Chapter 207 Who Would Have Thought It'd Come To This
"I came to Avalon this time to search for a marriage partner. I had honestly planned to propose to Lady Rebecca, but it's unfortunate that she's already engaged."
During lunch, Prince Gerhart suddenly dropped a bombshell.
"Well, Your Royal Highness Gerhart, that's quite a joke..."
Rebecca tried to brush it off with a laugh, but to everyone's surprise, Prince Gerhart persisted.
"I may have been too forward with my proposal, but it's true that I wanted to meet Lady Rebecca. When I met you previously, I was still immature and lacked self-awareness as a prince, having just turned 18. My first diplomatic endeavor was an apology on behalf of the country, and I remember how painful it was."
"Yes, it was indeed a harsh experience at 18."
"However, both King Avalon and Lady Rebecca were kind and understanding towards me."
"I may have resented Roisen at the time for not stopping Prince Adolf's actions, but I don't hold Prince Gerhart responsible."
Rebecca smiled faintly, a perfect fake smile. Sara sensed that Rebecca wanted to wrap up this conversation.
"Looking back, I think I had a faint romantic feeling towards Lady Rebecca. Even after 10 years, seeing the still beautiful Lady Rebecca before me makes my heart flutter."
Despite having a fiancé by his side, Crown Prince Gerhart was extremely bold. Robert, on the other hand, failed to hide his smile and was making a strained face.
"Well, if Lady Rebecca's engagement becomes public, there will be many men crying into their pillows, won't there? I mean, if her partner is Sir Robert, even the ladies will be crying their eyes out. It's a perfect match made in heaven, isn't it?"
Prince Andrew, who was sensitive to the atmosphere, mentioned Robert and Rebecca's engagement while emphasizing that Rebecca and Robert were admired by many people, and that it wasn't just Prince Gerhart who was fixated on them.
Crown Prince Gerhart, realizing he shouldn't push the matter further, shifted his gaze to Chloe and Sara, smiling as he spoke.
"By the way, the young ladies of the Grandchester family are truly beautiful, aren't they?"
"Indeed, in a few years, Chloe and Sara will become stunning ladies. Perhaps we should wait and see what the future holds?"
Prince Andrew agreed with Crown Prince Gerhart's opinion.
"All the young ladies of the Grandchester family are extremely charming, but they're a bit too young for me. My first wife was 12 years old when she married me, and she passed away at 15. I still regret taking her away from her family at such a young age. Besides, if someone like me were to propose to them, they would only be troubled. In yi eyes, Prince Andrew is the perfect match for you."
"That's an honor."
When Prince Andrew winked at Chloe, she turned bright red and hid her face. Upon closer inspection, even her ears were bright red.
'Yeah, Chloe is super cute. I totally want to cheer her on in her love life!'
However, in the next instant, Sara calmed down. Prince Andrew was the eldest son of the crown prince. In other words, if Chloe's love came to fruition, it would mean that Chloe would become the future crown princess and eventually the queen.
'Chloe as the queen? That's just too ridiculous.'
Even if things were changing, it was hard to imagine Chloe having the qualities of a queen mother. It would be better to just treat this as a polite conversation.
After lunch, Marquis handed Prince Andrew and Crown Prince Gerhart a small present. It was a small, sound-emitting box in the smallest size. Inside, there was a small sachet filled with potpourri, and when they opened it, a sweet scent wafted out along with the music.
"This is a product scheduled to be released by the merchant guild in Grandchester. Although it doesn't have a product name yet, I would be honored if you would try it out, Your Royal Highness."
When Crown Prince Gerhart opened the lid, a violin melody began to play. The song was Paganini's Caprice No. 24, and the sheet music was also available for sale at Sophia Merchant Guild. They had chosen a piece with a lot of impact for promotional purposes.
"Is this a magic tool?"
"Yes, it is. The sound will stop when the magic stone is used up, but replacement magic stones are also available for sale."
"This is amazing!"
"Is this a magical tool that reproduces the performance of a musician?"
"That's correct."
"The skill of the musician is also amazing. I'd love to meet them! If possible, I'd like to hear the original sound right in front of me!"
Crown Prince Gerhart was getting excited, leaning forward in his seat.
"Marquis Grandchester, the Crown Prince Gerhart is a man deeply knowledgeable about music. He still supports many musicians."
"Is that so?"
"This level of technical skill, a song I've never heard before... everything is amazing. If there's no sponsor, I'll take them to Roisen and provide full support! Please introduce us!"
'What a mess!'
Sara looked at Rebecca for help, then turned to the Marquis.
"It seems the Crown Prince Gerhart is more passionate about finding a musician than a bride."
"For me, both are important. If this musician is struggling to make a living and is being exploited by the merchant guild for this product, I must stop it no matter what!"
'What's going on, the Crown Prince Gerhart is misunderstanding things big time!'
The Marquis let out a deep sigh, seeming to have given up on hiding the truth.
"Crown Prince Gerhart, the one performing that song is someone close to me, and they're not struggling to make a living. They're just cooperating with us to create a song that can be used as a sound source for Grandchester's specialty products."
"What?! You mean they're not a professional musician or composer?"
"That's correct."
"You're hiding someone with this level of skill...?"
"They're still a child. If it becomes widely known, it'll affect their future."
"I promise to keep their identity a secret. Please let me meet them."
"But..."
The Marquis glanced at Prince Andrew.
"Of course, I'll also keep it a secret. I promise to keep quiet even if my father or grandfather asks me."
Marquis was disappointed in Prince Andrew, who was trying to stop the unreasonable demands from the royal family of another country. When Prince Andrew said "keep the secret," Marquis knew he couldn't hide the performer's identity anymore. It was an implicit order.
"It's Sara, my granddaughter, who's playing the violin over there."
"What!?"
"Are you seriously saying that?!"
"Yes. What's the point of lying about it? Sara, start preparing for your violin performance in the hall."
"Yes, Grandfather."
Marquis ordered a servant to bring a child-sized violin and called Juliette to the hall in the main castle. Sara quietly stood up, bowed to the royal family, and moved to the hall to prepare for her performance.
'This is so troublesome. I didn't want to stand out...'
As Juliette took Sara's violin, Marquis put Juliette in charge of setting up the piano for the ball, and Sara began silently preparing her violin.
'This feels like I'm being put on display, and I don't like it. But if the royal family says so, I have no choice...'
The servants arranged chairs near the piano, and the royal family and the Grandchester clan came in from the dining room, row by row.
After confirming that all the audience members were seated, Sara asked Gerhart, the Crown Prince.
"Your Royal Highness Gerhart, is it okay if I play the same song as before?"
"Yeah. I want to hear the same song live. But since we've called a pianist to accompany you, I'd like to hear a different song too."
When Sara sees him with a faint smile, it seems that Prince Gerhart doesn't believe she's the one who played that piece earlier. Even if she were to deny it now, saying "that wasn't me," there's a possibility that the king would issue an order to search for the non-existent performer. If she were to come forward later, she might even be accused of conspiring against the royal family.
'Either way, I'm in a tight spot. And to think, the prince is being so pushy even though he's not from this country. Are all royalty like this?'
As she's thinking about this, she starts playing the music. First, she plays Caprice No. 24 by Paganini as requested. Since her heart is a bit uneasy, the performance might be more intense than when she recorded it earlier.
"What an incredible performance! You're truly the one who played it. Your skills are amazing!"
"It's truly amazing. I wonder why you were hidden away for so long."
The two members of the royal family are lavishing her with praise, but the Grandchester family, who have been listening to her repeated performances to promote their products, including Young Marquis and the servants, have already gotten used to it.
"I'm honored by your praise. Then, I shall play the next piece."
She gives a signal to Juliette, and she plays the Carmen Fantasy by Sarasate and the Rondo Capriccioso by Saint-Saëns. As it happens, the box she gave to Prince Andrew contains the Carmen Fantasy.
"Hmm... each of these pieces is amazing."
"These pieces are also available for sale as sheet music. If needed, I can have them delivered from the Sophia Merchant Guild."
As Sara tried to put away her violin, Juliette stood up from the piano and took the violin from Sara, starting to store it away. It seemed like she didn't want Sara to take care of the instrument management tasks.
"By the way, Lady Sara, how old were you?"
"I was 8 years old."
"To be able to play the violin that well at that age. Who are you studying under?"
"My performance is self-taught. You might not know, but Your Royal Highness Gerhart is from another country. My father eloped with a commoner. That's why I was born as a commoner, grew up as one, and still am one. I didn't have the luxury of studying under anyone."
It's true that she hasn't studied under anyone in this world, so saying she's self-taught isn't wrong. However, being able to boldly declare "I'm a commoner" in front of the royalty like Sara does is a sign of her strength.
"There's no one I can think of who can raise such a talented musician. By the way, how long do you plan on hiding your talent? In the world of music, child prodigies are sometimes born. If you're one of them, wouldn't it be okay to debut early?"
Gerhart, the crown prince, pressed Sara for an answer.
"Your Royal Highness Gerhart, I'm not a musician. This is just my hobby."
"You have that much talent, but you don't want to become a musician?"
"Yes. It's not the job I want to do."
"What a waste..."
"Please, as promised earlier, don't tell anyone about me and just leave me be."
Sara took a deep bow to Prince Gerhart, asking for permission to leave.
"You're not allowed to leave."
But suddenly, Prince Gerhart's tone switched from his usual gentle voice to a strong, commanding tone befitting a royal.
"With talent like yours, it's unacceptable to only use it for hobbies. Marquis Grandchester, I'll have Lady Sara serve as my personal musician!"
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