An Unexpected Proposal

April 27, 2020

"There’s nothing that’s going to change. I will welcome her as the Grand Duchess."

Cabelenus said firmly, noticing Gajev's uneasy gaze.

"...Are you truly alright with this?"

"There's no need to be distressed over a problem that hasn't even arisen yet. It's not like the master of Schwarhan to worry over something so trivial."

"My apologies, I was wrong to be concerned about my lord," Gajev quickly bowed his head, realizing his mistake. His concern was driven by a sense of unease, but now he saw how foolish it had been. The Cabelenus he had always known was a man who made the impossible possible. Fear was not something that suited him.

"Even so, it’s better to avoid unnecessary trouble."

Alicia was full of unnecessary thoughts, and it would be better to avoid leaving room for things that could cause noise or stir the pot.

"What should we do then?"

"We need to erase all traces of Alicia."

"Erasing them...how?"

"Make it so that the Princess of Neuschwein died here. And wipe away all information about her."

Cabelenus’s eyes glinted sharply, like a beast gripping the nape of its prey.

"Then what about the young lady...?"

"Whether it's fortunate or unfortunate, Alicia doesn’t resemble the appearance of Neuschwein."

"Being noticeable means it's easy to spread rumors."

"Can you manage it?"

"Of course."

Gajev grinned confidently. As soon as Cabelenus mentioned it, Gajev had already come up with a perfect plan in his mind.

"After erasing all the information about the young lady, we’ll make it appear as though she died. Then we’ll have the servants witness it, and let the rumors spread from there."

Alicia had been a famous figure in Neuschwein. It would be safer to use her notoriety to handle the situation rather than trying to erase her completely.

"That would certainly stir things up a bit."

"But that will make her memory stick more strongly in people’s minds. And over time, they’ll forget her, leaving only fragmented memories."

Gajev nodded briefly. Though Cabelenus didn’t care much about it, the label of ‘slave’ had always been a stain. If they could remove it, it would be to Alicia’s advantage in becoming the Grand Duchess. It was better than her being labeled a slave, especially since many were eyeing her position. There was no need to draw attention to her and put her in danger.

"Not bad."

"However, that would leave her status ambiguous."

Once Alicia was freed from her slave status, there were plans to marry her into an appropriate family. But that was only after meeting the conditions laid out by Jerpeneus. Until Cabelenus received approval for her marriage from Jerpeneus, Alicia’s status as a slave was preferable. After all, there were many eyes on her, all waiting to interfere with her path to becoming Grand Duchess. There was no need to draw unnecessary attention to her.

"I don’t plan on dragging this out, so it’ll be fine."

"Understood. However..."

Gajev trailed off, sensing the mood of his lord. He knew it was overstepping, but his loyalty to Cabelenus made him worry about his lord's well-being.

"What is it?"

"Wouldn’t it be better to inform His Majesty about the young lady? If His Majesty knows about her powers, then your proposal might—"

"That’s exactly why I can’t tell him."

Cabelenus cut off Gajev’s words sharply. Jerpeneus genuinely cared for Cabelenus, and Cabelenus knew that better than anyone. But that was precisely why he couldn’t let Jerpeneus learn about Alicia’s true nature. If Jerpeneus found out about Alicia’s unique powers, his reaction would be all too predictable. Cabelenus exhaled a short breath, lowering his gaze.

***

"Something’s come up, so you’ll have to leave first."

"By myself?"

"I’ll send Gajev along, so don’t worry too much."

"If Sir Cloud could accompany me, I wouldn’t worry, but still..."

"I told you to stop trailing off like that."

Cabelenus clicked his tongue briefly. Alicia, who had gotten used to voicing her opinions, still found herself holding back her words out of habit.

"It doesn’t matter what you say. So don’t overthink it in your head, just speak honestly."

Alicia hesitated, looking to Cabelenus's eyes before cautiously speaking. Revealing her thoughts was still foreign to her, but before Cabelenus, there was no other option. The persistent man never relented until he got what he wanted.

"...I feel a bit sad thinking you won’t be here."

"That’s a nice thing to hear."

"Eh?"

A sudden blush spread across Alicia’s pale cheek.

"Come here."

Alicia hesitated but carefully stepped into Cabelenus’s embrace. His arms, strong and firm, wrapped around her waist, as if waiting for her.

"Once you leave, I’ll join you soon after. So, don’t start looking elsewhere."

"Looking elsewhere?"

"I mean don’t think about anything unnecessary. You always have so many thoughts in your head."

Cabelenus gently brushed her hair back. Despite the roughness of his hands, his touch was always gentle and careful—something Alicia always found mysterious.

"We’ll depart within this month, so if you need to pack anything, give it to Gajev."

"I don’t have anything to pack..."

"Again, trailing off."

Cabelenus nodded briefly. Alicia hesitated for a moment before speaking carefully.

"...If it’s alright, may I take something with me?"

"What is it?"

"I heard from Sir Cloud that royal items are stored separately. If mine is among them, perhaps I could take it with me?"

Alicia’s voice got quieter the more she spoke, until at last, she was barely audible. But that, in turn, piqued Cabelenus’s curiosity. It was rare for Alicia to ask for anything.

"It’s not anything grand, just a few ordinary sheets of paper."

Alicia, misinterpreting Cabelenus’s silence, hurriedly added to her request.

"Relax. If it’s just a few ordinary sheets, it’s no trouble at all. If you want it, I’ll get it for you."

Cabelenus patted Alicia’s back comfortingly. Alicia carefully raised her gaze to meet his.

"Is it really alright?"

"Why would it be difficult?"

Cabelenus quickly scanned Alicia's face. There was an unusual sense of anticipation on her expression. It was so surprising that Cabelenus immediately added to his words.

"Or how about we go look for it right now?"

"Right now?"

"Instead of just a few sheets of paper, we can check in person to see if there's anything you need. Once we leave for Schwarhan, you won't be coming back here for a while."

Alicia stared at him with a bewildered expression at Cabelenus' offer.

"...Can we really go look for it right now?"

"If you want to."

A faint smile spread on Cabelenus' lips. Just the fact that Alicia had asked for something made him feel rather good.

"I don't want much. I just..."

"Then from now on, ask for more."

"..."

"If you want, I can give you more than just a few sheets of paper."

Cabelenus stood up from the bed while holding Alicia. Her light, slender body was easy to carry. In fact, he enjoyed the feeling of her arms around his neck, even though it made her seem flustered.

"I... I can walk by myself..."

"If you don't say it properly, I won't know what you're trying to say."

"..."

"As I've said before, if you have something you want to say, don't hold back. If you just swallow it inside, you'll never be able to do anything."

As Cabelenus walked forward without hesitation, Alicia's face turned pale. If this continued, she would be carried down the hallway by him. She nervously chewed her lip as the door grew nearer, before finally speaking.

"...P-put me down."

It was a very small voice, but it was enough to stop Cabelenus' steps.

"See? It's easy when you actually try."

Cabelenus gently set Alicia down. Though he missed the warmth that had been there, the result wasn’t bad.

"Come to my side, not behind me."

Of course, the way she stepped back and walked wasn’t perfect. Cabelenus imagined how much time it would take for her to become a fitting Duchess, while slowing his pace. He had never walked alongside someone, but seeing Alicia struggle to keep up with him naturally made him slow down. For a while, only the sound of their footsteps echoed quietly in the silence.

"Your Highness, what about here—"

"Open the door."

At Cabelenus' gesture, the soldier standing guard quickly opened the door, and the light from inside illuminated the room. Only after the light was on did the state of the room become apparent. It looked like the belongings had just been hastily moved and stacked; the interior was not particularly clean. As soon as Cabelenus saw this, he regretted it. His emotions had led him to act too hastily. Even though Alicia seemed indifferent, the people of Neuschwein were her kin, and the things in this room were their relics.@@novelbin@@

"It seems it would be difficult to find anything in this state. I'll send someone to look tomorrow when the sun is up..."

Cabelenus couldn’t finish his sentence and frowned. Since entering the room, Alicia had been staring blankly at one spot. Just as he was about to call her name, Alicia's feet moved. Tap, tap, tap—without a chance to stop her, Alicia's hands hurriedly opened and closed the drawers. She was looking for something.

"Alicia."

"I-I'm sorry..."

At Cabelenus' call, Alicia snapped out of her daze and looked back at him with a frightened expression. In her hand, she was holding a few crumpled sheets of paper. Cabelenus furrowed his brow and walked over to her.

"What is that?"

"..."

"Alicia."

When Cabelenus called her again, Alicia finally looked up at him. Although she seemed to have calmed down, the sudden terrible memories still frightened her, causing her body to tense reflexively. But standing before her was not the Queen of Neuschwein, but Cabelenus. There was no reason to be afraid. Alicia took a deep breath and, with trembling hands, held out the paper she was holding.

"...It’s my mother’s portrait."

"A portrait? But this is..."

Cabelenus frowned as he looked at the worn parchment.

The paper Alicia had handed him wasn’t a drawing, but writing.

"The portrait is on the back."

As Alicia said, he flipped the paper over, and there was a portrait of a woman. Cabelenus paused for a moment, considering what to say about the woman in the drawing, who was smiling. It wasn’t like him to hesitate, but seeing the redness around Alicia's eyes made him unable to speak immediately.

"...You look a lot like her."

In the end, the only response Cabelenus could offer was that much. Alicia checked his reaction once more, then slowly relaxed her body.

"My mother was much more beautiful."

"Really?"

"Yes. She was a great beauty."

Alicia looked at her mother's portrait with moist eyes.

"Then why is this portrait here? Who painted it?"

"It’s embarrassing, but I painted it."

"You painted it?"

Cabelenus’ gaze fell back on the portrait. Now that he knew Alicia had painted it, the painting seemed to look different to him.

"I haven’t painted in years, though."

"That sounds like you're saying someone didn’t like that you painted."

"No one liked it when I did anything."

Alicia laughed awkwardly and avoided his gaze. She had always thought she would never forget her mother’s face, but as time passed, it had grown blurry. The reason she started painting was to not forget her mother’s face. Though the drawings were clumsy, it was the only way she could remember her mother, drawing her face over and over with the worn pen and on discarded paper. But no one knew that Alicia liked to draw. The day she was caught drawing, she was accused of stealing expensive paper and pens, beaten up, and forbidden from drawing. All the portraits she had drawn were taken from her. Alicia could only see the drawings she had lost when the Queen of Neuschwein was in a bad mood. Whenever the Queen was unhappy, she would make Alicia kneel at her feet and, in full view, burn one of the portraits she had drawn. Watching her mother’s portrait burn away was a source of amusement for the Queen of Neuschwein, as she reveled in Alicia’s screams.