Formerly, The Fallen Daughter Of The Duke

The student council room is bathed in the setting sun. And there, in the distance, were two shadows.

The daughter of the Duke, Claire Martino, can't hide her feelings of resignation.

Jet black hair and pale gray eyes looked down upon her in disdain. A few meters away from Claire, stood the First Prince of the Noston Country, Asbert Lucia Nottidam. 

"Claire, you'd better ask Salomon to be your escort for the graduation party tomorrow, wouldn't you?"

“…”

This was something that Claire had expected a long time ago. Though it was expected, her words were stuck in her throat now that it finally took place.

The setting sun shining through the window illuminated Claire's hands.

It was supposed to be hot, but her fingertips were cold and she couldn't move, couldn't even say a word as if her throat had frozen.

How many times have she simulated this scene in the past?

According to the plan, she was to whistle in the dark and expose no disgraceful behavior, but now that it has come to it, the reality was quite different. 

The response she prepared for so long didn't sound like her own voice, and with her throat so dry and parched, she squeaked. 

"I decided to be Charlotte's escort. So, as not to be disrespectful to the Martin family, I asked my pal Salomon for you. If you're willing to sit in a bed of needles, that is."

His cold eyes that were devoid of the slightest bit of warmth. Nothing but contempt was palpable on his face. And in his pale grey eyes, there was no reflection of Claire.

"Asbert-sama…."

"That's all I have to say. If you'll excuse me, Charlotte is waiting for me."

When she had finally squeezed a word out, he seemed to have taken it as her consent.

Before Claire could finish speaking, Asbert turned on his heel and walked out, opening the door with such vigor, evidence that he felt no remorse or anything of the like.

Left alone in the room, Claire sat down on the couch helplessly.

"…. This day has finally come."

Tomorrow is the graduation ceremony of this Royal n.o.ble Academy.

After the graduation ceremony, a grand “graduation party” will be held, where school officials from graduates and current students as well as the king and n.o.bles gather.

It is of course an important event for graduates, but also an important meeting for the children of aristocrats to confirm their position in social circles and to inform the public in and out of the circle.

Any student will be accompanied by her fiance.

And Claire has just been denied an escort by her fiancé, the country's first prince, Asbert.

In other words, it was a declaration itself, though not formal, that their engagement would be reneged publicly as of tomorrow.

Asbert and Claire have been on good terms since they were young and grew up together.

But at some point, however, their relationship turned cold. 

Their relationship, especially in the last few months, had been frozen and awful.

Asbelt ignored Claire and shared his actions with the other n.o.ble ladies. His entourage followed Asbelt and disregarded Claire's presence.

Sooner rather than later, she had known that this was going to happen.

The fact that he declined an escort in advance the day before and arranged for a n.o.bleman in replacement seemed so gentlemanly.

"It can't be helped. I'm not good enough, that's all.

Claire struggled to come to terms with her situation in order not to let her self-esteem fade and disappear.

Claire herself admits that there's someone more suitable for the First Prince Asbert. 

Claire was born 16 years ago as the eldest daughter of the prestigious Martino family, a branch to the royal family in the country of Noston.

Her mother had died in an accident when Claire was very young, but she was not lonely because she had a kind father, two brothers, and one sister. …until a year ago.

A year ago, Claire had her fate ritual. 

In this country, when you turn 15 years old, you will contract with a genie and you will be able to use magic.

Of course, not everyone can acquire magic, and the magical power that each person possesses according to his bloodline and personal qualities only surfaces during the ritual.

The Martino family, from which Claire was born, is a lineage of women. Girls born into the Martino family have a very high level of magical power and are then destined to live in the service of the country.

In particular, the firstborn were often more powerful in their magical powers, and when looking back at history, most of them were in special positions and some were even elevated to the position of viziers.

Her older brothers are also excellent and have promising futures, but the expectations placed on Claire are no better than theirs. 

Claire was born a year shy of the first prince of  Noston Country, so she was destined to marry Asbert even when she was still in her mother's womb.

She has never thought about her position where she has no freedom.

So much so that the path Claire was walking was a natural fate. Since it's a natural course, she never spared time to look around.

And came the day of her baptism ceremony. As the king and the n.o.bles watched, Claire stepped into the baptismal fountain.

As far as the remaining records are concerned, when the baptism is completed, the fountain will glow white or silver, depending on the strength of the magic.

(I heard it was white for Auntie Mee and silver for Auntie Florence. What about me…?)

I waited for that moment with my heart pounding. Then my field of vision was dyed in a pale pink. 

This is…?

The strengths of magic are in the order of the colors silver, white, blue, pale blue, pale pink, red, orange, and yellow.

The color of the magic that Claire had received was a pale pink.

Pale pink is the third color from the top, with the exception of silver and white, which are special colors that only existed from the Martino family.

Not bad at all considering that many people only had orange or yellow magic, but the color was enough to disappoint the King and her family, who had placed high hopes on Claire.

After the ritual, Claire's surroundings changed dramatically. 

Her older brother, Oscar, who has always treated Claire kindly, became stricter on Claire; and other brother Leo, who has professed himself a rival on the road to success, has somehow become naturally unkind.

What particularly shocked Claire was the way her father Benjamin had changed.

He refused to take Claire to social gatherings or to the city, and he had begun hiding her existence.

Raised by the excellent pedigree from her father, and with the beauty of her mother, Claire would certainly have been Benjamin's pride.

However, he couldn't stand the thought of his daughter being singled out as a failure of the Martino family.

As a result, her father's lack of attention and compa.s.sion worsened Claire's position as the “Disgrace of the Martino family”.

From a young age, she had always looked forward to following his father into town, going to see plays with her brothers, and picking out hair ornaments with her sister.

"…. Before the ritual, I had a special dress tailored for the evening after the baptism."

… These were fun memories until she turned 15 years old.

Now that Asbert has told her that he has practically broken off their engagement, she looks out the window of the student council room.

The setting sun, which was about to set, had fallen completely, and as darkness began to spread, she could see the back of Asbelt returning to his dormitory with the n.o.bles of his cronies.

(Charlotte….)

And in the midst of the group, a small, delicate back with long, fluffy hair fluttering in the air seemed to shine.

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