A Fake Marriage? Sure! …Wait, Is It Actually Fake? Something’s Not Right Here! - Chapter 8

The tea party or rather, the elaborately arranged picnic-style venue was in full swing.

On large, evenly spaced blankets, groups of men and women sat in circles, while some knights showcased their musical talents to enthusiastic applause.

Elsewhere, women chatted and enjoyed themselves in lively clusters.

With every available butler mobilized to set up additional parasols, even those seated on blankets had shade. Still, some young ladies concerned about the sunlight had their maids hold parasols for them.

The buffet-style service of sweets and tea was surprisingly well-received.

“Another one of these, please,” and “I’d like to try this tea next,” were especially popular requests from the young ladies, while the men watched with amused smiles.

Of course, the table seats were also occupied, mainly by those hoping to converse with the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.

(It’s good that things have sorted themselves out naturally.)

Wiping the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand, Lidoria let out a sigh.

When she had humbly suggested the idea to the Crown Princess, it was accepted immediately.

As Lidoria raised both hands to form a circle toward Alex, who had already been circulating instructions among the knights, he commanded the knights, “Go,” as if issuing a mission.

Like hunting dogs unleashed, the knights went off to escort the young ladies they fancied.

The invited ladies happily moved along, and some bold knights even invited several women at once.

The young ladies who had come seeking encounters with the opposite gender headed toward the blankets with their chosen men.

Those who saw this as a rare opportunity to speak with the Crown Prince stayed at the table seats.

Amanda kept a watchful eye to ensure no one was left alone, and so far, her efforts were a clear success.

(Well, I suppose I should go see the Crown Princess now.)

She had been told to come with Sir Alex once she had a free moment.

Since Lidoria didn’t know where Alex was, she decided not to seek him out deliberately. There was no need to invite trouble.

“Excuse me. Are you Miss Lidoria?”

Startled by the voice from behind, Lidoria turned around.

There stood a young man wearing the same uniform as Alex.

With blond hair and pale blue eyes, his handsome features seemed likely to appeal to women. Since everyone at the venue today were the “hunting dogs,” he was probably one of them. Indeed, a star was pinned to his stand-up collar.

“Yes, that’s me. Is something the matter?”

He should have known Lidoria was the Crown Princess’s maid. If he had gone out of his way to speak to her, there must have been some trouble at the venue.

“No, not at all. I just wanted to speak with you for a moment.”

He held neither a teacup nor any sweets.

He gazed at Lidoria with a serious expression.

“I’m Evan Ridley. Do you know me?”

It took her a moment, but then she said, “Ah.”

“You’re Miss Sena’s fiancé, aren’t you? It’s nice to meet you.”

Lidoria bowed politely. She thought Sena was ill-mannered, but that was no reason for her to be rude as well.

“About your engagement to Sir Alex.”

At Evan’s words, Lidoria expected him to say “Congratulations,” but instead, he spoke with an intensely serious face.

“I’m not sure about that approach. Don’t you think it’s wrong to involve everyone in a lie?”

Her heart skipped a beat.

Could he possibly know about the fake engagement?

“What do you mean?”

She asked hesitantly.

They were both “hunting dogs.” Perhaps Alex had confided in Evan and told him everything?

“I heard that letter was staged.”

Completely taken aback by the unexpected statement, Lidoria’s mouth fell open.

“Letter? Which one?”

When she asked with a seriousness matching his, he stared at her even more earnestly.

“The love letter you received.”

Despite his strikingly handsome face, for some reason, talking to him was irritating.

Careful not to let her annoyance show, Lidoria replied, “The anonymous letter Sir Alex gave me?”

“That was something you made yourself, wasn’t it?”

“Of course not! It was in the maids’ waiting room. I went to the meeting place, and Sir Alex Reading was there!”

“I heard you were interested in Sir Alex but couldn’t approach him yourself, so you created a fake love letter, showed it to the Crown Princess, implied it was harassment from Princess Melissa, and deliberately arranged for Sir Alex to show up?”

“That’s ridiculous! Who told you that?”

Lidoria’s voice came out shrill. Evan responded with a dead-serious expression.

“From Sena, of course. My fiancée.”

Stunned, Lidoria stared at the handsome young man before her.

She had been tricked by that very Sena.

Lured by a fake love letter, she was nearly humiliated in public before being rescued by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.

And yet, Sena had fed this very lie to her fiancé.

That Lidoria had staged the whole thing and cleverly secured an engagement with Sir Alex. That because of this lie, her own mistress, Princess Melissa, was being slandered.

Her body trembled with silent rage.

But as if he’d lost his mind, Evan looked at her with pitying eyes, as if admonishing a misguided child.

“It’s not too late. You should confess the truth and break off the engagement. Even if you marry like this, you won’t be happy.”

Ah, now I understand why this handsome guy is so infuriating, Lidoria thought, clenching her fists.

He reminded her of a teacher who wouldn’t listen to a student’s side of the story.

Convinced only he was right, and that only good kids surrounded him.

He blindly believed everything said by the “good kid” he trusted, and anyone who said “That’s not true” was automatically lying.

“I’m not lying. There was an anonymous letter in the maids’ waiting room, and I believed it and went to the shop.”

Her voice shook with anger as she spoke to Evan. He frowned slightly, as if troubled, but Lidoria pressed on.

“I even reported to the Crown Princess, ‘I have a matchmaking meeting.’ I went to the café, the meeting place, happily. And I waited there. For two hours.”

She could see Evan’s eyes narrow slightly.

“But no one came. I thought I’d been tricked. That I’d received a prank letter. That someone who knew I couldn’t marry due to family circumstances had done this to humiliate me.”

She tried desperately to stay calm, but her voice trembled more and more with rage.

“Then Miss Sena showed up. She came to the café with a bunch of Princess Melissa’s maids and laughed at me in front of all the customers, saying, ‘As if someone like you would have a marriage prospect.’ And then—”

A sob threatened to escape, and she swallowed it hard.

“Then Sir Alex Reading appeared and saved me. The Crown Princess found the anonymous letter suspicious and consulted His Highness the Crown Prince. They realized it was a fake and sent Sir Alex to… to save me. To save me from being humiliated in front of everyone.”

A tear rolled down, and Lidoria wiped it away forcefully.

Then she glared at Evan.

“He saved me from the prank orchestrated by your fiancée, Miss Sena.”

Evan silently stared at Lidoria.

Intently.

After studying her thoroughly with his ice-blue eyes, he let out a deep sigh.

“You’re still lying.”

Instantly, heat surged in her stomach, and she felt like shouting at him.

What lie?

This was what actually happened.

“Then I have no choice. I’ll go tell Sir Alex the truth myself. Is that alright with you?”

As if giving a final warning, Evan leaned in to peer at Lidoria’s face. Suppressing the urge to slap him across the cheek, Lidoria nodded.

“Yes, please. Tell Sir Alex, or the Crown Prince, or even the Crown Princess. Do as you wish.”

With that, Lidoria turned her back on Evan.