Chapter 19 Tea Party With The Prince
"Wow... Is this the royal castle? Amazing..."
I decided to accept the prince's invitation.
I traveled all the way from Granbell territory to the royal capital, accompanied by Elder Brother.
The towering white castle was so large that I couldn't even see its full shape up close.
The silhouette looked simple, but considering the size of the grounds, I felt like I could easily get lost if I wasn't careful.
"Hey, Yumie. If you keep looking up while walking, you'll get lost."
"Ah, okay!"
Elder Brother seemed to share my concern. He smiled warmly and took my hand to guide me.
Not long ago, he seemed like nothing more than a mischievous kid, but now he'd grown into more of a gentleman.
If I weren't his sister, I might've fallen for him.
"Thanks for coming, I've been waiting for you."
After being led by Elder Brother for a while, we finally arrived at the center of a vibrant garden surrounded by flowers, guided by a servant from the royal castle.
In the middle stood a glass-walled little building, where a small space was set up for the tea party.
It had a secret base-like atmosphere that somehow stirred my boyish heart.
"Prince Sigurt, thank you for inviting us today, along with my brother."
"You don't have to be so formal; it's not a public gathering. By the way, I only invited Yumie, not Neil."
Huh? I glanced at Elder Brother, confused.
I thought 'he' was invited too, and I was supposed to look after me. What's going on?
"Hehe, well, considering my relationship with Neil, it doesn't matter. It seems Yumie is really cherished by her brother."
"You knew and still didn't invite me, did you?"
"Hmm, what are you talking about?"
Elder Brother shot a glare at the prince, but the prince only smiled back.
I didn't quite understand the meaning behind their exchange—my experience with these things was still pretty limited...
"You two seem really close."
"No, it's a toxic bond."
"Ah, I'm really close with Neil, Lady Yumie."
Elder Brother denied it, while the prince made remarks that could easily lead to misunderstandings.
Yeah, I get the gist.
Well, as long as the atmosphere doesn't get awkward, I don't really care.
Besides, I didn't feel like I could have a one-on-one conversation with the prince anyway.
"Come on, standing around isn't good. Please, have a seat."
"Yes, excuse me."
"......"
It's me sitting with a smile, and Elder Brother giving the prince a wary look.
If you keep frowning like that, it'll become a habit, you know?
"Neil is worried that you might take me away from him."
"Whoa!!"
Did the prince just say that because he thought I was suspicious of Elder Brother?
It must've hit a nerve because Elder Brother dramatically spat out the tea he'd just sipped.
That's gross, Elder Brother.
"Ahaha, Elder Brother is such a worrywart. Someone as wonderful as Prince Sigurt wouldn't want someone like me, a child."
I'm ten years old, you know? Prince Sigurt is supposed to be 15—older than Elder Brother.
When you grow up, a 5-year age difference doesn't seem like much, but at this age, it's huge.
I'm not even thinking of him as the opposite sex...
"No, I do want you. I invited you because I thought you might be a candidate for my fiancée."
"Excuse me?"
Without hiding anything or softening the words, the prince just said that to me.
No, no, what are you talking about?
"Sigurt!! If you want Yumie, you'll have to defeat me first!!"
"Well, Neil hasn't won against me even once. I think it's still 3 years too early to say that."
"Shut up, I don't care!! Come out and fight!!"
Three years is a pretty realistic number.
It seems this prince has a high opinion of Elder Brother.
Well, Elder Brother still doesn't seem to understand those subtle nuances.
"Calm down, Elder Brother. It's just the prince's way of joking."
"There's no way that's true! This guy is definitely after you!!"
"That's impossible."
"Why do you think that?"
As I was calming Elder Brother down, the prince asked me that.
Why? Well, that's obvious.
"I may have the blood of the Granbell family, but... I'm just an illegitimate child with no legitimate claim to the inheritance. It wouldn't be appropriate for someone like me to be with the prince, even as a concubine."
"Yumie!!"
Suddenly, Elder Brother shouted angrily, standing up and glaring at me.
I was taken aback by the unexpected situation. Elder Brother grabbed my shoulder, his face contorted as though he might cry.
"You don't have to worry about that!! No matter whose child you are, you're my sister!!"
"Elder Brother, I really appreciate your feelings, but... this isn't the issue..."
"But...!"
"──Stop it, Neil. At the very least, you shouldn't be in a position to say anything about this to her."
"Ugh...!!"
The prince silenced the heated Elder Brother with just one word.
Well, yeah...
No matter what my family thinks, the fact that I'm an illegitimate child doesn't change, and that's something people criticize.
Not long ago, Elder Brother was in the same position to criticize me, so hearing this, he probably won't have much to say.
"It's okay. Right now, I'm loved by Elder Brother, Father, and Mother, and that's enough for me. Whether I can get married or not is a trivial matter compared to that."
Besides, even though my body is that of a girl, I still think of myself as a boy.
Even if I were born without any issues, marrying a man still feels... you know?
So, I tried to reassure Elder Brother so he wouldn't worry too much, but his expression didn't seem to improve much.
If the tea party with the prince ended on a bad note, it could lead to strange rumors, so I had to encourage him somehow.
Just as I was thinking that, the prince suddenly burst out laughing.
"Haha! You're really interesting, Yumie. I want you even more now."
Watching the prince smile and laugh, I thought to myself...
...It's a joke, right?
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