Translator: Nox
(36) Star Festival and the Gray Wolf (8)
Viscount Lenardo's residence wasn't too far from the Grand Duke's palace. It was a modest, clean building, not large, but with a training ground and garden.
"Ahahahahaha!"
Even before entering the building, a man's laughter could be heard.
"Kyaaaaa!"
"Noooo!"
The children's screams followed, and Roxana stopped in surprise, turning to Persi. Persi sighed and shook her head.
"Looks like they're playing again."
Playing?
Upon entering the building, it was indeed playing.
Hexter, covered in a white sheet, ran around making strange noises like "Euhahahahaha!" and "Gueeeeeee!", while the children screamed and ran away from their father.
Hexter, unable to see in front of him because of the sheet, flailed his arms and bumped into Roxana.
"Ouch! Who's gotten so big?"
Saying that, Hexter pulled off the sheet and blushed when he saw Roxana standing in front of him with wide eyes.
"Ah... P, Princess... Uh, when? Why? No, well... Um. Welcome."
It was amusing to see the large man, resembling a golden lion, flustered. Roxana realized she almost laughed and covered her mouth with her hand.
"Ah, yes. Thank you for the welcome."
"Princess!"
The children, belatedly discovering Roxana, ran up and hugged her, then suddenly stepped back and bowed politely.
"Greetings to the Princess."
"Greetings."
Dennis, pretending to be mature as he greeted her, and Jewelry, following her older brother, were both cute and lovely. So Roxana smiled faintly without even realizing she was smiling.
Hexter, seeing Roxana's smile for the first time, widened his eyes and nudged Persi's side with his elbow. Persi stood on tiptoe and whispered to her husband.
"Well, His Grace the Grand Duke asked her to go see the circus together."
"What!"
Hexter shouted, then, when Roxana turned around, he laughed and put his arm around Persi's shoulder.
"I was just surprised by my wife's beauty."
"Ah... I see."
Fortunately, the children each grabbed one of Roxana's hands and led her somewhere. As soon as Roxana was out of earshot, Hexter bent down and whispered urgently.
"You're not mistaken, are you?"
"There's no way I could be mistaken about something like this. It's real."
"His Grace asked her to go see the circus first?"
"Surely the Princess didn't ask to go see the circus first, did she?"
"No, she probably didn't. But..."
Hexter thought of Floyd. He remembered how ruthless and cold he was to the women who approached him.
"I told you? His Grace is interested in the Princess. Romantic interest."
Hexter looked down at his wife with a dazed expression. Persi had been saying things like, "I think His Grace likes her," ever since she heard that Floyd had brought Roxana into the Lily Palace.
Of course, if it had been any other man, Hexter would have agreed with his wife. But if the protagonist was Floyd, it wasn't so easy to make that judgment.
Floyd not only disliked women but even hated them. Once, when Princess Drassel of the Enilta Kingdom accidentally brushed Floyd's arm, Floyd not only wiped the spot he touched nervously but even made a face as if he was trying to hold back vomit.
So Hexter and others who knew Floyd well didn't interpret Floyd's kindness towards Roxana as romantic affection.
They guessed it was camaraderie, gratitude, or a tool to do something Lucas hated...
"That can't be."
"Why not? If it's gratitude or camaraderie, as you said, there's no reason to go out to see the circus together."
"Well... so the Princess can experience various things..."
"Then he could just tell me or a maid to take her out."
"That's true, but... Love? Our lord?"
"Maybe not love... but he's definitely interested. Have I ever been wrong?"
Hexter looked down at his wife, who was speaking firmly.
'You've been wrong a lot. Have you forgotten? You insisted that the cheese we ate last time was made from goat's milk, but it was made from cow's milk! And before that, you said the meat we ate was kingfisher meat, but it was swan meat!'
Persi had been wrong countless times, but Hexter had the manners not to point out his beloved wife's mistakes. So he took his wife's hand, kissed the back of it, and said,
"No. My wife is always right."
Roxana was admiring the wooden carvings the children had made themselves. Hexter watched Roxana and smiled.
"I've got a fun idea."
+++
Just as she was about to leave, having borrowed a hat, gloves, shoes, and accessories that would go well with the dress the maids had made for her, Hexter followed her.
"I heard you're going to the circus today? I'll escort you."
"No, you don't have to, Lord Lenardo. How could the captain of the royal guard..."
"I swore to protect the Princess. It's only natural that I should do it."
"But going to the circus isn't dangerous."
"Not dangerous? The streets during the festival are crowded and very dangerous. It's so dangerous that you could have your nose cut off if you turn your head even slightly."
That dangerous? The festival?
Roxana was dumbfounded, but Hexter's eyes were serious.
"So I must escort you, Princess. I'm on vacation until next week anyway, so I have nothing to do. Let's go together."
It was hard to refuse any longer when he said so much. When Roxana nodded, Hexter grinned and brought the horse, running alongside the carriage Roxana was riding in.
Dennis, who was watching the scene, said.
"Dad's really excited."
"I know. Your dad must be very happy at the thought of teasing His Grace."
"Why does Dad tease His Grace? His Grace is cool and strong."
Jewelry said to Dennis, who didn't understand his mother's explanation.
"He's teasing him because His Grace is going out to play with the Princess. You tease Kevin when he plays with Yunas, too."
+++
Crimson sunlight streamed over the desk in the office. Floyd put down the documents and turned his chair to look out the window.
The sky, which had been briefly overcast in the afternoon, had cleared up again as dusk approached. That was a relief. It would have been difficult to walk around with Roxana if it had rained.
Floyd had been pondering all morning why he had suggested to Roxana that they go to the circus.
During the festival, people came to visit from other countries, and merchants and mercenaries from other regions came and went frequently. Taking her to a place where someone might recognize Roxana's face could be dangerous.
'Should I cancel it now?'
Roxana had accepted Floyd's offer, but he couldn't tell if she really wanted to go to the circus. When she nodded, she was expressionless, and her eyes were still empty.
But Floyd didn't want to cancel the appointment.
He decided not to worry about why he didn't want to. Not every action, feeling, and thought of a person always has an answer.
If you want to do it, do it, and if you don't want to do it, don't do it.
Floyd jumped up and told the servant to prepare to go out.
"Are you going out on horseback?"
"Yes. Two horses... no. Prepare a carriage."
He hated carriages because they were stuffy, but it seemed like Roxana wasn't able to ride a horse yet. Besides, there was no guarantee that she could ride at all. And he couldn't ride the same horse as her.
The Crimson Steed 'Red' that Floyd rode was famous for his bad temper, and even the captain of the royal guard, who was quite capable, had a hard time getting close to him. It was unimaginable to put someone else on his back.
'Come to think of it, back then...'
When he rescued Roxana from the merchant ship, Floyd held Roxana and got on the Crimson Steed. He was so out of it at the time that he didn't even think about Red's mood, but now that he thought about it, the guy had willingly let Roxana ride him.
'Was it because I was holding her that he stayed still? Or did he endure it because I looked desperate?'
He thought about trying to ride a horse again with someone in his arms next time, but soon shook his head. There was no one to hold. He hated holding the knights to death, and he couldn't hold Roxana for no reason.
Floyd headed to the Lily Palace, thinking about this and that.
Guided by the maid, Floyd headed to the drawing room on the first floor and stopped breathing when he saw Roxana waiting there.
Floyd didn't know anything about women's dress trends. He wasn't interested in the value of dresses either.
All Floyd could tell was that Roxana, who was standing in front of him now, was very much.
-"Wear this. You'll catch a cold if you get rained on."
She only resembled the girl who had handed him the umbrella.
Not the woman who had lost everything and was only breathing, looking forward to death, as if she would scatter and break, but the girl with that warmth and loveliness from her childhood seemed to have grown up and was standing in front of him.
A white hat with lace ribbons, hair braided and tied back, a sparkling white dress, gloves that came up slightly over her wrists, and a bracelet with blue jewels embedded in it.
Roxana, beautifully adorned, looked exactly like Floyd's only princess from long ago, and Floyd was relieved.
Without knowing why he was so relieved, he stood there blankly, unable to take his eyes off Roxana.
