?

　　“It’s good to finally meet you, Princess Cordelia.”

　　“You are as beautiful as they say.”

　　“You have your father’s eyes.”

　　These were the common phrases I kept hearing the members of royalty and noblemen repeatedly said when I went over to greet them. Once the guests started coming, there was no stop to the constant smiles I had to offer and all the names I had to remember. Occasionally I would find myself looking around the crowd to spot my alphas.

　　Augustus was nowhere to be found and after a while I had to send Anne to go look for him just to find out where he went. I understand that Augustus was not very fond of social events like this but the fact that he could easily get away like this was making me envious as I wanted to run and hide away from these prying eyes as well. Cassian and Isaiah on the other hand were incredibly social which made sense since they were used to these kinds of events.

　　I even caught a glimpse of Lady Marie and her children walking and chattering with the guests, so was my mother, Aiden and Gideon. Everyone was preoccupied with showing hospitality to our guests from faraway which I supposed was the only reason pushing me to not excuse myself to sneak away. This was after all just a quick session to be acquainted with my guests as the actual party would be starting later in the evening.

　　From the corner of my eyes I noticed Anne making her way towards me carefully. I quickly excused myself from the people I was talking to and went to her. “Did you find him?” I asked her in a hushed voice.

　　“No, Your Highness. I looked everywhere and there were no signs of Prince Augustus.”

　　“Did you check the library?”

　　Anne quickly nodded. I then frowned as I wondered where else he could have gone. I knew that he has an estranged relationship with his family but to completely disappear after finding out that they were arriving soon was rather childish.

　　“Princess.” Gideon called out from behind me. I quickly twirled to face him, hoping that I did not look bothered by anything.

　　“Yes?”

　　“It would seem that our other guests are running late and would only be arriving for the evening party.”

　　“Ah…” I muttered, looking around to figure out who had yet to arrive only for me to realise that it was most of the royal members of the neighbouring kingdoms. “I thought the Northern Kingdom was arriving?”

　　“A messenger arrived earlier to say that there has been an accident.”

　　“Is everyone alright?” I asked quickly.

　　“Yes, but they are forced to rest at a nearby village until their carriage is fixed.”

　　“Send some men over to help with the process.” I ordered.

　　“Very well.” He bowed and walked away.

　　I turned back to Anne, ready to tell her to ask for some guards to help her search for Augustus but as though it was a miracle, I spotted him by the entrance. I excused myself through the crowd of people, my gaze fixed on the top of his head. I should be thankful that he was on the taller side but that only met he could walk at an ungodly speed.

　　“Prince Augustus,” I called out when I thought I was close enough but he did not bother to turn his attention to me. Maybe he did not hear me or maybe he was purposefully ignoring me, either way I had to stop him before he disappeared again. I particularly rushed over to him, glad that he was walking close to the walls away from people so no one was paying attention to us.

　　I reached out and grabbed hold of his sleeve which successfully caused him to stop walking and to turn to me.

　　“What?” he monotonously asked.

　　I slowly let go of his sleeve. “Where were you?”

　　He blinked. “I was not aware that you were looking for me.”

　　“That’s only because you disappeared for quite some time.”

　　“I needed some air.”

　　“Your parents-” I wanted to tell him what Gideon had told me but Augustus looked away when I started.

　　“If there is nothing else, please excuse me.”

　　“W-Wait…!” he paused. “Is everything alright with you?” I asked even though I actually wanted to ask if he was alright to meet his parents again after so long. We never truly talked about his relationship with his parents after the marriage interview and he has such an unapproachable aura that I never thought of making small talk with him.

　　Augustus looked at me, as though he was trying to understand what I had just asked him. I watched as his mouth parted open but before he could speak, I felt someone approaching me, prompting me to turn to them.

　　“Greetings, Princess Cordelia.” An elderly man bowed his head to me.

　　“Hello, Lord Beckham. How do you do?” I politely smiled, remembering him as one of the families who is a supporter of Lady Marie. Suddenly, more people came to greet me but before I could excuse myself to talk to Augustus, he excused himself and disappeared behind the crowd.

　　This was truly going to be a tiring day or me mindlessly worrying about someone who clearly did not care about anything nor anyone.

　　*

　　I soon managed to leave the hall to get ready for the evening party. I was confident that I had managed to greet every guest that had arrived but that would only mean the ‘main guests’ were going to show up soon. As I changed into my evening gown, I could not help but to wonder what kind of people my alphas’ family members like. Were they going to be as difficult to handle or were they going to be the opposite.

　　I closed my eyes for a second to clear my mind from overthinking. All I could feel was someone brushing powder on my face while another pair of hands were styling my hair. Gentle and calming that I was starting to grow sleepy.

　　“Don’t fall asleep princess.” Anne warned.

　　“I won’t.” I called back instantly.

　　When they were finally done, I looked at myself in the mirror once again and this time it took me a while to recognise myself. The gown my mother had picked was truly exquisite. It was a strapless dress that wrapped around my torso perfectly. The skirt portion fanned out elegantly, and the deep midnight blue hues of the fabric gradually turned into black. There were tiny jewels embedded into the dress which made it sparkle under the right lighting.

　　“And the final touches.” Anne said as she came over with a sparkling tiara. I lowered my head enough for her to secure it on my head, where my head was properly pulled into a bun.

　　“Thank you for your hard work everyone.” I told Anne and the other maids who had helped me. “Now, let’s get this debutante part over and done with.” I playfully said as I headed towards the door.

　　It was absolutely nerve-wracking to walk to the grand hall knowing what awaited me. The nerves I had from earlier this morning came back with a vengeance and it was eating away at sanity. I clasped my hands together in front of me in hopes that it would calm my nerves but I was suddenly aware of how heavy this dress was and how foreign the tiara on my head felt.

　　“Princess. You look beautiful.” Anne suddenly said, causing me to turn to her. I silently wondered if she could see it by the way I was fidgeting.

　　“Thank you, Anne.” I smiled at her, appreciating her efforts in making me feel better. I knew that this was not the time to let my emotions overwhelm me. I took in a deep breath and exhaled loudly.

　　My heart was racing at an unnatural rate the moment I reached the doors to the grand hall. I could hear the muffled music coming from the other side which gradually slowed down until it came to a complete halt.

　　“Announcing Princess Cordelia Renaldi, the future heir to the Southern Kingdom’s throne.” the voice at the other side of the door boomed before the doors in front of me were pulled open.

　　I stood up straight, confident and gracefully as I had thought when I was younger. I controlled my expression, not too serious that people would think I am cold and distant, just enough to let them know that I am matured and capable. I could not show off any signs of anxiety in front of my guests—not even an ounce of weakness to be shown to the prying eyes of the people who would not hesitate to ruin me and my reputation.

　　I walked ahead, meeting the many eyes of my guests and I smiled.