Episode 79. Are you thinking of leaving His Majesty?
I wanted to turn the blanket over my head and stop seeing him. But I thought I wouldn’t be able to handle the embarrassment if he pulled it away again, so I just glanced at the corner of the blanket.
Then he clicked his tongue and pulled the blanket over my stomach.
He spoke to me as if he were trying to persuade me.
“We are talking about something important right now. I know you are recovering from a serious injury, but I would like you to focus a little more, Miss Lorisha.”
“...”
“Look at this. It feels so natural when I call you Miss Lorisha.”
He coughed lightly and continued.
“That’s all I’ve thought about so far. If you have anything else that comes to mind, feel free to tell me. Send a maid to the Second Prince’s Palace. Oh no!”
My shoulders flinched as I was startled by his words.
“It’ll take a long time to contact you when you return to the dormitory after the break! But don’t worry. I’ll try to arrange for you to go to school from the palace. It’s a waste of time to commute, but for you, it’s nothing.”
He was talking as if I were the only human left in the world, looking into my eyes.
Why did he look like that?
Why was his voice so low?
I felt like my brain was melting and blood was flowing out of my ears.
“I’ll be very busy once the school starts. So I’ll enjoy my vacation more. Do you know there’s a small lake outside the city? I’ll put you on a horse and go there...”
I gathered all my strength in my stomach and shouted with all my might.
“Eria!”
“Yes, maid! What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
Eria jumped in surprise, and Prince Kydel looked at me in surprise as well.
I grabbed the corner of the blanket I had been aiming for and covered myself with it before lying down. The entire blanket was about to float up.
Then Eria said in a panic.
“I see the maid is not feeling well, Prince Kydel.”
“I see. It’s too bad, but she won’t be up today. Did you say Eria?”
“Yes! Prince Kydel.”
“Please take care of our Miss Lorisha. Don’t worry, I’ll get her medicine from the pharmacy tomorrow.”
“Yes... huh?”
He ignored Eria, who doubted her ears, and left.
Eria called out softly, “It’s the maid,” but I didn’t want to answer. I couldn’t answer.
“Are you crazy? Are you crazy? ‘Our Miss Lorisha’?”
Even as I squirmed violently under the blanket, I could feel Eria looking at me with eyes that were almost crazy with curiosity. Even her reluctant steps as she reluctantly turned away.
***
The mental shock was so great that I fell asleep with the blanket over my head right after Prince Kydel left.
When I woke up and pulled back the blanket, the sun was setting outside the window. I stared blankly at it.
“That window must be open right now...”
'...Just as Prince Kydel told me to open it.’
A sudden thought sent goosebumps down my toes. Memories from earlier came flooding into my head like a flood.
‘Your Excellency, are you by any chance interested in me? That, that, woman...’
‘You didn’t know that yet?’
“Ugh...”
Before I knew it, I let out a deep breath and crouched down.
Prince Kydel had gone mad.
Now that I couldn’t know His Majesty’s intentions, His Highness Orl’s reaction to my survival, or the flow of the next competition, I couldn’t predict. Prince Kydel had gone mad.
No, should I call him Locard?
As if to represent my desolate feelings, I saw a bird flying far outside the window.
You realized how precious I was after seeing me almost die?
What the hell are you talking about? Is this the only time I’ve almost died?
It was strange, and something didn’t seem right.
Earlier, I had been out of my mind because he had rushed at me as soon as I woke up, but after taking a deep breath, my mind felt much clearer.
No matter what, is this how he approaches a woman? Is that how the Kydel family courts eoman?
No. It can’t be.
When he spoke of my death, I couldn’t deny that he was sincere. However, if I took a step back, his actions were completely out of line.
Even if he had various aptitudes for madness, I had never heard of this kind of madness.
‘Seducing me? Why? For what?’
Several thoughts crossed my mind at that time.
“Huh...”
If I had been standing then, I would have fallen over because my vision was dizzy. But fortunately, I was lying down comfortably in bed.
I opened my eyes dizzily and looked up at the ceiling, gritting my teeth.
“Locard. Kydel. Leave me alone.”
At that moment, Eria announced Lord Rond’s visit.
He beamed as he entered the room. It was the most intense expression of emotion I’ve ever seen.
“Maid, I’m glad you’re safe. I was worried.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you.”
But he turned away with a pained expression.
“Sorry, I should have protected you...”
“What are you talking about! You should protect Her Highness. I should do the same. What if you were worried about me back then, and Her Highness was exposed to danger?”
I ended up speaking more excitedly than I intended. However, Lord Rond’s expression relaxed a little.
“Thank you for saying that, maid.”
I couldn’t tell you about this maid, so I asked with a lied.
“The horse suddenly went wild... I don’t remember anything after that. Can you tell me what you know about what happened?”
“I knew the fox was coming towards us, so I led the Princess away. Since the maid was good at horseback riding, I thought you would naturally follow. When I heard your scream, I hid the Princess in a safe place and returned to the maid.”
“And then?”
“Prince Kydel was carrying the unconscious maid on horseback and leaving. Prince Grayon got angry and yelled at him for the sudden departure.”
“...”
“If he hadn’t done that, the maid would have died.”
“You heard that too.”
I lowered my gaze in disappointment.
If what Lord Rond said was true, then Lord Grayon didn’t want Prince Kydel to leave the hunting grounds. It was Prince Kydel’s choice to save me.
But was it really pure goodwill?
I couldn’t believe anything anymore. I was confused.
I asked very carefully.
“What do you think? Prince Kydel’s actions...”
Then Lord Rond closed his mouth for a moment and then said heavily.
“I don’t like him, but I know he’s obsessed with saving people.”
At first glance, it sounded like a compliment or an acknowledgement that sounded like criticism. I wish he had just cursed me instead. I was starting to feel a little annoyed in the midst of my confusion.
So, Locard Kydel is a really nice guy, but somehow he’s trying to deceive me. He’s trying to be the bad guy only for me.
“I don’t want to take his side, but he abandoned his master during the competition and saved you. For a knight, that’s a bigger deal than you think. You should express your gratitude.”
Even Lord Rond, who considered Prince Kydel an enemy, had already fallen for him. Everyone except me was being fooled by that sinister, handsome man!
I sighed so hard that the ground gave out.
“Haa...”
“Miss Loire, are you okay?”
“Yes? Yes. Yes. Yes. As long as I stabilize, I’ll recover soon.”
“You don’t look okay at all.”
Of course, I'm not okay at all.
“I’m having a hard time thinking about the future.”
“That’s understandable. I understand.”
“Are you feeling any pain after the hunt?”
He smiled and nodded. He seemed satisfied that he had regained his health.
I was glad to hear that, but at the same time, I felt depressed thinking that Lord Rond might leave us. He wanted to return to the Knights once he was fully recovered.
I smiled and said,
“I’m so glad.”
“I now have the confidence that I can properly protect Her Highness.”
Oh my.
When I widened my eyes at the unexpected answer, he said awkwardly.
“Seeing the maid get into an accident made me think of many things.”
“Yes. That’s right. I do too.”
“Maid, are you thinking of leaving Her Highness?”
I answered in surprise.
“No! No way. That’s not it...”
“No?”
I don’t have a man I can consult about the kind of problem that’s come up right now. How could I say something like that to the Count? Director Royman probably never held a woman’s wrist in his entire life.
The only one left is Lord Rond, but this huge man in front of me clearly didn’t know his own heart. He cared for Her Highness much more than I thought.
But even though he was a man, I didn’t think he could know the mind of someone as brilliant as Prince Kydel.
I just shook my head.
“It’s because it’s hard to predict the future competition. I’ve been thinking too much.”
“That’s understandable. If there’s anything I can do to help you, just let me know. You can rely on me now that I’ve regained my old skills.”
Sir Rond left after saying that.
I had already been relying on him, but perhaps he didn’t think so.
Come to think of it, he was more talkative than usual today. He even said things that weren’t asked.
It broke my heart to think that his reticence and sense of isolation might have stemmed from his sense of entitlement, but in any case, he was now regaining his confidence.
‘My thoughts have changed many people.’
I thought to myself with a bitter smile.
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