Princess, Please Fall in Love with Me-Chapter 29 : Chapter 29

Chapter 29 : The Spider’s Web, Stirring Everyone’s Heartstrings
"Mr. Weber, I placed the snacks and tea on the table."
"Ah, thank you, Miss Maid."
Hearing the sound of the maid closing the door, Weber let out a sigh of relief and slumped into the chair.
Nearby, Loka grabbed his snacks and started eating them casually.
She didn’t care much for the taste of the tea as a child and set it aside.
"Your taste in snacks isn’t bad, except for the tea."
"Miss Loka, please don’t always appear in other people’s rooms without a sound. It’s dangerous—for my fragile and nervous nerves."
"If you don’t give me a good explanation, I’ll make things dangerous for you right now."
Loka nonchalantly toyed with the gleaming dagger in her hand, giving Weber, who was still shaken, a half-smile.
She was clearly dissatisfied about his faked death.
Although she knew the Sixth Princess had taken him, having her prey snatched by another hunter at the last moment still left her with some resentment.
So, Loka was always thinking about how to settle this small score with Yiwen.
But now, she had more important matters to investigate, so she put that aside for the time being.
"Scholar Keynes, do you know anything about the Grand Duke of Saito's?"
Weber didn’t respond.
He turned to the bookshelf, pulled down a thick historical tome, its pages wrinkled from the passage of time and covered in dust.
"The Saito’s Empire, since its founding by the first emperor, always adhered to the principle of the strong reigning supreme. Among its tales, there’s a legendary story that everyone loves to talk about—the hero who emerged from the arena."
"The empire’s arena held criminals and warriors captured in war. If someone could achieve one hundred consecutive victories in the arena, they could shed all their crimes and lowly status, even being recruited into the army as a warrior."
At this point, Weber abruptly added some details from the Saito’s Code.
"Of course, those guilty of heinous crimes were usually executed outright. There was no chance for them to escape and continue harming the people."
"During the reign of the previous king, there was a formidable gladiator who, with his bare fists, achieved ninety-nine consecutive victories.His opponent for the hundredth victory was none other than the hot-blooded previous king himself, who took to the arena."
"No one knows, nor dares to mention, the outcome of that final battle. All that’s known is that the gladiator was taken from the arena by the previous king and became one of his generals."
The answer was obvious.
The one who rose from obscurity to become one of the most powerful nobles in the empire in such a short time could only be the Grand Duke of Saitos, who carved his path with his fists.
"However, due to his excessive emphasis on so-called gratitude for the king’s recognition, the Grand Duke instilled in his children the same loyalty of offering their hearts to the emperor. This created an invisible rift between him and his family."
"His eldest daughter fell out with him, left home alone, and her whereabouts remain unknown. From then on, the Grand Duke of Saito's fell into decline, retreating to the role of a behind-the-scenes instructor, never returning to the battlefield."
At this point, Weber said no more.
He closed the book and returned to his desk, focusing intently on refining his notes.
Seeing she couldn’t extract more information, Loka stretched lazily, preparing to leave through the window.
"Rumor has it that when the Grand Duke’s eldest daughter left, she took only one thing—the birthday gift her father gave her when her mother was still alive: a custom-made silver sword."
Before closing the window, Weber deliberately added this remark, whether intentionally or not.
The murmur reached Loka’s ears as she climbed onto the rooftop.
Meanwhile, the Empress began directing the noble young ladies in etiquette practice.
The method was common: balancing a water bottle on their heads while gracefully walking a distance with a tray in their hands.
Most noble ladies had been taught by governesses at home and were somewhat experienced, so a small test like this was no challenge.
But when it came to Yiwen… everyone looked at her with gloating expressions.
"Your Highness Yiwen, if you can’t do it, don’t force yourself. After all, we’ve all had teachers to guide us. It’s fine if you, who never received such education, fail."
"Yes, Her Majesty the Empress is just testing your basics. As a princess of the empire, you surely wouldn’t want to be outdone by us ordinary noble ladies, would you?"
In the past, openly mocking and ridiculing a royal heir would have been a direct affront to the Kelake Royal Family’s dignity.
The parents of these noble ladies would likely have wanted to press their heads down to apologize.
But this was a tea party hosted by the Empress, and they still dared to speak maliciously to her.
It didn’t take much to realize they had someone’s tacit approval.
Yiwen coldly glanced at the Empress, who wore a smug expression.
"Your Highness the Third Princess, why are you sitting to the side? Don’t you want to watch this spectacle?"
"I dare not. I’m afraid of getting into trouble."
Yileta shook her head, casually observing the peculiar atmosphere.
A dim-witted noble lady thought she was afraid of the Empress and carelessly told her to relax.
Yileta only smiled without responding.
At that moment, a scream came from Yiwen’s direction—it seemed the show had finally begun.
Yiwen, with a slip, let the water bottle fall from her head, and by sheer coincidence, it struck a spectating noble lady in the face, drenching her with water.
Yiwen, however, put on an innocent, pitiful expression.
"I’m so sorry, miss. My basics aren’t solid yet."
Seeing the other’s furious look, Yiwen feigned seriousness, picking up a new water bottle, placing it on her head, and meticulously starting the practice again.
Then, with another “accidental” stumble, she tripped another lady nearby.
Having seen two people fall victim, the previously arrogant ladies now regarded Yiwen as a plague god, keeping their distance.
Yiwen, unhurried, reached the Empress, holding the tray in one hand and lightly grasping her skirt with the other.
"To the moon of the empire, the great wise consort who coexists with the sun, I offer my greetings."
"Your Majesty, watch out!"
The drenched noble lady suddenly shouted.
Having witnessed the earlier incidents, the Empress instinctively raised her fan to shield her face.
Just as everyone thought the water bottle was about to fall.
With an elegant curtsy from Yiwen, the water bottle remained steady on her head, and the tray stayed perfectly still.
She completed the Empress’s required exercise almost flawlessly.
Amid the incredulous gazes around her, Yiwen smiled.
These noble ladies, who thought themselves so elegant and superior, considered something she could learn in a few steps as grounds to mock her?
Utterly laughable.
"As expected of His Majesty’s daughter. I knew you could master this easily."
The Empress, recovering from her false alarm, seemed eager to forget her earlier embarrassment.
She smiled and praised Yiwen while shooting a fierce glare at the noble lady who had shouted the warning.
"In that case, may I take my leave, Your Majesty?"
"No, you cannot leave yet."
The Empress’s maid blocked Yiwen.
The Empress finally revealed her true colors, looking at Yiwen with a wicked expression, fanning herself elegantly.
Seeing the bewildered looks of the noble ladies around her, Yiwen could only slowly step back.
Yileta, already lounging carelessly in her chair, squinted and dozed off leisurely.
"There are still many lessons to learn today. You can’t be willful, Yiwen…"