Inside Drakethorne Palace, beside the garden, a path encircled both palace and garden.
Mana lamps were placed at the corners of the path, illuminating the area and making everything visible.
Alex Drakethorne was walking slowly, embarrassed by his previous act. He was blaming himself inside for having done the same thing again. He had unintentionally held the hand of Princess Eva again, twice today, and he didn't know what to say to Princess Eva, who was walking beside him, matching his step.
Princess Eva was still wearing the same white dress she had worn in the morning; her silver moonlight hair, which barely reached her neck, seemed to dazzle and twinkle under the moonlight, and her face was pale white, untouched by any scar.
Princess Eva, who was walking beside Alex, knew he was staring at her, and it had been a while; he kept looking at her without moving his head. This made her feel embarrassed; the feeling was foreign to her. She had never felt a boy staring so focusedly at her. All the encounters she had with people her age kept their distance, didn't dare to look at her for too long, and would avert their gaze.
But Alex was different; he had been looking at her, observing her, and not only that, he had dared to hold her hand without permission twice in a row just today, and that too after meeting for the first time. She knew he was her fiancé, but this kind of boldness was unseen by her.
Noticing Alex's gaze lingering even longer, Princess Eva decided to address it directly and challenge him for his boldness. She spoke up: "Alex, it seems you like my face too much. You've been looking at me for a while, and if you keep this up, you might put a hole through my face."
Startled by Eva's words, Alex Drakethorne straightened his head, suddenly aware of how long he had been staring. Guilt and embarrassment rushed over him, and he hurried to say something that might prevent him from seeming rude.
Before Alex could say something, Princess Eva stuck the nail in the coffin and teased,"It seems you have fallen for my beautiful face. Have you never seen a beautiful girl like me, Alex?" Princess Eva put her left hand softly on her waist and her right hand on her lips as she stared back at flushed Alex, who could barely match her eye contact.
Alex Drakethorne found himself in perilious condition that he had dig up for himself, he knew he was at the fault for staring for too long, but he knew he hadn't fallen for her, he admits she is beautiful, he replies back while fumbling trying to save himself,"I have not fallen for you, I have seen countless beautiful people and they are even more beautiful than you. Maids working in our palace are more beautiful than you, Princess Eva".
Princess Eva was unfazed by Alex's claim that the maids were more beautiful than her. Instead, she saw an opportunity to gain the upper hand. She responded, "Oh! Does that mean I am not beautiful? If you stare at my face this much, I can't imagine how long you'd stare at the maids who you claim are more beautiful—maybe an hour or more, Alex?" She raised both hands to her face, covered her mouth, and feigned being shocked and hurt.
Alex Drakethorne almost stumbled on his way, but managed to keep himself from falling. His face turned fully red, his ears red, he turned to Princess Eva and said,"I don't stare at them, and I am sorry for staring at you. Now, are you happy?"
Princess Eva laughed out, seeing Alex's cute reaction. She knew she should stop this teasing for now, but she would continue it next time. She said,"Oh my! It seems you are hurt, Alex. But, you know, I am a great princess, and I will forgive your ignorance. If you ever want to see this beautiful face again, just tell me in advance, and I will be there for you."
Just when Alex thought Princess Eva had forgiven him, she started saying things that made him embarrassed again. Embarrassed, Alex resolved to keep all these memories to himself and silently vowed to take sweet revenge for all this teasing. Alex huffed in frustration and quickly walked away, wanting to escape the situation.
Princess Eva, not wanting to be left behind, ran and caught up to Alex. She said,"Alex, I heard you have a dragon egg. Can I take a look at the egg?"
Alex Drakethorne stopped on his track and looked at Princess Eva, who was standing shamelessly near him, asking to look at his dragon egg. He felt how a Princess could have such thick skin. First, she had teased him since they met, angered him, and embarrassed him, but now she is asking as if nothing had happened and thinks he will agree.
While Alex remained silent and deep in thought, Princess Eva realized her request might have seemed too bold. Understanding that the dragon egg must be precious to Alex and that showing it might not be appropriate, she backed down: "Sorry, I might have been too direct, but I love dragons so much—that's why I came to see the dragon statue in the garden. When I learned you had a dragon egg, I couldn't help but ask. That's why I wanted to walk around the palace." Princess Eva fidgeted with her hands, feeling awkward. She was used to having everything she wanted, but this was her first time making such a request to someone else.
Unsure how Alex would react to her request, Princess Eva grew nervous, uncertain whether he would agree or refuse.
Unaware of Princess Eva's concerns, Alex considered how he might use his dragon egg to restore his reputation after his earlier embarrassment. He thought, "Hehehe, now is my chance. I'll gain the upper hand and show the Princess who she's dealing with."
Alex Drakethorne smirked, seeing how nervous Princess Eva was, and knew this was the moment to truly shine for himself and gain back his lost reputation and upper hand.
Alex Drakethorne placed one hand on his forehead and adopted a serious expression. "I could show you, since I have a big heart and don't hold grudges, but you've teased me so much today that I just don't feel like it, Princess Eva," he said.
Hearing Alex's words, Princess Eva felt exasperated by his shamelessness. She thought, "He says he doesn't hold grudges, but then why say he doesn't want to do it? He's obviously holding a grudge."
Not wasting the moment, Alex Drakethorne added, "If you apologize to me, maybe I could consider it."
Princess Eva Evernight, the only daughter of Emperor James Evernight, had gotten everything she wanted before she even had to formally request it, but now, here someone of her age is trying to play with her and wants her to apologize.
But, Princess Eva's desire to see the dragon egg was so much that it took over her, and she decided to keep note of this and would tease him again later. She said,"I apologize, Alex, for teasing you."
Alex Drakethorne frowned, crossing his arms, and said, "I am not satisfied with your apology; you are missing sincerity."
Suddenly, Princess Eva started crying, her eyes filling with tears. She said, with hiccups, "I hav.. e ne... neve..r apol...ogiz...ed Thi...s is th.e fir.. first ti..me." She raised her hands near her eyes to stop tears from dropping. While crying, she slowly wiped her tears that had flown into her cheeks with her fingers.
Alex was dumbfounded when he saw the princess crying in front of him.