Ch.274To the Edge of the Cliff (14)

“I let you live with me.”

“Yes, but that’s separate from the promise to let you live with me forever.”

“…Are you talking about marriage?”

“Yes.”

She interpreted living together forever as a promise of marriage? That’s truly absurd.

But… I suppose what matters is that Chloe believed it.

If she hadn’t thought that way, this situation wouldn’t have happened.

“They say marriage is a ceremony for spending a lifetime together, don’t they? Back then, I wanted to save you from the clutches of a political marriage… I was blinded. Looking back now, I was so foolish.”

“…What does me becoming a duke have to do with marrying Ines?”

“Well, you married Ines on the previous duke’s orders, didn’t you? I figured if you became the duke, you wouldn’t need to follow orders and could freely choose your marriage partner.”

“But I didn’t do that, did I?”

“No, I suppose my younger self had flowers for brains.”

Her answer is brutally honest… but that’s precisely why I can receive Chloe’s thoughts without distortion.

To be honest, I thought Chloe had done this because she hated my father and siblings enough to want them dead… While major incidents often occur for trivial reasons, this one seems particularly trivial.

“And… Chloe, even if I hadn’t married Ines, there’s no way I would have chosen you—”

“Yes, you would have.”

“—?!”

I was exhaling in disbelief at how trivial it all was when suddenly those yellow eyes that had been distant just moments ago were floating right in front of me in the blink of an eye.

The golden glow pierces straight through my eyes, and perhaps because of that, I can’t finish what I was saying.

But that’s not the only surprising thing.

Chloe has always spoken to me kindly, but this time it’s not so much kind as… yes, it’s similar to how a trainer sternly addresses a dog. Like pulling the leash and firmly scolding “Wait!” to a dog about to misbehave.

“You married me, didn’t you? We became husband and wife. So what do you mean you wouldn’t have chosen me?”

“…I hate to say this so suddenly, but while I may have resolved to marry you, I never chose you.”

My marriage to Chloe was just a radical… appeal, should I say? Anyway, I was forced to marry her because of what she did.

Of course, now she’s my precious wife beyond measure, but back then, I saw her more as a little sister I needed to protect rather than a woman. Marriage to Chloe wasn’t even a dream option.

“No, if Ines hadn’t existed, you would definitely have chosen me as your marriage partner. Even without resorting to forced measures.”

“…How can you be so certain?”

“Well, given our relationship, how could it not happen? Even if there were some difficulties… somehow, it would have worked out.”

Her way of thinking goes beyond optimistic to the point of being unhinged, but Chloe seems to have no doubt about her judgment. She answers as naturally and matter-of-factly as if saying 1+1=2.

“Chloe, of course now we’re husband and wife. But… back then, we were just brother and sister, weren’t we? What brother in the world would choose his sister as a marriage partner?”

“Would you mind adding ‘not blood-related’ before the word ‘sister’?”

“…”

Why is she fixating on such a strange point?

Not being blood-related… of course that wouldn’t prevent marriage, but still, back then I genuinely considered Chloe a precious person I needed to protect.

…Come to think of it now, if my past self saw my current self, he’d probably slap me across the face.

“I just couldn’t understand it. With someone as beautiful and kind as me by your side, you chose Ines, who could commit all sorts of eccentric acts at any moment. Even though I was adopted and not blood-related, I remember being slightly annoyed that you never saw me as a romantic prospect.”

—Well, thanks to being forcibly connected to you, those feelings disappeared almost instantly.

As soon as those words end, the yellow eyes that had been slowly approaching stop in mid-air, and simultaneously, Chloe’s nose touches mine.

Chloe’s body, which had been hiding in the shadows until just now, is now fully revealed in the starlight, flaunting its figure.

…This dress looks familiar.

“I knew it, you remember! Hehe, it’s the dress I wore on the day of your coronation. I was a bit afraid it wouldn’t fit since it’s such an old item, but fortunately, it fits me perfectly. I’m glad I’ve been taking care of my appearance all this time.”

Noticing that I recognized the dress, Chloe happily chatters about this and that.

But Chloe isn’t acting purely out of joy.

There’s a clear intention to divert my attention amid her numerous explanations.

“…Chloe.”

It’s certainly beautiful. Though it lacks freshness as the precursor to the see-through dresses currently in fashion in Lotaring, that familiarity actually exudes a profound beauty.

But… that’s all. No matter how beautiful it is, to my eyes now, it’s just fabric draped over a body.

To wear such a dress when she must have known how I would feel.

To distract my gaze so I would focus only on beauty and not think of other things.

Chloe, were you that afraid of earning my hatred?

…Haha.

“Well, it worked out for the better. My wish was to have a house just for the two of us without any other nuisances, and now that it’s come true, even like this, for the time being—”

“Get away.”

“—uh… huh…?”

I push away Chloe, who had been clinging to me and rambling.

The warmth that had enveloped my entire body disappears in an instant, and the eyes that had been meeting mine return to where they came from, far away.

At the same time, Chloe’s foolish voice pierces my ears… but strangely, I feel nothing.

“B-brother…”

Chloe’s yellow eyes and voice tremble mercilessly.

Her focus loses its center and staggers here and there, and Chloe herself can’t properly maintain her balance.

“Chloe, for something like that… you killed Father?”

“Something like that… to give you the title…”

“Stop… please stop, I’m begging you.”

And with my final words, her trembling voice completely ceases.

Only the yellow eyes continue to stir the empty air.

“Ah, uh…”

Chloe seems to have received a great shock.

Caught between my order not to speak and her desperate desire to explain herself, Chloe’s mouth can do neither, producing only sounds like a baby’s babbling.

“Chloe, you should have only apologized to me here.”

Rather than feeling sorry for making me lose my family, Chloe feels more proud about helping me obtain an honorable title in the matter of wiping out the entire Burgon ducal family except for me.

Of course, that’s possible. It’s the medieval era, where titles are more precious than anything.

But there’s a huge difference between feeling that way and proudly boasting about it.

“Don’t you feel sorry toward me at all?”

Of course, Chloe probably didn’t act with malice.

Trying to persuade me that she committed such acts to help me rather than just apologizing is certainly one way of apologizing.

However, there are times when an unconditional apology is better.

“O-of course I do. I do…”

“Then why did you offer strange excuses?”

“That’s… just…”

“…No, forget it. There’s nothing cheaper than an apology demanded.”

My heart aches terribly.

I don’t want to say such harsh things to Chloe. I just want to embrace each other, connect, and quietly bury this as if it never happened.

But… I can’t do that.

The matter is what it is, and we’ve already come too far.

Click—

“…”

As I turn on the lights in the room, Chloe’s appearance, which had been obscured by darkness until now, is fully revealed.

Beautiful Chloe is wearing a beautiful dress, but strangely, I feel no appreciation for its beauty. Chloe, who had surely been standing proudly just moments ago, is now just a pitiful woman with no strength in her legs.

“Chloe, go back to the palace. Until I gather my thoughts… please stay there quietly.”

“…Ugh.”

Unable to make excuses or apologize, Chloe just freezes with an expression as if she can’t breathe.

Hesitating whether to reach out her hand or not, Chloe, who can neither move forward nor retreat, finally presses her lips together and stands up.

“…Yes, brother.”

Chloe’s eyes redden and quiver, and transparent liquid seeps out, but thanks to the forced smile Chloe puts on, it doesn’t roll down her cheeks.

It just sparkles in round droplets like dew on morning sprouts, staying in place.