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Chapter 24

"There was a noble meeting anyway. Since they're all here, it's best to get it over with quickly."

Hunter said it casually. I suddenly felt the weight in my steps as I reluctantly followed him. If all the nobles were gathered, my father, Ulin Narcissus, would probably be there. Given my recent escape from the ice prison, I was afraid about how he would react.

Hunter seemed to sense my anxiety as he tightened his grip on my hand.

"Don't worry. Woofu will be behind us."

As soon as he finished speaking, two knights emerged from the opposite end of the corridor, leading a restrained Woofu. One of the knights was Devan. He approached with a tense face.

"Devan!"

"Young master!"

Devan rushed towards me and knelt down.

"Have you been well so far?"

Even though I saw him yesterday and am meeting him today, Devan was moved as if we had been separated for decades. I gently helped him to his feet.

"We're going to see our father. Devan, stand behind me."

"Count Narcissus...?"

"We're announcing the engagement."

At my words, Devan's eyes widened.

"S-so, um... is the marriage proposal you mentioned... for Crown Prince?"

Well, it was surprising. Devan probably didn't connect my mentioning of marriage when coming to the palace at all. As I nodded, Hunter, who was untying Woofu's mouthguard next to me, answered instead.

"It seems my fiance was already dreaming of marrying me. How naughty."

"Na...ughty you say?"

"If you want, I can call you "Naughty Del" from now on."

"I don't want that."

Even though I responded coldly, Hunter didn't seem to mind. After handing over the mouthguard to the knight, he scratched Woofu's forehead a few times and stood next to me again.

"There you go, Naughty."

[Hunter Mellion's liking increased by +1!]

Is this also some kind of joke...? Seriously, what a lunatic!

Throughout our journey, Hunter maintained his poker face but consistently inserted the word 'Naughty' into our conversation. Naughty you, Naughty boy, Naughty Narcissus, and so on. It made me feel even more like a fool.

Finally, we arrived at the Grand Hall. A servant opened the door for us, and Hunter and I entered the Grand Hall with a large tiger, two knights, and a line of servants and maids following behind us.

Inside the hall, about thirty nobles gathered for a meeting. They were high-ranking and influential enough to attend a noble meeting at the imperial palace. Among them was Count Narcissus, of course.

He grinned widely upon seeing me standing next to Hunter. The likability indicator hovering above his head had dropped to -40 without me noticing. Since he wasn't the male protagonist, his likability wasn't something I cared about, but I didn't feel good about it.

"There's no separate circus troupe here."

A young man with sharp, cat-like eyes and light brown hair sneered at us.

"A Tiger and a beautiful assistant. Will there also be a magic show, brother?"

Only then did I realize that the man was the Second Prince. He looked more handsome than in the game illustrations, but his impression wasn't great, so I didn't feel any liking toward him.

Hunter cleanly ignored the Second Prince's words and escorted me to the front of the Grand Hall. Woofu followed behind us. Half of the nobles looked at Hunter with a mix of fear and awe, while the other half stared at me with enchanted eyes.

"I have summoned you all today to make an important announcement."

Hunter said this and then turned his gaze toward me. All the nobles' attention was now on me.

"I promised to marry Del Narcissus here yesterday."

"M-Marriage?"

"What?"

"Count Narcissus, did you know about this?"

The murmurs of the nobles echoed through the hall. Count Narcissus seemed on the verge of collapsing, grabbing the back of his neck and writhing.

"I will soon hold a grand engagement ceremony. I'll send formal invitations, and I'd appreciate it if everyone could attend to brighten the occasion."

With that, Hunter, in a voice that didn't seem thankful at all, announced our engagement and then ceremoniously put a ring on my finger.

"If you have something you want to say, please do so, my future crown princess."

What am I supposed to say? The moment I was about to shake my head, I heard a familiar ding-dong sound rang in my ears.

1. (Kissing Hunter's hand) Darling, make the engagement ceremony grand.

2. (Waving a whip) Everyone, show respect in front of the future Crown Princess!

3. (Taking off clothes) Anyone who wants to hang out before I officially become a married man should speak up now.

In my opinion, the craziest character in this game seemed to be Del Narcissus, not the male leads. I was dumbfounded and looked in front of me, and just before the scary automatic bed scene alert appeared, I chose option 1.

Smack.

The sound of my lips making contact with Hunter's hand resonated loudly as if I were inhaling his palm.

"Darling, make the engagement ceremony grand."

Narcissus, who finally spat out those words, had a sly smile on his face. Amidst the astonished looks from everyone, including the Second Prince, Hunter subtly lifted the corners of his mouth, showing a faint smile.

[Hunter Elian's likability has increased by +1!]

"Of course. my dear."

Hunter casually replied and briefly kissed the back of my hand.

And so began the start of the Crown Prince couple who would become a world-famous couple.

***.

"Now, let's go to the Imperial Queen's Palace. We have a promise from yesterday to keep."

Hunter, who left the Grand Hall leaving the stunned Royal family and nobles alone, had his knight put a muzzle on Woofu and take him back to his quarters.

He was still holding my hand tightly. Feeling my palms sweating for no reason, I secretly wiggled my fingers, but someone behind us began to clap slowly yet loudly enough to be annoying.

Turning around, the Second Prince was following us. He clapped a few more times, then opened his mouth.

"Engaged to the male prostitute of the Empire, isn't that amazing my brother."

His eyes were fixed on me.

Now... is this bastard picking a fight with me?