Claire's POV

"Where's your token, Claire? Without the royal token, you'll never be part of the royal family!"

Down on the stage, Maria was glaring at me.

With her prompting and guidance, the crowd, which had previously remained silent out of fear, became noisy once again. Countless eyes were scrutinizing me, speculating about my dress and guessing where I might have hidden the token.

"You can't answer, can you? Is it because you don't even have a token?"

Maria, thinking she had me cornered, smirked with satisfaction, her eyes gleaming.

"Tell me, Claire, are you pushing Prince Louis to announce your engagement tonight just to take advantage of the fact...