Victor smiled warmly at all the noble ladies present, showcasing his dimples.
Everyone except Viana gasped at the handsomeness of Lady Olivia's lover, and she couldn't help but pretend to gasp as well.
"Hello, Ladies. It's a pleasure to meet you all," the man said, bowing respectfully, which was met with giggles from the other noblewomen.
Lady Olivia glanced at Viana and, smiling behind her wide-open fan, said to Victor, "Offer your greetings to the Princess as well."
Viana narrowed her eyes slightly at the mocking words from Duke Calisto's daughter but still acknowledged Victor's greeting with a simple nod of her head.
'Show off,' she thought then pretended to sip her tea.
In her previous life, Olivia Callisto had also flaunted Victor to all her guests, yet the Princess had enthusiastically welcomed him.
Back then, she hadn't realized that Olivia was merely mocking her for still being unmarried. And she realized it only months later.
Now, however, her original plan for attending this banquet, was to get advice on how to create her own harem without having to marry first.
She even tried to show off that she now had a handsome personal Royal Guard.
However, to everyone else, Reyes was merely considered a bodyguard, not a lover. So, they regarded him simply as a 'servant' and her plan didn't go as she originally intended.
By the end of the banquet, she hadn't found what she was looking for.
***
"Haaa..."
Viana dropped herself onto the sofa in her bedroom, feeling utterly exhausted and dissapointed.
"Did you have a good time earlier, Your Highness?" Sina, who had followed her from the entrance, asked politely.
"Ah, not really. Just the usual, and it was so tiring," the Princess replied indifferently.
Sina remained silent as she fetched a change of clothes for her.
'Her Highness usually rambles on about the topics discussed at the tea party,' she thought, preparing herself to listen to the Princess's chatter.
But Viana stayed quiet, even after changing her clothes.
Instead, she said, "I'll be reading again today."
Slightly surprised, Sina nodded in agreement and left the Princess's room to prepare refreshments and tea for her.
Ather Sina left, she picked up a book about managing royal finances from the sofa table, where it had been placed with the other books, and opened to the last page she had read.
She tried hard to focus on the words in the book and understand its contents.
However, even after several minutes, she just couldn't concentrate.
'Damn it. If this keeps up, I won't be able to secure my future...' she thought, frustrated.
She closed her book and leaned back against the sofa, letting out a long sigh.
She attempted to summon the transparent paper that could display the text, but after multiple tries, the screen failed to appear.
'That damn transparent paper now won't come, even when being called...' she thought with a slight annoyance.
In the end, she walked to her writing desk and took out a piece of paper from her diary.
Then she updated the Love Percentage of all the candidates which had changed, beside each of their names.
Prince Rayne Elwick: 7%
Arden Daelis: 5%
Reyes: 10%
Kaley: 23%
After finished, she stared at the numbers in front of her, making her frustration build even more.
All the Love Percentages for every name were still far from 100%, not even close to halfway. Among all the names, only Kaley, the future High Priest, had the highest number compared to the others.
This meant she had to raise these percentages, figure out a way to bring them under her control, master every aspect of royal affairs, and, above all, avoid Count Lazarus.
For Reyes and Kaley, it seems like she will be able to raise her Love Percentage much faster.
'Hmm... Should I focus on them first?' she thought.
***
In the evening, she got ready for dinner with her parents, the King and Queen.
Since they were always busy, they rarely ate together. But her parents would always let her know in advance if they had time for a family meal.
Feeling joyful, she set aside thoughts about her future and the lovers for a while during the dinner, she chatted away with them in a playful and spoiled manner.
Her loving parents joined in the fun, momentarily setting aside their royal duties. They were especially pleased with how their daughter had been behaving lately, and surprised to hear stories about Viana, who was no longer carelessly spending money.
"My dear, we heard that you canceled the plan for the spring festival?" Queen Issabella asked her daughter carefully.
"Ah, yes, Mother. It was just an ordinary party," Viana replied as she scooped up her soup.
Her parents exchanged glances before the Queen asked again, "And for the Royal Hunting event, you haven't canceled it, have you?"
Parties and events involving the nobles had been managed by Viana ever since she turned 18. Her parents wanted her to get used to organizing events and to improve her social interactions with other nobles.
While other events could be skipped, the Royal Hunting was one of the most important traditions in Elysia.
"No, Mother. Of course not. It's one of the important events in Elysia, isn't it?" she answered with a smile.
Then she continued as she scooped up more of her soup. "I've already planned to make sure it is at least a success—to keep the nobles on our side."
Her parents looked at their daughter with pride, but Viana herself was searching for the right moment to ask them whether she could keep her "lovers" in the palace.
She glanced at them multiple times, but so far, she hadn't found a good enough reason to convince them to allow her to establish the "harem."
'Maybe I shouldn't rush to ask them,' she thought as she glanced at them once again.
Finally, she decided it would be best to be patient with everything, not to hurry.
'So, as the first step, I should make sure the upcoming Royal Hunting event will bring benefits to me.'