SADIC v1c12

Chapter 12

“…So, whether by force or not, it seems that being the first person chosen by the ‘Ice Prince’ has made the king and queen determined to make you his fiancée at any cost,” Ian said, and then fell silent.

Well, he had no choice but to remain silent.

The noble society was a complicated affair. Unless something extraordinary occurred, it was extremely difficult to refuse a proposal from a family of higher rank.

And in this case, the other party was the royal family.

Even a historically prestigious count’s family was still only a count’s family, and defying the crown was simply unthinkable.

“…Liliana, did you do something that really stood out?”

Ian thought of her outfit. She had been sent in subdued attire; while Liliana was undoubtedly cute, she was not particularly striking.

Unless she had done something highly noticeable, how could the prince’s attention have been drawn to her?

Though he knew asking wouldn’t change anything, Oliver couldn’t help but voice his curiosity.

“I followed Father’s instructions and tried to stay inconspicuous, wearing a dress the same color as the wall, and kept to the background,” Liliana explained. “While I was enjoying the delicious food, I was summoned, along with the other matchmaking candidates, to line up in front of the king and queen. Even then, I did my best to secure the position farthest from the prince! I had it carefully positioned, and yet—why me? And on top of that, he didn’t even look at me and said, ‘This will do’! Because of that, I couldn’t even finish half the dishes I had planned to eat…”

Liliana lowered her eyes sadly and let out a long sigh.

“Big sister… aren’t you being noticed for eating instead of dancing, rather than your dress?”

Aiden said, sounding exasperated, which made Liliana defensive.

“That’s not true! I was sitting as if hiding beside a large vase while eating.”

“By the way, was the vase the same color as the wall?”

“No, it was a beautiful pale green vase.”

“Then what was the point of a dress the same color as the wall?”

“Oh… that?”

Watching this exchange with some disbelief, Oliver finally said,

“There’s no use talking about it now. You are to visit the palace in three days. It’s late now. You’ve had a long day, so rest well.”

With that, he left the room with Gianna.