After that, the conversation between us and the Emperor went smoothly.
The Emperor no longer asked the reason for the cancelation, as if he had expressed his affirmation to the Princess’s words, and the discussion that followed was about the conflict between Count Cernard and Duke Estel, as well as the political measures that had to be taken after the cancelation.
It included some complex political matters concerning the inner workings of the aristocracy within the Empire.
In other words, it meant that I couldn’t interfere in the conversation in any way, and the only thing I could do was to sit still and pretend that I was paying attention. In a nutshell, I was bored and had to find a way to kill some time.
As I tried to hold back my yawns and quietly listened to the conversation between the Emperor and my father, I noticed that the Princess sitting on the right side of the Emperor was making strange gestures toward me.
Yes, if I had to give an example, she was acting like a person trying to convey something through incomprehensible signs.
“…?”
Of course, I couldn’t understand what she wanted to convey. The Princess and I weren’t some lovers who could understand each other’s thoughts just by looking into each other’s eyes, so if she thought that she could convey her thoughts to me just by blinking her eyes, she was making a big mistake.
“…..”
As I made a confused expression, the Princess’s eyes began to turn sharp.
Yes, I didn’t know anything else, but I could definitely recognize that expression. Because whenever I didn’t understand her teachings, the Princess would always make that expression and beat me up in the name of some “light sparring”.
When I nodded, the Princess also nodded slightly.
I didn’t know the details, but she seemed to have judged that I answered her question in the affirmative.
“Your Majesty.”
“…it was. Duke, we think that…well, what is it? Iris?”
The Emperor cut off the conversation with my father in the middle, and turned to look at the Princess.
The Princess bowed her head slightly toward the Emperor and spoke, “Is it okay if I take my leave? We have not yet finished the preparations for the banquet to celebrate the National Foundation Day tomorrow. I believe that the preparations should be completed at least before the end of the night, so that the banquet tomorrow will not be disrupted.”
Saying that, the Princess pointed at the sunset outside the window with her eyes.
“Uhm. I did have something to talk with you, but I can’t make you wait as well. Very well, I will allow you to retreat.”
Saying that, the Emperor nodded, and the Princess quietly turned her head to look at me.
“Your Majesty, my apologies for saying such a thing during an important conversation, but would it be all right if I borrow the heir to Estel for a while?”
“…heir to Estel?”
The Emperor looked at the Princess with an expression that meant he couldn’t understand at all.
“Why?”
“Actually, we needed someone who could objectively evaluate whether the preparations for the banquet are going well. The heir to Estel here has never attended a banquet for the National Foundation Day, so I thought he was someone who could evaluate from a third party’s point of view without prejudice.”
“…hmm.”
At those words, the Emperor showed an uncomfortable expression for some reason.
Although I wasn’t familiar with the etiquette of the imperial family, I was well aware that it would be extremely rude for a subject to leave on his own while all of his business had not yet been completed.
But even so, the Emperor nodded his head kindly to the Princess’s request.
“It’s rare for you to ask me for a favor, so it must be something that can’t be helped. Very well, you can also take the heir to Estel. This discussion is about to end anyway. Oh, and heir to Estel…”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You may act as an escort for Iris. I believe that you, as a gentleman, will not do anything strange to Iris. Heh heh.”
“…..”
That’s utter nonsense!
I wouldn’t be able to do anything to her even if I tried.
****
“…thank you. Your Highness.”
“Don’t mention it. I just came up with a good excuse to leave as I too was getting tired of the discussion. His Majesty is a nice person, but sometimes he likes to sit down with young people and have boring conversations. It is His Majesty’s only shortcoming.”
Saying that, the Princess muttered with a bitter smile on her lips.
The face of the Princess, who smiled lightly with a slightly younger face than the one I was familiar with, evoked considerable emotions in me.
“…..”
“…why are you looking at me like that? Heir to Estel?”
“No. It’s nothing…”
“…?”
I mean it’s kind of amazing how different they were. The Princess in my memory was the kind of woman you wouldn’t consider a normal person. She was stubborn and inflexible, her mind was as hard as a rock, and she fanatically worshiped martial arts.
Putting everything else aside, no normal person could mercilessly brutalize a person every day for a year in the name of making them stronger.
And the Princess did such a terrible thing quite casually.
That was the reason why I was extremely reluctant to meet the Princess face-to-face. However, the Princess of the present time was different from the Princess I was familiar with 10 years in the future.
No, as things were, it was safe to say that they were completely different people with the same face.
She had the flexibility to designate the Emperor’s words as ‘boring’, and the meticulousness to take care of me even in the Emperor’s face. All of those were factors were at the opposite extreme from the Princess I was familiar with.
It was a fact that was quite unexpected to me, but the Princess of the current time seemed like a person with some common sense and with a normal way of thinking.
It seems that the worries I had were only groundless. The thought that such a normal woman would have no intention to harm me naturally made my heart lighten.
“By the way, Heir to Estel, I want to ask you something.”
Just as I was regaining my peace of mind while looking at the Princess, she asked me a question with a very hesitant expression.
It was the first time I had ever seen her make such an expression, so it was quite refreshing.
“I-I don’t know if it’s okay to ask something like this… but I can’t stand being curious. May I?”
“…? It’s okay. I don’t mind if you ask me anything.”
When I answer her question with a somewhat bewildered look, she suddenly stopped and looked straight into my face.
“I mean, to be honest, I feel very familiar with you. As if you were someone I have known for a long time. Aren’t you curious? To have these feelings for someone you’ve never met before. I’ve met so many people so far, but I’ve never felt this way before.”
Saying that, the Princess chuckled and smiled.
“And so, let me ask you a question. Don’t think too much into it. This is just a question out of simple curiosity.”
The next moment, the Princess’s eyes emitted a sharp light.
“Sir Cain, have we ever met before?”
“…..”
For a moment, I was so shocked that I felt a sense of suffocation. I was so surprised that I couldn’t answer anything and my whole body stiffened in place.
And it saved me as well. If I had been sane, I might have backtracked like an idiot or, at worst, collapsed on the floor.
“Well, I don’t think I have any personal memories of encountering Your Highness in the past. In the first place, I was born and raised in the Duchy of Estel. I have never left the Duchy and not visited any other place at all.”
At the answer, which seemed a bit stiff even to me, the Princess showed a dissatisfied expression, like someone who received an unsatisfactory reply. It was as if she was expressing that it wasn’t the answer she wanted.
“Yes, that’s right. You’ve never met me personally in the past, I mean…”
The Princess, who was looking at me with a puzzled expression, clicked her tongue once and looked away from me.
“I’ll try to believe your excuse for now. But keep it in mind, Heir to Estel.”
“…what do you mean, Your Highness?”
“Let me tell you that there is a limit to such an absurdity. I might have no evidence right now, but I am not going to give up…and, once I find out, then it won’t end like this.”
“…..”
At the words of the Princess, I unknowingly clenched my fists. I didn’t know why, but I became sure of one thing…
‘The Princess is also a regressor!’
The kind of regressor who, like me, went through a regression of 10 years.
And, there was a possibility that the current Iris el Devhart knew something.
Something…about the mystery that I was unaware of.
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thnks
Wlc
thanks for the chapter
this was an interesting development.
thought the princess just saw some fear in MC’s body language and was curious
Thanks for reading.