Chapter 107: 43. Eldest Princess
Faced with Elizabeth’s terrifying “death question,” Fisher seemed as if he had experienced it countless times. His expression was calm as he smiled at Lady Laura beside him and said,
“The works of both ladies are truly outstanding. With my poor literary judgment, it would be quite difficult for me to make a fair evaluation. Lady Laura, you are an expert in this area; I would like to ask for your opinion.”
Lady Laura’s glasses were slightly askew, clearly surprised that Fisher would suddenly bring the focus to her.
While feeling quite speechless, she lowered her perception of Fisher’s evaluation a notch in her mind.
After hesitating for a moment, and of course not forgetting the task at hand, she adjusted her glasses and, after careful thought, said to Fisher,
“Ah, Princess Elizabeth’s piece is delicate in structure, precise in word choice, and its imagery is quite interesting. Although Lady Renee’s intent is rich in meaning, it is rather simplistic in literary terms. Therefore, I personally believe that Princess Elizabeth’s work is superior.”
“Sister’s work is indeed quite striking.”
Lady Laura’s evaluation resonated with Isabel, and under the two ladies’ praise, Elizabeth broke into a faint smile.
After hearing this, Fisher nodded. He glanced at Renee, who looked displeased, clearly upset with Lady Laura’s biased commentary, and was probably silently cursing the one who tilted the balance.
He smiled silently and said, “Since you all favor Princess Elizabeth’s piece, to keep from hurting my friend’s feelings, I shall have to lean more towards Renee’s work.”
Elizabeth’s smile instantly stiffened a bit, and Renee pouted, looking secretly pleased but trying to hide it. If she had a tail like Raphael, it would probably be sticking up in the air right now.
Yes, it’s a good thing I haven’t wasted my affection on this child!
The meaning in Renee’s eyes likely conveyed this, but Fisher was too lazy to pay her any mind, which made her want to kick his backside. But then she suddenly remembered her current holy persona as a saintess and couldn’t make such an impolite move.
So she coughed lightly, gracefully made a gesture of prayer, and smiled, “Compared to Princess Elizabeth’s work, I still feel inferior. I concede.”
Renee laughed and admitted defeat, but in truth, she didn’t care about who was better at writing poetry compared to Elizabeth. On the surface, it seemed like Elizabeth had the upper hand in writing poetry, but in reality, she was utterly losing because everyone knew what she truly wanted was Fisher’s answer.
Elizabeth’s fingers, hidden beside her, were tightly clenched, and soon, the rosy tips were turning pale, but after a second or two, they returned to normal.
“Our poetry is originally so evenly matched. For Mr. Fisher to decide which is better is really a challenge. Today is the poetry gathering; you should remember to exchange poems.”
Just as these words fell, an elegantly dressed gentleman in a black suit came slowly over, leaning on a staff. His neatly groomed white beard indicated that he was the current principal of Saint Nali University, Ken.
“Princess Elizabeth, Princess Isabel.”
“Mr. Ken.”
He gave a salute to Elizabeth and then beckoned at Fisher, who was holding a glass of red wine, saying,
“Mr. Fisher, I have something to discuss with you regarding your paper.”
What Ken wanted to discuss was likely concerning the upcoming Shivali academic delegation. This matter had actually been mentioned by Elizabeth earlier, but he couldn’t show that he was already aware of it.
It was against protocol for a princess to leak political matters to outsiders; otherwise, she wouldn’t have called him to the back hall to talk discreetly.
“I understand, Mr. Ken. Please follow me. I apologize, Princess Elizabeth.”
Before leaving, Fisher shot Renee a glance, signaling her not to stir up trouble. Her purple eyes clearly received Fisher’s signal, and she quietly made a “got it” gesture.
Once Fisher left, her obedient demeanor changed instantly. She glanced at Elizabeth, standing still, with a strong desire to attack, only to find that the princess was also looking at her.
Elizabeth also instructed Isabel to exchange poems with others. Taking advantage of this moment without Fisher and other interruptions, she slowly walked over to Renee, holding a glass of red wine.
The two ladies, both with gentle smiles, clinked their wine glasses, yet the surrounding space felt like a gladiatorial arena.
“Renee, right? Should I lament that Cardu’s asceticism is now too lax, or should I marvel at Fisher’s irresistible charm, always attracting those oblivious ladies to him? There were such women a long time ago; do you want to guess what happened to them?”
Facing Elizabeth’s threat, Renee’s expression remained lazy, seemingly unfazed.
“How frightening! Is Your Highness going to kill me? I should remind you, the more you do this, the more Fisher dislikes you. Ah, rather, I’d say, by now Fisher probably doesn’t think highly of you at all. Let me guess, what bad things did the little princess do that Fisher found out about?”
“Heh, I even wonder if you are the true saintess of Cardu. I have ample reason to suspect you are a spy and a fraud.”
Renee took a sip of red wine, turning her purple eyes to Elizabeth and smiling,
“The more you use these tricks, the more it shows you can’t win against me in direct competition, can you? Ultimately, Your Highness threatens me, or other ladies, simply because Fisher doesn’t like you at all.”
When she said this last sentence, Elizabeth’s warm gaze slightly narrowed, as if a wound had been ruthlessly torn open.
“I know best who Fisher is fond of. He is sincere and patient with those he loves, but surely, Your Highness, you can’t sense that. Did Your Highness think that by cutting off his connections with Nali and other ladies, making everyone aware of your ambiguous relationship, he would ultimately choose you?”
Renee’s smile became even lazier, her purple gaze calmly reflecting Elizabeth’s appearance at that moment, but she seemed to completely dismiss her.
“Let me offer you this advice, Your Highness: occasionally letting go can be a good choice, and maybe you’ll achieve an even better outcome.”
After this statement, the situation in the octagonal arena was basically settled.
Elizabeth was completely unable to compete with Renee, speechless and at a loss. But Renee didn’t pay her any more attention and suddenly looked ahead.
She seemed to see something. Her purple eyes curved as she waved at the gentleman approaching with a speechless expression—Fisher was back.
In an instant, the two ladies returned to their previous elegance and composure. In fact, Renee didn’t change much; she just became much more lively in front of Fisher.
“I was just discussing some interesting matters about Nali with the princess. You hadn’t mentioned any of this to me before.”
Fisher turned to Elizabeth, who smiled serenely and nodded in agreement,
“Yes, I also learned some secrets about Cardu. You can’t know these in the Golden Palace.”
“In that case, Your Highness, let’s continue the activities.”
Elizabeth’s gentle golden eyes swept over Fisher’s face, the hollow meaning covering her true thoughts, leaving only a flawless smile, angelic in nature.
She nodded, not taking Fisher’s hand this time, and then went with Fisher to the next event’s speech.
The princess’s itinerary was quite packed, and by the afternoon, Elizabeth would have to leave for other places. Fisher accompanied her to the school gate, where Isabel and the others also came over.
Several rows of royal soldiers lined up at the entrance, and the royal carriage was parked steadily in front of the school, looking quite imposing. At this time, other parents had to wait inside, prohibited from entering or leaving simultaneously.
“Isabel, remember to study hard. I believe with Mr. Fisher’s guidance, you will surely become exceptional.”
Isabel secretly glanced at Professor Fisher beside her and couldn’t help but think of his strict teaching style, making her little face sour for a moment. Thankfully, she didn’t forget royal etiquette and still forced a smile, nodding in agreement.
Elizabeth walked toward the open carriage door, with only Fisher following behind, preparing to help her get in. Their distance was drawn closer at that moment, and only the two of them could hear each other’s dialogue.
Renee hadn’t come out, so Elizabeth didn’t see that annoying dark-haired lady here.
Thus, she turned to Fisher, seeing him bowing to her without any sign of impoliteness, which cast a shadow over her heart.
She still reached out her hand to Fisher, and in his somewhat unexpected gaze, she helped him tidy up the collar of his slightly messy outfit from the day’s exertions.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“You…” Elizabeth silently withdrew her hand, her gaze somewhat sorrowful, “Do you really dislike me so much, Fisher?”
Fisher’s eyes trembled slightly as he looked up at Elizabeth, who was also gazing at him, looking at the Fisher hidden behind the etiquette.
Now, there were only the two of them. Fisher thought for a second and had had enough of the formalities in front of her.
“You still hold a grudge against me for what I did in the Royal Academy, don’t you?”
This matter involved their previous events at the Royal Academy, where she had given a serious “warning” to a female classmate who was pursuing Fisher, almost driving that lady to insanity. No one knew who had done it at the time, and no one would guess that the Eldest Princess was the culprit.
The seemingly gentle princess had a style of doing things that was starkly different from her appearance, which was the real reason Fisher distanced himself from Elizabeth.
“Your Highness.”
“Before, I didn’t understand, but now I do. If that’s the case, would you give me a chance?”
Elizabeth excessively clutched Fisher’s sleeve. As a member of the royal family, such a demure statement held a significant impact, but Fisher simply stared at her.
“Your Highness—”
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent. Clearly, Elizabeth was seeking an answer, but when Fisher was about to speak, she extended her hand to stop him.
Elizabeth smiled at Fisher and covered her golden hair with her hat, concealing her appearance.
“You’ve been a bother today. Remember the matter I mentioned before, and we will see each other again.”
She transformed once more into that gentle Eldest Princess, continuing the ambiguous relationship she had with Fisher that had yielded no results for many years, even if there had indeed been a moment she might have obtained an answer.
That answer could be good or bad, but she didn’t dare to gamble.
She was going to get in the carriage and leave.
Please follow, vote, this is very important to me!
Thank you very much!
(*`*)
(End of chapter)
