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Chapter 24
“A bazaar?”
Odellia tilted her head in confusion.
“Yes. We put out unused items at low prices, and the proceeds are donated to orphanages.”
At that, the same woman who had been making snide remarks toward Odellia earlier chimed in again.
“Lady Odellia might have a hard time attending, though. Since she’d be the one in need of receiving unused items~”
At those words, Judith finally exploded.
“Hey, you. Can’t you keep your mouth shut?!”
Judith clapped her hand over her mouth the moment she shouted, realizing her mistake, but the atmosphere had already turned ice-cold in an instant.
But then, cutting through the silence, Odellia burst out laughing. She laughed so uproariously that the sound rang through the air, and instead, the people around her became even more flustered.
Judith’s face turned bright red. *’Oh no… I messed up…’* She looked at Odellia with tearful eyes.
Still laughing, Odellia spoke.
“The nanny who raised Lady Herdel—might she have been from the southern region?”
“Wh-wha…? Y-yes, that’s right! How did you know?”
The nanny who had raised Judith was quite rough with her words and often taught Herdel life tips that weren’t quite tips. *’Miss, if someone makes you mad, you just yell it out inside like this~ But don’t actually shout it out loud, you’ll cause big trouble~’*
Odellia burst into laughter once more.
“I had a comrade who came up from the southern region. His way of speaking was exactly the same, so for a moment I thought it was him. That friend used to curse with such flavor too. He’d even say things like, ‘Hey, you bastard!'”
At the unexpectedly cruder language that came out, the people were horrified, but Odellia’s bright smile lightened the mood again. A few stifled laughs behind their fans, and soon laughter spread once more.
Odellia smiled warmly at Judith.
“It seems you had a delightful person as your nanny. Hearing such words come from a beautiful lady like yourself has its own charming appeal, a kind of unexpected twist. I actually know a few curses myself—if I ever get the chance to showcase them someday, I’d love to share them.”
At that, a few ears perked up.
“You know other curses too? What kind?”
Odellia kept a straight face and rattled off several rather high-level curses with an innocent expression. Those listening gradually stiffened, and finally asked in horror.
“Wh-what do those mean…?”
Odellia replied calmly with a smile.
“If I explained their meanings, you’d be even more shocked, wouldn’t you? Still, do remember a few of them. If any bullying men show up, firing off one of these will send them running with their tails between their legs.”
Her sly answer drew another wave of laughter.
Judith pressed her lips tightly together, then looked at Odellia with an expression of deep emotion.
That warmth that brushed off her mistake as if it were a joke, and that sense to turn the atmosphere around in an instant…!
At this time, Odellia had no idea that from this day on, Judith would start visiting her house just as frequently as Cedric.
—
***
After the tea party, Odellia returned to the mansion, and from the moment she stepped down from the carriage, she was seized by an inexplicable tension. The moment the familiar front door opened, the first person to catch her eye was…
“Your Highness…?”
It was Calix, sitting comfortably on the sofa inside the mansion, dressed in relaxed attire. The scene of an unfolded newspaper and a half-drunk cup of tea gave the impression that he had been waiting for Odellia’s return.
Flustered, Odellia awkwardly opened her mouth.
“Why are you still here…?”
Calix slowly raised his head to look at her, a playful smile on his lips.
“Is it not allowed? I was planning to be here all day today.”
Then, propping his chin on one hand, he added.
“…Do you want me to leave?”
Odellia hesitated for a moment, then shook her head slightly.
“No… that’s not it.”
She answered quietly, but in her mind, the story she had just heard about the Crown Prince and the Empress was resurfacing. A corner of her chest felt strangely heavy.
Odellia cautiously cast her gaze toward Calix.
“Um… by any chance…”
She paused. Knowing a fact and asking the person involved to confirm it were two separate matters. Odellia forced a smile at the corner of her mouth and changed the subject.
“I’ve decided to attend the bazaar hosted by Lady Herdel. But… I’m not sure what kind of unused item I should put out.”
Calix looked at her silently for a while, with an ambiguous expression—neither fully believing her words nor fully doubting them.
“I’ll go change my clothes and come back down.”
Odellia said that as if that was all there was to it, bowed her head briefly, and climbed the stairs.
Watching her trudging back as she climbed up, Calix noticed her shoulders drooping slightly.
*’What’s this…? Why does she seem so deflated?’*
He had prepared the cake and the ring so she wouldn’t lose heart. He had specially ordered the cake from the imperial chef, making sure to hint that it should be even more delicious than usual, and there was no way the socialite ladies wouldn’t recognize that cake. He had seen earlier that she was wearing the ring properly too. Calix fell deep into thought.
After a while, Odellia came back down after changing, and she looked noticeably wilted. There was no strength in the fingers holding her teacup, and both the corners of her eyes and mouth, usually bright and lifted, were drooping.
The woman who always radiated cheerful energy and never lost her spirit had become completely deflated after just a few hours at a tea party—it was worrying. But considering her pride, he couldn’t outright ask if she had been humiliated.
Calix quietly set down his teacup and, after gazing at Odellia in thought, finally spoke.
“You mentioned the bazaar earlier. Are you worried because you don’t know what to put out?”
Odellia nodded weakly and answered.
“Yes…”
Calix furrowed his brow slightly, as if displeased.
“You don’t have… anything to put out… Then put me out.”
Catching his words in fragments, Odellia answered weakly again.
“Yes…”
“…”
“…”
A moment of silence passed. Then Odellia’s eyes went wide.
“…Excuse me?!”
All her previous thoughts flew out the window.
“Well, you answered, so I suppose the problem is solved?”
Calix said it lightly, as if that was the end of that matter, and Odellia, flustered, clung to the topic.
“No, what kind of—what kind of nonsense are you talking about…!”
At that, Calix shrugged.
“But you just said you would.”
Odellia was at a loss for words, hesitated for a moment, then bowed her head and muttered.
“I’m sorry. My mind wandered for a moment.”
Only then did Calix let out a soft laugh and ruffled Odellia’s hair, stroking it gently.
Flustered, Odellia blinked, and Calix said casually.
“You did seem rather distracted.”
Odellia hastily smoothed down her hair with her hand and grumbled.
“Your Highness… I’m not a boy, you know. How can you treat my hair like that…”
Calix silently stared at the sight of Odellia carefully tidying her hair back into place. Without realizing it, his gaze drifted to the golden locks slipping through her fingers, then to Odellia’s pouting lips.
Feeling that he had been staring too obviously without even noticing, he averted his eyes and put on a casual tone.
“Didn’t you say that when you have too many thoughts, you should shake them out?”
Ah. Only then did Odellia recall that she had once said those words back when she had mistaken Calix for a child soldier.
—
*’Ah! What are you doing?!’*
*’Chaff. You looked like you had a lot on your mind, so I shook some out for you. Be grateful to your big sister?’*
—
Embarrassed, Odellia hesitated, then quietly spoke.
“You remember that time too?”
“Of course. You were the first and last person to ever pat my head.”
Odellia’s feelings became complicated once again, and she fidgeted with the ends of her long hair for no reason.
“Your Highness… You do hold grudges, don’t you?”
Calix let out a laugh, as if in disbelief, and Odellia watched that smile before dropping her gaze again.
*Were you once engaged to Her Majesty the Empress? Did you… love her at one time?*
She wanted to ask, but she wondered if she even had the right to hear the answer.
Odellia made up her mind not to bring up the Empress to Calix.
