The Villainess Lives Twice: Butterfly's Dream (IF Story) - Chapter 81
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Cadriol set down his teacup and looked directly at Artizea. The light smile that had lingered on his lips shifted to a serious expression, which surprised her.
Noticing this, Cadriol licked his lips once and then grinned mischievously.
“When I said you were bold, I didn’t mean you said something you shouldn’t have. I meant your whole approach was bold.”
“Ah…”
“By the way, are you interested in yachts?”
Caught off guard by the sudden change of topic, Artizea’s eyes widened. Cadriol found her reaction adorable.
To him, she was unmistakably a noblewoman raised wrapped in silk. She seemed innocent enough not to realize the risk in what she said, yet not naive enough to miss how her words could be politically significant.
‘She must trust the Crown Princess and Grand Duke Evron to protect her.’
Well, that made sense. Even if she spoke somewhat boldly, unless she said something outright rebellious, no harm would come to an eighteen-year-old girl favored by the Crown Princess and betrothed to Grand Duke Evron.
He felt both amusement and displeasure. The former at discovering this girl, and the latter at Cedric’s hostility that day.
And it was quite entertaining, too. After all, he loved adventure and challenges.
Artizea hesitated. Cadriol said cheerfully,
“You don’t need to know about yachts. I was invited to a yacht race next week and wondered if you’d like to come along.”
“A yacht race?”
“I’m still debating whether to participate as a competitor.”
Artizea hesitated slightly.
Yachting wasn’t very popular in the capital, but since Pavel became Duke Riagan, he had spread its appeal among his friends, and it was slowly gaining popularity among young nobles.
Artizea herself wasn’t interested in sports, nor was she particularly drawn to watching them. Still, she didn’t want to refuse the prince’s invitation just because it seemed dull, and a picnic by the riverside would be a pleasant change.
Most importantly,
‘Lord Ced doesn’t care anyway.’
He’d probably just ask if she was going back to the ball. Cedric was also the one encouraging her to socialize more.
And yet, after dancing and talking with Cadriol, Cedric had behaved rudely. That made her surprisingly quick to nod in agreement.
“I’d be happy just to watch.”
“In that case, I’ll confirm the date again soon. This is a tough decision. If you cheer me on, I might have to join as a competitor and aim for victory.”
Cadriol winked.
“The chance to dedicate the glory of victory to a lady doesn’t come often.”
At that moment, the tea room door opened.
A tired-looking Eloise strode in and was surprised to see Cadriol.
“What brings the prince here?”
“Don’t pretend to be surprised, Your Highness. The servants couldn’t have failed to tell you the prince was here.”
Artizea’s words made both Cadriol and Eloise look surprised. Eloise said.
“Are you siding with the prince now?”
“I think it’s a bad habit to make things awkward without a clear purpose.”
“Haha.”
Eloise laughed and approached Artizea, pinching her cheek.
“Are you scolding me?”
“It’s advice. Ouch.”
She pinched the rosy cheek once more, then looked at Cadriol. He seemed a bit surprised but smiled pleasantly.
“I already knew, Princess, even if the lady didn’t say it. You should stop teasing me for fun.”
“Hmm.”
Eloise glanced between Cadriol and Artizea before letting go of her hand. Artizea covered her cheek with her hand.
Cadriol stood up.
“I heard from Viscountess Juven that this tea room is the warmest spot in the Crown Princess’s palace, so I came to rest. I have no intention of interrupting the ladies’ private meeting, so I will take my leave.”
“Thank you.”
Eloise nodded. Cadriol smiled and said farewell to Artizea as well.
“I’ll send you a letter, Lady. Don’t forget our promise.”
“Yes. I apologize for disturbing your peaceful rest.”
After he left, Eloise looked at Artizea in surprise.
“A promise? What promise?”
“He invited me to the yacht race, and I said I’d go.”
Eloise pursed her lips, making an ‘oh’ sound. Artizea’s cheeks flushed slightly as she said in a sulky voice.
“I don’t think Lord Ced will be mad just because I’m going out with Prince Cadriol.”
Though she had thought Cedric would be furious, Eloise smiled widely and asked.
“Did you fight?”
“No. But thinking about it, maybe we should have.”
Artizea answered. Eloise agreed. Revealing Cadriol’s identity and Cedric’s hostility were somewhat understandable, but taking Artizea’s glass and physically blocking her from greeting him was clearly rude.
Moreover, those actions were disrespectful not only to Cadriol but also to Artizea herself.
Eloise’s eyes sparkled as she asked again.
“You two left together that day. I thought things ended well.”
“It wasn’t bad, honestly.”
Artizea murmured while rubbing the cheek that had been pinched lightly.
Both the walk in Viscounty Adinne’s garden and the dance had been enjoyable. Although she felt a bit wistful leaving, she was more happy.
But on reflection, she realized she had left without a proper apology or explanation. It was just an uneasy truce. Wrapping her in the shawl and leading her to the garden seemed natural, but in reality, Cedric shouldn’t have intervened that way.
It wasn’t until the next day that Artizea realized how completely she’d been swept along.
Listening to her complaints, Eloise thought.
‘Cedric, that guy’s going to get himself into big trouble someday.’
What if she really flew out of his grasp after being treated like a child?
Artizea sighed.
“So, I’m really going to try doing things my way. I can’t help but think Lord Ced is just waiting for me to meet someone else.”
“That’s quite a leap.”
Eloise replied but couldn’t completely deny it. She’d heard Cedric argue that Artizea needed more life experience.
Three years ago, when Cedric turned twenty, there had been talk about calling off the engagement. Artizea was raised wrapped in a flower blanket as if she was fragile, yet he was acting inconsistently.
But Artizea didn’t back down.
“And after Lord Ced acted so rudely, I can’t just reject the prince’s kindness.”
“True enough.”
Eloise nodded. Suddenly, Artizea looked at her as if something had just occurred to her.
“Don’t do anything strange.”
“What do you mean?”
“Like suddenly deciding to attend that yacht race without warning.”
“I won’t, I won’t.”
Eloise chuckled and stroked Artizea’s hair. She had come to give advice but was glad Artizea was handling things well.
“Have fun, but don’t give in.”
“Don’t give in?”
“I mean you mustn’t really fall for the prince. I’m not letting you go that easily.”
Artizea blinked as if that sounded ridiculous, but Eloise shook her head.
Anyway, Eimmel was a country with no resources besides its people, and Cadriol was a prince busily building his power.