Chapter 3.

He Definitely Stepped on It…!

“Thank you for your hard work, Head Maid.”

When the Third Prince responded gently, the head maid bowed even deeper.

“I hardly know what to say when Your Highness says so.”

“It was nothing.”

As he shook his head, his cream-colored hair swayed softly.

It looked almost like a flower petal fluttering in the breeze.

‘Good heavens….’

Someone this beautiful actually existed.

Just as I was staring blankly and blinking, the Third Prince looked at me and gently curved his eyes into a smile.

“This is a face I haven’t seen before.”

The head maid quickly stepped forward.

“She is a new maid, Vanillin.”

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness…!”

I lowered my head with a trembling voice.

Then the Third Prince spoke.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Vanillin.”

His voice was warm and gentle against my ears.

“Thank you for your kind welcome!”

I bowed even deeper.

He was speaking politely even to an ordinary maid….

He really was an angelic prince.

No wonder they called him the Saint of the Empire.

Just as I was admiring him inwardly—

“Ahem! Ahem.”

The nobleman beside him loudly cleared his throat.

It was a middle-aged man making quite a show of himself, as if demanding not to be forgotten.

The prince smiled faintly at the head maid and said,

“Marquis Desmond was curious about the Imperial treasures, so I accompanied him here.”

“Heh heh, I told him it wasn’t necessary, but my son-in-law went to all this trouble to arrange a visit.”

At his frivolous tone, I rolled my eyes.

‘Son-in-law…?’

So that meant he was married?

‘He’s a married man….’

I was nodding to myself when the head maid frowned and raised her voice.

“Son-in-law?”

“Ah, right. That’s a secret. It hasn’t been officially announced yet.”

“…….”

Oh, so he wasn’t.

I pressed my lips together and cautiously observed the situation.

Even someone as ignorant of noble society as me could tell that something about this wasn’t right.

Sure enough, the head maid’s gaze turned sharp.

“Since it has not yet been confirmed, I would appreciate it if you would be careful with your words.”

“Hmm?”

The marquis didn’t seem bothered in the slightest.

“Well, it’s only a matter of time. His Highness the Second Prince is actively pushing for it.”

“…I see.”

“After all, even the Imperial Family ultimately requires an enormous amount of wealth. Hahaha!”

What an incredibly rude thing to say.

I secretly glanced at His Highness the Third Prince.

He had every reason to be offended, yet he merely wore his gentle smile.

“It seems my elder brother thinks highly of the marquis. More importantly, please watch your step. You’re walking rather quickly.”

No, he was even concerned about the marquis.

…I wish Dai could be even half as much like him.

I turned my head away with sad eyes.

The marquis laughed heartily and shook his head.

“Hahaha, I’m fine! I’m not some fool who would slip in a place like this.”

He moved with great confidence.

But I anxiously shifted my eyes.

Actually, his outfit was a little too much.

His silk clothes were stretched tightly in places because they didn’t fit him properly, and the gold-thread embroidery was almost excessively flashy.

What worried me most was that cloak.

The expensive fabric was too long for him and dragged along the floor.

If he stepped on it wrong, it looked like he’d be done for.

I could understand why the prince had warned him.

‘He’ll be okay… right?’

Still, he was a grown adult.

Like the other maids, I kept an appropriate distance and followed behind the two men.

I stood neatly with my hands clasped together, and their conversation drifted over to me.

“Wow, the Imperial treasures really are on another level. They’re worlds apart from the ones in the marquis’s household.”

“They are artifacts with a long history.”

“Well, they’ll soon belong to my family anyway, so there’s no harm in taking a look beforehand.”

No matter how far the marquis crossed the line, the Third Prince maintained his gentle expression.

He even went so far as to personally guide the marquis.

“The Celestial’s Porcelain is over here.”

“Oh! The Celestial’s Porcelain!”

So this was what it took to earn the title of Saint….

‘I get really angry just talking to Dai.’

I felt a surge of respect.

The marquis stopped in front of the porcelain and peered at it.

“It’s not as big as I expected.”

“Is this your first time seeing it?”

“Yes… Ahem! I only became a noble recently.”

He cleared his throat awkwardly.

But more importantly—

‘The Celestial’s Porcelain?’

What was it that made him so excited?

I was curious.

I secretly craned my neck forward.

“They say you can only see it during the Founding Festival….”

“Because it is National Treasure No. 1.”

“Indeed, it deserves that title.”

The marquis nodded without taking his eyes off the porcelain.

I nodded along with him.

If it could only be seen during the Founding Festival, it really must have been an incredible treasure….

Perhaps that was why it was so beautiful.

One step.

Then another.

The marquis approached the porcelain as though he were hypnotized.

“It certainly looks precious.”

His protruding belly touched the edge of the display stand.

Ugh… He was really going to cause an accident at this rate.

I anxiously shifted my eyes.

And then—

“This will be mine soon….”

One more step.

Before he could finish speaking, the marquis’s body staggered.

“Huh?”

They say accidents always happen without warning.

The marquis lost his balance and fell.

It looked like he had stepped on his long, trailing cloak.

“Gyaaaah―!”

Everyone’s mouths fell open in shock.

The Celestial’s Porcelain was right in front of him.

The Marquis Desmond’s face turned deathly pale in real time.

“N-No…!”

The marquis desperately flailed his arms, trying somehow to regain his balance.

But his center of gravity had already been thrown off.

His unfortunate body pitched forward without mercy.

And at the same time—

Clang―!

With a spine-chilling sound, the porcelain went flying.

It bounced off its pedestal and sailed away in a perfect arc, the sight slowly etching itself into my retinas.

‘If that breaks….’

I hurriedly looked at the head maid.

Her eyes, nose, and mouth were all wide open, her entire body radiating shock.

That alone told me everything.

If it broke, something terrible would happen.

‘That can’t happen…!’

I-I want to live a long, long life!

Without even a moment to think, I calculated where the porcelain would land.

One step, two steps, then five pillars over from the window.

At last, the porcelain following its arc began to fall rapidly.

Whoooosh―!

“Vanillin!”

I ran.

I heard the head maid cry out in shock, but I couldn’t hear anything else.

“Hnnng….”

The only thing I could see was the porcelain above my head.

Focus, Vanillin.

You can do this…!

Think about catching the plates Dai used to throw.

I took a deep breath.

I spread both arms wide and positioned myself to absorb as much of the impact as possible—

“Come here…!”

Catch―!

I caught it perfectly.

The porcelain settled safely into my arms as though it had been wrapped in a warm embrace.

“Haa….”

I let out a sigh of relief.

Then I gently, if somewhat awkwardly, smiled and held up the porcelain.

“Luckily… it’s fine.”

“…….”

Silence descended.

Dozens of pairs of eyes turned toward me all at once.

“…….”

It was eerily quiet.

Why, why…?

I slowly lowered my arms.

As I held the porcelain against my chest and looked up, my eyes met the Third Prince’s.

“…….”

Was it my imagination?

His gaze wasn’t fixed on the porcelain.

It was fixed on me.

There was neither surprise nor anger in his eyes….

Instead, there was something strangely deep about them, as though he were trying to figure me out.

Cold sweat broke out across my skin.

“Was… I not supposed to catch it…?”

My voice trembled with anxiety.

The Third Prince silently looked down at me before letting out a small laugh and shaking his head.

“No.”

His voice was low and gentle.

“If anything, you did very well.”

He slowly approached and extended his large, firm hand.

I carefully handed the porcelain over to him.

Our fingertips brushed lightly.

It was only for an instant, yet the sensation remained strangely vivid, so I secretly rubbed my fingers together.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Uh… ah….”

It was such a gentle yet strangely ambiguous question.

What was he asking if I had hurt?

The porcelain?

…Or me?

Since there was no subject, I couldn’t tell.

Just as I was opening and closing my mouth, unable to answer—

The head maid finally snapped out of her daze and rushed over.

“L-Let me check whether there are any scratches or damage, Your Highness.”

“Well, I don’t think there are any.”

The Third Prince shrugged and smiled.

Only then did I realize I’d been holding my breath and finally exhaled.

S-So he was asking about the porcelain.

That startled me….

When the Third Prince handed over the porcelain, the maids rushed over to inspect it.

“How’s the surface?”

“It’s perfectly fine. There aren’t even any spots where the glaze has peeled. No damage, scratches, or even the slightest blemish.”

“Vanillin caught it perfectly.”

“That tiny girl… What a miracle.”

The head maid sighed.

Whether it was sheer luck or a blessing from heaven, the porcelain was completely unharmed.

The Third Prince smiled as though relieved.

“What a relief. Heaven must have helped us.”

“Indeed, Your Highness.”

“What a relief.”

The maids enthusiastically agreed.

Everyone seemed to believe that it had simply been an unfortunate accident that, fortunately, had been avoided.

However.

‘H-How frightening….’

The truth was,

I couldn’t take the Third Prince’s smile at face value.

Because I had seen it.

‘He definitely stepped on it.’

Just before Marquis Desmond fell.

I had seen the Third Prince step on the edge of his cloak.