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“I appreciate you coming all this way, Rutherford.”
“Big Brother…”
The mood was peaceful as the brothers met face-to-face for the first time in a long while.
Siraiya and I were also attending this meeting under the pretense of caring for Prince Adelberd while he was ill. But our true role was one of support, so we sat on a floor cushion against the wall, keeping our mouths shut as the princes conversed.
Prince Adelberd was sitting up on his futon to speak to his brother. He was also wearing his cloak with the hood up.
“Why the cloak…?”
It was a natural question, and Prince Adelberd replied with the answer he’d prepared in advance.
“I can’t seem to get my body temperature up ever since falling ill. I have to wear layers even indoors at this point. Still, I’m sure it’s nothing more than a nasty cold.”
“I see…” Prince Rutherford sounded doubtful, but he didn’t press the issue further. I just hoped the meeting would end as peacefully as it began. “I can lend you things from my personal belongings if you don’t have everything you need. What about heavy clothing? Do you have enough?”
“No, I’m perfectly fine. But thank you. It makes me proud to have such a reliable little brother.”
“…They’ve been serving food we never eat in the royal capital. How are you liking it?” Prince Rutherford asked.
“It’s actually quite gentle on the stomach, which I appreciate. Still, you want to make sure I’m eating properly too, don’t you? How blessed I am to have such a caring brother.”
“…Did you fall and hit your head, Big Brother?”
“I have no external wounds, no. That reminds me, you used to trip and fall a lot when you were little, didn’t you? Why, I still remember how cute you looked when you flailed on the ground.”
“……”
Everything was going well. It seemed that Prince Adelberd was capable of anything he put his mind to. I’d been considering nicknaming him the “Black-Hearted Prince,” but I would have to come back to that another day.
I nodded as I took in the pleasant, familial conversation. Suddenly, the second-born prince stood up from the floor cushion next to Prince Adelberd’s futon.
“…Take your hood off.”
Huh? What’s happening? Prince Rutherford’s concern for his brother had just transformed into an unconcealed rage.
“…I just told you, I’m cold. Why would you demand such a thing?”
“Take your hood off and show me your face! My brother would never say such loving things to me! Who the hell are you?!”
I could hardly believe it. Prince Adelberd’s usual conduct was so terrible that a bit of kindness had caused his brother to start questioning his identity.
He’s going to rip his hood off at this rate…! I stood up in a panic and cried out to Prince Rutherford.
“N-No, that’s the real Prince Adelbe—”
“You won’t fool me! Are you trying to mock me with this pathetic excuse for an actor?!”
Siraiya rushed to protect Prince Adelberd, too, but we’d been sitting against the wall, so Prince Rutherford was closer. He ruthlessly yanked the hood back.
A pair of golden cat ears emerged into view. For a moment, Prince Rutherford froze, dumbfounded. Only the sound of the cloak hitting the ground snapped him out of it. “Are those… cat…?” he mumbled.
So he can tell they’re based on a cat? But this was no time for such observations. This was a disaster. Prince Adelberd’s secret was out. No, maybe we can still say it’s a costume! We’ll explain that he just wanted to give his brother a chuckle with a little surprise. …No, that sounds too suspicious.
“Th-Those are, um…” I fumbled for an excuse. But before I could speak properly, the pale-faced Prince Rutherford bolted out of the room.
This is bad! He might start telling everyone what he saw!
“I guess Lady Cynthia’s advice was useless this time.”
I resisted the urge to remind him that his usual, rude attitude was what made his brother suspicious in the first place.
“Do you think His Highness will go public with what he saw…?” Siraiya asked.
Prince Adelberd put his hood back on before responding. “So long as I don’t show my head in a public setting, no one would believe a rumor that I suddenly grew a pair of animal ears. But either way, the more time passes, the more my position as crown prince is going to be threatened.”
“We really don’t have any leads right now, do we?” I sighed.
“I’m having my people research curses, but they haven’t found anything of use so far. I wonder…what’s going to become of me?”
Prince Adelberd would go back to normal in one more month. But I couldn’t tell them that, so I hung my head to match the heavy mood in the room.
Of course, this limited-time event wasn’t supposed to occur after we graduated from the academy, so I had no way of knowing if the other parameters had changed, too.
For now, all I could do was pray that everything came to a safe resolution.