“Your Highness the Second Prince, this is Lady Glenna Corney.
She is the prospective bride of the First Prince.”
“I am Glenna Corneille.
May the sunshine bless you, His Highness the Second Prince.”
“Nice to meet you.
Congratulations on your engagement, ma’am.”
Franz Zahir kissed the woman's hand with an emotionless expression.
Her chin rose slightly at his polite gesture.
She seemed to be quite satisfied with the respect the Second Prince showed her.
Franz looked at the woman for a moment, then raised the glass of champagne to his lips.
The woman, who would become the first prince's wife, seemed a perfect fit for Crichton.
Her arrogant manner and stilted appearance suit him perfectly.
Franz made a dry, formal comment.
“I think I will see you soon at the palace.”
“Yes, Your Highness.
By the way, didn’t Prince Crichton come to Narut today?”
She clearly wanted to continue the conversation.
But Franz turned away, pretending not to notice.
“He didn't come.”
Franz answered dryly, adding nothing more.
Glenna's face changed in anger at his ignoring her.
She pursed her lips and opened her fan with a sharp movement.
The light clicking sound of the fan made Franz furrow his brow slightly.
'She's more stupid than I thought.'
Despite his obvious disinterest, she showed no intention of backing down.
Glenna seemed quite fish.
‘The First Prince’s prospective wife, huh.
I can't just kick her out.'
When Glenna cleared her throat, Franz let out a soft sigh.
He looked at her reluctantly, and she flashed a wide smile.
"I heard that the most handsome young men of the empire have gathered in Narut this spring.
It is said that it is all for the sake of Lady Nerys, Count Daniel's adopted daughter.
Did you know that?"
“I see.
So, what brings you here, Your Highness?!
Ah!
Did Her Majesty the Empress send you?”
"Yes."
“Her Majesty must care deeply about Nerys.
She is her niece, after all.
Have you met her?”
It was clear from his tone that he was answering merely out of courtesy.
With every short answer from him, Glenna's face grew redder and angrier.
She waved her fan quickly and raised her chin.
“So, have a nice stay here.”
Franz's brow twitched slightly when she ended the conversation in such a sudden manner.
However, he merely shook his head without showing any annoyance.
At his reaction, Glenna turned on her heel.
Her entire body was screaming that she had no intention of talking to him anymore.
Franz smiled faintly at her obvious hostility.
'It'll look good next to Crichton.'
Crichton had taken a keen interest in Glenna's beauty ever since their engagement had been announced.
Now that Franz had seen her for himf, he had no doubt that her exquisite beauty would meet with his brother's approval.
Franz offered his brother a dry congratulation in his mind.
With a gorgeous bride like her, there is no doubt that they are perfect for each other.
As for her personality or other qualities, who knows how Crichton would evaluate her?
'He'll figure it out himf.'
Franz coldly interrupted his train of thought and emptied the glass of champagne.
He hadn't been in a good mood since he was suddenly summoned to Naruto.
He was currently residing in the Spring Palace of the Roshanak Family, and had been invited by Count Daniel Roshanak.
'Spring fishing trip, huh.'
Franz laughed briefly.
A cold smile appeared on his handsome face, which quickly disappeared.
They called it a “fishing trip,” but no one was fooled by its true purpose.
As Glenna said earlier, this occasion was originally an occasion for reconciliation between the spouses.
Its aim was to find a suitable marriage partner for Mrs.
Nerys from the Roshanak family.
Since the Empress' family - the Roshanaks - was so powerful, the spacious guest rooms in this palace were filled to capacity.
One of these rooms was allocated to Franz by direct order from the Empress.
'The place is crowded.'
He handed his empty cup to one of the passing servants.
Just seeing the ceremony hall crowded with nobles, he felt exhausted.
They had gathered under the pretext of a “spring hunting trip,” but most of them were busy gossip.
Franz could not help but think that they had chosen the most idle nobleman to invite.
Of course, among the members of the imperial family, Franz was the most vacuous of all.
'Is there a more trivial waste of time than this?'
He looked around the concert hall, then turned his back.
Even if he had nothing better to occupy his time with, he had had enough of this waste.
This was what he had done all his life—and perhaps it would remain so forever.
Franz left the party and headed to the study room.
Amidst the meaningless chatter, he felt like he was becoming a fool.
He thought some uplifting reading might refresh his mind.
'She must be here.'
It didn't take him long to find the study room on the second floor.
In contrast to the hustle and bustle of the concert hall, the study room was quiet.
Who comes to Narut for a spring hunt and then ends up in the library?
'Seems like I'm the only one who's weird.'
Franz quietly closed the huge classroom door and looked around.
Long rows of shelves filled with books.
This library imitated the appearance of the imperial archive, and reeked of the scientific arrogance of the Roshanak family.
He walked around slowly, browsing the titles.
Sometimes he would pick up a book that looked interesting.
He was looking for a way to kill boredom during what he called a “spring fishing trip.”
Then —
“Heck...”
A faint wail reached his ears from the corner of the study room.
At first, he thought it was just the sound of the wind.
It was that low.
“Heck...”
But when he heard it again, he couldn't ignore it.
He returned the book he had picked up to the shelf.
Then, as if something was attracting him, he headed towards the source of the sound.
'What is this smell?'
Franz furrowed his brow.
The closer he got to the source, the stronger the amazing smell became.
It was sweet, dizzying.
It smelled of fruit...or perhaps flowers.
Whatever it was, it got more intense.
He felt like he was about to faint just from breathing.
'Is it incense?'
He covered his nose with his sleeve and looked around.
But there was no trace of incense.
And basically, who lights incense inside a library?
A smell this strong could damage books.
“Herk, heck...”
While he was thinking about returning because of this overwhelming smell, the sound of wailing carried a tone of pain.
Franz advanced instead of retreating.
He remembered this moment throughout his life.
The moment he met his other half — the woman he loved more than a lifetime itf.
A young woman was sitting in the corner of the classroom, folded in on herf, holding a book tightly to her chest.
“Are you okay, ma'am?”
Franz approached her and knelt down.
She had red hair, her eyes closed as she hugged the book.
Beads of sweat were scattered on her pale forehead.
“Are you feeling unwell—”
Franz's eyes suddenly widened.
The woman opened her eyes, revealing two clear, emerald-colored irises under thick eyelashes.
The moment he saw those eyes, his mind was completely devoid of any thought.
The redness of her skin around her eyes, the dryness of her lips, the sad sparkle in her gaze—all of them fascinated and captivated him.
She looked at him with teary eyes, lacking focus—perhaps due to the fever.
“It hurts...”
Only then did Franz remember to breathe.
As soon as he inhaled, that sweet scent assaulted him again.
'Perfume?'
He tried to cover his nose involuntarily - but he stopped.
This was not perfume.
It wasn't anything artificial.
It had a natural smell.
'How can a human being smell like this?'
He clenched his hands.
From a distance, the smell was subtle—but up close, it made him feel weak in the knees.
Franz lived his whole life separated from lust.
But now, he felt an overwhelming desire to steal a kiss from her.
He wanted to wet her dry lips with his own, to hug her tightly.
If he could, he would swallow it whole.
His throat moved in a lump.
Franz was shocked by this primitive desire that invaded him for the first time in his life.
He had shameful thoughts that he had never known before.
Even as he was terrified of himf, he could not stop thinking.
Until —
“Hrk...”
Her sobbing sound came back.
'You idiot.'
Franz came to his senses.
He had a vile thought while the woman in front of him was in pain.
It was no better than rubbish.
“Where does it hurt?
Should I call the doctor?”
His voice was polite, but the tension made it rough.
He was afraid that she would realize his inner turmoil.
Fortunately, she didn't seem to notice anything.
Her body temperature was too high for her to detect anything.
“The mana… it’s… hot… very hot…”
Her trembling hand reached out and grabbed his shoulder, and he trembled in return.
Her delicate fingers were burning his skin.
She stared at him absently, then smiled faintly.
It was a beautiful smile that made him thirsty just seeing it.
“...You're cold.”
Her hand slowly slid from his shoulder to his taut chest.
Time stopped.
When she gasped and touched his chest, Franz took her hand.
The coolness of his touch met the heat of her palm, and she smiled again.
Franz stared at her in amazement.
As he looked at her features, her face slowly approached him.