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Chapter 26
At my answer, Louis let out a loud, bawling cry as he replied.
— Sob, sob… I’m so happy too, master. You’re the only one who treats me as a true friend.
Louis and I hugged each other tightly and, for a brief moment, swore eternal friendship.
When our heightened emotions finally settled, Louis buzzed softly and spoke again.
— But I’m against you marrying that man, master.
At that, my eyes widened.
“Why Carmine? Carmine is kind. He’s sincere and doesn’t know how to scheme. If anything, I’m the one who lies more.”
The Carmine I knew was a good person who couldn’t lie. Even though he could have threatened Louis and taken him by force, he instead made an honest proposal and tried to turn it into shared ownership.
If it’s Carmine, he won’t suddenly abandon me for another woman like Crown Prince David did.
The fact that he could give me that kind of trust meant a great deal to me.
At my words, Louis spoke in a grave tone.
— That man is…
Just then—
Knock, knock.
There was a knock at the door. Even though no name was called, the moment I heard it, I knew it was Carmine.
“Ah, that must be Carmine.”
I jumped to my feet. Louis clicked his tongue and, sword that he was, gently lay down on the bed.
— I’m exhausted. I’ll rest for a bit.
Suit yourself. Distracted by thoughts of Carmine, I didn’t stop Louis.
Oh dear, is my hair all right?
I was hurrying to get to Carmine, so my feet moved on their own, but my hands fussed with my hair and my face kept darting toward the mirror instead of the door. Even I found it strange how my body seemed to move in pieces.
Anyway, I rushed over in that ridiculous state and opened the door. Just as I expected, Carmine was standing there.
“May I talk with you for a moment, Riena?”
“Of course.”
I nodded—then stiffened a beat too late.
W-wait, is he coming into the room?
Louis was lying on the bed, yet in that moment I thought of nothing else. All that filled my mind was the idea of the two of us alone in one room.
What do I do then?!
My head was crammed full of nothing but the image of being alone with Carmine.
As I stood there rolling my eyes, not knowing what to do, Carmine took a small step back and asked,
“Shall we take a short walk?”
“Y-yeah, sure!”
Ah—so he wasn’t coming into the room.
Begone, you filthy imp in my head!
I had no idea why I’d automatically assumed he would come in. I was clearly too flustered.
I knocked my own head lightly with my fist, then stepped outside with a bright smile.
Even once we were outside, I was still a mess. I walked beside Carmine, helplessly fidgeting with the hem of my skirt.
Ugh, this is so awkward.
Maybe it was because our relationship had changed. It wasn’t the first time Carmine and I had walked together, yet my heart was pounding strangely.
From my assigned room to the garden wasn’t far at all. It couldn’t have taken long to walk there, yet time seemed to crawl like a snail.
I was so conscious of him that even breathing felt difficult. I wiped the sweat pooling in my palms on my skirt and puckered my lips.
Why do I feel like a child? Is this what dating feels like?
Was it normal to be this flustered just from walking side by side?
I had just lowered my head slightly when it happened. Perhaps because I had met my father not long ago, his voice from the day I first faced Crown Prince David echoed in my ears.
“Behave yourself.”
When I became Crown Prince David’s fiancée, I was much younger than I am now. Without ever having seen his face, our engagement had been decided. I remembered how nervous I was when I went to meet him just before the engagement ceremony, afraid he might not like me.
My father must have been nagging me with that same feeling in mind.
“If you want to be the crown princess, keep your mouth shut and smile sweetly. No man likes a woman who talks too much.”
And despite all that tension, my meeting with Crown Prince David ended anticlimactically. As we turned to leave, my father said this:
“Isn’t living a life where you’re loved the greatest happiness?”
The greatest. Well done.
I felt proud when I heard my father’s words, but when I thought back on it later, was that really something to be proud of?
Could that really be called being loved?
It was obvious it wasn’t, just from the way Crown Prince David acted. His attitude toward me and toward Kang Sena was clearly different.
Rather…
I glanced at Carmine. As if he’d been watching me the whole time I was lost in thought, our gazes met in midair.
Carmine’s blue eyes curved gently.
“A lot happened today, didn’t it?”
“It really did.”
I’d almost abandoned Faustine and left—yet now I was in the lord’s castle.
Honestly, I never expected Carmine to propose to me.
What I understood even less was how happy I had been, as if I’d been waiting for it.
I thought I’d never date again.
When had Carmine burrowed so deeply into my heart?
I shrugged slightly and let out a small laugh.
“Um.”
“Hm?”
Carmine, hesitating, held out his hand to me. It was a beautiful hand, with long, slender fingers stretched out gracefully.
“Can I hold your hand?”
“……”
The moment I saw the hand extended toward me, my chest lurched. It overlapped with the image of David’s finger pointing at me in front of countless people.
Yes. This is how it’s supposed to be.
At the natural, gentle affection, tears welled up on their own. I bowed my head deeply. Tears slid down my lashes, gathered at the tips, and fell. Startled, Carmine peered at my face and asked,
“Riena? Why are you crying? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, no.”
Carmine hadn’t done anything wrong. It was other people who had wronged me.
“That’s right. This is the way it should be, isn’t it?”
I rubbed my eyes with my sleeve and wiped away the tears. Then I smiled brightly and said,
“I really like you, Carmine.”
“Th—”
At my confession, Carmine froze in place. After blinking for a moment, he looked back at me and said,
“Riena. There are still many things I haven’t been able to tell you yet. Even now, I can’t be completely honest… but could you wait just a little longer, until everything is sorted out?”
It was clearly about Carmine’s true identity—the one I’d been suspecting earlier.
He must be higher-ranking than I thought.
Higher than Duke Pond—what, some kind of collateral royalty?!
But he doesn’t resemble David at all! Standing next to Carmine, even David would look like a squid.
And the person who filled my heart right now was Carmine.
I faced him and spoke clearly, enunciating each word.
“I won’t be disappointed. Because I really like you, Carmine.”
“Thank you, Riena.”
After finishing my date with Carmine, I returned to my room. Louis was still on the bed. As I lay down beside him, I asked,
“Louis, what were you going to say earlier?”
— It’s nothing.
It seemed that while I was on my date, Louis had come to a decision of his own.
— If anything happens, I’ll just protect you, master.
I tilted my head in confusion, then hugged Louis tightly. Whatever he was thinking, it was for my sake, and I was grateful.
I couldn’t fall asleep in the suddenly changed bed. Unlike my home, the wide, high windows of the lord’s manor rattled whenever the wind blew.
It must have been like this at the Pond duchy too.
Human adaptability was truly frightening. I’d lived in a big house all my life, then briefly in a small one—yet now I couldn’t sleep in a big house again.
Still, thankfully, I wasn’t alone. I hugged Louis tightly and closed my eyes. Louis grumbled but lay quietly beside me.
— So much trouble you are. Be grateful you have such a generous country, master.
Yes, yes. I really am glad you’re here. I pulled the blanket over Louis as well.
And then morning came.
When I woke up, I lay there for a long moment, unsure whether this was a dream or reality. The moment I opened my eyes, I saw the face of a pretty young girl right in front of me.
Is this a dream?
But it was too unfamiliar to be a dream. If it were a dream, at least someone I recognized would appear.
The girl had short honey-colored hair brushing the tips of her ears, and round, clear blue eyes like coins.
Huh? Now that I look closely, she kind of looks familiar.
Maybe it was the freckles scattered across her nose—she had an incredibly bright, cheerful look. Staring back at her wide-eyed, I closed my eyes again in relief.
It’s a dream!
After all, I’d been holding Louis. But when I opened my eyes, Louis wasn’t in my arms either.
So this must be a dream.
Just as I thought that, the wide-eyed beauty suddenly shouted into my ear,
“Wake up already!”
“Gah!”
Judging by the sharp ringing in my ears, this was definitely not a dream. Startled, I snapped my eyes open again. The pretty girl who had been lying face to face with me snorted and sat up.
“You’re so careless. If there’s someone lying right in front of you, you should be startled and jump up. How can you just close your eyes again? Minus twenty points!”
Was that really something the person who startled me should be saying?
