Alexion’s gaze, supporting his head that kept leaning forward with his palm, turned toward Erna’s lips. Pleasant, even breathing flowed through the slightly parted gap.

Just as his hand that had been staring intently was about to touch her soft-looking lips, Erna opened her eyes with a start, awakening from sleep.

“Your Highness?”

“……”

Alexion, who had withdrawn his hand nonchalantly, looked at Erna with somewhat displeased eyes before turning away.

“I really did listen properly until the middle, Your Highness.”

Erna, who was hurriedly chasing after Alexion as he crossed the corridor with wide strides, smiled awkwardly and offered a pitiful excuse.

“Since there are many parts about national projects that I don’t know…… What was the other agenda item?”

Alexion slowed his steps slightly.

“They said to welcome a crown princess as soon as possible.”

It wasn’t particularly the first time this topic had come up. Since the emperor’s health began deteriorating, petitions poured in saying the position of crown princess could no longer remain vacant.

“Your Highness, what is your ideal type like?”

At the sudden question, Alexion frowned.

“Or are there any young ladies you’ve particularly noticed at balls?”

“Explain so I can understand.”

“If Your Highness doesn’t mind, I’ll help you welcome a crown princess. I do have a track record of connecting Violet and Zenon, you know.”

Erna placed her hand on her waist with a confident expression.

“Ha. So that’s what you were getting at.”

Alexion, who had stopped abruptly, laughed coldly.

“You don’t mind?”

“What?”

“Even if I take another as crown princess, you don’t……”

Alexion, who had swallowed his remaining words, clenched his fist tightly. Blue veins stood out on the back of his hand.

“Why should I receive your help? Who are you to……”

At the sharp interrogation, Erna fidgeted with her interlocked fingers. She couldn’t rashly open her mouth in this ominous atmosphere. She had definitely made some verbal mistake that touched his nerves.

“I just wanted to help as Your Highness’s subject……”

“Does a mere one-year subject have the qualifications to interfere to that extent?”

“You misunderstand, Your Highness! I absolutely didn’t intend to interfere.”

“Whoever I take as crown princess is for me to decide. You’re unnecessary meddling, Erna Lizbeth.”

Alexion, who had given her a cold glance, left without looking back.

After the incident in the meeting room, a cold wind blew fiercely between Erna and Alexion’s relationship. In the gloomy office atmosphere that continued for several days, Hubert glanced around nervously before covering his mouth with the file in his hand and whispering to Erna.

“Did you two perhaps have a fight?”

“…… It’s not like that.”

It would have been better if they had fought, then at least they could make up. The more she thought about it, the more unfair it felt. All she had said was that she would help with welcoming a crown princess. Of course, it might have felt like unnecessary meddling, but was it really something to be so heartless about, saying he didn’t need her help and telling her not to meddle unnecessarily?

She had thought they had grown close in their own way, having built up both bitter and sweet feelings. Realizing that it was all just her own delusion made her feel even more hurt. What was the point of building trust and completing quests? He gets sulky over just one word.

Erna, who had finished organizing her desk, stood up.

“I’ll step out for a moment.”

Erna glanced sideways at Alexion, who remained silently moving his pen without even giving her a look despite her words, then turned around sharply and left.

Some time later, news came that barbarian tribes had appeared and were rampaging in distant frontier regions. At the midnight mobilization order, the imperial knights moved in unison and immediately set out on campaign.

Since they left at dawn before daybreak, Erna couldn’t see Alexion off on his campaign, but honestly, she wasn’t worried. He had lived on battlefields for six whole years. Moreover, he was undoubtedly the male lead of the original work. The possibility of something happening to him was virtually nonexistent.

It was when Erna was spending leisurely days at the mansion, waiting for the victory report that would soon reach the capital. Violet came to visit, saying she had an ominous dream the night before.

“It’s too ominous, Erna. What if something happened to Zenon?”

“Violet, calm down. That was just a dream.”

“I can’t stay like this. I want to go check if Zenon is safe. I think that’s the only way I’ll feel at ease.”

“What? Absolutely not! Do you know how dangerous that place is?”

At first, Erna had desperately tried to dissuade Violet’s stubbornness, but after a while, she too began to feel uneasy. As far as she knew, Zenon’s swordsmanship skills weren’t outstanding. Should she say it was just at a basic level?

‘Still, he’s a sub male lead, so surely he wouldn’t die?’

No, but what if he gets seriously injured? What happens to the original story? What about the quests? There was also the danger of being trapped in the game forever.

After much internal conflict, Erna grabbed Violet’s hand with a determined expression.

“Fine, let’s go.”

“Huh……? Really?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you, really thank you, Erna!”

“But!”

Erna firmly raised her index finger toward the rejoicing Violet.

“We’ll come back immediately after just confirming that Zenon is safe. Got it?”

“Yes! I promise.”

Looking at Violet’s bright smile, Erna inwardly swallowed a sigh. Since they would just confirm Zenon’s safety and return as she said, what big deal could there be?

‘There won’t be…… any big deal, right?’

***

After riding the carriage non-stop, they could see the camp where the imperial knights were stationed in the distance. It was good that they had arrived without incident.

“The problem is how to get through there.”

“What should we do, Erna?”

“Let’s go for now.”

Two ordinary women, not knights or even regular soldiers, suddenly appearing in front of a camp? They couldn’t complain even if they were mistaken for disguised enemies and showered with arrows. Sure enough, the two people who had been circling and peering around the camp were soon caught by soldiers.

“Nobles, you say?”

One soldier looked up and down at Erna and Violet’s shabby attire with suspicious eyes.

“It’s true. We just dressed simply because we came a long way.”

“This isn’t some picnic spot, and you expect us to believe that noble ladies came to a battlefield without escorts?”

“If you really can’t believe it, let us meet someone in charge who can verify our identities.”

“Why should we?”

The soldier who had only been sarcastic until now suddenly changed his attitude and thrust his face close to theirs.

“I heard there are occasionally guys who secretly call women to the barracks at night. With your pretty faces and all…… Seems exactly like that. Who called you here? If you don’t want to get into trouble, you’d better tell the truth right now.”

The soldier lifted Erna’s shabby cloak while observing her reaction. She hadn’t wanted to cause a big commotion, but displeasure transmitted from her clothing, so she roughly struck away the man’s hand. The impact caused the cloak’s string to snap and fall.

Finally, as the soldier’s expression turned menacing and small curses could be heard, Erna sent Violet behind her and clenched her fist tightly.

“Since I’m being nice……”

“I called them.”

The soldiers who turned their heads toward where the voice came from all froze in place. One of them was so shocked that he dropped the spear he was holding. At the heavy sound of the spear hitting the ground, the soldiers who snapped back to their senses hurriedly bowed their heads.

“Did you dare lay hands on my fiancée?”

Alexion passed by them and stopped in front of the soldier who had just been threatening Erna.

“Y-Your Highness. That is……”

The soldier’s face turned pale as he received Alexion’s piercing blue gaze head-on. The soldier, who couldn’t have dared imagine that the identity of the shabbily dressed woman was the crown prince’s fiancée, broke out in cold sweat down his spine. Sensing that his life hung by a thread, the soldier knelt down and struck his forehead against the ground hard enough to make a thudding sound.

“I dared not recognize such an honored person and committed rudeness! Please punish me!”

“Go back and await your punishment.”

Alexion’s coldly murmured gaze turned toward Erna. Before the flustered Erna could open her mouth to say anything, Alexion grabbed her wrist and took her to the barracks.

“So.”

The interrogation began as soon as they entered the barracks. Alexion’s face as he stood Erna in front of him showed no trace of a smile. From his expression, he was clearly quite angry.

“You tried to confirm whether Zenon Mayer was safe?”

“Yes……”

At the chilling voice, Erna couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes and looked down at her toes. When she had last seen Alexion at the palace, he was still angry with her. Their feelings hadn’t completely resolved yet, and this only made the situation worse.

‘This is why I didn’t want to come.’

Glancing around nervously, Erna’s lips moved slightly.

“O-Of course, I was also worried about Your Highness’s safety.”

There was no reaction to the flattering remark she had subtly added. Rather, as if she had rubbed him the wrong way, Alexion let out a bitter sneer.

“Your heart for caring about friends is truly remarkable. To think you fearlessly came to the middle of a battlefield. You must have multiple lives.”

Alexion, who had scanned Erna’s appearance lacking even the minimum self-defense weapons to protect herself, irritably swept back his hair. Unable to suppress his rising anger, he pressed on as if chewing his words.

“You heard how they just misunderstood you, so now tell me with your own mouth. What do you think they’ll think when they see a tyrant dragging his fiancée into the barracks?”

“That’s……”