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Chapter 03
Judging by how the girl’s clear, ringing voice blended with the boy’s irritation-laced one, it seemed Alexis and Blanche were fighting again.
From their very first meeting at the age of seven until now, at twelve, there hadn’t been a single year—no, not a single moment in five whole years—when those two hadn’t fought.
Not once.
Cecilia paused to ponder that astonishing fact.
If even an ill-fated connection like that counts as a bond, then I suppose it’s still a bond.
When she reached the antechamber, she deliberately knocked twice on the slightly ajar door.
A girl with chestnut hair braided into twin plaits instantly caught on and whipped around.
Her pale green eyes sparkled as though infused with spring sunlight, and a fresh smile bloomed across her red lips.
Blanche Houston, the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Houston, was as lovely as ever.
“Big sister!”
Cecilia instinctively caught the girl who came dashing toward her.
“Big sister! Big sister! I missed you!”
“Yes. I missed you too.”
“I didn’t miss that prince brat at all! I don’t even know why he’s here—so tactless!”
“Zngh—hrr. (Be quiet.)”
No matter how Alexis snapped through clenched teeth, Blanche ignored him with infuriating perfection.
Cecilia flicked the girl’s forehead lightly—not enough to hurt.
“Watch your language.”
Granted, she’d been scolded for the same thing by her governess just an hour ago, but Cecilia could afford to be shameless in front of these two walking disasters.
“‘Prince brat,’ Blanche. What if that habit slips out in public?”
“Okaaay. I’ll be carefuuul.”
“Wow. Look at you pretending to be cute.”
The moment Alexis scoffed, Blanche turned sharply, eyes flashing.
The gesture clearly asked, Do you want to die?
The boy merely shrugged.
Try killing me, perhaps?
Hateful twelve-year-olds.
They really never listened.
Just as the two were about to launch into another full-blown fight, Cecilia sighed and intervened.
“Shall we get going? If you keep fighting like that, I’ll leave without you.”
Faced with such a childish threat, the children finally settled down.
The picnic destination was Dublaine Forest, on the outskirts of Saint-Roc.
Since it had been a while, they decided to ride horses all the way there—and fortunately, the weather was perfect for it.
Cecilia offered a hand to each child and headed toward the stables at Pont-Rêve.
On her left, Alexis clutched her hand; on her right, Blanche did the same, hopping along as they followed her.
Their lively footsteps brimmed with anticipation.
In the wide clearing before the stables, the grooms were waiting with the horses fully prepared.
Cecilia put on the riding gloves her maid had readied and accepted her riding crop.
When she turned around, the princess’s personal guards stood beside their mounts, faces stern.
“I’ll be counting on you today.”
At her courteous request, they all bowed in unison.
This time, Cecilia narrowed her eyes and looked back at the two troublemakers.
Alexis and Blanche stood there with identical expressions that screamed I don’t know anything at all, prompting her to raise one eyebrow.
“Don’t worry, sis. I won’t cause any trouble today.”
“It’s true, big sister.”
“I’d appreciate it if you kept that promise.”
But really, children… given your dazzling track record, believing your vows at face value is a bit difficult.
Was there even meaning in making promises at this point?
Determined to interpret things as positively as possible, Cecilia swung lightly onto her horse.
At a gentle pull of the reins, the white horse whinnied brightly and sprang forward.
“Wow…”
One of the maids let out an unconscious gasp.
True to her reputation as the finest rider in the Empire, Princess Cecilia Lucien’s horsemanship was like a delicate masterpiece.
Her thick black hair streamed faintly in the wind.
Golden eyes gleamed with vitality; her cheeks flushed rosy in the breeze; long, elegant arms lightly held the reins.
Each motion flowed seamlessly into the next, reminiscent of a river’s graceful current.
Could even a fairy hidden deep within a waterfall be so lovely? Shaped by the wilds themselves, her free and untamed bearing left onlookers spellbound.
“Oh my… she’s so beautiful…”
Perhaps hearing the maid’s admiration, Cecilia suddenly glanced back. The maid flinched under her gaze—only for the princess to smile with her eyes and blow her a kiss.
Frozen in place, the maid understood something all too clearly.
That upon witnessing the temptation of true beauty, even words you never knew you had would come spilling out.
Anyone who had seen that smile would understand.
Though close to a bustling metropolis, Dublaine’s nature remained untouched.
Tucked away from human traffic, the small forest cradled a clear stream and exuded a quiet beauty.
The moment they reached the forest’s edge, the two children leapt off their horses side by side, as if by prior agreement.
“Be careful.”
“Yes!”
“Of course!”
They always answered well.
Cecilia put on a stern expression, then relaxed her eyes a beat later.
Two accompanying maids quickly spread out blankets. Thanks to their diligence, lunch began without delay.
Before long, it was three in the afternoon.
The sun was no longer directly overhead, yet it was the hottest part of the day.
Tender pale-green leaves lay drowsily in the gentle breeze.
True to her bouncy personality, Blanche bounced straight into the forest.
“Blanche, be careful!”
Cecilia called out reflexively from behind, though she wasn’t particularly worried.
They had come on picnics here every year since the children were seven; Blanche knew the terrain well.
Surely she wouldn’t get lost in such a small forest.
Besides, the accompanying guards were stationed all around.
“I know, big sister. Don’t worry!”
And that wasn’t all. Like Alexis, Blanche Houston was a mage—but unlike him, her madness was incomparably stable.
Only the afterimage of her light brown hair remained as she ran ahead gleefully.
“Did Whitey leave, sis?”
“Alex.”
“Nice. She finally left.”
Alexis, who had been wriggling atop the blanket, promptly laid his head in her lap.
At his tone, Cecilia briefly considered yanking out a fistful of his hair—but for the sake of his looks, she restrained herself.
“I told you not to call her ‘Whitey.’ You haven’t actually called her that to her face, have you?”
“Yeah.”
His shamelessness was astonishing.
Cecilia pressed down firmly on the pale forehead in her lap as punishment.
“What did Blanche say?”
“She bit my arm.”
Blanche… are you secretly a puppy?
As if determined to ignore the worry clouding her face, Alexis closed his eyes nonchalantly.
Cecilia rolled her eyes, then offered the most reasonable advice she could muster.
“Be kind to young ladies.”
“She’s honestly not really a lady—”
“Even if only for the sake of the person you’ll love someday. Habits are scary things.”
What if you regret it later? Especially when love will matter more to you than you think.
“No, no, sis. I’m really nice to people I like.”
Alexis opened his eyes wide, indignant.
His violet eyes sparkled with protest, and Cecilia nodded absentmindedly.
Perhaps thinking she didn’t believe him, Alexis tried to sit up.
“No, really, sis, I—”
“I believe you. If you like someone, you’ll treat them well.”
Just look at how gentle and affectionate you are with your devoted older sister.
“But then what’s the problem?”
“What I’m saying is that people don’t always fall in love at first sight. Love is about giving meaning to someone who once had none. And you tend to be cold to people who don’t matter to you.”
“…”
“What if you fall in love later and regret how you treated them? There’s nothing less attractive than belated obsession.”
“Then I’ll just be obsessive from the start.”
Such a straightforward answer left her speechless.
Whether or not Cecilia narrowed her eyes, Alexis once again settled comfortably against her lap.
In the end, she spitefully knocked his head off her knees.
The last time they had visited Dublaine was the previous autumn.
It felt like only yesterday that the trees had been shedding their warm-hued leaves, yet now the forest was lush with green once more.
Few places captured the passage of time as vividly as a forest.
Counting the seasons that had slipped by, Blanche walked deeper inside.
New growth in countless shades of green waved gently in the breeze. The forest’s deep, earthy scent tingled sharply in her nose.
The girl, wandering about with unabashed curiosity, suddenly froze upon spotting something on the ground.
“Huh?”
A bird’s egg—miraculously unbroken—lay near her feet. When she looked up, she spotted a sturdy nest perched on a branch above.
How do I put it back? This tree looks hard to climb… I’ll probably need magic.
Carefully sketching a spell diagram in her mind, Blanche leapt up and safely returned the egg to the nest.
Even as she landed back on the ground, she hadn’t expected what came next.
A sudden, vicious growl rose from behind her.
The moment she stiffly turned her head, she saw—
“Aaaaaaah!”
A bear, rearing up with its forepaws raised.
“H-how… how…?”
She couldn’t even finish the question of How is there a bear here?
The beast—several times larger than a twelve-year-old girl, with eerily blue eyes—was glaring at her.
The bear took a heavy step forward.
Crushed by its presence, Blanche’s legs gave out and she collapsed backward.
That savage blue gaze locked her in place like a prison.
Again… again… I—I should scream. I need to call for help.
What do I do? Am I… going to die like this?
She didn’t even notice blood welling beneath her fingernails from how tightly she clenched her fists.
Eyes wide, Blanche forced her lips apart.
She tried desperately to scrape out a scream, but her jaw trembled so violently that no sound came out.
I—I…
One step.
The bear slammed its paw down, the impact ringing in her head.
I don’t want to die. Move. At least make a sound!
Listen to me!
Another step.
“D-don’t come any closer…”
The voice she forced out was barely more than a whisper.
Her survival instincts screamed at her to run—but her traitorous body only trembled, refusing to move.
She tried to move her feet. Failed. Even wiggling her fingers was impossible.
Ah… I’m… like this…
“Blanche!”
At that moment, a woman’s sharp scream tore through the air.
Eyes flying open, Blanche saw everything.
The bear swinging its forepaw wildly as it finally reached her—and Cecilia rushing in, wrapping Blanche in her arms and throwing herself sideways.
Everything.
The problem was what came next.
Having lost its target, the bear thrashed and swung again.
And this time, its target was—
“Big sister!”
The back of the woman who was holding the girl tightly to protect her.
