70
（Because I hadn't tried to know the
true nature of Hugo and Arthur after all.）
When
Candice gripped the hem of her one-piece dress tightly and tried to open
her mouth, she noticed that Hugo was placing his index finger against
his own lips.
（Does that mean…… I don't have to say
anything?）
Without
Candice uttering a voice, Maria directed a sharp gaze this way,
and then left the archives while biting her thumbnail.
（To think that I've only ever hurt
people until now and can't even adequately protect Luca-oniisama and Arthur……
how pathetic.）
Somehow,
with nothing going right, she felt frustrated. Reality was full of things that
didn't go her way. She was feeling down because of all her failures, but more
importantly, it was when she looked back, thinking she had to apologize to Luca.
「Luca-oniisama, I'm sorr……hk」
「Candice!」
「……」
Being
hugged by Luca, Candice widened her eyes in surprise. A slightly
larger body was hugging Candice as if wrapping around her. Not
understanding why Luca looked happy, she tilted her head.
「Umm…… Luca-oniisama?」
「Thank you.」
「B-But I ended up saying unnecessary
things! I caused you trouble……」
「No. It's fine.」
Without
really understanding, Candice continued to be hugged by Luca. And
Arthur was also holding onto Candice, clinging to her. While the
three of them were huddled closely together, the clink sound of Valentin
sheathing his sword could be heard, and the three of them looked up.
A
cramped voice saying 「Hic!?」
leaked from Luca and Arthur. However, remembering that she had
been saved by Valentin again, Candice bowed her head lightly.
「Your Majesty the Emperor,
thank you very much for saving us.」
「……」
「Umm……」
Faced
with Valentin, who was looking this way without saying anything, the
three of them were bewildered. He was staring at them as if observing them
intently. Judging by the frightened reactions of Luca and Arthur,
they probably had no previous interaction with Valentin. An awkward
silence flowed. While Candice was hesitating on what to say, Hugo
returned to the archives before she knew it.
「I told Maria-sama not to
approach the Blue Palace for a while, but she will probably ignore what
I say, so please give the instructions again. Also, please send a letter to the
Pope, alright?」
「……Yeah.」
「Ah-ah, you're splendidly frightening
Their Highnesses again, aren't you.」
She
felt like the air brightened up instantly just by having Hugo there. She
could tell that the tension in Luca and Arthur's shoulders
relaxed just a bit.
「Since we've gone through the
trouble, why don't you invite everyone?」
「……I suppose.」
Having
said that, Valentin turned his back and started walking outside the
archives. Candice and the others remained frozen in a daze. From the
door, an apologetic-looking guard and the worried-looking Jeanne, Eva,
and Rose peeked their faces in. When Candice and the others
separated their tightly squeezed bodies, Hugo quickly stacked up the
scattered books and then stood in front of the three.
「Please, come this way. His Majesty
the Emperor is calling for you.」
「……Ah!」
Hearing
Hugo's words, Candice remembered that she had been summoned by Valentin
today. To the increasingly pale Candice, Hugo explained, 「Because Candice, Imperial Princess, did not
arrive no matter how long he waited, His Majesty the Emperor came here,
you see.」
It
seems Hugo and Valentin had gone to the White Palace to
pick up Candice, who did not show up even when the promised time
arrived.
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