Chapter 42

Crows of the Night (2)

“Right, it seems he’s doing it on purpose.”

“Your Highness? What do you mean?”

Selma was the one who reacted to Legina’s muttering. Holding Riga in her arms, who had begun to chew on her shoelaces as if he was teething, Selma looked at Legina, who was smiling meaningfully.

“You know what kind of relationship Sir Aaron and I have, Selma.”

“…Yes, I do.”

Only Selma, Una, and Johan knew the details of Aaron and Legina’s contract, besides the two of them. Gissley happened to know it too, but Legina was unaware of that since Aaron hadn’t told her, so in her world, that was all there was to it.

“For now, I need to look like I’m chasing him, so he clearly didn’t send an invitation on purpose.”

“Why?”

“So I can be an uninvited guest who shows up without an invitation.”

No matter that she was an Imperial Princess, it was still a noble family’s event. Showing up without an invitation was rather rude. However, Legina’s role was a troublemaker madly in love. She could commit such rudeness anytime, and Aaron was clearly trying to use such a performance to show the many people there that Legina was clinging to him.

“My annulment will officially be announced soon, so to move more seriously, I need a small event. Sir Aaron probably set his birthday as that focal point.”

Selma clutched the stomach medicine in her pocket, looking at Legina, whose violet eyes sparkled as she spoke. It was the stomach medicine Derain had personally made and gifted to her. She took a deep breath, hearing the rustling of the bag containing the stomach medicine, which the old physician had given her with a pitiable gaze. Just as Legina found inner peace by touching Titi’s handle, this medicine bag was an excellent medium for Selma to find peace of mind.

“Are you really going to go without an invitation?”

“Yes. I’ll even confess there. Now seems to be the perfect timing, Selma.”

“Oh, God…”

Una, now accustomed to supporting the swaying Selma, was already waiting and caught her as she stumbled. While she swayed, Riga, who had slipped from her arms, went to Leon, who was glaring at the birds outside the window, and sat next to him, opening his mouth wide in a big yawn. It was a familiar and peaceful scene.

“Sir Aaron is helping me this much, so I have to do my best, don’t I? Make sure everything I’ll wear that day is prepared properly, Una.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Johan, take Selma for a walk or something. She seems to need some fresh air.”

“Got it!”

“…My lord, you’re too excited.”

“Hahaha. I’ll be back!”

Legina watched Johan, who was dragging Selma away with a visibly excited face, then picked up the embroidery frame she had put down. She couldn’t appear clumsy on the stage Aaron had so perfectly set.

“Look forward to it, my lord. I’ll do my best.”

While Legina was making that resolve, Aaron, in the Vestein mansion, was also deep in thought, holding an invitation adorned with lavish gold leaf. It was an invitation addressed to Legina. All other invitations had already been dispatched, but Aaron, his beautiful face shadowed, had not yet decided whether to send this one.

“Aaron. Haven’t you sent it yet?”

“Uncle.”

Egil, who had been enthusiastically sparring with the ducal knights in the training ground just moments before, appeared before Aaron in light clothing. Seeing him roughly rubbing his still-damp hair with a towel, it seemed he had just finished washing.

“You seem to be troubled.”

“Yes.”

“Indeed, it’s difficult whether you send it or not.”

If the recipient were an ordinary noblewoman, he could simply appease her to save face or ignore her, but this time, his opponent was the Imperial Princess. Moreover, as Egil knew, the Imperial Princess was currently clinging to Aaron, having abandoned all dignity, declaring her affection for him. Sending an invitation in this situation would clearly be seen as giving her false hope, without any intention of accepting her feelings. Yet, not sending the invitation would deeply upset the Imperial Princess, who was completely infatuated with Aaron… No matter how decisive his nephew usually was, this decision would be difficult. Of course, Aaron wouldn’t admit it, but if Legina truly liked him, and was pretending not to, trying to hide her feelings by staying by his side under the guise of a contract relationship, he was pondering whether sending this invitation was the right thing to do… Well, Egil’s thought wasn’t entirely wrong, so Aaron could give a slight nod to his words.

“I’m living long enough to see you troubled by a woman problem. It really was good that I stayed a little longer!”

“What? Gissley? Are you already done talking with brother?”

“Stop meddling in Aaron’s affairs and go to Father at once. He’s summoned you.”

“Ugh, this is where it gets interesting! Why do you think I stayed?”

“I’ll let it pass as a bad habit of an unpopular man, so just go. Father seemed angry.”

“…What did he find out?”

“…It seems he caused more than one problem?”

Egil, shrugging his shoulders to Gissley, who looked at him with a somewhat disgusted expression, disappeared. The two remaining men then looked at the invitation in Aaron’s hand, addressed to Legina, without saying a word. Considering his contract with Legina, Aaron shouldn’t have any reason to hesitate, but he seemed to have something else on his mind, making it hard to approach him.

Did that woman who confessed earlier like him? Who on earth is she that Aaron is worrying so much?

Gissley, who couldn’t possibly know the target was Legina, sighed softly and moved aside. And Aaron, unaware that Gissley and Egil had left, still hesitated.

Send the invitation? Then Legina would come. How should he greet her for the first time? He couldn’t keep pretending not to know. But if he acknowledged it? Then what would happen? Should he not send the invitation then? Then Legina’s plan would be disrupted. He couldn’t accept her, but he didn’t want to push her into an unwanted marriage.

“This is driving me crazy.”

It was the first difficult problem Aaron, who always found simple answers, had ever encountered.

On Aaron’s birthday.

Legina woke up early in the morning, adorning herself more beautifully than ever.

“What on earth is our Highness lacking to go through all this…?”

Selma sighed incessantly but poured all her effort into Legina’s adornment. No one was unaware that ever since Aaron publicly revealed his face at Theore’s birthday banquet, all the noble daughters were eyeing him. Although Legina had been spending time with him lately, the rumor was still that it was Legina’s unrequited love. It was only natural for Selma to do her best, as even a newborn knew that noble ladies, full of hope that they might also have a chance, would flock to the Vestein mansion today.

“Our Highness is beautiful even in rags, but when she truly sets her mind to adorn herself, who can rival her beauty?!”

“Madam Signy? Um… won’t Sir Aaron also adorn himself since it’s his birthday?”

“Una! Stop your useless chatter and bring that ribbon over here!”

“Yes, yes!”

Una, startled by Selma, who glared at her as if she would breathe fire just for a slight misstep, quickly started moving her hands. Legina, sitting quietly in front of the mirror, watching the two of them and the maids helping with her adornment, fiddled with the invitation that had arrived late last night.

An invitation arriving just one day before… She wondered what it meant, but no answer came to mind. However, considering it was a summons from the second son of a ducal house and the recipient was the Imperial Princess of this Empire, she couldn’t simply consider it a postal error. It was an invitation that should have been delivered quickly, even if it meant delaying other invitations.

“I’ll just ask Sir Aaron about it.”

Legina, touching the corner of the invitation, shifted her gaze to the table behind her in the mirror. Other gifts had already been inspected and sent to the ducal house, and the flat box adorned with a red ribbon was the gift she would hand him herself.

When should I confess?

It had to be a place where people’s attention would be drawn, yet also a private one. It was a difficult task, as she had to give the impression that she was secretly confessing in a place no one knew about. Legina, pondering whether the ducal house had such a place, briefly recalled the greenhouse full of Danilan flowers. If today’s confession were sincere, there would be no better place, but it was a garden deep within the ducal house, specifically a greenhouse within its deepest part, so it wasn’t suitable for today’s confession.

Come to think of it, I saw Sir Aaron’s face quite close up then…

Remembering the situation where she had no choice but to look at his face up close due to a small accident, her face suddenly flushed with heat. If her heart had been just a little weaker, she might have died of a heart attack right there, even before beheading the traitor.

“Your Highness? What’s wrong all of a sudden? Are you feeling unwell? Is it a cold? Why is your face so red? Oh my goodness, you have a fever! Una! Go fetch Lord Derain at once!”

“Yes!”

“Ah, no! I was just thinking about something else! I’m fine! Una! Stop right there!”

Legina, who barely managed to call Una to a halt, fanned herself and cleared her throat. She couldn’t possibly confess that her face flushed because Aaron’s beautiful face had suddenly come to mind.

“Are you really alright?”

“Of course! Look! I’m fine now, aren’t I?”

Legina smiled at Selma, then quickly averted her gaze.

“Hurry with the preparations. I need to be exceptionally beautiful today.”

“…Don’t worry about that.”

Legina, who sighed in relief as she watched Selma, with a suspicious expression, begin to give instructions to the maids again, looked into the mirror. Her cheeks in the mirror were flushed like peaches.

– Mochinuna.