Chapter 167: What the Quiet Reveals
Chapter 166: What the Quiet Reveals
Lyria’s POV
Earl Hawthorne did not look impressed.
If anything, his expression darkened further, like Corvin’s words had only added weight to something already poorly tolerated.
There was a stillness to him now that felt sharper than movement. The kind of stillness that came from restraint.
He looked at Corvin for a long moment before speaking.
"Am I to understand," he said carefully, "that you intend to justify raising your hand against her on the basis of... familiarity?"
Corvin let out a short, dismissive breath.
"I did not intend to hit her," he said quickly. "I was merely... there were flies. It was an instinctive motion."
A silence followed that statement.
A very, very pointed silence.
A small sound escaped me—half disbelief, half amusement.
It came out sharper than intended.
Both men turned toward me at once.
Corvin’s gaze tightened immediately, like I had just confirmed something unpleasant in his mind.
The Earl, however, only looked more exhausted by the situation.
"Flies," the Earl repeated slowly.
"Yes," Corvin said, as though that should end the matter.
I tilted my head slightly.
"I d-did not s-see any," I said quietly.
Corvin’s jaw flexed.
The Earl turned to me then, his tone softening just slightly.
"Your Highness," he said, "is he disrupting your peace, disturbing you perhaps?"
I looked at Corvin again.
He was watching me now, eyes narrowed as if warning me not to make this worse for him.
I smiled faintly.
"The Marquess s-should know better," I said.
My gaze held his as I spoke.
"E-especially," I continued, my voice soft but clear, "when it involves a-attempting to strike someone of t-the royal family in public."
Something shifted in Corvin’s expression.
"P-perhaps," I added lightly, "the M-marquess has forgotten that he is in a c-competition."
"One wrong m-move," I said after a pause, "and he may find h-himself removed from it e-entirely. Especially if he continues to b-be careless when s-swatting at f-flies."
His eye twitched.
I watched it.
And then I added, almost absentmindedly, "Besides... what w-would the Marquess gain from leaving n-now, when he h-has already found something of i-interest within the p-palace?"
Corvin’s smile returned, but it was thin. Controlled. Forced into place like a mask that did not quite fit.
He cleared his throat then.
"Princess Lyria," he said, voice smooth again, "I wish you a pleasant evening."
Then he bowed and left.
That was such a move built from cowardice. I had expected him to say something more, but he did not utter another word. Perhaps it was because the Earl was right with us... or perhaps not.
The Earl stepped slightly closer then.
"Are you unharmed?" he asked.
I blinked at him.
"Yes," I said. "I a-am quite a-alright, thank you."
He studied me for a moment longer than necessary, as though confirming I was not simply saying what etiquette required.
Then he nodded once.
Only then did I notice the hall was almost empty now.
The nobles and their attendants had gone.
Only maids gathering forgotten items, quiet staff at the edges of the room.
And us.
The Earl’s attendants stood at a respectful distance.
My maids were nearby as well, waiting silently.
The space felt larger now that it was no longer filled with voices.
And since there was nothing more to be done here, we began walking towards the exit.
The Earl spoke again after a while as we entered the corridor.
"I must admit," he said, "I was very impressed with your interview."
I glanced at him.
He did not look like someone offering empty praise.
He looked... certain.
"As such," he continued, "I had been hoping for a chance to speak with you about it."
I hesitated.
Then nodded slightly.
"T-thank you," I said. "I-i did not f-find it easy."
His expression shifted faintly.
Approval, perhaps.
"You handled it remarkably well," he said.
I smiled again, more properly this time.
"T-thank you, my lord."
A small pause followed.
Then, lowering my voice slightly so only he could hear, I added, "Duke T-thorncrest and B-baron Redwick assisted me b-beforehand."
The Earl let out a quiet breath.
Not quite a sigh.
Something more restrained.
"I see," he said.
Then, after a beat, "I would have liked to assist as well."
I blinked at that.
He continued before I could respond.
"Though I must admit," he added, tone lightening just slightly, "my talents are... limited in comparison."
There was something in his voice.
Something that sounded almost like disappointment... or jealousy? I could not quite point it out, but it was there.
I turned my head slightly to look at him more carefully.
He was walking as if nothing unusual had been said.
As if he had not just implied he was... lacking.
I frowned faintly.
That could not be right.
The Earl did not seem the type to be jealous, especially regarding something as trivial as a lesson on etiquette.
We continued walking.
After a moment, I spoke again.
"Y-your interview was a-also quite m-memorable," I said.
The Earl gave a quiet hum of acknowledgement.
"I w-ould like to think so," he said.
I hesitated.
Then added, "I-I did not r-realise war was... so f-frightening."
The words came out more honest than intended.
He looked at me then.
And something in his expression softened.
"War is frightening," he said simply. "But most do not know that, because most have never stood in it."
I nodded slowly.
He added after a moment, "According to the treaty, we are meant to have peace for a long while yet."
I nodded again.
"I h-hope so," I said quietly.
We walked a little further before I spoke again.
A question had been sitting at the back of my mind since the interview began.
It surfaced now.
"M-may I ask s-something?" I said.
The Earl glanced at me.
"Of course."
"If you f-fought in the w-war," I said carefully, "then you m-must have been... an a-adult when it b-began?"
He gave a small nod.
"Yes," he said. "I was eighteen when I joined."
I blinked.
"E-e-eighteen?" I repeated.
He gave a faint, amused exhale.
"Yes."
I tilted my head slightly.
"I-I was around the age of t-ten when the w-war was ongoing," I told him.
