~Chapter 94~
“Is it really okay to make a hole… in the palace wall like this?”
I stared blankly at the workers.
A hole was being made in one wall of Richard’s bedroom, and it was getting bigger and bigger.
“It’s because His Highness the Prince ordered it.”
“What is Richard even thinking…?”
“He’s probably worried about leaving you alone in your room. If he’s that concerned, he could just combine your rooms officially.”
Melona sometimes said shocking things so casually.
I looked at her, but Melona just tilted her head with the purest expression.
“Why are you looking at me, Your Highness?”
“It’s nothing. But where is Richard going to stay while the construction is happening?”
“Huh? I showed you earlier, didn’t I?”
“Earlier? You only showed me my new room.”
After yesterday, I was moved to the same floor as Richard, so naturally my room changed too…
Wait a minute.
“That big room… is it…?”
“Yes. You’ll be sharing it with His Highness the Prince until the construction is finished.”
“Why are you only telling me this now?!”
No wonder the room felt so big—it was because I had to share it with Richard!
I felt sorry for myself from a few minutes ago, happily thinking my room just got bigger.
“Do we really have to stay in the same room? It’s not like there’s only one room in the palace.”
“That’s the only suitable place right now. Also, His Highness said you might be anxious alone, so it’s better for you to stay together for now.”
“Hmm…”
Honestly, I still felt pretty anxious.
If any maid came near me, I’d flinch right away.
If I spent the night like this, I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep at all and would just tremble until morning.
“…Richard said all that?”
“Yes. He also said he’ll work from that room and talk to you about the counseling shop.”
“Right, today’s a work day.”
Even though I’d reduced my work days to three a week, my life was so busy I kept forgetting.
But now, it seemed I wouldn’t even be able to go out on those three days.
Luckily, last night’s incident didn’t spread outside the palace.
But almost half the palace servants had to pack up and leave overnight.
It wasn’t just Richard’s doing—the Emperor also stepped in. In a situation like this, showing up for work would be careless.
“Yeah, I need to talk to Richard.”
“He’s coming right now.”
Melona looked down the hallway.
When I turned to look, I saw Richard walking with the vice-captain of the First Knights.
Was his name Gillian? I knew his name but couldn’t remember his last name.
“Greetings, Your Highness!”
“Long time no see, Sir Gillian.”
“Sir Bramz. We’re not close enough for you to call me Gillian.”
“Huh? But Sir Bramz, we’re close, aren’t we? Right, Your Highness?”
Richard said this with a bit of sarcasm, and the vice-captain jumped up to ask me.
To be honest, I wasn’t that close to Sir Bramz, but I did feel some fondness for him.
No matter what I made, he’d always eat it happily, and he always helped move things without being asked.
“Yes, we’re close. But since you’re the pride of the Bramz family, it’s better to call you Sir Bramz.”
“Haha! I guess I am the pride of Bramz, but hearing it from you makes me shy. Please feel free to call me whatever you like, Your Highness!”
“Okay, Sir Bramz. Are you coming back from morning training?”
“Training isn’t over, but I came to watch since they’re making a hole in the palace wall. I’ve never seen that in my life!”
“Haha.”
From Sir Bramz’s words, I could see just how extreme Richard was being this time.
He even put training aside just to see the construction.
“Amelie, why are you watching the construction? It’s noisy and messy.”
“I’m just like Sir Bramz. I wanted to see if they really make a hole in the wall.”
“You know I wouldn’t lie about it. Anyway, you seemed like you had something to say.”
“How did you know?”
I was surprised and asked, and Richard tapped his ear.
He heard me?
Male leads in romance fantasy novels always have crazy skills, but this felt almost like superpowers.
“I can always hear your voice.”
“Really? Is my voice that loud?”
“Haha! That’s not what he means, Your Highness—”
“Gillian Bramz. Since you have so much energy to chat, you can join night training too.”
“What?!”
Sir Bramz’s face turned pale like a scared cat.
I didn’t know what he was about to say, but it didn’t sound good for Richard.
“I’ll see you later, Your Highness…”
Looking defeated, Sir Bramz went back to the training grounds.
“Weren’t you a little too harsh on Sir Bramz?”
“You have to handle him that way. He talks too much. Should we go to the new room to talk?”
“…Alright.”
Leaving the busy construction behind, Richard and I walked to the temporary room on the east side.
As we got closer, I started to feel nervous in a way I hadn’t before.
A whole day, just me and Richard, sharing a room.
That thought filled my mind so much that nothing else came up.
“Was the new room uncomfortable?”
When we arrived, Richard opened the door and checked if I was okay.
“It’s fine. But I didn’t expect us to have to share a room.”
“There weren’t any good rooms left on this floor. Just deal with it until construction is over.”
“It’s not a big deal… but isn’t it uncomfortable for you?”
“Not really. After staying together last night, it wasn’t bad at all.”
Oh. Last night.
Now that I remembered, I did end up sleeping in Richard’s room.
I said I’d never do it, but I couldn’t refuse him in the end.
I was so worried I might make a mistake, I tried not to sleep, but it had been such a long and hard day that I couldn’t help it.
“W-well, that was just one night. I can sleep anywhere, so I’ll just use a different room…”
“No. I get anxious if we’re apart.”
“It’s okay. I’m really not that anxious. I could even sleep with Melona if I needed to.”
“I mean I get anxious, Amelie Garnet.”
Richard’s voice was stronger when he said my name.
His usually calm face twisted, and I saw a strange light in his blue eyes.
“I may not have gone through what you did, but I’m scared too. I can’t leave you alone.”
“Ah… you must have been really worried too. Sorry. I didn’t think about your feelings.”
Richard spoke in a low voice, and he seemed troubled.
He was a knight who’d seen people get hurt or even die, but right now he seemed truly scared.
‘Just because someone’s seen death many times doesn’t mean they ever get used to it.’
What would happen if I disappeared after the ending?
I wondered what would happen to Richard, Lysa, and everyone I’d gotten close to here.
Would their lives go on? I didn’t know anything for sure.
“Don’t be sorry. It’s just because I’m not good enough.”
Richard smiled faintly.
‘Richard… If you weren’t around, could I really live happily?’
Because he was always by my side, for the first time, I started to hesitate about returning to my real world.
