Chapter 7
I ground my teeth and replied.
“Exactly ten years ago. Isn’t that right, Count Winston?”
“Well, I can tell that the breakup I remember and the breakup the Duchess remembers are two different things.”
“How could we possibly remember it differently?”
“Depending on how you look at it, that’s possible.”
“No!”
How could you possibly see it differently?!
“Oh my!”
Just as I was about to protest, an excited exclamation rang through the corridor.
By now, everyone, including me, was looking at Sasha, whose cheeks had flushed with excitement.
“Could that runaway marriage ten years ago that caused such a commotion in the capital be…!”
“Enough.”
Just as the old-fashioned romance story was about to begin, Damon cut her off, looking thoroughly displeased.
“Why are you bringing up something that happened so long ago, Sasha? What matters isn’t the past, but the present. Whoever Bella used to date, what’s important is that she’s with me now.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. And I’m the most noble man in the Empire, while Bella is the most suitable woman of marriageable age. Before long, we’ll get married and become a perfect couple.”
Sasha tilted her head with an uncertain expression.
She seemed to think that perhaps she couldn’t understand Damon because she’d been away from the capital for so long.
No, Sasha. That’s not it.
It’s not that you don’t understand him. He’s just strange.
Fortunately, Sasha didn’t pursue the matter any further.
“Then will the Duchess be your partner at the banquet next week, Brother? I don’t remember very well, but at large banquets like this, aren’t you supposed to give your partner a corsage?”
Huh?
I turned toward Sasha, then shifted my gaze to Damon, who was shamelessly grinning.
What on earth are you telling your cousin whom you haven’t seen in years?
A corsage was something exchanged between a fresh young couple who had just begun dating.
Neither Damon nor I had ever shown up wearing flowers around our wrists, even at the first banquet we attended together as partners.
Why?
Where did the man who said he had no intention of doing childish things like that go?
He had specifically told me he had no intention of copying things that children did.
And now he wasn’t even embarrassed.
Damon answered shamelessly, without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
“Of course. I’ve had the corsage prepared ever since we started discussing the banquet. Oh, Bella. I’ve also picked out several dresses to give you. Since you’re here anyway, why don’t you take a look?”
He was giving me what?
“…Dresses?”
No way.
Could this possibly be that?
No, surely not.
But still…
At twenty-eight years old, surely he wasn’t childish enough to—
“I’ve always taken care of your dresses, Bella. Why are you acting so surprised now?”
…They say assuming something can’t happen is the best way to make it happen.
He really was showing off.
I had no idea why, but Damon was doing everything in his power to make sure Richard knew that he was my lover.
…Surely he hasn’t forgotten that we’re not actually lovers, has he?
I was beginning to get the feeling that breaking up with Damon wasn’t going to go smoothly.
* * *
“You’re finally out! I was so bored waiting. They wouldn’t even let me into the palace with the identification papers I had.”
The moment the knight leaning against the Imperial Palace wall saw Richard, he immediately straightened up with delight.
Even after spotting Philip, who had stuck close to Richard like a second shadow in the North, Richard’s expression didn’t brighten much.
“Why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to follow Noah?”
“Ah, don’t worry about the young master of the Bellua ducal family. Asta happily went after him.”
At those words, Richard swallowed a sigh.
Had she still not given up on Noah?
Then again, he wasn’t sure who had the right to criticize whom.
Richard forcibly suppressed the urge to turn around and run back to where Isabella was.
It’s not time yet.
Even though he knew that, he couldn’t stand how ridiculous he looked for having rushed here like a madman at a single word from Noah.
Bella hates Damon?
He wouldn’t deny that Noah’s words had gotten his hopes up.
But even so, did Damon really have to make such an obvious display of affection while Richard was standing right in front of him?
How many times had Richard nearly swung his fist at the smug Crown Prince?
What angered him even more was the fact that the two of them looked remarkably well suited together.
Richard let out a deep sigh and began walking.
Philip followed closely behind him, chattering away.
“So, what did the young master of Bellua say to make you rush out like that? Since you went to the Imperial Palace, I assume it was something concerning Her Imperial Highness the Princess… Ah, no. The Duchess of Bellua.”
At that moment, Philip changed the subject as he watched a carriage leaving through the main gate.
Richard was about to smack him when he spotted the carriage and froze.
His gaze followed the carriage blankly as it moved away.
Seeing Richard staring after it, Philip clicked his tongue inwardly.
“Ah, our knight order really is full of hopeless romantics. The commander, Asta… Why are all of you so desperate over one person?”
Richard had at least been in a relationship before, but Philip had no idea what Asta was thinking.
He shook his head.
“Commander, do you really think the carriage is going to stop just because you stare at it? Hmm?”
There was no answer.
Philip would have been willing to bet that Richard hadn’t been affected by his teasing in the slightest.
Why?
Because Richard’s entire attention was obviously fixed on the carriage slowly heading down the central road.
He hadn’t even heard what Philip was saying.
“I really don’t understand either Asta or you, Commander. Why do you all cling so desperately to people who say they don’t want you?”
“If you’re going to keep talking nonsense, leave for the Bellua territory too.”
“Come on. Sending two senior knights for a simple inspection of the territory would be a waste of manpower.”
“And following me around like a puppy isn’t?”
“This is an escort, sir. We never know when or where a monster might appear. Shouldn’t the deputy commander stay by the commander’s side?”
Richard stared incredulously at Philip.
Yet Philip wasn’t intimidated by that fierce gaze.
It was the moment the nerve he’d built up from staring down monsters with grotesque bird heads where their heads should have been finally proved useful.
“Even if we’re in the capital, we don’t know when or where a monster might appear.”
“You just said we’re in the capital.”
“You’re the one who said that until we know what causes monsters to appear, there is no truly safe place on this land.”
Seeing that there was no way Philip was going to listen to reason, Richard gave up on arguing.
He shook his head lightly and continued toward his destination.
Of course, that didn’t mean Philip was going to give up.
“Are you running away, Commander?”
“……”
“You don’t have to. I understand everything. First love is frightening, after all. I still can’t forget the little girl who gave me a warm potato when I was eight.”
The feelings Richard had carried for years had just been compared to a child’s warm potato.
“……”
“Oh. Then are you breaking up with Her Imperial Highness the Princess? The gossip papers make it sound like the two of you are getting married as early as tomorrow.”
There was no need to ask which gossip paper Philip was talking about.
Damn Trouble Love.
It had tormented him ten years ago.
It had tormented him five years ago.
And it still hadn’t gone bankrupt.
Far from going under, it had even built an entire building despite constantly poking its nose into Imperial affairs, and it continued to prosper.
Trouble Love doing well was good for him financially.
But making money and being in a good mood were two completely different things.
“Anyway, you’ll be attending the welcoming banquet, right? I can attend as your escort too, can’t I? I need to rent formalwear, right? Hmm? I’ll rent it, right? If you change your mind later, I’ll send you the bill!”
Philip kept chattering right beside Richard, who didn’t even respond or turn to look at him.
Then, suddenly, Philip fell silent.
Why?
Because they had entered one of the few places capable of intimidating even someone as shameless as him.
Even if he’d been talking about formalwear, this was taking things too far.
Philip asked in a pale voice,
“…Commander, you’re not actually going in there, are you?”
Only then did Richard turn to look at Philip.
His gaze seemed to ask what the problem was.
Philip was rendered speechless.
What could he possibly say?
That behind Richard was an extravagant display of dresses, all of them covered in elaborate lace and shimmering beautifully?
“…It’s nothing.”
And so, with Philip trailing behind him in fearful silence, Richard confidently entered the finest dress shop in the Empire.
At that very moment, the headline for the next day’s edition of Trouble Love was decided.
