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Chapter 7
Judging by the position, there was no way the woman had clung to him on her own. He had at least that much discernment, so Kaien hastily pulled his body back.
The silver hair of the woman lying there as if watching him glimmered faintly in the dim light. Her soundly sleeping face looked as innocent as a fairy of the forest.
Perhaps she was having a pleasant dream—a subtle smile lingered at the corner of her lips.
That utterly carefree appearance actually took the wind out of his sails. She’d said she wouldn’t do anything, and it seemed she truly didn’t guard against him in the slightest.
In truth, he had been surprised from the first moment he saw her. She looked not even slightly like her father, the Duke.
If anything…
“Useless sentiment.”
He recalled a memory from very long ago, then immediately pushed that thought beneath his consciousness.
Even so, he couldn’t take his eyes off Wendy for quite a while before quietly leaving the bedroom—and behind the man’s back, the ash tree flowers bowed their heads shyly.
In the imperial palace garden, there is a pure white pavilion with a round roof.
It had just the right amount of shade and was somewhat removed from the center of the garden, making it perfect for sitting quietly to read or hold a tea party.
I had been sitting right there, poring over a book for a while, when I turned my gaze to the tree planted outside the pavilion.
“Um, Your Highness Alexei.”
Only then did the boy hiding behind the tree poke his head out. Alexei, who had been staring at me intently with his golden eyes, opened his mouth.
“How did you know?”
“How could I not know?”
The first day I’d assumed it was coincidence, but seeing him trail after me today—the second day—well.
“So, may I ask why you keep following me around?”
I’d expected him to deny following me, but unexpectedly, Alexei came trotting out from behind the tree and approached my side.
Would it be too rude a comparison to say he was exactly like a cat showing wariness toward a human it’s seeing for the first time?
“I don’t understand.”
“Hm?”
“Aren’t you Uncle’s partner?”
The word “partner” felt rather unfamiliar. Ah, and I can’t exactly deny it either.
“Even though Uncle says that, why do you react like that?”
Is he talking about what happened in the dining room the day before yesterday?
Meeting the child’s clear eyes, I first decided to play dumb.
“React like what?”
“You heard everything, and yet you pretended not to know at all.”
“Well, that’s because I didn’t want to make His Highness the Grand Duke uncomfortable…”
“Tell me the truth.”
So it doesn’t work after all.
Having confirmed that my act wouldn’t fly, I thought for a long while before carefully opening my mouth.
“Well… because it really doesn’t bother me? Arranged marriages are all like that, after all.”
Especially when even families on friendly terms can’t be sure how things will turn out—this was practically a forced marriage, so of course he’d dislike it.
Indeed, from yesterday through today, Kaien had come into the bedroom later than me and left before I woke. During the day, being apart could be excused by claiming he was busy, but a married couple using separate bedrooms would look strange, so it seemed we’d compromised.
No matter how much of an arranged marriage it is, there’s nothing to gain from letting the outside world see that the relationship is bad.
“But marriage is a sacred thing.”
“Pardon?”
“Shouldn’t you cherish and respect each other?”
Seeing the boy ask with a serious expression, I was at a loss for how to answer.
“Well, I suppose it’s because I’m not the partner His Highness chose.”
In fact, about five years from now, Alexei will begin gathering various talented people to prepare for a crisis that will befall the world.
Kaien will become entangled with the heroine’s maid, one of the closest aides gathered that way, and by the end of the original work, he confesses his feelings—and after the final battle, they even hold a wedding in a side story.
A wife who died long ago wasn’t factored into that flow in the slightest. If anything, the Dermis ducal house’s mistreatment of that maid, seeing her as a thorn in their side, only worsened.
“In reality, the person he’ll come to like is someone else.”
“What did you say?”
Ah, did I say that out loud?
Seeing Alexei blinking in shock, I awkwardly scratched my cheek.
“It’s not something to be so shocked about…”
You’re going to be entangled with at least four women ten years from now. Isn’t that just how a panso’s harem works?
Thanks to that, there had been quite a few heated heroine debates in the work’s comment section. About who was the main wife and who wasn’t.
“…Different.”
“Hm?”
When I strained my ears to hear what he’d said, the boy raised his head and met my eyes.
“It’s different from what I saw.”
Hold on.
The moment I heard Alexei muttering seriously, I felt cold sweat running down my spine.
The golden eyes gazed steadily at me as I couldn’t easily ask back and just watched nervously. At the end of that sharp gaze, as if it could pierce through anything, the boy opened his mouth.
“Who are you?”
This is trouble. I responded as calmly as I could.
“Wendy Remia Elision. As Your Highness knows, I am the Grand Duke’s wife.”
Could his foresight have already awakened? No, even if it had, he shouldn’t be able to see specific futures.
Even after hearing my answer, Alexei slowly tilted his head.
“It can’t have changed.”
Whatever I answered, it was obvious I’d look suspicious—so I put on my best innocent, unknowing expression.
As if reflecting my nervousness, sweat kept gathering on my palms hidden beneath the table.
“Your Highness!”
Just then, a dignified call came from outside the pavilion. Unlike Alexei, who frowned, I turned my head toward the voice like someone grabbing a rope dropped from the heavens.
“So you were here.”
A handsome man with blue-tinged hair tied back approached the pavilion and bowed politely toward me.
“Greetings. I meet Her Highness the Grand Duchess.”
As I nodded reflexively, Alexei pouted beside me.
“You found me quickly, Ciel.”
“Of course. No matter that we’re within the imperial palace, how many times have I told you not to wander alone? I feared the worst, and here you are bothering Her Highness the Grand Duchess again today.”
“There was something I was curious about. Besides, being in the imperial palace couldn’t possibly threaten me!”
Between the two of them bickering, I just quietly rolled my eyes.
Ciel.
Alexei’s attendant, and a man who is already dead by the time the original work begins. The reason he still feels so familiar is largely because he appears tiresomely often whenever the protagonist reminisces.
You know how it is—a supporting character whose setting is so overpowered that the author kills him off early in the story and only brings him back occasionally in flashbacks when needed.
Thinking about this man’s true identity, it made perfect sense.
“Have you satisfied your curiosity? Then please return now. It’s nearly time for your etiquette lessons.”
To Ciel’s cold declaration, Alexei quickly protested.
“Ah, I haven’t resolved it yet! There’s something strange!”
“That again. If you wish to skip class, perhaps you should devise a different excuse by now? Even if I am your subordinate, arbitrarily breaking appointments is not the conduct of a ruler.”
So that’s what it was?
Surprised by the rather childlike motive, I watched as Alexei glared resentfully.
“I’m telling you it’s real! Things flowed differently from what I saw. This has never happened before.”
If Alexei really did see the future, then this was clearly my mistake. Our stay at the imperial palace wasn’t long, so I’d thought it wouldn’t be much of a problem.
“So I was going to ask how to fix it… it might be possible.”
The words he added at the end were so quiet I couldn’t hear them. With a premonition that this was going to get troublesome, I quickly took the initiative.
“Your Highness, it seems you have urgent matters to attend to, so why don’t you head back now? I also need to go prepare for tomorrow’s party soon.”
Using my schedule as an excuse to ask for understanding, Ciel nodded as if convinced and lifted Alexei up in one swift motion.
“Whoa!”
“Let’s return now, Your Highness.”
“Wait, I still have something to say…! Ugh.”
Alexei, who had been reaching out toward me, opened his eyes wide. At the sight of the boy suddenly curling in on himself, Ciel stopped moving, startled.
“Your Highness?”
“…Haaah!”
With a pained groan, golden energy began slowly flowing out from Alexei’s body.
And the moment I saw that, I shot up from my seat. As I quickly grabbed Alexei’s face with both hands, Ciel shouted at me with a bewildered expression.
“What are you doing?!”
“Just stay still!”
Ignoring the man’s protest, I felt along the boy’s neck, and something raised on his skin. I pressed it with all my strength, and Alexei’s body jerked up like a pump before flopping back down. The energy that had been gathering like smoke also vanished without a trace, as if it had never been there.
Letting out a sigh of relief, I realized once the situation settled that I’d been careless. The surroundings could have been reduced to a wreck—I’d acted without thinking…
Slowly turning my head, I saw the man’s face watching me with an enigmatic expression.
Ciel’s lips moved slowly.
“What in the world…”
But it was an emergency, so it couldn’t be helped. I’ll say it again—I’m a person who values her life.
Because the true identity of Alexei revealed in the original work is…
“What just happened?”
A dragon.
