Chapter 15

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 15

Chapter Title: The Lily Palace's Cherished Troublesome Item (7)

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“She was a good fairy.”

As they left the Lily Palace garden, Jewelry said. Dennis nodded.

“Yeah. But she said there are no fairies in this world, Jewelry. It must've been the princess.”

“There's no way a princess would be here.”

“There is. Dad told Mom that a princess was going to live in the Lily Palace.”

“Really? So she was a princess, not a fairy?”

“Yeah. She looked just like a princess.”

Jewelry recalled the face of the pretty older sister they had just met, listening to her brother.

Silver hair that shimmered in the sunlight, snow-white skin rare in this country, and jewel-like eyes sparkling beneath lovely brows.

She wasn't wearing the glamorous dress of a fairy-tale princess, but she was far more beautiful than any imagined princess. So Jewelry decided to acknowledge her as a princess.

“She was a good princess.”

“Right. If it had been Sir Kain or Sir Adrian, they would've picked us up and thrown us out.”

“But why was the princess crying?”

She was grateful that the princess hadn't scolded them for playing in the garden. Mom had said that when expressing thanks, you should give a gift, so she made a bouquet.

She had expected the princess to smile brightly, but instead, the princess buried her face in the bouquet and cried for a long time.

Unsure what to do, as the two fidgeted, a maid spoke up.

“Miss, young master. It's fine, but you should head back now. The knights' training will be ending soon.”

At those words, they snapped to attention and fled the scene.

“Maybe someone she loves died.”

Jewelry stopped walking at Dennis's words.

“Like Carrie sis?”

“Yeah. When Lord Vester died, Carrie sis had that same look.”

“That's so sad. Bro, let's be nice to the princess. Carrie sis said she felt better because we were nice to her.”

“Yeah. Let's be nice to her. But right now, we gotta get home before Dad finds out.”

“Okay!”

The children, about to start walking again, stopped at the sight of a massive figure approaching from the opposite direction. Looking up at him, bright smiles lit up their faces.

“My lord!”

At the children's simultaneous cry, a smile spread across Floyd's lips. Gazing down at them with honey-dripping eyes, Floyd spread his arms wide.

Jewelry and Dennis came running with pattering footsteps and threw themselves into Floyd's embrace. Floyd scooped Jewelry into one arm and Dennis into the other, standing up abruptly. Jewelry giggled as she was lifted high in an instant.

“Where'd you go?”

“To the Lily Palace.”

Floyd's arms tensed at Dennis's answer.

“Lily Palace? The garden?”

“We met a pretty princess at the Lily Palace.”

This time, Jewelry answered. Floyd glanced back toward the path to the Lily Palace garden.

“The princess was out in the garden?”

“Yes. But is that sister really the princess?”

“Yes, she's the princess.”

“She's really pretty. Prettier than Carrie sis. She's a good princess.”

“She was good to you?”

“Yes, she didn't get mad even though we were playing there. But, my lord, when we gave her flowers, she cried.”

“Hey, don't go around talking about people crying.”

“But the princess is so pitiful. They said someone she loves might've died.”

“It was just a 'maybe.'”

Watching the bickering children, Floyd fell deep into thought. He couldn't tell if it was good or bad that Roxiana had cried upon receiving the flowers from the kids.

“My lord, can we go play at the Lily Palace again?”

After a moment's hesitation at Jewelry's question, Floyd nodded.

“Sure, go play sometimes. I'll talk to your dad about it.”

After setting down the beaming children, Floyd ruffled their hair affectionately and headed toward the Lily Palace.

By the time Roxiana returned to the palace interior, guided by Petria, lunchtime had passed slightly. While the maids set food on the reception room table, Roxiana stood by the window.

She placed the bouquet from the children into an empty vase nearby.

-We'll take good care of them.

-These children will live long, long lives.

The voices audible only to Roxiana no longer felt annoying. Thank you, she whispered inwardly, gently stroking the petals.

“Lady Roxiana, please have your meal.”

At Petria's words, Roxiana turned and headed to the table. Despite instructing them not to prepare too much, the sofa table was overflowing with food.

“I can't eat all this alone, so eat with me, Petria.”

“No, how could I...”

“Eat with me, Petria.”

Petria blinked, then carefully sat across from Roxiana. Roxiana picked up a piece of bread but changed her mind, slicing some crispy roasted pork and placing it on Petria's plate.

Petria gazed at the juicy meat with a moved expression and said,

“Thanks to you, Lady Roxiana, my mouth has been feasting lately.”

“Is that so?”

“Jackie too... Oh, Jackie's the apprentice cook in the kitchen. She was thrilled about gaining weight from the food you send back. Ha, but this isn't good. You need to eat more, Lady Roxiana.”

“I'm eating plenty.”

Roxiana finely chopped some bacon, sprinkled it over a well-roasted soup, and soaked a piece of bread in it. Just as she put the soaked bread in her mouth, a voice came from outside the reception room door.

“May I come in?”

Petria hastily set down her fork and stood, hurrying to the door. Roxiana swallowed the bread in her mouth, rose, and prepared to greet the palace's master.

Soon, Floyd strode in through the open door.

She felt it every time, but Floyd's presence was so overwhelming that just his entrance made the room feel suffocatingly full.

Roxiana walked up to Floyd and tried to kneel, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her up first.

“I told you not to do that.”

Floyd glanced around the reception room and asked,

“In the middle of lunch, I see.”

“I've finished eating.”

“Finished?”

Floyd narrowed his brows and looked down at the mostly untouched food. As his gaze shifted to the plate across from her, Petria flinched.

Dining with the princess? Surely a reprimand would follow.

But Floyd said nothing, simply led Roxiana to the sofa, sat her down, took the seat opposite, and spoke.

“Eat more.”

“Is that an order?”

Floyd's brow twitched.

“Yes, an order.”

Roxiana let out a short sigh and picked up her fork. Watching this, Petria realized she didn't belong there and quietly slipped out of the reception room.

Floyd watched Roxiana force food into her mouth and swallow it down like it was mud, then averted his gaze. It was hard to keep looking at her struggling with perfectly prepared dishes made from the finest ingredients.

As he glanced around idly, his eyes fell on the vase by the window. It held a few nameless wildflowers.

That must be the bouquet from Jewelry and Dennis.

He'd heard she cried, but she hadn't thrown it away—did that mean she liked it? Should he uproot the entire garden bed and fill it with these wildflowers?

With his gaze fixed on the wildflowers, Floyd opened his mouth.

“Flowers, huh.”

Roxiana, who had been staring only at her plate, looked up and followed his gaze.

“Yes.”

“Do you like flowers?”

“Yes.”

“I see. What else do you like?”

Roxiana fell silent and said nothing more. Floyd waited for a reply, anger bubbling up inside him, but he held it back and continued.

“I've sent people to the Kanta Kingdom, so we'll hear news from there soon.”

Roxiana didn't respond this time either. Feeling inexplicably anxious, Floyd added,

“Someone from the Franche royal family might still be alive.”

Only then did Roxiana turn her gaze and look straight at Floyd.

“Really? Do you truly, sincerely believe that, Your Highness?”

Her tone was flat, but Floyd could sense the faint anger laced in her voice.

Floyd wanted to lie, if only to say that someone might have survived by luck, escaped successfully. Maybe a faint light would return to those lifeless eyes.

But even those dead eyes bound him so strangely that he couldn't utter a falsehood.

As Floyd offered no reply, Roxiana dropped her gaze. The shadow cast by her long lashes looked like tears of blood.

“I am grateful for everything you've bestowed upon me, Your Highness. But please, do not give me false hope. Do not let the flame clinging to my barely abandoned wish burn my flesh once more. If you wish for this body, pieced together from ashes, to survive even a year longer, then just let me breathe on like this, without any hope.”

Her earnest plea, devoid of resentment or blame, made Floyd's chest tighten. Anger surged at her persistent resignation.

I'm getting angry again.

It wasn't something to get this mad about, yet the fury kept welling up inexplicably. And what was even harder to understand was,

Why isn't anything happening?

Floyd looked down at his palm.

With his mood this foul, flames should be spilling from his body. The air around him should at least feel scorching.

Yet now, the mad presence coiled deep within him was suspiciously quiet and serene, as if it had fallen asleep.