Chapter 97

On our way to the reception room to meet Fabian, Lycian—who had been silent the entire time—suddenly spoke.

“Do you have any idea why Crown Prince Fabian came to see you?”

“Hmm….”

Apparently, a lot had happened during the four days we were away.

The Tierney family had publicly refuted the claims made by the Veratis Guild….

[The Veratis Guild is unlawfully detaining Muriel Tierney, the eldest daughter of the Tierney family and a Purifier.]

…or so they insisted.

‘Those lunatics….’

It was such an absurd accusation that I should have stepped forward to clear it up myself.

But of all times, I’d been at the hidden shop….

As agreed in advance with Lycian, Dante issued a counterstatement instead—

[The claims made by the Tierney family are false. The Purifier is under the protection of the Grand Duke of Epherne.]

[The Tierney family attempted to forcibly detain the Purifier against her will. The Grand Duke of Epherne and the Veratis Guild merely opposed them in a lawful manner.]

—That was the official response.

The incident spread like wildfire, and the existence of a Purifier was exposed to the entire world.

Of course, there were still more people who doubted whether I was the real thing.

‘This is going to get complicated.’

No matter how extraordinary a Purifier might be, without power behind her, she was as fragile as paper.

Fail to hold your ground, and you’d be dragged around and used by anyone who pleased.

Not just here on the Altera continent—countries across the sea needed the power of purification too.

‘So much corrupted land… and only one Purifier. What a joke.’

It really hit me again just how rare I was.

I opened my mouth and answered Lycian’s question.

“He’s the crown prince of Roblet. He probably came to secure the Purifier for his country’s benefit.”

“So he doesn’t want to hand you over to the Grastea Empire?”

“Right. It’s easier to persuade me privately than to formally protest to the Grand Duke of the Empire.”

Lycian fell quiet for a moment before speaking in a low voice.

“…It didn’t seem like he came for political reasons.”

“Crown Prince Fabian? All the way here? For what? No way.”

“…….”

Lycian stared at me as I feigned ignorance, back straight and face composed.

But fooling him was never easy.

“Crown Prince Fabian doesn’t have personal feelings for Muriel, does he?”

“P–personal feelings? Of course not. Nothing like that.”

Damn him. He caught on immediately.

Cold sweat trickled down my back.

“He’s never made a pass at you? Not even once?”

“Never—”

The word caught in my throat.

A dream from a few days ago—no, a memory from the past—surfaced.

‘Lady Tierney, might you spare me a moment?’

‘S-sorry! I really need to use the restroom…!’

‘That’s not the direction of the restroom…!’

The ‘synchronization’ was still ongoing.

Unlike before, the percentage was rising slowly, and I didn’t pay it much mind.

The current me was both ‘me’ and Muriel, after all.

‘Lady Tierney, today at least, just the two of us—!’

‘My apologies, Your Highness. I may have had too much wine… I’m feeling dizzy… I’ll be going now…!’

‘It was grape juice at today’s party…!’

Fabian had tried to make a move on me more than a few times.

But I’d blocked every single attempt like an iron wall.

I had no intention of getting tangled up with a man Juliet was obsessed with.

‘And besides… I don’t even like Fabian.’

The way he tried too hard to look cool. The oily way he spoke. The narcissism….

Worse, he didn’t even try to learn who I was—he just liked my face.

I remembered a conversation I’d once overheard between Fabian and his followers.

‘Muriel Tierney? Ah, yes. She’s my type. Cute face, unusual hair and eye color, isn’t she? I’d love to dress her up nicely and sit her in my office. Then whenever work gets dull, I could admire her…. Not a bad idea, right?’

In other words, the bastard saw me as a trophy to display in a showcase….

‘Disgusting….’

The revulsion must have shown on my face, because Lycian’s gaze shifted—something sharp flickering there.

We had arrived at the reception room before I knew it. Accepting that I couldn’t hide this any longer, I grabbed his hand tightly and warned him.

“No matter what nonsense he spouts, you absolutely cannot throw a punch. Got it? Even if you’re mad, hold it in!”

“…So he has made a move on you.”

“F–Fabian never cared about the bad rumors surrounding me. He was only interested in my looks….”

“I’d like to hear exactly what happened. In detail.”

Lycian smiled softly as he pressed the matter. One hundred percent fake.

Whenever he smiled like that, he was scarier than the Grim Reaper. I squeezed his hand harder.

“I’ll tell you later, so calm down for now.”

“Ha…. I don’t think I can.”

“P–please, just calm down.”

It took eight kisses scattered across his cheeks and forehead before he finally settled.

And then we stepped into the reception room.

Fabian, who had been pacing inside, spotted me and strode forward.

“Muriel! At last!”

He flung his arms wide, moving to pull me into an embrace.

Thud—crash!

Something lashed out, and he went sprawling backward in a spectacular heap.

‘You’ve got to be—’

This crazy…!

Of course, the one who’d kicked Fabian was Lycian’s long, elegantly extended leg.

I’d given him eight kisses! Eight! And he still couldn’t hold it in!

“It seems the crown prince of Roblet is some kind of perverted bastard?”

Lycian sneered in a murderous tone.

I shot him a flat look.

‘You’re one to talk….’

Now was not the time to argue about who the bigger pervert was.

Fabian staggered to his feet, staring at Lycian in shock.

“W-what is the meaning of this? Your Highness, Grand Duke of Epherne! To kick someone without warning….”

“And trying to grab someone else’s lover without warning is fine?”

“L-lover?”

Horror spread across Fabian’s face.

His gaze darted between Lycian and me.

“You two… are lovers?”

“Yes. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Th-that’s absurd….”

Lycian showed no mercy, even to a crown prince.

The only reason he could get away with being this brazen was because he was a descendant of the great golden dragon.

“Muriel, is this true? Are you truly… in a relationship with the Grand Duke of Epherne?”

Fabian, stiff with shock, asked in a trembling voice.

He looked at me like a man betrayed.

I was honestly dumbfounded.

Betrayed by what, exactly?

There had never been romance between us—only horror.

Fabian stalked me. I evaded him.

That was the entirety of our story.

And yet the expression on his face now—

It was that of someone betrayed by a love he had believed in.

Swallowing a cold laugh, I answered firmly.

“I swear on my heart. His Highness the Grand Duke of Epherne and I are lovers.”

“That can’t be….”

Fabian’s legs seemed to give out, and he sank to the floor.

Looking up at me from there, he confessed in an exaggerated tone befitting some grand romantic hero.

“Muriel…. I have harbored feelings for you for a long time. And I believed… perhaps you felt the same.”

A sorrowful smile curved his lips, as though he were the one suffering heartbreak.

“It seems I was mistaken….”

Yes. You were.

‘This narcissist is filming a solo romance movie without the other party’s consent.’

I couldn’t stand the sight of him. I just wanted him gone.

What could I say to send him away faster?

As I racked my brain—

“Yes, Muriel…. I understand your feelings toward me.”

Understand my ass.

If I started listing how much I disliked you, a hundred pages wouldn’t be enough!

“It pains me deeply to give you up… but that is a personal matter. As crown prince, I must persuade you.”

“…?”

“Muriel, think carefully…. Are you not a citizen of the Roblet Kingdom?”

Fabian rose to his feet again, eyes gleaming.

“The power of purification you possess should be used for your homeland. Would you not agree?”