Chapter 21
The Sound of a Song
Cedric tugged the bell pull to summon a maid. Soon after, she entered pushing a trolley carrying dinner. Warm soup, hot bread, corn gratin loaded with cheese, and roasted vegetables were placed on the table.
Cedric guided me to the terrace. Behind the half-drawn curtains was a door leading outside. The thick curtains of the lounge were always partially closed, so I hadn’t noticed the terrace before.
Stepping out onto it, a few lanterns fixed on the walls and table illuminated the space. The terrace, cozy in width, was clean and well-maintained.
“It’s a beautiful night.”
From the third-floor terrace, the central garden of the ducal mansion could be seen at a glance. Blossoms in full bloom and fresh green leaves rustled under the spring evening breeze.
Cedric and I sat facing each other at a small two-seater outdoor table. The spring wind pleasantly stirred my hair. The unique fragrance of a spring night drifted along with the breeze.
“To fall asleep after eating so many sweets… it wasn’t very ladylike of me.”
“I did not think so.”
Cedric’s composed face made his words seem entirely truthful, which reassured me. Maybe that’s why I became a little more honest without realizing it.
“In the Kingdom of Lundra, I used to eat sweets often. Not Owen-style sweets, but Lundran desserts.”
Remembering Cedric’s ability to eat spicy, strongly flavored food with ease, I emphasized the word “sweet.”
“I see.”
“At first I ate them out of habit, but the more I ate, the more I grew fond of them.”
“Is that so.”
Back when I lived in the Lundran royal palace, I had no real hobbies. That was probably why I turned to sweets.
I suppose I could’ve enjoyed things like embroidery, music, or painting if they’d suited me—but I felt no interest in any of them.
It wasn’t that I lacked skill. It was that the moment I touched anything, people praised me endlessly before I even finished. Those things all felt tedious. Still, I did draw a little bit, here and there.
“Please keep what happened today a secret. And please continue to think of me as ladylike.”
“I will do so.”
“Thank you for protecting my honor.”
I gave him an intentionally exaggerated curtsey.
Feeling the warmth of the bread with my fingers, I used my fork to move some vegetables onto it. Warm food warmed my stomach.
Eating so many sweets had felt wonderful. I was thrilled no one stopped me. And honestly, getting such a deep sleep afterward was another good thing.
Waking late and eating warm food like this… the scents, the breeze… and the gentleman across from me was, well, kind enough.
“I’m happy today.”
“I’m glad.”
I smiled openly at Cedric. He returned a gentle smile.
Tonight, the sky was especially clear. The stars looked as though they were about to spill over.
The dark night sky reminded me of Cedric’s hair.
* * *
When I woke in the morning, the garden of the ducal mansion was overflowing with blossoms. I should take a walk among the flowers!
Excited, I dressed up more eagerly than usual.
I wore a dress with a pale pink tulle skirt embroidered with slightly darker pink flowers. Over it, I put on a silk blouse and a pink cardigan. I tied a green ribbon with lace around my neck.
Spring flowers bloomed everywhere in the sunlit garden. The maids told me their names—violets, chickweed blossoms, shepherd’s purse flowers, peach blossoms, and golden bells.
I walked all the way to the outer wall of the estate. Petals fluttered down delicately. I recognized the tree dropping its blossoms from afar. It was an apricot tree.
I walked along the wall to reach it. The path appeared long unused, tall grass stretching across it. Pale green wildflowers dotted the way.
Standing beneath the apricot tree, petals fell onto my parasol. When I tilted it upward, I saw only blue sky and pink petals—a festival of flower fairies.
I crouched down and looked closely at the petals scattered across the ground.
“Ah.”
When I stood and brushed my skirt, my palm stung. There was no bleeding—but strange little plants clung everywhere to my skirt.
I plucked one off using my thumb and forefinger. Tiny hooked barbs stuck out from its leaves. So that was how it had latched onto my clothes. I removed another.
There were even more stuck to the underside of my dress. I turned once to check the back—and in the moment I faced forward again, even more had attached themselves. The more I moved, the more would cling.
On the way back to the manor, my attention stayed on the plants stuck to my skirt. Pull one off—two more would cling in its place.
Even when crossing the garden, my gaze stayed fixed on my skirt. Eventually I sat on a bench to remove them. I told the maids to go on ahead.
I folded my parasol and set it beside me. As I plucked the burrs away, a shadow formed. With the light gone, I shifted my body to catch more sunlight. The shadow soon moved—the sunlight returned.
“Princess.”
I jumped at the unexpected voice calling me. My shoulders twitched as I lifted my head.
“Your Grace?”
It was Cedric. So it hadn’t been a cloud casting the shadow a moment earlier.
“Good afternoon.”
“Good afternoon, Princess.”
“What brings you here?”
“I was simply passing by.”
It wasn’t strange for the master of the estate to walk through his own garden. I nodded.
His cherry-colored eyes—emotionless as always—looked at me. It seemed he had no intention of ignoring me even if I were sitting alone in the center of his garden.
“Would you like to sit?”
I shifted over so Cedric could sit beside me. He sat neatly at my side.
“I was enjoying the flowers today. I walked along the wall to see the apricot tree.”
“Is that so.”
I explained why I was sitting there plucking plants off my dress.
“It was beautiful up close. But the grass near the wall is tall, so… I ended up like this.”
I lifted one layer of my skirt slightly to show him. Green burrs stuck everywhere. Cedric lowered his gaze.
“Clawvine.”
“That’s what it’s called?”
“Yes. In spring it has pale green flowers.”
Ah—those soft pale green flowers I’d seen among the grasses. So that was clawvine.
Without thinking, I plucked another leaf off my skirt. Cedric’s gaze followed my hand. Feeling his eyes move with my fingers, I removed one more.
Then his gaze lifted to my face. Our eyes met. Cedric slowly parted his lips.
“There are some in your hair as well.”
“Goodness!”
I felt around with my hands but couldn’t locate them.
“Excuse me.”
Cedric slowly lifted his hand and moved it near my head. I didn’t feel his fingers touch, but—
He opened his hand, showing me a leaf. The same as the ones on my skirt.
“Are there many?”
I placed both hands on my head and asked. His eyes swept over my hair.
“Not as many as on your skirt.”
“I must have picked them up while crouching. But it was very fun.”
Remembering the newly learned flower names and the snowfall-like petals made me smile.
“I see.”
Cedric reached out again. He plucked another piece of clawvine from my hair. This time I felt his fingers graze my head. I held my breath without meaning to.
“Thank you, Your Grace.”
“What do you mean?”
“For removing the leaves from my hair.”
His eyes shifted from my head to his own hand. A beat later, he replied, “Yes.”
“With Your Grace’s help, I won’t have to be alone while removing clawvine ever again.”
We removed the burrs for quite a while. With me quiet, a pleasant stillness settled—neither awkward nor uncomfortable. After a while, I spoke again.
“The sunlight is lovely today, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
“A perfect day for viewing flowers.”
“Yes, it is.”
“In Lundra, we would say that on a day like this, we’ve been invited to a festival of flower fairies.”
In the Kingdom of Lundra, people say fairies live within all things in nature. In children’s stories they appear openly; in adults’ words they become metaphor and symbol.
“Does Owen have special expressions for weather too?”
“In Owen, we do not use metaphors.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. If the weather is good, we simply say, ‘Let us go see the flowers together.’”
How very Owen-like and practical.
I flicked the clawvine leaves from my hand. They fluttered lightly on the breeze, joining the fairies’ festival. Cedric’s eyes followed their path.
There must be fairies in the sunlight too. The fairies of light must have been dancing atop our heads. Beneath that warm feeling, we sat together.
“I wish to see flowers with you.”
Cedric raised his head to the sky, then met my eyes again. Cherry. Cherries were spring fruits.
“We simply say it like that.”
Somewhere, it felt as though I could hear a fairy’s song.
Kong-kong.
