crown Prince chose his aide well.’

However, Xavier also had something to say.

“Aide Eaglin, if the Crown Prince hadn’t crossed the line, I would have had no reason not to sincerely fulfill my duties.”

“I deeply apologize for that. His Highness has promised not to act rudely anymore.”

“How can I believe that?”

Eaglin momentarily faltered at Xavier’s sharp gaze before continuing.

“Your words sound like you intend to keep His Highness confined here like this?”

“……”

“I hope you won’t dismiss international treaties due to personal feelings.”

Xavier pressed his temple with his thumb and replied with a troubled expression.

“I apologize for that. From now on, I will cooperate so the Crown Prince can tour the Empire according to the treaty provisions.”

After receiving a positive answer, Eaglin responded with a polite smile.

“Thank you. In that spirit, I have a request.”

“What is it?”

“Please take His Highness Lucas to the Empire’s Founding Festival.”

“The Founding Festival?”

“Yes, His Highness earnestly wishes to attend the Founding Festival. He said he would be especially delighted if the ducal couple could guide him.”

Xavier closed his eyes for a moment in thought.

Publicly, it would make a good image for the Empire’s ducal couple to guide the kingdom’s Crown Prince. When journalists and gossipmongers later learn about this secret Imperial tour, they’ll surely talk about how the two countries have entered a peaceful phase.

And that raccoon can be dealt with by putting safety measures in place.

Xavier slowly opened his eyes and looked directly at Eaglin as he answered.

“Alright. I’ll accept that request.”

The corners of his previously tight lips lifted ever so slightly.

*

The Founding Festival commemorates the founding of the Brillante Empire. This is a national holiday when the Empire’s biggest festival is held.

The three-day Founding Festival is famous in other countries and attracts huge numbers of tourists. During this period, all citizens of the Empire freely eat, drink and enjoy the festivities.

Since viewing the eve festival was ruined due to Lucas’s ‘activities’, Xavier decided to take the Moirai delegation along with me to attend the Founding Festival.

We departed at dawn and arrived in the imperial capital where the Founding Festival was being held in the morning.

Maya, Xavier and I walked on the left while Lucas and Eaglin walked on the right as we toured the bustling festival streets of the capital.

The Moirai group with their striking appearances wore robes with hoods pulled up so only their fingertips and eyes were visible.

“It’s an honor to join you.”

I looked at the man with pot-lid-like hands barely visible under his robe. It was the gray-skinned knight I had seen before. He smiled brightly, his round brown eyes twinkling under his hood.

That mountain of a man’s name was ‘Eli’. Because he was an elephant – Eli!

The beastmen clearly had naming sense as direct as Maya’s.

“Of course, Knight Eli.”

I gave him an elegant smile befitting a duchess.

However, all my attention was on Xavier. When Xavier said he would take the Moirai delegation to the Founding Festival, I honestly couldn’t believe it.

‘Xavier really brought the Crown Prince to the Founding Festival!’

Though he was watching me, he wasn’t following me around or clinging to me like before.

‘Has his separation anxiety improved?’

He had always been on edge and anxious about Lucas, but he seemed better now.

As I relaxed a bit feeling relieved, my gaze was immediately caught by the grand plaza where the Founding Festival was being held. The plaza decorated with the Brillante flag and flowers was packed with crowds leaving no room to step.

“Wow, everyone really is wearing masks?”

In the original story, this Founding Festival was used for the episode where Rosetta meets her second male lead.

Rosetta goes to see the festival and bumps into a man in the crowd, leading to a connection as she helps find his lost glasses.

Since I became the Saintess instead of Rosetta, that episode surely won’t happen.

Anyway, the biggest feature of the Founding Festival is wearing masks.

“The charm of the Founding Festival is these masks. My lady used to hate them so much before marriage, but are you okay with them now?”

Maya, whose eyes were still swollen from crying yesterday when she thought I had disappeared after Lucas kidnapped me, said.

“Ahaha, I did, didn’t I?”

“You said wearing masks was suffocating.”

“No, not at all anymore.”

Oh. Come to think of it, I don’t see Rosetta.

Since the servants who came with us to the capital rode in different carriages, I hadn’t noticed Rosetta was missing.

‘Strange. I thought she rode in the same carriage as Maya?’

I asked Maya beside me.

“Maya, where’s Rosetta?”

“His Grace said she could come too, but she said she wanted to rest at the mansion since it’s a holiday.”

“Oh, I see.”

I felt disappointed that Rosetta couldn’t enjoy the Founding Festival together.

Just then, Lucas’s face suddenly popped up between Maya and me.

“Don’t we need to buy masks to participate in the festival?”

A black shadow immediately blocked my front. Maya spread both of her arms wide to shield me from Lucas.

“Your Highness, this won’t do!”

“Maya!”

Even at my startled call, Maya didn’t back down. Had she become wary of Lucas because of yesterday’s kidnapping incident?

“Your Highness.”

“Okay, I get it.”

When Eaglin called from behind with a smile, Lucas trudged back to her side with dejected steps.

Even after he moved away from me, Maya didn’t relax her stern gaze until the end.

Honestly, I was surprised. He was the Crown Prince. Though she could be dense, she wasn’t a child who didn’t know hierarchy, so why was she suddenly acting like this?

Just then Maya grinned looking beside me. I quickly turned my head to look up and saw a subtle smile playing at Xavier’s lips.