The Fiancée explained how she first fell in love with the Crown Prince.
Although the Fiancée looked genuinely happy right now, I had to apologize to her once more. The next questions were no longer about personal feelings, but about testing whether she was truly someone fit to become queen.
"Ms. Butley, the next questions may be unpleasant. Please prepare yourself mentally."
After eating a cookie and taking a sip of tea, the Fiancée replied with resolve.
"Yes. Please go ahead."
"If His Highness is unable to become king, and you, as his wife, must accept that reality—would you be willing to do so?"
"That really is an unpleasant question. It sounds like you're testing whether I desire the position of queen."
Exactly. It was the kind of annoying question where simply answering "no" would let anyone pass. So I want add a condition.
"Ms. Butley, if you lie, it will implicate your family. So please answer honestly, and abide by the answer you give."
Lies come with a price. If the Fiancée love her family, she would not lie. And even if a lie went undiscovered, she would still have to live according to the promise she made.
At this moment, there were four people listening outside. I didn't know who the other two were, but as long as the Crown Prince and the Princess heard everything, that was enough.
"I understand. Mr. Karen, what I love is His Highness as a person, not the status I would gain by marrying him. I do not care about the position or power of queen."
She answered in a serious tone. However, that was not the answer I was looking for, so I asked directly.
"If you were to become queen, can you guarantee that you would never abuse your power?"
"I guarantee it. I would never abuse the authority of the queen."
She answered immediately, without even a moment of hesitation. If it were me, I would probably pause to consider whether some future situation might tempt me to misuse power. But she did not stop to think at all—this must have been her most sincere answer. I smiled at her.
"I will remember your answer. Please make sure you live up to it."
"Yes. I will keep my word."
"Very good. The next question is—"
"Yes?"
This was the final question. I deliberately shifted to a colder tone.
"Have you ever become jealous of female students His Highness spoke to, and bullied them because of it?"
This was the question everyone cared about most—the one thing that could lead to the Crown Prince breaking off the engagement.
"That…!"
The Fiancée was clearly angered and wronged by my question. Maintaining my cold tone, I apologized.
"I apologize for upsetting you. Please answer this question honestly as well. Lying will implicate your family all the same."
All she needed to do was prove her innocence. The Fiancée took several deep breaths, looked straight at me with an upright gaze, and then answered seriously.
"Mr. Karen, it is true that I feel unhappy when His Highness speaks to other female students. But I have never bullied them. Even if I did, it would not bring me any happiness."
"Can you swear to that?"
Although I already believed her, words alone were not enough. The moment I finished speaking, the Fiancée stood up, raised her hand, and declared loudly.
"I swear! I, Elena Butley, have never bullied a single student. If I have, then I—I will—"
Before she could finish, large tears streamed from her eyes. Startled, I immediately stood up and stopped her.
"Stop, stop! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! You don't need to swear anymore! I believe you—I believe you didn't do it, you didn't…"
I had pushed her too far. She had already suffered countless rumors because of this issue, and yet I still doubted her after hearing such sincere words, causing her emotions to finally overflow.
I had made someone cry. Lina would probably beat me up for this later. But the Fiancée didn't listen to me at all and spoke even louder.
"No! I must prove my innocence! If I ever did such a thing, then I will cancel my engagement to His Highness, sever ties with my family, and enter a convent to become a nun!"
Only then did I understand why she was crying—because she had been forced to say, out loud, the possibility of breaking off her engagement with the Crown Prince she loved more than anything.
To the fiancée, being able to remain by the Crown Prince's side was her happiness. Breaking off the engagement would mean losing even the right to stay near him. That she could swear an oath to abandon her own happiness earned my respect.
"Ms. Butley, I've heard your resolve. I believe you. Their Highnesses will believe you as well."
If the Crown Prince didn't believe her, then he had no business becoming king. The fiancée took out her handkerchief and wiped away her tears.
"Thank you, Mr. Karen. I feel much better after saying it out loud."
"I'm glad to hear that. I have no more questions. Thank you for answering such personal matters. If you have anything you'd like to ask me, please go ahead. I'll answer."
As I said that, I straightened up, placed my hands at my sides, and bowed ninety degrees to her, expressing both my gratitude and my apology.
"Really? Are you sure?!"
She looked oddly excited. Why? Whatever, I'd already made up my mind.
"Of course. It wouldn't be fair if only you exposed your secrets. I should return the favor."
I'd asked her so many questions—some deeply private—so it was only right that I repay her in kind. Anyone listening outside could just keep listening.
Once we sat down again, she immediately asked her question.
"My first question is, what is your relationship with your companion?"
"My companion? Oh, you mean Lina?"
For a moment, I didn't understand what she meant. Then it clicked.
She must have known about Lina and me from the hunt down of Samidoride. Only the two of us were involved in that incident, so the "companion" she meant could only be Lina.
"Yes. But from your reaction, is she not your companion?"
"You could call her that, but I've never thought of her as a companion. She's my family."
Since I was about seven or eight years old, I'd already thought of Lina as family. For now, it was only in words—but soon, she would truly be my family.
"Family? Are you married?"
"No."
"I don't quite understand. If you're not married, then are you related by blood?"
"Going back and forth like this will take too long. Let me just tell you about Lina and me."
I told her everything about our past. When we were six, our village was attacked by demons, and only the two of us survived, relying on each other. Until we were twelve, we learned farming and livestock just to survive. After twelve, we left the village and became adventurers to earn money.
"I see… You're both so strong. That's amazing. If it were me, I don't think I could recover. I'd probably just curl up in a corner and cry."
"You're exaggerating."
"Time really does wash everything away."
Time washes everything away? What did she mean by that? Whether someone can move past painful memories shouldn't depend on time. It depends on whether they choose to move forward.
I still didn't understand, so I asked her directly.
"...What do you mean by that?"
She looked surprised, then spoke with equal surprise.
"Huh? You don't know? That's a teaching of the Goddess of Fate. Time is the root that resolves all problems."
The moment I heard that, I questioned her in return.
"Am I just ignorant? Isn't the Goddess of Fate supposed to govern fate? Why time?"
If anything, time should belong to a Goddess of Time. And since when did time become the root of solving all problems? It made no sense to me.
"I'm not sure about that either. I'm sorry I can't answer."
"It's fine. I was just asking casually. I didn't intend to think too deeply about it. Sorry—I went off topic."
As she apologized, I realized this was a matter of religious belief, so I decided not to dwell on it. I had no desire to get tangled up with religion.
"Not at all. May I continue with the next question?"
"Of course."
After that, the questions she asked were all lighthearted—mostly memories about Lina and me. Apparently, she was a girl who loved romantic topics.
Before I knew it, we'd been talking for far too long. Evening was approaching. I took out my pocket watch.
It was almost five o'clock.
Lina gets off work at six. That left me only one hour. I didn't have time to keep chatting here.
I put the watch away, finished the tea in my cup, and stood up to say goodbye.
"Ms. Butley, happy times always pass too quickly. I still have matters to attend to, so I can't stay any longer. Please excuse me."
She stood up as well.
"No, I should be the one apologizing. Thank you for spending your precious time chatting with me. It was an honor."
"No, being able to talk with the future queen was my honor."
"No, you're the hero who saved the kingdom. The honor is mine."
"...Let's stop here."
I paused before replying. I could keep going, but this would never end quickly.
"Alright."
"Then I'll take my leave."
"Mr. Karen, please take care. I hope we can talk again someday."
If possible, I'd rather not. I was exhausted.
I opened the door and stepped outside. As I closed it, I waved to her.
"Goodbye."
"Goodbye."