“Our Princess baked pumpkin tarts. Will you two also have them?”
It was Yuriev, the prince with his pale golden hair falling over his eyes. Ivan tried to somehow avoid joining in that moment, as he didn’t dare intrude. But Karnov caught him by the back and pushed him forward.
“What did I just say?”
“…”
Yuriev, who was watching the scene, smiled brightly and pushed Ivan’s back forward toward the mansion.
“The scent of the tarts is really nice, so it would be great if we all eat them together. Then…”
While Ivan faltered, but eventually walked toward the mansion, Yuriev turned and looked at Karnov.
“Can I have a moment to talk with the deputy commander?”
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“I must say, deputy commander, you don’t seem to resemble your father much, do you?”
“Is that so?”
“Did you inherit more from your grandmother? Ah! I have said something impolite. I wasn’t that close to your father.”
“Neither am I.”
Yuriev, who was standing blankly for a while at the words, burst into a bitter laughter.
“Anyway, although I heard plenty about the achievements and honors of the imperial army’s deputy commander even in this countryside estate, I never thought we would meet like this.”
“You can call me comfortably. Karnov is fine.”
At Karnov’s polite words, Yuriev rubbed his forehead with the tip of his index finger.
“But you’re the deputy commander of the imperial army, can I do that?”
“Aren’t you the father of Her Highness, Princess Anastasia?”
“Hmm. Then, should I speak freely?”
Yuriev smiled broadly. He knew the reason Karnov said that was not because Yuriev was a prince, but rather that he was the father of Princess Anastasia.
“It’s probably good to make it clear now. Regardless of what may happen, I have no intention of going back to the capital, but if I were to go, it would be after Alexei ascends the throne. I won’t even attend my father’s funeral, haha.”
The mad old man might live forever, Yuriev continued to mutter like that.
“Even if I were asked to prove my loyalty, there’s no way to do it, but is this enough of an answer?”
“…I didn’t come here to ask for such an answer. Prince Alexei didn’t want that either.”
“It sounds like you mean it, it’s quite fascinating.”
Karnov glanced at the prince. Even though he was dressed in old clothes that might have been seen passing by on the battlefield, and despite his gentle expression, there was a natural elegance and a strong presence emanating from Yuriev.
‘So, that’s how you managed to withstand the pressure from His Majesty?’
In a way, it was easy to understand that he was Asha’s father. There was something even more remarkable, though.
“But it’s a little strange even if you’re really serious. That the deputy commander has come this long way just to accompany our princess.”
“Crown Prince Alexei cares a lot about Princess Anastasia.”
Karnov wanted his words to sound dull, but Yuriev’s blue eyes did not budge.
“I heard from Maxim that Asha and the crown prince get along well, but it seems true.”
“That’s ri…”
“But the deputy commander and my princess also seem to get along well for now.”
“How can I be rude to Her Highness?”
“Ahahaha. Well, you can’t tell Asha’s dad that you don’t get along with her, can you?”
Yuriev seemed to know that behind the scenes, Karnov may secretly dislike or keep Asha in check, but outwardly he maintained a polite tone. Karnov felt a slight discomfort in his chest for no reason but didn’t add any further remarks.
“Still, you went out of your way to accompany her for Asha’s sake, so I won’t forget this favor. Haha, although I may not be able to return the favor when I live in the countryside picking up acorns.”
“You don’t have to say that because I requested to come along.”
Upon hearing those words, Yuriev blinked for a moment, then quickly regained his composure.
“By the way, you didn’t see a white dandelion near here on the way, did you?”
When Karnov blinked at the story of spring flowers in late autumn, when the leaves were running out and frost was about to form, Yuriev nodded with regret.
“We had planned to make a wreath of white dandelions for our daughter’s coming-of-age ceremony. But that damn old… no, His Majesty had the audacity to take the child away, so I couldn’t do it in time.”
“…”
“If you see white dandelions next spring, princess… could you pick one for Asha?”
“I will do so.”
Karnov hoped his answer was not too quick. Yuriev laughed softly at him. Karnov looked at Yuriev’s back, which was a little ahead. It seemed not only Yuriev, but even Irina, possessed an ability with the spirits that appeared effortless.
“Hmm? What’s wrong with you?”
“…Aren’t you worried that I might hurt Asha?”
When he heard that, Yuriev opened his eyes wide in surprise.
“Why do you… Oh, because of the spirit? People said it was the Spirit of Death.”
“…”
“But all the people in the capital are alive.”
“…?”
“If you had killed all the people you didn’t like, I think the population of the capital would have halved by now. Would it not?”
Yuriev found his own words amusing and burst into laughter, then left with only the comment, “When you have children, you can tell who is good and bad for your children.”
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The tart shell, made using cold butter and granulated sugar, tasted crisp and sweet. The smooth surface of the filling, which was almost dark orange in color, sparkled. It was a wonderful tart with eye-catching light green pistachio decorations around the edges.
The tart, which was made by straining the steamed pumpkin, boiling it with honey and sugar, slowly mixing eggs and cream, and baking it in a tart pan, had a sweet and savory scent of autumn in itself.
As the number of people grew considerably, there were three rounds of tarts, and Asha carefully cut them in half from the nearest tart first. Then, bright yellow flesh, almost the color of forsythia, appeared.
“It looks good!”
Asha was the first to cut and distributed the pumpkin tarts with cinnamon and cream to Yuriev and Irina, Lise, and Karnov.
“This one, Ivan, has cinnamon but no cream. And me, I have the one without cinnamon but with cream.”
Asha cut the tart into pieces and distributed it to the knights, and finally put the plate down in front of the harpist Arten, and smiled mischievously.
As the sweet pumpkin, soaked in the deepening autumn sunlight, combined with the addition of honey and sugar, the tart became firm and tasted like a concentrated flavor of last fall.
“No… No? No… No…”
Yuriev, who lifted a spoonful of tart with a happy smile and pushed it into his mouth, gulped down and looked around, expressing confusion.
“Asha? Did my princess make this? Really?”
“Of course!”
Asha put her hands on her waist and said with a proud face. Even the knights who had tasted Asha’s pastries a few times before widened their eyes and eagerly put the tart in their mouths.
While Yuriev and Irina praised their only daughter’s dexterity, Asha confirmed that Ivan was eating and pushed a drink toward him. Then, holding her portion of tart, she approached Karnov next to him.
“What did you talk about with my dad?”
“Nothing special.”
“Really? There won’t be anything worth mentioning to others in Asha’s life.”
Mocking herself in the third person, Asha teased Karnov with her fork, causing him to pause and swallow a sigh.
“…He was curious about why I came, so I told him.”
“Aha. What did you say?”
Asha narrowed her eyes and smiled, showing signs of teasing. Karnov quickly caught on.
“I said I’m here to help Your Highness Anastasia.”
“Hmm.”
Asha squinted at Karnov. Karnov frowned.
“What else are you dissatisfied with, Your Highness?”
“Since you said that, why don’t you act more friendly for real?”
“Act friendly?”
“I don’t have any friends, so my mom and dad are always worried. If I pretend to have made friends when I went to the capital, they might worry a little less.”
“…”
“And actually, we’re not pretending to be close, don’t we have a relationship that led to a sincere friendship, Lord Karnov? We’re even writing an exchange diary.”
“…That’s fine.”
Asha noticed Karnov reluctantly responding with a seemingly pleased mood.
‘I thought he only liked sour and sweet things. But is he okay with something as rich and sweet as this?’
Maybe next time, I should bake scones with corn and cheese?
“Don’t look at me like that, Your Highness.”
“What kind of expression did I have when I looked at you, Karnov?”
“An expression of satisfaction, like a cat approaching on its own.”
“Karnov is… I think you’re a fox rather than a cat.”
“A fox is a type of canine.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
“Am I a dog?”
“If we look at it broadly, categorically, yes. But specifically… a baby fox?”
“A baby fox?”
“Karnov is still a teenager, right? Well, then. A teenage fox, I guess?”
“If I’m a fox, what are you?”
“Hmm, I’m a tiger.”
“You’re ridiculous. You think of me as a teenage fox and you’re a tiger?”
“Ahem.”
“Forget about the tiger. You’re like a fallen peach.”
“Oh, come on! Karnov, are you able to talk to the spirits now?”
Karnov snorted at Asha’s gaze.
“Do spirits call you that? Well, you do resemble them, I guess.”
“Ugh, if it’s necessary to call me that way. You could say something like a soft peach, right? A soft and fluffy peach. Why a fallen one?”
“Hmm. How about a round pea?”
“I hate you, Karnov.”
“Well, a chickpea?”
“Don’t eat. Don’t eat a single tart. Don’t put it in your mouth! Give it to me!”
“If you gave it to me, it’s over. I’m going to eat it all.”
Karnov quickly hid the plate behind his back. Asha stomped her foot, but in the end, she couldn’t snatch the plate away.
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Irina observed with a calm gaze as her daughter interacted with the apprentice knight named Ivan, encouraging him to try the tart while asking if he had seen the stag beetle outside the window. Meanwhile, Karnov silently watched the scene from a step behind.
Throughout the past week, the atmosphere in the mansion had remained consistent, even during Irina and Yuriev’s birthday party, where they shared delicious food and gathered around the bonfire in the courtyard. The only difference was the change in topics of conversation.
Asha’s cheeks had become rosy, and she was dressed in an outfit that fit her perfectly, radiating a lovely aura as she smiled. Her laughter sounded like a collection of small bells ringing together.
