Chapter 51
Thierry quickly closed the distance between us and kindly pulled out a chair for me. He gently pushed the chair out of the way so I could sit down, and only then did he hesitantly take the seat across from me.
“I got this.”
He even rang the bell to order the meal ready, with a noticeably softer tone. Not like him to be unannounced!
‘No, what kind of atmosphere is this…’
I straightened my back, trying to hide my dismay. I fidgeted with my hands on my legs and looked up at his visibly amused face.
“You went in early yesterday, are you okay?”
Thierry stared at me with a faint smile on his face before he spoke. For a moment, I resisted the urge to rub my eyes. His voice was so soft that his red eyes, which usually held an inaccessible heat, seemed strangely warm today.
“Uh, yeah. It’s just that I’m new to the party and I don’t know anyone, so it’s a little awkward.”
“I see. I hadn’t thought of that.”
“Oh, but it was great, it was a blast.”
“So, do you think I should throw parties more often?”
“What?!”
“Well, if you go to a few, you’ll get to know people, and maybe you’ll start to know some people here and start to enjoy living here.”
Somehow, I felt like Thierry was hoping I’d get attached to this place.
“… Thank you for your consideration, but you don’t have to do that, I’m happy enough where I am.”
“But you keep to yourself most of the time. If you ever want to meet someone, feel free to ask.”
I was stunned for a moment by the way he kept adding one thing after another, like he was desperate to do something for me. I had no idea who he was asking me to meet, but suddenly I remembered Sylvia from yesterday.
“Is she there?”
Thierry picked up on my mood immediately.
“Ah…, no.”
“Princess. Look at me.”
Sensing my hesitation, he leaned in closer, as if he wasn’t going to back down until he spoke.
“I heard you ran into Chef Sue from the other day, so why don’t you invite her over and make yourself at home, instead of just saying hello. Oh, or was there anyone else you said hello to yesterday?”
My eyes widen at the question I’ve been waiting for. I’d been hanging out with Oscar, so I’d expected a debriefing, but I hadn’t expected him to be the first to mention the mode.
I nodded slowly. For now, I decided it would be better to talk about Sylvia, whom I’d met yesterday, rather than Maud.
“Sous chef says hi to me when I see her, but I don’t think I’d go out of my way to invite someone so busy, but if I feel like it later, I’ll do it.”
“Oh… Really?”
“Yep. But rather than Chef Sue, there’s someone I spoke to briefly yesterday that I’d like to speak to privately.”
“Really? Who is that?”
Thierry was now looking at me at an angle, chin in one hand. I rolled my eyes, uncomfortable with the intensity of his stare, and answered a beat too late.
“Princess Joubert, I thought she was nice.”
“Really? What did you like about her?”
“Oh. We only exchanged brief pleasantries, but I felt like we might get along better than I thought.”
“You could tell that from just saying hello?”
“Well, there’s such a thing as first impressions.”
“And how was I?”
… Do you really not know what you’re asking?
For a moment, I thought time had stopped. An uncomfortable silence descended, and Thierry and I stared at each other, unblinking.
“…”
“…”
It was such a short silence, but it felt like a long time.
The good news is that Thierry was the first to break the silence. He slowly turned his head to the side, keeping his jaw set, and half-covered his face with one of my large hands.
At first glance, it was just a languid gesture, but for some reason, I couldn’t take my eyes off him for a moment because it felt like he was uncomfortable.
“No, no. You don’t have to tell me.”
He said in a low voice, staring out the window. The sunlight sprinkled his fair face with glittering dust.
“If you want to call me, call me.”
“Oh, may I?”
“Yes. Do as you please, Princess. Just be sure to tell me if you’re uncomfortable or bothered by anything.”
“Thank you! It’s my first time inviting someone over, so it’s a little weird.”
I said brightly, filtering out the afterthought. Thierry’s long lashes fluttered, and his red eyes turned to me.
“Is this your first time at…?”
“Yep. Life in Ashtad wasn’t much different than it is now. I’ve only just woken up, so the only people I know are my family, and I’ve mostly stayed in my room because I’d rather take care of myself than do anything right away.”
Thierry took his chin out of his hands and soon leaned languidly against the backrest. He tilted his head at an angle, staring off into space for a moment, as if he were disapproving of something, before his gaze settled back on me.
“You have a gift from the duchy.”
“My gift?”
“Yes. They’ll be delivered to you by tomorrow at the latest. They’re just checking them for anything dangerous, but they should be fine.”
A gift! What on earth could he be sending? My eyes widened. I’m hoping it’s a bunch of expensive stuff that’s completely mine to use here without prying eyes…
I was worried about the fact that Maud was collecting information at her own expense, so I wanted to help her out a little bit.
I nodded my head enthusiastically. I vowed that I would not step out of my room today, and that I would stay and wait for my gift.
“And I want you to invite me to dinner tonight.”
“What?”
Suddenly, a cold chill ran down my spine. We’d had dinner together occasionally, but an invitation? Am I understanding this correctly? What is going on here?
“I’d really like you to send me a formal invitation.”
“…?”
I’m still not getting it. An invitation, all of a sudden, when we’ve only had dinner together once or twice?
I stare at him with my mouth open, my eyes wide, and then jump to my feet.
“Your Majesty, an invitation?”
I couldn’t tell if he’d eaten something wrong or if today was some kind of special occasion.
My head was spinning, and I was about to ask him again. With uncanny timing, a knock on the door echoed through the room at the same time as my words.
Seeing my panicked reaction, Thierry didn’t seem to be in any mood to explain. In fact, he glared at me for the first time in a long time and gave me another unkind announcement.
“I don’t want a second one. Make sure you send me the first invitation first.”
I can’t believe he thought he was being nice by pulling out a chair for me… I don’t know what to make of his fickleness. Maybe Thierry really did hit puberty late.
***
The ripples on the blue lake glistened like gold in the clear sunlight. The two men wandered out onto the lake, which was so deep in the woods that it seemed like no one would ever come.
“I included it in Ashtad’s gift. They said they’d inspect it, but I’m sure they’ll recognize it as jewelry, so it should get into the Princess’s hands without a problem.”
The man in the hood of the black cloak spoke stiffly. At his haughty tone, the brown cloak, who had been gazing down at the lake in silence, slowly removed his hood and spoke up.
“I see.”
The sound of the bushes dancing in the strong breeze drowned out all other noise. The man slowly swept a hand through my slightly disheveled brown hair, a satisfied smile curving his lips.
“But are you sure you’re okay, I’m afraid the Emperor won’t let you go if something happens to the Princess.”
The black cloak followed suit, removing its hood to reveal the pointed tips of my ears as my threadlike silver hair fell out in disarray. The brown-haired man’s eyes shifted slightly, studying the ears for a moment, the mark of a pure-blooded elf.
“If… the Emperor has been watching, he’ll have no choice but to let the Princess go.”
The man frowned, as if he was offended by what I was saying.
The way things were supposed to work, the Princess was to be brought to the Elven Village to be cured by King Ashtad. Whenever a new king was crowned in Ashtad, a certain amount of magic stones were distributed to the promised location, but other than that, there was no direct contact between them, and now the elves needed the Princess’s body, so they were willing to make their first appearance before the king.
But the Emperor’s unruly behavior had led to the Princess being dragged all the way to the Podia Empire, and the Emperor, who had expected to take her away and leave her alone, had taken it upon himself to care for her. The Emperor’s attentiveness grated on the brown-haired man’s nerves.
“Who dares covet what belongs to me?”
The brown-haired man muttered sullenly, as if the Emperor’s display of raw emotion bothered him more than the whole situation.
Unable to stand by and watch any longer, he ignored the elves’ protests of unreasonable numbers and slipped the spirit crystals into the gifts without the kingdom of Ashtad realizing it. If the crystal caused the Princess to become ill, the Emperor would surely try to fix it.
If the Emperor reached out to the Kingdom of Ashtad in search of a solution, the King of Ashtad would quickly recognize the symptoms and request his repatriation.
Then, when he would come to the aid of a sick Princess in his kingdom, everything would be perfect.
