Chapter 51. Love Play

“…Who did you say came?”

“It’s Princess Roelyn, my lady.”

At the sudden news, I was at a loss for words and stared blankly at Hubert.

Princess Roelyn came here? To see me?

Although she said she came to see Enoch as well… he wasn’t at the mansion right now. In other words, I had to entertain Princess Roelyn alone.

…Can I do well? From what I heard from Enoch, Princess Roelyn seemed to be a difficult person to deal with.

I was extremely worried, but I couldn’t keep the guest waiting. I forced a smile at Hubert and asked.

“Did you escort the princess to the drawing room?”

“Yes, the maids are serving her tea. Since the princess is sensitive to the cold, we’ve lit a small fire in the drawing room’s fireplace.”

As expected, Hubert’s work was quick and perfect. After briefly commending him, I entered the dressing room with Jasmine and changed into lighter clothing, anticipating that the drawing room would be warm. I also braided my hair into a single plait.

After getting ready, I followed the footman who was waiting in the hallway to the drawing room.

There were four drawing rooms in the Winter Palace, all on the first floor, with one in the east and the other three in the west.

The one most commonly used was in the east, as it was the most suitable for entertaining any guest.

However, for special guests, such as members of the royal family, the largest drawing room in the west was used.

Princess Roelyn was currently in that very drawing room.

“This way, please.”

The path to the drawing room was somewhat maze-like, making it easy for those unfamiliar with the Winter Palace’s layout to get lost. Hence, the footman was guiding me to the drawing room.

Though Jasmine could have done this, it wasn’t a maid’s job according to the rules, so I accepted it. Rules were important in maintaining a large mansion, no matter how trivial they might seem.

“We’ve arrived. This is the place.”

Nodding at the footman’s words, the doorman announced my arrival. Since Princess Roelyn was of much higher status than me, this was a necessary procedure.

Soon, the door opened, and I glimpsed Princess Roelyn. She was wearing a sky-blue dress, which made her already pale complexion look even more sickly.

Although her overall color scheme was similar to Julian Berstein’s, her impression was entirely different. Roelyn seemed much gentler.

Her platinum blonde hair was so light it was almost white, and her light gray eyes were the same. If fragility were sculpted into human form, it would look like her. However, her gaze was sharp and clear.

Though I had prepared myself mentally, I instinctively knew from the first impression that she wasn’t an easy person. As I awkwardly smiled and greeted her, a sharp sneer came flying at me.

“Are you already acting like a grand duchess? You haven’t even had the engagement ceremony yet.”

The engagement ceremony was less than a week away. Princess Roelyn was just picking a fight. As expected, she didn’t like me. Well, considering she was close to Angela Besnard, I could roughly guess why.

“Acting like a grand duchess? That’s absurd. I understand that I need to be cautious in my behavior.”

“…I can’t believe Brother Enoch fell for someone like you. Brother Enoch…”

She paused for a moment, biting her lips, then quietly picked up her teacup. It was clear she intended to say something about Enoch but stopped, so I pretended not to notice and sipped my tea. The sweet tea, which I usually didn’t enjoy, was for this frail guest.

Looking at Roelyn through the golden rim of the teacup, I gently asked,

“Do you like the tea? I prepared it according to Your Highness’s preference…”

Actually, Hubert prepared it, but a little white lie wouldn’t hurt. He wouldn’t mind; he might even compliment me.

Roelyn glanced at the liquid in her teacup and grumbled in a still prickly tone.

“Preparing refreshments to suit the guest’s taste is basic etiquette.”

“You’re absolutely right.”

I knew she was mocking me, but I played dumb and cheerfully agreed. Roelyn, for some reason, looked a bit upset and drank her tea in silence.

…What should I say? I think I’m starting to get a sense of how to handle Roelyn.

“You said you first met Brother Enoch at the Spring Ball, right?”

Roelyn asked while holding the saucer and teacup. I nodded and answered with a smile.

“Yes, His Highness the Grand Duke helped me.”

Somehow, I felt she wouldn’t like it if I addressed him by his name in a familiar manner. So, I deliberately used a formal title. It was probably the right choice.

“…Helped you? …Ah, I heard you were caught by Marquis Anderson at the Spring Ball. You must be talking about that.”

Roelyn slightly furrowed her brows as she mentioned Marquis Anderson. It seemed she was well aware of Robert Anderson’s notorious reputation.

“Brother Enoch was just acting like a gentleman. It’s only natural for a gentleman to help a lady in distress…”

Roelyn seemed unwilling to acknowledge that Enoch had any special feelings for me. In fact, she was right, but since we had decided to stage a grand deception, I needed to pretend to be madly in love with Enoch.

So, putting on a wistful expression, I lightly touched my cheek with one hand and said,

“To be honest… I was very surprised then. I never imagined His Highness the Grand Duke would help me. He always had such a dry expression… I thought he was a cold person. But to think he would save me and even dance with me.”

Pretending to be in love and murmuring in a dreamy voice was much more embarrassing than I thought. My cheeks burned with shame, and I felt like my face must be as red as a ripe tomato.

If this made me look truly in love, it could be considered an unexpected success.

Roelyn stared at me silently for a while, then placed the teacup and saucer on the table and spoke.

“Miss Lopez, do you truly love Brother Enoch? Can you love him forever without change?”

I didn’t expect such a direct question, so I froze. Princess Roelyn… seemed younger than she appeared. She was probably around my age, but she seemed to think like a child who had lived in isolation.

Eternal, unchanging love… I had no such romantic notions. Maybe I did in the past, but not anymore. I think most adults would feel the same. The same goes for marriage. Not all marriages are based on love, and it’s not something to be criticized if a couple doesn’t love each other.

But if I were to tell her such harsh truths, Roelyn would probably look heartbroken, like a child who cries when they learn that fairy tales don’t always end with ‘happily ever after.’

I was starting to get a clearer picture of who Roelyn Frederick was.

I pretended to be deeply in love.

“Yes, I truly love Enoch. More than anyone in the world. This feeling will never change.”

A lie.

I was lying. And it wasn’t just one lie. How did those mythological figures who prematurely predicted their futures turn out? My heart started to race anxiously. ―What is the ‘real’ lie?

“That’s quite touching.”

At that moment, a familiar voice came from behind. I was so startled that I almost dropped the teacup. My anxious heartbeat turned into a frantic race. I quickly put down the teacup and stood up, turning around.

Instantly, I met a pair of deep golden eyes.

When did he get here? I didn’t even hear the door open―no, I didn’t even hear any footsteps! Surprisingly, he stood there with his head tilted, looking at me with a playful expression.

I stood there like a dumb goldfish, my mouth opening and closing blankly.

“How was my surprise?”

He grinned and walked briskly towards me. I couldn’t find any words to respond and just stared at him blankly, like someone whose soul had been taken by a demon. So, he heard everything? Everything I said about love…

Where did he start eavesdropping? Did he hear me pretending to be in love with that dreamy voice? Did he see my foolish act? I wanted to die. I was so embarrassed that I wanted to dig my own grave and lie down in it.

“I’m overwhelmed by how deep your feelings for me are. If I hear you say you love me more than anyone in the world one more time, I might die from the overwhelming emotion.”

“……”

This man, who could lie so smoothly without even wetting his lips, needed to learn what shame was. I bit my lip and glared at him timidly, mouthing the words, ‘Stop teasing me.’

But Enoch Bayern seemed in no mood to miss the chance to embarrass me. He came closer and wrapped his arm around my waist. Then, at a distance close enough to kiss, he looked into my eyes intently and whispered.

“I ran here because I missed you so much, but can’t you welcome me a bit more warmly?”

He tapped his lips with his index finger. The meaning of that gesture was clear. I stared at him with wide eyes, unable to believe what he was asking.