“You can see the fireworks from here too, right?”
“…….”
“If not, I’ll have to climb a tree or something—”
“You can see them. You could last year too.”
Still, sulking in silence just made her seem more childish.
Chessa, who normally wouldn’t care about such things, opened her mouth again.
“Where’s your little brother?”
“He’s probably with my dad.”
“……And Sir Dellapion?”
“Probably with my brother too.”
Those cool, sharply drawn eyes narrowed slightly.
Was he doing this on purpose, or was that just how he was?
Probably the former.
Aybelle Dellapion always had that smug grin like he knew everything.
“See?”
His round eyes were already gleaming mischievously.
“Your Highness, are you starting to wonder how I got here? Like where I left my family, or something?”
“Enough.”
“Aren’t you curious why the gatekeepers let me in this late in the evening?”
Even though it was a perfectly correct guess, he didn’t want to admit it easily.
At the same time, Chessa knew Aybelle would keep rambling no matter how he responded.
“This level of overwhelming cuteness makes people drop their guard.”
“What are you—”
“Usually, admiration for someone being pretty or cool is something people can ignore. But cuteness? That’s a whole different story.”
His confidence was absurd—almost brazen—but somehow didn’t feel like a bluff.
His hair, tied in soft loops on both sides, made his flushed cheeks stand out even more today.
His fluttering lashes contrasted starkly with his dark eyes, drawing attention to them.
Even so, Chessa didn’t want to admit it.
“You sure are going on about how the gatekeepers must’ve been out of their minds.”
“That’s the summary, yeah.”
Still, Aybelle added gently, “But it’s better to put things more nicely.”
“Anyway, I’m going to show you something fun.”
“Show me?”
“Of course! Did you really think I came all this way just to give you a snack?”
The bag Aybelle always carried looked unusually stuffed today.
Just like a kid opening up their toy box, he pulled things out one by one and laid them on the table.
“What’s this?”
“You said you’ve never been to a festival, right?”
“And?”
“Well, I specially gathered my allowance—no, I prepared this with all my heart, just for you.”
His small hands fidgeted behind his back.
She pretended not to care, but curiosity still sparked within her.
Chessa tried not to show too much interest—which already meant she’d failed—and stole a glance sideways.
Finally, Aybelle turned his head and…
“Ta-da!”
“Ahhh!”
His voice, usually so calm, shot up uncontrollably.
Chessa found herself face-to-face not with a healthy cheek or round nose, but green skin and a mask with three eyes on its forehead.
“How is it?”
“Ug—ugly.”
The prince, unaware of how startled he was, pushed himself back on the sofa.
“Why would you bring something like that…”
“You’ll just have to endure it for a bit.”
Endure? This level of ugliness? Why?
The mask, with its bizarrely exaggerated features, was unfortunately very well made.
Aybelle folded the eyes down and explained, “This is from a super popular play. It’s actually really fun.”
“So?”
“Everyone’s seen it—so of course you need to know the story too. I have other character masks, too.”
With that, Aybelle stood up with gusto.
Is he trying to explain it?
Technically, Chessa’s guess was only half right.
Aybelle Dellapion decided to perform the play he saw at the festival the night before.
“Oh, why must I struggle with this decision! Cake or macarons, why not both?!”
…So, with his body.
“Stop being greedy! That greed will be your downfall one day!”
Why is he so good at this?
Changing masks for every character, Aybelle acted out the entire multi-character performance by himself.
Even if the credibility was questionable.
But Aybelle’s talents didn’t end there.
“My little brother loved this part!”
He played a small foreign instrument with both palms,
“My dad was really focused on this part!”
He slipped little cloth puppets onto each finger and acted out a puppet show,
“What kind of mood do you want? Soft? Intense? Dramatic?”
He even sang songs with no accompaniment…
The ever-changing facial expressions and voices were practically genius.
Aybelle was truly, genuinely giving it his all—
Just to convey the scenes of a festival Chessa had never even seen.
But why?
A girl from a noble house barely any different from a commoner wouldn’t offer kindness without reason.
Chessa Lagracio never forgot that, and she was always suspicious.
But even so…
This much?
No matter the motive, this level of effort was excessive.
She wasn’t the kind of person anyone would bother putting in that much work for.
Even her parents—who would rather see her dead—only tried half-hearted tricks without doing anything definitive.
Because she simply wasn’t worth the effort.
…And yet why is he doing all this?
“Ugh, it’s hot.”
His plump hand brushed hair from his cheek.
Seeing someone doing this much just for her, her heart thudded.
Embarrassed, nervous… but not unpleasant.
“I still think that wall’s in the way. Maybe climbing a tree would be bett—”
Could Aybelle Dellapion be the father’s affection she never received?
No, that’s ridiculous.
Still…
Without realizing it, Chessa reached toward Aybelle as he tried to climb up onto the window ledge.
And dryly admitted,
“It’s not boring being with you.”
* * *
Playing with a kid is exhausting.
Aybelle had brought enough stuff to open an entire stall.
He had no idea what she’d like, so he brought everything.
I even put on a little show for you.
A true man never backs down once he’s made up his mind.
Luckily, Chessa looked like she’d enjoyed his one-man show from front row seats.
“What a surprise…”
“What?”
“Ah, nothing.”
Chessa Lagracio was quietly standing next to him.
Excitement was contagious, and thankfully she didn’t seem in a bad mood as she sat still.
One hurdle cleared.
Aybelle had been so shocked by what the Queen had done.
She doesn’t know how scary future villains can be—how annoying.
But kids are soft and squishy.
So Aybelle wasn’t afraid to mold a future villain with his bare hands.
Still, softness also meant they bruised easily.
If you didn’t take care of those early wounds, they would fester and leave scars into adulthood.
Like a bad dream.
“Your Highness, Your Highness.”
Her pale profile tilted toward him.
The prince, who usually ignored everything, was reacting a little differently now. That change thrilled Aybelle.
“You had fun because of me, right?”
“Fun…”
“I memorized all that just to show it to you! My eyes nearly popped out reading it all!”
“It was… impressive.”
“See? I only show this kind of performance to special people. My dancing is expensive, you know.”
“Dancing? That earlier bit?”
“What else would it be? A mosquito-summoning ritual?”
He didn’t mind putting on a show—if it meant pushing away unpleasant memories.
Aybelle grinned playfully and turned his head.
“Wow… our tax money…”
The kingdom’s taxes—no, precisely calculated magic—lit up the night sky.
Different eyes, sharing the same reflection of colored waves.
“I’ve never seen it this close before.”
“Me neither.”
Chessa still didn’t look away from the sky.
“There was never a reason to.”
“Well, you should watch a lot while you can. It’ll raise your aesthetic sensibilities.”
And maybe your appreciation of how cute I am.
Their legs, perched side by side on the chair, cast soft shadows below.
Chessa casually muttered,
“I thought you’d be with your family the whole time.”
“You can’t be stuck with them all festival long. Even my da—father could only spare a little time today.”
“Cut the pretentious speech.”
“Yessir. My dad has to work support shifts all night. And my brother—he’s frail, so he’s probably back at the estate by now.”
“And Lady Dellapion?”
“…Lady? Oh, Mom… She left for somewhere very far away.”
“My apologies.”
“It’s fine. You didn’t know.”
“…Same here. Mine ran away. Far, far away.”
A faint emotion surfaced on his neat face.
Sadness, anger, longing—and a subtle flicker of kinship.
Hmm. Looks like he’s got the wrong idea.
Aybelle had no complicated feelings about being abandoned by his mother.
He didn’t even remember her—so he wasn’t attached, nor did he feel any particular sorrow.
“Thinking about it’s pointless, right?”
“…Yeah.”
But if it meant getting closer to Chessa Lagracio’s heart, he’d pretend all he wanted.
“Do you miss her?”
“No.”
He could comfort her easily, pretending they felt the same.
“Yeah, that makes sense.”
Aybelle’s palm gently covered her dry hand.
Surprisingly, Chessa didn’t shake it off.
