Crown Prince Leon, an unmarried young man, was kind and friendly to everyone, earning abundant love from all. Yes, this life would be the Crown Prince.

Didn’t I choose Clayton in my last life and regret it bitterly? I waited demurely for the Crown Prince to speak to me.

But something unexpected happened.

“Who might you be?”

I never dreamed he wouldn’t remember “Charlotte Fraxon.”

“Ah, forgive me, my lady. Your beauty left my mind completely blank.”

He bit his lip slightly in apparent embarrassment, then released it. He seemed to want to brush off the situation with a joke, but I waited for him to remember “Charlotte Fraxon.”

“…”

“…”

His supposedly blank mind showed no signs of returning. I swallowed a sigh inwardly and opened my mouth.

“Charlotte Fraxon, Your Highness.”

“Oh, Count Fraxon’s daughter!”

He exclaimed with a bright smile. His blue eyes sparkled joyfully, seemingly having found the answer to an unsolvable problem.

“I heard Count Fraxon had a beautiful daughter. The rumors are true.”

‘But why does it feel like I’m seeing you for the first time?’ The question appeared on his face.

“I’m quite shy. So I’m also afraid of putting myself forward.”

“Ah, that’s why I couldn’t quite remember… Ahem, but hasn’t she arrived yet?”

He quickly lost interest in me and muttered while looking around. I knew who he was searching for.

I swallowed another sigh and pointed somewhere.

“Lady Evelyn Lorenfort is over there.”

Leon turned his head with a brightened expression. Evelyn happened to be placing her hand on Clayton’s arm. Still with a face completely smitten by him.

Seeing this, Leon froze. He stiffened with a rigid smile on his lips. Their appearance like affectionate lovers properly shocked him.

‘Ah, Leon.’

I wanted to comfort his wounded heart, so I unconsciously reached out my hand.

If only Clayton hadn’t been staring at me coldly. He glanced between me and Leon alternately, then walked this way. Politely brushing off Evelyn’s hand trying to hold him back.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

Clayton greeted formally.

“Duke Medvez… You were with Lady Evelyn.”

Leon glanced briefly at Evelyn, who stood at a distance.

“What business do you have with Lady Charlotte, Your Highness?”

“Hm?”

Leon finally looked back at Clayton at the oddly off-point question.

“She was introducing herself to me.”

Unable to bear it, I stepped in.

“Ah, right. I was having a pleasant conversation with Lady Charlotte. But you and Lady Evelyn…”

That’s when it happened.

“I’m disappointed, Duke. I wondered where you’d gone, leaving me behind. Oh my, Your Highness the Crown Prince!”

A voice like luminous pearls interrupted. The owner of the voice was Evelyn Lorenfort.

I stared at her with wide eyes. The feeling of seeing a familiar face right before my nose… was indescribable.

She flashed a bright smile at Leon and greeted him elegantly. Leon’s stiffly frozen expression smoothly relaxed.

“Lady Evelyn, have you been well?”

“Yes, Your Highness. But this person is… Count Charlotte Fraxon’s daughter.”

Before I could nod in acknowledgment, she whipped her head around to look at Clayton.

‘What, did she just ignore me?’

I felt very uncomfortable.

“Please answer me now, Duke. If you keep making Evelyn anxious, I’ll hate you.”

Evelyn fluttered her eyelashes and acted coquettishly toward Clayton. Seemingly unsatisfied, she gently placed her hand on his arm like before and continued.

“You’ll accept my dance invitation, won’t you?”

My mouth fell open in shock.

“E-Evelyn…”

Leon also couldn’t continue speaking with a shocked face.

“You’re too much. I’ve been begging since earlier but you won’t even answer.”

Evelyn acted extremely charming toward Clayton, unconcerned by the surrounding people’s astonishment. I truly, sincerely hoped Evelyn and Clayton would get together.

So this situation was very good! If only Clayton would fall for Evelyn like this!

“…”

It should definitely feel good, but I didn’t know why I felt so embarrassed. I unconsciously scratched my goosebump-covered forearm vigorously.

“Stop. You’ll hurt yourself.”

Clayton, who had approached at some point, grasped my hand and lowered it. Then he gently stroked my goosebump-covered forearm.

“…”

“…”

Evelyn and Leon widened their eyes like people witnessing a bizarre scene.

“How is it? Are you alright now?”

He raised his lowered eyelashes and gazed at me.

“I’m fine, Duke. I don’t think I’m even hurt.”

Evelyn answered instead of me.

“I wasn’t asking you.”

Clayton glanced at Evelyn. His coldly shining eyes were tinged with irritation. At his callous reaction, Evelyn’s brown eyes wavered.

After shooting her a cold look, Clayton turned back to me and asked gently.

“I’ll ask again. Are you alright?”

Of course I wasn’t alright. I didn’t understand why he was being so gentle. And only to me at that.

“Lady Charlotte?”

“I-I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.”

I carefully withdrew my arm from his grasp. He examined me thoroughly but didn’t ask further.

“By the way, Duke Medvez, it seems you received a dance invitation. I didn’t know Lady Evelyn would be so… bold.”

Leon spoke lightly, seemingly trying to lighten the atmosphere. Usually men request dances from women they fancy. Women never make the first request.

Yet Evelyn had requested a dance first. This was an action difficult to take without genuine feelings.

This couldn’t happen unless Evelyn liked Clayton enough to break social conventions.

‘I really can’t adjust to this.’

She was too unfamiliar, acting completely differently from me with a face that was once mine. While I watched Evelyn with such confused feelings.

“I must decline the dance.”

Clayton answered bluntly. Instantly, Evelyn froze with her hand on his arm. She looked like she’d never imagined being rejected.

In contrast, Leon’s gloomy face brightened completely.

“May I ask why?”

Despite being openly humiliated, Evelyn didn’t back down.

“I have a prior engagement.”

“A prior engagement…”

Evelyn glanced at me briefly, then continued.

“Did you perhaps promise Lady Charlotte?”

“Me?”

I pointed at myself with my finger, bewildered.

“I heard that rumor too.”

“You heard that rumor wrong.”

“I thought so too. Lady Charlotte and Duke Medvez dating—does that make sense?”

Evelyn ignored my words and chattered on.

“It doesn’t make sense. So please, once more, the dance…”

I was about to encourage her to request a dance from Clayton again. If only Clayton, who had been silently listening to our conversation, hadn’t made a bombshell statement.

“We’re planning to date soon.”

“Whaaaat?”

“D-Duke, is that true?”

Evelyn and Leon widened their eyes in shock harmoniously.

‘Oh, d*mn it!’

I cursed inwardly.

“When I visited Fraxon Count Estate a few days ago, I requested Lady Charlotte to date me.”

“Requested?”

Leon made an odd expression, seemingly having heard something peculiar.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Did Lady Charlotte accept?”

“She’s currently thinking about it.”

“Doesn’t that mean she hasn’t decided yet? So why does the Duke act like it’s confirmed…”

“Because Lady Charlotte and I will definitely date.”

Clayton answered shamelessly. I desperately held back from blurting out, ‘Please shut that mouth!’

What was absurd was that they were excitedly chattering in front of me, the person involved. Then I noticed Evelyn biting her trembling lips.

She stood pitifully with tears welling in her eyes. Her expression, like the sky was falling from rejection… even though it was my face, I really couldn’t adjust.

That aside, if I got swept up by Clayton like this, my plan could waver. I snapped to attention.

“Duke, I’m very disappointed.”

As I looked up at Clayton with calm eyes, I saw his shoulders stiffen. 

“If you forcefully push like this, there won’t be anything to think about.”

At my words, he narrowed his eyes and stared piercingly at me.

“I thought we had a private conversation. If I’d known you’d blab to so many people, I would have rejected you on the spot. No, I’m in the mood to give you an answer right now.”

“I apologize. My thinking was short.”

He immediately apologized and extended his hand to me.

“Will you give me a chance to make amends? If it’s alright, the first dance with Lady Charlotte…”

I pretended not to hear his proposal and turned toward Leon.

“Your Highness, will you dance with me?”

“With me?”

Leon’s eyes widened in apparent confusion. In contrast, Clayton’s expression grew coldly stiff. I smiled shyly and gently placed my left hand on Crown Prince Leon’s forearm.

“I want to dance with Your Highness first tonight.”

“Duke Medvez just requested a dance.”

“I want to dance with Your Highness. Sincerely.”

I gazed intently into the flustered Leon’s eyes. Simultaneously, I gripped his forearm more firmly.

Then my left palm tingled.

‘As expected.’

I had a reason for deliberately making contact with Leon. Since regressing again, strange symptoms had appeared in my body.

The occasional pain in my left palm. The strange pattern that appeared and disappeared simultaneously.

Whenever the pattern appeared, advantageous situations occurred. For example, someone who wasn’t favorable toward me would suddenly become kind like a different person, or subtly help me…

Rosalinda had been like that, and Kate had been like that.

‘Their common point is that they changed when I touched them with my left hand and spoke with a sincere voice.’

So I made contact with Leon. For him to accept my proposal without refusing, this was the only method.

Because Leon…

“Um, Lady Charlotte. I appreciate the offer, but I…”

Leon spoke with a troubled face while earnestly glancing somewhere. His gaze was directed at Evelyn.

Whenever he looked at Evelyn, his eyes colored with joy.

‘Right, you had a one-sided crush on me.’

On one hand I was pleased, on the other I sighed at his pure one-sided love. Leon’s attention was entirely focused on Evelyn, so as me in “Charlotte’s” form, I could never catch his interest.

This was exactly why I used this strange ability. Without doing this, it would be difficult to draw him to my side.

“Um… I…”

He blinked and hesitated.

‘Will it really work?’

I watched Leon with half-believing feelings. Could the changes in Rosalinda and Kate have just been a coincidence?

Maybe the troublesome situations flowing in good directions was just good luck.

“You’ll dance the first dance with me, won’t you?”

I gripped Leon’s arm more tightly. Around when my palm felt tingly, my cheek also stung.