Chapter 334: The Pea Strikes Again (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 334: The Pea Strikes Again (1)
Most people thought he had no patience. In truth, he had three.
This was the story of Franz’s patience. It was a fact unknown to most—save for perhaps the unhinged blue-haired mage and the pink-haired one who put salt on everything—but he did indeed have at least three reserves of it. Of course, this count only ever depleted when dealing with humans. Just as he could never get angry at Anne for kneading his prominent Adam’s apple while meowing prettily, his patience stretched to infinity when faced with his younger brother, who chattered on without a single care for how much of Franz’s restraint he was burning through.
He usually kept a firm grip on his rationality, but occasionally, it vanished.
This was the essence of Franz’s mind. If there was a problem, it was that he was sometimes so excessively rational that he treated his own heart like a chess piece, but he was, regardless, a man of reason. However, there were times when that reason evaporated completely. This usually happened when, after watching his little brother lose his mind for the umpteenth time, Franz would simply think, To hell with it, and descend into madness right alongside him.
He was gentle once you got to know him, but he wasn't just gentle.
This, of course, was an assessment of Franz's temperament. Ever since the day he’d thrown a knife at Yan to confirm his brother had changed, leaving a thick scar on Calian's palm, he hadn't shown such a vicious side again. But that didn't mean he went through life with a perfectly gentle disposition either. There was a good reason people struggled to empathize with Calian's belief that Franz was, at his core, a gentle person. It was only because Franz knew his little brother would dismiss any display of his true colors as nothing more than their cat, Lucy, puffing up her fur, that he kept it carefully tucked away.
"I'm busy. Get to the point."
Because Franz was like that.
Ever since they had brought Serjein—who claimed to have something to say about Randel—to the villa, Calian had remained silent. It was Franz who had agreed to help with Randel's affairs, and whether it was an act or not, Serjein currently held the status of Crown Prince of Tensil. It was better for Franz, who held an equivalent position, to be the one to respond.
Serjein, who had followed them, did not remove his disguise magic. Even after leaving his two guard knights outside and sitting alone before the two princes of Kairis, he neither revealed his true face nor his real name.
Calian knew better than anyone that when faced with a suspicious character like Serjein, Franz would become that clever pea—the one who, unlike the brother Calian usually dealt with, would shorten his patience, shelve his rationality, and make excellent use of his notoriously foul temper.
"Leave."
Just like that.
Click.
Relic, who had entered for a moment, set down three cups of tea and departed. A pleasant aroma of cinnamon and dried tangerine peel wafted from the cups. Inhaling the scent, Serjein smiled faintly and spoke.
"Since the tea has arrived, I suppose I can stay for a reasonable amount of time. By the way, I heard Kairisians love flower tea, but I see that isn't the case."
The Crown Prince, who genuinely despised flower tea, glanced at his younger brother, who had also stopped drinking it long ago, and replied coolly.
"It seems Tensilians have poor hearing. As poor as their intellect."
"For someone who was just demanding manners, your words are quite rude."
"If you don't like it, you can leave."
"My goodness. I already said I would leave on my own, yet you keep telling me to go."
"I believe I told you to get to the point. Are you truly that stupid?"
A quiet chuckle escaped from Calian's side.
Franz’s words were too clipped for a smooth conversation with a stranger, and the Crown Prince of Tensil was the type who ignored such brevity anyway. At this rate, they would spend the entire night with one demanding the point and the other saying whatever they pleased.
"If you keep this up, I might start to feel a bit hurt."
"If you're hurt..."
Franz crossed his legs and rested his clasped hands on his knee. Then, leaning slightly toward Serjein, he spoke.
"Why don't we start with whether you murdered the great Crown Prince of Tensil, or if he simply died on his own?"
Serjein’s mouth snapped shut.
One corner of Franz's lips curled upward.
"I dislike beating around the bush. How about you?"
Watching the pea handle the fight so well on his own, Calian lifted his teacup with a relaxed smile. The scent of tangerine, sweeter than any flower, was exceptionally pleasing today.
Ah, honestly. What would I do without Hina?
He already knew she was amazing in every way, but he couldn't help but marvel again at how incredibly clever and meticulous she was. Finding out what was really going on with the so-called Crown Prince so quickly was entirely thanks to Hina.
"I didn't realize I was beating around the bush."
"Did you receive it in exchange for sending a healer to Devlan? Or did you receive it beforehand on the condition of giving something else?"
"I suspected as much yesterday when you seemed to doubt my identity. You still think the same."
"Brother Randel's business was just an excuse. You came to see if we knew your true identity, didn't you?"
Of course, Franz, who was speaking now, felt the same way, but Calian had never for a moment considered the possibility of Hina being wrong. Wasn't Calian the type of person who, upon hearing Hina declare Tunteuni was platinum-colored, would immediately start pondering how to redefine the color platinum? If Hina said she’d grown taller, he’d nod in agreement. So, if Hina said Serjein was a woman, then she was a woman. How could he possibly doubt her?
"It wasn't an excuse, but a confirmation, I suppose. I was worried you might spread some ridiculous claims."
"That's a bit harsh. Since we've come this far, you might as well tell us," Calian, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. "You don't seem to realize that if you want to test me, you have to reveal yourself first."
He stepped in because he could no longer tolerate the other party playing innocent. It made sense that she would keep trying to wriggle out of it; not even Alan could recognize an appearance altered by a disguise tool at a glance. However, her opponents were Calian and Franz.
"You see, even if I can't recognize when a magic tool is being used... I'm very good at recognizing when someone is lying."
A gust of wind rose as he finished speaking.
Serjein's short hair fluttered in the breeze. Then, with a soft clack, the round blue earring hanging from Serjein's earlobe snapped and fell.
The hair color changed. The length didn't differ much, but it slowly bled into a blue-gray completely different from gold. The golden eyes changed as well, becoming a silver heavily tinged with blue, their shape sharper and narrower. The Adam's apple receded, and the neck grew slender. The fingers lengthened.
Realizing she had returned to her true form, 'Serjein's' lips curled into a thin smile. Calian merely shrugged and looked toward Franz. It was a clear gesture: he had saved Franz some time, so Franz could take it from here.
* * *
Kairis, where spring arrives.
Spring had come to Kairis. The frozen Senyu River flowed once more, and the scent of yellow Fredia flowers began to permeate the capital.
A purple sugar confection, as fluffy as a cloud, dissolved the moment it touched the tongue.
"I thought the purple one would taste like grapes... but it's not."
At the child's disappointed words as she savored the lingering scent after the sweetness faded, the person beside her asked, "Do you dislike lavender?"
"It's a flower. I don't really like flowers."
"May I ask why?"
"Because it's sad when they wither."
"If they bloom, they must also wither and disappear, Ririe. Flowers cannot stay in bloom forever."
"Still, I feel sorry for them. They disappear too quickly."
Demirea wondered if the child knew that another of her bloodline also kept flowers at a distance, though for different reasons. Walking beside the child, Ririe, she let out a small smile.
"But the almond trees you like so much have flowers, too."
Starting with that, Demirea explained what the flowers of the almond tree looked like, what they smelled like, and how almonds grew only after the blossoms fell. She wanted her to know that the world’s flowers didn’t just bloom and wither for beauty’s sake alone.
"If you dislike the lavender flavor, I will buy you a different one," she added. Although she explained to the child why flowers had to bloom and wither, she did not pressure her to like them. Demirea's mother, Serie, had never forced anything she disliked upon her.
Looking down at the half-eaten bag of sugar confections, Ririe popped another one into her mouth. "Someone else made this. I don't want to throw it away."
"They wouldn't want you to force yourself to eat it."
"I'm not. It doesn't taste bad. But buy me a red one next time."
"Alright. I'll buy you a red one next time."
"What flavor will the red one be?"
"Well, maybe strawberry?"
"What if it smells like roses?"
"Then I'll buy you a yellow one."
"What if the yellow one smells like Fredia, Demirea?"
"It's fine. There must be some that don't smell like flowers."
"Yeah. Next time, let's look carefully and choose a different flavor."
"Alright. Let's do that."
What flavor would the red sugar confection be? It might be strawberry, or it might smell of roses, or perhaps it would have some other flavor that was hard to guess. Demirea promised they would find out next time, anticipating the discovery. Ririe nodded with a smile.
"Demirea, are we going home now?"
"We should. We've finished all your fittings."
"Do you have to go somewhere this evening?"
"No, I have no other plans."
They had come out to have Ririe's new clothes fitted. They had ordered a pale yellow dress that would suit Ririe wonderfully, along with a sky-blue jacket and a navy pantsuit. They also fitted several new long skirts and pairs of pants suitable for walking, as well as comfortable clothes in various styles and colors. Children her age truly grew by leaps and bounds.
Demirea could have simply summoned someone from the boutique, just as she did for her own fittings, but she had purposely come outside. Even when there were no errands, she tried to walk the streets with Ririe as often and for as long as possible. They went without carriages or horses, sometimes just the two of them, other times with a modest group including only the knight Yuran or Siona. Just as Serie and Suleiman had done for her.
Because she knew very well what a wonderful memory it would one day become.
"Ririe, is there somewhere you want to go?"
"Yes. I want to go to the river."
Blue-green hair and eyes.
A child who had Evan's hair and Lennon's eyes. A child who had Gray's sharp gaze and soft mouth, Silike's slender jawline and high nose. Because of all this, a child who resembled Franz in so many ways. Though it was never announced, she was, to anyone who saw her, undeniably a child of the Brissen line.
Because of this, Demirea had initially thought of raising her hidden inside the mansion until Evan and Lennon were forgotten from people's minds. She couldn't help but think that way. But then, she thought of her eldest brother, who was no longer in this world, and realized how foolish she had been.
After that, she called Yan and talked for a long time. She also had a conversation with Lemain. Of course, she had asked for Ririe's thoughts first. She did not, however, ask Suleiman. He would have simply told her to let Ririe do as she wished. No matter the outcome, what rumors arose, what reaction Gray had, or what demands he made, Suleiman's shield—the shield of Siegfried—was vast enough to protect a single small child from it all. Because protecting was what Siegfried did best.
At the end of those many conversations, Demirea took Ririe's hand and began to step outside the mansion with her. Naturally, they had also attended the recent event where Lemain fed the fish. Gray, who remained quiet, had no hasty reaction, and the nobles did not dare wag their tongues in front of a Siegfried. Thanks to that, the event passed peacefully.
"We saw the Senyu River yesterday, too."
"I know. But I want to go again."
"The riverside is cold in the evening, Ririe."
"Still. There were too many people yesterday, so I couldn't see everything."
Unlike usual, Ririe was being stubborn. It seemed she was deeply disappointed that she couldn't look around to her heart's content because of the crowd that had gathered to see the royals.
"Then..."
Stopping mid-sentence, Demirea pulled a pocket watch from her coat to check the time. It was just about time to return to the mansion, wash up, have dinner, finish some postponed work, put Ririe to bed, and then practice her swordsmanship or read a book before sleeping.
Glancing up at the sky, where the sun was already setting, Demirea leaned down. She tightened the pure white fur scarf wrapped around Ririe's neck and said, "Alright, let's stop by for just a moment. But you can't stay long."
"Okay! Yay!"
A flower of a smile bloomed on Ririe's face. Returning a small smile of her own, Demirea turned her head to give a message to Yuran, telling him that since they would be later than planned, everyone should eat first without waiting for them.
After Yuran departed for the mansion, Demirea pondered for a moment whether to take a carriage or walk. Remembering how much Ririe loved looking around, she decided to simply walk.
As if the shops and their displays were still fascinating after seeing them multiple times, Ririe walked slowly, taking it all in, before her feet came to a stop. Since this was only the second time she had stopped, other than in front of the sugar confection shop, the meaning was clear. There was something she wanted to buy. Demirea wore a slightly surprised expression.
"Do you want a flower, Ririe?"
"When we go to the river..." Her words hesitated, which was unlike her.
Even though she had just said she didn't like flowers, her feet had stopped in front of a flower shop on the way to the river.
Looking down at Ririe for a moment, Demirea reached out and scooped the child into her arms. Although Ririe had grown a lot since first coming to the Siegfried mansion, she was still light to Demirea, who swung a heavy sword that even Siona had to coat with Aura to match.
"I'll buy it for you. Annerusia."
Lemain announced the beginning of spring by feeding the fish in the Senyu River. That also meant another kind of flower would bloom again on its waters. After Lemain had left, countless Annerusia flowers, which couldn't be floated during the winter, had appeared on the river. Demirea had answered Ririe's questions when she saw them, telling her the flower's name and why people floated them on the river.
Without asking who the flowers were for, Demirea bought a large bundle of Annerusia. As each flower was meant to carry a message, she wanted Ririe to have enough to speak her heart out, no matter who the words were for.
"I'm going to send them to Mom," Ririe whispered, looking at the flower basket held in Demirea’s free hand. At the small words, delivered like a secret, Demirea slowly closed and opened her eyes.
Ririe was smart. Perhaps not as much as Franz, but she was certainly wise beyond her years. So much so that, even though no one had ever told her what happened to the woman who gave birth to her, she already knew.
"I should have bought more."
Careful not to let the child in her arms hear her sigh, Demirea spoke as if to herself.
"No, this is enough. I'm just going to tell her that she doesn't have to worry anymore, because I'm doing well."
"Alright."
"Thank you, Demirea."
"You don't have to thank me for things like this."
"Thank you."
"...Okay."
Holding Ririe in one arm and the flower basket in the other, Demirea continued to walk. Ririe popped a sugar confection into Demirea's mouth. Then, wrapping her arms around Demirea's neck, she put one in her own mouth as well. After they finished the last of the sweets, she hugged Demirea tightly.
The cold air, the sugar confections, the scent of lavender.
Annerusia, and Demirea's firm, warm embrace.
It was the first spring outing Ririe would remember.
* * *
Last autumn.
She said it happened around September.
"There was an attack. I escaped with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, but there was an accident on the way," the woman who had posed as Serjein, having failed to test the limits of their knowledge, continued in a heavily subdued voice.
"The Crown Prince is alive. However, he is in a state where one could hardly call him living."
It was the story of the real Crown Prince of Tensil, not the former guard knight acting in his place. She explained that there had been an attack, and while they were escaping, the Crown Prince had fallen from a cliff. Although they rescued him, he was left unable to speak, think, or move properly. She also said that all of the Crown Prince's closest aides had died that same day.
"What did your King do?"
"He tried to secretly send a priest, away from the eyes of the nobles, but he failed. The one who sent the attackers was one of His Highness's own aides."
"...The nobles? Why?"
"If Prince Randel cannot become the King of Kairis, they thought it would be better to bring him over to succeed to the throne. It seems they made a separate contract with Prince Randel."
She was referring to the Seal of Oath.
"Is it because of Kairis?"
"Doesn't Prince Randel have his own faction in Kairis? They intend to use that as a base to expand their territory. Especially since they've also joined hands with the wolves."
"I didn't know it was the nobles who were working with the wolves." Franz let out a dry laugh, thought for a moment, and then asked, "How are you maintaining the disguise?"
"Knowing that the window for treatment had been missed, His Majesty made a deal with Devlan. They would make me the Crown Prince, hidden from the nobles. I was the only one who could mimic all of His Royal Highness's actions while also being prepared for attacks."
Calian couldn't know if the one who was fated to die in a carriage accident this coming autumn would be the woman sitting before them or the real Crown Prince. Disguise magic did not unravel just because one became a corpse.
"So. What do you want?"
"I requested an invitation to the King of Kairis's upcoming birthday celebration, but I was rejected. So I came here to ask if you could arrange a meeting between Prince Randel and myself."
"Why?"
'Serjein' stared at Franz for a moment. Then, after glancing at Calian, she waited a long while before speaking.
"To ask if Prince Randel would ascend to the throne of Tensil, but join hands with His Majesty instead of the nobles. I don't want to be king. I'm a swordsman."
Calian's gaze shifted to Franz. Franz would surely agree to send Randel to Tensil. Calian couldn't interfere with that.
"I refuse."
And Franz refused.
"Solve your country's problems on your own. I see no reason why my brother should have to go all the way there to become your king."
The response was completely unexpected.
Franz had no intention of sending Randel away.
And he had made that decision without asking for Randel's opinion in the slightest.