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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Ten Nights
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And I ran with all my might toward my uncle.
I was farther away than I thought, and my heart sank.
Whether by chance or because he had been watching us, my uncle was already striding toward me from indoors.
“Uncle!”
I ran even faster and threw my arms around him.
At the same time, I felt a solid sense of security.
Soon, his heavy hand came to rest on my head.
“What is it? Did that little peanut hit you?”
Hugging his thigh, I shook my head.
“N-no.”
“Then what?”
“I-I want to go home now.”
Let’s go quickly, okay?
I looked up at him with pleading eyes.
“Tsk.”
I flinched at the sound of his clicking tongue and was about to let go when my body was suddenly lifted.
In the blink of an eye, I was in his arms, my view now level with his.
“You’re such a handful. We’re leaving now?”
He meant going home.
I nodded vigorously, then paused and shook my head.
“Can I just say goodbye to Ruspe again before we go?”
“Where is he?”
“Over there.”
My uncle strode in the direction I pointed.
But from the opposite direction, Ruspe was rushing toward us.
“Ruspe?”
I got down from my uncle's arms and looked at Ruspe, who had stopped in front of me.
Breathing heavily, Ruspe suddenly held something out to me.
It was the three yellow flowers we had looked at while squatting down earlier.
He must have plucked them a bit roughly, as the stems were jagged and crushed.
“Are these for me?”
“I-I wanted to give you a present, too.”
As he said this, his face was the reddest I’d ever seen it.
It must have been because he had run over so quickly.
His fluffy silver hair seemed even more puffed up than before.
My uncle scoffed, “You little things,” but I ignored him and took the flowers.
This was proof that Ruspe had accepted me as a friend.
“Thank you! I think I have to go home now. I had a lot of fun today.”
“O-okay, then. Goodbye.”
At Ruspe’s shy farewell, I waved enthusiastically and was about to go to my uncle when I turned back.
“Hey, Ruspe. Do you come here often?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“We’re friends now. Let’s play a lot more next time!”
“Next time…?”
Ruspe’s face lit up as if a light had been shone on it.
“Yeah, next time. Okay, really goodbye now!”
I finally turned to leave with a sense of relief, but I felt a tug from behind.
“Huh?”
When I turned around, Ruspe was pulling on my clothes.
He had been shy and timid all day, even when I spoke to him, so this was the first time I’d seen him take the initiative.
That, and the way he had just run over.
“W-when are you coming back?”
“When…? Well…”
I didn’t know.
But Ruspe was staring at me so intently that I couldn’t just say I didn’t know.
Maybe it was because his eyes were so pretty, but their sparkling gaze looked almost desperate.
“Ah, um… A-after ten nights!”
“Ten nights?”
I glanced at my uncle and nodded.
If he said no, I’d just throw a tantrum.
I quickly rummaged through my bag and pulled out a handful of candy.
I held it out to Ruspe, who looked bewildered for a moment before opening his hands.
I started placing the candy in his hands, then stopped.
No, I should give him all of it.
I emptied out the rest of the candy and gave it all to Ruspe.
“Here, this is a present, too. I’ll be back in ten nights. Let’s meet and play again then.”
Ruspe cupped his hands to receive the candy, just as he had with the flower ring, and muttered, “Ten nights…”
The flower ring I had made for him was still on his index finger.
Ruspe finally nodded again.
“Okay.”
“Then, really goodbye!”
I climbed back onto my uncle, dangling from his neck, and waved the flowers Ruspe had given me.
“…See you again, Aika.”
As we strode away, I faintly heard Ruspe’s small, shy voice.
* * *
“Young Master, it is time to return.”
As soon as Aika and Marquis Leguire’s backs disappeared from view, Ruspe’s attendant, Kamaye, approached.
Had Marquis Leguire perhaps given him the candy as a snack?
Ruspe nodded at Kamaye’s words, but he took slow, careful steps, anxious that the candy in his hands might fall.
“Allow me to hold that for you.”
Kamaye held out his hands to take the candy.
Instead of handing over the candy, Ruspe shook his head.
“I’ll hold it.”
He didn’t just say it; he pulled the candy closer to his body, as if afraid it would be taken away.
Watching Ruspe’s unsteady steps, Kamaye couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked.
“But where did you get so much candy?”
Ruspe wasn’t particularly fond of sweets.
Even when sweet, colorful candies and chocolates were offered to him, he would always avoid them with a dismissive glance.
He often refused the warm cocoa and sweet cakes that children his age enjoyed.
Moreover, he had a small appetite and usually left uneaten the snacks Kamaye brought for him.
The only things he occasionally ate were a light tea, unbefitting of his age, and a single, unsweetened biscuit.
Even then, if asked, “Is it good?” he would often just press it into Kamaye’s hand to eat.
But now he wouldn’t even let him touch it? And it was sugary candy, of all things?
It was only natural to be curious.
To Kamaye, who watched over him closely, the pile of colorful candy heaped in Ruspe’s palms looked almost out of place.
“A gift… from a friend.”
Realizing that friend was the Young Lady Valliat, Kamaye’s eyes widened slightly.
“So the candy was a gift from Young Lady Valliat.”
“Yeah. Oh, Kamaye. I think I’ll need a pretty glass jar when we get home.”
Watching him walk so gingerly, concentrating so as not to drop a single piece of candy, Kamaye could guess why he needed a glass jar.
Especially since the young master, who rarely showed his feelings, was acting this way.
Kamaye recalled the image of Young Lady Valliat he had seen from a distance.
With soft, pale cheeks like a peach, large eyes, and glossy black hair tied in pigtails, she looked like a lovely baby rabbit.
Her colorful, bright clothes suited her so well.
She was so striking that one’s eyes were naturally drawn to her.
Even standing between His Majesty the Emperor, called the greatest man of his time, and Marquis Leguire, Young Lady Valliat stood out.
*No wonder Young Master Ruspe is acting this way…*
“I will have the prettiest glass jar ready as soon as we return.”
Kamaye walked behind Ruspe, guarding him with a pleased heart.
“Yes, and a ribbon. I think a yellow one would be nice.”
As he said this, Ruspe’s cheeks flushed once more.
* * *
As soon as I returned home, I was relieved to be away from the danger.
I had changed my mind and gone back to see my grandfather, but I was told he was already in a meeting with the Emperor and couldn’t be seen.
So I had no choice but to come straight home.
But what was that strange feeling from before?
There was nothing suspicious nearby…
“Well, I did see a large tower and a willow tree obscuring it.”
In any case, it was really strange.
I thought I might see another dangerous vision, but no such illusion appeared during the entire carriage ride home.
Which only made it more puzzling.
“My lady, your bath is ready. Shall we go?”
“Oh, yes!”
I had been unable to shake the scary thoughts for a while, and only managed to break free when Zenda came in.
After that, while Zenda was busy, I spent the time until dinner rolling around on my bed.
The key to the Imperial Archives I received as a gift today was beside me.
“I have to visit the archives next time I go.”
I was curious, wondering if it was a place my mother had frequented.
The flowers Ruspe gave me had wilted a little, so Zenda put them in a vase.
She also said that in a few days, she would dry them nicely and press them in a book for me.
Then, the Emperor’s face came to mind, followed by the image of black hair.
“That’s right. His hair was the same color as mine.”
A small question quietly began to bloom.
