When the Guide Stopped Playing a Villainess, the Obsession Began - Chapter 23
Calix watched Lea leave the banquet hall without a second glance, his expression one of disbelief.
He was certain she had spilled the grape juice on herself deliberately. Only he and Ilion had seen it clearly.
So even as he heard the nobles whispering, he couldn’t offer any sort of rebuttal.
No, was it really deliberate?
Could it be, as she said, that her shoulder injury hadn’t healed and she simply made a mistake?
The room quickly became filled with uncomfortable murmuring.
As an Esper, Calix could hear every whisper, no matter how quiet.
“His Highness the Crown Prince did it on purpose…”
“His expression just now was so cold…”
“The Crown Prince deliberately spilled grape juice on Lady Haisley?”
“It looked like he even smirked at her.”
“He supposedly said something crude too…”
The hall was large, but he hadn’t expected the rumors to distort that fast.
Calix heard Ilion grinding his teeth beside him and let out a dry laugh.
Naively, he had fallen for her act again.
Her wound wasn’t unhealed or anything…
From the nobles’ reactions, he could tell.
Lea, unlike before, had begun using her head.
When her usual cruel antics failed to produce a reaction, she was now trying a new way to tarnish him.
And it seemed to be working quite well.
He could feel people sneaking glances at him.
Some even looked at him openly with eyes that bordered on insolent.
“Hah. Got me good.”
Lea had always been trying to trip him up somehow, but he hadn’t expected her to strike so cleanly this time.
He’d thought she was foolish all this time…
Now left alone in the banquet hall, Calix calmed Ilion and scanned the room.
Just like Lea had walked away with that satisfied expression, he, too, wanted to leave this place.
But he couldn’t. Not now.
Events like these were when enemies required even more attention.
So, Calix stepped toward the Empress, still the center of attention.
Pretending to be part of a happy family had long become his specialty. Even if Bianca had ruined his life, he hadn’t forgotten that he was the Crown Prince.
He would endure and endure until he became Emperor, and then—he would set everything right in one stroke.
Grinding his resolve deep within, he smoothed out his expression and offered a warm greeting to the Empress.
“I offer my heartfelt congratulations on Your Majesty’s birthday.”
“Oh my, Calix. Thank you.”
Bianca deliberately called him by name, as if to reinforce her superiority.
It was brief, but she noticed the twitch in his brow.
She had seen everything earlier as well.
This time, Lea had done quite well. In the past, every time Lea acted foolishly, Bianca had felt like she might go mad.
But today, it was as if something had cleared—it was satisfying.
So much so that she could offer Calix a smile that almost looked sincere.
“This is truly an unforgettable evening. If not for His Majesty’s grace, none of this would’ve been possible. You know I’m always grateful, don’t you?”
She clung to the Emperor’s arm flirtatiously as she spoke, guiding him at the same time. The Emperor’s expression softened and turned hazy.
Anyone familiar with guiding would recognize the signs immediately. Especially Espers who had previously been guided by Bianca, and some of them looked at the Emperor with not just envy, but barely disguised jealousy.
Watching this, Calix suddenly recalled the pleasant feeling he had experienced a few nights ago.
And then he remembered the fox he had met that night.
He’d fallen asleep suddenly, so he never found out when the fox had left.
But somehow, the presence of that mere animal kept lingering in his thoughts.
Would it come again?
‘This time, I want to give it a different fruit.’
Just thinking of the fox lifted his mood a little.
It felt as though the fox had become imprinted on him along with the sense of peace he was feeling for the first time in his life—but he didn’t mind.
It was just a fox, after all.
If anything, he simply wanted to see those luminous, full-moon-like eyes again.
“Hm.”
He thought of Lea again, who had just left the hall.
‘Their eye color was kind of similar.’
It wasn’t a pleasing similarity, but it was true.
Still, it didn’t make him dislike the fox.
In fact, ever since the night it had visited, his physical condition had been improving.
‘Now that I think about it… she used honorifics with me, didn’t she?’
That girl had always spoken to him informally, almost mockingly.
Why the sudden change?
He didn’t know.
But despite himself, a small sense of curiosity began to rise.
