In response to her question, Rubié smiled apologetically.

“I’m sorry. He suddenly said he had urgent business and went ahead, then disappeared. I think he might have gone straight to see Rudels.”

“That active prince must have been fidgeting after sitting still for six hours.”

“That’s right. Actually, formal greetings could wait until a little later.”

“Thank you for understanding. I should redo his education in manners, seriously!”

“If you’re going to do that, can our little tomboy join too?”

“Oh my, of course! Anytime!”

While the Crown Prince couple and the ducal couple were catching up in a warm atmosphere, another voice suddenly interrupted.

“Hey, aren’t you two getting too caught up in your reunion? Give me some welcome too.”

“Geril!”

Michael embraced the splendidly dressed Third Prince warmly.

“I thought you’d arrive a day late, but you came quickly.”

Richard also hugged Geril, his immediate younger brother, showing his delight.

Following their lead, other nobles began entering the Buchanan mansion one after another.

“Come on, bring out the specialty apple wine. I traveled five hours just to taste it.”

Geril Stings laughed boisterously, putting his arms around Duke Buchanan and Richard’s shoulders.

“Of course. I’ve been preparing for this day for a year.”

The Duke and Duchess soon forgot about the children’s commotion as they welcomed the arriving guests.

In the late afternoon, the banquet was about to begin with the orchestra’s melody.

* * *

“Bad Rudels! Stupid Rudels!”

Philia was hiding in her mother’s private bedroom, clutching Rudels’ sword tightly.

This room, occasionally used by her mother alone, was somewhat distant from the Duke and Duchess’s marital bedroom but very close to Philia’s room.

When building the mansion, the Duchess had created secret places here and there for her newborn daughter.

The reason was that she herself loved hide-and-seek as a child, and Philia, who looked exactly like her, also loved hide-and-seek.

“Don’t you know that soldiers are the trend now, not knights? Fool! Who uses swords these days? Even I, a 10-year-old, know that guns are more powerful, hmph!”

She was crouched under the wide-open window, happily badmouthing Rudels when suddenly—

“But don’t swords look cooler?”

An unfamiliar voice spoke from above her head.

“Ah, aaah!”

Philia fell on her bottom in surprise.

The girl stared with wide eyes at the boy hanging from the window.

“Who are you?! A-are you a ghost?”

The boy, too beautiful to be a ghost, giggled.

“You’re Philia Buchanan, right?”

“Don’t you know the manners of introducing yourself before asking a lady’s name?”

“How sassy.”

The boy, ghost or human, hopped over the window sill.

Philia looked at the boy’s legs with a dazed expression.

His legs definitely existed and weren’t floating.

‘He’s definitely not a ghost…… But this is the second floor?!’

When Philia looked at the boy with puzzled eyes, he extended his hand to the fallen Philia and said,

“My name is Laedro Carlei Stings Winger. Sometimes I add Swimpton at the end. It’s the surname my maternal grandmother gave me.”

“……Huh?”

Philia’s eyes sparkled brightly when she heard that name.

Now that she looked, the boy’s attire was extraordinary.

A black formal suit with a half-cape embellished with gold trim, delicate frills, and an emerald ring engraved with a lion.

“……Prince?”

“Ugh.”

The boy shook his head with disgust.

“Do you really have to call me that?”

“……Then, Your Highness?”

“Forget it. Call me Laedro.”

Hmm, would it be acceptable for me to call a prince by his name?

Young Philia stared at the prince suspiciously while grabbing the hand he offered.

That’s when it happened.

“Philia Buchanan! I know you’re in here!”

They heard Rudels running toward them.

Startled, Philia yanked the prince’s hand and ran to her secret hideout.

“Wh-what?”

Through a small door in the closet, invisible unless examined closely.

“Hide, quickly!”

She opened the door that looked like a wall at first glance and pushed him inside.

The door was small, but the space inside was quite spacious and cozy.

Just after Philia squeezed herself into the secret space with the prince, the bedroom door flung open.

“……Philia! Philia, I know you’re in here!”

Unfortunately, this secret place was one Philia had discovered recently.

Rudels, who had been busy visiting the capital for the past half year to receive his knighthood, didn’t know about it.

“Shh.”

Philia whispered with her finger against her lips.

“This is my secret space. I’m showing you because you’re a special guest today, Prince.”

The boy’s golden eyes sparkled with amusement.

Rudels looked around the bedroom for a while, then tilted his head and went outside.

“……Phew, he’s gone.”

After confirming through the small crack in the door, Philia sighed with relief and flopped down on her back.

“Wow! That was scary!”

“……Hey, should a lady use such language?”

“Oh! Right! I’m with the Prince!”

Philia covered her mouth with both hands in surprise.

With her hair tied in round pigtails on both sides and her eyes wide open, she looked like a small rabbit.

“Sorry, Prince.”

The girl apologized with a grin.

The prince thought she was somewhat cute.

Her hair, slightly redder than a carrot, and emerald-green eyes were very pretty.

Her round cheeks were pink, and her bold, shining eyes were clear.

‘So this is what Rudels was always singing praises about, his cute little sister……’

Laedro had become friends with Rudels at Karien Junior Academy.

Both boys had gentle personalities and quickly grew close.

Rudels spent half the year in Buchanan territory, and whenever he returned to the academy from there, he would boast about his sister.

He said she was a tomboy, stubborn, and cried a lot, but when she hugged him tightly with her small hands, he wanted to forgive her for anything.

Laedro, who had no siblings, couldn’t understand Rudels’ feelings.

He felt even more so because he had never felt that way about any of his blood-related cousins.

‘She embroidered a handkerchief for my birthday. Guess what this is supposed to be? A rabbit! Ridiculous, right? Anyone would think it’s a pig!’

Rudels would laugh while neatly folding the handkerchief his sister had given him and tucking it against his chest.

He always carried it around and talked about his sister.

So Laedro was curious.

What made her so cute?

Even though she was described as a tomboy, stubborn, and a crybaby?

So when he accompanied them to the Buchanan Spring Banquet, he resolved to see this girl.

He planned to tease her by telling her that her brother thought the handkerchief she made looked like a pig.

But seeing the giggling girl before him, that thought completely vanished.

‘……There’s no need to tease someone who already has plenty to cry about.’

Laedro ruffled her hair and said,

“I told you not to call me Prince. My name is……”

“I know! I know, okay? You just told me. Laedro Carlei Stings Winger Swimpton! I can’t possibly call you by that ridiculously long name!”

In response to Philia’s chattering, Laedro squinted one eye and leaned back against the large triangular cushion behind him.

“That’s why I told you to just call me Laedro. Everyone calls me that.”

“Really? Hmm, then I’ll call you something different from everyone else.”

Philia pretended to think deeply like an adult, holding one side of her chin.

The boy, lying with his arms folded behind his head, opened one eye to look at the girl.

With a gaze that seemed to anticipate what answer she would give, the girl lifted her chin, squared her shoulders, and puffed out her chest as she looked at Laedro.

“Karl Winger!”

The girl declared again with emphasis, her face proud like a queen bestowing a name.

“I’ll call you Karl Winger!”

Philia emphasized again with force.

The young boy, Laedro—no, young Karl Winger—smirked and muttered,

“……Fine, do as you please, my lady.”