Chapter 26
Damian Carter was, quite literally, dumbfounded.
“…You should have come to the inn yourself. Who would have thought they’d make a meal for you at night just because you asked?”
Princess Lorea brushed her cheek awkwardly as she looked down at the steaming stew.
They were in the dining area on the first floor of the inn.
Damian had handed a gold coin to the innkeeper, who was dozing at the counter, and placed a simple meal order. In less than twenty minutes, warm bread, creamy stew, a few pieces of meat, and a generous serving of salad were brought to the table.
Lorea blinked wide-eyed, marveling at all the food as if it were some incredible spectacle.
Having lived in the royal palace with constant luxury, it was understandable that everything here seemed foreign to her, yet it was naturally amusing to Damian.
‘She wandered around outside just because she was hungry?’
He couldn’t fully believe her explanation, but she truly didn’t seem to be up to anything suspicious—she just appeared flustered.
‘Looking at her like this, she really is just a kid.’
Come to think of it, she was thirteen this year. If his younger sister were still alive, she would have been exactly the same age.
Damian felt a strange sensation as he spoke.
“Your Highness, this may seem modest to you, but around here, it’s quite a special meal.”
“I know.”
Seeing that Damian might start lecturing her, Lorea widened her already-large eyes and cut him off.
Even though they had only been together for a single day, Damian’s impression of Lorea had shifted considerably.
Before, he had assumed her to be a haughty, foolish princess who knew nothing of the world outside the palace, almost worse than a spoiled brat.
But now, he wasn’t sure whether to call her clever or just… a little unhinged.
Earlier, when she had encountered the First Prince, she had seemed surprisingly smart, but now, it was more like…
‘…a chirping little bird?’
She chattered constantly, ready to contradict anyone at every word, her pride unshakably high. Yet she wasn’t cruel or malicious; if Damian raised his voice, she would quickly shrink and avert her gaze.
“Go ahead and eat.”
The meal in front of them was, frankly, modest for a noble. Damian had been prepared to scold or even scold her if she complained about it.
Yet Lorea took a bite of the stew without hesitation, her eyes sparkling.
“Wow!”
She then tore a piece of bread, dipped it in the stew, and exclaimed in delight.
“This is really delicious.”
“…Does it suit your taste?”
“It’s a new taste for me. I didn’t know food like this existed.”
Her round, pale cheeks moved as she chewed enthusiastically. Damian stared at her, slightly stunned, before shaking his head.
‘Am I… finding this princess cute?’
He must be out of his mind!
Probably because he was too hungry, his judgment was clouded.
Just as he prepared to take a few spoonfuls himself, something unexpectedly appeared in his line of sight.
Lorea was transferring each piece of her meat onto Damian’s plate.
“What are you doing?”
“I wanted the Grand Duke to eat more. I hope you grow quickly.”
“…Excuse me?”
Damian almost forgot his manners, ready to tell her she was out of line, considering she barely had any meat herself. But Lorea added, boldly and nonchalantly:
“I want the Grand Duke to become a Swordmaster quickly. It’s impressive.”
She carefully moved the last piece of meat, smiling brightly. Her round cheeks were tinted pink, like summer peaches.
“Wha… fine. Your Highness, you eat plenty then. You said you were hungry, right? I’ve never heard royal stomach growls before.”
At Damian’s teasing remark, Lorea’s eyes narrowed into a triangle, and she sighed.
“I don’t eat much. I was just getting full anyway.”
Damian glanced at her plate across the table. She had only eaten a piece of bread and a few spoonfuls of stew.
“Are you even human? How do you survive eating that little?”
“I… my father, or rather, His Majesty, liked it when I appeared delicate and frail.”
Lorea said it lightly, dismissing it as her “protective instincts” or something.
Damian’s face twisted with barely restrained irritation.
“What nonsense.”
“Anyway, that’s why I made you eat more, Grand Duke. Think of it as my care. You need to grow fast. The stronger you get, the better.”
“…I must ask, Your Highness, have you forgotten the relationship between the Grand Duke and the royal family?”
“I haven’t forgotten. That’s why I said it.”
“The logic doesn’t match.”
Unlike Carlos, who would overlook other things as long as his interests were safe, Damian was persistent. He insisted on addressing what didn’t make sense.
“What exactly are you thinking?”
“I don’t need to think when I’m giving you meat, do I?”
“You were the same princess who regarded the Grand Duke and the royal family as nuisances. Why are you now encouraging me instead of relying on the Grand Duke’s estate?”
At first, Damian suspected her position in the palace had become precarious. But judging by the First Prince’s behavior in the forest earlier, nothing unusual had occurred behind the scenes. He also didn’t know why the princess had left the palace to come to the Grand Duke’s residence.
Lorea blinked, surprised at the question. Her red eyes rolled, not in avoidance, but as if lost in thought.
Finally, she said:
“…Because I realized it was wrong.”
“Excuse me?”
“I realized everything I believed to be right was false. I understood that I had been foolish. So now I want to correct it, even if I seem disagreeable to the Grand Duke.”
“Good to hear. Disagreeable it is.”
“I also know I may irritate you.”
“That’s also true.”
Even with Damian’s blunt, sharp words aimed at her, Lorea remained calm. She even popped the last piece of bread into her mouth with a proud little shrug. Chewing it, her expression soon relaxed.
‘What… the heck?’
Damian realized that the princess, renowned as the fiercest in the royal family, could display such innocence and foolishly cute expressions.
“…Anyway. It feels strange to speak to the person involved directly. Let’s eat, shall we? I’m about full, and the Grand Duke has barely touched anything.”
Lorea shifted the conversation, offering the salad plate toward Damian.
“Don’t just eat the meat. Have some vegetables too.”
“Who’s telling whom?”
Lorea cut off his reluctant response with a flick of her hand, setting the spoons neatly in place.
For a while, Damian’s astonished gaze remained on her, but he eventually turned away, unable to do anything about it.
