“Your Highness is currently resting by the lakeside.”
Upon discovering an attendant serving Aria, I asked and received this reply.
After hearing that, I thought maybe I could just head over right away.
Even though he is the Crown Prince, is it really okay to just barge in unannounced?
It’s not like he called for me first.
*Ah, whatever.*
Aria is not one to be overly formal, so I figured it should be fine.
Plus, if I go now, I could have a private conversation with Aria.
It might get a bit sensitive, but it’s better if no one else hears it except Aria.
There’s no guarantee that there aren’t any spies among those serving her.
“Emilia. Can you wait here?”
“Yes, Hainkel-nim.”
I found Aria.
A single red chair was set up in front of the vast lake.
Aria was sitting there all alone, looking completely out of place.
I slowly walked across the grass and stood beside her.
“Hmph. After making a name for yourself, you’ve quite lost your manners. How dare you stand alongside me.”
“Should I face you instead?”
“No. That obstructs my view. Just stay as you are.”
“······.”
The atmosphere around the Crown Prince felt different from usual.
Maybe it was a bit subdued.
It was a gloomy mood.
“I have a request to discuss.”
“A request? What is it?”
“I’ve had an issue at my residence, and I need to stay at the Imperial Palace for a day or two.”
“Schlus Hainkel… Do you think the Imperial Palace is some kind of inn?”
“There’s no inn safer than the Palace. Right now, I’m feeling a threat to my personal safety and am requesting your protection, Your Highness.”
“Hoh······.”
Only then did the Crown Prince show some interest in his expression.
“Fine. There’s a guest room in the detached building. You can use that.”
“May my attendant accompany me as well?”
“That’s not allowed. There are too many attendants, and if it’s just for service—”
“In that case, I will leave.”
“What?!”
Aria looked up at me in shock.
“I won’t use the room if my attendant can’t stay with me.”
“Hmph·····. Let your servant stay then, but just for three days.”
“Understood. Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Do you really value a commoner servant that much?”
“Very much.”
“If you knew her true essence, your thoughts would change·····.”
“······.”
Muttering something, Aria turned her head away from me toward the lake.
It was an empty lake, devoid even of fish occasionally surfacing, or birds floating by.
We stared blankly at that empty, calm lake without a single ripple for a while.
“Do you still have matters to discuss?”
“No, not at all. I was just wondering what was so amusing about this scenery that you’re gazing at it.”
“Not amusing.”
“In that case, this must hold some fond memory for you.”
“Don’t push it.”
Aria glared up at me, growling.
I made a mistake.
I had pushed too far.
At this point, I could be suspected of having mind-reading powers.
“So sensitive.”
“Was I correct?”
“Yes. This is where I have memories with my father. Whenever I didn’t want to study and would run away, my father would always be sitting on this lawn, gazing at the lake. I didn’t understand the meaning and would join him in looking, but… I still don’t get it.”
Aria laughed hollowly.
To her, the Crown Prince must be a warm and caring father figure.
In her mind, that image of the Crown Prince solidified like concrete.
In reality, it’s obvious how useless it is for a Crown Prince to simply sit by the lake all day doing nothing…
Yet, Aria must have such positive memories of her father that she could reject even that basic deduction.
“This lake is quite peaceful.”
“Yes. It’s a beautiful sight to behold for a moment. It looks like a painting, after all. However, staring at it endlessly feels pointless, much like gazing at a still image forever. Is my appreciation for art lacking?”
“I’m not well-versed in art either, but I share your thoughts.”
“Hmph. So you’re saying my father spent his time on meaningless endeavors?”
“That connection seems problematic.”
“Hahaha! I was just joking.”
Aria bumped her head gently against my arm, laughing.
She says something and laughs at her own joke…
Today, she didn’t seem to be in a good state at all.
“I’ll ponder this together. The meaning behind staring at this tranquil lake.”
“That’s futile. How could you possibly understand my father’s thoughts, when I can’t even grasp them.”
“I can at least try.”
“Is that so… Do as you wish.”
I already knew that answer.
I understood perfectly why the Crown Prince loved staring at this lake so much, but I decided to keep it to myself for now.
I chose to just stand by Aria’s side.
The image of her father in Aria’s mind will never change.
Until now, there hasn’t been any issue.
There’s no contradiction in the tale of the kind Crown Prince who met a tragic assassination.
But what if a logical fallacy were to surface in that story?
What if the memory of her father and the reality diverge?
I planned to use that to my advantage.
*
Living in the Imperial Palace didn’t last long.
As soon as news of my stay at the Palace reached the school, they worked furiously and completed the renovations on the mansion.
When I asked the contractor, they said it would take three days, but I never expected it to end in just one.
Just how much pressure did the school put on them…?
The new barrier’s design was entrusted to Erica.
Ludwig offered to do it, but I refused.
No matter how I thought about it, I felt it would be more reliable to leave it to Erica, even if the quality might be a bit lower.
If Alexia had been here, I wouldn’t have even thought twice, but since she wasn’t, Erica was the next best option.
In asking Erica to create the barrier, I also coordinated the schedule for meeting with Julia.
I had requested at least three days’ notice.
And today was just that day.
“Are you nervous?”
“N-No? Not at all?”
In the carriage heading toward the Lichtenburg Mansion.
Sitting across from me, Erica couldn’t keep her fingers still.
This noble girl was acting so fidgety.
“Schlus, I trust you… But, could you tell me how you plan to treat Julia’s nightmare?”
“……”
“Oh, got it. I won’t ask.”
“Erica.”
“Hm?”
“You told me to trust you guys a bit more.”
“Did I?”
“You did. I will trust you, Erica. So, you can talk a little more openly now, right?”
Erica decided to clear all misconceptions and trust me.
But if I didn’t believe Erica, that would be a betrayal of that trust.
Trust must be a reciprocal relationship.
Just as Erica believed in me, I had to show that I believed in her.
“There’s a confidential detail, but let’s just say there’s an object that creates miracles.”
“A miracle-inducing object…?”
“A miracle that calls upon the dead.”
“What…! There can’t be such a thing!”
“I’m not resurrecting them; I’m just calling. Either way, I have that object in my possession and I summoned someone I had long envisioned without hesitation. But then an accident happened. The soul that was supposed to appear before me… ”
“Don’t tell me it went to Julia?”
“Quick on the uptake.”
“……”
Erica’s mouth opened, and she didn’t seem to know when to close it.
I may have omitted a few details, but I certainly didn’t lie.
I believed I had conveyed everything I could within the limits of what I could share.
“S-So then…!”
“Yes. Fixing it was always possible. If I chose to, I could send that soul back to the underworld at any time.”
“Have you been lying all this time…? You said you wanted to meet Julia because you wanted to see that summoned soul?”
“That would be the conclusion.”
“You…!”
It was time to pay the price for my honesty.
Erica jumped in and grabbed me by the collar.
I braced myself, thinking I might get slapped at any moment, but Erica brought her head down deeply and didn’t lift it.
Then, she started trembling and soon tears began to fall onto my shirt.
“If only you’d said so sooner… Why did you keep that hidden until now?”
“It’s because I implanted another’s soul forcefully into your sister’s body.”
“But you said it was an accident! Or was that also a lie?”
“No.”
“Then you didn’t do anything wrong! So just say it proudly! If you had said it earlier, I wouldn’t have stressed out wondering what illness it might be! You could’ve let me see her sooner… sooner so I could have met the person you miss…”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. That just makes it more pitiful. It breaks my heart thinking that you couldn’t meet the person you’ve missed all this time…”
What a beautiful heart…
That thought was all I could muster.
Even after discovering my lies, Erica was angry at me for not saying it sooner.
She was blaming herself for something she hadn’t done at all.
Feeling sympathy before betrayal, she must be inherently kind.
For quite a while, I had to take the tears soaked in my shirt from being grounded by her.
“But why are you so calm? Aren’t you headed to part ways with that person now? Just thinking about your feelings makes me feel so sad… Why do you seem unfazed?”
“Because I’ve already made my decision.”
“You… seriously… You’re frustrating me. I’m truly frustrated. You keep hiding things and only spill them out right before being found out.”
“I’m reflecting on it.”
“Yes… You should reflect on that. Tell me more. Trust me more. Rely on me more…”
Erica buried her face deeper into my chest with a *poof*.
She kept sobbing in that position.
My hand instinctively reached up to stroke Erica’s hair.
Not long after, her sobbing subsided.
