I turned my head with a perplexed expression, only to find the prince reaching out and grabbing my hand, placing it on his head softly. His eyes resembled small crystals, jumping and twinkling.

"You have to pet me since I'm cute too." He pouted.

His sullen expression was oddly endearing, and my heart inadvertently twitched at his words. I sighed and relented, rubbing my hand on the tufts of his hair gently. He nuzzled my arm like a little kitten. I struggled to keep down a foolish grin and continued patting his head with a tentative expression.

I was too preoccupied to realize that Zier's puppyish look vanished; replaced by murderous, spiteful eyes as he watched the prince slip a smug, winning smirk in his direction.

Unyielding, Zier stepped forward and took hold of my other hand, placing it against his cheek while charmingly glaring at the crown prince.

"I-I was first." He blushed, rubbing his cheek against my palm. I bit the inside of my lip and felt blood instantly rush up to my nose. I reluctantly pulled him closer and stroked his head gently.

I stood between two grown boys, asking to be petted. My face remained neutral, and it had not at all occurred to me that the people who I was petting weren't pets, but the crown prince of the nation and a relative of royalty.

I discreetly glanced around, searching for Madam Rosé's presence, but she was gone. I made a dismayed expression and frowned. After all of this, she left me! What was the point of all that flirting if she wasn't planning on bringing me to her archives? I whined inwardly and sighed. Well, if she's not here, I can leave. I withdrew my hands and simply walked away with an impassive expression.

The two behind me glared at each other with stares that could kill before following me like lost puppies. I strode faster and made my way through the gardens, paying little attention to where the other weaving pathways were going.

Zier suddenly seized my hand and pulled me to the left. "Rem, I found a really good book in my personal library! It has a fire rune! Come to my room, please?"

I hesitated for a moment, then nodded and followed him. The crown prince looked on in annoyance and grabbed my other hand, forcing me to stop.

"Don't call him Rem," he growled, scowling as he met Zier's smirk.

"He said I can. And what are you allowed to call him? 'Young Lord'?"

The prince stood, momentarily stunned, before he flushed in resentment. "I-I'm the crown prince! I can call him whatever I want!"

"No, you can't." I interjected straightforwardly. The puppy boy's grin widened triumphantly at the downtrodden prince.

The prince blushed even harder and persisted, tugging in the opposite direction. "Whatever! It's not like I care about a stupid name!" His grip grew tighter.

"Then let me go." I frowned and rubbed my wrist agitatedly.

"F-fine then!" He released me and I found red markings on my skin where his hand used to be. I hissed and quickly moved my arm into my coat pocket. The prince's gaze remained fixed on the redness. He seemed to be worried, his mouth opening and closing, but in the end, he didn't say anything.

Navigating our way out of the garden, the prince trailed behind us with a despondent expression. As we entered the palace and traversed familiar hallways and staircases, a pang of guilt tugged at my conscience. Poor little tsundere.

I averted my gaze and silently entwined my fingers with his, wordlessly drawing him closer.

----

(A/N: Madam's POV.)

She nibbled the tip of her finger, obsessively staring at the text on her notebook with great conflict in her eyes.

"It's too difficult." She mumbled to herself. Her room was dark and disheveled, with books and miscellaneous items scattered on the floor. The dim desk lamp in front of her was the only light in the room.

"That duke's son just appeared out of nowhere..." She slammed her palm onto the desk, sending tremors through the room. The mana in her hand stirred uncontrollably in response to her anger.

"But... it's too good, too! The jealousy is...!" She flopped onto her bed and rolled around in bliss. "Ahh, what should I do...!" Her eyes twinkled with delight as she grabbed her pillow and curled up. After a while, the room stilled, and she stared blankly at the ceiling.

"...no. He's interfering with my ship." She suddenly jolted up, fixing her gaze at her notebook under the lamp across the room.

"I need to get him away, now!"

----

(A/N: Remis' POV.)

I grunted uncomfortably, trying to shift away from the two bodies wedging me into the soft couch. There was a large, empty couch on the other side of the room, but neither of them seemed willing to move. I rubbed my temples, irritated.

"Couldn't one of you just move!" I snapped. I tried to stand but both my arms were firmly held by either one of them.

"I'll move if he moves." Zier shot a look at the prince while hugging my left arm tight.

"As if you'd really move. You would probably take advantage of him and put him on your lap." The prince huffed and looked away.

"Ah, whatever! I've already sat on yours, it'll just break even!" I scoffed and shot a look at the grumpy tsun-tsun.

The prince blushed, an unwitting smug smirk appearing on his face. Meanwhile, Zier looked at the prince and then at me with a mix of dismay and rage. I could feel his legs trying to shift under mine, and his arms attempting to lift my body onto his. I wanted to scream in exasperation.

You know what? Who cares. The couch and Zier can both serve as cushions, it doesn't matter. "Get me the book you promised me, and I'll sit on your lap obediently for as long as you want." I declared. Zier's eyes lit up and he hastily speeded off the couch to retrieve it.

The prince glared holes into Zier's retreating figure. I pretended not to notice. Whatever drama was between the two, it was none of my business. I shook my free arm happily and tried to stand up once more. Forget the book, I'll just let them fight out whatever issues they have. I'm leaving.

I grabbed the couch's armrest with my free left hand and pulled myself towards it, causing both me and the sticky prince to lurch forward. We both fell onto the cushion with a poomf. I jumped to my feet. I shook off the prince's hold of my right arm aggressively and dashed out of the front door with footsteps as light as a hummingbird.

Good luck with your argument~! I giggled merrily as I skipped up the stairs to the royal guest room.

----

I laid on the bed tiredly with a deadpan expression.

"A-and it's not like I cared! I just said it because he was getting on my nerves! He was being disrespectful to the madam, too..."

The prince's ramblings had gone on for more than an hour since he entered the room. I rubbed my temple tiredly and wished that I had locked the door behind me when I entered the room. He circled the bed and continued to deny.

Perhaps I really had grown too comfortable with Crown Prince Lucius after our shared experiences with Madam Rosé, but I finally broke.

"Just say you like Zier and get out of my room!" I hollered, throwing a pillow at the rambling prince. His speech was interrupted by a feather pillow to the face.

"...who's Zier?" He asked, unaffected by my disrespect. He locked eyes with me and stared unflinchingly.

I was confused. "What do you mean, who's Zier, you were just talking, he's one of your cousins or something."

The prince frowned and intensified his stare. "I don't understand. Is 'Zier' someone who you've known for a long time?" He gritted his teeth as he said this, his eyes dark. "I've never met this 'Zier' before."

The tsundere is not only dense, but also stupid. I mused. "You've just met him. The adorable, fluffy-haired one." I paused and continued. "Yes, I've known Zier for a long time. We met in the royal archives. I'm quite fond of him."

The prince laughed mockingly through his gritted teeth. "'Adorable'."

I rolled my eyes and kicked the covers over me lazily. "Why, are you jealous?" I casually joked.

He blushed furiously and stomped the floor loudly. "Who's jealous?! I couldn't care less!"

With that, he stormed out of the room, but before closing the door, he turned his head back. "We'll talk about this 'Zier' later!" he shouted.

The door slammed behind him. I was left puzzling over what had just occurred. The future of this country seemed bleak with such an idiotic prince at its helm.