Chapter 7: The Crown Prince
THE next day, Siraiya and I headed straight for the library.
Our school library had a space for studying separated by potted plants and pieces of furniture. Students came here, where quiet talking was permitted, to study when they didn’t have class. Friends of the opposite sex could also use this space together, since it wasn’t a closed room.
We arrived early in the morning to find that the library was empty.
The two of us sat at a small, round table that could probably seat up to four students. There, we took out our study materials.
“What? You haven’t heard anything from your father yet?” I asked, taken by surprise by the news.
“That’s right… I even asked if there was any mail for me, but he said there was nothing.” Siraiya shook his head.
“That’s strange. One of my family’s servants personally delivered the engagement request, so it should have arrived yesterday…”
The conversation naturally shifted to our engagement, but for some reason, it appeared that Duke Brooke had yet to receive my family’s offer.
“…Father is a busy man. I’m sure he just doesn’t want to make time for me.” Siraiya paused there, a guilty look on his handsome face. “I’m sorry. I know it’s an inconvenience to you and the Rhuddlan family.”
“No, it’s not an inconvenience. If you don’t hear anything from His Grace, then Father and I can request to meet with him in person. It’s somewhat discourteous for a viscount to request time with a duke, but it should be permitted, considering the subject matter.”
“That would be a big help, thank you. I’m sorry for the trouble.”
“It’s no trouble. I mean it,” I insisted. “This is all so the two of us can get engaged. I intend to do everything in my power to make that happen.”
“Cynthia… I’m so glad I met you.”
“As am I, Siraiya. I can hardly wait for the two of us to be formally engaged.”
“Me neither,” he replied as we intertwined our fingers under the table.
I hadn’t expected the engagement request to go ignored.
Siraiya didn’t know this yet, but we’d included in the letter that we were preparing for Siraiya to live at our home and undergo the studies he would need to become my future husband. Father also wrote that we would pay for his school tuition and living expenses.
The Brookes treated Siraiya like a nuisance, so I had expected them to send him away to us at once. But it seemed I was mistaken. I just hoped this was all some sort of mistake.
“That reminds me,” I began, shifting the topic. “I took a look at your notebook and could hardly believe how easily you had broken everything down. I even realized I had memorized a few concepts wrong thanks to you. You’re absolutely incredible, Siraiya. I think you have a real gift for teaching.”
“No, you praise me too much. But I had been thinking about becoming a teacher before I started planning a future with you,” he admitted. “I wanted a way for all this studying I do to be useful somehow. But if it helped you, Cynthia, then that’s all I need.”
“I’m sure you would make a brilliant teacher. We’ll be managing my family’s territory together as husband and wife, but if that doesn’t take up all of our time, why not look into something like substitute teaching or tutoring?” I suggested. “I don’t want you to give up on a dream if you don’t have to.”
“I was only looking for a way to make a living after graduation. But if you think I will be ‘brilliant’ at it, maybe I ought to give it a try. I think it could be fun.”
“Yes, I can picture you becoming a splendid teacher, Siraiya.”
Siraiya was the person who helped the heroine, a commoner by birth, become a candidate for crown princess thanks to his expert tutoring in the game. It would make sense that he had natural talent as an educator.
I didn’t want to force any path on him, but if he was interested, then I hoped he would pursue that line of work. It would probably help him recover some self-confidence, too. Siraiya’s tattered heart needed whatever forms of support it could get.
“If you’re that good at teaching, could I bother you for a bit of advice?”
A calm and commanding voice suddenly interrupted our conversation. That sexy voice, belonging to a famous voice actor from my past life, was instantly recognizable.
“Your Royal Highness!”