Chapter 383: Two Kinds of Love
“…With that, this meeting is concluded.”
The discussion of the royal faction’s current movements and how to respond to them proceeded smoothly, and once they had even settled the details of what each of them should do,
Rezamiliana declared the meeting closed, then continued.
“Each of you, keep in mind what we discussed just now, and return to where you should be.”
“Understood… then, please excuse me.”
“Excuse me.”
At Rezamiliana’s words, Florence and Felisiana responded and rose from their seats.
Violet followed after Felisiana, heading toward the door of the meeting room.
As the last to leave, Violet bowed once to Rezamiliana and Elizalina, then quietly closed the door behind her.
With that, only Elizalina and Rezamiliana remained.
Then, Elizalina spoke.
“Rezamiliana-oneesama, even though this was a meeting I arranged, I ended up leaving things to you halfway through like always, so I’m sorry.”
At her apology, Rezamiliana let a faint smile touch her lips.
“It’s nothing to worry about. When a younger sister is troubled, it’s the role of the older sister to support her… though until now, you rarely let your heart waver, so there were hardly any opportunities for that… it simply shows how great a presence Rodwell is within you.”
“…Yeah. Lux’s presence really is that big for me.”
That’s why.
“I truly wanted to support your feelings all the way through, Rezamiliana-oneesama… but in the end, rather than watching you be happy with Lux, I want to be the one who’s happy with him. I want to stay by his side, always, and make him happy… so I can’t give him up.”
“That’s fine… fufu.”
“What is it?”
Not understanding why Rezamiliana laughed softly, Elizalina asked, and she answered.
“In other words, you and I have become what you might call romantic rivals… but thinking that the person you, and the others, love is the same Rodwell as mine, it makes me feel a little happy.”
“Ahaha, what’s that? That feels kind of contradictory, but… yeah, maybe you’re right… if the person you or Felisiana fell for were some man other than Lux, I’d definitely say you had no eye for men and try to stop you.”
“That’s true… however, precisely because of that, what you said earlier, even though I understand it’s something we must do for his sake… it’s still quite difficult.”
“…Yeah.”
Elizalina had proposed that rule earlier because she thought that if it were suddenly forced on them as reality without any mental preparation, she didn’t know what any of them, herself included, might end up doing, and that it could risk obstructing Lux’s happiness, so she brought it up as both a rule and a form of preparation.
“Even so, as I said earlier, it’s a problem we’ll have to face sooner or later… and to keep ourselves from clinging only to our own desires, I’m grateful that you raised it now.”
“Rezamiliana-oneesama…”
Hearing those words, spoken with a gentle expression she likely only showed to her younger sisters, Elizalina felt her emotions waver.
To become romantic rivals with such a kind Rezamiliana-oneesama?
And over someone as kind as Lux?
Sensing a contradiction somewhere within herself,
In a corner of her mind, Elizalina quietly began to wonder whether there truly was no way to fulfill both the love she now held for Lux and her love for her sisters at the same time.
And so, she began to think about it in secret…