Reborn After Betrayal: The Frail True Princess Decides to Give Up-Chapter 48 : She Already Bit This Piece

"I can't distinguish between salt and sugar, and I don't know how salty the salt I sprinkled was..."
Celitia picked up the fried egg with the small bite taken out of it and placed it on her own plate. "I'm sorry, Sophia. You'll just have to make do with plain bread."
She felt somewhat regretful; she should have known better than to try frying the egg.
Indeed, for things one isn't good at, it's best not to be too confident.
Sophia stared blankly at the girl in front of her, finally remembering that Celitia had mentioned earlier that her sense of taste wasn't very sensitive.
Thinking of this, Sophia also felt regretful.
She should have maintained the elegance expected of nobility, keeping her expression neutral so Celitia wouldn't realize there was anything wrong with the food!
Celitia had kindly prepared breakfast for her, and she had inadvertently trampled on Celitia's hidden pain!!
Cutting the bread in her hand into four pieces as if venting her frustration, Sophia thought for a while before hesitantly asking, "Lily, what's wrong with your sense of taste? Can you tell me?"
"I don't know," Celitia wasn't particularly concerned about this question and casually replied, "I got sick once, and it's been like this ever since."
"So it was because of an illness?" Sophia pondered for a moment. "Let me think, perhaps I can find a doctor who can cure you..."
Is this Princess that free? Getting involved in such trivial matters?
Celitia gave her a surprised look and shook her head: "No need. I'm used to it. It doesn't affect my life much."
If she wanted to recover her sense of taste, she would probably first need to remove the curse that clung to her.
But if even she at her peak couldn't solve the problem, Celitia didn't think the royal court doctors of Lansca would have any solution.
"But," Sophia said urgently, "without a sense of taste, wouldn't life lose a lot of its joy?"
Sophia could hardly imagine how dreary her world would become without the pleasure of good food.
Celitia replied calmly: "I'm used to it."
Self-discipline had long become part of her life, and those material desires and pleasures were often forgotten by her.
As long as she set a goal, Celitia could operate like a machine.
However, times had changed, her identity and status had completely transformed, and her original goals had become as elusive as flowers reflected in a mirror or the moon in water. Only that self-discipline remained, etched in her bones, never disappearing.
Celitia sighed inwardly.
"Let's not talk about this. Don't you have things to do? Finish eating quickly and get ready."
While urging Sophia, Celitia also quickly began eating her breakfast.
"Eh? But..."
Sophia widened her eyes, watching Celitia's actions, momentarily hesitant to speak.
After all, she had already bitten both the fried egg and the bread!
Did Celitia really not mind at all?
"What's wrong?" Noticing Sophia's gaze, Celitia asked.
Sophia watched as Celitia ate the piece she had bitten, and the tips of her ears involuntarily turned slightly red.
"N-nothing!!"
Even intimate couples might not eat food the other had bitten into... this was too, too...
But since things had already gone this far, pointing it out would only make her seem petty, wouldn't it?!
Sophia quickly lowered her head, using eating to disguise her embarrassment, only the increasingly spreading blush betraying her.
Celitia: "?"
She truly hadn't paid much attention and didn't understand what Sophia was fretting about.
Celitia didn't like wasting food, so she had to dispose of her own dark culinary creation herself.
Anyway, to her, all those things tasted about the same as plain boiled chicken breast.
Completely unaware that she was actually being flirtatious, Celitia quickly finished her breakfast.
Sophia occasionally stole glances at her, feeling awkward for quite some time before finally remembering something and finding another topic:
"By the way, Lily, how's your injury? Is it better?"
Celitia casually touched the back of her head: "The swelling has mostly gone down. Your medicinal powder worked well."
Sophia sighed in relief, a sense of pride welling up in her heart: "I told you so. When you're injured, you should treat it properly to recover quickly. That medicinal powder was something I brought from the palace. I used it often when I was a child..."
As Sophia talked about her childhood, running around wildly like a monkey causing mischief, Celitia's face couldn't help but take on a somewhat peculiar expression.
It was a bit surprising, but also not entirely unexpected.
Celitia patiently listened to Sophia chattering about her childhood, and when Sophia paused to catch her breath, she finally reminded her:
"Sophia, haven't you forgotten something?"
"Huh? Forgotten what?"
Sophia was momentarily stunned, then suddenly cried out in dismay, "Ah! Yes, I need to finish eating and leave right away!!"
She devoured the remaining bread in a few bites, grabbed her things, and rushed out the door: "I'm going ahead! Just come to the ceremony before it starts!"
"I will."
Celitia responded, watching Sophia's hurried figure, her gaze tinged with a touch of complexity.
As an heir, Sophia was perhaps too casual.
But that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
Living like herself, or like Flora... would be too dull.
Perhaps she could also try to make her life a bit more interesting?
Thinking this, Celitia cleared the dishes, cleaned up, and even watered the flowers in the garden. When she calculated that it was about time, she finally leisurely left.
The standalone building was in a somewhat remote location. Celitia asked for directions, found a small path, and walked through the woods toward the auditorium.
After walking some distance, she could already see the spire of the auditorium when she suddenly heard someone whispering behind the dense shrubbery on the other side.
"Did you get the item?"
"Successfully obtained, Miss Margaret."
"Excellent—this time, let's make Sophia thoroughly embarrassed at the ceremony!"
Celitia instinctively held her breath, crouching on the other side of the shrubs, waiting quietly for the two speakers to leave.
She recognized both the voice and the name, having encountered the person the day before at the dessert shop.
Margaret Brienne, according to Sophia, had never gotten along with her.
Were they plotting something, and she happened to stumble upon it?
Honestly, Celitia had no interest in such matters and only wanted to live her life quietly.
However, the girl's expectant face appeared before her, and she recalled how nervously Sophia had asked if she could call her "Lily."
Celitia slumped her shoulders in resignation.
This must be fate... forcing her to uncover this plot right here.
From the direction of the voices came the sound of paper being torn. A moment later, paper fragments fluttered like snowflakes, scattering on the dew-covered grass.
"Perfect. With the speech gone, let's see if she can still deliver a stirring address on stage!" Margaret waved her hand with satisfaction. "Let's go!"
The rustling footsteps gradually faded away. After ensuring the troublemakers had left, Celitia emerged from the shrubbery.
Looking down at the scattered paper fragments, Celitia couldn't help but frown.
From what Margaret had said, were these shredded papers Sophia's prepared speech?
Celitia knew Sophia was to speak as a representative, but she hadn't realized she had prepared a speech in advance.
Logically, for such an important occasion, shouldn't one avoid reading from a script?
While internally criticizing this, Celitia's expression softened slightly.
Celitia could actually tell that Sophia wasn't very comfortable in the spotlight.
She was well aware that Sophia always used her pride to mask her inner shyness.
After all, Sophia was just a not-yet-adult girl; it was only natural that she couldn't speak extemporaneously like seasoned politicians.
Looking at the mess on the ground, Celitia crouched down resignedly and began picking up the scattered paper fragments one by one.
"I really don't know what to do with you... Good thing I was the one who found this, otherwise..."