“Well then, let’s begin the meeting.”

Jade murmured calmly. He scanned the nobles with a triumphant expression, seemingly unable to suppress his beaming smile. 

See? Wasn’t I right? Rosana is amazing. 

Already he could glimpse the doting husband he’d become. However, he couldn’t let his expression crumble. His words were right a hundred, a thousand times over. In the end, it was a noble—not Jade—who spoke up.

“Ahem, Your Majesty, isn’t it about time you held the wedding?”

Jade chuckled at the nobles’ sudden change in attitude.

“I’ll do it even if you don’t tell me to. However, she said she wants to hold the wedding in the warm spring.”

“Is there really a need for that?”

The nobles were puzzled. Wasn’t it urgent for them to marry quickly so she could officially become Diovaha’s empress? 

However, Jade’s following words made them admire Rosana’s character.

“Winter is cold, isn’t it? Plus, you never know when it might snow. She decided to postpone the wedding out of consideration for others who are sensitive to the cold. And Rosana’s thinking is that she wants as many people as possible to see the wedding.”

“Her insight is remarkable! If carriages get backed up due to snowy roads, it would be difficult to attend the wedding on time. It’s unfortunate, but in places that are still underdeveloped, many people suffer from the cold. Her consideration is outstanding as well.”

The nobles nodded one after another without exception. Jade conveniently omitted the fact that she decided on spring because she herself was very sensitive to the cold. It wasn’t exactly wrong either.

“It’s a good idea. There’s no problem with the wedding being delayed a little. Spring will arrive soon.”

Jade smiled with satisfaction. Debuting Rosana in high society first was an excellent choice. 

Even entrusting her with the Ales Kingdom’s envoy. At first he was annoyed that they were making a fuss over nothing, but thinking about it now, they’d caused trouble at just the right time. 

Thanks to that, Rosana had the opportunity to build achievements. She received favorable reviews for being bold.

“There won’t be anyone skipping the wedding, right?”

Everyone nodded at his tone that suggested there obviously wouldn’t be. Things were going smoothly—more than that, they were rolling in exactly the direction he wanted.

“I wish time would pass quickly.”

Jade muttered quietly.

* * *

“Rosana, should we put this here?”

“Yeah. That’s fine there.”

She watched the tea set being arranged by the maids and waited for her guests to arrive. Yuna and Celine told her to relax, but she couldn’t easily calm down. That was because today was the first day people she could call friends were coming to visit.

From setup to finish, everyone moved according to Rosana’s instructions. It was different from always watching Amy hold tea time with young ladies from afar. 

She felt bad toward Jade, but her anticipation for tea time with friends was somewhat different. It was one of the things Rosana had wanted to do for a long time.

“They’re coming.”

At Baron’s words, she looked up to see Kali and Lily approaching from a distance. Rosana smiled brightly. Kali bowed to Rosana in greeting, then with both feet together, greeted Baron once more as a knight.

Lily naturally linked arms with Baron. She poked his cheek and teased him mischievously, saying he was already getting shy. Baron coughed briefly. Rosana stared at them intently.

She could never express enough gratitude to Lily. She’d become her friend, and more than anything, thanks to her, she could put a name to her feelings toward Jade. When she looked at Lily and Baron, she saw herself and Jade.

“Oh! I’m sorry. Please sit down.”

Seeing Rosana standing without sitting, they quickly took their seats. Rosana worried about what words to start with. However, making her worries pointless, it was Kali who spoke first. Only the content left Rosana truly at a loss.

“Does His Majesty treat you well?”

And she felt déjà vu. Proving she was from the Raven Knights, Kali asked a similar question to the other knights.

“It’s the same. The knights asked me that question when I first met them too.”

“Well… from our perspective, we never imagined His Majesty would have a woman he cherishes.”

“Ah, I felt the same way. Jade… I mean, His Majesty was cold since childhood, saying the world is something you live through alone. Though he’s changed a lot lately.”

“You really do know a lot about Jade.”

She realized the feeling of her insides shrinking and getting angry for no reason was jealousy. 

Rosana touched her teacup. Then all eyes turned to her. Just when she was about to say it was fine, thinking she’d interrupted the flow of conversation, Lily smiled and said:

“He’s changed, hasn’t he?”

“Pardon?”

“You said that. That you didn’t know His Majesty’s heart. But that wasn’t true, was it?”

“…Lily was right.”

Lily leaned forward eagerly with sparkling eyes and asked for the full story. Rosana covered her face in embarrassment. Lily giggled at Rosana’s cute behavior—her face hidden in her palms with flushed cheeks.

“Rosana, why are you so cute? You’re completely different from how confident you were at the ball.”

“Mm, is that why His Majesty is so protective?”

Kali nodded, thinking she’d found a reasonable explanation. Lily urged her to spill everything, and Kali, not understanding, asked for the full story.

“Um, so… I liked Jade, but I wasn’t sure about Jade’s feelings.”

“…Can’t you tell just by looking? His Majesty isn’t exactly someone who hides things.”

“That’s what I’m saying! I was so frustrated! He was so obvious about it!”

“I… I wasn’t confident…”

“Did His Majesty confess first?”

Startled, Rosana lifted her teacup and splash—the tea nearly overflowed. At that reaction, Lily smirked. However, her face crumpled at Rosana’s following behavior. Rosana had spoken first. 

You could say she’d eavesdropped, but thanks to that, they’d confirmed each other’s feelings.

Rosana buried her face toward her teacup. She was very embarrassed to say it with her own mouth. Her earlobes turned bright red.

“I… I spoke first…”

Rosana awkwardly rolled her eyes. But the surroundings had gone quiet. She looked up to see Kali and Lily grimacing.

“No, what was His Majesty doing instead of confessing first?”

“Rosana confessed first?”

“Something like that.”

“Wait. I’m just asking in case, but what about the proposal?”

Rosana tilted her head and said she’d never heard of such a thing. Then Lily was shocked and burst out angrily.

“What, he didn’t confess first! You’re getting married soon and he didn’t even propose?! You’re planning to marry without even hearing a proposal? Even if it’s a political marriage, still!”

“It’s, it’s okay. Are we really in a position to have a proposal?”

“His Majesty doesn’t know how to receive love from his wife.”

Kali shook her head along with her. At the atmosphere criticizing Jade, Rosana stamped her feet. That’s not it… 

Rosana was restless. She tried to calm the atmosphere with hand gestures, but it didn’t work well.

“No, then what did Jade… what did His Majesty say to Rosana? He must have said something similar to a proposal, right?!”

“That he’d make me happy…?”

“How cliché.”

Lily grabbed her forehead and nearly collapsed. She raised her finger, saying they needed to address this precisely. Kali also clicked her tongue briefly, finding it pathetic. Rosana had to endure the heated gazes around her.

Rosana felt her neck grow hot with warmth and avoided their eyes. She’d never once thought about a proposal. Had Jade not thought of it either…

Lily turned her head sharply. She looked at Baron with blazing eyes. Sweat dripped down Baron’s forehead. Her gaze demanded he explain what this was all about.

The Imperial Knights and servants also murmured. Rosana and Jade’s marriage was so natural that they hadn’t thought about the previous step of a proposal. 

And there was also the complacent thought that His Majesty, who showed so much affection, must have handled it well on his own.

“Rosana, push and pull is important in love.”

“Push and pull…”

“There’s no obligation to marry a man who hasn’t even proposed!”

Lily snorted and thr*st out her chest, speaking confidently. She made sure to imprint it clearly on the men around her, showing not a hint of shame. Then she showed her left hand. On her ring finger was a small ring.

“I still remember it vividly. He said that as the days pass, the longer we’ve known each other, the more scared he gets. Because I have a weak body, he’s scared I might just leave him alone, so he wanted to tie me down with this. To his side.”

At the gazes pouring from around them, Baron coughed with a flushed face.

“Rosana, isn’t there anything you want to hear?”

Rosana hesitated carefully. Lily leaned forward eagerly, ready to catch even the smallest sound. 

Rosana lowered her gaze and pressed her fingers together. Though embarrassed, she spoke her true feelings calmly.

“But Lily, Jade already said something to me that’s no different from a proposal. That he’d trust me and watch over me from my side. That’s enough for me.”

“…”

Lily, who’d come out combatively, asked what kind of answer this was, then deflated and leaned back heavily against her chair. Kali, unable to watch anymore, stopped Lily.

“Well. It’s different for everyone… If the person involved is happy with it, there’s no point in us saying anything.”

Lily pouted and crossed her arms in dissatisfaction. Even so…

“Thank you, Lily.”

She knew Lily had said it thinking of her. Kali skillfully changed the subject.

“Your Highness. Are you planning to proceed with the wedding as soon as spring arrives?”

“How do you know that…”

“It came up as an agenda item at the meeting. Since the debut ball ended successfully, His Majesty was planning to hold the wedding right when spring arrives, wasn’t he? And everyone admired Your Highness’s consideration.”

“Con, consideration?”

Rosana wondered what aspect could possibly warrant talk of consideration.

“If anything, it’s rather late. Are the preparations going smoothly?”

“We’re actually in the middle of preparing the wedding dress.”

“Rosana! Should I be your bridesmaid? Usually someone close does it.”

Rosana was startled and waved her hands. It was burdensome to ask her, a duke’s daughter. While bridesmaids were sometimes done by close friends, usually maids did it.

“I’ll gratefully accept just the sentiment.”

Lily looked rather disappointed, having been looking forward to it.

“Instead, will you catch the bouquet? I want to give it to Lily. You’ll have to start a family with Baron soon too, right?”

“Ro, Rosana, really…”

Lily’s eyes drooped in embarrassment. She could feel her sneaking glances at Baron too. Rosana smiled warmly and asked Kali about something that puzzled her.

“But Kendra, why do you call me Your Highness?”

The way she addressed Rosana was exactly like the knights—she wondered if they were from the same order.

“Please feel free to call me Kali. The knights called you that. They bragged so much about ‘our Your Highness’ that it stuck in my mouth too.”