Ignoring the King of Dal Canto’s warning, Princess Cecilia ran over to Sir Celes, getting on her tiptoes to look at his face. “Wow, he’s just like a fairytale prince! So handsome!”
“Cecilia, remember that you are before the King!” Princess Bernardina chided her sister with a glower, but that didn’t stop the younger princess from ogling Sir Celes.
Sir Celes, for his part, must not have known how to respond to foreign royalty acting like that.
“Cecilia!”
“Oh, really, sister! Can’t I at least admire his face?”
“Ceci. Come back here. Prince Edoardo, Sacred Maiden, I apologize.” This time the Queen was the one to reprimand Princess Cecilia, who was pouting cutely.
Unable to argue with the Queen, she started to return to her original spot... Or so we all thought, before she turned, putting her arms around Sir Celes’s neck and planting a kiss on his cheek — to the shock of everyone in the room.
“Cecilia!” the King exclaimed.
“Oh, father. It’s just an affectionate kiss. You kiss me like that, don’t you?” Princess Cecilia skipped back to the King and gave him a peck on the cheek too. “See? It’s the same as that.”
There was no maliciousness in her smile or tone. If anything, she seemed innocent. She was cute, but... Oh no, I hate it! Ugh, I must be so closed-minded. Even if it was just an affectionate kiss, I don’t like it!
“But really, father. Since my sister won’t be marrying into Banfield anymore, wouldn’t it be good for me to do it instead!? Although it wouldn’t be with His Highness!”
Princess Cecilia kept talking cheerfully. When she mentioned her sister not marrying, Princess Bernardina scowled slightly. The younger princess didn’t seem to care, and Princess Bernardina didn’t press the issue.
All I could do was bite my lip. I was up against a princess. A foreign one, at that. I couldn’t say anything. Sir Celes was furrowing his brows, so he probably felt the same. Not liking something, but also not being able to refuse was frustrating. But it seemed that we weren’t the only ones displeased.
“Cherry, or whatever your name is, can you stop hitting on my companion!?” Miss Maria’s call-out sliced through the air.
“It’s Ceci!”
“Whatever. Anyway, he has a girlfriend! They are super in love! There’s nowhere for you to stick your head in! Get it, princess?” Putting a hand on her hip, Miss Maria bravely stood up to the princess. On her shoulder, Shiro spread his wings and squeaked fearsomely.
“What! You’re so rude! Who do you think I...”
“I think you’re a nuisance, that’s what. I’m above your rank. This isn’t even my home world. I’m not afraid of what anyone says, and I’m gonna speak my mind.”
“Do... do you want to cause trouble between Dal Canto and Banfield!?” Cecilia stammered back.
“I’d say the same about you. You knew that, didn’t you? Oh dear, I know it’s me saying it, but you’ve got a positively horrid personality. All of this must be calculated, right? Ohhh, scary! You’re so bad!”
“Wha— You...!” Princess Cecilia was bright red, shaking with rage.
But that didn’t matter to Miss Maria. Putting a cute smile on her face, she made a cool declaration. “I’ll protect my friends! I don’t care about Banfield. My friends do everything in their power to protect me, so I’ll do the same back!”
Her announcement went straight through my heart; it felt like I was floating on pure happiness.
“...Cecilia, stand down. Prince Edoardo, Sacred Maiden, I apologize for my daughter’s behavior. Elana, take Cecilia to her room.” The King scowled as he ordered Princess Cecilia away with a wave of his hand.
“Yes, Your Majesty. Ceci, come here. Prince Edoardo, Sacred Maiden, we take our leave.”
“Okaaay...”
The Queen took the sulking princess and left the room.
“Please, take a rest from your journey while you stay in my castle. We’ll have a welcoming party in two days. You’ll be attending, correct, Sacred Maiden?”
After Princess Cecilia was shown out, the King rubbed his brow before giving the prince and Miss Maria a bright smile.
Miss Maria, still looking unhappy, gave the King a half-lidded glare and said, “You’ll let us go after the party, right?”
“We are in a hurry. I apologize that we can’t stay longer,” His Highness replied.
“I understand. Allevi, bring our guests to their chambers. Make sure not to make any mistakes.” The chamberlain, who had been standing at the ready by the King’s side, nodded at his words.
And so, our troubled audience with the King finally ended.