Psyche, who grew up surrounded by dense mountains, learned about these herbs at an early age and was very familiar with them.
She spoke quickly, saying that this was not a difficult question.
“Your Highness brought it, didn't you?”
Psyche, who gradually recognized the identity of the scent emanating from the side of the prince, responded with a question.
She didn't have time to take care of the plants after marrying the Duke, so she forgot about it. Previously, the Crown Prince would have known that he had Zhavia Paper as soon as he arrived at the banquet.
“You've become so boring.”
I made a weird face. At her words, the waitress asked with a puzzled face.
"Yes?"
“Zafia tea leaves. I believe His Highness is putting them on his body.”
Then the servant slapped his forehead forcefully.
“Ah. He said it was very hard to get, but he said he had a cup in the morning and took it with him. I didn’t know he would bring it all the way here...”
He was being treated as an outsider in the royal family, and this was something he would do.
The leaves of the Zafia plant have a distinctive and strong aroma, and have been used as a spice in other countries.
She wasn't like ordinary people, so she couldn't escape her sense of smell, which had been trained to differentiate and smell herbal scents after years of studying plants.
“From now on, after making tea with Zafia leaves, he should not drink alcohol. Tell him.”
“Pisiki,” who was about to turn around, added another word.
“Remember that it is possible to detoxify a small amount of poison by drinking unexpectedly cold water or ice...”
Psyche explained calmly. Contrary to how wary she was at first, the servant expressed his gratitude to her several times.
He also did not forget to apologize for his previous rudeness.
After trying to smile, she quickly moved away from the Crown Prince. Sweat was shining on Saiki's face.
“…”
Ignoring the gaze of the Duke, who was looking at her with his arms crossed and a strange expression on his face, Saiki began to walk slowly.
She felt that her body was not in good condition. The Duke's look as if he was questioning her was not very pleasant, but it was more urgent to leave this place before that.
This was due to the fact that Zafia leaves were harmful to pregnant women. It was okay for a while, but it was too much for too long. That's why her body felt lethargic. Furthermore, her face stiffened as her headache became severe. Alexa looked at her as she walked slowly. Saiki stumbled suddenly.
Are you tired, ma'am?
Alexa asked and quickly walked towards her. Then Duke Clint, who was following her with a strange expression, slowly opened his mouth.
“Let's go back.”
At this point, Saiki made a weird face.
"actually?"
“Yes, I don’t think you can move forward with this body, wouldn’t it be difficult for you and the baby?”
“…”
It would have been as good as usual. But now he didn't seem so nice anymore because he was only talking about the baby.
“Yes, for him, I am just a body to carry his child...”
Psyche took a long sigh. She hated Duke Clint and wished she could stay longer, but she was aware that her condition was deteriorating rapidly, so she nodded without complaint. It was not acceptable to wait a little longer and wait four months.
Clint sighed and supported her. It was time to leave the park where the party was being held. Clint paused for a moment as if thinking about something.
“My wife, I'm sorry. Wait a minute.”
He stopped her at the entrance to the park and went out somewhere. It seemed rather urgent.
Alexa quickly snatched Saiki from Clint's hands and stood next to her. She looked at the Duke's back, which had disappeared. I wondered if there was anything more urgent than a sick and hungry wife.
It didn't bother her at all to think about him breaking expectations of him and behaving like that.
It was just a contractual relationship between them. But she was unknowingly attracted to his extreme kindness. At first she thought she couldn't believe it.
Think about it right away. You can live a much more comfortable life if you don't trust anyone in the first place. She also learned from her parents' accident...while she lived with such determination not to put her trust in anyone.
She seemed to have forgotten that because she had a comfortable life.
Psyche smiled.
She took a deep breath and tried to control her churning stomach. It may or may not have improved. It may or may not have improved. At that moment she was thinking about wanting to lie down anywhere.
Suddenly someone called them.
“You are there.”
It was disrespectful to refer to the Duchess like that, so Saiki and Alexa frowned at the same time.
She was surprised to hear the words, which could not be easily heard in such a place where only nobles gathered, but it was the Crown Prince who called them unexpectedly.
She had heard rumors about how free-spirited and selfish he was, but she didn't expect it to be this bad. The Crown Prince appeared in front of Saiki with a completely different expression, because he was not the same person who had almost died a while ago.
“You are as beautiful as I heard.”
He spoke with a naughty expression on his face. When Psyche realized that the compliment was directed at her, she stood upright, raised the hem of her dress, and responded politely.
"Thank you."
“I should be the thankful one.”
The prince smiled brightly. He was a handsome man with moon-silver hair and deep green eyes. When he smiled, Saiki tried to smile with a confused expression.
However, as if he didn't care about her embarrassment, the Crown Prince suddenly bowed down on one knee in front of her.
This was a gesture used when a man proposed to a woman or recited the Persian Oat Hymn. Or it was something they did when giving vows to their master, so everyone was amazed. Not only Saiki and Alexa, but also the nobles around them, were astonished.
Isn't it the Crown Prince who knelt down? Of course Psyche was the most surprised.
She put both hands over her mouth. Then I quickly talked him out of it.
“Your Highness! What……!”
“I owe you my life, so let me do this.”
It would be surprising if Duke Clint saw this.
"I'm going to be in trouble. Your Highness. Please, stand up!"
When Saiki spoke as if she was about to scream at any moment, the cheerful face smiled again.
“Really? If my guardian is in trouble, it won’t happen again.”
He got up again, wiped his knee, and asked.
“I came here to say thank you, and I have a question.”
She couldn't understand what was happening because the prince kept smiling. Psyche, who was naturally wary of strangers, could not accept his attention. This place made her feel very uncomfortable. Despite the fact that she was the one who saved him. She just wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible.
“Where did this man go?”
Psyche looked for the Duke until he appeared and gave her an uncomfortable look. However, the prince continued talking as if he did not care at all.
Are you familiar with toxins or that kind of stuff?
“I know this place well because I was born and raised in this kind of forest full of trees and grass.”
“But it's strange that a noble's daughter who grew up to be so precious knows that.”
He showed too much interest.
“It was normal where I grew up.”
“Still… it seemed like you were very professional. Especially with things like poison.”
When the Crown Prince smiled cheerfully, Saiki responded frankly, hiding her expression as much as possible to hide her emotions.
“Which…”
She held her breath once and then exhaled.
“Because my parents died from poison.”
The meaning of those toneless and easily uttered words was so heavy that the Crown Prince was speechless for a moment.
"Yes."
There was a slight undulation on the prince's face, which seemed to have been completely unaffected by the completely unexpected answer, and then it disappeared.
"I didn't mean to hear that kind of past. I'm sorry."
“No…”
Saiki's face frowned involuntarily. It was because of the strong scent of the Zafia tree. Her head began to hurt more and more.
She didn't want to have a playful conversation with him here anymore. She said goodbye first by bending her knees slightly and straightening them.
“Then I will leave.”
She hurriedly tried to get away from him. Then the Crown Prince quickly extended his hand to her again. Saiki looked uncomfortable as she narrowly avoided his touch.
“Because I owe you my life.”
The Crown Prince continued speaking with his hand raised in the air.
“There will come a moment when you too will ask me for a favor. Don’t you think so? Then I will drop everything and run to you.”
At these words, Saiki took a step back and spoke quickly.
"Good."
The Crown Prince laughed at her reaction. Aristocratic women usually say “it's okay” or “no.” This was because the appearance of Saiki borrowing proudly was too impressive.
“As expected, something is different.”
“Okay, I'll go…”
She quickly turned around, feeling more and more nauseous. The ground shook and roared as she fell back as if she were about to jump before her eyes. The sky was spinning the same way.
"my lady!"
Hearing the familiar voice from somewhere, she felt relieved in her heart and collapsed just like that.