“Everyone? We have arrived in Borusia?”
“……”
Anyway, we arrived at the archipelago.
Though it’s been years since I came here, this city is impressive no matter how many times I see it.
The awkward atmosphere with Kyle had been tense since the day after, but anyway, we made it.
“Um… Duke’s Son? Is it okay for us to handle the baggage? I assure you, nothing will be tampered with, but this is still the Imperial Court.”
“Of course. As you wish, Your Highness.”
“Got it.”
The princess smiled at Kyle.
That smile, amplified by the warm ambiance of the archipelago, made her seem even brighter.
“…”
But does she really have to smile at Kyle like that…?
No, it’s not that I’m thinking strange thoughts, but isn’t she smiling a bit too brightly?
If someone else saw this, they might think it’s not me but the princess and Kyle who are involved.
Ah, I guess the princess would fit him better even without smiling…
“Come on, let’s get off quickly? This dreadful carriage is saying goodbye for a while now.”
The carriage door opened, and the princess, Kyle, and I descended one after the other.
As expected, waiting for us at the bottom were dozens of servants and maids.
Yeah, that makes sense.
After all, it’s the princess returning after almost a month.
“…”
“Sophia?”
“Ah!?”
While I was looking around, Kyle suddenly whispered in my ear.
Thanks to that, I was utterly shocked.
“Why…?”
“Are you okay?”
“Um… no.”
To be honest, I wasn’t okay at all.
This entire situation just didn’t suit me, regardless of Kyle.
“It’s a bit overwhelming…”
Yeah, it’s super overwhelming.
I managed to get by in Eristirol for years, but… this isn’t it.
This is the heart of the Dextrin Empire and the center of the world.
A place that seems straight out of a romance fantasy novel, a fantastically powerful country’s center.
To think a mere commoner was invited as a guest to such a place…
“Let’s hurry in…”
Everything about this situation was just too much pressure.
Of course, they weren’t here to welcome me, but with dozens of people bowing their heads, it was incredibly daunting.
“I understand.”
Kyle subtly took my hand again.
But I didn’t shake it off.
In a tense situation like this, it was the only thing calming me down.
“…”
And so we stepped inside the Imperial Palace.
Super, super overwhelming.
Thanks to that, my stomach started feeling queasy, like morning sickness.
Of course, I had never been pregnant, but still.
This time, we were guests, so we followed the princess around the palace.
I felt bad for the princess who was guiding us, but… the intense stares surrounding us were exhausting.
I didn’t like how some people were whispering while looking our way.
Even if they weren’t looking at me, I still didn’t like it if it was directed at Kyle.
“Sophia? What do you want to do?”
“Uh?”
Coming back to reality, the princess was asking me something.
Suddenly, we were standing in a hallway.
“Would you like to share a room with the Duke’s Son? Or would you prefer separate rooms?”
“Ah.”
That’s what she meant.
Then beyond that door next to us would be a bedroom.
“I’ll share a room.”
“… Really?”
“Yes.”
I was already familiar with that arrangement.
There had been some awkward moments, but it wasn’t a problem.
As long as Kyle was okay with it.
“Then the Duke’s Son and Sophia will use this room.”
“Yes.”
It was a bit confusing, but thankfully, we could finally rest.
Entering the room was incredibly quiet.
There was a gramophone, but it wasn’t turned on.
“Ha…”
I lay down on the bed without even changing my clothes.
I wasn’t sure if there were plans ahead, but I felt so exhausted.
“Ha…”
For some reason, being under so many gazes made my head ache a little.
“Sophia, are you okay?”
“Ah…”
As I lay there, Kyle started worrying about me.
I did collapse onto the bed the moment the door closed, so it makes sense.
“I’m fine. Just a bit tired.”
I replied to Kyle while still lying on the bed.
My face was pressed into the pillow.
Kyle quietly sat beside me.
His size made all the sounds of him sitting audible, but he tried to be considerate and sat quietly.
“Sophia.”
“What?”
“If it’s too hard, shall we cancel the plans?”
For some reason, it felt like he was speaking formally after a long time.
Yeah, I had asked him to speak casually, but deep down, Kyle was still more comfortable in this manner.
“No. I’m fine.”
I could endure this.
I may be a bit older than Kyle.
To not be able to handle this at all wouldn’t suit me as an older one.
Sure, I might already look dead tired.
“Ah… as long as it’s not about the dress, I’ll just rest in the room.”
There was no need to cancel everything.
Including the ball.
For now, I’d do what I had decided to do, and if the princess wanted me for something else… it’d be better to just rest.
“That should be okay, right?”
I slightly raised my head from the pillow to look at Kyle.
No matter how tired I was, it was rude to ask something without looking at him.
It was about human decency, not just a noble and commoner distinction.
“Yes.”
“Phew…”
Still, I preferred formal language.
I was used to hearing it since childhood, and it felt a bit kinder.
I wasn’t familiar with Kyle speaking casually to me.
It could be a bit scary at times.
Particularly when he suddenly did so the other night, that truly frightened me.
The way he came at me…
-Brrr…
“Kyle, could you speak formally again a little more often?”
“?”
Kyle looked puzzled.
I had asked him to talk casually just recently, but it couldn’t be helped.
“It just feels more comfortable.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah…”
It felt calm and friendly somehow.
“Kyle.”
“Yes.”
Maybe it was because we had been in the carriage for a long time or because this bed was just too comfortable.
I started feeling relaxed.
No, I felt like I might just fall asleep right here…
“Tomorrow… want to go on a date?”
It wasn’t a huge deal to say.
I wanted to explore the capital rather than just stay in this palace.
It was obvious people would be staring at us the moment we stayed here.
It’d be better if things were less focused on us.
“Let’s leave the princess out… just the two of us.”
Before I knew it, I found myself lying on my back, eyes closed.
The comfort of this bed was incomparable to the inn I had been at.
I felt a little sleepy, but I kept talking.
“We haven’t wandered around together for a while, right? We’ve been in the carriage with the princess every day…”
For just over a week, I had spent time in the carriage with her.
Sure, I had been alone with Kyle at the inn, but that wasn’t much more than a sleeping space.
“Just like when we used to wander around the archipelago together… just…”
My eyelids were getting heavier and heavier.
They were naturally lowering, and I tried to resist falling asleep as I continued speaking.
“Tog-…”
*
“…?”
When I opened my eyes, both the room and outside were dark.
Beside me, bathed in moonlight, was a sleeping Kyle.
“So I did end up sleeping.”
I wasn’t sure what happened, but it made sense.
I was talking while feeling drowsy, so naturally, I would have just fallen asleep.
Well, that seemed likely.
I couldn’t remember if I had finished my thought.
“Yawn…”
When I first entered the palace, it was just past noon.
And even when we entered this room after following the princess, not much time had passed.
But now it seemed well past midnight, and the next day had already begun.
“I really slept a lot…”
I had probably slept at least ten hours.
“Oh dear…”
I couldn’t just go back to sleep right now.
I wasn’t drowsy anymore.
Even if I lay here, I could easily stay awake for about two hours.
“What to do.”
Going outside at this time felt unwise.
It was obvious I’d run into someone which would definitely be awkward.
So what should I do?
“Hmm…”
“Sn… snooz…”
By the way, why was Kyle sleeping like this?
He was almost at the edge of the bed.
Why was he being so uncomfortable at the end…
“Ah.”
It was because of me.
I had sprawled out in the middle… hence he was stuck there.
“What a…”
If I had known, I would have snuggled over a little more.
Though it was a double bed, it wasn’t so spacious that this wouldn’t happen.
Plus, I wasn’t sleeping straight but diagonally, taking even more space…
“This is my fault, huh?”
First, I pulled Kyle toward me so he wouldn’t fall off.
Even after pulling him over, thankfully, he didn’t wake up.
I didn’t want to disturb him by waking him up.
“Whew!”
I finally repositioned Kyle beside me properly.
We could finally use this double bed for its intended purpose.
But why was his body so firm?
After living over twenty years in a woman’s body and getting used to this softness, I felt that firmness.
Feeling Kyle’s body was really solid.
Of course, not all men were like this.
“Hmm…”
I started to touch Kyle’s body slightly with my hand.
I thought his muscles were just very solid.
I was just curious.
If his arms felt like this, I wondered what his abs or lats would feel like.
-Swallow…
Have I maybe gone a little crazy?
No, that’s not it.
I was just fascinated by seeing a great physique and thought about touching it.
Anyone might feel the urge to touch a perfect body when they see one…
So that’s all it was.
“It’s only for a moment…”
Anyway, Kyle hardly wakes up from sleep…
So it’s bound to be fine.
Surely…
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