"Reject?"

"Yes."

"Why? Have you already had contact with Francis? He can never be an Emperor, because I don't intend to let him have his way. If you want to be the Empress, you have to catch the line I threw."

Julietta thought she would dig in her ear and blow the earwax off at the Prince. She thought she had to do so if she wanted him to accept that her ear ca.n.a.l was normal and that she understood what he said correctly, and then refused. The arrogance of believing that she would unconditionally accept his proposal was so brazen. What nerve!

"I don't want to be the Empress. I have to take over the family. After making my debut in society safely, I'm going to go back to Tilia Territory. I'm going to marry a man my father will choose and take over the t.i.tle of the duke."

Killian's sparkling silver eyes and Julietta's fresh green eyes clashed in the air. Killian, who had been staring at Julietta without a word, soon opened his mouth. "If you are concerned about the t.i.tle of the duke, you can have your agent take care of it and pa.s.s it on to our child after it is born."

"I don't want to."

"At the very least we'll have more than one."

"I only need one child to take over the t.i.tle of the duke. Of course, the father of the child is not the Emperor of the future."

"Are you rebelling because I'm going to take in a concubine? Don't spend any idle time like this, because I won't give up that concubine."

"It doesn't matter to me whether you take three or four concubines."

"That's a relief. When is the Duke of Kiellini coming back to Dublin? If the Duke is not scheduled to come up for a while, it's okay for me to go down."

As if he had no intention of listening to the refusal of the princess, the Prince only said what he wanted to say.

Julietta thought she was in real trouble when she heard about the Duke. She thought the arrogant Prince would not persist when his pride was hurt by her refusal, but she was embarra.s.sed by his persistence, which was different from what she expected. When the Duke found out about this, she could be killed and would vanish without a trace.

Julietta was in a hurry and spoke to the Prince clearly again and again.

"Your Highness, I will never marry you. I promise I will never marry another Prince, too. You can kill me if I break what I said today and marry Prince Francis."

Killian realized she was sincere after the princess's hard expression. It was not an attempt to negotiate in a favorable manner. She hadn't even had a connection with Prince Francis. He finally began to look closely at the princess in front of him.

The woman's appearance was certainly very impressive, as Oswald had admired. For Killian, however, a woman's appearance didn't have much weight; it was just like looking at beautiful jewels and scenery. He suddenly felt something strange while he was looking at the woman closely.

"Have you ever met me?"

When asked by Killian, Julietta's heart sank with a thud. "That did not happen. Up until a month ago, I never left Tilia Territory."

Killian grimaced after observing the princess's tiny nose and perfect curve lips, delicate jawline, slender neck and graceful shoulders, like measuring with a ruler. It was because the lady sitting haughtily in front of them and Julietta looked so alike.

"All right. I know the princess's opinion, so get out of here."

As soon as the order to get out fell from the mouth of Killian who had been looking at her with fierce eyes, Julietta hurried up to her feet. Her heart was so nervous that she was worried that she would make a mistake.

"Then I'll step back. I wish you all the glory in your future."

Looking carefully at the back of the princess who had wished for him a glorious future and retreated from the parlor as if she would never see him again, Kilian murmured. "It's different in shape and height."

Unlike the low shoes she had worn when she had been a maid, she wore high party shoes, forcing him to think that she was different from Julietta. But his feelings continued to send signals, even though there was no way to connect the precious Princess Kielini with the woman who had grown up in the theater.

Oswald was sitting at a table by the window with Spencer, watching the war of words between the Prince and the princess. He moved opposite Killian and asked, "Your Highness, what do you mean?"

"No. Oswald, put a man on Princess Kiellini."

At Killian's command, Spencer was also surprised and sat down next to Oswald. "Don't tell me, you think the princess will make an appointment, and she is going to come in contact with Francis?"

"No, I don't believe that. But don't you think she's too healthy to say she has never left Tilia Territory before a month ago?"

Killian looked alternately at the two and asked for their opinions. When Spencer heard the remark, he thought, clasping his chin like a habit, and finally nodded, "It certainly is. She looks more lively than Lillian."