#048. What Reaction Will I Get This Time?
Even Melchizedek himself found the situation absurd, so one could only imagine how baffled his aide must have felt, having to listen to his inner thoughts.
But it was sincere.
Although Melchizedek was displeased with Blanche’s behavior, he still wanted to keep checking her reactions.
What reaction will she show this time?
This time? Will it be different?
Could I be the one to change this child?
“After all, a six-year-old can’t possibly pick the right answer every single time.”
The reason Melchizedek still felt frustrated—even when Blanche gave the answer he wanted—was because he was projecting someone else onto her.
The person who had never believed in him until the end.
The person he had never been able to make happy.
But Blanche was not that person. She was different. That person had always chosen the right answer, a hundred or a thousand times over.
Blanche, however, was a six-year-old girl who had been dragged to the Empire as a political hostage at the age of three, having never received any real political education. She could never become the same as that person.
Someday, Blanche would make the wrong choice. And when that happened, Melchizedek would finally stop seeing that person’s ghost overlapping with her.
“So let’s keep this matter quiet. I want to avoid another round of wild speculation like before.”
“Understood.”
The aide probably didn’t understand his behavior, but that didn’t matter.
What mattered was that, someday, he would be free from the shadow that still clung to his ankles.
When Fania returned home, she was visibly furious.
“I’m so disappointed in His Grace, the Grand Duke!”
Ruth-Ella Sadi Martina, the heir of House Martina, was baffled. Why was her younger sister, who had gone to see Princess Blanche, now ranting about the Grand Duke?
Did the two of them gossip about him behind his back or something?
Thinking she’d need to caution her sister to be more discreet, Ruth-Ella followed her up to her room.
“What happened, Fania? Did the Grand Duke do something awful to Princess Blanche again?”
Honestly, leaving her alone for a month didn’t seem like a huge offense—at least by Ruth-Ella’s standards. A Grand Duke ignoring a hostage princess from a small country? Understandable.
But her younger sister thought it was terribly cruel. Ruth-Ella didn’t want to argue with her over someone else’s circumstances.
“It wasn’t even Blanche’s visiting day today! But when I showed up, he was there!”
“He was?”
“Yeah, I figured maybe they had a lot to catch up on after not seeing each other for a month, so I let it go.”
What would an eight-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl possibly have to catch up on? But Ruth-Ella just nodded along.
“So what happened then?”
“He kept interrupting our conversation! Then he told me I didn’t know Blanche well enough, and said everyone probably thinks he’s closer to her than I am!”
“…Seriously?”
“Seriously! Isn’t that so childish?!”
Ruth-Ella nearly burst out laughing but barely managed to cover her mouth.
What was that, jealousy?
That cold, mature-for-his-age Grand Duke—acting like a jealous child?
“So that’s why you’re upset?”
Did she feel like her friend was being taken away?
Both the Grand Duke acting uncharacteristically, and her precocious little sister—Ruth-Ella found them equally adorable.
Fania, who had been lying face-down on a pillow, suddenly sat up and smacked it.
“I’m worried about Blanche!”
“Princess Blanche?”
Ah. Come to think of it, it might be overwhelming to be caught between two strong personalities. The fact that her sister could be that considerate made Ruth-Ella tear up with emotion.
But Fania’s fierce glare cut into her moment of sentiment.
“If Blanche ends up with a guy that selfish, she’ll suffer emotionally!”
The tears disappeared instantly—not from disappointment, but from shock.
A girl worried that her friend would suffer if she dated the wrong guy. Touching, sure, but since they were six, eight, and nine respectively, it felt like a make-believe game.
“Uh… I see. You’re worried Blanche might get her heart broken, huh?”
She was so cute, Ruth-Ella was amazed she managed to keep her voice steady.
She patted Fania’s head to hide her twitching smile and guided her back to the pillow. Fania, still grumbling, let herself be led.
“Blanche is so naive. Right now, she says she likes me best, but if the Grand Duke keeps acting like that, she might fall for him!”
It’s all just child’s play… Ruth-Ella, unable to remember her own six-year-old feelings, couldn’t imagine how emotionally intense things could get at that age.
“I can’t just let this happen. I have to protect Blanche from the Grand Duke’s evil clutches!”
“Uh… how exactly?”
It was a funny declaration, but Ruth-Ella thought it was important to tread carefully—especially if her sister was about to pick a fight with the future emperor. So she gently probed.
Fania dramatically sat up again, fists clenched.
“I’ll show Blanche that I can treat her better!”
Ruth-Ella was relieved—and also had to quickly hide her wide grin behind her hand.
If she laughed, her sister would definitely sulk.
“Hmm… that’s a great idea. Um… for example, how would you do that?”
To be honest, she doubted Fania could do better than the Grand Duke. He lived in the palace; he could see Blanche whenever he wanted.
But Fania, glancing around the room, locked eyes on her jewelry box and answered hesitantly:
“Maybe I’ll give her a gift… like some jewels?”
An unfortunate idea. A duke’s daughter trying to out-gift a Grand Duke—who had his own private treasury and land—using allowance money?
Still, giving her some jewels was better than picking a fight. Ruth-Ella decided to encourage her.
The Martina family wasn’t going to go bankrupt over a few gemstones anyway.
“That’s a great idea. Want me to call a jeweler for you? You could give Blanche a bracelet that matches yours during the tea party. It’ll show everyone how close you two are.”
Fania’s eyes sparkled.
“That sounds amazing! If we both wear matching bracelets, everyone will know we’re best friends! Let’s do it!”
Her sister’s good mood lifted Ruth-Ella’s spirits too. Hearing such a cute story made it even better.
She thought the Empress would love this story when they had lunch in a few days.
“Alright, I’ll call the jeweler. And don’t worry—I’ll cover the cost. Just pick something you like.”
“Yay! You’re the best, sis!”
A few jewels secured her sister’s favor and avoided a future fallout with the Grand Duke. A win-win for Ruth-Ella.
Once she made up her mind, she didn’t hesitate. Three days later, at the Empress’s luncheon, she brought it up.
Of course, she framed it as concern over her sister’s potential squabble with His Grace. It would be unseemly to openly gossip about a royal, after all.
“My sister is still young, so I thought I should offer some preemptive apologies in case she inadvertently causes trouble.”
She had no intention of letting her sister actually start any trouble. If it came to that, Ruth-Ella was confident she could steer things away from confrontation.
“Oh my! How adorable!”
The Empress seemed thoroughly amused.
“Children always fight as they grow. Don’t worry. If anything, I should apologize for the Grand Duke acting so childishly.”
Despite her words, the Empress looked quite pleased.
Indeed, adults want kids to act maturely, but if they act too mature, that’s worrisome too. So the Grand Duke’s childish behavior was probably a relief.
“It seems like he really needed a friend his own age. Since becoming close to Princess Blanche, His Majesty has been noticeably more cheerful. The Emperor is greatly relieved.”
Of course, not everyone in the Empire liked Blanche. Some were likely annoyed that a foreign hostage had taken a place of importance next to the Grand Duke.
But the women gathered at the luncheon were all around Riana’s age and had little direct connection to Melchizedek.
The only exception was Ruth-Ella, whose little sister Fania just so happened to be Blanche’s best friend.
