Chapter 3
“Who did you say is here?”
“Her Highness Princess Reina Eve Mernie has come.”
Even after hearing the name, Kaiden couldn’t recall her for a moment and asked with a puzzled expression.
“Did we have an appointment?”
“No way.”
As Ben shrugged with a playful grin, Kaiden frowned.
He was already busy preparing to return to the north, and now an unexpected guest?
Moreover, a member of the royal family was practically an unwelcome intruder.
Following the emperor who summoned him for pointless matters, it seemed now even the princess was intent on troubling him.
“Can’t we just send her away?”
“You know why that’s not an option, so why ask?”
Ben replied sharply with a kind smile, and Kaiden let out a heavy sigh.
With no other choice, Kaiden rose from his seat and headed to the reception room.
The last time he had encountered Princess Reina was six years ago at a banquet.
She was frail and, like him, rarely attended such events.
A delicate frame and clear platinum blonde hair.
Skin so pale it was almost translucent and light blue eyes.
She greatly resembled the emperor, but her disposition seemed to take after her mother.
Of course, this was all just his speculation.
The two had never had a proper conversation.
Given their minimal interaction, it was hard to discern the purpose of her sudden visit.
Upon arriving at the reception room, Kaiden quietly observed Reina.
She sat demurely with her eyes closed, seemingly lost in deep thought.
When he made his presence known, the princess opened her eyes.
Her strikingly light blue eyes gave off an air of transcendence.
Meeting her gaze, he felt as though something within him was being unwillingly laid bare.
She was entirely different from the harmless and frail image he remembered, to the point he wondered if she was the same person.
“Duke Crencia.”
“Kaiden Crencia, Guardian of the North, greets the shining star of the Mernie royal family.”
Kaiden offered a light courtesy to the princess and sat across from her.
At that moment, Princess Reina spoke with a resolute expression.
“I’ve come to ask a favor of you. Of course, I’m not asking for help without offering something in return.”
“Of me?”
Kaiden tilted his head and asked skeptically.
Was there enough trust between them for any kind of deal?
Moreover, the imperial family was highly wary of the Crencia ducal house.
This was due to their reputation as descendants of dragons, wielding immense power and military strength.
Calculating the possibility of a trap, Kaiden said to Princess Reina,
“Let’s hear it first.”
Then, the princess uttered something unexpected.
“I want you to marry me.”
“?!”
“Cough! Cough! Hack.”
At Reina’s bombshell declaration, Ben, who was standing nearby, choked as if he’d swallowed wrong.
Kaiden was equally shocked.
“I’m sorry, did I hear that wrong?”
“No, you heard correctly. If possible, I’d like to be married before my twentieth birthday.”
“……”
Reina reiterated her intention and quietly awaited his response.
She was as bold as someone retrieving an item they’d entrusted.
On the other hand, Kaiden was so dumbfounded that words failed him.
“If I may ask, when is your birthday?”
“A month from now.”
“Are you joking?”
“I’m serious.”
“……”
Kaiden, at a loss for words, stared at Reina.
What on earth was this princess suddenly talking about?
A month was barely enough time to prepare for a wedding.
A state marriage would be even more impossible.
And above all,
“Why me, of all people?”
To the royal family, turning twenty was significant.
The Mernie Empire, founded under the will of the divine beast, was still under its influence.
In particular, the royal family received the divine beast’s powers upon reaching adulthood.
The Mernie royal family’s ability to rule the empire thus far was thanks to those powers.
The abilities granted by the divine beast varied by individual, and as a rule, they were not shared with anyone outside the royal family.
At that moment, Kaiden recalled something the emperor had said during their last audience.
“Why haven’t you married, even though you’re of age?”
“With monsters frequently appearing in the north these past few years, I haven’t had the time.”
“Then shouldn’t you hurry all the more? If something were to happen to you, it would pose a great threat to the north. For the sake of the north, shouldn’t you secure an heir? I have plenty of daughters.”
“I appreciate your concern, but I have a married younger sibling. Even if something happens to me, the Crencia line will not end, so please rest assured.”
The emperor had subtly tried to betroth him to one of his daughters.
And now, this princess had shown up out of the blue.
Finally, things clicked into place, and Kaiden gave a wry smile.
It seemed the emperor planned to keep him in check by marrying him to his daughter.
And to do so with a daughter who was about to come of age, no less.
Convinced the emperor was behind her visit, Kaiden’s expression hardened.
In that moment, the air grew cold, and a chill filled the room.
Kaiden stood up, clearly unwilling to entertain this game any longer.
“I decline.”
“Duke?”
Reina, flustered, stood up after him.
She hadn’t expected to be rejected so abruptly.
“Wait a moment. I haven’t finished speaking…”
As she tried to stop him, he coldly retorted,
“So now His Majesty is sending the princess herself?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you pretending not to know?”
Kaiden shot back icily at Reina, who seemed to feign ignorance.
Startled, Reina met his gaze and said,
“I’m serious. Please tell me why you’re angry.”
She couldn’t let herself be turned away before even starting a proper conversation.
Meanwhile, Kaiden was thrown off by her genuinely clueless expression.
Suppressing his hostility, he asked in a low voice,
“…Wasn’t it His Majesty who sent you?”
“No!”
Reina snapped at the absurd misunderstanding.
At the same time, she flinched, startled by her own loud voice, her face flushing red.
Trembling yet determined to stand her ground, she seemed surprisingly brave.
Finally, Kaiden asked reluctantly,
“Then why are you proposing to me? We’ve barely even met, have we?”
It was only natural for Kaiden to be confused.
She knew him, but he didn’t know her well at all.
So rather than offering clumsy help, she thought it better to appeal to him with her own circumstances.
Reina spoke calmly.
“I want to leave the capital.”
“Then why not just leave?”
“It’s not that simple. Unless it’s through marriage, royals must remain in the capital. You already know that, don’t you?”
At Reina’s point, Kaiden clicked his tongue softly.
Royals couldn’t leave the capital without the emperor’s permission.
Originally, this law was meant to protect them from being exploited for their divine beast powers, but in this generation, it felt more like a shackle.
“But does it have to be me? And I still don’t understand why I should marry you.”
As Kaiden expressed his reluctance, Reina muttered with her head lowered.
“Because you’re the only vassal who doesn’t bow to His Majesty’s whims. I want to be free from the emperor.”
At her candid response, Kaiden fell silent.
Wanting to be free from the emperor.
That was no small statement.
But without knowing her circumstances, he couldn’t carelessly add to the conversation.
Meanwhile, taking his silence as an implicit rejection, Reina hurriedly continued.
“Of course, I don’t mean for you to take me in without any compensation. I’ve come to uphold the ancient oath between our families.”
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By Anna 💓
