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nI felt drained at his nonchalant reply, so I looked back at him again after bowing out.

nThere were no feelings in his blue eyes. He even looked bored at the moment.

nI felt scared somehow.

nHow much time passed?

nWhen everybody was done swearing allegiance, he stood up from the throne and walked down the six steps.

nWhile looking at him blankly, I suddenly noticed something unusual today.

nFirst, his blue eyes, which always looked at me, didn’t turn toward me at all. Secondly, he passed by me without stopping like he did usually.

nHis eyes that didn’t look at me anymore, and his steps that didn’t stop in front of me.

nFeeling even more scared, I bowed towards him as he went out for the parade.

nThe sound of the hem of his robe rustling on the light green carpet faded away quickly.

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nWatching his robe fluttering, I realized freshly that my relationship with him now was only that of the ruler and his subordinate, which was only natural.

n“Tia.”

n“Yes, Daddy.”

nWhen I was having dinner after work, my father, who remained silent, suddenly called me. When I put down the fork and knife carefully to see if he had something to say, he drank a glass of wine and said, “Now, your coming-of-age ceremony is around the corner. Are you getting ready?”

n“Yes, Daddy. I also keep that in mind.”

n“I’m sorry for making you prepare for this. This is your once-in-a-lifetime coming-of-age ceremony. I wish your mother were here…”

n“Oh, don’t say that, Daddy. It’s my job.”

n“Thank you for saying so.”

nI smiled broadly at him who also smiled. I thought I had to tell him what I had in mind, as he mentioned my coming-of-age ceremony.

n“By the way, Daddy, can I hold this banquet at the mansion on our estate rather than in the capital?”

n“At the estate? Why? ”

n“Well, as the pro-emperor faction members were divided because of the recent event, I think we had better use this occasion to filter out those who are friendly to us and those who are not.

n“Hmm.”

nAs he was listening silently, I picked up a glass of water and moistened my mouth before continuing, “And I would like to solidify my position as the successor of my family. Even though I have been learning the family affairs steadily, there were lots of people who were suspicious about me because of my status as the emperor’s fiancee. I think the situation got much better because of the recent event, but there are some of our family vassals who still cast a suspicious glance at me.”

n“That’s right.”

n“So, this time I’m going to hold the banquet in a slightly different way.”

n“Different way?”

n“Yes. In order to solidify my position as the successor, I think it is necessary to promote me as the daughter of the martial arts family instead of the daughter of a typical noble family.”

nThe servants cleared the empty plates, and put down apple tarts with a sweet aroma.

nI looked at my father, taking a fork to a tart that looked delicious.

nI said, “How about holding a hunting contest? It will provide entertainment for the knights guarding the estate and those who came a long way. I also want to give them the impression of me participating in the contest rather than waiting quietly with a handkerchief. I think we can hold a two-day event, and hold the banquet on the eve of the hunting contest…”

n“Hmm, that’s a good idea. Do what you want.”

n“Thank you, Daddy. Then I’ll prepare for it, starting tomorrow. ”

n“Sure.”

nI thanked my father with a bright smile.

nI knew that my father, who did not want me to be the successor of our family, would not like this kind of coming-of-age ceremony, but I wanted to make the best use of this opportunity to promote my image as the family successor. From now on, I needed to control the vassals of my family and solidify my position as the successor gradually.

nBy late into the night I worked out a rough plan for the banquet and drew a list of those to invite. I double checked with the invitation list to make sure there should be no loophole or mistake.

n‘I have to hold the event perfectly.’

nAlthough I was exhausted, very tired, I steeled my heart by clenching my fists. As I have to remind the participants of the authority and prestige of our family once again, I had to make sure the event should take place without any flaw.

nA few days later I headed to the new office with Sir Lian and Sir Feden, and Sir Spear, an apprentice knight. As I was transferred to the 2nd Knights Division one month ago when I went back to the 1st Knights Division, I had to work not as the captain’s aide but as a general apprentice knight.

nWhat I had to do today was to stand guard duty at one of the palaces, which was favored by many knights because it was relatively easy and leisurely. Of course, there was one drawback of this duty, which was that the guard post was located in a secluded place where few people visited.

nWas it because of that? Sir Feden, who was on duty silently for some time, opened his mouth.

n“Sir Monique.”

n“What’s up?”

n“I heard that you’re holding your coming-of-age ceremony in your estate rather in the capital. Is that true?”

n“You already heard about it. Yes, that’s right.”

nWhen I slowly nodded, Sir Lian, who was looking at us, said, “Then, is it also true that you are holding a hunting event, along with the banquet?”

n“That’s right.”

n“Oh my… I think I have to request vacation leave as soon as I’m done for the day.”

n“Pardon? Requesting vacation leave?”

n“Well, as you know, we can hardly leave the capital unless there’s something else going on, so I think I have to request vacation leave to be able to go to your estate. Hope the application time is not over yet… I hear there are so many competitors applying.”

nWhen I looked at Sir Lian was muttering something, and Sir Feden pondering over something,

nSir Spear, who remained silent all along, opened his mouth quietly, “Sir Monique.”

n“Did you call me?”

n“Well, I was curious why you were transferred to the 2nd Knights this time and planning to host the hunting event… Um…”

nI looked at the young knight who hesitated with a mysterious glance, and asked, just in case, “Are you asking me that because of the rumors about me these days?”

n“Oh, what I mean is…”

n‘I see. That’s why he is asking me.’

nI was convinced when I saw him slurring.

nActually, it was natural that he asked me such a question. Although they kept silent for now, there were lots of rumors about me and the emperor in social circles, according to Entea. I felt the rumors spread quickly because I didn’t end my official relationship with the emperor, although I declared that I would break off my engagement with him.

nI was in a difficult position. Even though I wanted to tell the truth, I couldn’t say anything because the emperor didn’t officially announce it.

nWhen I was hesitating how to answer, I saw knights in black uniforms walking toward me from a distance. I felt it was a good opportunity to distract him, so I hurriedly opened my mouth.

n“I think it ‘s time to shift over. I think I should be ready to relieve sentry.”

n“Oh, you’re right. Let’s go.”

n“I thought I was going to enjoy a leisurely shift duty, but it’s already over. What a pity! ”

nI wrote a log of what we did and handed it to the knights then walked away with the three.

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nWhen I walked, chatting with Sir Lian, I saw Sir Feden suddenly stopping while silently walking.

n‘Why did he stop?’

nWhen I turned my head along his gaze, I saw a man and woman walking side by side in a very friendly mood. She was all smiles while looking at the young man, as if she was happy.

nSuddenly, I felt down, so I stopped on the spot as if I was frozen. I was used to that kind of scene in the past, but this time I couldn’t hide my discomfort. I felt my breathing was getting a little rough.

n“So, Your Majesty, did you… Ugh?”

nThe woman, who was sweeping her hair up while chattering, fixed her eyes on me.

nThen she smiled sarcastically, staring at me. At the moment, when she turned up her red lips, the young man’s navy blue eyes looked at me. His nonchalant and cold-hearted look made my heart sink.

n“… ”

nWhile facing him silently for some time, I slowly bowed my head and turned quickly.

nI knew I was very rude to him, but I couldn’t help it. Some sort of strange feelings deep inside forced me to get out of here right away. Strangely, I felt very bad.

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