Chapter 8: The Happiness Philosophy of a Wallflower
The grand hall of the royal palace was filled with the light of chandeliers and the heat of finely dressed nobles.
The scent of perfume.
The clinking of glasses.
The elegant melody of the orchestra.
In the past, just stepping into this place would have made my stomach ache.
“Who should I greet.”
“What does the current faction map look like.”
My head would have been on the verge of overload from processing that kind of information.
But now, it was different.
“…Claude-sama.
Would that mountain over there be the one in question?”
“Yes.
As promised, the chef has it sliced and waiting.”
In the direction of my gaze was the buffet table in the partner-exclusive lounge.
Enshrined there was a glossy slab of meat.
“Shall we?”
“Yes.
Immediately.”
With Claude-sama’s escort, I crossed the venue gracefully, though with a slightly brisk pace.
Stares pierced into us from all sides.
Whispered voices reached my ears.
‘Isn’t that the Marquess Bernstein’s…’
‘Wasn’t her engagement broken off?’
‘Why is she beside Lord Claude?’
‘And that dress… I’ve never seen that kind of sheen before.’
Curiosity, contempt, confusion.
A mixture of emotions swirled within those gazes.
But to me now, they were nothing more than background mobs.
Because the only star on stage for me right now was the roast beef.
We were guided to a slightly elevated balcony seat in the corner of the hall.
A plush sofa.
In front of us, a variety of dishes prepared solely for Claude-sama and me.
“Please.
This is your special seat.”
Claude-sama pulled out the chair for me.
I thanked him and immediately signaled to the chef.
The chef respectfully presented a plate.
On it were three thickly sliced pieces of roast beef.
They were generously coated in a sauce fragrant with truffles.
“…I will partake.”
I cut into it with my knife.
It sliced through with no resistance at all.
I brought it to my mouth.
“Mm…!”
The moment I bit down, juices overflowed.
The umami of the lean meat and the sweetness of the fat.
Entwined with the rich sauce, my mouth turned into heaven.
“How is it?”
Claude-sama, sipping wine beside me, asked with amusement.
I dabbed my mouth with a napkin and gave a thumbs-up.
Words were unnecessary.
“That’s good to hear.
…Rest your legs here.
I need to go make some rounds of greetings.”
“Please do.
(Take your time.)”
Claude-sama stood up.
As the king’s brother, making host-side greetings was an unavoidable duty.
I was left alone, but I did not feel lonely in the slightest.
If anything, this was bonus time to face the meat without worrying about anyone’s eyes.
I put my knife into the second slice.
I was happy.
The dress was not constricting, and my shoes were not hurting me.
A ball where all I had to do was sit and eat delicious food might be a first, even counting my previous life.
Just as I was savoring that peace.
“…So this is where you were.”
An unpleasant voice dropped down from above.
It was a voice far too familiar.
When I looked up, Crown Prince Kyle was standing there.
Behind him were Lady Marielle, looking uneasy, and several followers.
“Good evening, Prince Kyle.”
I set my knife down.
Ah, the meat would get cold.
“To sneak in without an invitation.
How shameless can you be.
This is a seat reserved for royalty.”
Prince Kyle looked down at me with disdain.
“Why don’t you leave before the guards throw you out.
…Or did you come here to scavenge leftovers?”
The followers laughed crudely.
A textbook villain move.
The lines were so stereotypical that I was almost impressed.
I calmly wiped the sauce from my mouth.
“There is no need for concern.
I was invited as a formal partner.”
“A partner?
Whose?”
“Prince Claude’s.”
At my answer, Prince Kyle stared blankly for a moment, then burst out laughing.
“My uncle’s!?
Ha, impossible.
That work-obsessed man would never choose a useless woman like you.
If you are going to lie, pick a better one—”
“She is not lying.”
A clear, dignified voice cut through the noise.
Prince Kyle’s laughter froze.
The crowd parted, and Claude-sama returned.
His expression was no longer the gentle one he had shown me earlier.
It was the cold, razor-sharp face of the chancellor.
“U-Uncle…?”
“She is my cherished guest.
Do you have a problem with that, Kyle?”
Claude-sama stood beside me and placed one hand on the back of the sofa as if protecting me.
Under that pressure, Prince Kyle took a step back.
“N-no, but why her?
She couldn’t even properly assist me before.
A woman that incompetent is hardly fit for a royal ball—”
“Incompetent?”
Claude-sama raised one eyebrow.
Then, deliberately projecting his voice, he spoke.
“Do you truly not know?
That the identity of the ‘Sage of the Second Library,’ whom scholars now visit daily as the palace’s repository of wisdom, is her.”
A murmur rippled through the crowd.
‘The one from the rumors…?’
‘The one who found the missing treaty?’
‘Her, of all people?’
Prince Kyle’s eyes darted wildly.
“What?
A s-sage…?
What are you talking about…?”
“Thanks to the knowledge management system she constructed, this nation’s administrative processing speed has tripled.
She was also the one who resolved the recent treaty disappearance.
…Without her, this country would likely be at war with the empire right now.”
Claude-sama laid out the facts calmly, yet decisively.
“She is far from incompetent.
She is an indispensable ‘custodian of knowledge’ for this nation.
If you still call her ‘incompetent,’ then all you are saying is that your own eyes were too blind to recognize her worth before discarding her.”
“Nng… guh…!”
Prince Kyle’s face shifted from red, to blue, then to white.
I could see the surrounding gazes flip from pitying a woman, to judging an incompetent crown prince.
“That’s impossible…
She’s just expressionless and unlovable—”
Prince Kyle pointed at me with a trembling finger.
He still seemed unable to accept reality.
I let out a small sigh and picked up my fork.
The meat had completely gone cold.
That made me sad.
“…Your Highness.
Cold meat is not delicious.”
I spoke not to Prince Kyle, but to Claude-sama.
At my tone-deaf remark, the area fell silent.
Only Claude-sama softened his expression slightly.
“…You’re right.
My apologies.
I’ll have the chef prepare a fresh plate.”
He turned back to Prince Kyle and said coolly.
“You heard her.
She is in the middle of a meal.
…Leave.”
“…!”
Prince Kyle’s face twisted with humiliation as he turned on his heel.
As Lady Marielle hurried after him, I saw her clasp her hands together toward me in a small gesture of apology.
She seemed to have her own struggles.
The storm passed.
Silence returned.
“…We may have gone a bit too far.”
I spoke while receiving a new plate of roast beef, still warm.
“You praised me so much that the scholars will swarm again tomorrow.”
“I do not mind.
If they do, I will drive them away.”
Claude-sama sat beside me and raised his glass.
“Besides, it is the truth.
…You are remarkable.”
He looked straight at me.
In his eyes was a clear warmth, not mere social courtesy.
“When you are beside me, my spine straightens.
And at the same time… I feel deeply at ease.”
“You flatter quite skillfully.”
I hid my embarrassment by biting into the meat.
Even so, I felt a gentle warmth spread in my chest.
Revenge.
Vindication.
None of that mattered.
No matter what Prince Kyle thought, no matter how others judged me.
Right now, I was eating something delicious, sitting beside someone comfortable, and my feet did not hurt.
That was the truth.
“…This is delicious.”
“Yes.
It really is.”
We looked at each other and shared a small smile.
The noise of the hall felt like something from a distant world.
I realized then.
Happiness is not about winning over someone else.
It is about being able to breathe freely, in a place you like, in a way that suits you.
A wallflower?
Perfectly fine.
If it is a flower this delicious, I would not mind blooming here for the rest of my life.
That was what I thought.
The very next day, however, even more shocking news would reach me.
That Claude-sama had collapsed from overwork.
It was no laughing matter.
The person who had been providing me with “peace” had reached his limit.
This was no time to be floating on roast beef anymore.