episode_0163

“Long time no see.”

Raoul smiled faintly as he looked at the child of a friend he hadn’t seen in a long time.

“I hope you haven’t had any troubles so far?”

“… Yes, sir.”

“I heard there was a commotion in the capital, but I never thought they would send you here. But don’t worry. You won’t find anyone dangerous in this town even if you look hard.”

“It seems to be right next to me.”

“… Have you met my daughter?”

“Even weapons were aimed at me.”

“…… Haha.”

Raoul had learned to diffuse the situation with an awkward, embarrassed laugh.

“Have you eaten? You shouldn’t skip meals to survive…”

“First of all, I think you need to avoid getting hit by arrows in order to survive.”

“… It’s okay. You can survive even if you get hit by an arrow.”

“You’re not sure. And if it’s an arrow that can blow up a demon in one shot, I’m sure I’ll die instantly. ”

Raoul could not bear to protect his daughter. How could he protect someone who had aimed an arrow at the crown prince of a country? To be honest, it was a situation where he would have nothing to say even if his head was cut off.

“He’s still a lonely child… but he can’t get along with his peers in the village.”

“Isn’t it greedy to aim an arrow at someone out of the blue and expect other kids to join in?”

“…….”

Raoul could sense that the Crown Prince’s stay would not be very peaceful.

Nevertheless, Raoul wanted his daughter to become close to the Crown Prince, and he forced the Crown Prince into his daughter’s room even though he was kicking and screaming against it.

Contrary to my belief that it would be filled with the heads of hunted demons, it was surprisingly filled with things like teddy bears and pretty dresses. When I glanced at it, I saw that there was even a jewelry box filled with jewel rings and necklaces.

If there’s one thing that feels off, it’s that you can see weapons like daggers and bows between the dolls and their dresses.

“The room is surprisingly normal. Except for the weapons.”

“It’s difficult.”

“What?”

“Those people don’t know me.”

Ratri had a hobby of making dolls, so she often made dolls for her granddaughter. Lizel, who held the financial power, had a hobby of ordering dresses for her niece. Rosie also had a small pleasure in finding jewelry that would suit Sharia.

However, Sharia was not interested in such things, so he said it was difficult to deal with, and that it was not his taste, he said it quite succinctly.

“Sigh…”

The crown prince, who was tired of even asking, quietly looked around the room.

“Unlike the quality of the jewelry or the perfection of the dress, the perfection of the doll is average… no, worse than that. If it’s at the level of someone who made it as a hobby, it’s pretty good. Even just looking at the sewing skills, you can tell. Still, the skills for cutting the fabric that you can see at first glance are great. Although she’s good at cutting, her sewing skills are average… If there’s anyone who makes dolls as a hobby, it would be Latri Bergé. ”

“Do you know?”

“Among the nobles who have enough free time to make dolls, he is the only one who has a connection to you.”

The crown prince, who was looking at the dress with a cold gaze, different from when he used to scream loudly, spoke with his voice rather than his gaze.

“I think I know who sent this dress. The decoration techniques and finishing methods used in this dress are similar to the dress your aunt Lizel wears. Considering her personality, she’s not the type of person to be meticulous enough to look for a separate boutique to make your dress.”

“……”

“Also, considering Lizel’s personality, he would have touched you under the pretense of measuring your size.”

The crown prince, who had superior analytical skills than his mother, was able to figure out who had sent the gift just by looking at it.

“And if you exclude those two, the only person left is the person who sent the jewel. Most likely, it’s Roji-nim. It’s possible that those two sent the jewel as well… but unfortunately, Latri-nim is not very knowledgeable about jewels. Considering Lizel-nim’s droll personality, it would be difficult to recognize such a jewel with such excellent quality and craftsmanship. It’s just a matter of elimination. ”

“…”

“Is there anything wrong with my guess?”

“… Pervert.”

“I feel bad because I feel like I’ve been stripped naked by looking into someone else’s room and finding out so much. It feels like I’ve been stripped naked, but when I make eye contact, I feel embarrassed. I feel like a pervert because I keep looking without looking away… Is that what you mean? ”

The crown prince, who had now come to understand the true meaning of those words to some extent, let out a sigh.

Clearly, Raoul was the one who reached out to her when she was playing alone in the palace gardens as a child. But his daughter was so clueless as to how she ended up like this.

I only heard rumors about the twin brother that he was very smart. I had never heard anything about the daughter, so I thought she was just an ordinary young lady and wasn’t interested. But looking at her, it would have been several times better if she was an ordinary young lady.

“… You live on beauty.”

The crown prince, who had only heard his parents, who were busy with state affairs, tell him to buy whatever he wanted, was envious of her receiving gifts even if they did not suit his taste.

Even most of the Crown Prince’s relatives were either exiled or buried, and their grandparents were either dead or unrelated.

I couldn’t avoid the disapproving looks when I complained in front of that person that my tastes didn’t match.

“When His Majesty and the Empress came to visit before, they played with me too.”

“… You played with me?”

At that time, I had simply come to inspect the border region and played with my close friend’s daughter… but in the eyes of the crown prince, it was something that was extremely annoying.

The emperors and empresses he remembers are those who took care of state affairs even on their birthdays.

Not only do I hardly remember playing with him, but we were also the type of people who never joked or played pranks on him.

The two of them wanted to prevent the unfortunate event of their son growing up to be a spoiled brat and ending up like the former emperor… but it was to the extent that even their close friend Raoul was displeased.

Why else would Raoul, who was covering his face, approach the child, extend his hand, and play with him?

“Every day, I have annoying homework… Even if I finish it early, the only person who will play with me is my godfather.”

“… I don’t like it.”

Whenever Raoul asked Sharia to play with him, she would scream and run away. Of course, Raoul would sit down in shock every time that happened.

Of course, Latrina, Lizel, and Rosie also received the same reaction and sat down next to him, deeply hurt.

The only person Sharia liked to play with was her mother, Camilla. Of course, it was more like a game called sparring.

“I’m saying that what you enjoy isn’t something you take for granted. Like the affection of the people around you.”

“……”

Sharia didn’t know what he meant, but she patted his head as she always did when the boys were depressed.

Most boys would cheer up when Sharia stroked them, even when they were crying. Of course, this was also very effective for Raoul, who was depressed after a fight with his wife.

“I didn’t mean to annoy you.”

“…… Next time His Majesty visits, I’ll get rid of it.”

“… Are you saying that next time Abamama comes over, you’ll ask her to take away my homework instead of playing with me? ”

“Is there any other way to interpret what I just said?”

“I feel like I’m crazy and proud of myself for being able to interpret that in this way… Don’t open your mouth. I feel like I’m going to get my head blown off for treason.”

Crown Prince Leonhard snorted and turned his head away as he saw Sharia tilting her head.

It was absurd, but even though he was saying such nonsense, his face was incredibly cute.

Long, glossy black hair, jewel-like blue eyes, and a pretty, cute face that had all the good qualities of Raoul and Camilla. It was clear that she would one day become a beauty that surpassed Camilla.

“You’re not going to grow up with me, are you? Where should I sleep?”

“You can sleep in Oppa’s room.”

“Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve heard anything about Confucius lately. Unlike me, he was a genius from birth. It must be really uncomfortable to live with someone like that.”

“… My brother is no longer here. He went far away.”

Upon hearing that, the crown prince broke out in a cold sweat and grabbed Sharia’s hand.

“Mi, sorry. I didn’t even know there was such a situation. And you’re talking without even knowing the truth about Confucius’s death… Damn, this is no different from being a tyrant who can’t get his way…”

“My brother is taking successor training at his grandfather’s house.”

The crown prince immediately shook Sharia’s hand away in anger.

“Who said something like that! Don’t say things that could cause misunderstandings! It’s embarrassing only for the person who worried for nothing!”

“… I never said my brother died. Why are you getting angry when you thought of something like that?”

“Oh, it was my fault. Haha… This is my fault?”

“Yeah.”

The crown prince began to beat his chest.

I was beginning to miss Raul, who was so conversant, but I still had time before dinner, so I had to kill time by asking him useless questions.

“So what kind of person is Confucius? I don’t know much about him other than the fact that he was very capable…”

“Trash. A piece of shit. A crazy guy. A devil. A coward. A fraud. A human being who deserves to die.”

“…… I’m starting to hate this marriage more and more.”