Liene noticed the gaze becoming more intense and grabbed Black's hand slightly.
“Nothing happened?”
Black asked, leaning his head in as if he was examining every corner.
“Nothing happened. But why...”
“Uh-oh. I think it's this body that should be saying hello, not your lovely fiancee.”
It was the words of Grand Prince Dieren, who had gotten off the carriage and was heading this way. Black turned around with an expression that showed his displeasure. Dieren opened both his arms toward him.
“It’s been a while, brother.”
Brother? Black received Dieren's greeting while Liene blinked in confusion.
"Not really."
...huh?
“Finish your business and get out quickly.”
...Get out? Didn’t you say that guy was the Grand Prince? Black held out his arm to the bewildered Liene.
“We’re done here. Shall we go back?”
“Um... Is that okay?”
“It is possible.”
And yet, his gently smiling face was the same as usual.
“I missed the Princess from the moment I left the castle.”
The only thing out of the ordinary was the Grand Prince of Alito, who was listening to those words over his shoulder and gaping open-mouthed.
***
“Why do you hate it so much?”
Black clearly hated Dieren. And very much so. Since they set out for the castle, Dieren had become a ghost. No one spoke to him or paid him any attention. When Black put Liene on his horse and started to ride slowly, the mercenaries who had accompanied him also matched his speed. Dieren stamped his feet alone, then got back on the carriage and followed the group. Later, she even felt sorry for him.
"Not really."
Black spoke calmly, but it was not easy to believe.
“I think that’s different from saying I don’t hate it.”
“Of all the people in the Alito family, I hate him the least.”
“Oh, like that.”
If this is what you hate the least, what do you think other people are like?
“Can I ask what’s going on?”
When Liene slightly turned her head to meet his eyes and asked, Black smiled and kissed her on the bridge of his nose.
“Kissing is fine, but does this mean I shouldn’t ask?”
“No, I meant that it would be a boring story. I thought I should ask for your understanding in advance.”
“It’s okay. It’s about you. I want to know.”
“Princess, why do you say that when I can’t use my hands?”
Black gave an incomprehensible bitter smile and began to speak slowly.
“I fought on their behalf several times when the Principality of Alito was at war with the Kingdom of Lekes.”
In fact, it wasn't that simple. The Kingdom of Lekes, which had looked down on the Principality of Alito, suffered enormous damage because of the belated intervention of Tiwakan and was forced to end the war. Thanks to this, the Grand Duke of Alito was able to defend its territory, and Tiwakan received ownership of the gold mines instead of payment.
Grand Duke Alito was as cowardly as he was greedy. He wanted to keep the power of Tiwakan by his side. The easiest way was marriage. The Grand Duke's family happened to have an unmarried Grand Princess. There was a price to pay for rejecting the Grand Duke's proposal. Black followed Fermos's advice and avoided the proposal by becoming sworn brothers with Grand Prince Dieren instead of marrying. The Grand Princess, Dieren's twin sister, was a very persistent person. He thought it would be best to avoid having anything to do with the Grand Duke's family if possible.
“There is no need to talk to the Grand Prince. He is a man who will dig in at any opportunity, so it is best not to pretend to know.”
"Still..."
That seems a bit too much. There is such a thing as etiquette. Liene, who was about to say something like that, closed her mouth again. No, what am I talking about? I said it's too long. What does that mean? Liene unconsciously grabbed Black's arm, which was holding the reins.
“I wonder if the Grand Princess of Alito still thinks the same way?”
“I heard she got married a year ago.”
Thanks to that, the wedding gift was quite expensive. Fermos muttered so much about how it was a waste to fill the box with gold and jewels that a song was composed.
“Oh, I see.”
That was a bit of a relief. Then Liene guessed she wasn't trying to ruin their marriage by sending her younger brother.
“Are you anxious?”
Black lowered his head and asked slowly in her ear.
“No... I heard the Grand Princess is already married.”
“But you won’t let go of my arm.”
"Ah...?"
Liene blushed in embarrassment as she saw my hand holding Black's arm.
“This is just...”
"Just?"
“It’s like confirmation.”
Even though that was the case, Liene held on to Black. She guessed that Black is the type of person who couldn't forget things from the past. This man didn't care if she had a child. She just can't do that. If this man only remembered the name of another woman, she'd want to ask him what kind of relationship they had.
“Are you going to continue checking?”
"Yes."
Liene nodded resolutely. Black smiled silently and brushed his lips against Liene's crown.
“You can do this for the rest of your life.”
“I will do it even if you don’t say anything.”
The laughter that Liene had never seen before stopped.
“When we get to the castle, I want to kiss you first.”
“...Don’t say anything, just do it.”
Then, Black's body temperature, which was right next to her back, seemed to rise.
“There is no need to talk to the Grand Prince. He is a man who will dig in at any opportunity, so it is best not to pretend to know.”
"Still..."
That seems a bit too much. There is such a thing as etiquette. Liene, who was about to say something like that, closed her mouth again. No, what am I talking about? I said it's too long. What does that mean? Liene unconsciously grabbed Black's arm, which was holding the reins.
“I wonder if the Grand Princess of Alito still thinks the same way?”
“I heard she got married a year ago.”
Thanks to that, the wedding gift was quite expensive. Fermos muttered so much about how it was a waste to fill the box with gold and jewels that a song was composed.
“Oh, I see.”
That was a bit of a relief. Then Liene guessed she wasn't trying to ruin their marriage by sending her younger brother.
“Are you anxious?”
Black lowered his head and asked slowly in her ear.
“No... I heard the Grand Princess is already married.”
“But you won’t let go of my arm.”
"Ah...?"
Liene blushed in embarrassment as she saw my hand holding Black's arm.
“This is just...”
"Just?"
“It’s like confirmation.”
Even though that was the case, Liene held on to Black. She guessed that Black is the type of person who couldn't forget things from the past. This man didn't care if she had a child. She just can't do that. If this man only remembered the name of another woman, she'd want to ask him what kind of relationship they had.
“Are you going to continue checking?”
"Yes."
Liene nodded resolutely. Black smiled silently and brushed his lips against Liene's crown.
“You can do this for the rest of your life.”
“I will do it even if you don’t say anything.”
The laughter that Liene had never seen before stopped.
“When we get to the castle, I want to kiss you first.”
“...Don’t say anything, just do it.”
Then, Black's body temperature, which was right next to her back, seemed to rise.
***
“Crazy. So dirty and affectionate.”
Dieren stuck his head out the window and let out a discontented sound. The attendant, who was used to complaining about everything, just lowered his head in silence.
“Hey, can you believe it? That warmonger is doing that?”
“I can’t believe it, Your Highness.”
“Of course. My sister would go crazy if she saw that.”
Dieren made a crooked sneer. Every year, whenever Black sent gold, his father would groan in regret, but this time, his teeth were about to fall out. The first reason was that he had received something, so he had to return the wedding gift, and the second reason was that the Tiwakan leader had inevitably settled in another kingdom. Alito was the place on the continent most sensitive to rumors about Tiwakan. Soon, the news of Lord Tiwakan’s marriage would spread throughout the continent.
“I wonder if my sister knows.”
He didn't know if his sister, who had married into the Kingdom of Shark, was still obsessively following Black. However, he had a feeling that she was. The first Prince of the Kingdom of Shark, who had become his brother-in-law, was a sickly and absent-minded person. A person like that would not have been suitable for his sister's surname. In fact, there probably weren't many men who could meet his sister's standards. After all, his sister already knew about Black.
“Ah... She doesn’t know yet. If she knew, she would have made a fuss about it already.”
Even if she knew about the marriage, she probably didn't know that he was so smitten with his bride. Dieren placed his clasped hands on his forehead and thought.
“Why on earth did she have to be a poor Princess from this remote village...”
Well, she was a rare beauty. Even though she was wearing old, out-of-style clothes, she had a more impressive appearance than any woman he had ever seen.
“I thought you weren’t the type of person to be dazzled by beauty.”
The servant, on the other side, nodded silently. Dieren glanced at the servant's expression.
“So, does that mean there’s something else?”
“I think so too, Your Highness.”
“Yeah, that’s right...”
Dieren laughed mischievously. The bad habits from his days of debaucherously wandering among the women of the continent were starting to show themselves.
“I guess I should learn what that is, too.”
“..."
The servant kept his mouth shut. However, looking at his eyes that were shaking slightly, it was clear that he was thinking that the Grand Prince's bad habits might put his life in danger.
Dieren laughed mischievously. The bad habits from his days of debaucherously wandering among the women of the continent were starting to show themselves.
“I guess I should learn what that is, too.”
“..."
The servant kept his mouth shut. However, looking at his eyes that were shaking slightly, it was clear that he was thinking that the Grand Prince's bad habits might put his life in danger.
***
“Wow. The character really comes to life.”
“It seems as if the person has changed. I am too embarrassed to look at you, my lord.”
Fermos and Randall volunteered to serve him when he was told to try on the new clothes. The service was an excuse, and in reality they were just trying to play a prank on Black in his new clothes, but the clothes suited him so well that it was no use.
“Instead of saying that, say something useful. How long is the captain? Isn’t it short?”
And Black wasn't one to care much about compliments or the opposite.
“No, it looks just right.”
For someone who had absolutely no interest in his appearance, Black looked into the mirror for quite some time. The way he meticulously scanned his shoulders, back, and other parts of his body was refreshing.
“What heel are you going to wear tomorrow? Are they thicker than these?”
“No, it will be similar. Aren’t they always made by the same shoemaker?”
“Yes then.”
Black lifted his heels and moved his feet in front of the mirror so as not to accidentally step on the hem of his clothes. Fermos fiddled with his monocle for no reason.
“The Princess must see this.”
Randall, who was less perceptive than Fermos, spoke in a comforting tone.
“What are you talking about? You can see it at the wedding.”
“Tsk tsk... Dull guy. That’s only natural.”
“Then what?”
“I’m talking about the scene where my Lord is lifting his ankles in fear that he might step on the precious clothes that the Princess sewed with great care.”
“Ah... Was that it?”
“It’s noisy.”
Black raised an eyebrow as Randall looked up at his crow's feet as if he had been taken aback.
“...I made a slip of the tongue, my lord. I will remain quiet.”
Fermos was also quick to recognize when he should keep his mouth shut.
“Did the gold arrive properly?”
“Of course. In addition to the gold, the greedy Grand Duke has sent a generous wedding gift. It would be more like a bribe than a gift, though.”
“Good. What about the Grand Prince?”
“What do you mean by that?"
“I’m talking about the scene where my Lord is lifting his ankles in fear that he might step on the precious clothes that the Princess sewed with great care.”
“Ah... Was that it?”
“It’s noisy.”
Black raised an eyebrow as Randall looked up at his crow's feet as if he had been taken aback.
“...I made a slip of the tongue, my lord. I will remain quiet.”
Fermos was also quick to recognize when he should keep his mouth shut.
“Did the gold arrive properly?”
“Of course. In addition to the gold, the greedy Grand Duke has sent a generous wedding gift. It would be more like a bribe than a gift, though.”
“Good. What about the Grand Prince?”
“What do you mean by that?"
“He's a lazy person. Even though he came here to give me a wedding gift, I don’t think he’ll believe everything. It doesn’t seem like hr have any other intentions.”
Fermos' head rolled quickly.
“If you had another intention... I guess you are talking about the crazy Grand Princess. Of course, my lord doesn’t even want to mention the Grand Princess’s name.”
“The Kingdom of Sharka is closer than Alito.”
“Yes, that’s why it’s more troublesome if they get involved. I understand what you mean. I’ll keep a close eye on whether there’s any exchange between the Grand Duke and the Kingdom of Sharka.”
Randall intervened.
“Can’t we just kick them out?”
“It’s too late for that.”
Black let out a groan of irritation. The human who brought the wedding gift wanted to attend the wedding ceremony, and if he were to kick him out, it would mean that the next time he saw him, there would be war. There was no reason to kick out Dieren. After all, he was his brother, and he was the Grand Prince of the duchy, and he had crossed the gates as a guest.
“Send food and drinks to the room where the Grand Prince is staying. The drinks should be strong.”
Even though he was annoyed, his hands were careful as he took off his clothes. Randall quickly ran over and took the clothes he had taken off and asked.
“Why are you sending food? What if he thinks they are welcome?”
“If you starve him, he'll make up excuses and show up for dinner.”
"Ah...?"
“Send someone to do something great. If possible, get him drunk until tomorrow.”
Randall's eyes lit up.
“Leave it to me, my lord. I will make sure to send it.”
In fact, he was probably more interested in the free drinks than in stopping Dieren's dinner, but it was good news for Black, who knew Randall's drinking capacity.
Bam. Black even patted Randall on the shoulder.
“I believe you.”
Even things that he would never normally say.
“I will not disappoint you, my lord.”
Randall chuckled. Two hours before Black and Liene were due to have dinner together, Randall came to see Dieren, carrying a keg on his shoulder.
“I believe you.”
Even things that he would never normally say.
“I will not disappoint you, my lord.”
Randall chuckled. Two hours before Black and Liene were due to have dinner together, Randall came to see Dieren, carrying a keg on his shoulder.
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