VDBO 16

Chapter 16

Juri smiled subtly at me as if to make a point of it, then stepped aside. Somehow, it felt like she would block at least some of the other young ladies’ metaphorical arrows for me. I hated owing people anything, but with Juri Chartres, it felt like I could afford to owe her just a little.

“What are you thinking about?”
“Is it because you don’t like your partner?”

“Of course not. Has your injury fully healed?”

Being with him reminded me of how much blood had soaked his side back in the North.

“I still have the medicinal herbs.”

“…There are much better medicines in the imperial palace, you know.”

“They worked well. If it weren’t for them, I would’ve been bedridden for quite a while.”

“That’s a relief.”

“By any chance—”

“By any chance?”

He placed a hand on my waist and spun me around once.

I widened my eyes at the floating sensation. As I turned, my feet briefly lifted off the floor before settling back down.

He smiled mischievously.

“I was wondering if you felt disappointed that I didn’t say goodbye that morning.”

He spoke as if he wanted me to say that I had been disappointed.

“I wasn’t disappointed.”

Leaning on him, thanks to his skillful dancing, I followed his lead. The music surged toward its climax.

Under the firm pressure of his hand, my waist bent smoothly. Like when I tugged on his collar on the terrace earlier—no, even closer than then. Our gazes met directly, completely.

“…I was worried, though.”

“Worried I might be dead?”

Before I straightened up and moved away from him again, I nodded.

“Yeah. That you might be dead.”

He smiled again. It was such a bright, boyish smile that I instinctively glanced away.

At last, the song ended. For the second song, I should dance with someone else. The stares pouring in from all directions were already making my skin prickle.

Today’s task had simply been to leave an impression of Blake Ariandel in the princes’ eyes, to gauge the atmosphere and see whether I could slip among them without difficulty—but I had ended up drawing far too much attention.

Just as I decided it was time to retreat and took a step back, he pulled close again. When I looked at him in surprise, he wore an expression like an abandoned puppy.

“Please, dance one more song with me.”

“I want to live a long life.”

“What…?”

“Can’t you see all those young ladies over there waiting just for you, Your Highness?”

“Yes, I don’t see them.”

Of course you don’t—you’re only looking at me! I frowned.

“You have to turn your head to see them. Look—since earlier, they’ve been staring only this way. They’re waiting, so shouldn’t you be a kind partner to someone else as well?”

“Must I?”

“Well, you are a prince.”

And one of only two in this empire. I looked at him as if asking whether further explanation was really necessary, but Valeri still seemed oddly clueless about that part—or perhaps he was pretending not to understand.

“For once…”

“Yes?”

“I don’t think an opportunity like this will come again.”

His eyes grew even more wistful. He truly looked like an abandoned puppy, now caught in the rain. His expression was so serious that I nearly laughed.

Well… I suppose it can’t be helped.

“If you listen to what I say—”

“Yes.”

“I’ll go on a date with you.”

“…What?”

Valeri stared at me in shock.

“Ah—if I was being presumptuous—”

“No. Is that true? Then… does that mean we can meet again?”

Instead of answering, I nodded. Was that really so surprising? Honestly, if he wanted to, he could probably force the issue. Though, judging by his personality in the original story, he didn’t seem like the type to do that.

In that moment, a bright bloom spread across Valeri’s face. The arms that had been holding me so tightly finally loosened, melting away as if they had lost all strength.

“You’re promising me.”

Taking advantage of the opening, I stepped back. Holding my dress, I bowed politely and moved completely away from him.

The banquet was a success. I became his dance partner, and after that, I blended naturally into the crowd until the event came to an end.

Despite how hectic everything was, the last image I remembered from the banquet was Valeri’s splendid smile.

* * *

The next day, I didn’t go anywhere. I stayed holed up in my room, sleeping all day. Waking and sleeping over and over, I finally got up when my back began to ache—by then, the sun was already setting.

For now, all I could do was wait. For Valeri to ask me out, or for Mother to issue another order.

I had told Ian yesterday to report that I might have a light meeting with the Second Prince. Since there had been no response yet, it seemed she didn’t think it was a bad idea.

But what I was really waiting for was something else. I wished the owner of the key I had secretly stolen would respond soon, but it kept being delayed. Should I open up another route?

I knew the success rate was high, but I had a habit of always assuming the worst whenever I faced something. So, having completed my assigned task, I decided to empty my mind and wait for a response.

However, when I didn’t come out of my room, Ian must have grown worried. When I finally made some noise inside, I heard knocking from outside.

“It’s Ian.”

“I know. Come in.”

I got up from the bed, roughly brushed my hair back, and watched as he entered. He was holding something in his hands.

“What did you bring?”

When he opened the silver lid, there were neatly arranged slices of cake on a plate.

“Ah…”

Among them was the cake I had ordered at the dessert shop and given to him before. There was also another cake of a different design.

I had asked him back then whether he ate it, and he said he did…

“I happened to pass by the dessert shop while I was out briefly.”

Which meant—he bought this himself. Why…?

“Um… thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

I accepted it without really thinking.

“Then please rest.”

With just that, Ian left immediately. It seemed he had come in solely to deliver this. Cake, from someone so blunt and indifferent.

I stared blankly at the cake in my hands.

“Was it bothering him that I gave it away without eating it?”

I glared at the cake for a long moment, then picked up a fork, cut off a piece, and put it in my mouth. Since I hadn’t been awake long, my mouth felt dry and uncomfortable.

“…It’s good.”

Even so, it melted as soon as it touched my tongue. Without saying a word, I finished one cake, then reached for the other as well.

“He’s really strange. Such a curious person.”

He acted as though he lived with his emotions tucked away in a pocket, stiff and rigid—so this side of him felt unexpectedly fresh.

In truth, I hadn’t been able to eat that cake back then. Going to that place made me feel abandoned. That was why I couldn’t eat it.

Because if Mother hadn’t abandoned me that day and never come back, I might have lived a completely different life.

I decided that this cake would be the last thing tying me to that dessert shop.

Chapter 3

Even If Emotions Don’t Accumulate With Time, Please Still Gather Them

Valeri’s message truly arrived. And it came directly to the house.

“Ian. Pass the message to Mr. Schvalt. Tell him the next meeting has been arranged.”

I read the letter Valeri had written himself and relayed it to Ian. After bowing, Ian disappeared once again, silently, like a shadow.

* * *

By coincidence, the next day was my birthday.

When I went down to the first floor in my pajamas right after waking up, there was a gift sent by Mr. Schvalt. Right—he had asked about a coming-of-age gift before. I had rushed to the capital and completely forgotten.

“Why is the box so big?”

Inside was a large bear-shaped stuffed doll and a dress. A coming-of-age gift, yet something a child might receive for Christmas.

“How childish.”

The big stuffed bear was surprisingly soft, so I tucked it under one arm and took out the dress. Unlike the cute bear, the dress was pitch black—clearly meant for an adult. There was also a letter inside, simply a birthday card.

Happy 20th birthday.

It was a short, plain message.

“I can wear this when I meet the prince.”

That was probably why he sent it. They weren’t the type of people to go out of their way just to sincerely celebrate a birthday.

Well… probably.

I hung the dress in the dressing room, then walked out with the bear still tucked under my arm.

As I stepped into the hallway, I ran into Ian coming in.

“Ian. Good morning.”

“Good morning, miss. But… what is that?”

“Oh. A gift from Mr. Schvalt.”

“What day is it today?”

He was unusually talkative.

“Mm. A birthday present.”

“…It’s your birthday, miss?”

He looked genuinely surprised.

“Yeah. Turns out it is.”

I pulled the bear out from under my arm and showed it to him.

“I didn’t know.”

Seeing him flustered, I let out a small laugh without meaning to. It wasn’t even my real birthday anyway.

“Of course you didn’t. I never told you. It’s not that important a day.”

Ian stood there with a blank expression, as if he couldn’t find the words. I decided to be satisfied that he’d spoken more than three sentences.

“Then I’m going back up to the second floor. Don’t call me unless something important comes up.”

“Yes. Understood.”

I waved to him and went straight upstairs.

There was no special reason. I just wanted to sleep. Even if it seemed pointless, sleep was my only escape right now—and also a kind of reward for finishing one task properly.

And so, hugging the bear I’d received as a gift, I slept straight through until the next day without waking up.