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Chapter : 23
“Leonard.”
“…….”
“His Majesty, Emperor Leonard Jen Derkian.”
I called after him diligently, but there was no response.
Seeing him walk in silence, I finally picked up my pace and blocked his path.
Even then, he kept his head down, so I still couldn’t see his face.
“Leonard.”
“…….”
“Jen.”
Huh. Even after calling him like this, he still isn’t responding.
Well, there’s always a way.
“Are you… sulking?”
I bent down slightly to look at his face. At my words, the face he had buried so deeply shot up in an instant.
Ah, you scared me.
“……Sulking?”
Leonard shouted, trying to cover his stiffened expression with his hands. Yep, that’s right—he is sulking.
I definitely need to make it up to him since this was my fault.
Though, I have to admit, his sulky face is kind of cute… but if I linger too long, it’ll be harder to make amends later.
“I’m sorry. I… well… I didn’t mean to look out of bad intentions…”
“…….”
“It’s just… at that time, Jen really felt like a younger sibling, so it was more out of curiosity… no, worry…”
Leonard, who had briefly glared at me in response to my unintentional confession, resumed walking silently.
Ah, why did I just say it was “fun” at that time? You dummy, you fool!
I quickly chased after Leonard, grabbed his arm, and clung to him. At this point, I have no choice but to beg.
“I really messed up, Leonard. Now, please forgive me, okay?”
At my desperate effort, holding onto his arm, Leonard slightly turned his head. And I didn’t let that opportunity slip.
We’re going to be sticking together for a while, so if I don’t fix this now, things between us might get weird.
Besides, I have to stay by Leonard’s side to survive! Even if I leave, I’m determined to watch you in love first!
“Do you want anything from me? Just say it. Anything. I’ll grant a wish, not on the Wishing Tree, but just one for you!”
Thanks to the countess’s library, I had a decent theoretical knowledge about this kind of thing.
Well, except for asking Gilbert to make his special apple pie, I could handle almost anything. Just say it.
“Hmmm. If you insist that much…”
Leonard cleared his throat softly and lifted the corners of his mouth as if his mood had improved.
“Then I’ll save that one wish for later.”
As if nothing embarrassing had happened, Leonard walked with noticeably lighter steps. Strange. I got what I wanted… but why do I feel like I lost?
“You’re not writing your wish?”
“Ah, I will!”
I hurriedly ran over to Leonard’s side. Since it wasn’t during the festival period, there was no paper or pen prepared, but that didn’t matter.
Gerald always had the necessary supplies, so we were fine.
Taking paper from Gerald, Leonard stared at me for a moment, then looked away.
“You’re not planning to peek again, are you?”
“……Huh? Of course not.”
Leonard let out a relieved sigh at my words and began writing on the paper.
Honestly, I wanted to see what he was writing, but I gave up.
‘If I got caught peeking this time, we probably wouldn’t talk for a while.’
Unlike four years ago, I quietly watched Leonard hang the paper at a height matching his now much taller frame.
I had thought about sneaking a peek later, but I guess I won’t be able to.
“Did you hang it?”
“Ah, just a moment.”
Fearing Leonard might see, I quickly folded the paper and looked for a place to hang it. I also aimed for a high spot…
…huh.
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s no place within my reach to hang the paper.”
Even as I spoke, I looked around, but there really wasn’t any. How many couples even came to this festival?
“Maybe it’s because it’s still winter. They don’t collect the wishing papers until the next festival in spring.”
“Should I hang it for you?”
“No.”
A wishing paper only has meaning if you write it and hang it yourself. Someone else touching it would ruin it.
“Isn’t there something I could step on? Like a wooden box…”
While scanning for something to stand on, Leonard stepped closer to me. Had he already found a solution?
“Do you really need to search?”
“How else am I supposed to hang it? Nothing’s within my reach… wha—”
As I answered, I suddenly felt myself lifted into the air.
When I regained my senses, Leonard was looking up at me. At the dizzying height, I quickly grabbed his shoulder.
…W-what is happening?
“W-what are you doing?”
“To hang it up there. It’s within reach at this height.”
“Even so, this is sudden—”
“Wait a moment. I’ll move you a bit closer to the tree.”
Leonard held me under my knees as he moved.
His movements were careful, but my upper body was swaying enough to feel unstable.
“Whoa! J-just a moment!”
Fear made me instinctively hug Leonard’s head, like clutching at a straw.
“I-I’m scared.”
I hoped this wouldn’t end with us falling to our deaths.
Despite moving confidently, Leonard was oddly silent.
Why isn’t he answering? I’m really scared, you know.
“……Leonard?”
“…….”
“You’re not planning to sleep like this, are you?”
I asked in a trembling voice. Leonard, whose face had been buried in my chest, let out a soft laugh.
As he did, the black hair I was holding slipped gently through my fingers.
…Should I just pull all his hair out?
“Are we staying like this? You won’t be able to hang the paper otherwise.”
“…….”
“Well, I don’t mind.”
I sighed and removed my hands from Leonard’s head as he smiled widely.
I slowly moved my hands to his shoulders, but something fell midway. Looking closely, it was… black hair.
Ahem. Let’s keep that a secret.
“You must hold on tight. Got it?”
After confirming I had secretly disposed of the evidence, I whispered softly. Seeing him laugh again, it was clear he didn’t notice.
…Good thing he has thick hair. Otherwise, I might have accidentally scratched the main character.
“I’ll hold you tight, so go ahead and hang it. If you drop it, I’ll get it even if I have to take physical form.”
“Did you promise?”
“Yes.”
Once I got a firm answer, I took a deep breath and reached toward the Wishing Tree.
Because Leonard was right next to the tree, I could reach it easily.
I just hope it’s not too high. I wonder if anyone will be able to collect it later.
“All done?”
“Yes, it’s tied.”
“I’ll come down slowly, so wrap your arms around my neck for now.”
I immediately hugged Leonard’s neck at those words.
I held him tightly in case he dropped me, and his soft laughter reached my ear.
‘Laughing without knowing what I feel.’
Even while stretching my body while hugging his neck, my feet didn’t touch the ground. Do you even know what that feels like?
Well, someone that tall probably wouldn’t.
This is the same person who said he’d fly me to the palace on his back. I should just stay quiet.
“What did you write?”
As soon as I touched the ground, Leonard suddenly asked.
Excuse me, you don’t even tell me what you wrote yourself, and now you’re asking?
“It’s a secret.”
“You even know my wish from four years ago. How about telling me just this one?”
“No. Besides, you didn’t tell me; I found out on my own.”
He smiled lightly and walked ahead. Leonard, looking disappointed, also moved after me.
Of course, that didn’t mean I gave up on finding out his wish.
“No hints?”
“None.”
“Even though I helped you hang it?”
“If you’re really curious, why not write a wish? Then I’ll tell you.”
“No, it’s fine.”
Leonard, now right next to me, shook his head.
Judging by how quickly he responded without hesitation, he clearly didn’t want to.
“I can’t use something this precious so easily. I’ll save it for later.”
He smiled proudly, as if he’d gained something extraordinary.
Meanwhile, my expression darkened.
What on earth could he be wishing for? Saying that much suddenly makes me uneasy.
…Maybe I shouldn’t have offered to grant a wish.
“I hope whatever you wrote comes true.”
“What if I wrote something totally absurd?”
“Even then, it doesn’t matter.”
His firm answer made me stop and turn to look at him.
He’d been silently staring at me for a while.
“If that’s what you want.”
“…I hope mine comes true too.”
Embarrassed, I deliberately took bigger steps while walking. Of course, Leonard quickly followed without trouble.
“Walk slowly. You might fall.”
“I won’t fall from this. And when did I ever fall?”
“……In front of me, twice.”
“…….”
“And both times quite spectacularly.”
Laughing, he added that quietly, and I ran toward the carriage without looking back.
From behind, Leonard’s laughter erupted again as he shouted for me to slow down.
‘…I must never tell him.’
That I wrote on the wishing paper that I wanted Leonard to be happy.
“You’re going to fall.”
Leonard caught up and opened the carriage door.
I looked up at him—he had grown so tall that I had to tilt my head to meet his eyes.
Seeing him like this felt strange. Back then, I felt like the oldest sibling, but now…
Enoch must have grown a lot too. I wonder if I’ll feel the same when we meet again.
A smile formed on my face at the strange but heartwarming thought. Then something struck my mind.
…Wait a second. I think I forgot something…
‘Ah, right! Enoch!’
Good grief. I’d completely forgotten in all the commotion with Leonard.
I even sent a letter saying we’d stop by the Amelio family estate.
‘What if I didn’t explain properly?’
Expecting Gilbert to explain would be too much; there was too much he didn’t know.
In the rush, I just said we’d stay at the palace with Leonard for a while.
‘I barely managed to say to take care of the estate too.’
It couldn’t be helped. If I had explained in detail, Leonard might have missed it too.
Thankfully, Gilbert understood and let me go.
I need to send a letter as soon as we reach the palace.
‘Hopefully this doesn’t cause any trouble.’
I thought that for a moment, then shook my head.
No way. Nothing like what happened with Leonard could happen again.
