Rebirth: The unfavored Princess is the Tyrant King's favorite-Chapter 45: Can’t you see?
The people began to whisper among themselves seeing how Luciana was dressed. Those who usually worked as maids and servants of aristocratic families could tell at a glance just how expensive her get-together cost.
The gold accessories in her hair, the high-quality silk dress, and even the cost of the shoes on her feet could feed their families for a whole year if not more.
Luciana heard the whispers drifting through the bustling market and could already tell what the man was plotting. His aim was clear: to distort the truth and incite the crowd’s biases against the wealthy. She saw a woman nearby, peddling the same wares, and walked towards her, determined to ask the prices to compare.
The man, who was full of rage, walked towards her in swift steps, grabbed a fistful of her hair that had been neatly made, and forcefully yanked her backward, causing some of the accessories in her hair to fall. Luciana winced at how violent his tug was.
"How dare you walk away from me when you have not paid me for the broken hairpin?"
"My lady!"
"My lady!"
Dora and Esther called out at the same time, flabbergasted by the man’s behavior.
"Unhand her this instant. Do you know who she is?" Dora asked in a commanding tone.
"I don’t care who she is; she must pay my money!" The man scowled.
Luciana was caught off guard by the man grabbing her hair from behind and tried to get out of the man’s hold but was finding it difficult. She felt as if her hair was going to be torn from her scalp by the man and raised her legs, about to stomp on the man’s foot, at the same time Lord Algrith jumped down from Luciana’s arms, planning to attack the man when the sound of a sword being unsheathed sliced through the tense atmosphere.
The cold metal of the sword gleamed in the sun, reflecting the sun’s rays, and was positioned just a few inches away from the man’s neck.
"Let go of her before I make your head roll this instant!" A chilling voice full of murderous intent reverberated through the atmosphere.
The man let go of Luciana as if she was burning coal, staring at the sword in horror. He immediately took a step back and fell on his knees. All those around immediately bowed seeing the man before them.
"Gr...gre...greetings to the second Prince, David Hunt!" The man yelled, stammering.
Luciana’s heart skipped a beat hearing the name of the man who had saved her twice today, and she didn’t know what to say about his timely intervention both times. She turned to look at him and saw a different side of David. She had never seen the 2nd Prince look so menacing and exude such a dark aura before in both lives.
She remembered when he would always coincidentally visit noble Consort Margaret anytime she was there to keep the woman company. He always looked so calm and collected and easy to talk to that she always instinctively compared him to Nicholas, who was always so serious, cold, overbearing, and forceful.
Now that she thought of it, could it be that in her past life, David had also found out her identity but kept it to himself? But why? Why would he confront her in this life but choose to keep it to himself in her past life? Was her rebirth changing the course of things?’ she wondered.
Dominic finally managed to bypass the crowd that had initially formed an impregnable wall around the princess consort and came to stand before her and bowed.
"Sorry I’m late, Princess Consort," Dominic said, and Luciana glared at him. ’How convenient? Wasn’t he deliberately being tardy because she decided to keep him at arm’s length?’
When the people heard the form of address, they all turned to look at the man in pity. He had just dug a grave for himself for laying a hand on the princess consort. They even thought he was lucky it wasn’t the devil prince himself who came to the princess’ rescue.
Most of the people had already heard about the eldest Prince’s marriage. Thankfully, the wedding ceremony took place in the palace, and because the emperor warned the ministers present not to let their mouths run, it had yet to spread outside the palace walls that Luciana was alone without a husband on her wedding day.
Prince David sheathed his sword and motioned to the guards, who came forward to grab the man, intending to drag him away. He approached Luciana and asked gently,
"Are you alright?"
Luciana absentmindedly nodded at him, her gaze fixed on the scene of the seller who was being dragged away, begging and shouting for the 2nd Prince to show him mercy.
"Come with me; let’s get out of here," Prince David said, trying to grab her wrist only for her to move out of the way.
"Wait!" Luciana’s voice, full of authority, cut through the atmosphere, and everyone turned to look at her. The guards paused in their actions at the sound of her authoritative voice and looked at the 2nd Prince for his approval. He subtly nodded, giving Luciana his support.
Luciana walked to the stall she had been planning to go to before the man grabbed her and asked the stall owner,
"How much does a hairpin cost?" She asked, and the woman respectfully answered.
"8 silver coins for the ones on this side; these cost 10 silver coins because of their design," she pointed to a different set of hairpins at the side.
"How long have you been in this business?" Luciana asked again.
"About 20 years, Your Highness," the woman said, and Luciana nodded.
"So it means you can tell the difference between original and fake materials used to make hairpins, right?" Luciana said, and the woman nodded.
"Yes, Your Highness, this servant can tell the difference."
The man saw what Luciana was about to do and panicked. He bent over, and his forehead touched the ground in a deep bow, repeating the process over and over again.
"Have mercy, second Prince, it will never happen again," he said, repeating the phrase each time he bowed. His forehead even began to bleed from the continuous hitting of his head against the ground.
Amidst all the noise and chaos, Luciana gestured to the woman to come forward.
"Can you check the material used for the broken pieces of hairpin on the floor?" Luciana said and pointed to the broken hairpin.
"Right away, Your Highness," the woman said and immediately collected the pieces and studied them.
"This is made from low-quality porcelain; it’s brittle and doesn’t last," she reported.
"How much do these kinds of hairpins cost? Give me an average amount," Luciana said.
"Depending on the seller, it could cost between 5 to 8 silver coins, your highness," the woman said.
Luciana walked towards the man and with a gaze akin to a sharp sword, she demanded.
"How much did you say the hairpin was again?"
The man gulped, frantically shaking his head as he locked eyes with Luciana; he felt as if he was suffocating with something heavy pressing on his chest.
"Don’t let me repeat myself," she said authoritatively. When the man saw 2nd Prince David also approaching with his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, he hurriedly answered.
"Fi...Five gold coins, Your Highness."
The crowd gasped at the amount. They began to realize they had made the wrong judgment on the princess consort.
"You can take him away," Luciana said to the guards, and they dragged the man away. She made her way back to the cat and her maids; she had done what she did because she didn’t want the people to think David and she were abusing their authority.
"Princess Consort, are you okay?" Evelyn appeared out of nowhere together with her maids and asked with a voice full of concern.
She had seen everything happen and had stood in a blind spot and watched everything unfold. When she saw the man attacking Luciana, she was very happy and was waiting for the man to beat her up. It would have been better if he had disfigured her face in the process. Who knew the 2nd Prince would come and intervene?
"I’m fine, can’t you see?" Luciana snapped; she had seen Evelyn’s wide grin when the man grabbed her hair. She was standing beside a burly man, using the man’s body to block herself from view, and it was pretty obvious she thought she was hidden.
Evelyn looked hurt by Luciana’s answer, and tears immediately welled up in her eyes. She batted her lashes rapidly like a scared bunny and said in an aggrieved tone,
"Does Princess Consort have something against me? I was just trying to show concern for a fellow sister; why are you so hostile?"
Even though she was referring to Luciana, one could see how she had deliberately tilted her head to the side. That gesture, combined with her delicate movements, painted a picture of vulnerability that was hard to resist. It was as if she was not only showing 2nd Prince David her pitiable self but also striving to exude an air of charm and allure that could captivate him.
Luciana inwardly rolled her eyes at the scene. ’What a bitch! What did both David and Nicholas see in her to be entangled with her in her past lives? Or could it be that any man who showed interest in her would always end up with Evelyn one way or the other?’
"Let’s go to the auction house," Luciana said and walked away; she was in no mood to play with Lady Evelyn.
Unknown to Luciana, a pair of eyes had been following her ever since she began exploring the streets. 2nd Prince David Hunt felt the piercing gaze and turned to look in that direction and saw something black flash past his eyes before it disappeared.
"Who could it be? Was the person watching him or Luciana?" He mumbled under his breath.
