A Message
Elizalina’s Side
When Elizalina heard that Lux had received a marriage proposal from a woman, she was quite literally shaken.
Lux received a marriage proposal…? That wasn’t written in any of the reports… Was it left out because he didn’t become officially engaged? No, I also went through the Rodwell family file, and at the time there were no known engagement candidates either… Then, was Lux lying? No, doubting Lux is absolutely the one thing I must never do. Just because I can’t understand something, I mustn’t try to fill that gap by suspecting him of lying. Still, if it isn’t in the academy records or the Rodwell family’s documents, then that means… it was a personal proposal Lux received?
In the end, Elizalina managed to find a conclusion that finally made sense to her.
Then, while she was completely frozen, lost in her thoughts, Lux spoke up.
“Elina-san, is something wrong?”
Elizalina hurried to reply, trying not to worry Lux.
“N-No! It’s just that I don’t have a fiancé or even a candidate, so I was just thinking, oh, Lux has one~!”
The words weren’t a lie, but they weren’t the truth either. Upon hearing them, Lux replied,
“Well, I just happened to meet someone who felt that way about me… Besides, Elina-san, I’m sure you’ll find someone wonderful too.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Why? You’re beautiful, kind, easy to talk to… Honestly, is there even a reason you wouldn’t find someone?”
Lux looked genuinely puzzled as he said this.
“…”
Elizalina had been praised hundreds, if not thousands of times in her life.
She had received many accolades as she led the near-perfect mediation of the entire kingdom.
But those were mostly given because someone profited, or out of gratitude for resolving a problem, or as a show of respect for her title as the Second Princess. Rarely, if ever, had anyone praised Elizalina as Elizalina the person.
Yet Lux praised me not for any gain, but from the heart, with a sincere gaze and words.
To Elizalina, that meant more than any compliment from a crowd or a noble.
“Thank you, Lux… Someday, I’m going to marry someone I love, and we’ll be happy together!”
Lux looked slightly surprised at Elizalina’s words, but soon gave a gentle smile and said,
“That sounds like a wonderful dream. Do you already have someone you love?”
“W-Well…”
With Lux reflected clearly in her eyes, Elizalina blushed and answered,
“Yes.”
Right in front of me…
But she didn’t say that part aloud. She only told him that she had someone she loved, and Lux, unaware, smiled brightly.
“I see! I hope you’ll be really happy together!”
“Yeah! I want to spend all my time with him, give him lots of delicious food, take him to fun places…”
Imagining a future with Lux made Elizalina smile with joy, and seeing that, Lux said,
“You really do love him, don’t you?”
“I love him so much… truly, with all my heart…”
Though her words were directed at Lux, of course he didn’t realize she meant him.
Even so, for Elizalina, just that much was enough for now. She composed herself and changed the subject.
“So, Lux, who is it that proposed to you?”
“She’s someone from the noble academy. Her name… I’m sorry, I shouldn’t say it without her permission.”
“No, it’s okay.”
Lux is so kind, of course he wouldn’t just give away her name… But still, I want to know about the girl who proposed to him. Sorry, Lux, but I’m going to find out.
“Then, what kind of person is she?”
Asking about her personality wouldn’t count as revealing personal information, so Lux should feel safe answering. With that reasoning, Elizalina posed the question, and just as expected, Lux answered.
“She’s very gentle and calm… Being with her feels comfortable.”
“I-I see…”
Hearing that Lux had such a favorable impression of the girl caused Elizalina a pang of pain, but she quickly regained her composure and asked,
“Is she the smart type?”
“Yes! She’s really intelligent! She even got a perfect score on the last exam!”
“Wow, that’s amazing.”
I’m really sorry, Lux.
Even if it was for the sake of her own love, Elizalina felt guilty for drawing out information from someone as honest as Lux.
Just hearing that the girl had earned a perfect score made it easy to identify her. But Lux wasn’t the kind of person to imagine someone would gather intel that way, so he hadn’t been on guard at all.
But thanks to that, I now know who she is. The girl who proposed to Lux is the one who scored higher than him on the noble academy’s written exam.
Elizalina had never bothered to check the name of the top student, but now that she knew, she planned to check the records the moment she returned to the royal castle.
After finishing their cake, Lux and Elizalina parted ways and boarded their respective carriages. Elizalina headed back to the royal castle.
Just before entering the castle, a gate guard approached Elizalina’s carriage and spoke.
“Second Princess Elizalina-sama, I have a message from Third Princess Felisiana-sama.”
A gate guard speaking to me out of nowhere… and it’s from Felisiana?
“What is it?”
When Elizalina asked, the guard replied,
“She said, ‘Elizalina Anee-sama, three nights from now, I’d like to speak with you at the castle entrance. Please allow me some of your time.’”
“…I see. You may return.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
With that, the guard returned to his post.
And the carriage proceeded through the castle gates.
“Three nights from now… I see.”
From the timing Felisiana had chosen, Elizalina could already tell what she was planning, and she muttered,
“If she chose now, then she really was the one who arranged for Lux to be involved with Violet at the royal exchange.”
She still had no idea what Felisiana was hoping to gain from it.
But to Elizalina, that hardly mattered.
“She may be smart, beautiful, and cute, but if she intends to get involved with Lux, I’ll have to deal with her.”
With a hollow look in her eyes, Elizalina muttered those words as she stepped down from the carriage.