Faust spoke without hesitation.
"I had heard of the Midwinter Kingdom's strength and felt a great yearning for it. An alliance would bring my kingdom an incredibly powerful ally and significant benefits. It was for this reason that I sent that letter."
"While Your Highness’s beauty is indeed transcendent, I had never seen a glimpse of you before then. How could I have fallen so deeply in love? Anyone thinking clearly would realize it was a political marriage. It’s just that such things are difficult to say outright, so it had to be packaged as a courtship born of admiration for your beauty."
"If this offends you, I am willing to offer my apologies and make amends."
Even though the prince’s words and tone were quite sincere, the confident, triumphant smile of the Midwinter princess instantly stiffened.
Selena's silver eyes turned cold. She bit her lip and puffed out her porcelain cheeks, the tips of her ears burning red.
"Ngh..."
For perhaps the first time in her life, the stunning black-haired girl felt a mixture of shame and fury. Faust’s nonchalant words had directly trampled upon her peerless self-confidence!
How could Snow White not understand such simple logic? But as the self-proclaimed most beautiful person in the world, Selena believed her beauty was enough to transcend such mundane limitations.
Falling in love just by hearing of her existence? Unbelievable? No, it was perfectly possible!
Absolutely possible! Easily possible!
Her charm was just that miraculous! Don't ask why—she was 【Snow White】, the embodiment of eternal beauty!
Having her confident assumptions exposed to her face made Selena very displeased. But if it had been anyone else, she would have merely been annoyed, not feeling as though insufficient praise was a sin.
However, the person saying this was Faust—the man who had made her heart skip a beat at first sight, perhaps the only man to ever do so. This caused the princess’s sense of shame to reach its peak.
What an utter humiliation!
Her romantic fantasies were punctured. Selena clenched her delicate fists, her slender body trembling slightly. After a few short, deep breaths, she managed to regain her composure.
"Ha, Prince of Qingxi, you certainly are blunt."
The Midwinter princess tucked the letter into her bosom, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger. She let out a cold laugh.
"But your thoughts are even more absurd than a direct proposal. The Midwinter Kingdom has never entered into a political marriage with the outside world. Did you not know that?"
Faust sighed and said, "Of course I knew. Especially since my kingdom is so weak that it’s truly negligible compared to yours."
"But!"
The Prince of Qingxi took a step forward and spoke loudly:
"It is precisely because we are so weak that we must take risks and use unconventional methods. A political marriage was the best solution I could conceive. As long as my partner and I establish a joint rule, we could easily step onto the world stage and become the players who dominate the board!"
There was a touch of genuine emotion in these words.
The man's reddish-brown eyes seemed to burn with fire as he envisioned an almost impossible future. That unbridled ambition felt tangible, scorching her through his gaze.
As Selena’s clear silver eyes felt that heat, her originally cold expression softened slightly.
Such grand and arrogant ambition... She didn't hate it. In fact, she felt this was how a man should be. A timid, cowering person would never catch her eye, no matter how handsome they were.
No, why does this Prince of Qingxi seem to fit my tastes more and more the longer I look at him?!
Snow White shook her head vigorously to cast aside the stray thoughts. Resting her chin on her hand, she looked at the "utterly naive" and handsome prince, saying softly:
"You really... don't understand anything."
Selena continued slowly, "The Midwinter Kingdom cannot expand. Even if we wanted to, we couldn't. Our souls have been bound to this land for generations."
Faust frowned. "Is it because of the curse?"
"Oh? You know of the dragon's curse? It’s not top-secret information, but in a remote place like the Qingxi Kingdom, not many people should know about it."
Selena’s eyes brightened at his words. She leaned her head against her hand and said, "Since you’ve heard of the dragon's curse, you should understand that no one can escape it. For ages, our kingdom has done nothing but repeat the tragedy of regicide and matricide within the curse. This isn't something a mere mortal prince can involve himself in. You..."
"That is exactly why I have come—to end the curse."
Faust interrupted Snow White’s attempt to dissuade him, holding his head high.
"That is my primary goal. The Qingxi Kingdom doesn't have the status to stand as an equal to Midwinter. If I don't show my sincerity by lifting the curse, how can I hope to secure an eternal alliance?"
Selena was stunned for a moment, and then a smile that was either mocking or admiring appeared on her exquisite face.
"Ha, how interesting. You intend to lift the dragon's curse that has entangled Midwinter for thousands of years all by yourself?"
Faust bowed. "Why not try? I won't let the hardships ahead breed fear in me. Coming here alone, I’ve accepted the idea of succeeding or dying in the attempt. Perhaps a miracle will happen. Princess Selena, I hope you will allow me to help you."
"Hmph... your determination is certainly firm."
Selena nodded involuntarily and said indifferently, "Since you truly wish to commit such an act of folly, I am not the one you should be helping. You should go to the royal capital and find my mother. She is the Queen of Midwinter. Whether in terms of power or authority, she far surpasses me. As for me right now..."
The beautiful black-haired girl gracefully pinched the corners of her skirt and performed a bow, mocking herself, "I am nothing more than a runaway princess."
Wait, you just said "runaway princess," didn't you?!
Faust’s eyebrows quirked, and he could barely suppress the twitch at the corner of his mouth.
Good, good. A "runaway princess" is exactly my type! If you weren't a runaway princess, I wouldn't even be interested!
So, to the black-haired girl's surprise, the handsome Prince of Qingxi shook his head without a second thought.
"I came for Snow White. On this point alone, there is no falsehood. I want no one but Snow White."
"!!"
Yet another answer that completely defied her expectations. The peerless black-haired princess was stunned at first, then hurriedly used her sleeve to cover her delicate face, her eyes cast downward.
"You want no one... but Snow White?"
Faust nodded. "I came only for Snow White. If the alliance isn't through a marriage with Snow White, then I don't want the alliance at all!"
Well now, isn't he quite the smooth talker?
Selena wouldn't admit she was happy, but it was the truth.
Slap—
Snow White gave a soft huff and lightly patted the frost-walker’s back, smiling.
"I agree to your plan. Go back and report your success. Although we can't hide it from mother, try to deceive the prime minister as much as possible."
The frost-walker didn't quite understand Selena’s sudden change in attitude; its processor nearly crashed.
"Your Highness, you..."
"That's right. I don't want to die anymore."
Snow White pressed a gloved hand to her cheek, her gaze drifting toward Faust out of the corner of her eye.
"I've found something I must do. If I don't finish it, I truly won't be able to rest in peace."
Rate on N.U.
