What does this even mean!?
Eh!? Why!?
Why are Prince Kaldor and Tika-san kneeling!?
No way, maybe they’re just clutching their stomachs in pain… but that would be a huge problem too, wouldn’t it!?
Could they have eaten something bad!?
I hurriedly called out to check on their condition.
“Um, Your Highness!? Are you feeling unwell!?”
“… No, why would you think that? This is… to express my gratitude to you, Miss Cristea.”
His gaze seemed to say, “What are you even talking about?” But I’m the one who doesn’t understand anything here!?
A prince, someone so important, kneeling before a foreign Duke’s daughter is totally unacceptable!
A simple “Well done, you’ve done good work, you are to be commended” would be enough!
And then I could respond with a proper “Thank you, Your Highness, it is an honor!” That’s how these things are supposed to go, right!? (Confusion intensifies.)
“Ah, ah, Prince Kaldor, and Tika-san, please, please stand up…”
Feeling awkward just standing in front of the two of them, I inadvertently started to crouch when Prince Kaldor took my hand.
“Huh?”
“To Miss Cristea, my utmost gratitude and respect. Thanks to your efforts, the food shortages in my country will improve significantly. The commoners, who form the backbone of our workforce, will now have full stomachs, and no one should go hungry anymore. On behalf of my nation, I thank you.”
Prince Kaldor said this, pressing my hand between his own, placing a kiss on my fingertips, and then resting them against his forehead.
Eh!?
“W-W-Wait, Prince Kaldor!?”
As I tried to pull my hand away in panic, I felt a sudden chill from behind me.
“… May I ask what this situation is about?”
“Yes, indeed. Weren’t you supposed to be testing whether Idika could be cooked?”
“O-Otousama!? And Oniisama?”
Oniisama, who had gone to the royal palace earlier to report on Otousama’s behalf, stood beside him, wearing a chilling smile.
Otousama looked obviously displeased, but my Oniisama’s smile didn’t reach his eyes!
This is scarier than just being outright angry—what do I do!?
“Hey, don’t leave me behind… wait, Miss Cristea!? What is going on here?”
“Crown Prince Raymond!?”
Why is Crown Prince Raymond here?
“… Tch, I got interrupted.”
“Huh?”
Did Prince Kaldor just click his tongue and mutter something!?
“No, it’s nothing. Duke Ellisfeed, I was merely expressing my gratitude to your daughter. Crown Prince Raymond, I did not expect to meet you here, but it is an honor.”
Prince Kaldor stood gracefully, smiling as he bowed to Crown Prince Raymond and the others.
Since Prince Kaldor still held my hand, I also ended up standing, pulled along by him.
Um, could you please let go of my hand?
When I tried to gently pull it away, Prince Kaldor tightened his grip on my fingers.
Eh, what is this?
If he doesn’t let go, the chill emanating from Otousama and Oniisama will only grow stronger… eek!
“As Prince Kaldor said, it’s inappropriate to stand around and talk in a place like this. Let’s move. Cristea, come here.”
When Otousam, veins popping on his temple, called me over, I quickly answered, “Y-Yes,” and Prince Kaldor’s grip finally loosened. I hurried to my father’s side.
We decided to serve everything I had prepared as lunch for tasting, leaving the rest to the Head Chef, and moved to a reception room.
“Prince Kaldor, while I allowed you into the kitchen—our private workspace—because you insisted Idika cuisine could save Samonar’s future, I had asked you to ensure my daughter wasn’t troubled in any way.”
As soon as the servants left the room after preparing tea, Otousama gently reproached Prince Kaldor.
“I had no intention of troubling Miss Cristea… but her culinary creations were so extraordinary that I couldn’t help but express my gratitude.”
Perhaps because Crown Prince Raymond was present, Prince Kaldor responded with a slightly more formal demeanor, but Otousama and Oniisama looked at him suspiciously.
“I see. However, it is unnecessary to offer such grand gestures of gratitude to the daughter of a foreign noble. If any of your countrymen were present, it could have caused misunderstandings.”
… Misunderstandings?
Otousama’s words, spoken with a furrowed brow, unsettled me.
Could it be… that I’d be misunderstood as some villainous noblewoman who makes foreign royalty kneel before her!? Noooo!
The rumors of me being a repulsive food-eating lady were bad enough, though I somewhat deserved those because of my actions… but a villainous noblewoman is unacceptable!
Not that I accepted the gluttonous label willingly—it was a matter of necessity!
“Misunderstandings? Nonsense. There’s no room for misunderstandings.”
Prince Kaldor shrugged, as if to say he was offended.
“But do you think we wouldn’t recognize the meaning of such a gesture?”
Otousama’s gaze grew sharp, and Oniisama’s face lost all expression. Hieh.
Crown Prince Raymond also stared at Prince Kaldor with a serious expression… no, was he glaring!?
What meaning? That gesture earlier, the kiss on my fingertips—was that it!?
“… You knew, huh? What a pity. If I’d had just a little more time, I could have formally proposed.”
“…!”
Oniisama shot to his feet with a loud clatter, but Otousama restrained him with a calm “Compose yourself.”
Huh? What? P-Propose?
A bulb? Soul-sucking? … Proposal!?
Whaaat!? A proposal!?
What do you think about this chapter?
