LSLP 68 🍒

LSLP

Posted by Leo, Released on July 27, 2025

Chapter 68.

The atmosphere between the princess and the lieutenant felt so tense, like sharp words might fly at any moment.

Near the sofa behind them, Janet watched the two with interest, as if it had nothing to do with her.

When the door opened, all three of them turned to look. Astrid, feeling the pressure of their stares—especially Alejandro’s sharp eyes—hid behind Enrique without even thinking.

“Miss del Ponto, where have you been! No, actually, how did you even…!”

Alejandro stormed toward them. Enrique stepped forward, took off his hat, and greeted him.

“Don’t be so angry. I just borrowed her for a little while.”

Alejandro finally recognized Enrique and paused. He looked like he wanted an explanation.

Enrique gently pushed Astrid forward and placed the servant’s hat on her head.

“…Tada~.”

Astrid, feeling awkward standing there in silence, added the sound effect with effort.

Alejandro twitched the corners of his mouth but soon sighed deeply. He quickly seemed to understand what was going on.

“…I’ll have to report this to His Majesty.”

He said this while glancing at both the prince and the princess. Enrique and Adelita looked at each other and shrugged.

“His Majesty should know how things are going,” said Adelita calmly.

But Alejandro looked even more upset by her words and raised his voice a little.

“This isn’t about politics—it’s about safety. What if something had happened to Miss del Ponto—”

“Lieutenant Alejandro Fernandez de Galicion.”

Enrique interrupted him with a surprisingly low and calm voice.

“Being loyal to His Majesty is fine, but don’t overstep your position.”

“Your Highness.”

“Safety? Good point. So tell me—which is safer: you watching her alone, or dozens of my men watching over her?”

“….”

“Don’t use Miss Astrid as an excuse, Sir de Galicion. Aren’t you just scared because you failed to carry out His Majesty’s orders properly?”

At Enrique’s cold and blunt tone, Alejandro didn’t respond. He just clenched his fist tightly.

Enrique smiled brightly again.

“Don’t worry, Ale. We’re not going to do anything that might hurt Miss Astrid.”

The prince removed the servant’s hat from Astrid’s head and put it back on his own.

“After all, we’re on the same ship now.”

It was true—both metaphorically and literally.

Then Enrique lifted Astrid’s hand and kissed the back of it. Alejandro looked completely stunned, his jaw dropping slightly. But Enrique walked past him casually, holding out his hand to Janet, who was standing further inside.

“Shall we go now, Miss de Tavernier? Sorry I’m late. I’ll escort you to your place.”

“You also need to pay me back for what I helped you with today.”

“Can’t we just put it on my tab?”

“Then you’ll have to sign an IOU, Your Highness.”

Janet took his hand, and they started walking away slowly. Astrid shouted behind her.

“Miss de Tavernier!”

Astrid had so many questions. Why did she send a gift just before leaving for Herafa after disappearing for so long? How did the gift match her Pau Danalu dress so perfectly?

And why did that jewel glow the same yellow color as the ceremonial offering?

But Janet didn’t turn around. She just left a short reply.

“I’ll write you a letter.”

Once Janet and Enrique left the room, only Adelita, Alejandro, and Astrid remained.

The atmosphere was cold.

Neither the princess nor the lieutenant looked like they wanted to speak to each other. Instead, they both looked at Astrid.

Astrid, trying to avoid Alejandro’s gloomy mood, turned her head toward the princess. The contrast of her red shawl and green dress was striking.

“Oh right, I forgot to explain this outfit to you. It’s based on how you looked at the ceremony.”

Astrid narrowed her eyes and blurred her vision slightly to get a better look. The red shawl almost looked like it was stained with blood.

“I explained it to the other noble ladies close to me. They’ll probably start copying the look.”

“Is that really necessary? It wasn’t exactly a good scene.”

“Don’t worry. People don’t see what’s real—they see what they want to see. Hardly anyone actually saw you covered in blood.”

The princess lifted her shawl lightly.

“What makes this outfit powerful is the strong color contrast and the fact that it’s based on a real event. If we just add the theme of ‘Miss del Ponto’s courage,’ people will start believing that wearing this makes them brave too.”

Astrid quietly looked at the outfit and remembered the recent battle with the monster.

Her heart pounding, her hands and feet tingling. She had felt truly alive during the fight—but that moment had come with the risk of death. She had taken a life with her own hands.

She couldn’t exactly explain how she felt seeing that outfit, but one thing was certain: it didn’t feel good.

“Battle… fighting isn’t for showing off.”

She forced the words out. They didn’t fully express how she felt, but the princess seemed to understand anyway and nodded.

“I know. But there are more people in this world who know fashion than who know real battle.”

By “this world,” she likely meant the world of nobles where Enrique and Adelita belonged. And Astrid had just taken her first step into that world.

“If you want ‘Astrid del Ponto’ to have any real influence, you’ll need to become a hero.”

“A hero?”

“I can guess what Enrique probably told you—‘just sit still, you’re already symbolic enough.’ But I think differently.”

The princess looked at Alejandro.

“Ale. Soldiers like playing cards, right? What do you do when you get a good hand?”

“Your Highness. I’m not in the mood for riddles.”

“So serious.”

Adelita chuckled.

“Even with a good hand, the outcome depends on how you play it. You need to remove threats, raise the stakes, and make your hand even more valuable.”

“You mean you want to raise my value.”

“You should at least have a name that matches Lord del Ponto’s.”

The princess stepped forward and took Astrid’s hands in hers.

“Thank you for agreeing to stand by me, Miss del Ponto. As loyal as you are to me, I promise to be loyal to you.”

Her voice was warm. Though Astrid still felt uneasy, she couldn’t help but return the princess’s grip.

“Still, I didn’t expect you to skip the tea party entirely. I thought maybe we could at least have a cup together. But Ale looks too angry for even that.”

Only then did Astrid turn to look at Alejandro beside her. His already cold face looked even paler now.

“If we’re done here, I’ll escort Miss del Ponto home now, Your Highness.”

Despite his pale face, his voice was completely calm. Astrid realized again how good he was at hiding his emotions.

“Very well. Then our next meeting will be in Elcantador.”

The princess waved gracefully.

Alejandro gave a sharp bow and led Astrid out of the salon.

From then on, silence fell like a heavy blanket. Alejandro didn’t say a single word—not in the carriage, nor when they arrived at the villa.

In fact, he even walked past Jorge, who came to greet them, without a word and went straight to his room. Only after the door closed did Jorge speak to Astrid in a quiet voice.

“Did something happen? He seems angry.”

Astrid puffed out her cheeks and let out a sigh.

“There were a few reasons to be upset today.”

“He’s not the type to get mad easily.”

“Really? Then when does he usually get mad?”

“Well… not over personal stuff. Usually only when something goes wrong with a mission or command.”

Astrid lowered her head, deep in thought. One cold sentence from Enrique echoed in her mind:

“Aren’t you just scared because you failed to follow His Majesty’s orders properly?”

If Alejandro was the type to strictly follow commands and lacked flexibility, then yes—he was likely mad because of her actions.

In Herafa, she had slipped away from him twice. One was a joke, the other was accidental.

But today wasn’t a joke. And it wasn’t an accident. It meant, from his view, that he lost track of someone he was supposed to guard.

Even if it wasn’t about failure—it was definitely about wounded pride.