CHAPTER 3 – First Date (Part 1)

“The air feels good.”

A pleasant smile spread across Cherta’s face as he took a deep breath. Once he stepped away from the pile of documents stacked like a mountain, even the noise of the streets felt merely distant. 

Diharn, who had been escorting him through the air, spoke with a troubled expression.

“Your Highness, you should return…”

“It’s noisy.”

Of course, he was interrupted before getting to the point.

“You have an important meeting, Your Highness.”

“There’s no way the meeting will go ahead without the two dukes, it’ll probably be postponed. So I’m here to fill the suddenly empty time with something else. Can’t you see that?”

“…….”

Diharn was at a loss for words at his lord’s imposing demeanor. How audacious it was to turn escaping paperwork into an inspection of the Empire’s citizens’ lives.

“Does the Knight Commander not understand how important it is to directly see and hear the discomfort of the Empire’s citizens? Stop dawdling and come along. Ah, and about addressing me as ‘Your Highness.’ Do you intend to spread rumors that I’m an aristocrat?”

“…I will correct myself.”

Diharn sighed inwardly and bowed his head, there’s nothing he could do when it was his lord’s wish, to whom he had sworn allegiance 

Just then, a familiar silhouette entered Cherta’s field of vision, eliciting a satisfied expression from him in response to Diharn’s answer.

“Hmm?”

Squinting, he saw that it was Rune and Eden, who had suddenly taken a vacation on the same day, skipping the meeting altogether.

“Well, well. You two took a sudden day off from the meeting and came out to hang out together?”

Diharn’s pupils twitched slightly at the ridiculousness of the prince’s laughter. As he bemoaned the path the two dukes would take, Cherta spoke up.

“And you didn’t invite me?”

……Was that a problem?

Diharn felt his temples prickle.

As Cherta began to scrutinize their presence more closely, he noticed the companions who had come with them.

Count Fernon, he’s Rune’s escort, so it makes sense he’d be with them, but who is that?

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the mauve hem of a dress. Cherta craned his head to try and make out a face, but he couldn’t see much, being shadowed by three sturdy men.

The only thing he could make out was that it was a small woman, among them.

For a moment, Cherta considered approaching them. Rune and Eden had a habit of always having different women around, so it was likely the same this time. 

If so…

As Cherta moved closer, closing the distance between them. Yet, they still seemed unaware of his presence.

However, as he gradually approached, things got stranger. Despite now being close enough for them to hear him, they still seemed oblivious to his approach.

Since he hadn’t particularly hidden his footsteps, they should have noticed him by now. All three of them were usually very sensitive to the presence of others.

Puzzled, Cherta stopped in his tracks and observed them again from a distance half as narrow as before. Then he noticed their gaze was focused on one place—towards the woman whose face he hadn’t seen.

It was a strange thing indeed.

They were usually so indifferent to others. One couldn’t even imagine them having honey-dripping eyes and expressions.

Even if all the nobles were summoned to witness this scene, none would believe it. Cherta can’t even believe it with his own eyes, let alone hear about it secondhand.

So this is why they’ve been giggling so much lately?

Whenever he thought of the two dukes who had been giggling when they came to report to him, he couldn’t help feeling somewhat uneasy. Perhaps their insistence on bringing up the engagement topic was related to this.

Cherta was now intensely curious about who the woman was who had made them look like that.

As the distance closed, the silhouette of the woman became fully visible, but there was another problem. She was tightly wrapped in a robe, with even the hood pulled down.

But perhaps God was on his side.

Just then, a gust of wind blew the hood of her robe back. The startled woman turned her head, and their eyes met.

“……!”

Eden quickly pulled the hood back over her head, and the eye contact was fleeting, but in that moment, Cherta became a person who had forgotten how to breathe. The now concealed face of hers was perfectly etched into his mind.

A new emotion swept over him. His usually calm heart began to beat awkwardly.

Dark black hair, hazel eyes.

Suddenly, he clapped his hand over his mouth. The awkward heartbeat surged so much that it almost burst out of his mouth.

The myth was true.

He too was a member of the royal family who knew the myth. Moreover, he had searched and waited for her for a long time. It was unthinkable that he couldn’t recognize her presence.

Filled with overwhelming joy, he stood still for a while, unable to move.

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

“Wow!”

Ria exclaimed in admiration at the sight before her. The rows of shops were as beautiful as buildings drawn in a fairy tale. To her, who had only seen tall and densely packed skyscrapers, these quaint buildings felt different and more beautiful.

“I’m going to buy a potion that changes your hair and eye color first. Until then, even if it’s suffocating, you can’t take off the hood.”

She nods at his words as he carefully adjusts her robe, but her eyes are already busy looking around the shop, so Rune wonders if she heard him correctly, her excitement is palpable, so he doesn’t say anything else.

“Is there a color you want to change into?”

Only after Eden’s intriguing question did Ria divert her gaze from the streets towards them.

“Um…….”

“If you don’t have one, should we go with a color the same as mine? It’ll look pretty.”

Watching Ria ponder seriously, Eden whispered mischievously. 

Wouldn’t it be cute if she had silver hair and red eyes?

How adorable would it be?

iis heart was already throbbing. However, his intentions were not lost on the other two men.

“I think Ria would look better with my color.”

“I’m sure the same color as mine would be beautiful as well.”

They argued back and forth about how to make her look like themselves. That’s when a gust of wind blew Ria’s hood off.

“Oops!”

It was a sudden situation amidst their laughter. Flustered, Ria reached back and turned her head, locking eyes with someone.

It was only for a split second as Eden put her hood back on, but she saw the golden eyes flicker and the slightly dazed expression of the person she met was evident.

“Ria, are you okay?”

“Huh? Yeah. Just the hood slipped off.”

“I’ll tie it a little tighter.”

As Eden slightly lowered his head and tightened the ribbon attached to the hood, she suddenly realized. When she first met Eden in the Duke’s garden, he had exactly the same expression.

Who was he to make such an expression at the sight of me?

Perhaps lost in briefly pondering, Eden has now finished tying the ribbon and extended his hand.

“There you go. Shall we go?”

Taking his hand, Ria lightly brushed off the thought from her mind. After all, they wouldn’t be seeing each other anymore anyway.