Chapter 59
“What is it?”
Of course there would be resistance if you put it in such a corny, old-fashioned romance cliché way!
Still, despite sneering inwardly, Roze asked right back.
“The forest behind the imperial palace is very large and deep. You could say there’s a reason the palace was built here of all places.”
Jonathan looked out past the boundary of the rear garden, at the untouched wilderness beyond, and spoke.
Following his gaze, Roze tilted her head. What was so important about the forest being deep? What exactly was Jonathan trying to say?
“So what if the forest is deep?”
“If you want a man and woman to come to a definite conclusion, there’s nothing better.”
At those words from Jonathan—
“That’s definitely worth trying!”
Roze’s eyes lit up, but at the same time—
‘Wait. If he thinks it’s childish, how come Jonathan knows all about these kinds of things?’
She couldn’t help but suspect Jonathan might actually be a romance maniac.
After all, what he proposed was just another classic romance cliché.
Roze couldn’t quite figure out why she kept being paired off with Christina.
“Your Majesty, what a coincidence, meeting you here. I just arrived myself.”
Because of that, Christina had recently been approaching Noah more and more often.
This time too, she had clearly waited on purpose, and as soon as Noah stepped into the lobby leading to his private chambers, she greeted him with a bright smile as if it were pure chance.
Even if it wasn’t the result of careful scheming like her father, Duke Raymond, Noah immediately felt displeasure.
He hated it when people hid their intentions.
And he hadn’t expected her to just show up again, acting as though nothing had happened, without a shred of guilt.
So Noah only gave Christina a glance as she approached. Without a word, he passed her, opened the small door guarded by knights that led into his private rooms, and stepped into the familiar darkness that greeted him.
Even though oil lamps were kept burning day and night, compared to the sunlit lobby outside, this place was darkness itself.
A wretched taste.
It wasn’t the late emperor’s preference but his fear that had created a room with not a single ray of light. Still, Noah always thought: what a vile taste it was.
“Roze must be waiting in the rear garden, right? The other day she enjoyed the macarons so much that I made some more. Your Majesty, which flavor do you like best?”
Christina trailed him down the dark corridor without trouble. Her constant chatter was irritating, but at least it was better than walking alone in silence.
Was that why?
Noah thought perhaps Roze wanted Christina close to him for that reason—because Roze knew, even if Noah never showed it, the depth of his loneliness.
She might have hoped he would keep someone by his side.
But even if he understood the kindness behind it, Noah had no intention of accepting it.
“Where are we, Your Majesty?”
“……You really mean this, don’t you.”
“Pardon?”
Searching for Roze in the forest, Noah ended up lost with Christina.
[Oliver!]
Back in her bedroom, ready to put the plan in motion, Roze called Oliver’s name for the first time in a while.
Would he show up if she called so suddenly? She wondered, but Oliver popped out from behind the dresser as if he’d been waiting.
[I thought you’d forgotten about me since you haven’t called at all lately!]
And he went on like that—
[I heard you even brought in new cats to the garden. I figured you’d completely forgotten a mere field mouse like me.]
He complained that he’d been neglected. Roze had thought it might be kinder to leave him with his family in the potato field the servants half-cultivated, but apparently not.
“You were the first animal friend I made at the palace. Of course I wouldn’t forget you.”
Anyone could tell her words lacked sincerity, but Oliver beamed anyway.
[Heh, of course! I’m Roze’s first subordinate in the imperial palace!]
Like when he once puffed out his belly after helping her find the food thieves’ evidence, Oliver proudly proclaimed himself her loyal follower.
Thinking he was truly a strange creature, Roze still held her tongue.
She needed someone to keep an eye on things. The cats were too big—no matter how careful, they would be noticed.
[So, what can I help with?]
Roze only meant to use Oliver briefly, but the mouse seemed proud just to be useful. She almost felt like trash for exploiting such a guileless creature.
‘Now even a mouse is treating me like a cat…’
Then again, maybe it was just animal instinct—sensitivity to hierarchy.
Among the palace animals, Roze was without question number one, even if she wasn’t in cat form anymore.
Well, whatever the reason, if Oliver would cooperate, she was grateful.
Gathering her thoughts, Roze got straight to the point.
“You know Noah, right?”
[Who’s Noah?]
“The emperor.”
[Of course I know the emperor! But you call His Majesty by name?!]
It was absurd being treated as “just an animal,” but the way Oliver looked at her with genuine respect was enough to tug a smile to her lips.
If even a field mouse looking at her like that made her proud, maybe she didn’t need to feel wronged about being treated like an animal.
After all, humans are animals too. And beastfolk even more so.
“Soon, Noah and a noble lady named Christina will head into the forest behind here. I need you to make sure they really get lost.”
[Huh? You don’t want me to guide them if they get lost—you want me to make sure they do get lost?]
“Exactly.”
It was a bizarre order, enough to make Oliver’s tiny eyes go wide, but it had to be done. That was the only way Jonathan’s plan would succeed.
—His Majesty the Emperor has one weakness.
—A weakness? What is it?
Roze had been skeptical. Noah looked so flawless, capable in every way—what weakness could he possibly have? Flat feet? Uneven eyesight?
—He’s… a little bad with directions.
—Bad with directions?
It was a surprisingly cute flaw. He was fine where there were clear landmarks, but in the mountains he had no sense of direction. Jonathan said he always had to stick close and guide him.
—But how will you even get him into the forest in the first place?
—With Roze as an excuse, even the hardest task becomes easy.
Jonathan’s plan was this:
The new cats had been let loose in the rear garden, but when feeding time came they didn’t appear. Worried, Roze supposedly went beyond the boundary into the forest to find them and hadn’t returned for hours.
They couldn’t send knights openly since Roze’s existence was still secret.
—Just that much will be enough. His Majesty will cross the boundary without hesitation.
Roze knew it too—Noah would never hesitate.
And if Noah went, Christina would surely follow.
—Christina, who’s used to being escorted everywhere, isn’t likely to find her way either.
So the idea was simple: the two of them would wander, get lost, and end up stuck together until someone came. A setup straight out of the “stranded together overnight” romance cliché.
It made Roze suspect again that Jonathan was some kind of hopeless romance enthusiast.
Of course, that cliché usually worked on couples who already had mutual feelings but were still holding back.
—Will it even work?
—At the very least, it’ll give them time alone to talk.
Would it work on Noah? Roze had her doubts.
—Well, who knows? Noah’s still a healthy young man.
Better than letting them just trade meaningless small talk.
It was still chilly at night despite spring approaching. No matter how fearsome Noah looked, he was a gentleman. There was no way he’d ignore Christina shivering in the dew.
They’d have to gather wood, build a fire, huddle close for warmth… and then—who knows?
Maybe instincts Noah didn’t even know he had would surface. Maybe even without feelings, he’d cross a line, and then feelings would grow afterward—another romance trope.
‘Not that I believe it.’
Roze couldn’t imagine Noah doing such a thing. If he did, she’d be genuinely shocked. But still—she had no choice but to bet everything on this plan.
“And if anything happens between them, you have to tell me right away!”
[Any… anything?]
“You’ll know when you see it!”
