Chapter 18- Two Faces Of The Same Coin (Part 1)
The boy felt his heart beating loudly in his chest as he gulped down a mouthful of saliva. This moment was something he longed for ever since he saw the princess for the first time.
As weird as it may sound, it was love at first sight for him. Her demeanor, her elegance, and her beauty that he had never witnessed before totally captured his heart. Since then, all he could think of is her face, all he could imagine was her smile and all he could talk about was the woman of his dreams.
It reached a point where his father, Duke Melinia, had to come here with him to ask for her hand in marriage. Only he knew how infatuated his son was with her highness. It reached a point where he barely could sleep or eat. His life was basically ruined because of his love for her.
So, as much as he was reluctant to do this, he had to for the sake of his son's well-being. That's how they ended up in this tense dinner with the king of the Aviresion Empire and his daughter.
'Let me speak first, you idiot!' He scolded him in his head but kept a neutral expression on the exterior. He can't start shouting at his son in front of the king, can he?
The silence went on for a few moments as the three waited for the princess to speak. She was still looking at the food without even taking a single glance at the man that gave his all to propose to her.
Then, she sighed, wiped her mouth, and replied with a calm, emotionless tone.
"No."
Just one single word, a single, simple word. That word, as insignificant as it may sound, was like a lightning bolt that fell on the boy and crushed him.
His heart stopped beating for a few seconds and his eyes widened in shock. He came here expecting both answers but still, the fact that she answered so quickly, so decisively, made him feel as if his whole world was about to crumble down on him.
The king's smile remained on his face but his voice was somehow colder than usual.
"That was unexpected, Duke Melinia."
"M-My apologies, your majesty. I didn't expect my son to be this reckless."
"It's fine. I was simply surprised, that's all. Raise your head, son." The king gazed at the boy who was still frozen in his place.
His voice shook him from his daze and made him stand up again. No etiquette or poker face could hide the extreme pain he felt at that moment.
"C-Can I ask why, your highness?" He tried to sound normal but failed miserably.
"Not interested." The princess replied casually.
Another horrible response broke whatever was left of his hope and sent him straight to despair. He had surely lost something he will never get back again.
"Why don't you give him a chance, Elise?" The king asked.
"I don't want to. I will choose my own partner when the time comes."
'What kind of man will even catch your eyes, daughter.' The king didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his daughter's aloof expression.
"Sit down, Phillipe." The duke ordered his son.
He was barely holding himself from latching at his son because of this shameful attitude. The embarrassment he felt was immeasurable.
However, much to his shock the son didn't back down at all and instead touched his chest and asked.
"C-Can we at least start as friends, your highness? I will try my best to be up to your standards."
If what he did before was a shameful act, this one was outright disrespectful and could end up with him in the prison or even worse.
'You moron!! Just sit the fuck down!!' The duke tried to stop his son with a glare but the latter was only looking at the princess.
"Sigh…" The princess made a loud sigh and put down the spoon before turning around and looking at Phillipe for the first time since he came here.
'Oh, here she goes.' The king thought to himself as he rolled his eyes. He pitied the boy for doing this.
"What was your name again?" She asked.
"P-Phillipe, your highness." He said as he tried to muster a charming smile.
"Listen here, Phillipe. I don't want you to get the wrong idea so I will clarify my words even though they were clear."
After that, she took a deep breath and continued.
"I am completely and utterly not interested in speaking with you, befriending you or marrying you. I genuinely don't care at all about you and you should do the same. I hope you understand that no matter what you do, try or even think about will never increase my interest in you by even a small amount."
The boy's face turned extremely pale as he heard her harsh response. Even though he just got rejected, something even more painful just dropped on him and crushed him.
His body started swaying left and right from shock before he fell down on the chair, his eyes in a daze and his mouth hanging open.
"I think we should leave now. It's already late." The duke said as he stood up and bowed before picking up his son and excusing himself from the room.
The fact that he lost all of his dignity today will chase him to the end of his life. He had never felt so embarrassed ever before.
After they finally left, the king sighed and rested his back on the chair. His smile vanished and instead, a sad look appeared on his slightly old face.
"You really should tone down the harsh refusals, Elise. People will take it personally at some point."
Elise didn't reply and instead changed the topic.
"Did you find what I was looking for, father?"
"Hmm, you mean the name you were searching for?"
"Yes."
The king tapped on the table rhythmically before replying.
"If I recall right. The son of Duke Silvereye is named Rin."
"Duke Silvereye? You mean the one at the borders?"
"That's him. I don't know much about his son except that he recently had a weird amnesia or temporary loss of memory."
"..."
Hearing that last part, Elise froze for a few moments as her eyes squinted slightly. Then, she quickly continued eating as if nothing happened.
'Found you.' She thought to herself.
"I would like to pay Duke Silvereye a visit."
"Why is that?" The king asked confusedly.
"I have an important matter with his son."
"What?!" The king blurted out with a shocked look.
'My daughter…. is interested in someone?' He had to repeat her words in his head a few times of how absurd they sounded.
Only he knew how disinterested she was in getting married or even getting to know marriage candidates at all. She had been cold and distant her whole life which was something she inherited from her deceased mother. So, the fact that she wanted to meet someone and a boy of her age no less was like seeing the sun at night for the king.
"It's not what you are thinking of, father."
After that, she wiped her mouth and stood up.
"I should go back to my room. I will excuse myself, father." She said respectfully before she left.
"Sigh, what a troublesome daughter I have." He rubbed his nose before slumping down on the chair.
He now had to deal with the matter before it spreads everywhere. This was not the first time he had to clean up after the mess of the people that fell in love with his daughter.
"Your daughter is really like you, honey." He muttered as he closed his eyes, seemingly reminiscing about the past.
Meanwhile, Elise reached her room and laid on her bed.
"I don't like this place." She muttered to herself.
She was already a person who didn't like to interact with people that much so the fact that she was reincarnated in the body of the princess of the empire was the unluckiest thing that could happen to her.
[Did you find him, Elise?]
A feminine and robotic voice spoke to her out of nowhere.
'I think so. It's too perfect to be a coincidence. I will see for myself either way.'
[What are you going to do now?]
'I still don't know. I have to discuss that with Rin first before we can take the next step. He most likely has a system of his own too which can change the plan depending on his ability.'
She was more knowledgeable about this world but that didn't mean she remembers many things. She wasn't someone who played games so the fact that she tried TOI in the first place was already a rare thing.
'Besides, I still need to get accustomed to my powers first.'
pαпdα Йᴏνê1,сòМ As she thought so, she extended her hand in the air. Immediately, a book that was sitting on the table fidgeted slightly. After that, it started floating before moving toward Elise at a slow pace.
Eventually, it reached her hand and rested on her palm.
'The power to manipulate gravity. I wonder what Rin got.'
(A//N: What do you think of her ability? It's quite op just like Rin's. I will try to take a very unusual route with Elise's powers.)
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