“Let’s cancel our engagement.”
At my words, Demimore’s pretty and slender eyebrows arched up.
As his childhood friend and fiance, I knew that this habit of his only came out when things didn’t go his way.
And right now, his expression suggests that she isn’t pleased with the current situation. I can’t understand it, no matter how I think about it.
Demimore’s mother, Freezia, can now leave the garden. Lausanne, too, had escaped from the cage of being a princess of a country.
Astina, too, is no longer just a fragile heroine who needs protection.
I also wanted to give Demimore freedom.
No, even as my fiancé, he was clearly in love with another woman, so he should normally be happy to accept my offer, but why does he look so…….
Bad.
“What do you mean?”
“Demimore, do you remember telling me that you didn’t want to be engaged to me here?”
I didn’t mean to blame Demimore. But as soon as I finished speaking, Demimore sighed deeply and raised his right arm and covered his eyes with his wrist.
“At that time, I…….”
“You were right. We shouldn’t have been engaged back then.”
It was literally a political engagement. The imperial family wanted to suppress the power of the Grand Duke by making Demimore marry the youngest daughter of the Grand Duke’s family.
The Grand Duke could not refuse an imperial order. That’s why neither the Grand Duke nor the Emperor attended our engagement party.
What was the meaning of this engagement anyway?
“I don’t want you to become a puppet of the imperial family.”
“How… How will you cut those strings for me?”
“I have a wish coupon.”
With that, I will set you free.
Maybe it was something I should have done a long time ago. I feel bad for all the trouble Demimore went through because of me.
“You can’t sleep well at night, right?”
“No…”
“You were also whimpering yesterday.”
Last night, after Astina fell asleep, I couldn’t sleep and quietly went to Demimore’s room where he was sleeping.
I heard Demimore whimpering from the other side of the room.
Arsene told me before that Demimore’s physical strength had weakened and he was having nightmares because he had used magic that didn’t match his body to kill X.
I, too, suffered from nightmares, which made me empathize with his pain.
Although Arsene didn’t say it, but I was plagued by guilt that maybe the curse that the god of death and X had aimed at me had gone to Demimore…
“It’s not because of you.”
“It’s an undeniable fact that you wouldn’t have gone through these things if it weren’t for me.”
“And it’s also undeniable that those experiences have helped me grow.”
I also asked Arsene if there was a way for me to have magic in my body like Demimore.
But he said it was impossible because I was a saint in my past life, and my body that had received God’s love couldn’t adapt to magic.
Arsene also said that he gained it through long years of efforts to fight against the god of death.
“And I’m also thinking about leaving the Grand Duchy for a while.”
I envied Lausanne, who had gone on a long journey. So I planned to leave soon after getting my father’s permission.
I’ve made some plans with Hestia, who took a vacation.
I was more worried about the three brothers’ personalities than my father’s, but it would be much easier to get permission with Hestia by my side.
I wanted to grow as well. After dealing with the God of Death, I thought that everything had come to an end.
However, Maria Conler was only fifteen years old, and it was just the beginning for her.
Arsene was working hard to become a new god, and I was planning to embark on a journey to find a new me.
It would be great if I could use magic like the three brothers or Rex Bluea. I was going to find a way with Hestia.
I thought Demimore would understand, but his face in front of me became cold. Like the chill of the season that surrounds us…
“So you were preparing to leave?”
His voice was as calm and cold as snow falling silently. I couldn’t understand why he was so angry.
He sighed deeply and looked up again, smiling so much that his eyes curved.
“Mary, I think I’m going to get really angry.”
“…….”
Uh, I think you’re already angry.….
“Please let me catch my breath.”
He took a step towards me and buried his face in my shoulder, whispering quietly.
Like a large dog nuzzling its face between my shoulder and neck. His voice sounded somehow sad.
Without realizing it, I raised my left hand to comfort him and stroked his back, feeling puzzled.
What did I do?
‘You clearly wanted to break the engagement!’
As I was comforting Demimore, someone hugged me tightly from behind.
Startled, I turned around. Honey-colored hair fluttered over my left shoulder.
“Astina?”
It was Astina, who I thought had gone back home. As soon as she heard her name, Astina made a sound and pressed her cheek against my shoulder.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to, but I heard it all without realizing it. Where are you planning to go?”
“Huh?”
“Is it because of what you said yesterday?”
“What did you talk about yesterday?”
Demimore on my right shoulder sharply asked Astina, but she ignored him and grabbed my shoulder, shaking me vigorously.
“It’s all over now! Why do you think you have to leave while and blame yourself?”
Ah, there seems to be a misunderstanding.
They think I’m going to leave completely like I did when I ran away last time.
As I was thinking about how to correct this misunderstanding, Astina’s blue eyes suddenly blazed with fiery light.
“Your Highness! This is not what we agreed upon!”
“Can’t you step aside for a moment, lady?”
“You said if I let you come to the birthday party, you’d confess!”
……Confess?
Confused by their words, I looked back and forth between Astina, who was excitedly bouncing, and Demimore, who was brushing his hair back.
“That’s right. And now the lady has messed it up.”
“Oh dear, I’m sorry.”
Her expression showed no remorse. Even in this confusing situation, Astina’s behavior was novel to me.
It seems like my childhood interactions with her had an impact on her personality…
“But Astina…….”
“Yeah?”
“Didn’t you like Demimore?”
“What? Why would you say that?”
“What do you mean….”
My mouth, unable to resist curiosity, moved freely. But really, I was just too curious.
When I asked my question, Astina jumped up and down, and Demimore looked somewhat uncomfortable.
“The person you like… would it be awkward if I knew…”
“It’s… it’s Theodore.”
Astina’s cheeks turned red as she revealed her crush. This calm demeanor was typical of the Astina I knew, but still…
Who?
“Why, why do you mean… Astina!”
Astina’s words, as she twisted her body, were quite shocking. She had been thinking about Theodore since he rescued her from Sofia last time
He seemed like a knight in a romance novel… No, are there really unlucky knights in the world?
“For me to say I like Theodore Conler to you is like asking for your help. I was afraid you’d feel burdened by it. But Mary, you should know that. You are the most important to me!”
“Oh, me too….”
“So let’s leave together!”
Astina grabbed my hand tightly and said. No, I’m not leaving! But hearing Astina’s words, I thought it would be fun to travel with just the two of us.
Lost in thought for a moment, Demimore walked in between Astina and me.
“Well, how about we finish our conversation now?”
Although the conversation with Astina wasn’t exactly over, there was still something I needed to discuss with Demimore, so I nodded my head.
“Sorry, but I have no intention of breaking the engagement.”
“But…”
“Mary, I like you.”
“…… what?”
Suddenly, the word “confession” that Astina mentioned earlier flashed through my mind. Ah, that was it. My toes curled at Demimore’s sudden confession.
It felt like there was a puppy in my stomach squirming around. The soft sunlight seemed to shine only on Demimore…
Huh?
“By the way, Mary, did you think of breaking off the engagement with His Highness because you thought I liked him?”
Astina, who had been hidden from view by Demimore, leaned over and popped out from behind him.
“Then there’s no reason to break the engagement anymore!”
“It doesn’t matter if Lady Astina likes me. I only liked you from the beginning, Mary.”
Demimore confessed while staring at me intensely. Looking at him like that, I took a step back and said one word.
“Wow.”
“Wow… What does that mean?”
No matter how much I thought about it, that was the only word that could express my current feelings.
As Demimore looked puzzled by the unfamiliar language, his behavior looked cute to me.
And in that moment when I realized it, I screamed and ran away. I just couldn’t face Demimore right now.
