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chapter 43
The imperial palace garden was filled with beautiful flowers of every color, but among them, the pink rose bloomed especially lush and lovely.
According to the princess, though she didn’t know all the details, it was a variety imported from abroad. She said it was so beautiful that even she cherished it. As thanks for my consultation, she gifted me the rose with its roots intact.
“Roses have different meanings depending on their colors. Red roses symbolize passion, yellow roses symbolize jealousy, white roses symbolize purity. And pink roses…”
As I turned my head to explain the part he was curious about, suddenly—there was Lord Winchester’s face, much closer than I thought.
At some point, he had climbed onto the bed. He lay on his side, propped up by one hand, watching me with an expression full of interest.
“……”
For a moment, I lost all words. Maybe it was because of his messy black hair, or his large, strong fingers, or the glimpse of his firm chest through his slightly open shirt… Or maybe it was simply because his breath was close enough for me to feel it brush against my cheek.
“Pink roses are…”
I swallowed dryly without meaning to, then tried to continue.
The moment I opened my mouth, I realized why I was acting like this.
It wasn’t his fingers, or his hair. It wasn’t even his nearness or the overwhelming masculinity he gave off.
It was his eyes.
The way Lord Winchester’s blue eyes were looking at me. They shone with interest—pure curiosity. And those sparkling blue eyes were fixed squarely on me.
On me alone.
It was strange. The instant our eyes met, my heart raced.
Of course, it must have been beating before too. Otherwise, I would already be dead.
But before this, I never noticed it beating. It was just there, taken for granted, like breathing.
Now it was different. The moment our eyes locked, I knew exactly where my heart was. Because it pounded so loud, so violently, I could feel it.
In Lord Winchester’s eyes, there was a clear curiosity and interest.
Has anyone ever focused on me like this before?
The answer came quickly. No one.
Not in my past life, nor in this one.
No one had ever shown this kind of interest in my ordinary story, nor listened so sincerely. No one had ever devoted their full attention to me like this.
No man had ever looked at me as if the world held only the two of us.
No one had ever looked at me as if I were the most fascinating person in the world.
For someone as plain as me, Lord Winchester was the first to show this much curiosity and focus.
No. Don’t be fooled. He’s just curious about what I said. This is like a grandson listening to his grandmother’s old stories with sparkling eyes!
“Madam?”
When I paused without finishing, Lord Winchester gently urged me on. The way he addressed me was so sweet, his low voice so deep and tender.
Ah… I just want to be fooled.
I wanted to believe that this longing wasn’t for the story, but for me. I wanted to believe those sparkling eyes meant affection for me. I wanted to believe that handsome face would keep looking only at me.
I wanted—foolishly—to believe I was someone special to him.
Why does he have to be so ridiculously handsome!
I even felt a flicker of resentment toward him.
And then—Lord Winchester reached out toward me.
With that same deep gaze, he stretched his hand toward me.
W-what? Why?
As he came closer, I reflexively shut my eyes. My heart pounded like crazy, so loud I thought my veins might burst.
“There was a thread on you.”
Through the thunder of my heartbeat and the darkness of my closed eyes, his voice reached me.
A… thread?
When I slowly opened my eyes, I saw him holding a piece of thread between his thumb and forefinger—exactly the same color as the ribbon we’d used earlier to tie laurel branches.
“Ah…”
My mind went completely blank. The wild beating of my heart deflated into silence, shriveled away into a corner.
After that stillness, what rushed in like a tsunami was embarrassment.
Wh-what was I expecting?! Why did I close my eyes! Did I even stick my lips out a little? No… no, I didn’t… right? He couldn’t have noticed, right? What if he did? Aahhh, I’ve lost my mind!
“Madam?”
“…Eh?”
His voice slipped into my near-panic state.
“So, what’s the meaning of the pink rose?”
This passionate student persisted in his pursuit of knowledge.
All while wearing a dangerously handsome face, speaking in that deep voice, and staring with blue eyes that could make a woman believe he liked her.
“I-I forgot!”
I blurted quickly, then rolled over to face away from him. The burn of his gaze on my back was unbearable, so I yanked the blanket over my head.
There was no way I could say it now.
That the meaning of the pink rose was “a vow of love.”
If I said that in this atmosphere, it would sound exactly like I was confessing!
My heart, which had quieted, started pounding again. Cluelessly.
“…What is this?”
Ethan asked when Lorinus, oddly enough, brought a servant to the training grounds—who then unloaded a box piled high with branches.
“Laurel.”
“Laurel trees? Are you planning to plant them in the training grounds?”
Ethan glanced around. The center of the training field was, of course, kept clear for sword practice, while the sides had large trees planted for shade and rest. Being the training grounds of the royal knights, steeped in history and tradition, the trees were thick and offered plenty of shade.
“No. To hand out.”
“Hand out? Why?”
“As gifts.”
“Gifts? Branches?”
The more Ethan heard, the less he understood. What use was it to gift branches? And why tie them with ribbons like flower bouquets?
This definitely wasn’t the captain’s idea…
In all the years he’d known Lorinus, Ethan had never once received a personal gift from him. And not just him—Lorinus treated everyone the same. Fairly. Ethan had never resented that.
He suspected that Lorinus probably didn’t even bother with birthday presents for his daughter, Daniel. Sometimes, Ethan even felt sorry for Daniel and considered getting her a gift himself. Not that he ever did—he didn’t even know her birthday.
“Victory and glory.”
“…What?”
Lorinus’s sudden words left Ethan blinking.
“That’s what it means.”
Lorinus lifted one of the laurel branch bundles from the box and explained.
“The branches?”
“The laurel.”
As he said this, he straightened a crooked card, then set the laurel bundle back down. He intended to leave them here so each knight could take one.
“Isn’t it interesting?”
“What is?”
“That a tree could carry such meaning.”
“I find it nonsense, honestly. It’s not like anyone carved that into it.”
“If you put it that way, the medals you value so highly don’t have their meanings carved onto them either.”
“How can you compare medals to branches? Medals have clear meanings based on their shapes and colors.”
“So do trees and flowers, according to their type and color.”
“Wait—did Lady Winchester tell you this?”
Ethan had guessed as much, and Lorinus nodded. Ethan’s frown deepened.
Of course. That strange woman again. The only person bold enough to spout such nonsense to a sword master he deeply respected.
“Do you know the meaning of pink roses, by chance?”
“How should I? I didn’t even know branches could have meanings until today.”
Ethan’s voice turned brusque as he answered, bordering on insubordination. But Lorinus didn’t mind.
Should I ask my wife again?
He hadn’t yet discovered the meaning of the pink rose.
No, wait. Didn’t she say she forgot?
The memory of Neary blushing last night came to him. Her face had glowed as brightly as the roses she described.
The more he learned about her, the stranger—and more fascinating—she became.
At first, he thought she was simply strong-willed, the first woman ever to meet his intimidating gaze head-on without fear.
Later, he saw her as kind, when she treated Daniel warmly and cared for those around her.
She was wise too, uncovering embezzlement and firmly managing the twisted affairs of the Camellia estate.
On top of that—knowledgeable, frugal, attentive.
Even pruned branches weren’t wasted with her. She knew the properties of plants, the meanings of flowers, and she had the heart to share even the smallest things with others.
Lorinus realized—he wanted to know more about his wife. He was curious just how many more virtues she held.
