Chapter 98 - 25: She Will Definitely Forgive Me

Chapter 98: Chapter 25: She Will Definitely Forgive Me

The maids had never seen such a lineup.

The highest-ranking princes and princesses in the Royal Court were all gathered here. Normally, the maids weren’t even worthy of a glance from them. But now, not only were they standing among them, but Veronica’s tone was even polite.

Realizing this was all due to their princess’s status, the maids couldn’t help but straighten their backs, afraid that their own timidity might bring her shame.

"Her Highness is still resting," the maid at the front answered respectfully.

"Still resting?"

Leo couldn’t help but cut in. "What time is it? She’s been asleep all day, and she’s *still* sleeping?"

"Y-Yes."

The maid nearly jumped in fright. "Princess Lilia didn’t return at all last night. She must be exhausted..."

"Didn’t come back all night?" Leo retorted. "What was she doing? Don’t tell me she found a place to practice Magic all night like you?"

’These people... It’s bad enough they’re talented, but they have to work so hard on top of it.’

’How is someone with only B-rank Magic Talent like me supposed to compete?’

Veronica couldn’t be bothered to deal with him.

She looked at the maid before her. "She’s slept a whole day; she should get up and move around a bit. Go tell Lilia I brought her some food. She should get up and eat something."

"Right away!"

The maid dared not defy Veronica’s order. With a word of assent, she gathered her skirts and headed toward the inner chamber.

Only after the maid left did Veronica’s gaze fall upon Chris, who was standing to the side.

"You’re here to see Lilia, too?"

She didn’t read too much into it, simply thinking her foolish little brother had finally grown up a little and learned to care about his siblings.

Chris gave a slight nod in response.

Leo took a step forward. "Chris, you didn’t leave the training grounds this morning just for this, did you? Have you been waiting out here all day for her to wake up?"

Chris: "!"

His words hit a nerve. The boy’s slightly drooping, puppy-dog eyes instantly turned fierce.

He glared at the brother he had never particularly liked. "Lilia is resting."

Chris’s voice was soft, yet his tone held an unyielding stubbornness. "She won’t see anyone until she has woken up."

"Wait," Leo said, astonished. "I was just running my mouth. You really waited here all day?"

At these words, Veronica’s expression grew serious.

’There’s nothing wrong with deep sibling affection, but for it to go this far... one couldn’t help but wonder if there was an ulterior motive.’

’It’s a known fact that Lilia’s Magic Talent is exceptionally high, and she has a good chance of becoming a Holy Mage in the future... Could Chris be pretending he’s not interested in the position of Crown Prince, while secretly trying to pull Lilia to his side? Is he hoping to secure a powerful ally?’

At this thought, Veronica’s expression instantly shifted from serious to wary.

Before she could probe him with a few questions, the maid who had gone in to inform Lilia emerged from the inner chamber.

"Princess Veronica, Prince Leo."

She curtsied to the two of them. "Princess Lilia is awake now. Please, come in."

Veronica collected her thoughts and gave a slight nod.

The recent exchange had also piqued Leo’s curiosity about Lilia staying out all night. He was eager to ask if she, like Veronica, had been pulling an all-nighter.

Behind them, Chris also stood up to follow, but was blocked by the maid.

"My deepest apologies, Prince Chris..."

The maid said, carefully watching his expression, "You may not enter."

Chris snapped his head up. "Why?!"

The boy’s composure was already hanging by a thread. He had waited outside for hours, only to be barred from entry while Veronica and Leo, who had just arrived, disappeared down the hall. A wave of furious anger and unspeakable hurt washed over him. He had to fight the urge to grab the maid by her collar and demand an explanation.

"M-My apologies!"

The maid bowed in apology but didn’t back down from his glare. "Princess Lilia said..."

She bit her lip. "...that she does not wish to see you right now."

Chris’s pupils shrank.

He staggered back two steps, all the ferocity from before vanishing in an instant, replaced by endless panic and despair.

He felt his limbs go cold, as if he’d been thrown into an icehouse. "What... what did you just say?"

Chris’s voice was hoarse. "She said... she doesn’t want to see me?"

"Yes."

The maid bit her lip. "So, I must ask you to please leave for now."

"Also, this..."

The maid presented a slip of paper with both hands. "Princess Lilia asked me to give this to you."

Seeing the slip of paper, Chris felt a flicker of hope ignite in his heart.

He hastily took it. Suppressing the tremor in his hands, it took him several tries to unfold it.

The message on it was simple, just like the note he had given Lilia earlier: a single line with a time and a place.

The meaning was obvious.

Lilia was asking to meet him at eight o’clock tonight by the lake on the west side of the Royal Court.

After re-reading the time and place several times, a look of delight spread across Chris’s face.

’So that’s it... ’

’It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see me, but that she wanted to see me alone.’

’She doesn’t hate me.’

’This is great.’

’This is so, so great.’

Suppressing his excitement, Chris didn’t even stop to consider the possibility of a trap. He had just tricked her with a note, and now she was giving him one in the exact same manner.

At that moment, he was completely overcome with joy. "Tell her I’ll be there on time, without fail!"

With that, Chris hurried away.

The meeting was in just over an hour. He needed to shower, change, and find a suitable gift to apologize for his behavior the day before.

’Since Lilia is still willing to see me... that means she’ll forgive me, right?’

「That evening.」

After seeing Veronica and Leo off, Lilia left her bedchambers as well.

She had made plans with Victor yesterday to study those ancient texts with him again tonight.

Unlike the initial screening, this next phase required them to not only organize all the useful information but also to decipher the Demon Lord’s manuscript. The task was far more difficult and the workload much heavier than before.

When Lilia arrived at the library, Victor was already waiting.

The orange glow of the lamp spilled over the young man’s long, nearly silver hair. He looked like snow glittering in the sunset—quiet and cool.

Hearing footsteps at the door, Victor looked up. "You’re here."

A chair sat opposite him, clearly set out for Lilia. "Did you rest well today?"

"It was nice. I slept well."

Lilia sat down, casually picked up a book, and flipped to the corresponding Chapter on the list. "If Veronica and the others hadn’t come over, I probably could have slept a while longer."

"They seem to care about you a lot."

Victor remarked, as if in passing, "Especially Chris."