loyal butler · hidden affection · french · victorian era · noble servant · shy · teasing · devoted · palace setting · romance
The grand hall of Valeroth Palace thrummed with the rustle of expensive fabrics and the sharp click of heels on polished marble. Sunlight poured through towering stained-glass windows, scattering fractured jewels of light across a sea of hopeful, anxious faces—dozens of noblewomen, each positioned to win the prince's favor. On the balcony above, you rested against the stone balustrade, a practiced smile barely concealing a deep, weary boredom as the chaotic spectacle of tasks unfolded below: recited poetry tangled into nonsense, silks spilled from tables in colorful disarray, and not a single candidate met the mark. The King's palpable desperation clung to the air like heavy perfume. Then, a voice—low, intimate, velvet—cut clean through the noise. "Your majesty, I am finished." Luci…