This party was held at the Crown Prince's Palace, not the Rose Palace. It was a private party held by him, claiming that he felt responsible for the unfortunate occurrence of a hunting contest that the Royal Family hosted.
The party was prepared as a place to celebrate the end of the hunting contest and Count Orlen’s safety.
Since that was the cause of the party, it was held in the courtyard in front of the Crown Prince's Palace, not indoors, conceivably trying to create an atmosphere similar to that of the hunting competition.
Just like that time, cooks were grilling meat everywhere, and thanks to that, the atmosphere of a bustling hunting ground was recreated again.
Selina munched the meat and looked around the party hall. As she glanced around, even though the Crown Prince's Palace did not have the delicate beauty of the Rose Palace, it was indeed majestic and splendid.
“…It looks like the Crown Prince himself.”
Selina let out a sigh of admiration as she looked up at the end of the pillar, to which the gilded flower vine fragments coiled.
“Glamorous, authoritative, beautiful, yet terrifying.”
“Is there any reason to express it so well?”
“Just the tyrant type.”
“Exactly.”
When Kalcion only then nodded in satisfaction, Selina let out a ridiculous laugh and shook her head.
“Why would he make it like this?”
Unlike her, who only admired her Crown Prince's palace, Kalcion clicked his tongue in displeasure as he looked at the tall trees surrounding the garden.
“Isn’t it to create the hunting ground’s atmosphere?”
"That's true. Still, if it's surrounded by trees on all sides like this and beyond that is a maze garden, wouldn't it be undetected if anyone disappeared?"
“…Would the Crown Prince go that far?”
"Even if it’s not the Crown Prince, it's worth trying if you want to do something like murdering someone out of sight."
“At the Palace, where you can’t even bring an escort?”
“He could kill it himself. And for a weapon, you can sneak a skewer over there.”
It was a story that was completely out of touch from this loud and bright atmosphere. But Selina, who had no choice but to accept it more realistically than anyone else, increased her tension and was wary of her surroundings.
The Crown Prince had not yet appeared. Like the previous party, it seemed like everyone gathered and appeared like the main character.
Seeing that, Selina walked slowly through the party hall while examining the faces of the people she would never see again. Some come up to her first and greet her warmly, while others turn away as soon as they make eye contact with her.
The majority was still the people who glanced and whispered.
When she went in thinking it was acting, she was unexpectedly emotional. However, when she thought about leaving, she felt like it was just passing by.
It was just comical. Even if she didn't try to pull it down like that, they would have disappeared soon.
She didn't even have to see their faces for the last time. When she faced the people, her eyes were blurred, like someone watching through a foggy window. The muffled voices didn't even reach her ears, as if the dimension had already split.
This world was also not her own… there was no one left that she regretted not being able to see.
As she wondered if she had taken a useless step, Fionel caught her eye.
At the same time, the focus that had gone loose came into focus. Even though there may not be any regret, the resentment was clear. As many things were intertwined, it seemed that there were many emotions that were intertwined before she knew it.
“I’m going to go to the bathroom in a minute with Fionel.”
“Go with me.”
Kalcion showed a strong intention that he would never separate from her this time. Not anywhere else but inside the Palace, and moreover, as it was the palace of the crown Prince, he was even more stern.
Selina understood, but this was where Kalcion shouldn't be involved now.
“I have something to deal with Fionel, so I can't do that if the Duke comes with me.”
“Then, I’ll follow you invisibly.”
“Um… I hope that no one will find out.”
Aside from Fionel not talking properly because of Kalcion, it was embarrassing to think of the Duke following her all the way to the bathroom.
“I will.”
He obediently nodded, perhaps if he was confident in following and hiding his presence. As Selina took a few steps towards Fionel before stopping and turning around, Kalcion was still standing there with his arms crossed, looking at her back.
Still, she emphasized once more, just in case.
“You can’t come out unless someone catches me and tries to kill me.”
Showing her not to worry, Kalcion nodded his head.
Only then did Selina feel safe and approach Fionel.
How could she give her a chance like this? It seemed that Fionel was going somewhere alone, away from the group of followers who surrounded her.
"Hey."
It'd been a while since she had picked a fight with Fionel first so a thrill of pleasure lingered on her fingertips. Meanwhile, hearing the rude call, Fionel turned around with a frown.
Seeing Selina, she jumped.
“Why, again, what!”
It seemed that she ess allergic to her. Fionel reacted irritably as if she was getting on her nerves.
"No. I want to talk.”
Actually, Selina wanted to bother her though she was so disgusted by it.
“What talk? What kind of talk?”
Fionel’s bristling thorns did not subside easily.
“Just talk. Everyone is talking.”
Even though she didn't do anything, Fionel treated her like a walking tiger. That was too much. Selina forgot her achievements for a moment.
“Miss Fionel, why are you putting up a wall against me like that? I was going to ask you to go to the bathroom with me.”
Saying so, Selina quickly crossed her arms and strengthened them. Fionel, who had already been captured, had to be dragged along without being able to move.
“Why the bathroom? What are you going to do?”
Fionel, frightened by the strength of her forearm, braced against it with her heels, but even so, it was as easy as threading a wire through a cotton doll.
“Do I have to tell you what I’m doing in the bathroom? Do you want to hear something like that?”
Oh, my gosh.
It was fun teasing Fionel while she made that expression.
It seemed like she was already leaving the party due to the sudden confusion caused by the sudden soft tone and physical attack. Since she left the party, Fionel must have given up on the idea of running away as her resistance ceased.
At one point, Fionel, who started walking on her own feet, grabbed Selina's arm. She wandered around the corner and pulled her in the opposite direction.
“Aren’t you going to the bathroom?”
“This way?”
"Huh?"
“You know the way. I think you live in the palace.”
“I was the Queen's handmaid for a while. I live here then.”
That was the first time she had heard of it.
After Fionel got out of the line of suspects, she didn't bother to hear more about her personal information, so it was information that hadn't come in. Selina had gathered information about the people Kalcion was involved with before, but she might have forgotten about it.
“But, why not now?”
“I saw a lot of dirty things.”
At those words, Selina looked around for a moment. There was no one. There was a carpet, so voices couldn’t be heard as well.
“…Did you see it, too?”
"What."
“Irell and the Crown Prince.”
Fionel glanced around in surprise at Selina's words. Even though she confirmed with her own eyes that no one was there, she seemed to feel uneasy. She then grabbed Selina's arm and dragged her away eagerly.
The place they arrived at was a resting room and bathroom that looked similar to the one they had been to at the Rose Palace. Unlike then, it was not as deep in the building as Selina thought.
“…Did you take me away on purpose to mess with me like last time?”
“Are you going to argue about that now?”
Fionel didn't even let go.
“Thanks to that, I got entangled with the Crown Prince, so it’s worth arguing about.”
“What, really?!”
“Then, couldn’t I have thought that I was crazy and ran?”
“You are a bit crazy by nature.”
“….”
Selina thought about her image in the eyes of others. It was a worry that she didn't have to do because she lived in the other world, showing only good and pretty sides. It had been proven how wonderfully self-indulgent she had been on this side of the world.
“…Anyway, what do you want to talk about? Here, no one will be hiding.”
“There was no one before.”
“It could have been. How sensitive is the Crown Prince? Ugh.”
Fionel lifted her shoulders as if just the thought made her shudder.
“I was going to ask if you, too, saw Irell and the Crown Prince meet.”
"Me, too…?”
“Yes, someone else saw them.”
“…Oh, indeed. There's no way I could be the only one to see them. Still, you really shouldn't go anywhere and talk about this. You’ll really die."
Selina looked at Fionel with a strange expression as she listened.
"Didn't you want me to die?"
“Yeah, I wish you could die.”
“Either you worry or you curse me, do one thing.”
Like she didn't really want Selina to die, her lips pouted instead of answering. It was not easy to hate someone enough to really want someone dead. Fionel was not the kind of person who would do such a difficult job.
“I hope you suffer enough to die, but don’t really die…”
Selina laughed at that honest joke, but she didn't take Fionel here just to make a joke. As she thought so, she straightened up and got to the point.
“I think it was right that Irell was affectionately close to the Crown Prince. They couldn't she have stayed with him?”
“Do you think that’s possible?”
Fionel snorted.
“Do you think the only one the Crown Prince met at that time was Irell?”
“…Huh?"
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