She was still holding the trowel she’d been examining just before she was ensnared in the orb, and she squeezed her hands around it for dear life. She was on a collision course with the ground. But just when she should have felt a tremendous impact, she felt... almost nothing. Rosemarie then slowly opened her eyes.
The rose garden that she had been overlooking just a moment ago from her chamber window expanded before her very eyes. The roses were in full bloom, cascading like a flood of color. However, most likely because she was being obstructed by the glass orb, she wasn’t able to take in their scent.
(I-I thought I was going to die there, but...)
Her tensed shoulders went weak. Her knees had probably gone weak as well. As she tried to lift her exhausted body to its feet, she saw the sorcerer, who had jumped safely down to the ground despite the three-floor drop, starting to walk without so much as turning back in her direction.
“You must be Mage Edeltraud, yes? Um, where are we... um, could you please listen?” Assuming they were the Archmagus Claudio had mentioned as one of his confidants, she timidly tried to get their attention. They didn’t look her way at all. And it was only a matter of time before her voice stuck in her throat.
The sorcerer had stepped into the royal castle.
(Eeeek! Wait, I can’t do this! Please, let me go back to my room...! No! At least give me my bucket!)
The sorcerer walked without an ounce of hesitation between the officials, knights, court ladies, and the aristocrats in service that all traversed the corridor—all the while with the glass orb holding Rosemarie in tow behind them.
This had turned into a total carnival exhibit.
Rosemarie was feeling a mix of embarrassment and fear, making her feel numb inside. She covered her face, which was somehow hot despite her going pale as a sheet, and contracted her body like a hibernating bear.
Rosemarie thought that this torture would last forever, but fortunately it wasn’t long before it came to an end.
“Mage Edeltraud! What in blazes are you doing?!” From the sorcerer’s destination, the sound of a young man echoed loud and clear over the clamor of the castle. She slowly peeked through the spaces between her fingers just in time to see a deer-headed knight with fine horns angrily coming their way.
“Move, Alto Clausen.”
“I will not. What are you doing bringing Her Highness here in such a manner? Please, I implore you to dispel your magic at once.” The deer-headed knight named Alto stared firmly, not giving in to the deadpan sorcerer.
(Alto Clausen? As in, Squire Alto Clausen? The Vice Captain of the Imperial Guard that the prince mentioned?)
Rosemarie stared fearfully at the deer-headed knight, her vision blurry from the film of tears in her eyes. The sorcerer—Edeltraud—gave a leisurely shake of the head.
“Can’t. Taking her to Claudio. Need Volland’s princess now. For Claudio.”
“For His Highness? —Oh, it slipped my mind! A thousand apologies. Well, then, shall we hurry on along?” As soon as he heard that it was “for Claudio,” his deer face started to flex and warp. Rosemarie averted her eyes, then turned back to see a human-faced knight with dark brown hair combed to the back, standing there with a dauntless expression. This knight, with his dark blue-tinged eyes and his steadfast persona, was someone that she remembered seeing often by Claudio’s side over the past three months during their engagement.
The knight’s 180 from challenging Edeltraud to siding with them had been all too fast, and Rosemarie waited on the results with bated breath. She felt herself go limp as she once again covered her face and dropped to her knees.
(Oh, for Heaven’s sake. The prince’s entourage is slightly off their rocker.)
Whether it was the clergyman Fritz who came dropping down from the ceiling the other day, this sorcerer, or that knight over there—they all made Claudio seem charming by comparison.
As Rosemarie sat there recalling Claudio enraged, the clamor around her suddenly came to a halt.
“Alto, I sent you to go see what the commotion was about... So, tell me. What is the meaning of this? Master Edel, I ask you the same. What are you doing?” Rosemarie heard a rigid, deep voice that she hadn’t heard in quite some time, and she felt that she had been saved.
It seemed that the suspicious, interested gazes stabbing into her from passers-by had somewhat diminished.
As Rosemarie kept hiding her face and her tears of relief, the glass she was in poofed out of existence without any warning. The trowel that was bottled up with her fell to the ground with a light clank.
“Huh...?” She was overcome with a floating sensation that filled her core with dread.
“Delivery,” Edeltraud said in an emotionless tone. As soon as Rosemarie heard them, she felt someone’s arms catch her fall.
When she slowly opened her eyes, Rosemarie found herself in the arms of the black-haired crown prince as he casually stared at her. His complexion seemed even worse than when she saw him seven days ago.
“...”
“...H-Hello, s-so very nice to see you after so... long?” Rosemarie stammered out a whispered greeting as Claudio stood in overwhelming silence. He blinked once, then slowly curled the corners of his lips into a smile.
“Yes, my sincere apologies. I was so busy that I neglected you for quite some time. Not being able to see you made my lonesome heart ache.” Her pulse skipped a beat at his words, but she soon reassessed.
(He doesn’t mean any of this literally. It’s all an act. Just an act. He dislikes me, and there are people watching, after all.)
Even though she knew no amount of internal anger would cause her to see Claudio with a beast head, hearing him deliver those lines through human lips made her almost accidentally believe them.
“I was just in the middle of taking a little breather. If you would not mind my office as the setting, how about we partake in a cup of tea together?”
“Huh? No way...! Um, no, I mean, yes, I would like to partake. I would love to, in fact!”
She nearly made the truth known. But when confronted with his broad, threatening smile, she quickly varnished over her slip of the tongue. Claudio grimaced ever so slightly at the knee-jerk reply he was given, but he promptly started to walk on with Rosemarie still clutched in his arms. Alto and Edeltraud followed close behind.
“Um, sorry, but could you please let me down?”
All of the passers-by made way for Claudio, bowing their heads. As they stepped away, she caught their looks of shock mixed with the occasional tepid stare. It made her uncomfortable. She tried to move her legs in attempts to get down, but Claudio hugged her even tighter.
“Am I not permitted to bask in the joy of carrying your delicate frame in my arms, my dear?” The heart-wrenching expression on his face quickened Rosemarie’s pulse and heated up her cheeks once more.
(—I want to run back to my room and crawl underneath my bed...)
That is the only thing Rosemarie wished for as she continued to deliver a stiff, awkward smile.