Chapter 21

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 21

Chapter Title: You'll Have to Like It

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Erna fled the banquet hall as if running for her life.

She hurried past the lounge where guests were gathered, resting and enjoying light refreshments, then down the long corridor at a brisk pace, walking and walking without pause. As the people around her dwindled one by one until none remained, she finally reached the parlor at the far end of the east wing. Only then did a sigh of relief escape her lips.

Erna sat cautiously at the edge of the sofa and glanced at the clock with a fatigued expression. It was nearly midnight already, but the party showed no signs of winding down.

It had been an exhausting day, filled with far too many unexpected events: unwittingly becoming a thief and incurring a massive debt, dancing with a prince on a whim, enduring the guests' piercing glares, and on top of it all, being relentlessly pursued for dances by that stubborn son of House Heinz.

The man who had introduced himself as Robin Heinz kept appearing wherever Erna tried to escape. His initial requests had been polite, but as she refused time and again, his attitude grew increasingly aggressive.

Overwhelmed by the burdensome stares directed her way, Erna had quietly slipped out of the banquet hall. She planned to hide here until the party ended. But just as she had made that decision and begun to relax, the man burst in unannounced.

"So this is where you were rushing off to, Miss High-and-Mighty Hardy."

Robin Heinz approached the sofa where Erna sat, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Startled, Erna hastily adjusted her shoes and stood up. A heavy stench of alcohol wafted from him.

"Planning a secret tryst with the Grand Duke here, are you?"

"Please step aside, Mr. Heinz."

"No thanks?"

Robin Heinz grinned wickedly and seized Erna's wrist. It happened so suddenly she had no chance to evade him.

"So that bastard prince has caught your eye and won your favor—now everyone else looks like a joke to you, huh?"

"L-Let go! What are you doing?!"

"Idiot. Aiming for the prince is a waste of time. You'd be better off cozying up to me. Who knows? If you play nice, I might even buy you out from that old geezer."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Mr. Heinz. Let go of my hand!"

"Don't play dumb. Your father's the type who'd sell his daughter to anyone waving a fat stack of bills. If I offer even one coin more than that old man, you'd have to come to me instead. And yet here you are, looking down on me? Huh?"

Muttering incomprehensible nonsense, the man yanked Erna forcefully toward him. Her face pressed against his chest, and she began thrashing and screaming in protest. He hesitated momentarily, surprised by her fiercer-than-expected resistance, giving her just enough time to flee to the opposite end of the parlor.

"Ha. Unbelievable."

He rubbed his cheek, scratched by her nails, and chuckled as he started advancing on her again.

Terror-filled eyes scanned the area beneath the window. The exit was behind the man, and overpowering him in a struggle was impossible. Her only escape was this window. But she couldn't bring herself to jump, and as she teetered on the verge of tears, he closed in behind her.

A sharp scream began to echo through the empty corridor.

It was a woman's desperate scream that halted Prince Biern's steps. The sound came from the end of the corridor leading to the east wing of the mansion—a place where invited guests weren't likely to gather.

Assuming he'd misheard, Biern resumed walking in his intended direction. But then an even sharper scream rang out. It was too vivid and laced with raw terror to dismiss as a hallucination.

Some drunken bastard who can't handle fine liquor harassing a maid again, huh.

With a quiet sigh, Biern turned toward the east corridor. His plan to find a quiet spot, nap lightly, and head home seemed to have gone awry.

It was an irritating summer night in many ways, but nothing new.

Ever since his divorce from Gladys, Biern's twisted life had become as familiar as his own body. In truth, nothing had changed drastically. He had never been a model citizen even before, and his way of living hadn't shifted much.

The freedom he'd traded his crown prince title for suited him just fine.

Especially in moments like this. Being able to treat the fools he'd held back against for the sake of decorum like the idiots they were felt like a blessing. So tonight, too, he intended to revel in that freedom—until he encountered an unexpected face.

"Lady Hardy?"

Biern stopped at the parlor entrance and slowly uttered the woman's name, hardly believing his eyes. Erna, trembling and sobbing, looked up at him with her tear-streaked, ruined face. It took a moment for her dazed eyes to focus.

"What in the world..."

Biern halted a few steps from Erna and surveyed the chaotic scene before him.

A woman pale with fear and crying. A torn dress and a bloodstained candlestick. And a fallen man. With each shift of his gaze, Biern's eyes narrowed further. It matched his expectations perfectly—except the woman wasn't a maid but Erna, and the one on the floor was a man, which was a slight anomaly.

"Your Highness... I... I think I've killed a man."

Erna, ashen-faced, forced the words out.

"I didn't mean to—it was just so scary. I hit him and he fell, and his head hit that spot, so there's so much blood..."

As the horrific memory sharpened with each word, Erna finally burst into sobs. Blood dripped from the candlestick she clutched, staining the carpet with dark blotches.

When the man's hands grabbed at the front of her dress, Erna had blindly seized the nearest object and swung it wildly while struggling. The sound of thin fabric tearing, a dull thud, and the man's scream echoed simultaneously. By the time she realized what had happened, Erna stood before the fallen man, holding the bloodied candlestick.

"Don't worry, Lady Hardy."

Biern examined the man on the floor intently, let out a quiet sigh, and stood up.

"He's just unconscious. He'll wake up soon. Types like this don't die easily."

"...Really?"

Tears streamed endlessly from Erna's eyes, soaking the torn front of her dress. One shoulder and half her chest were exposed, but she had no spare capacity to notice.

"Really."

Biern replied firmly and supported the staggering Erna.

He had anticipated some fool desperate to challenge the prince might step up, but he hadn't expected it to be this particular idiot. Even among the debauched crowd, he hadn't thought anyone would dare treat a daughter of a somewhat notable noble house so crudely.

"Can you walk on your own?"

Biern draped his evening coat over Erna's shoulders and asked. She nodded like an obedient child, her face gleaming palely in the moonlight.

"Then let's go."

With a short, decisive command, Biern pried the candlestick from Erna's tight grip. The blood on it stained his gloved hand red.

"Exit here, go left to the end of the passage, and take the stairs down. That'll lead to the garden behind the mansion. Follow the path straight ahead, and you'll reach where the carriages are waiting. Take the Hardy family carriage and go home first. I'll handle the rest."

"But..."

"Remember: left passage at the end. Stairs. Garden. Straight ahead."

Biern gazed calmly at the protesting Erna and repeated the key points slowly, emphasizing each one.

"I can't do that. Then you, Your Highness..."

"It's my responsibility too, so I'm just doing my part."

"Your Highness."

"Don't worry. I always collect on my debts."

Biern smiled faintly and tied the sleeves of his evening coat around Erna's shoulders. Wrapped in his clothes, she looked absurdly small.

"Do you like boating?"

His tone was leisurely, utterly mismatched to the situation.

"...Pardon?"

Erna doubted her ears and blinked hard. But Biern still stood there, his expression perfectly serene.

"You'll have to like it."

"What do you..."

"That's all. Now go."

Biern glanced at Robin Heinz, who was beginning to stir slightly, and issued the order firmly.

"Hurry."

Biern's face had grown icy cold, no trace of a smile left. Even as Erna nodded hastily, tears still flowed.

Once Erna had left, looking back several times, the parlor fell silent again. Confirming her footsteps fading away, Biern picked up a vase from the console table. His steps toward the fallen man were leisurely, mismatched to the scene.

Biern stopped on the carpet stained red with blood from Robin Heinz's face. Upon closer inspection, the injuries weren't severe. The heavy bleeding seemed due to a gash on the side of his head from the candlestick's ornament and a nosebleed.

Somewhat disappointed, Biern dumped the water from the vase over Robin Heinz to rouse him. The man flailed like a drowning rat and opened his eyes.

"Hello, Heinz."

Biern set the vase back in place and greeted the dazed Robin calmly. Biern's smiling face, still holding the candlestick, reflected in the man's unfocused eyes.

Regaining his wits belatedly, Robin jolted upright in horror. The lush roses that had been in the vase now lay scattered on the blood- and water-soaked carpet.

"Sorry if I went overboard."

"...What?"

"At least you're not dead, so that's something, right?"

Biern chuckled, tapping Robin's crown lightly with the tip of the bloodied candlestick. Robin finally grasped the situation and began to panic.

"Y-You crazy bastard!"

He spat blood-mixed saliva and shouted. Watching him tremble, Biern's smile deepened.

The Robin Heinz he knew was too much of a coward to brag about being beaten by that frail woman. He'd have no choice but to play along. Claiming a big fight with the infamous prince would save his face far better.

And yet, such pointless bravado from a fool like him.

Biern laughed lowly, like a sigh, and swung the candlestick. Thud. Caught off guard, Robin screamed and collapsed again. The crushed roses released a heavy fragrance.

"Think anyone will buy that we fought that lightly?"

Biern snickered dryly and kicked the fallen man's abdomen.

"You know how sharp-eyed people in our circle are."

Another kick, this time to the face, reopened the nosebleed.

"So bear with me, Heinz."

Even as he whispered softly, Biern didn't stop his kicks. Robin struggled desperately to fight back but couldn't even stand properly, taking the beating helplessly. Only after he began screaming and sobbing did Biern step back.

"That should do it."

Biern leaned down, inspected Robin's face closely, and a smile curved his lips.

Like praising a loyal dog, he patted the man's head, then removed his bloodied glove and stood. Even in the dim light, his name, embroidered in gold thread on the white glove's cuff, gleamed clearly.