A Princess from Another Country
Violet’s Side
Violet was carefully tailing the group of people who were taking Lux somewhere after putting him to sleep with a drug.
“Even though each guest room is said to be soundproofed, those people are going quite far from the party hall… Are they planning to do something so rough to Rodwell-sama that they want to avoid being seen that badly?”
Violet muttered this as she gripped the dagger in her right hand more tightly.
With her skill, Violet could eliminate all of them at once if she had to. However, taking action without knowing their objective would not lead to a fundamental solution.
Even if she tried to restrain them to extract information, there was still a risk that Lux, who was asleep, might get harmed in the process.
“The safety of Rodwell-sama must be the top priority above all else…”
For that reason, Violet had no choice but to suppress her desire to rescue Lux immediately and continue tailing them.
Eventually, the group stopped in front of one of the guest rooms and opened the door. At that moment…
Violet found a blind spot in the room through the gap above the door and hid herself there. Then, one woman and four men entered the room with Lux.
After placing Lux on the floor, the woman spoke.
“Honestly, I never imagined I would be forced to deal with a childish man like this.”
“If he’s connected to the Second Princess Elizalina and the Third Princess Felisiana, then it can’t be helped.”
“To think someone like me, a royal, would have to stoop to something so low… I must make sure Elizalina and Felisiana pay dearly for this. But first, I’ll start with this child.”
A royal… So this means some other country is doing this to gather information to fight against our homeland.
“Should we wake this kid up?”
“I’ve heard that forcing someone awake after giving them that sleeping drug can leave them in a daze for a while. It’s a hassle, but we’ll have to wait.”
“That is a hassle… especially since our goal is to interrogate him. We need to find out if this kid knows any weaknesses of those flawless princesses.”
“Exactly.”
Their goal is to interrogate him to find weaknesses of the Princesses. The only thing left is to determine which country this royal is from. That should become clear once I retrieve their garments.
At that point, Violet no longer had any reason to suppress her emotions. In the next instant, she sharpened her eyes, slipped behind the five of them in a flash, and knocked out the four men by striking their necks.
“Wha—!? Wh-Who are you!?”
While the foreign royal woman was still stunned, Violet restrained her, pressed her dagger to the woman’s throat, and spoke.
“Tell me the name of your country.”
Just as she was about to question her, the door suddenly opened…
“Oh, looks like most of it is already over.”
“That’s just like you.”
As Siana and Elizalina appeared through the door, Violet stopped questioning the foreign princess and turned to speak to them.
“I had left a note asking you to wait, but you still came.”
“You’re not the one to say that, considering you left those signs along the way expecting me to follow them.”
“Those were just in case I failed.”
“Is that so?”
Siana responded with a voice of exasperation, but then, with lifeless eyes and a mechanical tone, she turned her attention to the woman Violet was restraining.
“So? Is this the woman who abducted Lux-kun?”
“Yes, she appears to be royalty from another country.”
“…I see.”
“Hiik…!”
After Violet informed her, Siana muttered coldly, while the foreign princess let out a cry of fear.
Then Elizalina glanced at the four men collapsed on the floor and spoke.
“Violet, these four men still seem to be breathing. Why did you spare them? Don’t tell me the great Violet hesitated to take the lives of people like this?”
Elizalina looked at Violet with empty eyes. Under normal circumstances, just seeing that gaze would instill fear, as it had in the foreign princess. But Violet calmly responded.
“That’s not the case. I simply judged that killing them here would cause their blood to splatter onto Rodwell-sama, who is sleeping nearby. That is why I chose to knock them out instead.”
“Ah, that really was a wise decision. It would be awful if their blood ended up on Lux’s body.”
Saying that, Elizalina moved Lux from the floor to the bed, then stepped in front of the foreign princess.
“So then… what was this woman’s objective?”
“It seems she was trying to get information about Elizalina-sama and Ojou-sama from Rodwell-sama.”
“…I see.”
“P-Please…!”
As Elizalina turned her hollow gaze to the woman, she panicked and pleaded with a voice filled with fear.
“P-Please, spare me…”
“Lux-kun must have been easy to deceive, don’t you think? Not drinking a beverage handed to you in a setting like this is a basic rule of common sense, but Lux-kun doesn’t even consider the possibility that people might deceive him. So I’m sure he drank it with good intentions… You exploited that kindness of his. That’s unforgivable.”
“If you had business with us, you could have come at us directly. Attacking from the sides like this… and using someone as kind as Lux… that’s just disgusting.”
After hearing those words, the foreign princess realized that no matter how she acted now, the situation wouldn’t improve. Despite her fear, she tried to hide it behind the pride she had left and spoke.
“I thought I’d see what kind of people the three princesses were, the ones said to rule over a nation with unmatched unity. I never expected two of them to be so infatuated with such a child… But more importantly, how about we strike a deal? I am a princess, after all. My value is far higher than that of this child…”
Just as she began to say that, Siana coldly drew her sword and attempted to kill the foreign princess. However, Elizalina intercepted it with a steel bow she had concealed within her cloak.
“You’re in the way, Elizalina-nee-sama.”
“No, you are, Felisiana. I’m angry too, but we need to handle things properly before doing anything rash.”
“…How irritating.”
Despite saying that, Siana seemed convinced by Elizalina’s reasoning. She sheathed her sword and picked up Lux, who was sleeping on the bed.
“I’ll leave this place to you and Violet, Elizalina-nee-sama. I trust you understand…”
“Don’t worry. Do you really think I would hesitate? I’ll take care of what you want done, so just focus on getting Lux to a safe place.”
“…Fine then.”
With those words, Siana carried Lux and left the guest room.
Then, the foreign princess opened her mouth and spoke.
“I heard that Felisiana was a calm and wise woman who could see the bigger picture, but it seems she’s still just a child who can’t control her emotions… On the other hand, you…”
“Please don’t get the wrong idea. Honestly, I would love nothing more than to end your life right here and now, but I’m holding back because Felisiana can’t do it herself…”
“P-Please… no…!”
The blank look in Elizalina’s eyes, her emotionless voice, and the overwhelming presence that surpassed even the concept of killing intent caused the foreign princess to let out a scream, unable to maintain even a shred of her pride.
Elizalina then said in a lifeless tone,
“Now, listen carefully to what I’m about to ask you. If you lie… you’ll suffer pain and lose your life.”
Hearing that, the foreign princess turned pale, her remaining pride shattered, and she was consumed entirely by fear.