"Father, what are you saying?!"
Hisui cried out in protest, her voice filled with both worry and embarrassment.
But Toma did not respond to her at all. His eyes remained fixed on Kabe without blinking.
The maids and guards all held their breath as well. They knew Kabe's answer at this moment was crucial, and none of them dared make a sound to interrupt.
Under the tense, expectant, and conflicted gazes of everyone present, Kabe himself was also struggling inside.
'Troublesome. I am already overwhelmed trying to deal with the pile of women around me, and now they are trying to push another one onto me.'
He lifted his head and gave Hisui a careful look.
'Still... this little princess is pretty, and she is also the future heir of Fiore.
If I accept, it does not exactly count as a loss...'
After wrestling with himself for quite a while, Kabe still could not resist the temptation of becoming a future prince consort and living off a queen's support.
In the end, he nodded with difficulty and agreed.
"I accept, Your Majesty. I promise you, I will take good care of Princess Hisui and shield her from wind and rain."
The moment those words were spoken, Toma's lips curved upward. It was as if he had finally let go of his last burden.
Then his head tilted to one side, and he completely "lost consciousness."
Hisui did not even have time to be angry or embarrassed that the two of them had made such a decision without consulting her. The instant she saw Toma "faint," she hurriedly caught him in panic.
"Father! Quick, take His Majesty back to his chambers to rest! And hurry, bring the royal physician as well!"
Hisui still had no idea that all of this was an act by Toma, staged only to force Kabe into making a choice.
Even as the guards carried him away, a faint smile still lingered at the corners of Toma's mouth.
If he had not still been holding himself back, he would probably have leaped up on the spot and laughed wildly toward the heavens.
An absolute profit. A massive, overwhelming profit!!!
Not only had he gained the unexpected delights of Irene and Brandish, but most importantly, he had successfully tied Kabe to the royal family.
From today onward, he could proudly declare before the rulers of every nation that the Kingdom of Fiore no longer feared the threats of any country or power.
Watching her father being carried away, Hisui's feelings became incomparably complicated.
"L-Lord Kabe, my father's sudden illness was completely unforeseen. Please forgive us for the poor hospitality today.
Once Father recovers, the royal family will certainly compensate you, and in accordance with your great contributions to Fiore, reward you generously."
As she spoke, Hisui gave Kabe a solemn bow of apology.
"You are too serious, Your Highness."
Kabe stepped forward and placed his hands on her shoulders, helping her back up. At the moment of contact, he very clearly felt the slight trembling in her body.
He did not expose it. Instead, he continued,
"This all happened too suddenly. There is no need for you to concern yourself with us. Go quickly and take care of His Majesty. We will take our leave for now."
"Thank you for your understanding. I will have someone escort you out of the palace at once."
Kabe had just been about to turn and leave, but when he heard the unfamiliar distance still lingering in Hisui's tone, he stopped and gave her a small smile.
"You should call me by my name instead. Sudden as it may be, there is no doubt that I am already your fiancé now."
In an instant, Hisui's lovely face turned bright red with a soft whoosh.
"Y-you... I... we..."
Then, after stammering helplessly for a moment, she lowered her head in panic.
"I am sorry. How rude of me."
Not knowing how to face him, and even less how to answer him, Hisui could only stumble over her words before hurriedly covering her face and fleeing the scene.
Kabe smiled inwardly. Somehow, this fiancée of his had suddenly become much more adorable in his eyes.
But feeling the faintly murderous stare from beside him, he did not allow too much of that thought to show on his face.
Turning his head, he looked toward Irene, who was narrowing her eyes at him, and said without the slightest blush or change in breath,
"We should go too. After something like this, staying any longer would only trouble the royal family further."
At his words, one of the attendants who had not yet left immediately stepped forward and indicated that he could lead them out.
"Hmph!"
Irene shot the shameless philanderer a vicious glare, then coldly turned and followed the attendant away.
Brandish watched the entire thing with obvious amusement, tossed Kabe a look that clearly said good luck surviving this, and quickly followed after Irene as well.
Kabe only shrugged helplessly and fell into step behind the three of them, thus bringing this banquet, which had ended in such a chaotic and anticlimactic way, to a close.
...
No sooner had Kabe and the others left the banquet hall than Toma was hurried all the way back to his chambers by the guards.
Lying on the bed, the "frail" Toma slowly opened his eyes and swept his gaze across the room, only to find that Hisui was nowhere to be seen.
"Call Hisui here. I... I have words to say to her."
"Father!!"
Hisui, who had fled from the banquet hall, had rushed all the way after him to the royal chambers.
The moment she heard her father calling for her, she immediately ran to the bedside and dropped to her knees, tightly clasping Toma's hand in both of hers.
"Leave... all of you... leave."
Even such a simple sentence seemed difficult for Toma to force out.
Seeing that, great tears slid from the corners of Hisui's eyes. Even so, she did not dare disobey her father's request.
She quickly turned her head and said to the maids and guards who were anxiously gathered around the bed, ready to serve at any moment,
"Go. All of you, leave first. Let Father and me speak alone for a while."
No one dared object.
With the king struck down by serious illness, everyone naturally assumed that what he wanted now was to leave his final words to the princess.
What a pity.
Just moments ago, His Majesty had still been at the banquet table, bringing three mighty champions into the kingdom's fold.
And yet before he could even witness the day when the kingdom would become stronger still, he had been struck by such a grave illness.
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