Chapter 17: Quarantine Ever After
AND so, Reseda settled into his new life in the Chevalier annex. Naturally, Iris was assigned to look after him. Every day, a messenger from the palace would come to check on him, then quickly head back. To allay the royal family’s concerns, they decided to handle him as though he was potentially infected while proving that he was, in fact, just fine. As for the prince himself, he seemed to be enjoying his quarantine life.
Because he was technically “infected,” Iris had to take over all the duties that his royal attendants would’ve handled otherwise—mealtimes, sword practice, horseback riding, studying, and even the occasional game of chess. Then at bedtime, she helped him change into his pajamas.
As he raised his chin, offering her full access to his shirt buttons, Iris couldn’t help but sigh. Granted, at thirteen, he was technically still a child, but surely he could take his own clothes off without assistance! Aren’t you embarrassed to strip down in front of a girl? I know I’m damaged goods, and you’re a prince, and you’d never be interested in me like that, but still! Of course, societal rules dictated that Iris couldn’t possibly complain.
Little did she know, Reseda was, in fact, completely capable of dressing himself—he just chose not to mention it. His ulterior motive? This was possibly his one and only opportunity to get her to take his clothes off, and he wanted to make the most of it.
As she grudgingly unbuttoned his shirt, he reached out and gave one of her ringlets a little tug. It sprang back up, bouncing.
Her scowl deepened. “Quit playing with my hair.”
“But it’s so cute,” he protested, smiling, his handsome face mere inches from hers. Flustered, Iris fell silent and averted her eyes. Regardless of how she felt about him, he was still absurdly good-looking.
Meanwhile, he went back to playing with her curls, and Iris gave up trying to stop him. He was probably downright miserable, stuck here in this abandoned annex instead of lounging at the palace. So, if tugging on her ringlets made him feel better, then so be it.
“Okay, I can handle the rest from here,” he told her with a grin once she’d finished unbuttoning his shirt in silence. Iris left the room to fetch him some clean clothes.
Her family had agreed to foot the bill for all of Reseda’s expenses, and instead of washing his dirty laundry, her father had instructed her to simply throw it all away. Rich people, Iris thought with disdain. In her past life, she couldn’t even fathom that sort of lifestyle. So, instead of being wasteful, she pilfered the least extravagant items, gave them a wash, and snuck them off to the Dark Forest Cavern.
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TWO weeks had passed since Reseda first arrived at Iris’s house, and the two of them had become fast friends, possibly due to their physical proximity. He seemed to want her around for everything he did, probably because she was the only person allowed within ten feet of him, and over time Iris came to see a new side of him—a bratty, needy side. The poor thing was probably starved for love, stuck at the palace, constantly studying the art of kingcraft or what have you. This was the sort of thing Iris contemplated as she spoon-fed him his bak chee.
After breakfast, they did a little studying in the morning—mostly Reseda tutoring Iris in national history, palace operations, highly specific royal etiquette, and so on. Her formal education had fallen behind after she came down with soilpox, but while she was somewhat versed in history and such, the rest was brand new to her. At first, Iris couldn’t understand why anyone would need to learn it, but according to Reseda, this knowledge was required to attend the Academy.
“It’d be fun to enroll together, don’t you think?” he suggested, and Iris nodded. Yes, she’d figured she should probably attend—that way, she would have an easier time helping Camille stay on the right track. Besides, she needed to make sure none of the boys turned into yandere nutjobs.
Furthermore, Iris was surprised by the sheer breadth of Reseda’s knowledge. How was he so well-educated at just thirteen? He must have studied an awful lot. He even taught her some things about fairies.
“There are seven Fairy Leaders in total, each with their own unique wing color. For example, Lady Sauge is the Purple Fairy Leader. There’s also an Orange Fairy Leader assigned to protect my father, but I’ve never met him. They each wear a stole that matches their wings, each with their own unique embroidery, so that’s how you can tell them apart.”
“Oh, that’s right. Lady Sauge’s has sage plants.”
“Right.” Then he told her about all the other Fairy Leaders.
“Am I allowed to know all these things?” Iris inquired.
“I’m making an exception for you, since you’ve already met one of them.”
“Oh! Thank you!”
Iris was excited to learn more. But what he didn’t tell her was that this was actually required learning for royal marriage candidates.
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AFTER lunch came naptime, and as someone who spent every night traveling downtown or to the Dark Forest Cavern to check on her trial patients, Iris sincerely appreciated Reseda’s relaxed afternoon schedule. Likewise, he knew she was busy, so he didn’t hold it against her for wanting to catch some shut-eye. In fact, he often jokingly offered to lend her his lap as a pillow.
Stroking her hair as she dozed off was nothing short of pure bliss for Reseda. He would play with her unguarded curls, wrapping the strands around his index finger. While Iris was asleep, there was no danger of her twisting his arm; theoretically, he could get away with anything. But it was the childlike vulnerability he saw in her sleeping form that filled him with affection for her.
Following her afternoon siesta, Iris decided to wake herself up with a little exercise. Reseda and Iris practiced sword fighting every day, and today was no exception. In fact, he had improved so much lately that she was starting to have a harder time against him. Desperate to win, she started lifting weights in secret. After all, she had to make sure she was stronger than him—and Nigel too, for that matter! In case of yandere-related emergencies!
Breathing hard, Iris struck back at Reseda, sending his sword flying through the air. It spun in tidy circles, then planted itself blade-first in the grass.
“Well! I see you kids are having a fun time!”
Just then, a voice called out to them. Iris whirled around to find Crown Prince Bleuet standing there, eyebrows raised, accompanied by his knight-guards.
“Bleuet!” Reseda took a few steps in his brother’s direction, then stopped himself. Likewise, Iris curtsied at a distance.
“There’s nothing to fear, you two.”
“Your Highness!”
“You two stay back!”
But despite the knights’ protests, Bleuet held up a hand to silence them. Then he walked right up to Reseda and ruffled his bright-pink hair.