Chapter 79
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79.
As we warmed ourselves, we began pulling out old memories one by one.
Like flipping through an ancient photograph album, we spoke in no particular order—recollections tumbling out as they surfaced, a somewhat haphazard reminiscence.
"Truth be told, there was a time when I regained consciousness but pretended I hadn't."
"Is that how you recognized me?"
"It wasn't difficult to discern. Even if the Salice Barony cares little for formality, the Baron and Baroness wouldn't have neglected your education entirely."
In other words, my manner of speech and bearing had been slightly different.
Though admittedly, it was only the bare minimum—after arriving in the Capital City, I'd grown accustomed to the fastidious nobility constantly finding fault with my etiquette.
"And perhaps because I was young, or simply lacked time to prepare..."
Cassian Artez combed through my hair with his fingers as he spoke.
"As the days passed, the pale purple wig grew increasingly disheveled, and beneath it, your lovely chestnut hair began showing through bit by bit."
I could only laugh at that.
There was far too much truth in it.
Since I'd been too busy moving about without explaining the situation to my parents, I'd often simply thrown the wig on haphazardly, securing it only with hair ribbons.
"And I already knew Wilhelmina Lopez's face by then."
"...Was it because you're a prince, Your Highness?"
"No, not that. Rather, because I behaved in a most unprincely manner."
Cassian Artez chuckled like a young boy.
"The First Empress's presence was so formidable that I was officially a non-existent child."
"How cheerfully you put that."
"Why should Roselita suffer in my stead? I was perfectly fine with it."
As he spoke, Cassian Artez gently caressed the hand he was holding.
"It was rather convenient, actually—there were scarcely any who watched me. Of course, occasionally a knight or attendant would pass by, ostensibly checking if I was still alive."
Cassian Artez mused that those were likely the Emperor's agents.
In childhood, he'd thought it surveillance, but looking back now, perhaps it had been kindness.
Listening to this, I found myself thinking that Cassian Artez's heart was remarkably generous.
If thinking that way brought him peace, then it mattered little to me.
"As you well know, I'm not someone who can resist curiosity."
"Indeed—judging by how you managed to uncover the identity of that virtuous, delicate noble child you'd been helping while hiding your own."
"Does that wound you?"
He claimed to be unbothered by being officially a non-existent child, yet this troubled him?
Bewildered, I turned to look at him, and he offered me a smile brimming with contentment.
"In any case, that's why I would sneak into Imperial Palace events."
"You've always been yourself since childhood, Your Highness."
"True, but the person I am now—you made me that way."
"...Me?"
You're saying that someone two years younger than you raised someone as sturdy as you?
"Because I listened carefully to every adorable thing you babbled about."
Cassian Artez pulled me closer into his embrace.
Despite the cottage being poorly insulated against the cold, we'd kept the stove burning for so long and even stayed pressed against it that the room was growing uncomfortably warm.
Yet strangely, I felt no desire to push away Cassian Artez's arms around me.
It brought back old memories.
'Are you leaving?'
To that question, I'd hesitated for a moment before finally answering.
'I'll come back, I promised I'd stay until you're better.'
Just as I had answered back then.
Whether then or now, I'd become strangely weak when it came to Cassian Artez.
Perhaps.
'...it's because I'm weak to beautiful things.'
Though not quite as adorable as Sixth Prince Joel, the young boy had been far more beautiful than any description I'd read in novels or anything I'd imagined.
I felt I should attribute my weakness to that reason.
I deliberately grumbled as I answered Cassian Artez.
"How can you so easily believe the words of a little girl?"
"It seemed like it would be fine, and...."
Cassian Artez's lips descended to my ear once more.
"There's no harm in listening to Roselita Salice, right? Everyone in Salice Territory said the same thing."
Yet you only heard that yesterday.
Feeling slightly mischievous, I leaned my weight against his chest, but he didn't budge an inch, which only irritated me further.
Cassian Artez laughed with evident delight at my reaction.
It seems I'm always the one who loses in these exchanges, doesn't it?
While a part of me felt somewhat wronged, another part of me was perfectly content.
The young Cassian Artez was far more beautiful than I'd imagined.
But he was a child who'd endured far greater suffering than I'd carelessly assumed from the novel, barely clinging to life through countless agonies.
So I genuinely adored this current Cassian Artez—annoying and cunning, with his teasing laughter and his subtlety without equal.
*
In the midst of our conversation, Cassian Artez suddenly interjected.
"But you knew who I was back then, didn't you, Roselita?"
Surely he wasn't about to ask how I discovered he was the Second Prince now?
That could become rather troublesome.
I could claim I saw it in the newspaper—my mind raced through possibilities in a flash.
"But why don't you call me the way you used to?"
He had taken an entirely different conversational turn than I anticipated.
"...I beg your pardon?"
"I really liked it."
"...As much as calling you 'Your Highness'?"
"And you used to speak informally with me too, didn't you?"
"Surely you're not going to accuse me of lèse-majesté now—"
"I wish you would insult the Royal Family?"
Had his values become so warped as he grew older?
As I regarded him with concern in my eyes, Cassian Artez only grew more endearing, pestering me relentlessly.
"What? Can't you do that even when we're alone together?"
"No, that was when I was a child! How could I possibly have known Your Highness was of the Royal Family—"
"But you did know."
Why was he so certain?
Had nine-year-old me been so careless?
Had I carelessly revealed something about him being a prince?
To be honest, I had tried my best not to play the protagonist, so I couldn't recall every word I'd spoken.
Besides, it's perfectly normal not to remember details from when you were nine years old!
"When I was younger, I could be forgiven for being a child, but I'm an adult now who has completed her debutante presentation."
"I don't mind."
Cassian Artez pouted.
Don't you dare think that a pretty face gets you out of everything.
With that thought, I deliberately averted my gaze.
"I'm not asking you to call me Cassian Artez, and you've already called me by a nickname before."
"Ian? But I think I called you Sian."
"It was Ian."
Cassian Artez scratched his neck with a laugh.
"You were missing a few teeth back then, so your pronunciation was all slurred."
Wow, he really is a terrible person.
Remembering every shameful moment from my childhood.
"Call me that, will you?"
The Emperor himself probably has no idea.
That his own son is so fixated on something so trivial, shamelessly flirting with a subordinate without a shred of dignity.
"Only when we're alone?"
"Yes."
"If the First Empress should accuse me of lèse-majesté and have me arrested, you must protect me no matter what."
"I'd commit treason for you."
"Don't say such frightening things over a mere form of address."
"It's not mere—not to me."
Hearing the slight pout in his voice, I found myself laughing despite myself.
If those two syllables were all he desired, I could hardly refuse him.
Such opportunities to match a lover's wish were rare enough.
"Ian."
"Yes?"
"I think I've forgotten everything I said to you."
"Hmm?"
Laughter escaped from Cassian Artez again.
"I believe I told you not to dwell on the past unless you were dying."
"But now we're simply recalling fond memories together, aren't we? Yet you still remember that one thing I said?"
"After hearing such absurd requests so often."
My response flowed as naturally as water, and Cassian Artez's obvious delight made me genuinely embarrassed.
That's precisely why I had emphasized it so earnestly.
Not to cling to the past.
Because I thought only then could I avoid becoming the protagonist and live peacefully.
Was this man truly unraveling all my life plans?
Yet on the other hand, I had another thought.
Perhaps the change in him was the one part of the original story I had damaged most irreparably.
*
As the time approached when the carriage driver would arrive to collect me, I learned something astonishing.
"...So you're telling me that the anonymous benefactor who said he'd repay all our debts when our house was drowning in them was Ian?"
I kept the form of address the same but adjusted my tone slightly to match propriety.
Calling him Ian could be glossed over as the privilege of an engaged couple, but casual speech seemed far too risky.
Cassian Artez grumbled that I was heartless, shifting my demeanor so quickly.
But my survival came first, after all.
"Yes, but Roselita rejected it so coldly."
"That was...."
"That was?"
I fell silent, swallowing my words.
Such a generous offer at precisely that moment.
It felt exactly like a voice phishing scam!
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org