"No way! Why would I do that?" Zadhea kissed the kitten's cheek. "She's a cutie. I feel like my heart is melting whenever I look at her eyes."
Evelyn bit her lip. "Oh I forgot that you aren't our legendary Mimosa. Even this kitty knows you guys are different."
Zadhea raised a brow. "What do you mean by that?"
"In the novel, Mimosa happily opened the Prince's gift then and there after claiming to be his fiancée. Unexpectedly, the kitty jumped out and scratched her face. It left an ugly scar on her cheek for the rest of her life. Horrible, right? Do you know what she did to that kitty afterwards?"
"What did she do? Hit her?"
"Killed her."
"Oh no." Zadhea hugged her kitten. "Poor Lillian. How could she kill an innocent cat?"
Lillian was the name Zadhea gave to her cat.
"Hello, the cat scratched her face," Evelyn reasoned. "She valued her beauty the most. I must warn you as well. This cat seems to be a meanie just like the person who gifted her. So be careful with her."
"You meant the male lead is rude?" Zadhea asked.
When she met him for the first time, she couldn't help but think that he must be a nice person. Of course, if she forgot about his psychopath doggy behaviour.
"Nope, really. He's good. I was joking," Evelyn truthfully answered. "Almost everyone loved him and they even said that he should have given the villainess a severe punishment rather than making her a beggar."
Zadhea shook her head. "I disagree. That punishment is like a death sentence to her. Imagine living in a castle for decades only to be thrown out to live in roads. She must have felt devastated."
Evelyn nodded thoughtfully. "What you are saying is correct. No wonder she killed herself afterwards."
Zadhea sighed. "I wish I could do the same. See how much I work hard just to die honourably in the end. The system told me that only male lead can kill me. I can't kill myself. What a pity!"
"Why must you kill yourself?"
Evelyn still couldn't understand. Zadhea had told her many times that she wanted to die from the male lead's hands so that she could return to her original world.
"I want to go back. If you want to come, you have to follow my path."
"I don't want to go back," Evelyn protested. "Of course I also missed my family. But it has been eight years. I can't even remember their faces anymore. Better to accept this world. Moreover, I loved this novel and I have always hoped to live like an ancient lady. Finally my wish came true."
Then she gave Zadhea a deep look.
"I know the entire story. The moment I finished learning how to write in Zurratte (this country's main language), I wrote down the important incidents so that I won't forget them later. Dear, I know about the male lead, what he likes and dislikes, what kind of a woman he wants, his past, present and future. So let me help you to fall in love with him. Isn't it the best way? Don't worry, with your charms, he'll definitely fall for you."
Zadhea rolled her eyes. "Then make him fall in love with you instead," She said sarcastically.
"No need. It's an unnecessary trouble. Moreover, you are better than me."
"Oh hoo. So you are telling me to change into a different person to seduce the prince."
"I didn't say that! Why can't you just marry him? You aren't a bad person. No need to change yourself. But still... Please consider giving him a chance."
"What about the female lead? Didn't you guys like her?"
Evelyn became quiet for a few seconds before speaking again.
"She's okay..."
"Then that's the end of the discussion."
Zadhea lifted her tea cup to drink a sip, showing her disinterestedness regarding that topic.
"Why are you so stubborn?" Evelyn was aggrieved.
Zadhea put her tea cup down and looked at her emotionally. Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke, "You don't know anything."
"Then tell me what it is. Otherwise, how can I understand you!?"
Evelyn tried hard to control the anger bubbled in her heart. She really hated her best friend shutting herself from her. She hated it so much. Why couldn't she just open her stupid mouth for once? Did she think of her as a mind-reader? Ugh!
"My mom was severely sick and hospitalized... She only had me..." Zadhea couldn't speak anymore. She started crying uncontrollably.
Evelyn went to her side and hugged her without saying anything. She slowly patted her back till she calmed down.
"Please Theresa..." Zadhea looked at her friend pleadingly. "Help me to go back. I wanna see my mom. I miss her too much."
"Oh-kay..." Evelyn sighed. "I'll try my best to help you. You must be happy, bestie."
At this moment, a servant interrupted them. Bending his body forward, he said, "Princess Zadhea, the queen asked you to open your gifts."
Zadhea wiped her eyes. "No need. Just bring me the letters only. As for other gifts, ask her to donor them to charity directly."
When the servant left, Evelyn couldn't help but snapped at Zadhea. "Are you kidding me? Why did you do that? At least take your future father-in-law's gift. He presented you one of the most expensive diamond necklaces in the world. When Mimosa found out about it, she became so greedy that she got even more determined to be the future wife of Prince Heidith. But you... You didn't even open it!"
"I don't need these things," Zadhea simply replied. "I'm not marrying his son. I think we should return the gift."
"Nah," Evelyn opposed. "He'll be upset. So don't do that. He gave it as a birthday present not as a betrothal gift. So it won't be a problem."
"Hmm. If you say so..."
Zadhea spent the rest of day writing letters of gratitude for the guests who gave her cards and presents.
-----------
King Foneth was stunned when he finished reading the thank you letter he received from his future daughter-in-law when they were still in the middle of the ocean, heading for their country.
A part of the letter:
"Thank you again for giving me that gift, your Highness. I felt like I need to let you know my decision regarding that necklace. It's so expensive after all. I decided to give it to charity. I especially mentioned them about your present. They asked me to let you know about their gratitude. Honestly, I think this way, the necklace will find its true value..."
When Heidith saw his father's dumbfounded expression, he became curious and poked his nose into it. Actually, it was rare to see him like that. So don't blame him for being a busybody.
(Prince Heidith: It's about my future wife. That means it's my business as well, humph!)
Heidith read the letter over the king's shoulder and became stupefied as well.
"Dad, why do you think she did that?" He couldn't help asking.
"Maybe she wanted to impress us by showing that she is a good, kind-hearted girl?" The king honestly stated what was in his mind.
Or else, why would she do that? It was one of the most expensive diamond necklaces in the whole wide world! It costs hundreds of thousands. A sane person would never give it away for charity.
"I don't think so." Said the prince. "If she wants to impress us, she can find countless ways to do that. Why the need to use the necklace? If she is a greedy person, she will never even think about abandoning the necklace. I think she's simply not interested in heavy jewelleries. Mom said that some women like simple accessories. Anyways, the necklace belongs to her. Whether to keep it or not is entirely her decision. We can't judge her for that."
Nevertheless, he didn't understand what she meant by necklace finding its true value. What kind of nonsense was that?
But of course, he wouldn't mention it in front of others.
The king chuckled when he heard about his beloved.
"Definitely not your mom, though. She likes everything big."
Luckily, his son was still a child.
The prince smiled and nodded in agreement.
"Seems like your future wife is different. Good for you, son." The king teased him.
"Dad..." The prince became aggrieved.
"Oh, by the way... why didn't I realize it before? You just took your future wife's side, didn't you?" The king continued teasing while scratching his chin.
"Dad!"
"Yeah. He took her side at the banquet too." Derek shamelessly butt in.
"Derek!!!"
"Oh, really? Already a wife's pet I see."
Prince Heidith didn't know what to do with these people anymore. Thus he remained silent.