He was startled when he heard a woman's voice calling him, and he quickly pulled back his hand that was about to grab the pastries.
When he turned to see who was speaking to him, he was even more shocked, as he never expected the Princess herself to greet him.
"O-Oh, y-yes. Sure. Your Highness, it's an honor to make ti for you," he said.
Viana smiled at him, her eyes carefully observing every awkward movent Arden made. In her heart, she muttered a small complaint, knowing she had to make this young man one of the n in her harem.
"I heard you achieved the highest score at the Academy in the Valendale Empire," she said.
She let her words hang in the air, watching Arden's reaction closely.
"I-I guess they exaggerated it," he said nervously.
Viana chuckled. "Surely the academics wouldn't dare lie to my father about the scores of his students, would they?"
"A-aa..." Arden grew more flustered, lowering his face as it began to blush.
Because his body was taller than hers, the Princess tilted her head slightly, observing that this young man seed like soone who would be very easy to win over.
However, the screen above his head that showing the Love Percentage hadn't show up.
So, she asked, leaning her face slightly closer to Arden while crossing her arms behind her back, "If I were to ask for your help to teach a little, would you be willing?"
Arden lifted his head slightly and saw the Princess's face so close beneath his, causing his face and ears to turn an even deeper shade of red.
Who would have thought that the Princess, renowned for her incredible beauty, would not only speak to him but also ask for his help in teaching her sothing?
Viana asked again, her tone sweet but slightly pressing, "Well? Are you willing to teach ?"
Arden stamred, "Y-Yes. But tomorrow I already have to return to the Academy..." he replied nervously.
She giggled softly, covering her mouth with one hand. "Of course, not so soon. Only if you have free ti," she said lightly.
He finally gathered the courage to look at the Princess, his face slightly flushed, and said, "I-I will be honored to teach you, Your Highness."
Then he bowed slightly but was startled once again when he noticed the Princess's right hand in front of his face.
"Well, thank you. As a first step to seal our agreent, may I have the honor of dancing with you?" Viana asked with a sweet smile. She could now see the screen above Arden's head showing the Love Percentage 5%.
This number had already surpassed Prince Rayne, and Viana was highly pleased with the progress she had made.
So, she was at least willing to dance with Arden, after all, he was quite adorable.
After hesitating for a while, Arden finally took the Princess's hand and led her to the dance floor.
Ignoring the stares and whispers from the other nobles, who were questioning why she was speaking to, let alone dancing with, Arden Daelis, Viana lifted her chin with pride. Yet, her smile remained as sweet as ever.
And so, she danced with Arden, who, to her mild surprise, turned out to be fairly skilled at dancing. But then again, every noble was expected to know how to dance, even bookworms like him.
***
And so, the exhausting party had finally co to an end for Viana.
Having finished her bath and dinner, she now found herself alone in her room.
Dressed in her nightgown, she walked toward her writing desk, pulled out her chair, and sat down as her thoughts wandered back to the party that had only recently concluded.
Then, she picked up the paper she had written yesterday, listing the nas of potential candidates for her harem.
Next to the na Prince Rayne Elwick, she noted down 3%, and beside Arden Daelis, 5%.
Setting her pen aside, she stared at the nas thoughtfully.
Tomorrow, she would et the Crown Prince of the Valendale Empire again, and in a few weeks, she would have the opportunity to get closer to Arden Daelis.
"Hmmm..." she mused.
That left Kaley and Reyes.
She could et Kaley during her visit to the temple, and finding Reyes would be easy in the training grounds of the Royal Knights.
With a satisfied smile, she carefully placed the paper back into her diary, returning it to the drawer.
For now, it was ti to sleep, tomorrow would be another day, one spent in the company of the Prince.
***
The next day, the Princess was all dressed and ready in her riding attire. The night before, before the party ended, Prince Rayne's aide had sent her a ssage about their plan to ride together to the Spring Plains.
With light makeup and mounted on her white horse, accompanied by the Royal Knights, she set out for the agreed eting place to see the Prince.
He, too, was prepared in simple riding attire, a white shirt deliberately left open slightly to reveal his broad chest, brown pants, and dark brown riding boots.
He wore a brown cloak embroidered with the Valendale Empire's emblem.
Smiling at Viana's arrival, he urged his horse forward to approach her.
She greeted him with her sweetest smile, then accepted the Prince's outstretched hand as he leaned forward to kiss the back of her hand.
"Good morning, Your Highness. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long," she said graciously.
"No. Not at all. Shall we set off?" the Prince asked, smiling as he revealed his perfectly aligned teeth.
She nodded gracefully, "Yes. I've been looking forward to seeing how Your Highness tas the wild horses."
The Prince grinned at her, and they set off together, accompanied by the Royal Knights from both of their respective nations.
Throughout the journey, they talked about many topics, and this ti, Viana felt fortunate because she now had knowledge about events from the past and had recently studied many books before her birthday party.
She understood that n are often drawn to won who are both beautiful and intelligent, and she regretted not dedicating herself to learning more in her previous life.
And her efforts had paid off. The screen above the Prince's head suddenly appeared, showing 4%.
Even though it only increased by 1%, it was still a success.
They chatted all the way to the Spring Plains and then dismounted their horses upon arrival.
Under the shade of trees at the edge of the plains, a servant brought by Viana spread out a cloth and arranged the food she had thoughtfully prepared for their lunch.
She also signaled the servant to distribute food to the knights.
They enjoyed their al while gazing at the scenic Spring Plains, occasionally observing a few horses grazing and resting under a large tree in the middle of the grassy expanse.
"Do you see the white horse with brown spots over there, Princess?" the Prince asked suddenly.
Viana nodded while nibbling on her sandwich, only responding after she had swallowed it. "Yes. It looks lovely, Your Highness."
But deep down, she knew that the Prince would end up with a pure white horse, one with no spots on its coat.
She scanned the entire plain, her gaze eventually landing on a few more horses grazing peacefully in a distant spot, far away from the group of horses they had been observing monts ago.
"Your Highness," she called out to the Prince, who was still focused on the brown-spotted horse.
"Yes," he replied, his eyes remaining fixed on the horse.
Viana pointed toward the pure white horse in the more distant group and said, "What do you think about the white horse over there?"
The Prince shifted his gaze to where she was pointing and observed the white horse intently.
"Wow. Yes, that's definitely a much finer horse than the one with brown spots," he said enthusiastically, standing up imdiately.
He promptly ordered his knights to prepare his horse and removed his cloak.
The wind caught his open white shirt, giving him a striking and sowhat seductive appearance, though Viana paid it no mind.
'He is totally not my type...' she thought, her eyes still fixed on the pure white horse.
Then he got on his horse and rode quickly toward the group of horses. The knights also rode along, working together to herd the white horse until the Prince could get close enough to chase it.
The chase took place inside a circle ford by the knights and their horses. Slowly, the circle grew smaller, restricting the movents of the white horse.
The Prince jumped onto the back of the white horse, holding tightly to its mane. The horse jumped and reared up several tis, trying to throw him off its back.
He held on firmly to the white horse, refusing to let go.
Eventually, the horse gave up and stood still, allowing one of the knights to place a bridle in its mouth.
Now they were walking slowly toward where Viana was seated.
As they approached, she noticed that the screen above the Prince's head now displayed an increased percentage 7%.
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