Chapter 9
Joshua’s violet eyes were more tense than they had been at any point today.
So this was why he had invested so much effort—just to ask this single question.
Walking all the way to the outskirts himself, spending half a day on me, preparing a space so enchanting it could captivate anyone, tea perfectly suited to my palate, and carefully chosen tea foods.
It was astonishing dedication and meticulous planning.
He could have asked me casually, yet instead he spent all this time.
But I had no intention of yielding so easily.
‘Thanks to you, I’ve come to my senses, Your Highness.’
No matter when he asked, no matter how much time he spent, there was only one word that could define the relationship between Lucas and me.
“Just as Prince Lucas said.”
The moment I opened my mouth, I saw Joshua tense.
Was he bracing himself for silence—or was it pure nervousness?
I didn’t avoid his gaze. Instead, I smiled lightly and spoke as if it were nothing of importance.
“We’re just childhood friends.”
That was all.
That alone connected Lucas and me.
The aides around him were given titles according to their roles, but what I wanted from Lucas—and what he gave me—was only this.
“Childhood friends…”
Unlike his previously relaxed demeanor, Joshua met my eyes deeply and asked again.
“Are you truly nothing more than childhood friends?”
If not that, then what? Did he want me to say I was Lucas’s strategist? His representative supporter?
I deliberately put on a puzzled expression, as if I didn’t understand his intention.
Hoping he would continue to think of me as nothing more than a noblewoman from the provinces.
‘It would be troublesome if he became wary of me.’
There was still much I needed to do for Lucas.
‘…Or is this a warning?’
That was possible too. Not that I would be frightened.
With a faint smile, I replied.
“Of course. What else could we possibly be?”
A brief silence followed. Joshua let out a short sigh and, looking apologetic and slightly embarrassed, helped me to my feet.
“My apologies. It is something of great importance to me.”
Well, that was understandable. Lucas—under the name “Luca Delric”—had effectively become his strongest rival.
But shouldn’t you be more careful about revealing your impatience so easily, Prince Joshua?
If I had been on his side, my mouth would have been itching to say exactly that.
Yet contrary to my concern, his expression was strangely gentle.
As if my carefully guarded answer pleased him.
“Such a shame, miss! I wanted to touch your hair again. You could have stayed at the imperial palace a little longer!”
Rosina’s words made me laugh softly inside the returning carriage.
“It can’t be helped. You belong to Prince Joshua, after all.”
He had offered to escort me all the way to the townhouse, but I declined.
Wasn’t the whole reason he chose such a remote botanical garden that he didn’t want to be too visibly involved with me?
I assumed it was just a polite offer.
‘Then at least allow Rosina to attend you. I would prefer to assign knights, but I suspect you would not want that, Miss Blante.’
I hadn’t expected him to sound that regretful.
Was there something left unsaid? I considered it briefly, but he showed no such sign.
As I gazed out the window thinking of him, Rosina spoke sadly.
“I know… I was always proud to serve Prince Joshua, but right now I feel so miserable!”
Her adorable flattery made me smile again.
The conversation with Rosina was just as pleasant as it had been on the way there.
When the carriage arrived, Rosina handed me a letter.
“What’s this?”
“It’s something His Highness entrusted me with. He told me very firmly to make sure you receive it.”
She looked at me with pleading eyes, as if begging me to accept it.
Well, what harm could there be in receiving one letter?
I accepted it lightly, looking at the neatly stamped seal bearing Joshua’s crest—
Completely unaware of the trouble it would cause.
“Welcome back, miss.”
The butler Gerald greeted me warmly. He managed the capital townhouse and had once been a footman at the marquisate when I was young.
Most people from the Blante territory were blunt by nature, but he was gentle and playful—one of the few servants I felt truly comfortable with.
“It’s been a while, Jerry. Has everyone been well?”
“Of course! Miss Alicia, you’ve grown so much. How long has it been since I last saw you? I’ve missed hearing you call me ‘Jerry.’”
He even winked as he welcomed me.
While the other servants simply went about their duties indifferently, Gerald smiled brightly, then lowered his voice to whisper.
“Master Luca—no, His Highness Prince Lucas—is here.”
“Lucas?”
“Yes. He seems to be in quite a foul mood… A few of the maids eagerly went in to attend him and were scolded terribly.”
I frowned slightly at Gerald’s words.
What was Lucas sulking about this time?
‘He should still be at the banquet.’
Why was he here at the townhouse? Just last night, he’d been excited about networking with other nobles.
“Where is he?”
Gerald looked deeply apologetic.
From that expression alone, I knew exactly where my childhood friend was.
“He’s in my room, isn’t he?”
“My apologies. I told him it wouldn’t be appropriate anymore and tried to guide him to the drawing room…”
“I’ll handle it. Go back to work, Gerald. Don’t brew the tea—just prepare the leaves and water.”
“Understood, miss.”
As I placed my foot on the stairs leading to the second floor, reality crashed over me.
Today had been quite nice.
It felt like I’d spent time entirely for myself.
‘But this is where you belong, Alicia Blante.’
The place where I had responsibilities—where I chose to be.
Lucas’s childhood friend. The one who helps him achieve what he wants.
I couldn’t afford to forget that. The soft, easygoing version of me needed to be tucked away for now.
Sniffling, I passed through the maids who watched me nervously and opened the door to my room.
Bang!
“I said I don’t need attendants! Are all the servants of the marquisate this incompetent?”
“Lucas.”
I picked up the book that had hit the wall and fallen.
Of all things, he had thrown my precious first edition.
One of the few birthday gifts from Lucas that actually matched my taste.
As I gently brushed the dust off the dented hardcover and placed it on the table, Lucas looked at me with pitiful eyes.
“Alicia…”
“What’s wrong?”
I hurried over to him, and he pulled me down to sit beside him on the sofa—as if that were my rightful place.
There was a faint smell of alcohol on him.
I soothed him, gently stroking his disheveled hair.
“It was so hard without you.”
“Huh?”
“That’s why I told you to come with me. You dressed up so beautifully—why did you leave me alone?”
What was wrong with him?
He’d never acted this pitiful, even back in the marquisate.
I counted the dates again—his mother’s death anniversary was still some time away.
“What happened at the banquet?”
Lucas shook his head.
Like on nights when he drank, like on days when he couldn’t handle the flood of emotions, he hugged my waist and buried his face in my hair.
“Nothing happened… I just suddenly became afraid of everything.”
“Lucas.”
“Alicia, I must have hurt you with what I said earlier, didn’t I?”
“I told you that’s not it.”
“Then why didn’t you wear the bonnet I picked out for you?”
I sighed softly.
There were times when Lucas Medelrike wanted everything his way.
Usually only around the former empress’s memorial.
I decided to soothe him with a lie.
“No, I just left it with Jerry along with my coat.”
“…Really?”
“Of course. I wouldn’t ignore something you chose for me.”
“Okay…”
Lucas hugged me tightly, murmured for a while, then sprawled his head onto my thigh.
His golden eyes looked up at me—playful, yet sticky with emotion.
“Then put me to sleep.”
“…What?”
“You did it yesterday too. You know, Alicia.”
He reached up and toyed with my hair.
The hairstyle Rosina had carefully arranged fell apart effortlessly in his hands.
“You know how picky I am about where I sleep.”
“But Lucas—”
“As long as we don’t tell anyone, it’s fine. You think the marquisate servants would spread rumors?”
On days like this, nothing could break his stubbornness.
A grown man, really…
When I hesitated, Lucas spoke as if casting a spell.
“You always said you’d do this for me, Alicia.”
“….”
“Can’t you do even this? Just until I fall asleep. Hmm?”
I sighed deeply again.
That victorious smile—so sure I wouldn’t refuse—felt strangely unsettling today.
But I had been unable to reject that smile for far too long.
In the end, I nodded.
Click—the sound of the door closing echoed softly.
The fresh, distinctive scent of Alicia that had lingered since entering the mansion faded away.
Lucas, who had pretended to sleep and even breathed evenly, snapped his eyes open and sat up.
“…Alicia.”
Golden eyes gleamed in the darkness.
Lucas reached over to the side table, lit the lamp, and pulled a letter from the drawer.
The perfectly sealed stamp thoroughly irritated him.
“What are you scheming, Joshua?”
That filthy bastard—his instincts were sharp as a hunting dog. The moment he met Alicia at the botanical garden, he drove away all of Lucas’s people.
And now this?
“Did you really think I’d let you take Alicia from me?”
Lucas scoffed.
No—take her? That assumption itself was wrong.
“Alicia… that naïve, foolish girl. Do you really think she’d choose you?”
He tore open the letter roughly and burst into mocking laughter.
Tickets to a terrace seat at a concert—some trendy opera or performance popular in the capital.
“How tedious.”
Such places didn’t suit Alicia. She’d dissolve into the crowd like a speck of dust.
Lucas tossed the letter straight into the fireplace.
“Alicia doesn’t need to know any world but the one meant for me.”
The letter burned silently, leaving black traces behind.
A sickly smile crept onto Lucas’s lips.
