Even the Great Have Everyday Lives - 5
The title debate Erzebet had launched was brought to a decisive end by the insane cheat keys of species-level Talulla and the denial of three generations of memories. Oppose those and you would become human garbage in an instant.
That future was more than I could handle. Flaunting an ugly personality right in front of three lovers—only someone with no future would do something like that.
"My Lord is fine, but it feels a little grand to use before we're married. For the time being, let's just call each other by name."
"Is that so?"
Heaven hadn't abandoned me completely after all; I had secured a temporary grace period.
Of course we could still use "My Lord." Beatrix's mother and maternal grandmother had used it, so it wasn't as if the title didn't exist. Yet that mother had lived a hundred years ago, and the grandmother had been widowed centuries earlier. For all practical purposes it was a title from history. Coming from the lips of age-conscious Beatrix, it was seriously awkward.
Why is she self-destructing?
It was almost pitiful. She fretted over her age in quiet ways, yet experience kept seeping into every small word and gesture.
"Calling each other by name isn't bad either."
At my suggestion Beatrix nodded. The faint smile that rose on her face told me she was already content just using names. Honestly, whether it was a name or My Lord, either was better than "baby."
"…Karl."
"Yeah."
Beatrix called my name softly and lowered her eyes in shyness, yet her face was still full of smiles. I found myself smiling too. Being called by my name instead of "baby" made me feel like an ordinary, equal lover. It wasn't that Beatrix had ever treated me as an inferior, but "baby" had still been a bit much. I had simply endured it for lack of a better alternative.
"Hehe. Even after a few hundred years, I don't think I'll ever forget today."
"If I'd known you'd like it this much, I should have changed it sooner."
I had thought the same thing when Mar and I dropped the formal speech between us. If I had known such a small change could bring so much happiness, I would have done it long ago. I never expected her to be this delighted simply by speaking casually or by calling my name.
Then again, Beatrix was the one who had started calling me "baby" in the first place. It wasn't really my fault—
No.
I hurriedly shook off the negative thought. Even if Beatrix bore some of the blame for this situation, that did not make me innocent. And if a lover with zero experience was lost on the path, then the one with far more experience—me—ought to have taken the lead.
I should reflect. I had grown too comfortable in the present and failed to look toward the future. Just because there had been no open discord between us, I had never sought a better way.
"Trixie."
After a moment's thought I called Beatrix by a nickname. She had never shown the slightest dissatisfaction at being called by her full name, nor had she ever hinted that she wanted a nickname. Even so, I deliberately put the affectionate form on my tongue. It was the better way—an expression of affection that would let us grow closer as lovers.
"Ka-Karl?"
It was only three syllables, yet the effect was absolute. Trixie, who had been laughing with her ears fluttering, froze on the spot.
"It's unfair if only Trixie changes how she addresses me. I should call you something more intimate too."
Speaking those words, I closed the distance step by step.
"Ah, ba—no, Karl? Why all of a sudden…"
Already thrown into confusion, Trixie fell deeper into panic at my unhesitating approach. The closer I came, the more she babbled and retreated.
"Hmph…"
It wasn't long before her back hit the wall and she began to tremble; the sight was almost heartbreaking. If a mere nickname drew this reaction, what would she do later?
Of course I had no intention of stopping at a nickname.
Now.
The feeling struck me. This was the perfect moment to ride the atmosphere and make a more active show of affection.
I took hold of both of Trixie's shoulders—she had nowhere left to retreat. The wall was at her back; if she tried to slip sideways it would only be embarrassing.
"Huh?"
Erzebet's voice came from behind me, as if she had just realized something. At the same moment Trixie's eyes went round and her ears fluttered at light speed; she, too, seemed to sense what was coming. She frantically rolled her eyes in search of an escape route, yet at the same time they held a faint, expectant light.
"I won't forget today either."
With those words I pressed my lips to Trixie's.
Ah.
The violent trembling I had felt cut off in an instant. I had expected it, so I wasn't particularly surprised. I really shouldn't get used to this sort of thing.
When life returned to her hazy eyes, Trixie hurriedly offered an excuse.
"S-sorry. I felt dizzy for a moment…"
The words were a clumsy excuse, yet her arms stayed locked tightly around me, showing no intention of letting go.
It was a strange pattern. She had been the one to bring up "My Lord" first, yet she fled when I used a nickname; her mind fainted from the kiss, yet her body refused to separate. There was no consistency to it—but by this point the inconsistency itself felt like one of Trixie's traits, and it was almost cute.
"Unnie, you were perfectly fine until a second ago."
Someone else, however, seemed to feel betrayal rather than cuteness; the mutter that followed was distinctly sulky. I didn't need to look to know who it was. Not knowing would have been stranger.
"At this rate everyone but me is going to get a turn today."
I couldn't suppress the wave of embarrassment. Only moments earlier I had said something like "I'll stay with you once we're back in the capital," and then I had immediately put on a display of affection with another lover. From Erzebet's point of view, it was worth seriously wondering whether she was being toyed with twice.
"Eri is confident she can kiss well too, you know."
The follow-up punch made me bite my lip. The statement was so direct that, embarrassment aside, I nearly burst out laughing.
"Unnie, it's only us here, but maybe put it a little more roundabout—"
"Mar is a winner, so she doesn't understand a loser's feelings! I can rub tongues just fine too!"
"U-Unnie!"
She began rampaging under the strongest possible justification—one no one could stop. If Mar or Trixie tried to restrain Erzebet now, it would only look like the leisure of victors.
Thanks to that, Erzebet once again performed freestyle swimming on the floor. The desperate tantrum only came to an end when we agreed to call her Eri instead of Erzebet—complete with the concrete condition that it apply "in public places as well as private ones."
She's picked up some strange habits.
Watching Eri stand on two feet again with a gleeful laugh, I quietly closed my eyes. Perhaps because she had once begged and cried on the streets of the Imperial Capital, Eri no longer felt any shame about throwing herself on the floor and raising a ruckus.
If this, too, was my karma… then so be it.
The moment class ended I rose quietly from my seat. Even before, I had always headed for the clubroom quickly once regular lessons finished, but lately I had taken to packing my things before the bell even rang—so I could leave the classroom without the slightest delay.
There's no real need to mind their stares.
When I opened the classroom door I felt gazes gather on the back of my head; as I walked the corridor the crowd subtly parted left and right. I managed only a bitter smile.
It was awkward. Everything had changed the moment I stopped being the Third Prince Ainter and became the sole Imperial Brother Ainter. A prince had become the emperor's brother; of course people would hesitate to approach.
Nothing to be done about it.
I could understand. On one side stood a mere prince who might, however slightly, obstruct the Crown Prince's succession; on the other stood the younger brother of a man already enthroned as emperor. Which carried greater authority and power was obvious. Provided he was not purged, the latter was far more stable and formidable.
Moreover, at the abdication ceremony I had not mingled among the nobles; I had stood on the dais and offered my congratulations on the new emperor's accession. That was a public declaration that His Majesty accepted my existence and intended to value me highly.
Hence, ever since the ceremony, the other students had been keeping a careful distance. They were not avoiding me because association brought no benefit—they were afraid of committing some discourtesy.
…It will go back to normal next year. I only have to endure this one.
I forced the optimistic thought and kept walking.
It was not baseless optimism. For nobles, socializing was as natural as breathing—an instinct. Right now they were merely gauging the proper distance and watching my reaction; by next year at the latest they would finish their calculations and approach me as they always had.
Decisively, compared with the days when the current emperor had only just been named Crown Prince—days when my death at any moment would have surprised no one—the present situation was practically paradise. At least now they avoided me out of reverence.
"Ainter."
While I was sorting my thoughts, Erich's voice came from behind. I turned.
Oh no.
The moment I faced him I couldn't help a short laugh. Erich still had a wooden sword at his waist, clearly just finished with a sparring match, and Sera was glued to his side as always. How this particular combination had formed was obvious.
"Looks like you had sparring today as well. Good work."
"What of it? Hard work is only natural for a martial artist."
"Haha, true enough. But Sera was at the sparring grounds too? Impressive that you two arrived together."
"No, we met on the way."
Well… "met on the way" was a generous description. "Caught by an ambushing Sera" would have been more accurate.
When I looked at her with that thought in my eyes, Sera carefully lowered her gaze in embarrassment; Erich, for his part, remained utterly unselfconscious, as if he truly believed they had simply run into each other.
Honestly.
I laughed again. I had become the emperor's brother, the club members had begun using honorifics with me as a half-joke because they claimed they could no longer treat an imperial sibling lightly, I had stopped them and we had finally agreed to call one another freely by name—in that short span of time a great many things had happened, yet Erich's social awareness remained completely unchanged.
Whether that counted as consistency or simple lack of progress was hard to say.
"Well, we were heading the same direction anyway, so meeting was only natural."
I looked at the long-suffering Sera and forced a nod. Unfortunately, Erich's romantic life was not a problem I could solve for him. Even with the other members subtly—or sometimes blatantly—pushing him from behind, Erich had stood firm in place. The only method left was for him to awaken on his own.
"Let's talk while we walk. The advisor has returned after a long absence; we can't afford to be late."
"Ah, right."
Erich reacted as if the fact had only just occurred to him. A little too indifferent for someone whose own older brother was involved.
"Sister-in-law will be heading back now too, I suppose."
I flinched at the words. The First Section Chief of the Audit Department had come temporarily to fill the vacant advisor's seat.
…She really was something else.
For a moment I recalled the incidents that had piled up while the First Section Chief served as advisor. It was already her second time in the temporary post, so there had been no problems with the work itself—but the daily eccentricities had inflicted enormous mental damage.
"Hey, did you know? If you tear open the ceiling here, there's a secret passage."
"This statue—if you pull the head it comes right off. I broke it by accident and glued it back in secret."
"If you dig in that empty lot way over there, you'll find the real swords the swordsmanship club used to use. How do I know? Because a senior and I hid them! The kids in the club were just too noisy!"
…
The damage had been truly immense.