That was right. That was clearly Anastasia's nickname.
The Emperor never called me by my nickname, and since the Emperor did not call me by my nickname, others did not dare to use it.
I looked into his eyes. It was a moment, not even a whole day, but only half a day, a few hours.
Whether he called me Ridrian or Asha, it wouldn't have been recorded anyway.
“Yes. If that’s what you want, well...”
I answered hesitantly.
“But where are we going now?”
I took a step in the direction he pointed and asked.
This was a bit far from the night market of the town festival. Maybe you were going towards the pubs lining the beach and the harbor?
When I almost tripped over a rock I hadn't noticed, Dmitry quickly grabbed me by the waist and stopped me.
“Towards the beach.”
“There, why?”
“Asha, I want to show you the most beautiful scenery in the world.”
After a long walk, we finally reached a short cliff. As we carefully crossed between the carelessly abandoned wreckage of ships, we could see the sea.
According to Dmitry, this is the best place to watch fireworks. He said that only a few people know about it. True to his word, there were only two of us near this cliff.
The road was so remote and rough that I wanted to give up several times along the way... But now that I look at this place, I think it was a good decision to come.
The wide open horizon, the salty breeze, the flock of seagulls, and the silvery waves... I felt like I was standing alone at the end of the world.
I didn't want to show any sign of admiration for fear of making him feel superior, but it was truly a magnificent sight.
“You’re still here. I thought you must have taken quite some time to get here.”
There was sincerity in the words that were said as a joke. I could see on Dmitry’s face the traces of running in a hurry and catching his breath.
I raised my knees and rested my chin on them, watching Dmitry’s eyes gradually settle. His silver hair and graceful nose were soaking wet as if they were being bathed in the sunset.
It is human nature to feel that something beautiful is beautiful, but that was not the case between him and me.
To me, he was, well... more like a nice still life than a man.
I answered with a calm expression.
“It would have been the same if the scenery had been just a little less pretty.”
“...”
“You told me to wait a moment.”
Dmitry smiled apologetically at the words that were passed as a reproach. I held up the wooden cups in both hands and said.
“There are more people on the street than I thought.”
Not long after we reached the cliff, Dmitry disappeared, telling me to wait a moment. He said he would bring me something to drink.
The wait wasn't 'a little', but seeing him proudly lift the wooden cup made me smile.
He took a seat next to me.
“Look. What did you buy?”
I asked, tilting my head toward the wooden cup in his hand.
Suddenly, a strong smell hit my nose. It was alcohol, and it was the smell of cheap alcohol that only commoners on the streets drank.
“Yours is this way.”
He held out a wooden cup on the other side. It was filled with some kind of reddish liquid.
It smelled sweet and quite good, but it was a type I had never had before.
"What is it?"
“It’s a fruit that has been crushed and squeezed to make it easier to drink. It’s an unfamiliar name, isn’t it? It’s a fruit that is only consumed in this region and is not well known in the capital.”
I carefully tilted the glass, moistening only my lips, and then my eyes widened. The smell was good, but the taste couldn't have been better. The refreshing first taste and the strong sweetness were just the right ratio.
I emptied the glass in no time. The fact that I was extremely thirsty after walking for a long time also contributed to my generous evaluation.
I said, smacking my lips.
“This would sell well even to the nobility of the capital. It’s not a taste that only the locals would like.”
“Despite its good taste, it is difficult to endure long shipping due to its peeling skin, and it spoils easily, so it is difficult to take it to the capital. Unripe flam is very sour, but in the summer, all the sourness disappears, and it becomes sweeter and more juicy. At that time, there are even people who travel to the south just to eat flam.”
It really was worth it. For a moment, I couldn't even take in the beautiful scenery right before my eyes.
Dmitry continued.
“Even these days, they sell slightly underripe flam in the market. Maybe it’s because of the warm sea breeze, but flam from other regions is still good to eat at this time of year.”
“I want to try eating it as a fruit too.”
“I knew you would do this, so I bought it in advance.”
He took two small, juicy fruits wrapped in a handkerchief from his pocket. They felt smooth and squishy against my skin.
As I brought it close to my nose, a sweet scent rose up, and I could guess just from that how sweet it was.
“Try it with the skin on.”
“Right now?”
I hesitated and asked again. I had never tasted it, but I could tell that it was a fruit that was dripping with juice. Dmitry recommended it again with his eyes.
I carefully bit into the end. The sour taste was incomparable to the drink I had just had, and I furrowed my brows.
“...Oh, very, very new.”
“That’s because you only ate the peel. The sweet part is the flesh. You need to cut it into bigger pieces and chew it.”
As I opened my eyes slightly as if in doubt, he took the flam from my hand.
He removed the peel and seeds from the flam as if he was familiar with it, and cut it in half.
“It tastes better when you eat it with the skin on, but... please believe me just this once, even if you’re being fooled.”
If you say it like that, I would be even more embarrassed to refuse.
As I reached out to grab it, he slightly moved the flame back.
“If you hold it, your hands will get very sticky.”
“...”
"Hurry."
I looked back and forth between Flam and Dmitry, who were thrust right up to my lips, with slightly bewildered eyes.
It was a bit funny. Olga didn't give me food like this after I was seven.
I hesitated, then carefully opened my mouth and took a bite. Soft, juicy flesh filled my mouth.
The first taste was very sweet, but the more I chewed it, the more the taste became mild and the stronger the aroma became.
“How does it taste?”
“Oh, that’s it.”
“Is that all there is to it?”
“...Do you really have to feed it like this?”
“Isn’t it better than both of our hands getting dirty?”
“...”
“Asha, you like things to be efficient.”
He said jokingly, pushing the other half toward my lips. I opened my mouth as if giving up. It was the second time, so I felt less repulsion than the first time.
Perhaps because I had been a bit more proactive after getting a taste, my tongue ended up lightly touching the tip of his finger. Our eyes met immediately.
“...”
I said, avoiding his gaze in embarrassment.
“Oh, it tastes good.”
“...”
“I should buy some later. I think the kids will like them.”
“mm.”
“Maybe Li, Lisa will like it too..."
It was strange that he was so quiet even though I was talking to myself like this. When I slowly turned my head, he was looking at me without answering.
He slowly brought his lips to the spot where my tongue had touched. The implications were so blatant that my face turned red.
“No, people can make mistakes!”
“Who said what?”
“If you know, then how about that rude hand...”
He replied with a snicker.
“What would you like me to do?”
“First, try separating your hands and lips.”
"Why?"
“Those two are inappropriate right now...”
“It’s my hand and my lips. Isn’t that the same as putting your hand to your mouth when you yawn?”
If you say that, I have nothing to say. Honestly, I know what your intention was, and you know it too!
He was truly a writer of such ingenuity that it was almost sad. I was so shocked that I snapped back.
“Yes, stop talking and do whatever you want.”
“Then what if I really do whatever I want?”
The voice that suddenly became serious was as refreshing as the night breeze.
I looked at his face in surprise. When our eyes met, he closed his eyes and smiled as if hiding his eagerness.
...But I saw. Those eyes had completely turned around.
The moon was dark. The twilight of the sunset had already completely passed, and the morning star was about to set. Since ancient times, it was a time when moonlight stimulated people's reason.
I crossed my arms in front of me as if defending myself, but Dmitry was a little quicker, grabbing my wrist and pulling me closer.
He leaned in slightly, touching my back. Too close, everything about him. I pushed his shoulder gently with my hand.
“...Dmitry.”
I called him to come to his senses, but his eyes still looked dangerous. He frowned slightly.
“I don’t really like that name.”
“What’s important now is not that...”
“Lionel.”
“...”
“Please call me that.”
“...Dmitry.”
I stubbornly called his name again, because I had no intention of listening to his whining.
“Don’t do this.”
“I know what to do now...”
“Whatever it was, it was inappropriate behavior.”
It didn't seem like something that could be easily calmed down with just those words.
I let out a heavy breath. It's pointless to argue about right and wrong now, but if I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have come this far.
What kind of bloodline can turn around so easily?
“But, Asha...”
His eyelashes fluttered. As if he had decided to put aside his status and just be a man and a woman today.
I stared blankly into his eyes. Objectively speaking, it was a situation that could have shaken my heart.
But in this short game, the name he chose for me was the ultimate 'Asha'. It was a name that was full of his fascination with the status of a Princess, not a person.
“I know and you know that I am not just 'Asha'.”
“...”
“You, you can live your life with dignity now. Without treating me like this.”
The Emperor never called me by my nickname, and since the Emperor did not call me by my nickname, others did not dare to use it.
I looked into his eyes. It was a moment, not even a whole day, but only half a day, a few hours.
Whether he called me Ridrian or Asha, it wouldn't have been recorded anyway.
“Yes. If that’s what you want, well...”
I answered hesitantly.
“But where are we going now?”
I took a step in the direction he pointed and asked.
This was a bit far from the night market of the town festival. Maybe you were going towards the pubs lining the beach and the harbor?
When I almost tripped over a rock I hadn't noticed, Dmitry quickly grabbed me by the waist and stopped me.
“Towards the beach.”
“There, why?”
“Asha, I want to show you the most beautiful scenery in the world.”
***
After a long walk, we finally reached a short cliff. As we carefully crossed between the carelessly abandoned wreckage of ships, we could see the sea.
According to Dmitry, this is the best place to watch fireworks. He said that only a few people know about it. True to his word, there were only two of us near this cliff.
The road was so remote and rough that I wanted to give up several times along the way... But now that I look at this place, I think it was a good decision to come.
The wide open horizon, the salty breeze, the flock of seagulls, and the silvery waves... I felt like I was standing alone at the end of the world.
I didn't want to show any sign of admiration for fear of making him feel superior, but it was truly a magnificent sight.
“You’re still here. I thought you must have taken quite some time to get here.”
There was sincerity in the words that were said as a joke. I could see on Dmitry’s face the traces of running in a hurry and catching his breath.
I raised my knees and rested my chin on them, watching Dmitry’s eyes gradually settle. His silver hair and graceful nose were soaking wet as if they were being bathed in the sunset.
It is human nature to feel that something beautiful is beautiful, but that was not the case between him and me.
To me, he was, well... more like a nice still life than a man.
I answered with a calm expression.
“It would have been the same if the scenery had been just a little less pretty.”
“...”
“You told me to wait a moment.”
Dmitry smiled apologetically at the words that were passed as a reproach. I held up the wooden cups in both hands and said.
“There are more people on the street than I thought.”
Not long after we reached the cliff, Dmitry disappeared, telling me to wait a moment. He said he would bring me something to drink.
The wait wasn't 'a little', but seeing him proudly lift the wooden cup made me smile.
He took a seat next to me.
“Look. What did you buy?”
I asked, tilting my head toward the wooden cup in his hand.
Suddenly, a strong smell hit my nose. It was alcohol, and it was the smell of cheap alcohol that only commoners on the streets drank.
“Yours is this way.”
He held out a wooden cup on the other side. It was filled with some kind of reddish liquid.
It smelled sweet and quite good, but it was a type I had never had before.
"What is it?"
“It’s a fruit that has been crushed and squeezed to make it easier to drink. It’s an unfamiliar name, isn’t it? It’s a fruit that is only consumed in this region and is not well known in the capital.”
I carefully tilted the glass, moistening only my lips, and then my eyes widened. The smell was good, but the taste couldn't have been better. The refreshing first taste and the strong sweetness were just the right ratio.
I emptied the glass in no time. The fact that I was extremely thirsty after walking for a long time also contributed to my generous evaluation.
I said, smacking my lips.
“This would sell well even to the nobility of the capital. It’s not a taste that only the locals would like.”
“Despite its good taste, it is difficult to endure long shipping due to its peeling skin, and it spoils easily, so it is difficult to take it to the capital. Unripe flam is very sour, but in the summer, all the sourness disappears, and it becomes sweeter and more juicy. At that time, there are even people who travel to the south just to eat flam.”
It really was worth it. For a moment, I couldn't even take in the beautiful scenery right before my eyes.
Dmitry continued.
“Even these days, they sell slightly underripe flam in the market. Maybe it’s because of the warm sea breeze, but flam from other regions is still good to eat at this time of year.”
“I want to try eating it as a fruit too.”
“I knew you would do this, so I bought it in advance.”
He took two small, juicy fruits wrapped in a handkerchief from his pocket. They felt smooth and squishy against my skin.
As I brought it close to my nose, a sweet scent rose up, and I could guess just from that how sweet it was.
“Try it with the skin on.”
“Right now?”
I hesitated and asked again. I had never tasted it, but I could tell that it was a fruit that was dripping with juice. Dmitry recommended it again with his eyes.
I carefully bit into the end. The sour taste was incomparable to the drink I had just had, and I furrowed my brows.
“...Oh, very, very new.”
“That’s because you only ate the peel. The sweet part is the flesh. You need to cut it into bigger pieces and chew it.”
As I opened my eyes slightly as if in doubt, he took the flam from my hand.
He removed the peel and seeds from the flam as if he was familiar with it, and cut it in half.
“It tastes better when you eat it with the skin on, but... please believe me just this once, even if you’re being fooled.”
If you say it like that, I would be even more embarrassed to refuse.
As I reached out to grab it, he slightly moved the flame back.
“If you hold it, your hands will get very sticky.”
“...”
"Hurry."
I looked back and forth between Flam and Dmitry, who were thrust right up to my lips, with slightly bewildered eyes.
It was a bit funny. Olga didn't give me food like this after I was seven.
I hesitated, then carefully opened my mouth and took a bite. Soft, juicy flesh filled my mouth.
The first taste was very sweet, but the more I chewed it, the more the taste became mild and the stronger the aroma became.
“How does it taste?”
“Oh, that’s it.”
“Is that all there is to it?”
“...Do you really have to feed it like this?”
“Isn’t it better than both of our hands getting dirty?”
“...”
“Asha, you like things to be efficient.”
He said jokingly, pushing the other half toward my lips. I opened my mouth as if giving up. It was the second time, so I felt less repulsion than the first time.
Perhaps because I had been a bit more proactive after getting a taste, my tongue ended up lightly touching the tip of his finger. Our eyes met immediately.
“...”
I said, avoiding his gaze in embarrassment.
“Oh, it tastes good.”
“...”
“I should buy some later. I think the kids will like them.”
“mm.”
“Maybe Li, Lisa will like it too..."
It was strange that he was so quiet even though I was talking to myself like this. When I slowly turned my head, he was looking at me without answering.
He slowly brought his lips to the spot where my tongue had touched. The implications were so blatant that my face turned red.
“No, people can make mistakes!”
“Who said what?”
“If you know, then how about that rude hand...”
He replied with a snicker.
“What would you like me to do?”
“First, try separating your hands and lips.”
"Why?"
“Those two are inappropriate right now...”
“It’s my hand and my lips. Isn’t that the same as putting your hand to your mouth when you yawn?”
If you say that, I have nothing to say. Honestly, I know what your intention was, and you know it too!
He was truly a writer of such ingenuity that it was almost sad. I was so shocked that I snapped back.
“Yes, stop talking and do whatever you want.”
“Then what if I really do whatever I want?”
The voice that suddenly became serious was as refreshing as the night breeze.
I looked at his face in surprise. When our eyes met, he closed his eyes and smiled as if hiding his eagerness.
...But I saw. Those eyes had completely turned around.
The moon was dark. The twilight of the sunset had already completely passed, and the morning star was about to set. Since ancient times, it was a time when moonlight stimulated people's reason.
I crossed my arms in front of me as if defending myself, but Dmitry was a little quicker, grabbing my wrist and pulling me closer.
He leaned in slightly, touching my back. Too close, everything about him. I pushed his shoulder gently with my hand.
“...Dmitry.”
I called him to come to his senses, but his eyes still looked dangerous. He frowned slightly.
“I don’t really like that name.”
“What’s important now is not that...”
“Lionel.”
“...”
“Please call me that.”
“...Dmitry.”
I stubbornly called his name again, because I had no intention of listening to his whining.
“Don’t do this.”
“I know what to do now...”
“Whatever it was, it was inappropriate behavior.”
It didn't seem like something that could be easily calmed down with just those words.
I let out a heavy breath. It's pointless to argue about right and wrong now, but if I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have come this far.
What kind of bloodline can turn around so easily?
“But, Asha...”
His eyelashes fluttered. As if he had decided to put aside his status and just be a man and a woman today.
I stared blankly into his eyes. Objectively speaking, it was a situation that could have shaken my heart.
But in this short game, the name he chose for me was the ultimate 'Asha'. It was a name that was full of his fascination with the status of a Princess, not a person.
“I know and you know that I am not just 'Asha'.”
“...”
“You, you can live your life with dignity now. Without treating me like this.”
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment