But I was unable to take another step when a hand suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled me back. The one who stopped me from leaving, the one to have desperately pulled me by the wrist, the one gazing at me with care in his eyes – it was the third prince.

I was completely and utterly shocked when Wang Yo grabbed my wrist with so much force that I involuntarily spun around and almost bumped into him. He looked neither pleased nor irritated to see me but he was certainly unimpressed when he glared at me with enigmatic eyes. It was one of those rare moments where I was too stunned to speak or act first. I considered asking him to let go of me but the words died on my lips when he turned his attention over to the thirteenth prince and coldly dismissed him.

Baek Ah hesitated as he glanced from his third brother to me and it was that slight reluctance to leave that made me smile a little. Despite being a little younger than me, the thirteenth prince was truly a gentleman.

With a forceful tug, I pulled my wrist out of Wang Yo’s grasp and bent myself into a bow towards Baek Ah. “Your Highness is most gracious,” I brightly told him before standing up straight. “Yura is indebted to you and will not forget the kindness you extended towards a helpless stranger tonight. Thank you.”

This made Baek Ah smile as well and just like that, the tension in the atmosphere was instantly lessened. “You are not a stranger but a friend, Yura. Perhaps we will meet again.”

He sent me a friendly wave and with a polite nod of his head to Wang Yo, he left. From my peripheral vision, I could see Minyoung reaching for my hand to pull me away from the third prince but I simply brought my hand up out of her reach and faced the new arrival. Whatever he had to say, I would have to listen to it, regardless, and there was no point in hiding behind my servant.

“Your Highness,” I said in an attempt to start a conversation.

“Let’s talk later,” Wang Yo muttered as he began to walk away.

Bewildered, I turned to look at Minyoung who simply shrugged. I did not understand. Was I supposed to follow him? Could I use this opportunity to run and hide since his back was turned? Wang Yo was being unusually quiet and the second option was starting to look more appealing until a male palace servant approached me and asked me to follow him to the third prince’s carriage.

Oh, well.

I wish I could have asked Minyoung to come with me to the carriage since it was pretty much my fault she had been walking around in circles all day but since it was a royal carriage, it would not be allowed no matter how big of a fuss I made. Wang Yo was as silent as I was and avoided eye contact with me when I sat opposite him. It was only when I took a seat that I realised how exhausted I was and I was fully prepared to take a nap although not there. It was awkward, to say the least, and in that moment, I would much rather have been in the company of crazy Haesoo than him. Just when I had decided to rest my eyes, however, he spoke.

“I told you to come back to the palace.”

My eyes snapped open and I questioningly met his blank expression. Seriously?

“Was this a feeble attempt to run away?” Wang Yo went on to question. “I must say, Yura, you did not get very far.”

“Where could I have escaped to?” I responded tonelessly. Honestly, I was tired and did not have the energy to entertain him or to be mocked by him. I cast my gaze outside the window and added, “Wherever I go, Your Highness, I always end up meeting you.”

“Do you know how long I spent looking for a girl like you?”

Oh, why does he have to put it so romantically? If I were truly a fool, I would assume that he spent a lifetime searching for the oh-so-special me. But, of course, he feels bothered that a nuisance like me has wasted his time. I am als