Violet, who had been quietly staring at the box Winter had opened, shook her head.
"I didn't really want it. I was just joking. I just liked the way you cared about the hotel."
"...Yes?"
"I found your refusal charming. Sorry, it was just a joke."
"Did I change my mind too easily and lose my charm?"
"I just thought, you really liked me too."
Winter, who liked her answer but had an infinite desire for material things, asked again.
"You don't really want to receive it?"
"Not at all. As you said, of all the things you have, I like your time the best."
"..."
"If you want to give me a gift, be with me. That's the best gift."
When his wife said that and smiled, Winter felt as if his heart had suddenly swelled.
"Wait for a second."
Winter went down to the first floor for a moment, then came back to the second floor and said.
"I've decided to finish business today. I bought it for a month."
"Yes?"
"Now that no one is coming, let's kiss."
"You did that just to kiss me...."
"I only spent that much money to get a kiss."
Winter smiled with the corners of his eyes wide and hugged Violet's waist. Violet sighed but soon closed her eyes when he looked at her with eyes that seemed to drip honey.
***
After finishing shopping for magic tools and having a huge amount of newspapers delivered to the Kanik Cruise, the group headed back to Alika.
"I would pack a copy of the newspaper and read my wife's articles to the point where I could remember them in my heart."
Said Winter.
"I heard from Eglin that Ash wants to have a title."
"Oh, that's right."
"Why hasn't he received it yet? You said it was his."
"One of the plots is that it is possible to be one of the successors of the Duchy of Doss, which stretched out from the house of Lawrence. But even under the written law, Peren is absolutely free, and going there and competing for a successor is a declaration of war."
"What else?"
"Another one..."
Violet guessed Winter's reaction and looked slightly embarrassed.
"You might say that nobles make easy things difficult."
"Yes."
"There are two more islands on the Rekle River that run through the capital of Rockround, including the Estuary Island where the Kanik headquarters is located."
"Is that an island too? It's just a few rocks stuck together."
"But since they live in two houses each, they legally combine the three islands and write 'all islands."
"... Keep going. I'm already getting annoyed, but I'll endure it because it's your voice."
"I will."
Violet quickly continued speaking as Winter frowned.
"It is a title that is exactly the title of the owner of the Rekle River and all the islands on it. Only the King can have it. The river can not be owned by a noble other than the King."
"But the reason you can't accept something like that is because..."
"You bought a large portion of the islands that everyone thought were useless, right? That's why the 'all islands' part is wrong."
"A considerable portion. Because it's mine."
"So what's mine is..."
"And the whole island is mine. Why are you so uninterested in me?"
Winter had a disappointed expression on his face, but Violet couldn't believe that he owned an entire island that wasn't even on an island far out at sea, let alone one that belonged to the capital.
Now, Hagu Island is called the best shopping district in Rockround. It was so crowded that even if it was not a famous store, Violet would not be able to handle it. So even though Winter told Violet several times that Hagu Island was hers, Violet just ignored it because it seemed so unrealistic. Violet asked, looking puzzled.
"So... and the whole island?"
"Yes. Every single grain of sand is mine."
"Ah..."
Violet sighed.
"It's even more obvious that Ash shouldn't receive that title. Ash should first correct that sentence."
"So it says all the islands, but they're not all the Islands, right? Man, really."
When Winter couldn't find the right words and just made a face, Violet tried to guess what he was trying to say.
"You thought nobles were obsessed with useless things?"
"That's right. Now you know me well."
Winter replied and smiled faintly. And he knew immediately what he had to do. The idea was to purchase the remaining two islands. All three, including Hagu Island, could be treated as joint property of the couple.
***
The carriage headed straight for the northernmost part of the continent where Alika was. There were many routes to the north, but the only safe route was from the capital of Hanus. Since Jen and Hayel would not be able to enter, they were left to wait in a nearby village while the rest of the group headed to Alika.
As they went north, they felt a colder temperature than they had ever felt in Rockround, but inside the carriage, it was so warm that it was almost hot.
As Alika got closer, Winter became increasingly quiet.
Violet asked affectionately.
"What are you thinking about?"
"..."
Winter was silent for a moment, and after a long time, he finally opened his mouth.
"I never felt sorry for her after I met my biological mother again."
"But?"
"She didn't even have money for food. She certainly didn't have money to travel this far by private carriage."
"..."
"I feel a little bad when I think about how she walked up this road alone."
Violet watched Winter muttering quietly and then rested her head on his shoulder.
"I see."
Winter leaned against her and kissed Violet's forehead as he spoke.
"If you keep treating them well because you feel bad for them, they'll become spoiled."
Violet smiled, patted his arm, and turned her head back to the window. As Winter said, it was too rough a road to walk up alone.
At that moment, Violet, who had been quietly looking at the snow, spoke.
"Wait a minute. I see a light over there."
At those words, Winter poked his head to ward the door and said.
"Right."
"There are people... children."
"Oh, I see."
"It's so cold here. I have to go down."
"... Does it really have to be like that?"
Winter frowned but stopped the carriage for a moment.
Then, when Violet was about to get out of the carriage, Winter covered her with a large coat over the thick winter dress she was wearing and then wrapped another blanket over it.
"Damn, why do those damn guys stand out?"
Winter got out of the carriage first, still looking reluctant. He was a Southerner, but his blood was from the far north, so he felt much less cold than Violet. Winter put Violet's hand into the sleeve of his coat.
"Don't let go, I'll hold your hand."
"Putting my hand into your sleeves? This is my first time doing something like this."
"Your clothes don't have pockets."
"It's rude to walk with your hands in your pockets."
"Yeah, yeah. I'm rude and you're a Princess."
Winter grumbled and walked on the snow one step ahead of Violet. He stepped first, pressing his knees to tamp down the snow, and Violet followed him carefully.
Despite Winter's shortened strides, Violet struggled, but she soon followed him, unsteadily. As they approached the children, the eldest of them closed his eyes tightly, held a knife in both hands, and said.
"Gi, give me what you have, and I'll spare your life!"
He was a boy who looked to be about thirteen. He was taller than Violet, but his face was clearly that of a child. Winter clicked his tongue and immediately took out his revolver and aimed it at the boy. The boy, terrified, dropped the knife and raised both hands. Then, his feet started to go numb and he turned to Violet and made an excuse.
"Even if it's difficult, a robber is still a robber."
Violet passed Winter without saying a word, picked up the knife, and handed it to her husband. The frightened boy sobbed.
"Oh, there's a sick child!"
"Sick child?"
"I can't get any more money..."
The boy hesitated and looked back and forth between the two people. He thought he could somehow get money from them since they looked like noblemen, but the man pointing a gun at him had gray eyes. The boy spoke cautiously.
"Are you a member of the Kanik clan?"
"That's true, but of the two of us, I'm the one who's more likely to kill you. And with a very high probability."
"I'm sorry! I didn't know you were from the same clan..."
"Can you commit robbery if you're not from the same clan? This damn rat... a little kid."
Winter barely managed to swallow his curse as Violet turned to look at him. The boy hesitated for a moment before asking with certainty.
"Are you Mr. Winter?"
"It seems I am the only noble among this trash clan."
"Oh, hello! Nice to meet you!"
The boy nodded. Only after the boy let his guard down did Violet ask.
"Why are you here like this?"
"We are mixed race. We can't enter Alika, so we live together in that house. Our parents can't take us in, so sometimes our parents come and take care of us, but most of us are illegitimate children, and the shamans say that God is uncomfortable with us...."
Violet thought it unlikely that a God would say such a thing, but she tried to keep her words in check so as not to offend someone else's God.
Winter, on the other hand, could not hold back and started swearing.
"How can those who can't even commit robbery live among themselves? Your parents are right there."
Violet nodded at his words, and one of the girls in the group hugged Violet's leg tightly and buried her face in it. Then she raised her head and asked.
"Are you a Princess?"
"No."
When the child looked disappointed by her honest answer, Winter clicked his tongue and whispered.
"Princess, she's asking you a fairy tale question, not a legal one. You just broke this little girl's innocence."
"Huh? Ah!"
Violet was surprised for a moment, then quickly bent down and whispered in the child's ear.
"It's true that I'm a Princess, but you have to keep it a secret. I came out secretly."
"Wow!"
The child quickly brightened up and nodded. But Winter's expression worsened even more. He was projecting his own abandoned self through the children. He glared in Alika's direction and said.
"Get the patient in the carriage. Take him to Alika. If you want to go, get in too."
Then the boy who first took up the sword, Noir, spoke.
"That can't be done! God will be angry if he sees us. If you are not of pure Kanik blood, you cannot enter Alika."
Violet opened her mouth at Noir's words.
"The words of God can change in human mouths. But if your God really said so..."
Violet continued speaking, looking at Noir with a cautious face and expression.
"I'm sorry, but I have to deny that."
"Just because our God, not the Princess's God doesn't mean you can act recklessly..."
"Even if my God said so, it would be the same. It is against my beliefs, so I will not follow it. I am sorry, but will you go with me to Alika?"
She had always been polite to the God of the Kanik clan, just as she was to her own God. Strangely enough, Violet's firm yet affectionate advice felt to Winter as if it were directed at him, who had been left alone at the age of five.
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