The princess had been acting weird lately. I’d given her a blue hair clip in the shape of a flower a while ago, and she kept picking it up and looking at it with a frown on her face. She seemed to think I hadn’t noticed, but I’d caught her glancing at me from time to time and setting up a secret girls’ meeting with Cuphea and Linum.
While she seemed worried about something, she clearly had no intention of discussing it with me. Should I get involved, or should I leave her be? After thinking it over for a few days, I decided to ask her directly.
“Hey, Princess.”
“Oh, Sir Albert. What is it?” After finishing up dinner in the cafeteria, we’d retired to our dorm. I called out to the princess as she was once again pondering something on the sofa.
“You’ve been looking at that hair clip a lot lately.”
“H-Have I?” The princess wouldn’t look me in the eyes. She was really bad at hiding things.
I sat down next to her. Though it was only a two-person sofa, there was more than enough room for both of us. “Don’t feel pressured to wear it if you don’t like it.” I just meant she didn’t need to feel forced to wear it solely because it was a gift, but for some reason she puffed out her cheeks like she was upset.
“I do like it! Why would you think that?!”
“I mean, all you’ve done lately is stare at it deep in thought,” I said, feeling a little overwhelmed by her response.
This time, the princess went silent and blushed. “N-No, that’s not true.” Flustered and at a loss for words, her eyes wandered the room.
“I’m not really following. Does that mean it has nothing to do with the hair clip?” It was possible she was just fiddling with it while worrying about something else entirely.
“It’s not unrelated, but I don’t think it’s something I should discuss with you...”
“Well, whatever it is, I hope you get it worked out soon. I don’t like seeing you worried.”
“Y-You’re that concerned for me?”
“But of course. As your loyal knight, it pains my heart to see my master’s adorable face wrought with worry.” I put my hand on my heart and made an exaggeratedly sad face, leaving the princess dumbfounded.
“Even I can tell when you’re saying something you don’t mean.”
“I really am concerned, though.”
“I appreciate your consideration.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Still, I don’t think it’s something I should tell the person in question— Ah!”
“‘The person in question’?” Realizing she had just dug her own grave, Astrantia’s entire face went red. She immediately looked away, but I didn’t move, staring right at her. Ten seconds passed. Twenty seconds. Finally, she gave in.
“Fine! I’ll tell you!”
“You don’t have to if you really don’t want to.”
“No, I don’t think worrying about it any longer will make me more confident in my answer. Just promise me one thing.”
“Anything you ask.”
“Y-You can’t laugh.”
“I wouldn’t so much as dream about laughing at my master.”
The princess seemed like she wanted to make a retort, but she swallowed her words and changed her mind. She told me that she had been thinking about whether she should get me a thank-you gift for the hair clip. However, she had been alone for so long that she had no experience getting gifts for friends—especially friends of the opposite sex. She didn’t know what would make me happy, so she had consulted Cuphea and Linum, the friends we’d made at the academy.
“I see. Can I ask you something now, Princess?”
“Wh-What is it?”
“Does smiling this hard count as laughing?” Even I was powerless to stop my mouth from curling into a smile after hearing that.
“Ugh.” Tears in the corners of her eyes, the princess looked at me. She must have thought I was laughing at her worries.
“Sorry. I’m not mocking you. I just thought that was cute.”
“You mean like how a parent thinks their child making a mistake is cute?!”
I guess being called cute for that reason wouldn’t make you very happy.
“Not just that. I’m happy you’ve been thinking about me.”
“I-I simply don’t want to remain indebted to you.”
“Anyway, getting me something in return, huh? You really don’t have to, but I’d appreciate it if you did.”
“Is there something you want?!” The princess immediately leaned forward, making her chest shake impressively.
“No, nothing in particular.” I’d never paid much attention to physical goods.
“Oh...” She slumped her shoulders in disappointment. She was so crestfallen I could practically see a black haze forming around her.
“Well, hold on. I think I’d probably prefer making memories over getting something tangible.”
“Memories?”
“Yeah. Unlike a gift, strong memories will stick with you even three hundred years later.” Although many of my memories had faded, there were some I could recall vividly even now: my adoptive father who had taken me in, my adoptive mother who had raised me like her own child, my adoptive brother who had looked up to me, and my beloved horse Viola.
“Strong memories... U-Um, I know I said I wanted to repay you, but we can’t do anything inappropriate...” Imagining something, the princess’s face flushed red, but I decided against pointing it out.
“As far as recent stuff goes, you were really cute in your festival outfit. I’m sure I’ll never forget that.”
“I-I see... Then, would you like me to wear that outfit again?” Astrantia looked down, embarrassed by her proposal. Even her ears were crimson.
“I certainly would, but if we’re going down that route, I’d rather see you wear something new.”
“A-All right then. If that’s what you want, I’ll think of something.” She gave a reserved nod.
“Man, I’m looking forward to it. The princess is gonna wear cute clothes just for me.”
“D-Don’t say it out loud!”
“Aha ha.” At any rate, I was glad we’d managed to clear things up. Later on, she would worry about what clothes she should wear, but that was a story for another day.