I Became the Replacement Fiancée for My Childhood Friend Who Went Missing, but Apparently He Has Been Found - Chapter 8

Leaving Ellis’s side, Schnaud returned to his room alone.

However, the air about him now was not that of the beautiful First Prince who stood at the nation’s apex, but rather that of a wildly excited animal.

“Hah… hah… That was the true Ellis.”

The words he had just spoken to Ellis had indeed come from the bottom of his heart.

For him, who had spent day after day educating Selena to become Ellis, her demeanor today must have been more alluring and stimulating than ever before.

“Finally, I’ve finally come this far! How much time has passed since Ellis vanished? It feels like an eternity. More than once or twice, I’ve wondered if my methods were truly wrong. I nearly lost my confidence each time. But today, finally, finally, I met her again. The person I spoke with today was, without a doubt, Ellis herself! Her appearance, her aura, the way she spoke—she was the very being who could wrap me in her warmth and heal me.”

Schnaud dived onto his bed, his entire body convulsing violently as if in agony.

Not once since Ellis had disappeared had he ever let his joy explode to this degree.

“Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis…”

Knock, knock, knock.

“Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis Ellis…”

“…Your Highness? I’m coming in.”

Hearing Schnaud’s voice but receiving no reply to the knock, the servant who had come to see him seemed to find it strange, cautiously and quietly opening the door.

The sound of the door opening seemed to pull Schnaud’s raging emotions back to reality. In an instant, his expression returned to one of calm composure, and he addressed the servant who had come to him.

“What is it? Did something happen? I was just enjoying a very pleasant moment alone.”

“My deepest apologies for interrupting your precious time, Your Highness. However, I believed this was a matter that had to be reported to you immediately…”

“Oh…?”

Although Schnaud had long fulfilled his duties as the First Prince, it was rare for a servant to deliver a report with such an air.

He immediately sensed the importance of its contents. Calming his heart, he replied.

“Well, what is it? What happened?”

“Yes! It is a matter concerning Lady Ellis.”

“Ellis? I was just speaking with her.”

“No, I mean the Lady Ellis who disappeared.”

“…”

The Ellis who had disappeared.

The very person whose absence had just been soothed by Selena.

But also, the person his heart still desired with immense strength.

“…What about Ellis?”

“According to a report from the noble house that oversees the military police, they have succeeded in obtaining critical information regarding Lady Ellis. It seems she was having a meal near the royal palace until just a short while ago.”

“…And?”

“…A-And, you ask?”

“I’m asking you, so what?”

Hearing the servant’s report, a look of displeasure crossed Schnaud’s face.

…Until now, he would have latched onto even the smallest piece of information about Ellis, yet there was no trace of that eagerness in him now.

“Y-Your Highness…? This is information about Lady Ellis. Information about the Lady Ellis you so desperately wanted. W-What has come over you?”

Naturally, the servant found this suspicious and posed the question to Schnaud with a timid air.

…But Schnaud’s reaction was cold.

“…I no longer have any desire for such information. In fact, I am quite displeased that you interrupted my precious time to bring me something like this. Never do this again. Is that clear?”

“…”

…Schnaud delivered the order in an intensely harsh tone.

The man standing there was, without a doubt, a being whose heart had been moved by Selena.