Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 152

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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It was a long time ago that Lucio had ordered Nix to keep watch over the Belus Duchy and the Grand Duke’s Castle.
‘Yet I let such information slip through my fingers.’
Nix couldn’t bring himself to lift his head.
That was when it happened.
“Again.”
“…Pardon?”
“Say it again.”
Nix’s face clouded with confusion.
It never occurred to him that his master—who despised repetition above all else—could have failed to understand him properly.
Convinced instead that he was being rebuked for his disappointing performance and incompetence, Nix bowed his head once more in utter dejection.
“I sincerely apologize. We did obtain information about the Grand Ducal House’s ship departing, but we never imagined that the vessel itself….”
“Not that. What you said before. Say it again.”
This time, Lucio’s brow furrowed as if to warn Nix against spouting nonsense.
Only then did Nix realize that Lucio truly wished to hear it again, word for word.
He spoke hesitantly.
“The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess, along with the Grand Duchess Bellus, have apparently visited the Empire. They are scheduled to attend a welcoming banquet prepared by the Imperial Palace today.”
“…Today?”
Preparing a banquet at the Imperial Palace required considerable time.
Moreover, this was a moment when every hand in the Imperial Palace was stretched thin preparing for the Foundation Festival.
The Duchy would never have failed to announce their visit in advance, and naturally, House Elrad would have been informed….
Though momentarily dazed, Lucio’s sharp mind quickly concluded that the information he’d received was false.
Yet the subsequent report made him display an uncharacteristic expression of alarm.
“Nicholas?”
“Yes. According to an urgent dispatch His Imperial Highness sent just moments ago, it was confirmed that approximately two weeks ago, Belus’s Sword Mage met directly with His Imperial Majesty. He apologized for the delayed report.”
“Ha.”
A hollow laugh escaped him.
Sword Mages, who wielded both magic and the blade, manipulated mana far more delicately than ordinary knights.
Unless one possessed skill comparable to a Sword Master, even well-trained intelligence operatives found it nearly impossible to track Sword Mages—which explained why Darel had missed this information.
“Has there been any word from Askart?”
“No, nothing.”
Lucio’s brow was beginning to narrow when——
“Young Lord Elrad!”
An attendant from the Liven Kingdom called out to Lucio from down the corridor, rushing toward him.
“What is it?”
“A letter has arrived for you from the Empire. It seemed urgent enough that I thought you should see it immediately….”
The attendant thrust the envelope forward, breathing heavily.
The moment Lucio accepted it, Nix dismissed the attendant.
In that interval, having examined the letter, Lucio’s eyes grew cold and sharp.
“What matter prompted His Grace to send this letter?”
Having already discerned from the seal stamped on the envelope that the sender was Duke Elrad, Nix asked carefully.
“What you just told me.”
Lucio answered briefly, but there was more to it than that.
It was also about how Lia had used a teleportation scroll to visit the Duke’s Mansion to celebrate Diana’s birthday.
And the fact that she had hidden from House Elrad that she was visiting the Empire for a surprise.
After carefully setting aside the letter that concluded with a request for his swift return, Lucio splashed cold water on his face with a somewhat weary expression.
Though he struggled to maintain his composure, his head throbbed as if struck repeatedly by a hammer.
In truth, when he first received Nix’s report, the words had felt like mere strings of syllables, impossible to comprehend properly.
He had even wondered if it was a hallucination—something he had longed for so desperately.
‘…Can I really meet her now?’
Lucio turned over the letter’s contents in his mind—that Lia no longer needed to avoid Diana.
He had always harbored a vague anxiety that this endless waiting might never truly end.
Yet hearing this news stirred something strange within him.
‘This is… somehow…’
Yes. I think I’m happy.
Lucio caught the corners of his mouth rising unbidden and assessed his own emotions objectively.
But that lasted only a moment.
“…Damn it.”
Lucio furrowed his brow and pressed his hand to his forehead.
Lia had come to the Empire, while he was in the Liven Kingdom.
“What in the world…?”
It seemed the gods themselves held a grudge against him.
How else could they keep missing each other like this every single time?
As Lucio let out a hollow laugh and shook his head, Nix’s expression froze in shock.
As Lucio’s aide and closest confidant, Nix prided himself on understanding his lord’s rational and composed nature better than anyone.
Yet suddenly his mouth had curved upward, he had used crude language he never normally employed, and now he was laughing to himself. Nix wondered if he had been possessed by a spirit.
Once Lucio had composed himself, he asked in a calm voice.
“How much time do we have left in the schedule? The Imperial Princess will likely depart today or tomorrow. Calculate accordingly.”
“Pardon? Why would the Imperial Princess suddenly…?”
“I scratched her pride a bit—didn’t want to waste time.”
With her arrogant nature, there was a high probability she would leave on her own whim, regardless of whether negotiations succeeded or the delegation’s position suffered.
The Imperial Princess cared only about becoming Emperor and wielding power; she had no intention of fulfilling any responsibility or obligation.
“Hmm, you’ll be creating trouble in Liven then,” Nix said, scratching his head urgently as he checked the schedule.
“They’re already not particularly cooperative, and there are many matters to coordinate. Even if we finish as quickly as possible, it will take a bit longer than planned…”
“Even now, they’re not being very cooperative, so there are many things we need to coordinate. Even if we finish as quickly as possible, it will take a bit longer than scheduled…”
“Stick to the schedule as much as possible. We need to return by the Foundation Day Festival.”
Lucio spoke firmly, disregarding Nix’s alarm.
* * *
“Are you nervous?”
Inside the carriage heading toward the Imperial Palace.
I had been lost in thought, gazing at the scenery of the Empire through the window for the first time in a long while, when I turned my head.
Father was watching my complexion with a worried expression.
“You’re attending a banquet the moment we arrive at the Empire. There will be far more people than at your debutante ball.”
“I’m fine.”
I answered with a smile, keeping it brief.
Of course, the Imperial Palace gleaming with golden light had an overwhelming presence even from a distance, but it wasn’t as though I were facing a demon—merely meeting the Emperor and nobility of the Empire. Was there truly reason to be anxious?
Besides, I had my dependable family by my side who cared for me so deeply, and already waiting in the banquet hall were people I had longed to see for so long, including Diana.
Thinking of that, I only wished we would arrive sooner.
“In any case, it really doesn’t help matters at all.”
But contrary to my feelings, my parents seemed to think differently.
“In just a few days there will be the Foundation Festival and the martial arts tournament, so we’ll see his face anyway. Why hold a welcome banquet on top of that?”
“He was never one to live by anyone else’s wishes. It seems to have gotten worse with age.”
To Mother’s complaint-filled remark, Father surprisingly agreed wholeheartedly.
The person whom both of them were criticizing in such unified voice was….
“It’s not because of age—it’s because he’s the Emperor.”
…the Emperor himself.
“He’s always been skilled at being troublesome.”
I swallowed hard at Mother’s scathing criticism, grateful that I had cast a soundproofing spell on the carriage beforehand.
No matter how formidable the power wielded by Belus Duchy, the other party was the Empire’s Emperor.
Such reckless words were far too dangerous to speak on the road leading to the Imperial Palace itself.
Yet I understood somewhat why my parents were voicing such complaints.
In truth, I had intended to remain quiet until the Foundation Festival, using it as an excuse.
Since the Foundation Festival was a grand celebration of the Empire, many delegations from other nations would gather, and I thought I could naturally fade from attention.
But the Emperor suddenly announced he would hold a welcome banquet, and all my plans fell apart.
However, thinking about it more carefully, remaining quiet would have been impossible anyway.
Not only was the status of Belus Duchy different from other kingdoms, but I was the Grand Duchess who had disappeared long ago and returned, and thereafter remained a mysterious figure unseen by the world.
‘The Imperial Palace, and surely other noble houses as well, must be flooded with invitations.’
The news that the Grand Duchess Bellus had come to the Empire must have already spread far and wide.
Realizing this anew, my mouth went dry.
Without thinking, I pressed my hand that had been moving toward my neck.
‘They must know too, I imagine…?’
That I had come to the Empire.
How could they not? No matter how thoroughly I managed information, I could not deceive their eyes and ears forever.
‘Rather than hiding, I’ve acted so openly like this….’
But I had already anticipated from the moment I decided to come to the Empire that the Demon Worshippers would take notice of me.
That also meant there was grave work I had to accomplish in the Empire—work worth the risk.
‘I must obtain the sacred relic no matter what.’
As I recalled my purpose, the anxiety slowly subsided.
I lowered my hand, which had been hovering near my necklace, to rest obediently on my lap.
I was truly grateful that my parents and others could not see the necklace I wore—the soul stone of the demon.
It was then.
“If I see that look in his eyes when he gazes upon my lady today, Emperor or not, I’ll cast a spell to blind him for ten minutes.”
Father declared this with an uncharacteristic vehemence.
Mother then grasped his hand as if to restrain him.
“Even so, I’ll tolerate it three times at most.”
“What? My lady! Since when have you become so lenient?”
Mother smiled at Father’s startled expression and replied.
“I now have two children who’ve come of age. I can’t indulge my every whim forever. Besides, there’s no need for magic. I can handle it myself.”
“What? You’ll handle it yourself? Surely it would be better if I——”
Father muttered softly, as though that would be the more peaceful approach.
I harbored the same thought, but upon seeing Mother’s eyes sharpen dangerously, I hastily averted my gaze.
While Father scrambled to placate Mother, I fixed my attention beyond the window and suddenly grasped the reality: the Emperor’s first love was Mother.
‘I already knew about his pink obsession, but….’
The Emperor’s past, revealed belatedly, proved far more extraordinary than I had imagined.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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