Ah, perhaps Cezar’s route in the game involved the protagonist taking this opportunity to get closer to him, and soothing his broken heart. That might be how they were supposed to fall in love. When this thought occurred to me, I wondered if I should introduce Cezar to Maria. I was, of course, terrified of my own doom, but I couldn’t just abandon Cezar when he was suffering so badly. All right, after this, let’s figure out how to introduce Cezar to Maria.
A villainess like me could hardly be expected to soothe his soul, the way the protagonist would, so I would have to ask Maria for help. All I could do for now was tell Cezar how I felt. Having made up my mind, I took Cezar’s hand and squeezed it. He looked startled.
“Cezar,” I said, “when I thought I was about to fall, you caught me with these very hands. They’re such warm and gentle hands, and they don’t look filthy to me at all. I’m sure that Janne, your brother, and everyone else who treasures you feels the same way. So I hope you won’t go on calling yourself filthy.”
Cezar was silent as he stared back at me, his eyes wide open, so I went on.
“If any of those people who hold you so dear heard you denigrate yourself in that way, I think they’d feel sad.”
Having said that, I squeezed his hand tightly again.
“Your hands are warm and gentle. And you are as well, Cezar.”
Realizing I was doing all the talking, and worried I might have upset him unintentionally, I looked up at his face to see he was still looking shocked. But he doesn’t look angry. Then, before my eyes, his expression gradually faded to be replaced by a gentle smile.
“Thanks.”
Good, so I didn’t offend him. Feeling relieved, I started to release Cezar’s hand, only to have him grab my hand in response. Then, for some reason, he started to lift my hand toward his lips. Huh? What’s going on?
“Lady Katarina,” I suddenly heard a familiar voice address me from somewhere next to me.
“Huh? Maria?”
I’d turned to see that, for some reason, my friend Maria was standing there.
Maria was always so sweet and charming. But, though I couldn’t imagine why, she had a much sharper look in her eyes than normal.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Again, she did not speak in her usual peaceful tone. Her voice had a much harsher ring to it.
What am I doing? Well, I’m not so sure myself.
Only moments earlier, I’d been telling Cezar how I felt about him, and squeezing his hand, but now, conversely, he had taken my hand. I was on the verge of asking the same question myself. What exactly was going on?
As I was too puzzled to say anything, Cezar spoke up on my behalf.
“We were just having a little chat,” he said, swiftly letting go of my hand and turning to look at Maria. He plastered on the same smile I’d seen him use when confronted by royals and nobles.
“Might you be the famous Light Magic user, Maria Campbell?”
“I really don’t know whether or not I’m famous, but I am indeed Maria Campbell. Would you happen to be Prince Cezar Dahl of Ethenell, or am I mistaken?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Wow, it looks like they’ve both heard of each other. But although they’d heard of one another, they hadn’t been previously acquainted. This was their first meeting. A heartthrob and a beauty looking into each other’s eyes was truly a sight for sore eyes. It could have easily been a still image marking an event in the game. This is how they meet, before eventually falling in love...
“So, Prince Cezar Dahl, perhaps you might tell me why you are here all alone with Lady Katarina?”
“I asked her to be my guide around town here in the capital, just for today. She happened to bring me here on our tour. And you can just call me Cezar.”
“Very well. If you insist, Prince Cezar. There are people whose job is to guide tourists around the towns of Sorcié. I think you would be better served if you employed one of them. Perhaps you can do so in future.”
“Considering my position, I really can’t employ anyone I don’t fully trust. Besides, as you can see, I’m traveling informally today, so not just anyone will do.”
“Is that so? But I was under the impression that you and Lady Katarina had only just met.”
“Actually, I met her during the Assembly, and we happened to get along.”
They both carried on this conversation with a smile, but for some reason, I couldn’t detect any warmth whatsoever between them. On the contrary, though it could have been my imagination, I thought I felt a chill between them.
As the protagonist, Maria had to consider all the other romanceable characters, and couldn’t be so easily won over. But even if she was like an impregnable fortress, and didn’t easily display warmth, shouldn’t Cezar still be interested in her, and start to show hints of attraction to her?
Is he attracted to her? I really don’t see any sign of it... No, no matter how I look at this, he doesn’t seem interested in her at all. Also, I felt like Maria was conducting herself in a colder manner than usual.
While these thoughts raced through my head, their conversation continued. From what I overheard, Maria had been in the area while working outside the office, and took the opportunity to deliver some vegetables to the orphanage on Cyrus’s behalf. This explained why Maria was here in the first place.
She did not seem too happy to see me and Cezar out on the town together. Apparently, it was dangerous for me to walk around with a foreign royal without any servants attending us. I had to admit, she was right. Cezar said something like, “That won’t be a problem. Don’t worry.” Still, I decided that in future, I’d be more careful.
But is this really the glorious meeting that was supposed to lead to the two of them falling in love? Up until a moment ago, I’d thought it would be good for Cezar if the two of them got to know each other, but is it just me, or do they not seem to be getting along at all?
I was starting to feel very concerned, but it didn’t seem like I’d be able to interject, and the conversation continued a while longer.
“Ah, it’s about time for me to be heading back,” Cezar eventually remarked.
“Oh, indeed? Well then, please take care on your way back home,” said Maria. With that, their first interaction was at an end.
What gives? Just watching them talk made my stomach flutter and my heart pound. I feel really worn out.