Chapter 6: Let Me Go with You Too
“I had it designed to resemble the growing patch you have at your family house, but feel free to make changes so it’s easy for you to use,” Claude said.
“I’m grateful for the gesture since I’m growing herbs for Duke Granier, but I feel like this growing patch is really huge,” Agnes noted.
True, Agnes had her own section at the Lefort residence, but that was part of their existing garden, more of an add-on. Here, though, the entire garden seemed oriented around this huge growing patch.
“We need space for growing lots of mushrooms, right?” Claude asked as if it was a no-brainer.
“I’m not planning to grow them though…”
Immediately, there was a popping sound followed by newly sprouted mushrooms. The brown-capped addition was a Lyophyllum decastes, and the species that looked like a cluster of upside-down bottle caps was a Cyathus stercoreus. Due to the force of the sprouting, something like a black stone came flying out of the ground. Seeing this, Claude gasped with delight.
“Ah, good! The mushrooms are growing well. What a delight to be able to gaze upon this every day.”
“I knew it, this is a total mushroom mansion,” Agnes sighed with despair.
Both inside and out, was there no escape?
“We’ll save the mushroom plans for another day. Today, we have other business,” Claude said.
“We do?”
Claude grabbed Agnes’s hand as she stood in a state of fatigue, led her out of the mansion, and back into the carriage. The pair and Ciel rode to the palace and found themselves in front of Commode, the royal clothing atelier.
“I am honored to have been entrusted with designing your wedding dress, Lady Agnes!” Delalande, the proprietress, regarded Agnes with shining eyes.
“Er… Ah, yes… Is that so?”
“Often, the bride’s family arranges for the dress, but this time we’re having Commode do it,” explained Claude.
Agnes almost found herself nodding along as Claude beamed at her, but she’d better not let herself get carried away. First off, Agnes wouldn’t have known where to start with preparing a royal wedding dress—she was grateful to leave it to the professionals. But after the mushroom mansion, Agnes was filled with trepidation.
“I just want to check, it’s going to be a plain, white dress, right?” she hoped. “No mushroom motif, okay?”
“Come now, Lady Agnes. It’s a royal wedding! Surely there would be nothing so silly,” comforted Delalande.
“R-Right!”
Phew, someone around here has some common sense. No matter how mushroom-deranged Claude was, Agnes could breathe easy knowing her dress was being made by someone competent.
“Right, Agnes. Only the lace overlay will be in a mushroom motif,” Claude interjected.
“What?!”
“And the accessories, too, of course. But don’t worry, the dress will be pure white!” Claude effused.
Agnes couldn’t relax for a second. She narrowed her eyes at Claude, who beamed away innocently as usual—a sudden urge to sprout a mushroom right on top of his head bubbled within her. No, wait, he’d love that.
“When I first heard about the mushroom details, I was a tad concerned,” Delalande said. “At any rate, Prince Claude has given his input, and I think we’ve come up with something spectacular. I’m sure you’ll be delighted, Lady Agnes!”
Please, just the dress! No mushrooms!
Ciel let out a roar, batting at Agnes’s feet as if he could hear her silent screams.
“Oh, only Ciel understands me…” she sighed.
His soft fluffiness was Agnes’s only salvation. She blinked at him, suddenly moved, while Claude for some reason nodded.
“Right. We need a great outfit for Ciel too,” he said. “A bow around his neck with a mushroom pin?”
“Rawr!” Ciel let out with satisfaction, his tail swaying happily around.
Agnes felt her shoulders slump. Mushroom traitor!
“Oh, yes. Is that finished yet?” Claude inquired.
In response to his question, Delalande pulled out a small box.
“Okay, what kind of mushroom thing is it this time?” Agnes asked.
“That’s amazing, Agnes; you already knew what it was!” Claude exclaimed.
Agnes wasn’t hoping to be right. Regardless, at this point, anything other than mushrooms would have been a big shock.
When Claude opened the small box, Agnes saw a silver ring with a lattice carving in those familiar shapes.
“Oh, that’s so pretty,” she said. “But what’s it for?”
“It’s your wedding ring.”
“Oh, instead of this one?”
The engagement ring currently on Agnes’s left hand ring finger featured two three-dimensional mushrooms on it with pink and blue gemstones for warts. If that was her wedding ring, she’d probably be wearing it permanently after the ceremony. It was still fungal-themed, but there were no protruding figures or colored stones on it.
Good, the mushroom adornment on her hand would be a bit more understated going forward.
“I thought you might be sad not wearing the old one anymore, so I had it made so they’re stackable, see?” Claude said.
Then that meant there would be even more mushrooms on her hand—a short-lived dream. It was Agnes’s fate to never escape from them.
“Can I try it on now?” she asked.
“Huh? Oh yes, here you go.”
Since they were stackable, she should probably check that they both fit properly. Delalande took the empty box from Claude and made a silent exit.
Before Agnes could process what was happening, Claude had taken her hand and knelt down on the spot.
“C-Claude?”
Agnes, mentally exhausted from it all, felt her heartbeat speed up as she gazed down at Claude, every inch the picture-book prince.
“I’m so glad I met you, Agnes. I’m so lucky.”
As he spoke, he slid the ring onto her finger, where it nestled perfectly against the other one. Then he kissed the back of Agnes’s hand with reverence before looking right up at her.
“Agnes Lefort. Will you marry me?”
Along with those words, a loud popping sound announced the arrival of a red funnel-shaped Gomphus fluccosus and a black funnel-shaped Craterellus cornucopioides on Claude’s shoulder. The two stalks grew so close together, they made squeaking noises where their caps rubbed.
“We… We’re already getting married, you know?”
Maybe he was worried Agnes would call the whole thing off after the fungus onslaught today? Really though, Agnes wasn’t about to break off the engagement over that at this point. Or at least, she was pretty sure. Though she wished he’d dial it back a little.
“Yes, but I want to hear you say yes, again and again. I love you, Agnes. I want us to be together forever.”
Claude, still kneeling, reached up to cup Agnes’s cheek. Having him gaze like that made her cheeks burn. She’d always known that Claude was handsome, but now he looked thirty percent more seductive than usual. It made her heart flutter and ache.
“Y-Yes…”
“Say more.”
His other hand reached up to cup her other cheek. There was no running away now.
“I…love you too, Claude.”
Claude smiled with satisfaction. That was evidently what he’d wanted to hear. Unlike his usual calm, gentle expression, she could see the passion burning behind his eyes.