CH 20

Even as he gave the order, Esadien’s thoughts wandered in the past.

His mother passed away, and the current Emperor, who ascended to the throne in the meantime, took pity on his nephew, who was left alone at a young age, and enlisted him as his own son.

On the day of her funeral, the Emperor wept as he saw the clear bruise on Esadien’s neck.

“I’m sorry.”

Looking back, the tears were mixed with remorse that they could not prevent their cherished brother from being ruined.

“Where are you going all of a sudden?”

“The Grand Duchess of Karinen.”

The bruise disappeared from Esadien’s body without a trace. However, his mother’s teachings still remain deep in her head.

So the feeling you feel for Minuelle cannot be like love. It wasn’t supposed to be.

‘I don’t want to get hurt.’

He didn’t want to be hurt like his mother. And he didn’t want to hurt Minuelle as much as he did.

The reason I keep thinking about Minuelle is probably that it was the first time I borrowed something from someone else. That’s why I felt the pressure to give it back quickly, without even realizing it.

In other words, after returning the book, Minuelle’s voice would not come to mind.

However, there was no Minuelle in the Grand Duchess’ mansion.”

“I see you, the Third Prince. I’m sorry, Lady Minuelle went out for a while, but…..”

To be honest, I was a little bummed out. But I thought that if I just went back after coming all the way here, Minuelle would be upset.

“You’re so mean.”

His lips curled up warmly, as Minuelle’s lips popped out coyly and her face to grumble came to mind. 

What had captured his heart a little while ago was such a figure, but Esadien didn’t realize it.

“I will wait.”

“Then I will prepare the tea for you.”

“No, no need.”

Shaking his head at the butler, Esadien moved past him.

“I’ll go to the library.”

Having remembered the way on his last visit, Esadien easily entered the library.

My unstable mind calmed down when I took the unique smell of the space full of books deep into my lungs.

The library. It was unparalleled in size with any other family study, so it deserved to be called that.

‘It’s great.’

Even though it was his second visit, Esadien admired the size of the library, which reached the ceiling along the wall. It was a different grandeur from the four-story imperial library built like a tower.

A surprised voice came to Esadien’s ear as he put down the book he borrowed on a knee-high-wheeled book cart and looked around the bookshelves around him.

“Oh, isn’t that the Third Prince?”

Esadien’s face hardened as he turned around.

Red hair like a flame, eyes like gold coins. It was a face that I remembered.

“You…”

“My name is Lafesch Celeste, Your Highness. I saw you here for a while last time.”

“I remember.”

I couldn’t help but remember. Aside from the strange feeling I heard the moment I saw her…..

“Oh, it’s an honor. I’m happy.”

Esadien’s eyes scanned Lafesch’s face as she approached.

The softly arched eyebrows, the large but slightly raised eyes, and the uniquely drooping double eyelids make a good impression. Thick lips, and even a single blurry dot on the edge of the lip line.

It was the same face, enough to believe that his mother had changed her hair and eye color and come back alive.

“Ah…. Is there something on my face?”

Lafesch asked if she was embarrassed by the persistent gaze, rubbing her slightly reddened cheeks.

“No, never mind.”

Esadien, who managed to take his eyes off Lafesch, turned to the bookshelf and said. His eyes consciously scanned the books one by one.

『Definition of the Golden Ratio』,  『Understanding the Circle』, 『Wide Use of Trigonometric Functions』…..

Lafesch walked slowly behind Esadien, who turned to the other side, and said.

“I guess the prince also likes books.”

Esadien nodded silently, checking the titles on the new bookshelf.

『The Burning Alponos』, 『The Blacksmith and Horse of Ajax』, 『The Salt Pirates of Malice』.

“Minuelle also reads from time to time while working.”

Esadien, who was unconsciously trying to smile at the story of Minuelle, stopped.

Minuelle’s face, smiling in the sunlight from the window right next to it, came to mind, and as if something had rubbed his head, it was cleared.

‘What…..’

It was also for a moment that Esadien felt strange. As if to cover the thought, there was a strong scent from the side.

“Ah, the hand…..”

Lafesch, who stood as if clinging to Esadien, pulled out a book that could be reached by her hand, and stood up.

“A moment.”

Esadien dissuaded Lafesch and extended his arm.

“Is this the book you want?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

She’s a little taller than Minuelle. Isn’t this unreasonable?

Thinking that way, Lafesch thanked as hugging the book Esadien gave in her arms.

“Thank you very much.”

“It was nothing.”

Esadien tried to turn around with a light modesty, but a strange sense of déjà vu caught his foot.

‘Why do I feel this way?’

It felt like a huge invisible hand pushed his back and urged him to stand next to Lafesch.

It isn’t very pleasant to keep looking at her because she resembles his mother, but Lafesch was also constantly looking at him, so their eyes met constantly. Esadien thought as he looked into her curved golden eyes each time.

‘Did my mother ever smile like that before?’

Maybe that’s why, looking at Lafesch, Minuelle didn’t come to his mind. As if there was only Lafesch in the world, as if she was the center of the world.

His heart was beating loudly.

“Is there a time when you’re lonely, too?”

“……”

Before he knew it, Lafesch was one step closer and looking up at Esadien. He looked down at her frozenly.

“Actually, I…. I don’t have any friends.”

Starting with those words, Lafesch told unanswered stories one after another.

She is grateful to her family for accepting her as a stepdaughter, but she is still difficult to deal with, she wanted to get close to ladies of her age, Minuelle, when she came to the Duchess of Karinen she couldn’t get close to her.

“I didn’t mean to be hated…..”

Esadien was biting his lip tightly while Lafesch was talking softly, shaking his long eyelashes.

This is because if I loosened my strength even a little, the word “I’ll be your friend” would pop out right away.

Meanwhile, Lafesch, who finished talking, rolled his golden eyes again and made eye contact with Esadien.

“……”

“……”

There was a moment of silence, and a little while ago, the book that was shaking dangerously fell next to the space where Esadien took the book out.

Tuk.

Although it was never a loud sound, both stood back in amazement.

“Esadien?”

And there came a voice they all knew as if someone had planned it.

“And…. Lady Celeste.”

Their shoulders trembled as if they had committed a crime.

Theodore stood with Minuelle, who did not know when he came in.

“You said you were going to find your bag. I was wondering if something was wrong because I heard you left the opera house in a hurry.”

“Oh, because I’m in a small place, my head hurts……”

“Have you recovered from claustrophobia?”

“Yes, I really thought it would be okay. I’m sorry.”

Lafesch apologized to Theodore with a pathetic smile, but he only raised his head with a cold look.

Seeing that, Esadien felt something strange.

‘Theo gets angry?’

Theodore is a good-natured man who laughs through a lot of things. It is usually impossible for him to behave like that without being hurt.

In addition, after listening to the story for a while, the three of them seemed to have left without saying a word.

‘I didn’t think he would.’

While he was thinking so, Lafesch’s gentle voice continued.

“But you two must have come together. Did you get closer?”

“Yes, thanks to you.”

“Oh, that’s great. I’m glad.”

“But it was a waste of coming out in the middle of the play.”

“That’s fine…..”

Minuelle cut the words of Lafesch, who smiled kindly, mercilessly.

“When you go with someone else, I think it would be better not to disappear without a word. Of course, it seems that Young Lady won’t go to the opera anymore.”

“…thank you for your teaching.”

Lafesch glanced at Esadien with a tearful face.

‘Look, Minuelle doesn’t like me.’

He looked like he wanted to hear his voice saying that. However, Esadien did not budge and was only looking at Minuelle.

‘You’re angry, too.’

Of course, Minuelle is also human, so it could be, but she looked unfamiliar. And above all else, he was unfamiliar with himself, who thought that anger is like a flower. Moreover, the fact that he had forgotten her face for a while confuses him.

“Oh, I apologize again for what happened today.”

Lafesch, who was waiting for Esadien’s reaction for a while, gave up and smiled awkwardly.

“Then have a good evening. I’m going to go now..”

In a breathtaking silence, Lafesch walked slowly out of the library.

Tak.

Lafesch, leaning against the closed door, lowered her head and exhaled her suppressed breath.

“Haaah.”

Her face, which was lifted a moment later, was distorted completely different from before.

“Nothing is going well.”

She thought things were going well until she joined the Celeste family and came to the capital.

Minuelle, who I met after coming into the Grand Duchess of Karinen on a string of connections, was a beautiful woman who could open her mouth to anyone. To the point where I forgot for a moment the Congo that would fall from the Grand Park.

I was almost ashamed of myself for being confident in my beauty.

However, unlike Lafesch, who wanted to get close in her own way, Minuelle avoided her strangely.

“Do you like opera? If you have time next time….”

Without ruthless Theodore stick around.

Meanwhile, Esadien, whom I met by chance, was indeed a beauty living alone in the world.

Even Minuelle, who was next to him, was covered by the illusion that his face was shining. The word ‘love at first sight’ was clearly referring to this situation.

‘But it was unexpected.’

Like Theodore, it was only natural for Esadien to fall in love with her as soon as he saw her. However, I was left alone, so I purposely stuck to you, but he doesn’t hug her and doesn’t confess…..

‘Do you have to drink alcohol? You’ll be honest when you’re drunk.’

Like that, Lafesch comforted herself.

Above all, he said that this face looked like a copy of his mother, so he would never refuse it.