THSMW 45

chapter 45

Three days later, Miliard and the knights who had been injured finally got back on their feet. Their quiet and peaceful time in the small village had come to an end.

Well, that might be a bit misleading. Receiving dozens of boxes filled with pearls wasn’t exactly “peaceful.” Just the rings Siegfried gave me could probably fill all ten fingers.

In any case, the group returned to the mansion. Miliard strutted around, proudly showing off the scar on his forearm as a badge of honor. Since he got injured protecting the prince, he did have a point.

“Could you maybe consider other people’s eyes a bit?”

It would’ve been fine if he were just showing his forearm, but why did he have to walk around shirtless? It was downright indecent. The maids would gasp in shock every time they saw him, covering their eyes—though judging by their blushing faces, they didn’t seem to mind. I did, though.

“Seems like I’m the only one you doesn’t like it.”

Miliard said proudly, lifting his chin. Well, the House of Elifritz was famous not just for their swordsmanship but also for their good looks, so his attitude was somewhat understandable.

“Isn’t it a problem that I’m the one who doesn’t like it?”

Seriously, stop assaulting my eyes. I grabbed the shirt tucked into his belt and yanked it out.

“Ugh, just put it on already. I don’t want to see your pale, ghostly body.”

“You see His Highness’ face every day, and he’s even paler than I am.”

Grumbling, Miliard snatched the shirt from my hand. I only turned away after making sure he was putting his arms through the sleeves.

“I’ll be back late today. I’m going out with young lord Helix…”

“Don’t tell me you’re going to the racetrack again. Are you trying to drain our family’s fortune?”

“Oh, quit nagging! I’ve got a good feeling about today!”

I must’ve heard that line hundreds of times. I shot Miliard a cold look.

“I-It’s true, I swear.”

“Did I say anything?”

“Y-You’re swearing at me with your eyes…”

Miliard mumbled, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. I knew there was no point trying to stop him.

“Fine. Just don’t come back too late. I’m going to tell Abussion everything.”

“Have you ever not tattled to him?”

Of course not. I smiled sweetly. Miliard groaned and ruffled his hair before heading to the front door.

Once I saw him get in the carriage and leave the mansion, I went straight to the office. Time to report him to Abussion.

As I walked down the hallway, I saw Siegfried approaching from the other end. Judging by his calm, damp hair, he must’ve just finished sword training and taken a shower.

“Your Highness.”

“…Ariel, are you in a good mood or something? You look excited.”

“I’m on my way to mess with Miliard.”

“Ah, I see.”

Siegfried nodded as if that made perfect sense. As he came closer, I caught a faint scent of fresh soap.

It wouldn’t have bothered me before, but now I found myself holding my breath. Please, I really wish I could stop being so aware of him.

Trying to snap out of it, I lightly slapped my cheeks. Siegfried gave me a puzzled look.

“…What are you doing? Why are you slapping yourself?”

“It’s my hobby. And a special skill.”

“Yeah, it kinda seems that way.”

Why doesn’t he even try to deny it? Was getting slapped by me really that memorable? Feeling a bit ridiculous, I dropped my hand. Siegfried chuckled.

“Weren’t you headed to the office? I like being around you, but…”

“Ugh, don’t say things like that!”

“…Why not? It’s not like it’s the first time.”

Siegfried tilted his head, genuinely confused. He wasn’t wrong. He’d been throwing flirty remarks at me whenever he had the chance. The problem was, I couldn’t keep brushing them off like I used to.

“It’s nothing. Anyway, I’ll just… I’ll be going now.”

“Yeah, go, go, go.”

“Don’t mimic me!”

“You mimicked me first.”

Seriously, he’s got the memory of an elephant. I had no comeback and kept my mouth shut.

“I thought you were going?”

“I am going. Why are you following me?”

“I’ve got something to discuss with Lord Abussion too.”

Siegfried walked close beside me as he spoke. What a lie. He had come from the direction of the office.

“You’re just bored, aren’t you?”

“How’d you know? You won’t hang out with me, so I figured I’d just tag along.”

Maybe I’d been too cold to Siegfried for too long. He didn’t even seem to expect anything from me anymore.

Feeling a bit awkward, I scratched my cheek. By then, we’d arrived at the office. Siegfried turned the doorknob and stepped aside to let me go in first.

“Ah, thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

He shrugged like it was no big deal. I tried not to breathe in too deeply to avoid the lingering soap scent as I stepped inside.

“…Ariel? And Your Highness, too.”

Abussion looked up from his papers at the mahogany desk.

With a wave of his hand, his aides all quickly filed out of the room.

“Brother, Miliard…”

“Let me guess—he went to the racetrack again? That brat…”

“How did you know?”

“You only come see me at this hour for one reason.”

As if it was obvious, Abussion spoke. Siegfried chuckled under his breath, and I shook my head.

“This is all your fault, Abussion. You keep giving him money. Now he’s gallivanting outside the estate just because he’s a little better. Last time, he even tried to introduce me to young lord Helix to shave off some of his debt.”

“His intentions are questionable, but the young lord is a decent fellow, isn’t he? Even if he’s the second son, that family is… ahem.”

Abussion suddenly cleared his throat and looked away. I was wondering why, when I felt something like a murderous aura.

Of course, the source was none other than Siegfried sitting beside me. It wasn’t quite murderous intent, but his eyes had turned dangerously dark.

“Ariel said she’s not into younger men.”

…Does he not realize that this also applies to him? I flinched and glanced at Siegfried.

“Your Highness, you are also younger. Much more so than young lord Helix.”

“Age is just a number.”

“…?”

A strange look appeared on Abussion’s face. I was sure mine looked the same.

“I’ve been wondering for a while… Your Highness, are you seriously interested in Ariel—?”

Knock knock.

Before he could finish, someone knocked on the door. At Abussion’s reply, the door burst open.

“B-Bad news! The Corte vineyard caught fire! The former vineyard owner was killed!”

The butler, panting heavily, looked frantic. I jumped to my feet the moment I heard the report.

“What are you talking about? How could there be a fire? There’s never been an accident there before.”

“They’re saying it wasn’t an accident. Some thugs raided the vineyard, wrecked everything, and set it ablaze…”

“…It was Aisa.”

Just hearing the butler’s explanation, Siegfried’s expression turned cold and sharp. I hadn’t expected Aisa to go that far until I heard Siegfried’s words.

“Why would she do that? Corte wine is even supplied to the Imperial Family!”

“If it’s Aisa, it’s entirely possible. She probably heard the rumor that I bought the vineyard.”

Siegfried bit down on his lip.

To be fair, quite a bit of time had passed since the subjugation. It wasn’t strange that the news had reached Aisa. But to think she couldn’t even tolerate this much—it made my blood run cold.

“But that vineyard… it was a gift from you to me, wasn’t it? It’s not even yours anymore.”

“That’s what makes it worse. This is no different from the Crown Prince issuing a warning to the House of Elifritz.”

Abussion dragged his hands down his face.

At first, I thought that was quite a leap in logic, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Aisa could be that petty. I never imagined something like this would happen. No wonder Siegfried always said he had no one around him—Aisa was always applying pressure in one way or another.

“What should we do now? Can we even give the former vineyard owner a proper funeral?”

I asked the butler.

“Unfortunately, the body was completely burned. The owner’s family has already said they wish to hold a quiet funeral.”

So the situation had been resolved, and they were only reporting it to us. A heavy silence settled in the office.