“Ah. You’re finally out.”

“Is it over now? Why did it take so long?”

The voices of Ilian and Hasis reached me simultaneously.

They were both leaning against the wall and window in rather casual postures, either because they had been waiting a long time or to show their defiance toward me.

I looked at Hasis standing with his arms crossed and an irritated expression.

With a tall build for a late teenager and a sturdy physique from wielding a sword, he wore a black suit with a white shirt underneath. Unlike the unadorned suit, the shirt was elegantly embroidered.

The thin black ribbon fluttering near his neck looked somewhat out of place, but with his handsome features and aura, despite his habitually furrowed brow, he resembled a young nobleman at first glance.

Hmm. At least I won’t be embarrassed by his appearance.

Of course, I could confidently insist that even if Hasis showed up looking like a beggar, it was this year’s trending style, but isn’t it better to look presentable?

With that thought, I glanced at Ilian, who was gazing out the window.

Unlike usual, he had braided his long platinum blonde hair and wore a white suit with subtle turquoise and gold embroidery, creating a distinctly different impression from Hasis.

Sensing my gaze, Ilian turned and smiled gently.

“You look pretty.”

“Stop flattering me.”

“Was I that obvious?”

“Too obvious.”

“Oh dear.”

“Both of you need to behave properly today. No, actually, don’t do anything at all. Just stand behind me and speak up only if you notice something strange. Understood?”

“Got it.”

Hasis clicked his tongue and nodded instead of answering verbally.

“The carriage is ready.”

Soon Rigan approached. He nodded slightly toward Hasis and then gave Ilian an overtly disapproving look.

It was rare for Rigan to show such dislike toward someone, but Ilian didn’t seem surprised and simply kept smiling.

“Alright. Let’s go.”

Normally we should have been accompanied by knights, but since I had refused, our party was quite small.

We would take knights as far as the warp point, but essentially only the three of us would be going to the Marquis’s mansion.

The skilled knights were all in the Emperor’s Central Knight Order anyway, and knights less capable than those would be less effective than me fighting alone.

Moreover, their presence would make it awkward for me to fight freely if danger arose.

After boarding the carriage, we traveled briefly before heading directly to the Adler territory.

“If we’re really going to use warp magic, why sit in a carriage at all?”

“The human world overflows with such formalities. And I told you before. We warp to a designated point and then move by carriage. We can’t just appear in someone else’s territory.”

“Because of etiquette?”

“Exactly.”

“Nobles truly live inconveniently.”

That was something I agreed with.

However, Ilian, who had been watching from the side, muttered quietly.

“But few live as comfortably as nobles.”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing. Just thinking aloud.”

Just as Ilian finished speaking, the area outside the carriage suddenly brightened. At that moment, I let out a long “Hooo—” of admiration at the scenery visible through the window.

The Adler Marquis territory was actually quite far from the capital.

Although most Senate nobles had their own mansions in the capital, they still invited guests to their main residences in their territories for parties like this.

The carriage arrived quickly at the Marquis’s mansion.

The garden party seemed quite large in scale, with numerous carriages lined up.

As soon as the distinctive imperial carriage appeared, I noticed the nobles pausing.

Naturally, the main gate of the mansion opened, and when we stopped in front, our door was opened.

Hasis exited the carriage first.

Ilian skillfully followed, and as I was about to be the last to exit, Ilian extended his hand.

“Careful, my lady.”

His sweet voice made the nearby maids blush.

Well, his face could probably fetch a decent price if preserved in a portrait right now.

Beside us, Hasis held the door open. The coachman, unintentionally pushed aside, stood awkwardly.

“You seem close with your brothers.”

That’s when I heard it.

A sweet yet delicate voice reached my ears.

Even though the young lady’s name was on the invitation, I naturally expected the Marquis couple to greet us, but the voice belonged to someone else.

“I am Margrit Adler, Your Highness. It is an honor to have you grace us with your presence.”

Margrit Adler was slightly older than I had expected. She appeared to be around Hasis’s age, perhaps eighteen.

She seemed to be walking the fine line between girl and woman. With her splendid blonde hair half-tied and wearing a dress adorned with tiny ribbons, she resembled a pretty doll.

However, I wasn’t particularly pleased by her appearance.

It wasn’t an issue with Margrit herself, but rather the fact that she was the one who appeared in this situation.

‘Even for a princess, isn’t it inappropriate for the head of the household and his wife to not show their faces?’

Though Margrit had sent the garden party invitation, having only her greet a princess for the first time wasn’t exactly a breach of etiquette, but it certainly wasn’t proper protocol either.

From the very beginning.

I laughed bitterly inside. I knew how the nobles who had witnessed my childhood treated me.

They might be restrained by my power now, but the fact remained that they had looked down on me in the past.

‘The Marquis couple not coming out to greet me is clearly a power play. Strictly speaking, it doesn’t violate etiquette, it’s just a matter of sincerity, so it’s hard to call them out on it.’

Despite my status as a princess, I outwardly appeared to be a child, and they clearly thought I wouldn’t care about such minor points of etiquette.

—Or so they thought, but unfortunately, they were mistaken.

“Where is the Marquis couple? Where are they?”

At my somewhat childish question, Ilian’s expression subtly changed, having experienced this before. I could see Hasis shaking his head.

Margrit answered my question skillfully.

“Father and Mother are quite busy with official matters and plan to return home shortly.”

“What’s keeping the Marquis so busy that he’s not home when he knows I’m coming? Is he busier than my mother?”

“That couldn’t possibly be the case, it’s just—”

“Even my mother comes out to greet me when I visit. Or is he busier than my father, the Dragon Lord?”

Of course, it would be hard to find anyone in this world less busy than Lerrhagen, but that wasn’t the point.

Margrit seemed unprepared for my direct questioning.

But innocent and straightforward speech was a child’s privilege, and I had no reason not to use it.

Finally, Margrit answered with an elegant smile.

“Please forgive the discourtesy. I will inform my father—”

“Never mind. No need for that. So, where is the garden party being held?”

“Your Highness.”

“I said it’s fine. I won’t get angry over something so trivial. Besides, I prefer a pretty older sister to an ugly old man like the Marquis.”

This was somewhat sincere.

Honestly, I had zero desire to see the Adler Marquis here.

I knew that if I told Margrit this, it would reach the Marquis, and well, they could draw their own conclusions afterward.

Margrit realized she had nothing to gain by arguing and simply pressed her lips together.

A hint of displeasure flickered in her eyes.

Of course, she quickly recovered with a polished, gentle smile.

“This way, Your Highness. Noble gentlemen, please follow me as well.”

I deliberately took bouncy steps forward.

Hasis, who was following us, bent slightly and whispered in my ear.

“Aren’t you being too sharp?”

“They sharpened the blade. I’m just using it on them.”

Hasis made an ambiguous face at my words.

Eventually, we entered the Adler mansion together. Maids and servants were lined up to welcome us. They were all observing the basic required etiquette.

And that fact irritated me the most.

This was always how nobles operated. They always toed the line within the boundaries of etiquette while subtly disrespecting others.

And if you showed displeasure, they painted you as uncultured and ignorant of proper etiquette.

At least now they couldn’t openly reject me because I was the Emperor’s daughter and imperial authority was strong.

This is why people need power.

As I was walking along, muttering to myself, I suddenly noticed a figure flitting behind a pillar at the end of the mansion hall and paused.

‘What’s that?’

Although I couldn’t see clearly, there was definitely a person behind the pillar.

Moreover, it didn’t appear to be an adult.

I stared at the fluffy rabbit ears poking out from behind the pillar.

‘Does the Adler Marquis have another daughter?’

If so, this was even more discourteous. If she had stayed in her room, that would be one thing, but hiding without showing herself when a princess was visiting? This was the height of rudeness.

“Princess?”

Margrit softly called out to me when I stopped moving.

Hmm, I looked at the small figure behind the pillar and spoke.

“Do you have a younger sibling?”

Margrit seemed to notice what I was referring to. She hesitated before answering with a slightly uncomfortable expression.

“Ah… yes.”

“What are they doing behind that pillar?”

As soon as I finished speaking, the figure behind the pillar seemed to flinch.

I deliberately smiled innocently as I looked at Margrit.