In this Chaotic World, I Am Doing Fine - Chapter 6

Acelia frowned at Liam’s visit, which she thought wouldn’t happen for a while.

She didn’t even blink, though it might have been pitiful to see him still wearing a bandage on his head.

‘Is this a protest or what?’

“Apology? More importantly, Count, didn’t I tell you not to speak informally?”

“Why are you suddenly telling me to speak formally! ……Your Highness!”

Why? Because it’s annoying, that’s why.

Liam, still maintaining his mask of a well-mannered fiancé, spoke politely to the servants.

“We have something to discuss privately, so could you please leave us for a moment?”

Acelia snorted at the familiar pattern.

“Why are you telling my people to leave?”

Liam finally exploded at Acelia’s defiant attitude.

“Acelia, are you really going to be like this?!”

“Count Felix, do not raise your voice to Your Highness.”

Her nanny said firmly.

‘Nice one, Nanny.’

Acelia grinned, feeling like she was watching a fire from across the river.

“……Give me a moment, Acelia.”

“Talking informally?”

“Please give me a moment, Your Highness the Princess.”

He gritted out each word, clenching his jaw.

Having successfully subdued Liam, Acelia graciously dismissed the servants.

“Everyone, leave.”

“Yes. Please call if you need anything.”

The servants, who had been standing like statues when Liam spoke, flowed out like the tide.

Left alone, with just the two of them.

Acelia tilted her head askew with her arms crossed.

She didn’t even bother to tell him to sit down, even as a formality.

She didn’t want to sit face to face and have even a glass of water with him.

“Why did you come without an appointment? What kind of apology is this?”

“Aren’t you sorry to me? I bled profusely because of you.”

“Is that what you came to argue about? How petty.”

“What, petty?! Should I just stay quiet when my head was split open?”

Liam roughly ran his hand through his red hair as Acelia showed no signs of remorse.

His fiancée had been strange since last time.

Her way of speaking had changed, and her behavior had become rough like a street thug.

She also kept arguing back at everything Liam said.

As if she had become a different person.

“Is that all you have to say? Then leave. Don’t ruin my good day.”

“Why have you changed so much? Is this how you treat your fiancé?”

“What about you? I was shocked to see someone put their feet on the table for the first time. Even a dog would know better than that.”

Liam had suddenly become worse than a dog.

Looking up at the ceiling to suppress his anger, he reminded himself of the purpose of coming here.

“……I’m sincere when I say I came to apologize.”

“That can’t be your own idea. Did your great father tell you to?”

Acelia recalled Duke Wade whom she had encountered in the audience chamber.

He was a stubborn and unpleasant middle-aged man.

The type who would shout ‘Do you know who I am!’ in real life.

Liam was clearly irritated by Acelia’s sarcasm, but he managed to hold it in.

“Anyway, I’m sorry. I apologize for my rudeness all this time.”

“I don’t accept it. Is an apology just words?”

“Then what do you want me to do!”

Liam finally exploded.

Acelia looked at Liam with suspicious eyes.

Does he think it’s over just by apologizing, like giving candy to a crying child?

He had already scored minus five thousand points at first impression, and there was no chance for recovery.

Acelia’s sky-blue eyes sank coldly.

“Get on your knees or something. Show some sincerity.”

“Acelia, are you really crazy?”

“Are your knees made of gold? You’re not going to have a seizure. Do you think your knees are worth that much?”

“I can’t take this anymore!”

Liam took off his gloves and threw them away.

He had tried to maintain an amicable relationship with Acelia on his lover’s advice, but her response had been consistently cold.

His pride hurt, Liam momentarily lost control and raised his hand.

“Hey! What are you doing!”

At that moment, the window burst open and someone tumbled into the room.

Dressed in a sloppy outfit, he confronted Liam accusingly.

“Who are you to try and hit her?”

“……Gale?”

“Your Highness the Third Prince?”

It was Gale Hedwig, with honey blonde hair and green eyes.

With his gaze fixed on Liam, Gale asked Acelia.

“Angelica, why are you getting hit?”

“It’s Acelia! And how did you get in? This is the third floor.”

“I was watching from outside because you didn’t come out even though I kept waiting. And then this guy tries to hit you.”

“Creepy. This is an invasion of privacy, you know?”

“Um, I haven’t hit her yet.”

Seeing the leaves stuck all over his body, it was clear how Gale had entered.

Acelia laughed dryly, her tension suddenly dissipating.

‘Was this guy a monkey in his past life? Why does he always climb trees?’

“Hey, where does he think he can hit you? Isn’t it pitiful that you can’t even run properly without panting?”

“You could have left out the ‘pitiful’ part.”

“Your Highness, this is not a matter for you to interfere. More importantly, since when have you two been close?”

“Since she told me to get lost.”

“We’re not close, okay?”

Liam looked confused at their conflicting answers.

But soon realizing the situation was unfavorable to him, he withdrew his hand and spoke seriously.

“Ha, anyway it was nothing. This is not a situation for me to have a conversation with the Princess, so I’ll take my leave.”

“Where are you going, we’re not done talking!”

As Gale turned Liam’s shoulder, he was hit squarely in the face by Liam’s long arm and fell down.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

“A-Are you alright, Your Highness the Prince?!”

“Gale!”

The moment blood started flowing from Gale’s nose, all noise ceased and silence fell.

Acelia, turning pale, screamed.

“C-Count Felix is hitting people!”

***

The commotion that occurred in the Princess’s palace was also reported to the Emperor.

It was natural, given that an incident involving the Third Prince had occurred so soon after ‘that incident’.

“I’m wronged! I’m being wronged!”

Liam protested his innocence as he was dragged away by the knights, but no one paid attention to his words.

Gale, with a handkerchief stuffed in his nostrils, groaned.

“Nngh. Angelica, is my nose bone okay?”

“It’s Acelia. Yes, fortunately it’s still intact.”

Acelia looked sympathetically at Gale, whose nose bridge had turned red.

She felt compassion that wasn’t there before, since he got hurt trying to help her.

‘I was wary because they said he was a good-for-nothing, but he’s just a harmless neighborhood bum.’

In Acelia’s mind, Gale’s image was downgraded to that of a harmless fool.

“Your Highness, the Grand Chamberlain of the Imperial Palace and High Priest Joachim have arrived.”

“The Grand Chamberlain I understand, but the High Priest?”

“His Majesty the Emperor sent him when he heard that Prince Gale was injured.”

Acelia wrinkled her nose bridge.

Joachim was someone she had encountered before.

‘He’s a high priest, but is he that free?’

Why isn’t the high priest staying in the temple instead of residing in the imperial palace?

With Acelia’s permission, the Grand Chamberlain and Joachim entered.

The Chamberlain bowed politely and asked.

“Your Highness Princess Acelia, could you explain the circumstances of the incident?”

“Of course.”

“Then I will examine Prince Gale.”

Today too, Joachim had a neat and beautiful face, exuding an utterly bored atmosphere.

However, his touch was meticulous as he examined Gale’s wound.

Acelia took this opportunity to badmouth Liam to the Grand Chamberlain.

How he was all about appearances, violent, eccentric, and so on and so forth.

Despite the explanation being full of personal grudges, the Grand Chamberlain listened to Acelia’s words until the end with a serious expression.

“Prince Gale’s treatment is finished.”

“Revived!”

Gale, who had been wilting like salted cabbage, became triumphant again.

He seemed to have gotten restless already and tried to crawl out the window, but was caught by Acelia and was made to leave through the door.

As Acelia shook her head in exasperation, Joachim asked her.

“If it’s not too presumptuous, may I examine the Princess as well?”

“Pardon? Me?”

“Yes. There was something that concerned me when I saw you last time.”

Joachim, who she thought would leave right away, said something unexpected.

‘He looks utterly bored but he’s so responsible……’

Acelia instinctively felt something was off, but couldn’t find a proper reason to refuse.

The Grand Chamberlain was watching.

‘Wait, this is a golden opportunity to solve the poison problem, isn’t it?’

Acelia quickly extended her hand.

Joachim rolled up his sleeve and grasped Acelia’s wrist with his long, straight, white fingers.

His fingertips, brushing against her skin, were cold like touching metal.

Acelia flinched and reflexively tried to pull her wrist away, but he didn’t let go and instead gripped it more firmly.

Soon, the holy power flowing through the point of contact relaxed her tension and made her body feel languid.

A moment later, when the light faded…

“Is it over?”

Acelia felt her body refreshed as if she had taken a short nap on a sunny day.

But Joachim’s reaction was strange.

He didn’t let go of Acelia’s hand and furrowed his brow. A fine line appeared on his smooth forehead.

His tightly closed lips opened.

“Have you, by any chance, experienced anything recently?”

“Pardon?”

“Your energy has changed from before. It’s become purer and cleaner. Was there any particular event?”

Acelia felt a pang.

Had he noticed that she had possessed this body?

Meeting his deep blue eyes, Acelia quickly managed her expression, thinking that she absolutely must not be found out.

You never know.

They might drag her to the temple for an exorcism, saying she’s possessed by a ghost.

As Acelia who needed to tread carefully even on stone bridges, she was cautious.

Glancing at the Grand Chamberlain, she acted nonchalantly as if she knew nothing.

Ding!

[<Excellent Actor> trait has been activated!]

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

As she said this, she glanced up at Joachim. Their eyes met immediately.

Those piercingly blue eyes were staring down at her intently.

“……Is that so? I apologize for my rudeness.”

‘Did it work?’

When Acelia denied it, Joachim withdrew obediently.

But his gaze as he looked at her remained persistent and sharp.

In fact, Joachim had volunteered to come when he heard about the commotion in the Princess’s palace.

When he had encountered the Princess before, he had dismissed it as a misconception, but checking again, he was certain.

There were traces of God’s touch on her. And very recently at that.

After the Grand Chamberlain and Joachim withdrew, Acelia heaved a sigh of relief.

‘What’s with that person? I thought my heart was going to stop.’

He was an unexpected obstacle.

Shaking her head, she checked her status window and screamed.

“The poison is still there!”

That night, Acelia’s vision turned blue as she slept.

Ding!

[<Character Breakdown> has been activated! <Acelia Hedwig>’s damage increases by 3. Current damage level: 16.]