"Valentina, you can keep studying in the inner courtyard. I will come and pick you up soon, okay?"
"Mn." Valentina nodded and went to her usual spot to study.
Today was the day the second prince of the Gale Empire was coming over, and Damien was planning to be with Lily pretending to be her servant while she meets him.
Damien was in his usual servant clothes and proceeded to walk towards the Guest Pavilion, which was located on the palace lawn.
As he reached the place, he saw a large, light, and airy garden room with a high-peaked roof resembling a canopy. In the middle, there was a circular table with two chairs on opposite sides.
He knew that this was the place the imperial family would receive guests and exchange pleasantries while enjoying the fresh air.
Damien had actually come early waiting for Lily. Soon enough, he could see an incomparably graceful and elegant silhouette coming in from a direction.
As she came close, an affectionate smile hung on her lips as her eyes sparkled upon seeing Damien.
"You are quite early, aren't you? You need not have waited this long."
"Well, for my woman, I can wait for an eternity." Damien said, staring at her beautiful eyes.
Lily's expression became bashful, and she felt happy hearing his words. But before she could say anything, Damien quickly stole a kiss from her cherry lips.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Damien!" Lily's face became red as she covered her lips while warily glancing around to see if anybody saw them.
Damien kept a straight face and said calmly, "Relax, no one's here. Besides, you look as angelic as ever no matter what you wear."
Damien saw that she was dressed in dignified light blue robes that accentuated her noble and sublime aura.
Lily sighed with a pout, "You are too willful. Sometimes you seem mature, but other times you act like your age. You are really one of a kind."
"Well, but don't you find that attractive?" Damien smugly smiled.
He continued, "Besides, you can consider me to be older than you. Don't get fooled by my physical age, hehe."
Lily squinted her eyes and said in an aggrieved tone, "I am at least a few months older than you. But you treat and bully me as if I am the younger one."
Damien knew that although Lily was 16 years old and he was 15, their difference in age wasn't much and he would also be turning 16 soon.
"Of course, that's because I love you. Who else other than your man can bully you?" Damien softly chuckled.
Lily's eyes suddenly became worried as she said, "I hope you remember what I said yesterday about not making any rash moves in front of that prince. He should be coming anytime soon."
Lily was worried if Tristen Gale would do something to piss off Damien and if he would retort back.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Damien softly smiled, "Don't worry. I will then go and prepare the tea and stuff and come back when he arrives."
Lily sighed as he left and stared at her own peerless beautiful reflection in the Rainbow Lily pond near her, immersing herself in her thoughts.
She was thinking back to the day she rescued Damien, thanking fate for letting her notice the black amulet Damien always had around his neck.
When they first met as kids, she had noticed the inconspicuous black amulet around his neck and knew that it was something given to him by his long-dead mother.
She didn't dare to imagine what would have happened had she not been present that day.
However, a youngster's brash voice interrupted her thoughts, "Imperial sister, looks like you had been waiting impatiently for a certain someone, hahaha. Look whom I have brought in from the palace."
Upon hearing the voice, Lily crinkled her eyes, and in a moment, her expression turned from rigid to calm.
She slowly turned back, and with a steady expression, she said in a calm voice, "First imperial brother and Prince Tristen, it has been a while."
Her voice was as light as a feather, and her words didn't carry any tinges of happiness or surprise.
The person standing near Evan Rong looked only around nineteen years. However, while standing side by side with Evan Rong, he had an inherently grandiose and lofty bearing that even surpassed Evan Rong.
He took a step forward and bowed slightly, "Prince Tristen Gale of the Gale Empire pays his respects to the immeasurably beautiful and graceful Princess Lily Rong. I had planned to visit you earlier this year. But thinking about the future, I didn't dare to neglect my cultivation. Otherwise, all the hard work I had done to have a chance to win your grace would have all gone to waste."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})As he said his words, infatuation and desire blazed in his eyes, seeing her breathtaking beauty and did not conceal it in the least.
Lily knew all this hard work he mentioned was about raising his cultivation for the upcoming tournament to win her hand in marriage.
"Hahaha, imperial sister, look how much Prince Tristen is fascinated with you. I really wish I can be as passionate and charming as him. Then maybe I could have landed myself some beauties, hehe. Well, I will leave you two alone to have a sweet and loving talk." Eren Rong quickly left the place after saying his words.
Lily didn't find it surprising that Eren Rong was fawning over Tristen Gale. Despite his status as the crown prince, she knew that he would suck up to Tristen Gale and enjoyed being in his company.
After Eren Rong left, Lily elegantly gestured towards the table and said, "Let's sit and talk."
Tristen Gale smiled and sat down opposite her with his gaze still glued to her face. He smiled faintly and said directly, "I know Your Highness doesn't wish to see me. But I pray that you give me a chance to win your affection, and I can swear that I would never disappoint you. I know Your Highness isn't fond of mingling with others, especially when you were absent for many of our gatherings. I wanted to take this chance to see Your Highness to make sure that you are not lonely being all alone in this huge palace. Now that I saw Your Highness after these years, it seems like your beauty has only become more beautiful and elegant than I imagined. Even if people say that the mysterious princess of the Xeton Empire's beauty is comparable to yours, in my eyes, Your Highness' beauty is incomparable and worthy to be the number one goddess of our continent."
As he spoke, Tristen Gale's yearning and infatuation were revealed completely, not masking it in the slightest.
But Lily Rong remained unmoved as if she was unaffected by his words, and seeing his smile; she could notice a tinge of deep lust hidden behind that smile.
She could feel how his eyes didn't seem to agree with the words he said and how hugely it contrasted with Damien's sincere and loving words.
Lily returned a weak smile and said, "Your Highness praises too much. I am not worthy of those words."
Before Tristen Gale could say anything, he frowned, noticing Damien coming with a tray filled with sweets and tea.
Damien came near Lily and said with a dashing smile, "Your Highness, may I?"
