Chapter 94

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Trials of Prince Alfonso
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Count Levien, just in case, shook out the envelope once more. But nothing came out except the letter itself. He had read it twice, but he couldn't find a single flaw in the short message. He questioned Grand Princess Lariesa.

“Besides this letter, did the Prince do anything else to offend you? The letter itself seems to have no problematic content.”

Lariesa shouted in irritation.

“There's no heart in this letter!”

Lariesa pointed a finger at the salutation.

“I sent my letter early this morning, but this didn't come back until well after ten! See? It says ‘in the morning,’ not ‘early morning’!”

“Perhaps he was having breakfast, or maybe he had other appointments this morning?”

The letter was unsatisfactory, but Count Levien, who refused to take her side, angered her even more.

“Is food more important than me?!”

Lariesa looked ready to throw something. But she quickly filled her eyes with tears and whispered weakly.

“I've been waiting for the Prince's reply with bated breath, unable to even eat breakfast…”

Her mood swings were mercurial. He had heard much about the sensitivity and delicate temperament of Grand Duke Eudes's second daughter. But no one had told him she was also this hot-tempered. Until he experienced it firsthand, Count Levien had no idea he was escorting a demon from hell to Etruscan. He stammered, trying to soothe Lariesa.

“Your Highness, but Prince Alfonso remembered you saying you wanted to see the city of Taranto, and he is asking you on a date first.”

Count Levien desperately searched for positive signs.

“Prince Alfonso must have good feelings for you. Men don't put effort into women they're not interested in.”

“R-Really…?”

Lariesa lifted her tear-stricken face to look up at Count Levien. Her long, doughy face, crumpled in tears, looked like a horse in agony. It was a face that had miraculously inherited only the least flattering features of Grand Duke Eudes and Grand Duchess Bernadette. Count Levien wished it was Grand Princess Suzanne sitting here instead. She would have been pretty even on the verge of tears, and more importantly, she wouldn't have been on the verge of tears for the ridiculous reason of not liking a perfectly fine letter.

‘Just be average, please be average…! You don't have to be a peerless beauty like your sister, nor do you have to be the kindest person in the world because you're not! Please, just don't cause any trouble!’

“But…!”

Grand Princess Lariesa wailed again in a piercing voice. Startled that his inner thoughts might have shown on his face, Count Levien focused his attention back on her.

“I addressed him as just ‘Lariesa,’ without any title, but Prince Alfonso called me ‘Grand Princess de Valois’ and referred to himself as ‘Prince Alfonso’!”

She shook the letter violently.

“It's like he has no intention of getting closer!”

Count Levien did his utmost to placate her.

“The two of you are not even engaged yet. So he must be cautious about using your first name. It is the official assessment of the diplomatic corps that the heir to the Etruscan throne is a gentleman of prudent character.”

“R-Really?”

“It is because he is a gentleman. Come now, Your Highness. Dry your tears and begin your preparations. You must greet the Prince this afternoon. Your skin is so translucent and beautiful today, but if you cry any more, your face will swell.”

Hearing this, Lariesa was startled and wiped her tears away. Count Levien let out a sigh of relief. Phew, it's over.

“Count Levien, we can't go on like this. I have to do something to capture the Prince's interest.”

Lariesa made Count Levien, who had been relaxing, thinking it was over, sit back down. Then she whispered her plan into his ear. Count Levien was shocked by the preposterous idea.

“What? That… Do you really think that will be effective?”

He understood what she was trying to achieve, but as a man, he could state with certainty that it would not have the intended effect.

“Are you telling me to do nothing and just sit on my hands?!”

Tears were welling up in Grand Princess Lariesa's eyes. She looked ready to fly into a rage again. Count Levien decided to grant the troublesome princess's wish before objects started flying across the room. It didn't seem effective, but it wasn't something that would cause great harm to others. Though it could backfire…

‘Ah, what's the worst that could happen?’

This marriage was a matter between nations. Ultimately, Leo III and Philippe IV were the final decision-makers. It didn't seem likely that Prince Alfonso could exert much influence on the negotiation process just because he grew tired of Grand Princess Lariesa.

“I will prepare it as you have commanded.”

In any case, the person whose mood Count Levien had to manage was Grand Princess Lariesa, not Prince Alfonso.

***

Lariesa, as if she hadn't cried that morning at all, greeted Prince Alfonso adorned in splendor. Rose-colored rouge brought a lively glow to her white skin.

“Your Highness! You came to pick me up.”

“It is only natural.”

Alfonso maintained a polite and composed demeanor. After coming down to the winter palace in Taranto, his days consisted mostly of escorting Grand Princess Lariesa. There were royal duties, of course, but Grand Princess Lariesa usually accompanied the royal family on their joint schedules. So, except for the time he spent on his lessons as a prince and his personal training, he was attached to her all day long.

It was a schedule most boys his age would have run away from long ago. But he was silently fulfilling his given duties.

“What did you have scheduled for this morning?”

Lariesa was probing Prince Alfonso. She wanted to question him about the reason for his late reply. Alfonso answered immediately in a level tone.

“I had javelin practice this morning.”

A smile spread across Lariesa's face. *Right, my dear Prince Alfonso wouldn't be late in replying to my letter for no reason.* But wait, didn't he know a letter would be coming in the morning? Shouldn't he have checked for letters, written a reply, and then gone to practice? That's what I would have done. Her disappointment was self-generating. Lariesa couldn't hide her expression as she looked up at Alfonso. Alfonso, having no idea what she was thinking, looked back at her. As their eyes met, a faint smile appeared on his handsome face.

‘The Prince smiled at me!’

A thrilling sensation shot up Lariesa's spine. It felt like a small firework had gone off in her head.

‘He loves me too!’

The moment she saw Alfonso's face, all her disappointment melted away like snow. This was enough. With a single, polite upturn of Alfonso's lips, Lariesa became the happiest woman in the world.

While Lariesa journeyed between heaven and hell, the carriage carrying them headed into the city of Taranto. The winter palace was very close to the city, so it was a short carriage ride away.

Lariesa was dressed in a pink satin gown she would have worn in autumn back in Montpellier. When the carriage stopped, she, in her thin dress, elegantly accepted Prince Alfonso's escort and disembarked. Just then, a man holding a huge bouquet of flowers approached from the direction of the square's fountain. The bouquet was a deep pink, as if to match the color of Grand Princess Lariesa's satin dress. The man knelt dramatically and offered the flowers to her.

“This bouquet is from my master, who sends it anonymously out of his admiration for you, Your Highness! Please, accept it!”

“Oh, my!”

Lariesa, with a flushed face, eagerly took the bouquet into her arms.

“I am so grateful to whichever gentleman sent this! I cannot accept his heart… but the flowers are truly beautiful.”

She was so intoxicated with the idea of being ‘the popular me’ that she failed to notice the displeased look on Prince Alfonso's face.

“My duty is done!”

The man, perhaps worried that the Grand Princess might return the flowers, quickly handed them over and left the square.

“My goodness, how did he know I would be in Taranto today…? He must truly like me.”

“Indeed.”

Prince Alfonso's reply was remarkably cynical for the ever-gentle Alfonso.

“Today's schedule was decided only this morning, and was known only to you, me, and my attendants. How could that man have sent a bouquet?”

“My point exactly!”

*Is he jealous? He must be jealous. Be jealous!* Lariesa scanned Alfonso with eyes sparkling with anticipation. Alfonso barely restrained the urge to press his fingers to his throbbing temples. This princess was either an arrogant person who thought others were incredibly stupid, or she herself was so stupid that she was unaware that other people possessed the faculty of observation. The man who handed over the bouquet had delivered his master's message to her in Etruscan. And the Grand Princess, whose Etruscan was poor, had understood the message about 'a bouquet sent by an admiring man' perfectly, without a hint of hesitation. An unannounced schedule, a perfectly timed situation, a princess who fluently understands a foreign language she supposedly doesn't know well. Anyone could see this was a self-staged act where she sent flowers to herself.

‘Does she have so little confidence?’

Alfonso sighed in spite of himself. The petals of the enormous bouquet that Grand Princess Lariesa was joyfully clutching were deep pink at the tips, but faded to white closer to the calyx, before abruptly turning a deep green at the very end. Green descending down the stem, dark green leaves. Green eyes. Sparkling green eyes. His Ariadne. Alfonso rubbed his face dryly. It was a gesture to suppress the urge to drop everything and run away.

***

After the troublemakers had left for Taranto, the de Mare estate in San Carlo was enjoying relatively peaceful days.

Isabella, released from her confinement, was extremely wary of Cardinal de Mare. During the hours he was home, she would lock herself in her room to avoid him. Lucrezia, whose pockets had been picked clean by her son, leaving her with no disposable income, was also cooped up at home drinking, unable to enjoy her usual pastime of shopping. The mother-daughter pair, Lucrezia and Isabella, passed the time quietly, either gossiping about others or planning for the future.

As a result, Ariadne and Arabella were enjoying a very pleasant daily life. As they say, give a man a seat and he'll want to lie down; once her daily life became peaceful, Arabella started wanting a little more.

“Ari!”

“What is it, Arabella?”

“It's already the first of February. Has the conservatory said anything about my acceptance?”

It was about the acceptance letter from the conservatory that Arabella had been eagerly awaiting.

“You're right. I think the results should be arriving soon.”

“Ari, you know…”

Arabella fidgeted, dragging out her words. It seemed she wanted to ask a favor but couldn't bring herself to say it. A mischievous desire to see Arabella overcome her own awkwardness and ask for herself arose—it would be adorable—but Ariadne smiled brightly and said what her sister wanted to hear first.

“I'll go ask the sister in charge of music at the Grand Basilica how the admissions process at the Padua Conservatory is going.”

“Really?”

Arabella's face lit up. Ariadne smiled and kissed her forehead.

“Of course. As it happens, Father went to the Grand Basilica today and left behind the purses with the servants' wages. It's a large sum, so I was uneasy about entrusting it to someone else. I can deliver it and see if the sister is there. What do you think?”

Arabella, who had been bracing herself for the tedious process of Ariadne writing a letter, receiving a reply, and sending another, brightened even more.

“That's perfect!”

“Alright, then. I'll be right back, so you be good.”

Ariadne immediately told Sancha to prepare the Cardinal's silver carriage. As she was grabbing her outer coat to leave, Ariadne looked at Arabella and playfully wrinkled her nose.

“By the way, how long are you going to keep calling me 'Ari'?”

“What?”

Arabella's face turned beet red.

“Such an impertinent little sister, aren't you? I helped with your application, submitted it for you, and now I'm even going to check on the results, yet you keep calling your big sister by her name?”

Everything Ariadne said was true, so Arabella was at a loss for words.

“I don't know! You're mean, Ari! Just go!”

With a flushed face, Arabella pushed Ariadne all the way to the entrance. Ariadne didn't tease her anymore and, smiling, obediently boarded the carriage.

“Be careful!”

Arabella waved to see Ariadne off. Ariadne waved back in return.

‘When the acceptance letter from the Padua Conservatory arrives…’

Arabella's face flushed.

‘I'll call her sister then.’

She’s earned it… she has. Having made this resolution, Arabella wanted to show her gratitude to Ariadne somehow. A gift would be most appropriate. But what to get was the problem. Her sister Ariadne had all the money. All Arabella received was an allowance. Compared to the lavish gifts Ariadne's friends from outside sent her, Arabella's allowance was truly pocket change.

Just then, a silver fragment flashed through Arabella's mind.

‘The metal clasp!’

Sister Ari liked to ponder over strange objects. After thinking for a while, nine times out of ten, she would send Sancha to a workshop to have it actually made. The things Ariadne created were always either useful or became wildly popular in the city. The more peculiar it was, and the closer it was to the object she wanted to make, the more she would like it. The metal clasp fit all these conditions. And Arabella was sure she had seen an identical one before.

‘It belonged to Sister Isabella.’

A smile spread across Arabella's lips. Coincidentally, both Cardinal de Mare and Ariadne were out of the house. That meant it was time for Isabella to emerge from her room.

“That's what I'll do today.”

Arabella decided on a 'game of exploration' for her agenda on the first day of February.