Our Prince is Too Lovely! - Chapter 1 Part 3

 Afterward, the mannerisms and etiquette of a princess—“The 100 Rules to Live as a Lady” were thoroughly drummed into him by Linol personally.

The corset wrapped around him was painful, and the wig was heavy. There was a time when the corset was squeezed tightly to constrict the body of girls to make them have beautiful, thin waists. He was glad to not have been born in such a time…!

When he wore a measly 5 cm set of heels, Adol screamed that his feet were in pain. Having to dance with such shoes on would be torture.

Because Adol was no longer Linol’s actual height with the high heels, he was able to avoid wearing such murderous weapons on his feet.

(That just shows how much effort girls put in to look pretty…)

He cracked a smile at how he only had a taste of the pain girls went through with tight corsets and painful shoes. He respected them.

After the blood-soaked training finished and Adol arrived in Sefera, he could act more princess-like than the actually Princess Linol.

Even though you would be hard-pressed to call the real Linol a perfect lady—but Adol wouldn’t say out loud even if someone forced him.

After all that was said and done, he couldn’t act as arrogant as the actual person.

He had to be lovely, refined, and ideal Princess Linolarth.

Naturally, the maids and diplomats traveling with him from Hausenland knew that Adol was cross-dressing. He even swallowed his pride and reported it to the senators who gave him the trial. This groundwork was necessary to avoid any trouble in the future.

(Tho there were some who frowned and questioned if I really was going to cross-dress…)

A majority of the Senate had faces that looked like they were questioning Adol’s sanity. However, Weisel gave an amused chuckled and nodded.

“Well, that’s fine. No matter what method you use, there’s no problem as long as you can produce some results.”

The words of the eldest member were powerful. In the end, no one told me I couldn’t.

 

Sometime after Adol finished greeting the king of Sefera, Calva, nighttime came along.

Adol changed into a dinner dress and became the perfect Princess Linolarth again. …It was a lot of work for a princess to have to change so many times a day.

Because the king of Sefera was obviously attending dinner, Adol couldn’t afford to be negligent.

Many southern dishes were filled with spices, but Adol couldn’t taste anything through all his nerves.

“Princess Linolarth is as beautiful as the rumors say.”

“Well, thank you very much.”

Adol kept up his bright smiling façade at these compliments he heard before as he continued to have his meal.

Besides Calva, there were various foreign diplomats present at dinner. Even Ray was by his side as his guard.

“The sight of the princess with her knight has caught the eye of everyone here.”

“Fufu, my knight is amazing, right?”

Ray was genuinely happy to be complimented. This natural smile of a beautiful girl caused the diplomats present in Sefera to freeze with their forks in hand.

Princess Linolarth’s visit not only included accepting this invitation but also traveling abroad.

(…But, inviting a princess makes it seem like they have an ulterior motive.)

Linol probably already knew. She told me that if in the unlikely event the king of Sefera tried to seduce me, I needed to politely, carefully, and clearly refuse him.

“Y-Your Majesty, you mustn’t drink too much.”

One diplomat wimply called out to the high-spirited Calva. It was difficult to see his eye color behind those thick glasses.

“Shut up, Morte. You’re ruining such a fine meal.”

Still, it was a fact that he had downed several glasses of alcohol already, so it was natural for a retainer to worry.

While Adol didn’t care how much Calva had drunk, he didn’t want to get involved with him.

(Dealing with a drunkard? No thanks.)

Adol cast his eyes down, wondering how he could return to his room as soon as he could.

Probably because of the power of alcohol, Calva looked at Adol and jovially said.

“By the way, princess, why don’t we take a stroll in the garden after this? A perfect chance to see the beautiful moon tonight.”

“—Eh?”

By ‘after this,’ he was prepared to go to sleep.

Practically thinking, it was unlikely for those of the opposite sex who weren’t engaged to see each other that late into the night. At the very least, that was how it was like in Hausenland.

What the hell was this king saying?!

It would probably be rude to immediately reject, so as Adol took several seconds to consider in his mind, the Sefera diplomat—the young man known as Morte jumped up.

“Y-y-y-your Majesty!? Don’t you think that’s a bit of a problem?!”

“Shut up, Morte.”

“I-I apologize! Eh? Wait, but, it’s like that!?”

It appeared to be an irrational invitation in Sefera as well. Morte’s reaction was enough proof of that.

“I deeply apologize, but my princess is exhausted from being in an unfamiliar country….so, may I ask for you to please invite her again tomorrow noon?”

In place of Adol who couldn’t make a decision of what to do on the spot, Ray firmly planted her foot down. Adol understood. If it was handled this way, it shouldn’t negatively affect the mood in a thoughtless manner.

“I guess that’s true. No, but it’s still natural for a man to not want to be separated from such a beautiful princess. Certainly, this princess bathed in the moonlight would be quite the sight.”

“Oh my…”

Adol averted his eyes to feign bashfulness at this smooth compliment.

(Wow, I’m amazed he can effortlessly throw out a pickup line like that.)

“Unfortunately, it’ll have to be another time.”

“There’s won’t be another time though,” Adol spat inside his mind.

Adol was completely convinced that “lady-killer” certainly described the kind of person Calva was.

Afterward, harmless conversation continued, and by the time the dinner ended and Adol returned to his room, he was mentally drained.

“How was that? Do you think the king was just like the rumors?”

Adol ripped off his wig as he asked Ray. After he took off the necklace, he rotated his shoulders and necks to get rid of the stiffness. Because it wasn’t just the wig but also the necklace and earrings that were very heavy, he hadn’t noticed that the muscles around his neck were screaming.

“I wonder. If it’s true that he’s a lady-killer, then his political prowess may also be true.”

At the time Calva ascended the throne, a revolution called for the head of the previous king, his uncle, for mismanaging the government. So, Calva could be called a hero to the people of Sefera. Immediately after his enthronement, he held his ground to protect the unstable Sefera from the threat of foreign nations.

“Well, he couldn’t make it as only a lady-killer.”

“People have said in the past that great men have a fondness for the sensual pleasures.”

“I don’t really like those types.”

Adol carefully arranged his clothes and accessories so they don’t break since if he did, not only would Ray but also the other maids would scold him for being too irresponsible.

“Is that so?”

Ray’s surprised face caused Adol to avert his eyes in embarrassment.

“‘Is that so?’… It’s enough to have just the person I love by my side.”

No matter how many crowds of beauties surround him, it meant nothing if the one person he truly loved didn’t love him back. It would only feel empty.

Just by having the single person he loved by his side, his heart would be content.

It seemed that his quiet muttering wasn’t picked up by Ray’s ears.

“Did you say something?”

He wanted her to hear, no, he didn’t want her to hear—these conflicted feelings made Adol bitterly smile.

“…Nothing.”

He decided to treat it as if nothing happened.

In truth, he was a little hurt that Ray’s words and actions showed that she didn’t see Adol as a target for her affection.

“I managed to avoid seeing him tonight thanks to you, Ray, but I guess it’s impossible for tomorrow.”

“Yes, but you must have contact with the king if you are to proceed with your trial.”

“Guh. You’re right…”

He couldn’t take it easy and return home like this.

But, expectedly talking to a man as Princess Linolarth was exhausting. He received such compliments like being beautiful and lovely, but as a man, none of it resounded in Adol’s heart.

“Sefera’s marine products are all expected hard to find in Hausenland. Since there’ll be many diplomatic interactions in the future, this will be a good learning experience.”

Hausenland was located inland. It differed greatly from Sefera like in how Hausenland’s climate wasn’t hot enough to tan skin.

With that being said, there was much to learn here.

What Adol learned would become his nourishment.

“So, how do you think we can capture the king of Sefera?”

While the nights were slightly chilly, the noontime heat had completely drained Adol. He limply slumped on the sofa as he thought of his future plans.

“…How about using seduction to get your way?”

“The one doing that will be me? You’re telling me to do that?”

Ray proposed with a serious face, and Adol’s face involuntarily stiffened. It was hard for him to tell if she was joking or not. She surely wasn’t being serious, was she?

“You’ll be found out as a man if you overdo it, so please avoid that.”

“I won’t!!!”

Why did he have to do something as disheartening as seducing a man?!

Ray wryly smiled at Adol’s refusal as he was half in tears.

“…Don’t worry. I’m joking.”

“Don’t joke like that,” Adol said with a sigh. Still, he was going to flirt if the situation required it, but he wanted to limit it to as little as he could.

“Because you will be observing the place where the peals are produced on the fifth day, the conversation should naturally flow to that topic.”

Ray informed as she confirmed the schedule.

“So, should I avoid talking about it tomorrow?”

“I believe it will be fine if you say that you’re interested. Being overly assertive would go against the people’s idea of Lady Linol.”

After reviewing the important matters, Adol felt heavy.

Although he didn’t have the time to choose his ways—cross-dressing still weighed down his spirit. Adol was never good at deceiving people.

 

★★★

 

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