Six months later, the ceremony ended as a grand success. Now that Phil no longer needed to work as much, we were able to return to our peaceful everyday lives.
“You did amazing work,” I said. “It was a lovely ceremony.”
“Thank you. I’m glad that we pulled it off without incident.”
Granted, things weren’t completely over just yet. Phil still had some work that he needed to finish, but it was far less stressful compared to the months that led up to the ceremony. I’d been an invited guest, so I was present for the event. I found it to be a wonderful and emotional affair. Princess Luna did an amazing job performing her duties as royal ambassador that I found myself looking up to her, even though we were the same gender and around the same age.
Today, I was sitting in a gazebo in the palace’s garden. It was situated in the corner, surrounded by beautiful flowers.
“You must be Phillip’s fiancée. It’s very nice to meet you. My name is Adele.”
“Yes, I am. My name is Viola Westley and it’s very nice to meet you as well.”
Princess Adele clasped her little hands together as she looked at me, and her big pink eyes, framed by her long eyelashes, sparkled. Princess Adele had wanted to meet me. So in order to fulfill her request, the two of us, along with Phil and Princess Luna, decided to have tea together.
I could see the similarities between Princess Adele and Princess Luna, and she was such an angelic little girl. The thought of me being so jealous of a five-year-old, especially one as cute as the princess, made me feel embarrassed and sheepish.
“Oh, my! That’s the same name as the parrot in Phillip’s house! Hee hee, he must like you a lot if he named his parrot after you.”
“Y-Yes, so it seems...”
Hearing someone say it flat out was really embarrassing. However, it was much worse for Phil. I could see him next to me, covering his face with one hand. Princess Luna was giggling as well, clearly enjoying herself.
“I’ve wanted to meet you for so long. I’m glad I got the chance to,” Princess Adele said with a bright and adorable smile on her face.
“The pleasure is all mine,” I replied, smiling back at her. It was hard not to after seeing her honest joy.
Afterward, Princess Adele showed me the picture book that had the prince who resembled Phil and even I had to admit that the similarities were uncanny.
“I’m really sorry about all this,” Princess Luna said with an apologetic smile. “Adele was always with Phillip, so he didn’t have much time to spend with you. Once we return to Samarind, I’ll definitely get my father to sign off on the imports and the economic support for your country.”
“Thank you so much.”
“The two of you will get married soon, yes?” Princess Luna asked as she stroked Princess Adele’s hair.
“Yes, in three months’ time.”
“Then I do hope you’ll come to Samarind for your honeymoon! We’ll welcome you with open arms.”
“That sounds lovely! I’ve always wanted to visit Samarind.”
I’d actually never set foot outside of the country, not once. After I expressed the desire to visit Samarind, Phil said that we could go wherever I wished. The four of us enjoyed our tea together until it was time for Princess Adele’s nap. Princess Luna took her sister back to the palace.
“Princess Adele is such an adorable little girl,” I said. “I can understand why you were compelled to fulfill her requests.”
“Yeah,” Phil nodded. Then, he made a slightly bashful expression. “She sort of reminded me of you when you were younger.”
“Huh?”
“So she seemed a lot cuter to me.”
I didn’t think that I was anything like that cute little princess, but it made me happy to hear Phil say that. Then again, he did say that the venomous-looking purple snake at the menagerie reminded him of me as well. So I felt a little conflicted about taking his compliments at face value.
Since Phil still had work to finish in the palace, I decided to go back home. He escorted me all the way to the entrance, but right before I got in the carriage, I heard him call my name. I turned around and met Phil’s eyes. There was an oddly serious expression on his face.
“If possible, could you make time for me two evenings from now?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Thank you. I’ll contact you about the details soon.”
“All right, I understand. I hope work goes smoothly for you today.”
I remembered that a while ago he’d said that he wanted to discuss something with me after the ceremony ended. I got into the carriage, wondering what it was he wanted to talk about, then left the palace grounds.
✦ ✦ ✦
It was evening two days after my afternoon tea at the palace with Phil, Princess Luna, and Princess Adele. I was preparing for my meeting with Phil, with a large number of maids surrounding me to help. The restaurant that Phil had reserved for tonight was one of the most famous venues in the capital.
Since members of the royal family often visited this restaurant, I figured I should make myself as presentable as possible. The maids were so enthused about the task that I found myself a little taken aback. Even just choosing a single piece of jewelry took such a long time that I thought their behavior was quite strange.
“Do the accessories matter that much? Anything that goes with the dress should be all right,” I said.
“Lady Viola, what in the world are you saying?! This is a once-in-a-lifetime event!”
“Once in a lifetime?” I tilted my head, wondering what they meant by that.
But the maids didn’t pay me any attention as they were too busy running around the room, arguing over what I should wear. Finally, after an inordinate amount of time, I heard one of them say that their preparations were finished and I looked up at the mirror. The reflection that greeted me looked a lot more mature and extravagant than my usual appearance.
“I look lovely,” I said. “Thank you.”
“Of course, of course. Lord Phillip won’t be able to take his eyes off you,” one of the maids exclaimed.
“Isn’t that how he always is?” another replied.
“Oh, stop that.”
Despite my words, I couldn’t help but smile in response to my maids’ excitement. At this point, it was common knowledge within the manor that Phil was in love with me.
“Viola, have fun tonight.”
“Please give Lord Phillip our regards.”
Even my parents seemed awfully happy for some reason. I waved goodbye to everyone and then set off in the carriage.