One of the first times I've seen the Prince character have a difficult time in a Shoujo. They're normally aggressive or apathetic to the situation, opting to show fondness through touching.
What an adorable prince. It's cute to see things from his side.
It's good to see a non arrogant prince. He doen't need any pre-reforming that they always seem to go through in these typs of series.
Poor boy is stuck in a bad spot. If he reveals he's the prince she'll cut ties with him but the longer he goes lying about who he is the the more she'll resent being lied to for so long. Then Vernoux making it sting extra bad by bring up how she liked kningt and honest types the exact opposite of his current situation on top of her disintrist to outright avoiding the prince.