#5.

“Then get some rest. Do you need a doctor?”

When James asked in a businesslike manner, I deliberately answered coldly as well. It was also Amelia’s original way of speaking.

“No, I want to rest alone, so tell everyone not to come.”

“Yes, then.”

I thought I had managed to get past the crisis for a moment, but that was my mistake. Afterward, the Crown Prince sent a flower basket along with a letter wishing me a speedy recovery. And that, every single day.

---

The Crown Prince’s Palace.

Sunlight pouring through the window glimmered against his blond hair. Vincent, who had been gazing indifferently outside, asked quietly.

“Did you send it?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The Crown Prince’s aide, Viscount Oscar Cobran, who was standing behind him, answered politely.

Vincent turned around and looked at him.

“I told you to choose something extravagant and expensive.”

“That is what I instructed them to do.”

Oscar glanced at Vincent’s face.

Crown Prince Vincent had been knocked unconscious in a horseback-riding accident and had only awakened the day before yesterday. For someone who had been unconscious for an entire week, he looked remarkably fine.

However, his atmosphere had changed.

His emerald eyes, which had been overflowing with confidence to the point of arrogance, were much calmer than before.

But there was something else that was puzzling.

“Your Highness, but why… are you doing this? Why the flowers all of a sudden?”

“Is it strange for me to send flowers to my fiancée?”

The fact that he asked back so calmly was even more suspicious.

“That’s not it, but… the day before yesterday, you looked for the young lady as soon as you woke up, and now it seems like you’re deliberately trying to bring her into the palace.”

“It has always been perfectly natural for someone who is going to marry into the imperial family to be brought in beforehand and taught imperial etiquette.”

There was nothing natural about it.

And for good reason. Crown Prince Vincent had clearly hated Amelia very much. Even the reason he had fallen from his horse, if one thought about it, was because he had been avoiding Amelia.

He had hastily arranged a horseback-riding schedule that he normally didn’t have, ridden a horse other than the one he usually rode, and then fallen off.

“Send them once a day, every day. Until we hear that she has fully recovered.”

Even now, there was no concern or affection for Amelia in his order to send the flowers.

Then why on earth? For what reason?

Unable to endure it any longer, Aide Oscar asked again.

“Forgive my rudeness, Your Highness, but is there a reason you are putting so much effort into Lady Wentworth? Considering what Duke Wentworth has been doing lately—”

“Oscar.”

“That sly old fox might use his daughter to pull some sort of scheme.”

“Viscount Oscar Cobran.”

Despite Vincent’s warning tone, Oscar could not stop himself. There was one thing he absolutely wanted to say.

“Your Highness! The young lady may be innocent, but the Duke certainly isn’t…!”

At those words, one corner of Vincent’s mouth curled up bitterly.

“Innocent. Her?”

His eyes were completely unlike Vincent’s usual gaze. A dark killing intent briefly seeped from his emerald eyes.

“I-I beg your pardon, Your Highness?”

When Oscar called out to him in confusion, Crown Prince Vincent suddenly changed the subject.

“What happened to the magic traps I ordered you to install?”

“Ah, yes. We installed traps around the Crown Prince’s Palace even more densely than before. But why the sudden order?”

“Because the young lady came here with a little fly attached to her.”

Vincent took out a small fly-shaped object he had brought in his pocket and showed it to him. After examining it, Oscar spoke.

“It’s a magical device for eavesdropping. It isn’t a registered item. She actually came here with something like this attached to her? Your Highness, as expected, the young lady of House Wentworth is not someone who can be trusted.”

Vincent then looked toward the window and rubbed his chin.

“Well, I don’t think the young lady knew about it.”

“You mustn’t be so certain. The Duke of Wentworth’s family has always been close to the Magic Tower. If she grew up in that household, she must be familiar with magical devices as well.”

“Yes, that’s possible….”

Vincent agreed with his words, but his voice trailed off as though something still bothered him.

“Leave.”

The capable aide Oscar quickly realized that the Crown Prince’s mood had worsened.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

He withdrew politely without offering any further objections, but he still could not help feeling suspicious.

‘Something has definitely changed about him.’

As Oscar walked down the corridor, he suddenly stopped and turned around with an anxious expression.

“Could it be that he injured his head when he fell that day?”

After Oscar left, Vincent remained alone. Leaning against the window, he looked down at his open hand with a complicated gaze.

He still couldn’t believe it. He awkwardly curled his fingers into a fist and opened them again, yet he was still uneasy, wondering if this might all be a dream.

‘I came back.’

Vincent’s dark green eyes trembled before he suddenly clenched his fist tightly. That moment when he had been dying was still as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.

---

Before his regression, Vincent personally did not particularly dislike Amelia. However, whenever he looked at Amelia, he naturally thought of her father, Duke Wentworth.

Duke Wentworth stood at the pinnacle of the aristocratic faction.

He interfered in imperial affairs and tried to control them, and he was an extremely dangerous man who maintained close ties with the Magic Tower, which the imperial family viewed with suspicion.

Because of that, Vincent could not be kind even to Amelia, his daughter. Moreover, the bad rumors he occasionally heard about her were more than enough to justify his cold treatment of her.

Amid all that, Amelia, who constantly asked him for affection, gradually became a burden to him.

Then, one day, after a year had passed since their engagement, Duke Wentworth thankfully brought up the matter of breaking off the engagement first.

‘I should have suspected it back then. Why he asked to break off the engagement.’

The fact that Duke Wentworth had asked to break off the engagement meant that he had given up on winning Vincent over.

In other words, he had decided that Vincent was either an obstacle or someone to be disposed of.

But even that day, as always, Amelia was sitting in the Crown Prince’s office waiting for him.

The look in her eyes as she asked him to love her made him uncomfortable, just as it always had.

If Amelia married him anyway, she would only become a political scapegoat. Thinking it would be better for her to give up her feelings as soon as possible, he spoke more coldly than usual.

“Lady, haven’t you heard the news? Your father asked to break off our engagement.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you still here? You’re no longer my fiancée. That means you are no longer someone who can freely enter this palace.”

“Your Highness….”

Amelia hesitantly looked up at Vincent. The corners of her eyes were wet.

“Just one last time, would you have tea with me?”

At the word “last,” and at the sight of her glistening with tears, his heart softened. It shouldn’t have.

“…All right.”

Vincent sat across from Amelia. He then took a moment to carefully observe her as she personally poured him tea.

‘She’s a beautiful woman. Were her eyelashes always that long? Her eyes are a deeper red than I thought. Ah, with those hands, she couldn’t even catch a single fly.’

Thinking useless thoughts like that.

He picked up his teacup. The scent of the tea was sweet.

Perhaps because of that, his heart softened somewhat, and Vincent said something he normally would never have said. Even then, he still believed that her father was the problem.

“Amelia, things have turned out this way, but I sincerely hope you’ll live happily.”

“This is the first time you’ve called me by my name, Your Highness.”

The hand holding the teacup paused. Was that so?

“I suppose it was. Anyway, stay healthy. I’m sure you’ll meet a good person.”

“……”

Amelia said nothing and simply stared intently at Vincent’s face. He was accustomed to that reaction, so he didn’t think much of it.

After the cup of tea had been completely emptied, Vincent lifted his head and looked at Amelia.

He did feel a little regretful, but only for a moment. If their relationship hadn’t begun this way, would things between them have been a little different?

“Let’s get up now.”

Before he could get lost in any more idle thoughts, Vincent decided to end the meeting. He had plenty of other things to do anyway.

Today was the day of the tribute to the Magic Tower.

The Crown Prince intended to use this opportunity to bring the Magic Tower, which had practically been treated as if it were beyond the law until now, under the control of the imperial family.

Amelia remained seated in her chair.

“Lady.”

When he called her, Amelia slowly raised her head. Her red eyes seemed to shimmer unusually intensely.

“Your Highness.”

At that moment, Amelia’s face appeared to overlap into several images, and dizziness suddenly came over him.

#5.

“Then get some rest. Do you need a doctor?”

When James asked in a businesslike manner, I deliberately answered coldly as well. It was also Amelia’s original way of speaking.

“No, I want to rest alone, so tell everyone not to come.”

“Yes, then.”

I thought I had managed to get past the crisis for a moment, but that was my mistake. Afterward, the Crown Prince sent a flower basket along with a letter wishing me a speedy recovery. And that, every single day.

---

The Crown Prince’s Palace.

Sunlight pouring through the window glimmered against his blond hair. Vincent, who had been gazing indifferently outside, asked quietly.

“Did you send it?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The Crown Prince’s aide, Viscount Oscar Cobran, who was standing behind him, answered politely.

Vincent turned around and looked at him.

“I told you to choose something extravagant and expensive.”

“That is what I instructed them to do.”

Oscar glanced at Vincent’s face.

Crown Prince Vincent had been knocked unconscious in a horseback-riding accident and had only awakened the day before yesterday. For someone who had been unconscious for an entire week, he looked remarkably fine.

However, his atmosphere had changed.

His emerald eyes, which had been overflowing with confidence to the point of arrogance, were much calmer than before.

But there was something else that was puzzling.

“Your Highness, but why… are you doing this? Why the flowers all of a sudden?”

“Is it strange for me to send flowers to my fiancée?”

The fact that he asked back so calmly was even more suspicious.

“That’s not it, but… the day before yesterday, you looked for the young lady as soon as you woke up, and now it seems like you’re deliberately trying to bring her into the palace.”

“It has always been perfectly natural for someone who is going to marry into the imperial family to be brought in beforehand and taught imperial etiquette.”

There was nothing natural about it.

And for good reason. Crown Prince Vincent had clearly hated Amelia very much. Even the reason he had fallen from his horse, if one thought about it, was because he had been avoiding Amelia.

He had hastily arranged a horseback-riding schedule that he normally didn’t have, ridden a horse other than the one he usually rode, and then fallen off.

“Send them once a day, every day. Until we hear that she has fully recovered.”

Even now, there was no concern or affection for Amelia in his order to send the flowers.

Then why on earth? For what reason?

Unable to endure it any longer, Aide Oscar asked again.

“Forgive my rudeness, Your Highness, but is there a reason you are putting so much effort into Lady Wentworth? Considering what Duke Wentworth has been doing lately—”

“Oscar.”

“That sly old fox might use his daughter to pull some sort of scheme.”

“Viscount Oscar Cobran.”

Despite Vincent’s warning tone, Oscar could not stop himself. There was one thing he absolutely wanted to say.

“Your Highness! The young lady may be innocent, but the Duke certainly isn’t…!”

At those words, one corner of Vincent’s mouth curled up bitterly.

“Innocent. Her?”

His eyes were completely unlike Vincent’s usual gaze. A dark killing intent briefly seeped from his emerald eyes.

“I-I beg your pardon, Your Highness?”

When Oscar called out to him in confusion, Crown Prince Vincent suddenly changed the subject.

“What happened to the magic traps I ordered you to install?”

“Ah, yes. We installed traps around the Crown Prince’s Palace even more densely than before. But why the sudden order?”

“Because the young lady came here with a little fly attached to her.”

Vincent took out a small fly-shaped object he had brought in his pocket and showed it to him. After examining it, Oscar spoke.

“It’s a magical device for eavesdropping. It isn’t a registered item. She actually came here with something like this attached to her? Your Highness, as expected, the young lady of House Wentworth is not someone who can be trusted.”

Vincent then looked toward the window and rubbed his chin.

“Well, I don’t think the young lady knew about it.”

“You mustn’t be so certain. The Duke of Wentworth’s family has always been close to the Magic Tower. If she grew up in that household, she must be familiar with magical devices as well.”

“Yes, that’s possible….”

Vincent agreed with his words, but his voice trailed off as though something still bothered him.

“Leave.”

The capable aide Oscar quickly realized that the Crown Prince’s mood had worsened.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

He withdrew politely without offering any further objections, but he still could not help feeling suspicious.

‘Something has definitely changed about him.’

As Oscar walked down the corridor, he suddenly stopped and turned around with an anxious expression.

“Could it be that he injured his head when he fell that day?”

After Oscar left, Vincent remained alone. Leaning against the window, he looked down at his open hand with a complicated gaze.

He still couldn’t believe it. He awkwardly curled his fingers into a fist and opened them again, yet he was still uneasy, wondering if this might all be a dream.

‘I came back.’

Vincent’s dark green eyes trembled before he suddenly clenched his fist tightly. That moment when he had been dying was still as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.

---

Before his regression, Vincent personally did not particularly dislike Amelia. However, whenever he looked at Amelia, he naturally thought of her father, Duke Wentworth.

Duke Wentworth stood at the pinnacle of the aristocratic faction.

He interfered in imperial affairs and tried to control them, and he was an extremely dangerous man who maintained close ties with the Magic Tower, which the imperial family viewed with suspicion.

Because of that, Vincent could not be kind even to Amelia, his daughter. Moreover, the bad rumors he occasionally heard about her were more than enough to justify his cold treatment of her.

Amid all that, Amelia, who constantly asked him for affection, gradually became a burden to him.

Then, one day, after a year had passed since their engagement, Duke Wentworth thankfully brought up the matter of breaking off the engagement first.

‘I should have suspected it back then. Why he asked to break off the engagement.’

The fact that Duke Wentworth had asked to break off the engagement meant that he had given up on winning Vincent over.

In other words, he had decided that Vincent was either an obstacle or someone to be disposed of.

But even that day, as always, Amelia was sitting in the Crown Prince’s office waiting for him.

The look in her eyes as she asked him to love her made him uncomfortable, just as it always had.

If Amelia married him anyway, she would only become a political scapegoat. Thinking it would be better for her to give up her feelings as soon as possible, he spoke more coldly than usual.

“Lady, haven’t you heard the news? Your father asked to break off our engagement.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you still here? You’re no longer my fiancée. That means you are no longer someone who can freely enter this palace.”

“Your Highness….”

Amelia hesitantly looked up at Vincent. The corners of her eyes were wet.

“Just one last time, would you have tea with me?”

At the word “last,” and at the sight of her glistening with tears, his heart softened. It shouldn’t have.

“…All right.”

Vincent sat across from Amelia. He then took a moment to carefully observe her as she personally poured him tea.

‘She’s a beautiful woman. Were her eyelashes always that long? Her eyes are a deeper red than I thought. Ah, with those hands, she couldn’t even catch a single fly.’

Thinking useless thoughts like that.

He picked up his teacup. The scent of the tea was sweet.

Perhaps because of that, his heart softened somewhat, and Vincent said something he normally would never have said. Even then, he still believed that her father was the problem.

“Amelia, things have turned out this way, but I sincerely hope you’ll live happily.”

“This is the first time you’ve called me by my name, Your Highness.”

The hand holding the teacup paused. Was that so?

“I suppose it was. Anyway, stay healthy. I’m sure you’ll meet a good person.”

“……”

Amelia said nothing and simply stared intently at Vincent’s face. He was accustomed to that reaction, so he didn’t think much of it.

After the cup of tea had been completely emptied, Vincent lifted his head and looked at Amelia.

He did feel a little regretful, but only for a moment. If their relationship hadn’t begun this way, would things between them have been a little different?

“Let’s get up now.”

Before he could get lost in any more idle thoughts, Vincent decided to end the meeting. He had plenty of other things to do anyway.

Today was the day of the tribute to the Magic Tower.

The Crown Prince intended to use this opportunity to bring the Magic Tower, which had practically been treated as if it were beyond the law until now, under the control of the imperial family.

Amelia remained seated in her chair.

“Lady.”

When he called her, Amelia slowly raised her head. Her red eyes seemed to shimmer unusually intensely.

“Your Highness.”

At that moment, Amelia’s face appeared to overlap into several images, and dizziness suddenly came over him.