Chapter 33
I was angry to the core.
I was so angry that I became calm.
“What is the meaning of this?”
The fact that this girl was able to enter the Arena Palace meant that she was a young lady from a considerably powerful family.
I looked at the girl.
‘Pink straight hair and eyes. Cute and pretty features. A very flashy dress. A necklace decorated with colorful jewels.’
Above all, a young lady with enough authority to enter the Imperial Palace.
Throughout the entire novel, there was only one person with these characteristics.
“Answer me, Lady Reina.”
“Do you know me?”
“Of course. How could I not know the only daughter of Duke Rossild?”
Reina. The only daughter of the Rossild Ducal Family, which is represented by finance.
‘Publicly, Isabel’s friend.’
In the novel, she was practically Isabel’s only friend, who had no friends.
At least outwardly.
‘But in reality, a worse character than Isabel.’
It was Reina who instigated and manipulated Isabel, the villainess, from behind.
In the original story, it was actually Reina who made Isabel imprison her nanny, Ruruka.
「I’m telling you this because I’m your friend. I wouldn’t have said this if I hadn’t thought of Your Highness. Right?」
「The nanny said she was fed up with Your Highness’s ferocious temper. I clearly heard her say that becoming Your Highness’s nanny was the most unfortunate thing in the world.」
In the end, Isabel, swayed by Reina’s instigation, imprisons her nanny.
The nanny meets a lonely death in prison.
I’m not saying that Isabel did well in the novel, but I hated Reina more than Isabel.
She was among the top 3 characters I hated in the novel.
“Yo, Your Highness. I’m fine.”
“I’m not fine.”
Well, first of all, I should make sure I don’t get caught in the crossfire, right?
“Nanny, can you bring me some chocolate milk?”
“Chocolate milk?”
“Yes. Please bring two glasses of chocolate milk.”
The nanny left her seat.
Honey Badger was still baring his teeth, cackling.
I gently rubbed Honey Badger’s brow.
“Lady Reina.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“You are the daughter of Duke Rossild, who has extensive knowledge of finance and excellent intuition, correct?”
“You flatter me. But I have heard people say that about me many times.”
Pride filled Reina’s face at my words.
Perhaps because she was still young, she didn’t seem to be able to hide her inner thoughts.
“You’ve studied a lot of other things, but it seems you haven’t studied etiquette.”
“……”Yes?”
I smiled brightly.
“I recognized you, Lady Reina. Then shouldn’t you greet me first? Shouldn’t you say ‘Hello’ first instead of ‘Do you know me?’ Don’t you even know that?”
For a moment, Reina’s expression briefly frowned.
I knew the reason.
In fact, Reina doesn’t think of Isabel as a real princess.
Because Isabel was a half-baked princess who couldn’t learn Bilotian swordsmanship.
Not only Reina, but most people think that way.
“If you didn’t know, it’s excessively ignorant, and if you knew and did it anyway, it’s even worse.”
“……”
I asked kindly.
“Ah! Does your back hurt? Are you injured?”
“No, no.”
“That’s good to hear.”
I grabbed the hem of my skirt and bowed.
“Hello, Lady Reina. I am the 5th Princess of the Bilotian Imperial Family, Isabel Bilotian. It’s nice to meet you.”
Only after I did that did Reina reluctantly grab the hem of her skirt and bow in the same way.
“Hello, Princess Isabel. I am the 1st Daughter of the Rossild Ducal Family, Reina Rossild. It is an honor to meet you.”
I let Reina into the room.
We sat facing each other at the table.
“What’s the reason for visiting my room?”
It wouldn’t be for a political reason. Because I’m a half-baked princess and I don’t have much power.
If someone had come to visit, they would have gone to see Michael, not me.
Come to think of it, my older brother might have gone sledding again. Or he might be wrestling with his bear friend somewhere in the mountains.
‘Then there’s only one reason why she came to see me.’
There’s only one thing I can do at this point.
“I heard you have a rare toy.”
“A rare toy?”
“Yes. I heard it’s a rare animal that can understand and interact with human language.”
Reina’s gaze shifted towards my legs.
Honey Badger was curled up on my lap.
Honey Badger, who made eye contact with Reina, bared his teeth again, cackling.
“Is it Honey Badger, by any chance?”
“Is its name Honey Badger?”
“Yes. My brother and I gave him his name.”
“Honey Badger for a toy’s name, that’s interesting.”
“Honey Badger is not a toy.”
“Then what is it?”
“He’s my friend.”
Reina burst out laughing.
It was clearly a mocking laugh, but I didn’t show it.
‘Yes, go ahead.’
All those actions will become her shame and stab her back.
She was doing something that would trip her up.
Well, she’s a child, so it can’t be helped.
“A friend? Can that kind of toy be a friend?”
“Lady Reina, I clearly said he’s not a toy. I explicitly stated that he’s not, and referring to him as a toy again is an insult to me.”
Reina flinched. And then she seemed to have her pride hurt.
“I understand. I’m sorry. I won’t call him a toy. I don’t know what’s wrong with calling a toy a toy, though.”
I laughed because I was dumbfounded rather than angry.
Basically, the families associated with Geomrimwon tended to look down on the Bilotian Imperial Family a bit.
Because they are a family specialized in swordsmanship, they think that they are behind in everything else or consider them barbaric.
But the reason Reina can go this far is probably because I’m a half-baked princess.
“Lady Reina, you must find Honey Badger very cute too, right?”
“I have a lot of greed for rare things.”
“So?”
“Will you sell that animal to me?”
“Are there bad people who sell their friends?”
“I’ll pay you handsomely.”
Reina came closer to me. And she reached out to Honey Badger without fear.
“Then it will hurt……”
“꺄아아악!”
Reina screamed.
Because Honey Badger had bitten Reina’s index finger hard.
“So why did you touch him carelessly? I warned you several times, while he was cackling.”
Reina’s big eyes were filled with tears.
“Are you blaming me now?”
“Yes, you did wrong. Apologize to Honey Badger.”
“I’m saying I got bitten! Animals that bite people should be killed!”
“It’s because Lady Reina touched him.”
I glanced at Reina’s hand.
There was a teeth mark, but there was no wound or bleeding.
“If he had bitten you properly, your finger would have been severed.”
“What?”
“Honey Badger went easy on you.”
“Is that what you’re going to say now?”
Reina glared at me, fuming.
“I’m going to formally raise this issue!”
Then she shifted her gaze to Honey Badger.
“You ill-mannered toy! I will never forgive you.”
Reina turned around and walked out.
I muttered softly towards her back.
“See you later.”
I already knew what was going to happen.
Not long after, Chief Attendant Dailtha came to find me.
“His Majesty the Emperor is calling for you.”
“Yes.”
I was already wearing a neat yellow dress with a ribbon.
Lately, I’ve been drawn to these dresses with big ribbons.
Seeing me seemingly prepared in advance, Dailtha asked.
“Were you expecting the summons?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Then you don’t have to worry.”
“Were you worried about me, Chief Attendant Dailtha?”
“I don’t do things like worrying.”
Chief Attendant Dailtha started walking ahead.
It seems like Chief Attendant Dailtha’s ears were slightly red, is it my illusion?
I followed behind her, holding the honey badger tightly.
“His Majesty is waiting for you inside.”
“Thank you, Chief Attendant.”
Chief Attendant Dailtha opened the door for me.
I entered my father’s office.
“Did you call for me?”
As I expected, my father, Duke Rossild, and Reina were inside.
For the record, Reina was being held in Duke Rossild’s arms.
‘Wow! The exaggeration is amazing!’
Reina’s index finger was wrapped in bandages.
Her eyes were swollen from crying so much in front of Dad.
Father, still seated at his desk, asked me.
“Explain the whole story.”
I glanced at Duke Rossild and Reina in his arms.
They were both glaring at me in a similar manner.
I said.
“I think we need to clarify one thing.”
“What?”
From the moment Reina came to see me, from the moment Honey Badger started cackling, I knew this situation would unfold.
I led the conversation with Reina in preparation for it.
“As this is a place to accuse Lady Reina, who insulted me and trampled on the honor of the Imperial Family, Duke Rossild, you should put Lady Reina down.”
I’m six years old.
Adults have their own way of doing things.
“Come down, Lady Reina.”
