“At this point in time, His Majesty has stated that he will not remove me as crown prince, but he probably has much to consider. Then again, I’m left to struggle until it’s proven that my mana can’t be retrieved no matter what.” Claudio smiled audaciously and Rosemarie dropped her gaze.
“How... How are you able to stay so strong, Prince Claudio?”
“Because lives hang in the balance. It’s only right. If I were to be removed as crown prince, I would meet a miserable end. And all of those who followed me might go down with me. It can turn a man desperate.”
The chill running down her spine made Rosemarie rub her arm. Volland was a nation free of political struggles. It was only now that she had the realization that she had come to a terrifying place.
“Aah, come on, let’s end this talk of doom and gloom. Since we took the time to get here, why don’t you look around the greenhouse?” Claudio spoke in an almost forced cheery tone as he gave her a push on the back. Rosemarie finally lifted her head because of it.
Just as she was urged, she scanned the greenhouse in disarray and started walking. Once she did, her mind was entranced by the bits of scenery that passed her by one after another.
“Oh, dear. These stems have to be taken out. I wonder if they will liven up once I give them some nutrients.”
“—”
“These potted plants need to be put into different pots... Ah! There are bugs!”
“—marie!”
She walked around the greenhouse positively giddy and separated from Claudio. That was when she suddenly had her shoulder grabbed.
“Rosemarie!”
“Yes? Is something the matter?”
“I’ve been calling you a million times.” Claudio looked sulky, most likely upset that she hadn’t answered his calls. She blinked vacantly before sagging her eyebrows.
“I apologize. I was distracted. I haven’t forgotten about you, Prince Claudio, so please do not sulk.”
“I am not sulking. I’m just peeved.” Claudio lightly pinched at her cheeks with his finger. It felt as though Claudio was behaving rather childishly toward her. Once she softly pulled off the hand pinching her cheeks, Claudio twisted his mouth in dissatisfaction.
“You seem likely to get carried away and spend all your time here. Was giving this place to you a mistake?”
“If it was a mistake, then are you going to take it away? Please don’t say that now after all you’ve already promised. With my Kaola and bucket banned, if I can’t even garden, then I doubt I can go on living.” The despondency of possibly being denied what she thought she would be receiving made tears form in her eyes as she looked up at Claudio. He instantly found himself at a loss for words.
“...You know, in your case, you’re likely to actually waste away.” Claudio let out a disappointed sigh and quickly made his way toward the greenhouse exit. Rosemarie attempted to follow him out, but as soon as she stepped out, her hair got caught on the overgrown branches of the yew tree.
“...Ow!”
“Aah, hold on. Just stay still.” Claudio helped untangle her hair from the branch. His face approached hers. Claudio was so close that she could see his long eyelashes casting a shadow over his eyes, which made her pulse race. She averted her gaze bashfully.
“W-Would it be okay if I trimmed the branches of this yew tree a tad?” She opened her mouth and spoke to divert attention away from her noisy heartbeat. Claudio looked slightly indecisive, but nodded his head in reply.
“This thing’s job is to ward away evil. Since it’s close to the Forbidden Forest, it would be preferable not to clip at it...” Claudio combed his fingers through Rosemarie’s hair now that it was free from the branch, then grinned as if an idea had sprung to mind.
“As I was saying earlier, let’s settle on the time. You are allowed here for up to two hours a day. If you want to be here any longer, you will have to wait until I’ve finished my duties.”
“Seeing as how I am not a child, deciding the time for me seems...”
“If you are not a child, then you can make the switch, right?”
That statement clammed her right up, making Claudio smile in amusement. She looked back at him with a bitter stare.
“Yes, but I feel awkward having you keep me company after finishing up your work, Prince Claudio.”
“Don’t concern yourself with that. Late-night jaunts have always been a pastime of mine,” Claudio said. He smiled cynically as if it were nothing, but she remembered Heidi saying something similar some time back. She also remembered that it wasn’t supposed to have good connotations. After a little thought, it sprung back into her mind.
“‘Late-night jaunt’ means cheating, if I remember correctly...”
“And who was it that taught you that meaning? I mean walking at night. Evening strolls? I do it because I can’t sleep anyway.” He pinched her cheeks ill-temperedly once more, and then let go right before she told him that it was starting to smart. She wondered why Claudio was pinching her so much today. And she wanted to put on her bucket before her run-of-the-mill face swelled up and got even more homely. As she rubbed her cheeks, she could feel Claudio’s eyes upon her.
“If you’re so concerned about me cheating, I have to wonder how it is you think of me.”
“Huh...?” He stared right at her, and Rosemarie could feel her face crawling to a boil.
It wasn’t like he was accusing her. At the same time, while she felt like she shouldn’t answer that question, she didn’t know if she could give him a concise answer, regardless. She quivered her lips in indecision.
However, she was certain that seeing another girl by Claudio’s side would, more or less, put her in an unpleasant mood.
“A-Anyway, we’ll just put that off to the side,” Claudio said to break the ice, awkwardly clearing his throat and beginning to walk yet again.
“Point is, you don’t have to worry about me like that. With you with me, I don’t tire as much, you see. The only thing I ask of you is that since I take short trips away from the palace, you need to have an Imperial Guard to bodyguard you while I’m not around.”
“Okay, I understand,” she said, nodding firmly and repeatedly. Her head was filled with ideas on what to get started on tomorrow. She was so elated she wanted to start humming a little tune.
“Thank you so much for this, Prince Claudio,” she thanked Claudio aloud with a small tug at his jacket as he walked in front of her. Claudio’s shoulders bounced, and he looked past them to Rosemarie. It almost looked like he was trying to contain a chuckle, which was a relief.
“You thanked me just a second ago.”
“Yes, but I feel like saying it over and over. This present has made me the happiest so far.” Out of all the gifts that Claudio has given her, this was truly the best. After all, it was one that he prepared with proper consideration for her.
She chuckled bashfully, and Claudio’s face turned red instantly. For whatever reason, Claudio was going red from his chin to his ears. But when she reached out to him out of concern that he might be coming down with a fever, he took a few steps back. He then turned himself away.
“This present making you the happiest so far means that the other ones I sent you didn’t make you happy, I’m guessing.”
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry...”
“—! Aah, wait, it’s not like that. I’m not mad at you, uh, of course...! I guess I’m just getting myself down, that’s all.”
“Is that so? Um, well, I’m very sorry for mistaking that for anger!” Claudio tried to smooth things over in a rare display of panic. Perhaps that impatience transferred over, because Rosemarie, now also thrown into a panic, bowed her head and locked eyes with Claudio. The two of them then both ended up smiling at the same time.