It's Annoying Because My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage

The Crown Prince's eyes widened.

“What did you just say, Princess? The grim… what?”

“The… grim reaper… of… society…”

“...”

“...”

Silence.

A river of silence began to flow between the Crown Prince and me.

He stared at me in disbelief. I felt like turning into a handful of ashes and then flying over the horizon.

How the hell do I handle this situation?

Should I just flip the table and be exiled into the neighbouring empire, Hebnia?

It was when I was worrying over this ridiculous dilemma,

“...Pfft.”

A muffled sound escaped the Crown Prince's mouth.

Is he laughing?

I glanced at him sitting across from me with my eyes wide open.

I didn't mishear him.

He was choking, covering his mouth with the back of his hand.

It was obvious that he tried not to laugh as much as possible, but he couldn't hide his shaking shoulders.

“...You can laugh.”

I said quietly.

“No, how could I… h-haha… be so rude…!”

“Please just laugh normally.”

I felt miserable because the Crown Prince’s laughter was dripping like a sack with holes in it.

It would be less miserable if he had pointed his finger at me and laughed at me instead.

“I-I apologize… but the grim reaper of society is a little… ahahaha!”

He finally hugged his belly and burst into laughter.

Even when he did that, he still overflowed with grace.

Usually, when you laugh loudly, you look ridiculous, but the innocent impression of the Crown Prince prevented that.

As expected, the blood of the imperial family is different.

He was still laughing while holding his stomach until he suddenly tilted.

Bang!

The crown prince lost his balance and rolled down from the sofa to the floor.

I stared blankly at him.

He slowly pulled himself up and fortunately, he wasn't hurt.

“I apologize, I'm a little prone to falling.”

“I suppose so.”

It's already the second time I saw him fall. His condition is just as he said.

He cleared his throat and spoke.

“It’s true that people cry when they laugh too much. Thanks to you, I’ve learnt something new.”

I didn't mean to do that, don't thank me.

“Your Highness, with all due respect… Why do you think I'm suited to be your fiancée?”

I regained my composure and asked the Crown Prince.

He lifted the teacup in front of him leisurely.

“The princess seems to have less self-confidence than you think. Princess Skyla, you are an attractive woman who caught my attention.”

Ah, yes.

If someone like Aronia had heard this, her blood sugar level would rise like crazy and she would’ve fainted.

However, there was no such excitement or romance for me, who had never been romantically interested in the Crown Prince.

I just couldn't understand the objective facts.

He's the Crown Prince,  a big shot who’s supposed to be the next emperor.

With such strong power, he has the privilege of proposing to any beautiful woman, and it's a privilege most men could never have, even if they wanted to.

For example, Princess Siesta, rumoured to be the most beautiful woman in the empire, or Princess Emerald, the Demon King's only daughter.

Why would he ask me to marry him and leave those women alone?

I asked him again.

“What did you like about me, Crown Prince?’

My background? Because I come from a neutral family that’s not intertwined with the nobles who keep the imperial family in check?

Or did he, a Crown prince with no influence in society, need a scarecrow?

No, is it because he wants to have a princess who works well next to him?

Stuck in curiosity, I waited impatiently for his answer.

And his answer was beyond my imagination.

“I heard you have the dirtiest personality in this whole empire.”

“..?”

“Get engaged to me and then break it off in a year.  In return, I will send you as a diplomat for a year to the Empire of Hebnia, where you wanted to go.”

“...What?”
 

I was dumbfounded. My head throbbed as if someone had hit me in the back of the head with a sledgehammer.

“Your Highness, what do you mean…”

“Didn't I say I've investigated you to some extent? I know you have always wanted to visit Hebnia.”

He continued calmly.

“So I am going to fulfil your wish on the condition that you become my fiancée. For a year when you are out as a diplomat, the Duke of Kaerun will rule your family.”

No, no. Hold on. That's not the problem.

I took a deep breath. It was another level of frustration compared to when dealing with Lancer.

Having calmed down a little, I stood up straight without knowing it.

“Did you say it was an engagement that would break off in a year?”

“Yes.”

“Then why on earth are you getting engaged?”

People get engaged with the intention to marry their partner one day, so engagement was kind of like a wedding promise.

And now Crown Prince was telling me that he would break that promise in a year without any regrets.

Then there’s no point to get engaged at all.

I strained my ear desperately to hear the crown prince's inner thoughts. But somehow, no sound was heard.

Does he… really have nothing else on his mind right now?

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince across from me was confused.

He leaned back on the sofa, one arm draped lazily over the back of the couch, his other hand holding a mug of tea leisurely.

Then he responded.

“Princess Skyla, I need you. You can't even imagine how happy I was to hear that you have a dirty personality.”

I blinked my eyes.

Panic swept over me and I became a bit dazed.

What the hell does my dirty personality have to do with that conditional proposal? Is there even a guy who likes girls with dirty personalities in the first place…

…Ah.

No way.

Something passed through my head for a moment.

“...I had no idea Your Highness is into that kind of thing.”

I started with a slightly firm tone.

“But Your Highness, I can't make the kind of exchange you want. I respect your preference, but please do not force me to have the same.”

A puzzled expression took over the Crown Prince's face.

“What's the Princess’ preference?”

Oh, to be so naïve about a grown-up topic.

“Arent Your Highness into women with a fierce personality that treats you roughly?”

No matter how much of a workaholic I am, I'm still an adult so I knew what we were talking about.

Don't ask me how I know this.

“Aha.”

The Crown Prince understood what I meant and shook his head.

“That would be fun, but that's not what I want from the Princess.”

Huh? Did you just say that would be fun?

“I just thought with the Princess’ personality, you wouldn't be interested in dating.”

“Dating…”

“That's right. The Princess must be familiar with the upcoming Imperial Ball.”

I briefly answered ‘yes’ to his words.

The Imperial Ball, it’s an event I couldn't forget after going to that last tea party.

“And do you know the purpose of hosting the ball?”

“To reward the noble families who had worked hard for the imperial family… is just a gimmick, the real purpose is to set up an improvised matchmaking site to find a partner for the Crown Prince.”

“You have a good grasp of imperial operations, I like that about the Princess.”

He nodded.

“As you said, I have to find a candidate for the Crown Princess position at this ball. Otherwise, I can't ascend the throne.”

As the Crown Prince spoke, I vaguely understood what he was trying to say.

‘Only those who have a marriage partner to have an heir can inherit a title.’

An imperial law that allows only those who are engaged or married can inherit a title.

Even the imperial family couldn't escape the shackles of this law.

If I'm not mistaken...... perhaps the Crown Prince is facing the same situation as me.

I asked him carefully to confirm my thoughts.

“The Crown Prince needs a partner to ascend the throne.”

“Yes, but I have a problem.”

Clank.

Placing his teacup on the table, the Crown Prince smiled bitterly and rubbed his neck.

“Princess Skyla, can you keep a secret?”

“Yes because I don't have any friends to spread it anyway.”

“I see. That’s so reliable that it's just sad…”

He looked at me with a little pity and sighed.

Although his inner thoughts hadn't been heard all this time, I could intuit the secret is going to be quite shocking.

And the words that followed from the crown prince's mouth were as I expected.

“I want to be single for the rest of my life.”

He wants to live single. He doesn't want to get married at all.

If the current emperor had heard it, he would have been outraged.

An heir is needed to pass on the imperial power from generation to generation, but suddenly the Crown Prince decides he doesn't want to continue it anymore.

The Crown Prince has no patriotism.

What the hell? Is he trying to destroy the imperial family?

After all, if you're a crown prince, you can get anyone you want, right?

If I were a crown prince, I would have one wife, one mistress, and one lover, in order of appearance.

Although I find his remarks shocking, I somehow could understand how he felt.

“Aren't you curious why I want to live single?”

As I pondered in silence, the Crown Prince asked.

“Do you want me to be?”

I'm not that curious.

I don't want to know about other people's difficulties.

“You don't have to. But I'm willing to accept questions.”

He looked like he wanted me to ask something, so I opened my mouth without thinking.

“I'm so curious, I can't help but be rude and ask… why does His Highness wish to live single?”