“Ummm……”

Unable to answer due to the sudden appearance, she just stared at the head priest, when the crown prince asked in an unpleasant voice.

“When did you become close enough to call each other by name?”

“Ah, Your Highness wouldn’t know about our private story.”

The head priest, who glanced at the crown prince, pulled her shoulder further into his embrace as if showing off and replied.

Then the crown prince furrowed his brow as if jealous.

Oh, is this a battle of wills between men?

Just as she was enjoying the feeling of being the female lead for the first time in a long while, the lady clapped her hands and intruded on her own.

“Oh my, that works out well. Then you two take one boat. I’ll ride with His Highness.”

It was natural traffic management.

Of course, going boating with the head priest wasn’t bad, but it bothered her that the lady and crown prince would be together instead.

‘What should I do? Refuse the head priest and grab the crown prince……?’

Should she choose the head priest, who had the lowest favorability, to raise the numbers?

Or should she prevent any opportunity from arising between the lady and crown prince?

Before she could make a decision, the boating began. The participants flocked to one side of the ship where several small boats were moored.

The lady dragged them over there arbitrarily and said.

“Lady Sharofe and the head priest can take that boat over there.”

What she pointed to was an ordinary boat no different from the others. Except the oars were blue, making it slightly noticeable.

She, who had been smiling brightly, shaded her forehead with her hand and frowned.

“The sunlight is a bit strong. I’ll go get a hat for a moment.”

With the lady temporarily away, the head priest, who had gone down to the boat first, extended his hand to her.

“Come, Shailyn.”

Seeing his grinning face waiting for her to board, she could no longer refuse.

There was no point in pushing away his hand and insisting on going with the crown prince, as it might only reduce her favorability for no reason.

Just as she was about to choose boating with the head priest and take his hand—

“Wait.”

The crown prince, who had been watching from behind with his arms crossed, suddenly intervened.

“I’ll ride.”

“…… Pardon?”

Both she and the head priest looked at the crown prince with bewildered faces.

What was he saying right now?

The head priest asked with a face that couldn’t hide his absurdity.

“Are Your Highness saying you’ll take the boat with me?”

“Why, don’t you like it? I see that a priest called God’s apostle discriminates against people.”

The crown prince twisted up the corner of his mouth crookedly. For a moment, the two men quietly stared at each other as if having an eye fight.

Somehow it seemed like crackling sounds could be heard?

The crown prince, who had directly grabbed her arm and pushed her aside, stepped into the boat and announced.

“The lady will ride with the ducal lady. I’ll ride with the head priest.”

“No……”

Before she could stop him, he rowed away, taking the head priest with him.

She stared blankly at the two men departing for the sea.

But what if the two of them just leave together…….

Even from a distance, she could clearly see them both making unpleasant expressions.

“Your Highness, you’ve waited long—”

In this ridiculous situation, the lady who returned saw her standing alone blankly and frowned.

“What’s this, why are you still here? Where did His Highness go?”

When had she been pretending to be nice and friendly, but now her true nature suddenly popped out, which seemed unbearable.

She shrugged her shoulders and pointed straight out.

“He went boating with the head priest first. He told us two to ride together.”

“What?! That won’t do……!”

The lady was shocked with a face that had turned pale. It was a completely different reaction from what she had expected her to be displeased about.

It felt like a mixture of confusion, worry, and anxiety.

‘This doesn’t seem like something to be that concerned about……’

As she observed the lady biting her lips with a somehow suspicious feeling, a scream suddenly echoed.

“Kyaaah!”

A young lady who had been watching the boats floating on the sea shouted.

“His Highness the Crown Prince has fallen into the sea!”

Surprised by those words, she looked at the sea, and indeed only the head priest remained in the boat with a flustered expression.

And the water surface rippled gently as if showing off that the crown prince had fallen.

***

When the operation using Camilla Roden failed, Johanna was disappointed but didn’t drag out that emotion for long.

What she had prepared for Shailyn still remained.

Johanna, who had entered the cabin to get a hat, asked her maid.

“Did you do as I instructed?”

“Yes, Miss. As you said, I attached the magical tool under the boat with blue oars and had the mage on standby.”

“Good.”

Johanna’s red lips curved in an arc. The purpose of the magical tool she had attached was simple.

To shake the boat relentlessly and make Shailyn fall into the water.

Then a mage waiting secretly among the people would retrieve the magical tool, and it would end as an accident, not an incident.

“Hehehe.”

She couldn’t stop the laughter from leaking out when she thought of Shailyn being humiliated while looking like a drowned rat.

Of course, she hadn’t known that Raviel would step up as Shailyn’s boating partner.

‘Actually, it worked out better. The head priest is also an unpleasant person. Let them both be humiliated together at this opportunity.’

The thought of being able to deal with two people she hated seeing at once made her naturally hum.

But what greeted Johanna when she returned wearing a hat wasn’t the crown prince waiting for her, but news that Linus and Raviel had gone boating.

And in the blue oar boat, of all things.

‘If His Highness the Crown Prince were to fall into the water……!’

She hurriedly tried to stop the magical tool from operating, but the accident happened before she could even find the mage.

As she had worried, Linus fell from the rocking boat.

At least Raviel avoided entering the water by gripping the boat tightly, but Linus, who had been holding the oars and found it difficult to maintain balance, was not so fortunate.

As Johanna stood with a face full of dismay, she heard the voices of people around her.

“Oh my, what should we do! His Highness needs to come up quickly!”

“But doesn’t His Highness not know how to swim? Shouldn’t someone go in to save him?”

Hearing those words, Johanna called out to the servants in a loud voice.

“Immediately save His Highness the Crown Prince who fell into the water! Everyone jump into the water—!”

Splash.

Someone jumped into the water as she had said.

In an instant, silver hair left an afterimage and disappeared.

“Sha, Lady Sharofe—!”

Leaving behind the urgent call, Shailyn entered the sea.

For a moment, cold water seemed to cover her entire body and rush into her lungs, but she soon came to her senses and began swimming.

‘I once had perfect attendance at the neighborhood community center’s dawn swimming class!’

She, who quickly spotted the struggling Linus, frantically moved her arms and legs.

Her dress puffed up in the water, but thanks to the open front, there were fewer restrictions on movement than expected.

‘Your Highness, grab my hand!’

Shailyn, who had barely gotten close to Linus, stretched out her hand.

Linus, who had been suffering while gripping around his neck area and spitting out bubbles, instinctively grabbed her hand.

Through his flickering vision, silver hair spread wide and blue eyes clearer than the sea struck him intensely.

‘Ugh, he’s heavy!’

Shailyn, who had been dragged for a moment by the heavy weight, gritted her teeth, straightened her body, and wrapped both arms around Linus.

She kicked her legs vigorously and calmly headed toward the surface.

‘Just a little, just a little more……!’

Supporting and swimming with an adult man taller and heavier than herself was definitely not an easy task.

Oxygen gradually became insufficient and strength drained from her arms and legs, but.

Fortunately, before they sank back down together, the two reached the surface.

“Puha!”

Shailyn, who had broken through the water and stuck her head out, breathed urgently.

Cool air rushed through her nose and filled her lungs.

“Shailyn! Come up this way!”

Just then, Raviel, who was still remaining in the boat, extended an oar.

Shailyn grabbed it with one hand and gripped Linus tightly with the other.

Raviel pulled the oar to help the two people climb onto the boat.

“Huk, heok……”

Shailyn, who was breathing roughly, first checked Linus’s condition.

“Your Highness, are you alright?!”

“Cough, cough!”

Linus coughed and spat out water. Seeing that he was conscious and didn’t seem seriously injured, Shailyn felt relieved.

Raviel grabbed her shoulder and asked worriedly.

“Shailyn, are you alright?”

“Ah, yes. I’m fine. More importantly, let’s return to the ship quickly.”

“Understood.”

Raviel rowed toward the ship. Meanwhile, Shailyn rubbed Linus’s arm and said.

“It’s alright now, Your Highness. You’ve safely come out of the water, so please be at ease.”

“…… Lady Sharofe.”

Linus called her with a completely hoarse voice.

Even though her hair was soaked and stuck together, her dress was drooping, and her makeup was half washed off, Shailyn was glowing.

“You look exactly like……”

“Yes?”

Shailyn brought her ear close to his barely moving lips.

Linus whispered in a faint voice as if squeezing it out.

“A fish.”

“…… What?”

Before Shailyn could argue about what kind of nonsense that was, Linus lost consciousness just like that.

What is this?