Chapter 14
“Seeing Miss Renata here reminds me of the old days. You used to visit often, even when you were just a little girl who barely reached my waist.”
Indeed, it was true.
Triggered by the lady’s voice, I recalled a distant past memory that had been buried deep in my consciousness.
The day of our engagement ceremony, when Isar and I, clueless and wearing flower crowns, awkwardly exchanged kisses on each other’s cheeks.
Just after my 10th birthday, I was led by Isar to visit his palace for the first time.
And how awestruck I was.
Of course, even back then, our house was one of the largest mansions in the capital.
But the elegant and antique crown prince’s palace, with its centuries-old history, was on a completely different level from the nouveau riche mansions stuffed with expensive decorations.
The floor covered with red carpet was ivory-colored, and the ceiling was adorned with depictions of gods painted by a renowned artist from the early days of the kingdom.
The curtains around the enormous windows were a vivid purple with golden tassels, a color reserved solely for royalty.
‘What’s the matter? Never seen anything like this before?’
Little me was stiffly looking up at the intricately painted ceiling, my chin held high.
At some point, Khalid appeared from nowhere and stood next to me, looking at me with a sullen expression.
‘P-Prince Khalid…? H-Hello…’
‘I came to see how great the girl who’s going to be the crown princess is. But she’s just a simpleton. My name isn’t “K-K-Khalid.”’
Until then, I had been very cautious around Khalid and Isar.
After all, they were the princes, higher in status than the princes in fairy tales.
However, Khalid’s attitude shattered the romantic notions I had held up until that moment.
At that time, I thought to myself quietly.
Who is this little punk to pick a fight? Who doesn’t know your name isn’t “K-K-Khalid”?
For the record, both he and Isar were a head shorter than me at that time.
‘Hey, Khalid. Don’t bully my future bride.’
Khalid had a small scratch on his chin, likely from some rough play.
Isar, who had just come down the stairs and stood beside Khalid, pushed Khalid’s face away with his palm, smiling brightly with his purple eyes.
‘Speak casually, Renata. By the way, do you like my palace?’
‘…Oh, um, yes…’
‘Then feel free to visit often. I want you to get used to this place.’
We were all the same age, ten years old. Yet, Isar was particularly mature.
Was it because he received high-level education as the future emperor?
Whatever the reason, thanks to Isar, who was vastly different from his twin brother, I was able to bond with them quickly.
“Stupid face.”
“…Shut up.”
Khalid’s sarcastic comment pulled me out of my deep reminiscence.
For some reason, his eyes looked particularly displeased.
“Hey, Renata. I’ll be over there somewhere, so come out after you wash up.”
“…? Where exactly is ‘over there’? Hey, Khalid…!”
Khalid waved his hand dismissively and left without even listening to me. What the heck, that guy.
I stood there, bewildered, staring at Khalid’s large back before regaining my composure.
Lady Tenia, who had been wiping her teary eyes, seemed to snap out of it and led me to the bathroom.
I washed my hair and body in a large white marble bathtub that could easily fit five people.
Then, I changed into a comfortable indoor dress that Lady Tenia had laid out for me.
So this is where the dress went. I must have left it in the Crown Prince’s palace.
I fiddled with the pale pink ribbon on the chest of the dress as I stepped out of the bathroom.
I was carrying the jacket Khalid had draped over me on my right arm.
As I walked into the hallway lined with a red satin carpet, the strong scent of lilac flowers wafted through a nearby open window.
My gaze naturally shifted in that direction.
Despite the season nearing winter, the lilac garden that Isar had planted was still in full bloom and beautiful.
This was because preservation magic was cast on the Crown Prince’s palace garden, just like in the temple.
“Isar…?”
Could the fragrant flowers be casting an illusion on me?
I saw a figure perched on the golden fence under the shadow of the flowers outside the window.
Even though I knew it couldn’t be, my lips softly uttered the name of the person who was no longer here.
Maybe it was because of the darkening sky or the way the flower shadow covered his hair.
Khalid, casually brushing the petals, looked like Isar had come back to life.
How could the two be so alike? Standing there, I was mesmerized and just stared at him.
“On the night we held Prince Isar’s funeral, Prince Khalid also sat there for a long time before returning.”
“Lady Tenia.”
“He did the same on the day he succeeded the title of Crown Prince. He stayed there, alone, not letting anyone near him.”
The lady, who had approached without my noticing, quietly explained. She draped a beige shawl over my shoulders and sighed.
“He would rather cry out loud, but he never shows such a side of himself.”
“Khalid has always been like that. When he was young, he fell from a tree and broke his leg, but he didn’t shed a single tear.”
“I know that very well too.”
Not long ago, this place used to be Isar’s residence, and it brought back many memories for us.
I suppose it will remain this way for a while.
But at least I’ve passed the stage where hearing Isar’s name would make me burst into tears.
I still missed him and felt sad, but gradually, I began to accept his death.
I thanked the lady who had lent me the shawl and then turned towards the garden.
Khalid was standing there, his head slightly lowered, staring blankly at the ground.
He soon noticed my presence and looked up at me.
In the darkening garden, his sky-blue eyes were the only thing that stood out. The corners of his cat-like eyes seemed slightly red.
“I’m here.”
“…Yeah, I know.”
His voice was still low and indifferent, but for some reason, it sounded softer than usual.
I held out his jacket to him.
Raising an eyebrow, he took the jacket from me, and I leaned against the fence, just a step away from him.
‘Yeah, it’s not just me who lost a beloved fiancé. Khalid also lost his beloved brother.’
It was a fact I had already known in my head.
But whenever I faced Khalid, we were too busy fighting to pay attention to such things.
Still, we couldn’t keep bickering like immature children forever…
I gently wiped my face, which was free of makeup.
Somehow, my heart felt weak and tender now. Perhaps it was because I had just seen Isar and Khalid overlap in my mind.
My voice came out quite softly.
“…Come to think of it, Khalid, you used to come here quite often too, didn’t you?”
“This place was prettier in the past. That fool Isar planted only the same flowers everywhere.”
“…”
Just because Khalid and Isar resembled each other didn’t mean Khalid could become Isar.
Realizing this anew, I rolled my eyes and glared at Khalid.
I was trying to be nice for once.
However, even though he said that, it seemed like Khalid was also lost in his own memories.
He drew a faint smile and asked,
“Do you remember? Isar making a fuss, saying he would plant the flowers himself with a shovel in hand.”
“He told you not to even think about helping him, and you reassured him that you had no intention of doing so.”
Isar, proudly rolling up the sleeves of his white shirt.
And Khalid, lying on the grass, biting into an apple and thinking what a waste of time it was.
I had sat in the shade near Khalid, telling Isar not to overexert himself.
But that was over three years ago. That day was quite fun.
I laughed, recalling Isar covered in dirt.
Come to think of it, the three of us shared countless memories together.
“That guy, he always acted so composed, but he had some peculiar quirks.”
“Yeah, right. That’s why I thought that marrying Isar would make every day fun… Ah.”
“…You’re not going to cry again, are you, Renata?”
“No, why would I?”
I hastily spoke in excitement, then shut my lips tightly.
It was good that the atmosphere between Khalid and me had softened, but it shouldn’t have been because of Isar.
For a very long time, I had been Isar’s fiancée.
Because of that, Khalid didn’t even try to accept me as his own fiancée.
If Isar kept being mentioned, Khalid might reject me even more.
The engagement ceremony was the day after tomorrow.
