【Chapter 21】
Lafesch, who was walking briskly, unlike a noble lady, thought so and smiled contentedly.
“Of course! I’m the center of the world anyway!”
Everything will work out well from now on. I feel good, la la la~!
She hummed the song and even danced along by shaking her shoulders.
“…..”
Theodore, who was standing in front of the library, was watching Lafesch with a look of amusement as he became increasingly blurry-eyed from looking at something strange.
💧
“Esadien.”
After Lafesch left, I grabbed my waist with both hands.
“Have you become close with Lady Celeste?”
“What do you mean by close?”
Esadien tilted his head slightly to the side.
“I’ve only seen her twice.”
“But despite that, you were standing very close to her.”
“…..”
As soon as she snapped back, Esadien shut his mouth. What’s with the silence? Next to him, Theodore chuckled quietly.
“It seems like Lady Minuelle is jealous right now, Your Highness.”
I answered bluntly.
“That’s right.”
“As she said, Sir.”
Esadien still looked suspicious.
“Jealous?”
He didn’t seem to understand why I felt jealous. I felt a little sad, as it seemed like he wouldn’t feel jealous in the opposite case either. I took my hands off my waist and clenched my fists to shake off the feeling, and said.
“Of course I’m jealous, my fiancé was alone with another woman!”
“Minuelle, didn’t you also watch an opera with Theodore alone?”
“We are just friends!”
“Since when?”
At first glance, it might sound like Esadien is starting to feel jealous and prying along, but his expression was definitely not like that. It was a calm face, just confirming the truth with a composed tone.
“…..”
Theodore spoke on behalf of me, who was exhausted.
“Your Highness, Lady Minuelle took pity on me for being miserably rejected and decided to become friends with me from today.”
“Rejected? By Lady Celeste?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Theodore, you are a good knight.”
“You are saying the same thing as Lady Minuelle.”
Laughing, Theodore scratched the back of his head with a somewhat puzzled expression.
“Come to think of it… it’s not like I’ve ever sent Lady Celeste alone before. I’ll go and see her off for a moment.”
With those words, Theodore left the library. Perhaps he thought it would be better for us to solve the problem together, but I was already feeling drained. Instead of saying anything to Esadien, I turned my body and sat on the squeaky window seat. It was the exact spot where I had leaned on him just a few days ago. Esadien soon followed me.
“Minuelle.”
“….yes.”
I answered without looking up at him standing in front of me. If I saw his face up close, I knew I would immediately lose my temper.
“I returned the book.”
No, this prince is really!
My determination to avoid seeing his face crumbled in a matter of seconds, and I snapped at him in frustration.
“Is that all you have to say?”
“Now you’re looking at me again.”
As I suspected, Esadien slowly lowered his body, looking directly at me. He leaned his arms on the edge and spoke quietly.
“I’m sorry for upsetting you.”
“……”
It was a sincere apology. After hearing that, I felt so childish for openly showing my jealousy towards Lafesch. As I hung my head low in gloom, Esadien called me again.
“Minuelle, look at me.”
Esadien was completely stooping down to my eye level. He was bending his waist, which was something unthinkable for the imperial family.
“Why, why are you like that? Just sit here.”
I quickly grabbed Esadien’s arm, but he remained motionless and asked without changing his posture.
“How can I make you accept my apology?”
“You’re saying as if you’ll do anything.”
“As you said.”
It would have been enough just to accept the apology.
But…
‘You’ll do anything?’
That’s the most dangerous thing you can say in the world. And dangerous things are always as sweet as they are risky. Drunk on that sweetness, I did something that I would have normally held back on. I gently cupped Esadien’s beautiful face with both hands and asked,
“Can I kiss you then?”
I gently caress Esadien’s plump lips with my thumb.
“Here….”
For a moment, Esadien’s breath became unsteady. The last time, right here, he refused with displeasure. But this time…
‘Are you hesitating?’
His trembling pupils fluttered and lost focus for a moment. After a brief pause, Esadien closed his eyes tightly and finally nodded his head.
“….yes.”
“What?”
As soon as he agreed, my mood became strange. I thought I would be overjoyed, but it wasn’t as I expected. After a moment of contemplation, I realized why. I gave a faint, bittersweet smile and let go of Esadien’s face.
“It’s nothing. Let’s cancel this.”
“What?”
My hand, which was about to move away, was caught by Esadien. I thought he would dislike physical contact, but he was clearly frowning.
“Why?”
“I don’t like doing it as compensation. It feels forced… Eup.”
It quickly blocked my mouth, soft and fluffy, then fell off.
“Uh—just, just now.”
What did I miss!
Unlike me, who was incredibly shaken, Esadien calmly looked at me and lowered his face once again. This time, his nose brushed slowly against mine, and our lips met. My eyes closed slowly. Due to the darkness, everything else felt more vivid. Esadien’s scent, his slightly trembling lips, and the sound of my racing heart pounding in my ears. With each touch of our soft lips, it felt like a small spark was exploding in front of my eyes. But the moment of joy was short-lived. After gently biting my lower lip, as if to kiss it, Esadien withdrew his face and stepped back.
“…..”
“…..”
An awkward yet passionate silence filled the air.
Esadien straightened his body and cleared his throat, and I pressed my flushed face into my palm.
I! With Esadien!
‘Dream? Is this a dream?’
I cautiously opened my fingers to steal a glance at Esadien. Seeing that his ears were also red, it was definitely not a dream.
Oh my Gosh, I! With Esadien!
‘We really kissed!’
If I were on a bed, I would have probably thrown a tantrum and punched the pillow, but all I could do now was clench my fist and hold back from screaming.
“Minuelle.”
Cough. Esadien cleared his throat and called out to me. Unable to hit a pillow, I sprang up like a compressed spring and hugged Esadien tightly. He seemed to have anticipated it, calmly embracing me.
“I’m sorry for upsetting you.”
Esadien apologized again. My jealousy had already subsided, and I buried my face in his embrace, murmuring.
“I forgive you.”
“Thank you.”
Despite my answer, Esadien sincerely thanked me for it. So, I loosened my grip on him and looked straight into his eyes. Lately, I felt like I hadn’t said these words enough.
“I love you.”
“……”
However, Esadien didn’t say anything in response. But I knew from spending so much time with him that his reactions had changed significantly from when we first met, when he showed clear reluctance. Now, a faint sadness lingered in his eyes. So I gathered my courage and spoke again, hoping to remove that sadness someday.
“Esadien, I really, really love you.”
“Yes…..”
Finally, Esadien answered in a small voice, but it was not an emotion he was sending me, just acceptance.
‘But it’s okay.’
Knowing that Esadien was changing, I could wait more patiently.
“What if your face didn’t come to my mind?”
Burying his chin slightly on my head, Esadien murmured as if he was going to say something that I couldn’t hear, avoiding my gaze.
“Yes?”
“No, nothing.”
As Esadien slowly stroked my back, he seemed like a child trying to reassure himself of something. But at that moment, I was too preoccupied to notice.
💧
When Lafesch entered the office the next day, she looked surprised to see me in a good mood.
‘I can’t help but feeling good.’
I giggled quietly, out of view from where Lafesch was, as he seemed surprised to see me in a good mood. Now that I had become friends with Theodore, there was no chance of me marrying him. Above all, spending time with Esadien yesterday filled me with a lot of affection.
“Are you going to act like that in front of a person who just got dumped yesterday?”
Theodore grumbled, but Esadien and I knew it was just a joke.
“Miss Minuelle, all the replies to the invitation have arrived.”
“Okay. Is anyone unable to attend?”
“No… Oh, the Strauss family said they cannot attend because their schedule conflicts with the funeral of their lord.”
“I see.”
“Here’s the table seating layout.”
Before I even asked, Lafesch handed me the seating layout. Luckily, things were going pretty well, and I was grateful for that. If even that hadn’t been the case, I wouldn’t have been able to stand being with Lafesch.
“Thank you.”
Oh, come to think of it, Lafesch didn’t give me any unnecessary stories today.
“By the way, Young Lady.”
“Yes?”
“Ah….”
I almost asked Lafesch if something was wrong without thinking. I quickly shook my head. It’s better to have fewer things to deal with, after all.
“No, I just need to take one table out.”
The Strauss family issue was solved by removing one table and widening the gap between other tables. I also made sure to inform the butler about the condolences.
“Now, only one thing left.”
The Emperor was not supposed to attend the wedding of the nobles, but he had to be the first to receive the invitation and also the last. Especially when sending the second invitation, the couple getting married had to visit and present it directly to the Emperor. It was considered that they were receiving approval for their marriage not only from their parents but also from the Emperor.
‘I wonder if it’s necessary to interfere with even marriages.’
The marriage of nobles is indeed a union between families. Although now it is simply accepted as a procedure, in the past, the emperors actively exercised their right of refusal to prevent the birth of a faction that could challenge their imperial power. When I passed on the schedule to Sister Juella, she stopped writing something in a hurry and looked at us before speaking.
“Regarding the Emperor? Already at that point, huh?”
The wedding was getting closer. The fiancé had already moved his belongings to the mansion, and the banquet hall only awaited the floral decorations to arrive the day before the wedding. The dresses were also in the final stages of completion.
“You’ve worked hard so far, Lady Celeste. You too, Minuelle.”
“Oh no, it’s not over until it’s over.”
It’s not over until the last guest leaves and everything is finished. This was a sense of responsibility as someone who prepared for the event.
💧
Thank you for reading!
