Chapter 34
So This Is a Feeling of Pride
The news was so unexpected that I was startled. Still, it was something I knew I would hear someday. I was only surprised because I hadn’t expected to hear it now.
Cedric also seemed taken aback by the sudden announcement. He lifted his teacup, then set it back down.
Yuri was smiling.
“We’ve been together for over ten years. It’s time to get married.”
“You’ve been… in a relationship?”
Cedric asked, drawing out the end of his words. I was surprised—had Cedric really not noticed the relationship between Nanesha and Yuri? His cherry-colored eyes turned toward me. Was he asking for an explanation?
Nanesha and Yuri were an extremely famous couple in the Kingdom of Rundra. They met at the academy and were each other’s first love. Beautiful beyond words was Nanesha—and beside her stood Yuri, even more beautiful than she was. Their romance.
The story of Nanesha and Yuri was practically a love novel from the Royal First Academy.
Yuri was the type who found everything bothersome except for one thing.
Yuri’s one and only—Nanesha.
Yuri became friends with Daimond when Daimond was in the academy’s middle division and often visited the royal palace. That was when I was barely half as tall as Cedric is now.
From the very first time I saw Yuri, there was only Nanesha in his eyes. Even back then, when they weren’t officially dating yet.
Even when we passed each other in the palace and greeted him, Yuri never really responded. Ten-year-old me, in my childish heart, wanted to catch the attention of the beautiful Yuri, and unlike Daimond’s other friends, I called him only by his name.
But even that failed to draw a reaction. Yuri looked only at Nanesha and seemed happy only at her side. Even to my young eyes, it was obvious that Nanesha was someone very special to him.
“I’m really happy!”
I was truly glad that the two people I supported would be spending the rest of their lives together.
Expressing my joy and congratulations, I clasped my hands together and clapped enthusiastically. While clapping, my eyes briefly met Cedric’s—but only for a moment. His gaze touched my clapping hands, then moved away.
For quite some time, clap clap clap—only the sound of my applause filled the room.
Then suddenly, Yuri burst into laughter like popping champagne. “Puahaha!”—loud and unrestrained. Even for Yuri, who lived freely without regard for rules, laughing so loudly in front of a foreign duke was unusual.
But surprisingly, Daimond laughed too. “Hahaha.” Even Nanesha covered her mouth, trying to suppress her giggles.
Everyone’s laughing because they’re happy, right?
“At last!”
I said, stopping my applause before continuing.
“At last, you’re getting married. Congratulations! Yuri, Nanesha unni.”
Now I understood why Nanesha hadn’t been able to calm herself before delivering the news. Even Nanesha couldn’t hide her feelings when it came to her own marriage.
“I’ll offer my congratulations once more, my dear friends.”
Daimond said warmly, laughter still in his voice. He must have heard the news before I did, but he looked just as happy all over again in this moment.
“May we ask Duke Deyerten to congratulate us as well? Please celebrate the marriage of Nanesha and me.”
Yuri said with a smile, turning toward Cedric. Cedric’s head moved first, then his gaze followed to Yuri.
“Ah, Laraen. Lintzhug.”
A very faint smile appeared on Cedric’s composed face. Somehow, it looked a little different from the smile he usually showed me.
“Congratulations on your marriage. I am glad to be able to celebrate the news of your union.”
“Thank you, Duke Deyerten.”
Yuri beamed. Cedric lifted the corners of his mouth into a slightly deeper smile.
“We’re not holding the wedding immediately. We need time to prepare, and if we’re going on a honeymoon, we’ll have to wrap up our work as well.”
Nanesha smiled brightly, saying she’d be busy—but still happy. When Nanesha smiled, Yuri smiled too.
There was something only I knew.
When Nanesha was with Yuri, she let go of a bit of her usual composure and became slightly giddy.
That didn’t mean she lost her judgment or became foolish. It was only a very subtle difference—just a little more flushed than usual.
I had once thought that love really could make anyone feel light and buoyant. Perhaps all of Yuri’s unusual behavior lately was because of their promise to marry.
Someone about to marry the person they love might feel more uplifted than usual—lighter, different somehow. Nanesha and Daimond held hands and smiled at each other. The sight was lovely, and it made me happy too.
“Congratulations once again.”
This time, I clapped carefully so as not to make too much noise.
Nanesha, who loved her work, had eyes that sparkled more brightly than when she talked about her job. Nanesha who worried that her kindness might become a weakness. Nanesha who valued principles and reason. Nanesha who nagged Daimond like he were her own son, despite being his childhood friend.
Nanesha unni.
She always smiled as if she were happy, but she had never looked happier than she did now. The face of Nanesha—rightly called the most beautiful woman in the kingdom—looked even more radiant today.
I realized that seeing a happy person’s face made me happy too. Buoyed by that happiness, a good idea came to me.
“Shall we have a celebration party at dinner tonight? Let’s pop some champagne. Daimond and I won’t drink it, but we’re confident we can pop it better than anyone.”
“I’m confident I’m one of the best in the kingdom at popping champagne.”
Daimond chimed in.
Since ancient times, the Rundran royal family had followed a principle of abstaining from alcohol. Even in modern times, Rundran royalty did not drink. While restraint was part of it, honoring tradition was the greater reason.
It wasn’t restricted by law, so among our ancestors there were occasionally those who enjoyed drinking. Shade drank now and then as well.
But Daimond and I placed greater value on carrying on tradition. As a princess of Rundra, I wanted to fulfill my role as best I could.
That said, for siblings who didn’t drink, we were remarkably skilled at popping champagne. Whenever Shade sat Daimond and me down to enjoy snacks and alcohol, he had us open the champagne or wine.
“How about holding the party in the garden in front of the guest annex?”
“What! Duke, that would be absolutely wonderful. Thank you so much for offering the space so generously.”
Cedric offered the perfect suggestion at just the right moment. Inside the ducal estate, we could create a splendid party.
“This is my gift to you for your marriage announcement.”
“Thank you, Duke Deyerten.”
Cedric spoke, and Yuri replied.
Cedric returned to his office, while Daimond and the others stayed in the reception room until dinner. We agreed to meet in the rear garden that evening.
Cedric allowed me—both a guest of the estate and a hostess for other guests—to freely decorate the garden. Excited, I gathered flowers and ornaments from the estate’s storage room.
Carrying flowers scented with perfume, I went to the annex garden, where preparations were already underway. It was a cozy garden along the path leading to a small three-story annex.
Evergreen trees surrounded the grass-covered garden, giving it a warm and intimate atmosphere.
A thick carpet was laid over the grass. White outdoor tables and chairs were placed atop it, and a tablecloth embroidered with pale green floral patterns was spread over the table.
I laid out the flowers I’d brought.
Carefully arranging them in a glass vase, I placed each stem while considering the differences in petal size, ensuring they looked beautiful from every angle.
After turning the vase this way and that, still feeling something was missing, I untied a ribbon from my wrist and tied it around the vase. It had felt incomplete before, but now—perfect.
“Princess, would you like to decorate this as well, if you wish?”
“Oh my, thank you!”
A maid who had been placing platters on the table handed me a piece of chiffon fabric trimmed with lace.
I layered the long chiffon over the tablecloth. Standing up and looking from a distance, I realized that placed between the embroidered tablecloth and the flower vase, the delicate lace didn’t stand out.
So I picked it up and instead tied it between two nearby trees. The thin fabric fluttered softly in the breeze.
Satisfied with the placement, I moved around to view it from different angles. Then I noticed Cedric slowly approaching from the direction of the main building.
“Duke, what do you think?”
I asked proudly when he came closer.
“It is very beautiful.”
Cedric smiled as he met my eyes.
“Did you do all of this yourself?”
“Not all of it. I arranged the flowers and hung this fabric here.”
“Is that so. It is extremely well done.”
“How is my flower arrangement?”
“It is excellent.”
Laughter bloomed in Cedric’s cherry-colored eyes. His praise made me happy. I laughed softly—hoho. My heart felt light and buoyant.
As I wondered if this feeling of excitement wasn’t new after all, I realized—
Ah.
This is the feeling of pride, from showing something I made myself.
