ITD

CHAPTER LXVll

A young girl with her hair tied in two braids suddenly burst into Courtney’s view. Startled, Courtney instinctively stepped back but quickly recognized her.

“Oh, it’s been a while, Lady Chalder.”

“Lady Chalder, how dare you approach Her Highness so rudely?”

Courtney let the young lady’s impoliteness slide, but Madam Berricker would not. With a stern scolding, Lady Chalder’s eyes welled up with tears, a far cry from the proud and haughty girl Courtney remembered from the tea party at Duke Ryton’s estate. Back then, bolstered by her family’s wealth, she had carried herself with confidence.

Feeling a twinge of guilt, Courtney raised a hand to stop her lady-in-waiting. After all, the girl was only around thirteen or fourteen. While there had been a slightly uncomfortable incident before, it wasn’t worth holding a grudge.

Courtney wasn’t the only one who remembered that event. Summoning her courage, Lady Chalder handed Courtney a long, ribbon-adorned box.

“Please accept this! I wish to apologize for my previous rudeness to Your Highness.”

Taken aback by her boldness, Courtney accepted the box without thinking. Satisfied, Lady Chalder bowed deeply and hurried away. Was it her youth that made her so brave? Courtney was left speechless.

With a sigh, Madam Berricker extended her hand.

“Let me take it, just to check if it’s safe.”

Courtney looked again at the paper box in her hands. The size, the weight, and recalling the previous incident—she had a good idea of what it was. She shook her head slightly.

“No, it’s fine.”

When Courtney placed the box on her lap, Madam Berricker didn’t press further.

The concert resumed, and Courtney and Madam Berricker continued to observe the nobles under the guise of enjoying the music, exchanging opinions quietly.

After the concert, Courtney received another round of greetings. Once again, she was bombarded with meaningless compliments about her hairpiece and how beautiful her dress was. Ignoring the flattery, Courtney discreetly whispered to Marchioness Carrington as planned.

“I find palace life a bit lonely. I could use someone to talk to.”

Marchioness Carrington’s eyes sparkled with interest. Soon enough, word would spread throughout the capital that the crown princess was looking for a personal lady-in-waiting. That was exactly what Courtney wanted.

Having successfully completed her first public appearance at the Seymour estate, Courtney was ready to leave.

But when the carriage door opened, someone who had no business being there greeted her excitedly.

“Courtney…!”

There, sitting inside the carriage, was none other than Richard, wearing the same attire and sporting an enthusiastic smile.

“Richard, what are you doing here? I told you to stay…”

She stopped mid-sentence. It wasn’t appropriate to remind the crown prince, in front of her maids, that she had told him to stay put. Madam Berricker, as usual, picked up on the situation quickly.

“We’ll take a different carriage back.”

Before Courtney could question the logic of taking a “different” carriage, another one pulled up behind them. Courtney sighed deeply and nodded.

As soon as she climbed into the carriage and the door clicked shut, she turned on him, her voice sharp.

“Richard! Why are you here?”

“I missed you too much, so I came to meet you.”

“I told you to stay put!”

“But I didn’t go inside. I didn’t even run into anyone.”

Richard beamed at her, completely unapologetic. He might call her Master repeatedly, but he certainly had a knack for ignoring her commands. Courtney clenched her fist, crumpling the paper box in her hand. A brightly colored feather poked out from the now-crushed package, confirming her suspicion about its contents.

With a sigh, Courtney sank into the seat across from Richard. The carriage started moving smoothly and silently. Richard, sensing her frustration, gave her a look reminiscent of a scolded puppy.

Despite her exasperation, Courtney’s mood wasn’t entirely bad. It was hard to stay angry when the crown prince had come out just because he wanted to see her sooner. And her outing had been successful.

Her eyes fell again on the crumpled box in her hand, sparking an idea. With a sly smile, she spoke.

“You do realize… there’s a punishment for not listening to me, right?”

Richard quickly hid the excitement that flickered on his face. He had indeed come to meet her partially because of earlier events, but also because he secretly hoped she might reprimand him again. Still, he knew better than to reveal his anticipation. If Courtney caught on, she might treat him like a mere palace decoration again.

“Yes. I’m sorry.”

Richard clasped his hands together on his lap and bowed his head, doing his best to appear submissive. It was a tactic that had always worked well on Courtney, and this time was no different.

Her heart stirred at the sight, and she defensively folded her arms and crossed her legs. Perhaps she could understand why Richard had been so impatient to see her. After all, she was now feeling quite the same.

With a smug smile, she leaned back, clearly pleased with herself.

“You might want to pray on your way back.”

“Yes, understood.”

Richard bowed his head deeper, pretending to be serious.

In truth, he was trying to hide the grin creeping up his face, and discreetly covering the erxctixn that had sprung up with his coat.

Even though the sun had yet to set, the couple’s night had already begun.