Chapter 61
Translator: penny
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Birthday Party (4)
"What is this...?"
After receiving firm confirmation from System Sis that the side effect neutralization process would complete tomorrow, I started unwrapping the third gift with a bit of relief.
"Black stone...?"
Unwrapping Marquis Magnaris's gift revealed what looked like an utterly ordinary black stone.
"......Huh."
But the moment I picked it up, the faintly vibrating black stone began to turn white.
"This stone measures the purity of whoever touches it!"
Wondering what kind of principle made it do that, I read the enclosed letter and soon realized the stone's true nature, letting out a quiet sigh.
"I developed it using the black magic crystal from last time, so put it to good use!"
It might be something highly prized in magical circles, but to me, it was little more than a toy.
Still, I'd received the gift, so I stored it away gratefully. Who knew—it might come in handy someday.
"Eit!"
As I thought that and moved to tuck the stone into a drawer, I suddenly grinned and reached out toward the System hovering in midair.
I have no physical form.
Too bad for you.
My hand passed right through her, and she responded in that exasperated tone, leaving me a little sulky as I opened the next gift.
'Big Sis Lilien's gift.... Hmm?'
Unwrapping the packaging from Big Sis Lilien revealed a pair of earrings that looked oddly familiar.
"This is something I treasure more than my life, so keep it safe even if it kills you, rookie."
Could this be the earrings Big Sis Lilien claimed she lost in the forest?
It had to be something pretty valuable if she was giving them as a birthday gift....
Yeah, I'd better store these carefully too.
'Then, finally, Her Highness the Imperial Princess's gift....'
Having safely stowed Lilien's gift, I finally turned my eyes to the present I'd been looking forward to most.
'I wonder what's inside....'
Unwrapping the package revealed a somewhat clumsily knitted golden handkerchief.
"I made this myself. Happy birthday."
"Hehe."
I tilted my head for a moment, then read the letter she'd tucked inside. Lying back on the bed, I murmured in satisfaction.
"Today really was the best day...."
But that lasted only a moment. A sudden thought crossed my mind, and I trailed off, breaking into a cold sweat.
'...But isn't a handkerchief a symbol of farewell?'
What? Had I done something wrong?
That's only when a man gives it to a woman.
As my expression darkened with those thoughts, a System message popped up before my eyes.
When a woman gives it to a man, the meaning is a little different.
Reading the message, I quietly patted my chest and sighed in relief.
"Then what does it mean?"
But at my follow-up, the System fell silent for a moment before replying.
You should ask her directly.
I've expended quite a bit of power, so I need to rest for a while.
With that, the System blinked a few times and vanished from my sight.
Make sure you keep that mask you picked up in the secret garden last time safe.
'...What a mysterious existence.'
I wanted to investigate this enigmatic being that had altered my fate right then and there, but on second thought, it wasn't top priority.
"Schwarz, you around?"
For now, it was time to wrap up my birthday.
"Yes, Young Master."
"Listen without getting the wrong idea."
I called out to Schwarz, who was waiting outside, and spoke in as low a voice as possible.
"Can you bring just the youngest Imperial Princess to my room without anyone noticing?"
It was the moment to bring the best day of my life to a perfect close.
About ten minutes later.
"Ah, you're here? Your Highness?"
Kairen, who had been gazing out the open window as darkness slowly settled outside, turned at the sound of footsteps behind him and spoke with an innocent smile.
"......"
The youngest Imperial Princess, ushered into the room by Schwarz, stood silently by the door, staring at him impassively.
"Come on, over here. Have a seat."
"...Why'd you call me?"
"Obviously 'cause I have something to say!"
Kairen pulled a chair up beside him and patted the seat. She bit her lip quietly and took a few steps forward.
"Ah, but before that, one thing I wanna ask."
As the princess sat down beside Kairen, avoiding his gaze, his bright voice rang out from next to her.
"What's the meaning behind that handkerchief you gave me?"
"......"
"It feels like it has some special significance."
At that, she lowered her head, her eyes going dead.
"Your Highness?"
"Ah, yeah."
Snapping back to attention at Kairen's puzzled expression, she hurriedly opened her mouth.
"Since ancient times, a monarch would give a knight a handkerchief when sending them off on a dangerous campaign."
"Oh, so then... "
"But I didn't give it to you as a monarch."
But midway through, her voice began to grow quieter.
"I was planning to explain the meaning today, but..."
She trailed off into silence, and Kairen looked at her with concern.
"You're acting a bit strange today.... *cough*!"
But only for a moment—suddenly, his body jerked, and he broke into a fit of dry coughing.
"Ugh...."
A moment later, Kairen lifted his head, his face scrunched up as if he might cry, and spoke.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness."
"......"
"I went and dirtied the handmade handkerchief you gave me...."
The handkerchief he'd treasured in his bosom ever since unwrapping it was now stained red.
"...Huh?"
But only for a moment—the red stain began to slowly fade away.
"That handkerchief.... has an auto-wash enchantment on it."
"Really!?"
"I commissioned the Magic Tower with all the funds I'd saved up."
Kairen's eyes went wide at the sight, and the princess, who had been watching him pale-faced from the side, explained the handkerchief's function.
"So... carry it with you from now on...."
Finishing her explanation in a terribly trembling voice, she bowed her head as if she lacked the face to look at him anymore.
"Anyway, Your Highness, look at the sky."
"......Huh?"
"Isn't it so vast and beautiful?"
Kairen, who had been quietly glancing at her sidelong, suddenly gestured toward the open window outside and spoke up.
"I've always liked looking at the sky."
"...Why?"
"Back in Opstein, staring at the sky out the window was my hobby."
Having shared the same hobby herself, she asked quietly—then clamped her mouth shut at Kairen's heartbreaking answer.
"I lost count of how many times I wished I could turn into a bird and fly free."
Undeterred, Kairen smiled and continued, then suddenly turned his head to gaze at the princess.
"I've achieved that dream now, but you haven't yet, Your Highness."
"......"
"So Kairen wants to give you that chance too."
At the same time, tears began slowly welling up in the princess's eyes.
"So what I'm saying is..."
"You idiot?"
"...Pardon?"
Finally unable to hold back, the princess cut him off and started snapping at him.
"You're throwing away the happiness you just barely got... all for someone like me?"
Kairen stared at her in flustered surprise.
'How does she know I've seriously jumped into the succession race?'
Recalling that she was one of the reasons he'd come to want the family head position, he gaped at her in bewilderment.
"What am I saying. I'm royalty in name only—no name, no presence, despised by all...."
"......"
"To try saving trash like me.... why on earth...."
Gauging her mood for a moment, Kairen quietly continued.
"Your Highness, I'm still definitely going to become the family head."
"...What?"
"As head of Belverk, I'll live happily with everyone."
The princess's eyes were red and bloodshot as she retorted in an icy voice.
"...What do you think you can accomplish becoming head in that tiny amount of time?"
"Hehe, it won't be that short."
But at Kairen's bright, clueless reply, even more tears welled up in the princess's eyes.
"And I might be able to help you too, Your Highness."
"......"
"So don't give up on it either, Your Highness. You never know—the throne might end up yours as future emperor."
Gazing at her, Kairen recited his dreamy words with a pure smile.
"I want you to spread your wings unbroken and soar."
It was a dream the youngest princess, who had only ever focused on survival, had never even dared to aspire to.
"I heard the competition for Belverk family head is brutal."
"Yes, it is."
"You really think you can win that bloodbath with no time on your side?"
That was why, as the princess asked darkly, Kairen replied with bright innocence.
"...If I can't win, I die."
"What do you...!"
"That's the resolve behind me telling you this, Your Highness."
But Kairen, his expression turning serious as he cut her off mid-sentence, soon turned to gaze out the window again.
"Anyway, what I wanted to say is..."
And then, Kairen's eyes began to sparkle just as brilliantly as the dream he harbored.
"...From now on, I'll give you a name."
"What?"
At those words, the princess's face took on a look of mild shock, and Kairen whispered with a grin.
"We promised, remember?"
With that, Kairen began staring out at the expansive sky before him.
"I've thought long and hard about it, but considering the circumstances of how we first met, I think this name fits best."
The moment he murmured those words in a low voice.
"Ria. Ria Lumen Shinehardt."
The youngest princess, called by name for the first time in her life, swallowed hard.
"It's from 'canary,' my favorite bird. And Peep looks like one too, so..."
"......"
"...It also means I hope you spread your wings and fly free."
Kairen continued beside the youngest princess, a faint smile on his lips.
"So..."
He turned his head to the side and whispered in a soft voice, beaming with the brightest smile yet.
"Here's to a great future together, Princess Ria."
And right at that moment.
- Pop, bang...!
A barrage of fireworks exploded all at once outside the window.
"Young Master, you watching?"
"Happy birthday~!"
"Come out and play hide-and-seek with us~!"
In truth, they weren't fireworks—the maids out in the garden were launching their unique black magics into the night sky—but it made for a thoroughly romantic scene.
At the very least, to the youngest princess, who had just received her name and now gazed at Kairen amid a swirl of vibrant colors.
"......"
The princess sat there in a daze for quite some time afterward before her expression slowly twisted.
"Princess?"
Hot tears began streaming from her eyes, and Kairen looked at her in mild alarm.
"...Kairen."
Biting her lip and trying to swallow her tears in that situation, the princess finally gave up holding them back and spoke in a choked, sobbing voice.
"You've devoted your life to saving worthless me, so I'll answer you in kind."
At the same time, her trembling hands reached forward to grasp Kairen's shoulders.
"I gave you that handkerchief not as a monarch or a princess, but as one woman to one man."
She spoke not as the imperial family's mute princess any longer, but as Ria Lumen Shinehardt.
"Huh?"
To this naive boy who, despite her utter worthlessness and pitiable state, had spent a full eighty years saving her.
"The meaning is this."
And with that, Ria the princess's head leaned slowly forward.
"I offer you my heart."
Those words finished, the soft sensation of her lips met Kairen's.
"......I like you."
A moment later, she pulled back, her tear-streaked face flushing red as she whispered softly.
Meanwhile, at that very hour, in the room right next door to Kairen's.
"I..."
Uriel, who had slipped unnoticed into the room and opened the window to peer outside, had overheard the entire conversation from next door. She quietly bowed her head.
"...haven't stolen just one life, but two people's fates."
She muttered that with an expression like she could no longer hold out.