CH 24

That should have just been another normal, uneventful day.

“Rebecca-sama, I have something to consult with you!”

“What is it, Emilia?”

That was the last thing I said before I lost my words.

“I, I have fallen in love with His Highness. I know that he is engaged to Rebecca-sama, but is there any way that could change?”

I felt like I had been hit with a blunt weapon, or maybe that would have been better. Images of him kept appearing and disappearing in my mind.

The him who held me in his arms the first time we met, the him who ate all the homemade cookies and said they were delicious, the him who froze when he saw me after a bath, the him who brought me back to reality when I lost myself in anger, the him who turned around on Grue’s back while his hair fluttered in the wind, the him who came to save me and Emilia, the him who worried if I was injured.

The him who smiled, the him who furrowed his brows, the him who looked troubled, the him who looked happy.

Lastly, the him who looked at me with gentle eyes while the sunset was in the background, appeared in my mind.

Even now, I still clearly remember the warmth of his hand, the smell of the evening in the Royal Capital, but it felt like it was from a distant past.

That’s when I finally realized. I am in love with His Highness.

I hadn’t realized it. I had liked him from the moment we first met, more naturally than breathing, but it had been such a natural feeling that I hadn’t even thought about it.

That’s right. Even though I haven’t said it clearly, I haven’t been honest with myself either.

I closed my eyes and turned away from everything.

There is no escaping the scenario.

***

It was mid-July, and Rebecca, Emilia, and Melinda held their second sleepover at Viscount Cuey’s residence.

Rebecca was satisfied with the beautiful flower crown she had made and was lying on the lawn, making peaceful sleeping sounds. The remaining two were sighing with their heads held together.

“I never thought it would be this bad…” said the girl with honey-like eyes.

“I wonder why it turned out this way,” said the girl with silver hair.

The two had noticed the subtle differences between Rebecca and Llewayne before the summer vacation began. They knew that their important friend Rebecca sometimes had anxious and worried expressions.

It was fine until recently when Rebecca and Llewayne went on a date. But when Rebecca returned and they asked her about it, she said it was fun but she seemed a little bit off.

Rebecca, Repeating that it was like a date, like a couple, the two finally realized the vague discomfort.

“Why doesn’t Rebecca-sama have confidence in herself fundamentally?”

“Well, it’s not just Rebecca-sama’s fault, the prince not expressing himself in actions also has a responsibility.”

“Even so, this time there is something wrong with Rebecca-sama, completely…”

And there was another unbelievable fact. When the two of them confirmed that “Rebecca-sama is the one the Crown Prince likes,” to their surprise, Rebecca retorted “I never thought of such a thing.”

That was not a pretense of hiding. They were honestly shocked. At that moment, the two of them were amazed at the seriousness of the situation.

The silver-haired girl thought about something for a moment and then smiled even more beautifully.

“Let’s try to poke her a little.”

“Sure, but even if you or I talk to the Crown Prince, Rebecca will just think that we are telling her to say that she likes him because we were told to.

We need to let her know from the bottom of her heart, how the Crown Prince feels about her and how she feels about the Crown Prince.”

“I agree. Let’s try our best. But we definitely don’t want Rebecca-sama to get hurt. If we make her cry, there’s no way we can avoid being [cut open].”

“What’s with that dangerous idea?”

After that, the two of them held a strategic meeting and it was not Melinda, the Viscount’s daughter who said “It might be a good plan, but I don’t want to be glared at by the Crown Prince,” but Emilia, who confidently said “I am not afraid of the Prince even if it means being punished severely.” took on that role.

[I fell in love with the prince, even though I am a commoner, please let him go and give him to me.]

That is, originally it is just a frivolous joke that can’t be taken seriously. If there are 100 people, 99 people…Everyone except Rebecca would not take it seriously, it’s a ridiculous and absurd request.

Emilia starts talking about something strange, and when she thinks seriously about it as a friend, she realizes that she doesn’t want to lose His Highness to her, and that she likes His Highness, and His Highness notices the appearance of such a fiancée, and properly conveys “I like you” for a happy ending.

Emilia and Melinda were expecting that kind of development.

But they didn’t know.

Only Rebecca knows that the contents of that request, which seems like a lie, is actually possible in reality. For Rebecca, Emilia is someone who she cannot help but acknowledge as an unbeatable opponent in her heart.

That’s why they never even dreamed of it.

Rebecca, who was consulted by Emilia, never dreamed that she would actually mediate the relationship between Llewayne and Emilia and retreat.

Truly, they never dreamed of it.