Chapter 55
Unlike her, who was horrified at the sight, the daughter of Marquis Blen, who looked like Ollie, showed no interest in the Lady of Lascaille.
With a look of boredom, she glanced briefly at Lillietta on the ship and then turned back to her mother. As the marchioness nagged about something, the young lady frowned and pouted.
Even her disgruntled expression was identical to Ollie’s, making it impossible for Rita to look away. As she climbed the boarding ramp, she kept sneaking glances toward the young lady of the Marquis of Blen.
“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Lady Lascaille.”
While she was distracted, she didn’t notice that Archduke Joseph of Adicle, already aboard the ship, was blocking the end of the boarding ramp to greet her.
“Lady! Be careful!”
She also realized too late that the boarding ramp suddenly wobbled unnaturally.
“……!”
As she slipped off the shaking ramp and fell toward the river, Lillietta caught sight of Archduke Joseph reaching his hand out to her.
The corners of his mouth were slightly curved. As if he had been waiting for this, he immediately jumped in after her.
‘Ah.’
She quickly figured out what was happening.
‘He must’ve wanted to stage a dramatic rescue.’
Because the ship was tall, Lillietta didn’t fall straight into the water.
It was only a brief moment, but she was used to handling unexpected situations. It was more than enough time.
As she fell, she grabbed a rope hanging off the side of the ship. She pulled it up, wrapped it around her hand to reduce friction, and held on tight with considerable strength.
‘Oops, I used my enhanced strength again.’
Her thin dress puffed up then sank. Still clinging safely to the rope, she turned her head.
The archduke passed her with a dumbfounded expression and plunged into the water.
With a splash, water erupted in a wave. She watched it all unfold with slight exasperation.
Then, suddenly, a pink mass came tumbling down after him.
Instinctively, Rita grabbed it. Wrapping it around one arm, she pulled—and locked eyes with wide, lime-green eyes.
“……Lady Deweyrebourg. What are you doing here?”
“Ah, uh, I, I thought you were falling, Lady Lascaille, so I—I tried to catch you… but you didn’t fall?”
“How exactly would you catch someone falling into the water?”
“I know, right…”
“Who’s rescuing who now.”
Rita let out an incredulous laugh. As she chuckled, the flustered Lavinia, dangling beside her, turned bright red.
“Rita!”
From the upper railing, a pale-faced Leonhardt shouted. With one arm wrapped tightly around Lavinia’s waist and the other gripping the rope, Rita yelled back.
“Pull us up!”
Leonhardt quickly assessed the situation and, with the royal guards aboard, hoisted the rope up with remarkable speed.
Once safely on deck, Rita let Lavinia go. The girl tumbled away and seemed to babble something, but Rita couldn’t make it out. Her vision was spinning.
‘Damn side effects.’
She cursed inwardly as dizziness crept in. Luckily, she had used only a small amount of strength, and her body had good compatibility with the “Ode”—not enough to make her nauseous.
Someone caught her staggering arm. Thinking it was Leonhardt, she leaned toward the figure, only to see something dark in her blurry vision.
‘Leon was wearing white today, though?’
The dizziness subsided quickly due to the small dose. After blinking a few times, her vision cleared, and she saw who was supporting her.
It was the crown prince.
Startled, Rita pushed him away. Though he felt solid to the touch, he stepped back without resistance. Once she stood upright, his deep-set eyes looked down at her.
“…Glory to the descendant of the Black Dragon. Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Don’t mention it.”
His reply was indifferent, but his gaze lingered strangely, almost clinging to her. Before she could respond, Leonhardt reached her with a pale face.
“Rita, are you okay? Are you hurt? Show me your hands, quickly.”
“I’m fine, brother. Not a scratch on me.”
She showed him her intact palm to reassure him.
Meanwhile, the royal guards were hauling the rope again. At the end of it dangled a soaking-wet Archduke Joseph, being pulled up like a caught fish. A knight carrying a blanket rushed toward him.
Rita recognized him as the same knight who had stood beside the archduke when he blocked the boarding ramp earlier. He had one foot resting on the ramp then too.
“Oh my… His Grace the Archduke looks like a drowned rat.”
“He must’ve tried to save Lady Lascaille? But she came up fine, and the archduke…”
“Why did he jump in at all? Maybe he was just being impulsive.”
Among the nobles who had boarded for the luncheon, whispers and chuckles began to spread.
The archduke’s face turned red upon hearing them. He glared at Lillietta while clutching the blanket, but when their eyes met, he quickly composed himself.
“I’m just relieved that the lady is unharmed! Though my sacrifice may seem pointless, I acted instinctively out of concern for my beloved in danger—without thought of consequence! Indeed, your dazzling beauty remaining untouched by the cruel waters is reward enough. More than enough…”
He clutched his chest dramatically and spoke as if he were the tragic hero. Rita gently pushed past Leonhardt and approached him.
“Your Grace.”
“Ah, yes—say anything, my beautiful lady.”
She smiled faintly as she brushed the wet black hair from his forehead. Joseph’s face instantly turned dazed.
Then she lowered her hand and pointed to the corner of his mouth.
“Next time, it’s best not to smile when shaking the ramp. Thanks to that, I didn’t fall in.”
“…Excuse me?”
“There are other ways to get to know someone than throwing them into a river and saving them after.”
Joseph blinked, not immediately understanding her words. But the surrounding nobles caught on quickly.
“He smiled?”
“Then don’t tell me he did it on purpose…?”
“I did think he jumped in a little too quickly…”
“So Lady Lascaille anticipated the shaking ramp and grabbed the rope…?”
“Oh my, the archduke must have wanted to play the hero.”
He had tried to stage a dramatic rescue, but misread the situation—and ended up soaking wet while she stayed dry.
Even more amusing than his public marriage proposal.
Since the crown prince had already diminished the Adicle Archduchy’s authority, no one felt the need to hold back. Murmurs and discreet chuckles filled the air, and Joseph’s expression twisted as he realized what had happened.
“I’ve learned something new about you today, Your Grace. Unfortunately, we don’t seem to be compatible. I hope your next attempt at getting to know someone is better planned.”
Rita calmly addressed the trembling archduke, then turned and walked back to Leonhardt.
He gave her a wry smile of admiration.
“I think we owe your etiquette tutor a bonus.”
“Was that a ladylike response?”
“Yes, very much so. But, uh, just curious—how would you have responded if you hadn’t held back?”
“I’d have killed him.”
“…Killed?”
“If someone pulls a dangerous stunt like that, they shouldn’t be allowed to live. Leave them alone, and they’ll eventually cause something worse.”
“R-Right…”
“Don’t worry, brother. I’d never do something like that here. I always keep in mind that this is a different world.”
Rita felt quietly proud. It seemed like she had finally achieved her goal of “adapting to this world.” Even being the center of attention among all these strangers didn’t faze her now.
The crown prince, who had been watching the scene from a distance, approached the siblings.
“Lady.”
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“There’s something I’d like to ask.”
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, a yacht anchored near the ship tilted sharply. With a loud crack, it was sucked into the river.
Some people gasped in surprise.
“Huh?”
“W-Why is the boat…?”
Then the river that swallowed the yacht began to churn and bubble. From within, something huge erupted—grabbing and crushing another yacht in an instant.
People stared at the thing that had wrapped around and crushed the boat.
A long, black, sleek pillar-like object.
It was so massive that no one could recognize it at first. But the large suction cups all over it brought one thing to mind.
“An… octopus tentacle?”
Someone muttered blankly.
The suckers were larger than human heads—but yes, it definitely resembled a tentacle.
