Chapter 667

Oh? He seems a bit off, doesn’t he?
We moved to a room in the salon building that the Ellisfeed family had rented.

“Miria, could you prepare some tea?”
“As you wish.”

I entrusted Miria with the cookies and mini custard tarts we had originally planned to serve and took a seat next to my brother.

… So, Kurogane and Mashiro?
Why are you two standing behind me?
Miria is going to have trouble serving, so could you step aside?

… Or rather, you two aren’t even trying to hide your discomfort. The sheer pressure you’re unconsciously exuding is making Prince Kaldor back away, you know?

“… I believe they were present at the Ellisfeed estate as well. Miss Cristea, are they your guards?”
“Huh? Well, yes, you could say they are… my guards.”

Though honestly, they feel a bit excessive.

“The head of the Ellisfeed family is quite doting on Miss Cristea… This will be a formidable challenge.”
“…? Oh no, it’s not like Otousama assigned them to me.”

They’re self-appointed guards. Or rather, they’re my contracted Sacred Beasts.

“Not assigned by your father? Then… could it be that the royal palace has dispatched guards for you!? That would make sense. With talents like yours, it’s only natural for the kingdom to ensure your safety…”

No, wait, I’m not that much of a VIP!?

“Um, I don’t think I hold such an important position…”
“No need to be so modest. That’s right, it’s not exactly something one would openly declare… Could it be that your engagement to Crown Prince Raymond has already been arranged in secret?”

At these words, Crown Prince Raymond nearly spit out his tea and started coughing.
Wait, are you okay!?

Miria quickly handed him a handkerchief and smoothly replaced his tea with a fresh cup.
As expected, she’s so capable—my proud maid. Sasumiri.

It looked like Crown Prince Raymond’s clothes had been spared. Good.
Well, even if they had gotten dirty, I could just use cleansing magic to remove the stains, so it would have been fine.

“Crown Prince Raymond, you’re overreacting. Prince Kaldor, there’s no way that’s true. There are plenty of wonderful young ladies out there—far more suitable than me. Having to consider a little thing like me as a potential partner would be an insult to him.”

At the academy, Crown Prince Raymond was incredibly popular, and there were many other candidates.
There was no reason for him to pick me, someone who had even been labeled the “repulsive-food eating lady.”
He had so many options!

I mean, wasn’t it because of that very rumor that he went out of his way to personally investigate the truth in my domain? Ah, such memories.

And even though I got my revenge by serving him extra-spicy curry, he ended up loving it.
That was completely unexpected.

Well, in the end, that incident led to us getting to know each other, and I realized he wasn’t a bad person, so my revenge attempt was a total failure—but I suppose it worked out for the best.

Since then, he seems to have become obsessed with curry, and the only reason he keeps approaching me must be for that.

Once spices and medicinal herbs become more widely available, we won’t have to worry about shortages due to hoarding.
When that time comes, I could either present my curry recipe to the royal family or register it with the commercial guild at a high price.

… Hm? Why does Crown Prince Raymond look so dejected?

And why is Prince Kaldor patting him on the shoulder like he’s trying to comfort him?

Meanwhile, behind them, Tika-san was looking at me with an expression that just screams, “Wow…” as if he can’t believe what he was seeing.

Oniisama, on the other hand, was smiling happily as he said, “Tea, that’s a little… I actually feel kind of sorry for His Highness.”

And then, the two Sacred Beasts behind me.
Stop having telepathic conversations like, “Haha! Serves him right!” and “Hmph, as if my Lord would ever become the mate of someone like that.”

Even if you’re not saying it out loud, if my contracted Sacred Beasts make comments like that, I might end up being charged with lèse-majesté!

What do you think about this chapter?