“Could it be that they are trying to lure you outside the palace so that they can kill you without any hassle?” Bodil almost whispered in Hilda’s ear. 

Bodil was a kitchen maid who generally replaced Wolfy during this time of the month. Unlike Wolfy, who was a purebred wolf warrior, Bodil was a half-breed.

Even if it wasn’t too strong, the tribe still had some prejudice against the half-breed. And their number wasn’t small. 

Being born and brought up in the tribe, their aesthetics were too different from humans. However, none of the packs of the tribes accepted them.

Naturally, without an alpha to lead them, they return to human society. Some become mercenaries to sell their above-average capability. But most of them live like any other human without exposing their origin.

Wolfy had gathered many of them under an alpha, Hilda. On top of that, the blood of the supreme chief was flowing through her veins. So the number continued to increase. About 7-8 were smuggled into the palace as servants and maids.

Bodil was one of them. Looking at her, Hilda nodded, adding, “That is the most probable reason. But do they really need to break a butterfly on a wheel?”

“Are you saying it is too much effort?” 

“Of course. I am an abandoned princess. If they really needed to take care of me, they would have sent me somewhere away from the capital and taken care of me on the road. Like they did with my mother.”

As soon as Hilda started to talk about her mother, Bodil didn’t say anything else. While Hilda continued, “but they give me the status of a prince, not a princess.”

“However, why did you get the title of the third prince? Shouldn’t you be the seventeenth prince? Even if only in terms of age, you should be the fifth prince.”

Hilda showed the emerald color linen that she had received from the emperor. As it opened, there was a silver sun in the middle of it.

“Do you know what it is?” Bodil shook her head, and Hilda explained, “This is the status of an imperial prince who has been recognized by the emperor. This flag means that I am allowed to raise an army in the name of the emperor."

"Even if every son of the emperor is called prince, the emperor didn't recognize them. The emperor had given only two princes the status of the imperial prince before me. The first prince had an orange one while the second prince had a purple one."

"The emperor's flag contains the golden sun, while our flags contain the silver sun." The more she spoke, the deeper the frown grew on her face. "But why? Why would they want me to fight for the crown?"

As soon as she realized it, the expression on Bodil's face changed. She came close and whispered, "could it be the emperor? Is he trying to use a borrowed weapon to kill you?"

Even if Hilda could only guess the identities of ‘they,’ she was sure it wasn’t the emperor. After all, if he wanted to take care of her, he wouldn’t have needed to lift a finger, but he didn’t.

Hilda shook her head, saying, “It’s not him. As much as I could think, it must be someone related to the other two princes. Rather than borrowing the other to kill me, they might be trying to use me to take care of someone else. Or something like that.”

Hilda’s words made little sense to her. Boril couldn’t help asking, “But, other than the emperor, who else can confer the title of the imperial prince?” 

“The imperial court.” Hilda could only laugh at the naivety of Boril, adding, “Do you really think the Emperor could do whatever he wants? It must be someone with strong enough support in the court.”

“Then what should we do?” Politics was something that made very little sense to her. So Bodil could only follow Hilda’s decision. 

“What else can we do?” Hilda smiled helplessly and motioned to the emerald-colored silk and jewels, saying, "Prepare a carriage for me to go out."

“Are you going to prepare a dress for the ball?” Receiving Hilda’s nod, Bodil added, “I heard that only a few poor nobles would be invited, and…”

“And those who will come from better backgrounds will surely have ulterior motives.” Hilda completed her sentence. If they didn’t, that would have been surprising.

Remembering something important, Hilda said, “Tell Wolfy to send words to Hati. Tell him to meet me at the tailor. Even if we can’t change fate, we should be prepared for it.”

Bodil nodded and asked after hesitating a moment, “Are you really going to marry one of the nobles? They might be spies from the enemies.”

“Even if they are, I couldn’t ignore the order from the emperor. There is nothing else we could do about it other than being more cautious. It is not like we have any other option.”

“Your highness, the fifth imperial princess and countess Fern has arrived.” The knight waiting outside the door reported, bringing a rare smile to Hilda's face.

“Do you know what Fern likes to eat?”

Bodil was a little confused. She knew very well that the relationship between Hilda and Fern was not good. Naturally, she didn’t understand the reason behind the sudden inquiry, but she nodded nonetheless.

“Prepare some tea and some snacks she doesn’t like.” As the door opened, Bodil exited.

Olanna and Fern came in, and a pair of maids followed them. It was the room of a princess, so the escort knight had to wait outside.

As soon as Olanna entered, she turned back to order her maid. “You don’t need to follow me. Wait outside.”

“But, princess…”

“Wait outside.” Even if she was just nine years old, one couldn’t ignore the aura of dominance around her. The maid could only follow her order. Naturally, Fern ordered her maid to do the same.

Hilda realized that without the servants, her scheme would function better. Naturally, when the maids left the room, a bright smile appeared on Hilda’s face.

Olanna dashed in and hugged her as soon as the door closed. Olanna sat on Hilda's lap instead of the chairs surrounding the tea table.

“Sister, you have promised me to tell the story of the iron serpent and the iron crane. Did they really take people in their belly and carry them to another place without eating them?”

Hilda nodded with a bright smile. In a place where people are at each other's throats, Olanna’s innocent action was like a gust of warm breeze. She really wouldn’t mind having Olanna as her own sister.

This child, on the other hand, was quite choosy about stories. She was more interested in railway and aviation stories than in fairy tales from Earth.

And Hilda told her more about it. Even if Fern hated Hilda, the story of a magical device that could capture the present mesmerized her.

The storytelling continued till Bodil brought back tea and snacks. Looking at the hibiscus tea and chestnut cookies, Fern frowned. 

She was about to show her anger when Olanna asked, “sister, didn’t you meet father? Did our father give you those?”

Looking at the emerald-colored fabric, Hilda answered, “Yes. I need to participate in a ball.”

“Oh!” Olanna glanced at her with glee in her eyes. “Really? Are you going to a ball party? Can you bring me along? I've never gone to one before. Mother never brought me along.”

Hilda looked at her in amusement, thinking how this girl could be so lucky for her. The topic she wanted to raise for so long was now on the table. 

She patted Olanna’s head and said, “I will take you with me on the next full moon.”

“Yes.” When Olanna looked at Fern in excitement, she found Fern was angrily staring at the tea and snacks.

“Sister, can sister Fern come with us? She looks unhappy?” 

Fern wanted to say something, but before she could, Hilda said, “I won’t take her. I won’t even let her enter the party.”

As she gazed angrily at Hilda, the words she intended to say were stuck to her lips. “You won’t allow me. Even if you beg me, I will not go.”

“Would you please? Who is going to beg you? You're just saying that since you won't be able to go even if you wanted to.”

“I can't, huh?” Fern jumped up from her chair. Two big mounds were quivering in anger as she stared at Hilda. 

“I will come.” Fern pointed fingers at Hilda, saying, “I will see how you are going to stop. I will go. Just wait and see. I will see who can stop me.”

A smirk came on Hilda's lips as she looked at Fern, who had just left the room in a rage. In her euphoria, she had overlooked the fact that someone else was smiling triumphantly on her lap.

************

Even if it was a simple procedure of choosing a wife, it was a very long process. And she was too exhausted, both physically and mentally.

Hilda had never expected that the Emperor and the Empress would come out to introduce her as the third imperial prince. He also informed her that an official ceremony would be held at a later date.

Even if they left after the introduction, it was still too much of a shock for her.

 All the bride candidates soon crowded around her. She had to take time to talk to every one of them. Mingling all these beautiful women was an exciting event, but it was exhausting.

Other than these ladies, no other women were permitted in the ballroom, not even the maids. In the ballroom, only male servants served food and drinks. It was, after all, a party for noble ladies.

Then Hilda was forced to join in the dancing with all the willing ladies. Some were attempting to throw themselves on Hilda, while others were attempting to conceal their true intentions while flirting with her, and there was a couple she couldn't even read.

However, she couldn't even find the person she was looking for when the first dance began. She sighed, thinking, ‘she isn’t as dumb as she looks.’

However, it didn’t change the situation a lot. She had to take a wife nonetheless. She would rather marry an enemy, whom she knew for a long time, rather than taking a woman, with an ulterior motive, as her wife.

“Thank you for coming, Lady Garcia.” Finishing her fifth dance, Hilda courteously kissed the back of the gorgeous woman. “It’s my pleasure to share a dance with you.”

‘She is a beautiful woman.’ Hilda couldn’t help but praise her. She was 17 years old, yet her body had just the right amount of maturity to suit her taste.

In this world, they considered 15 years old an adult, and let’s not forget the fact she too was 15 years old. After all, her mother had given birth to her when she was just 17. 

While none of them were older than 20, they were carrying their white dress exceptionally well. Even in this world, white is the symbol of purity.

Between the waves of whites, she was very eye-catching in her emerald-colored suit. As soon as Lady Garcia moved away, another one came to take her place. Even if she was tired, she accepted her hand with a smile.

The music started, the dance began, and the door opened. Two new but familiar figures appeared who weren’t wearing white. One was Olanna, who was wearing a beautiful pink dress, whereas holding her hand was Fern, dressed in electrifying purple. 

Looking at the triumphant smile on Fern’s face, she really wanted to go there to tease her. But she couldn’t leave in the middle of the dance. It was only after twelve more dances she got the chance to take a breath. 

“What is with your silly get-up?” Fern had no intention of hiding her contempt. “So you are now trying to become a prince?”

“Good evening, brother.” Olanna greeted, following the standard customs. 

“Huh, Brother? Are you trying to be a jester?” Fern's laughter was particularly audible, drawing the attention of all the other women.

But she quickly remembered her purpose for coming here. She smirked, asking, “See, I have come. No one can stop me if I want to do something. You have lost.”

“I have lost.” Hilda’s straightforward acceptance wasn’t something Fern was expecting. She was stunned for a moment. Before she could recover, one of the officials approached and whispered something into Hilda's ear.

“As you have already arrived, let us start the banquet.” 

Looking at the back of Hilda, who followed the official to the crown table, Fern mumbled, “what’s wrong with her today?”

“My imperial father has instigated him as the third imperial prince.” Olanna pointed at the emerald color flag and added, “that is his flag. And this is her bride-selection ball.”

“Whatever.” Fern had no intention of listening to the boring topics and walked to receive a drink.

“On the auspicious day of…” The official’s voice attracted everyone’s attention. “... The honorable third prince will be choosing one lucky woman to become the Emerald princess.” 

A few moments later, Fern, who was sipping her drink with Olanna, became aware that all eyes had turned to her. She looked around to find that Hilda was walking towards her with a smile on her face.

“What?” Even if she hadn't heard what the official was saying just now, she had a feeling something wasn't quite right. 

“What are you trying to do?” Staring at Hilda in anger, she almost shouted.

Hilda grabbed her hand and smiled, “I take you to be my wife.”

“What?” Fern’s shout was sharp enough to shatter the glass. She was trying to remove her hand from Hilda’s grip but naturally couldn’t, “I won’t marry you.”

This time the official calmly explained, “The third prince, Hilda Sunborne, is allowed to take any woman, who is present here, as his wife.”

“Do you know who I am? I am Countess Fren Earling. And who are you to tell me that I have to marry this freak.”

The official looked at the person whom the countess just insulted. Seeing Hilda was still smiling, he breathed a sigh of relief. 

He wanted to calmly explain that the position of an imperial prince was far superior to that of a countess. Unless she is a dutchess, she couldn’t annul the marriage.

But that would have been possible if it was a typical marriage. In this case, only the person who proposed the marriage has the authority to annul it. After all, even the emperor couldn’t take back the words he had said.

“Pardon me, Countess Earling. This marriage is approved by our glorious sun himself. We can’t annul it.”

Her face turned pale as soon as she heard the emperor's name, and her legs gave way. Only then she understood the meaning behind Hilda’s smile.

Do you guys like the new cover? Let me know in comments. And thank you for all of your supports. 

I would get busy later, so I have to publish the chapter early. The next chapter will be on sunday, around noon (GMT).

Thank you Thernn, for becoming the first suporter on patreon.

The advance chapter will be on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/annonbee) in 12 hours.

Tomorrow, my new novel (Conquest: A Space Odyssey) will be available on Scrriblehub. On Patreon, you can get a sneak peek at the new novel.