Ch. 88
“For starters, he has no interest in anything but swordsmanship. He can’t even remember the name of the maid who’s cared for him for over twenty years.”
“That’s too much.”
“No, that’s nothing. I’ve had to remind him of our nephew’s name every year for the past six years. Sigh, he even gets my sister’s name wrong all the time.”
“Good grief.”
At that level, it’s no wonder he forgot about me.
“The only reason he remembers me at all is because I practice swordsmanship. My brother is so indifferent to those around him that he can’t function in daily life if left alone.”
“I see… if it’s that bad…”
“Unfortunately, a lot of women actually like that indifference.”
“Mm, that’s strange. Just from what you’ve said, it sounds like he isn’t even interested in women.”
“Of course, he’s not. The thing is, he doesn’t care whether they come or go. He doesn’t stop women from climbing into his bed, but he doesn’t care if they leave either.”
So he doesn’t stop anyone coming or going.
“And even after spending the night with a woman several times, he can’t remember her face. Or her name, for that matter.”
“…Unbelievable.”
I blurted it out without meaning to.
“Most of the women who absolutely loathe my brother fall into that category.”
“That’s not me.”
Come to think of it, when that bastard ran into me in Drike, he asked if we’d done that.
That bastard.
How could he say something like that? Doesn’t he know a woman’s resentment brings frost even in midsummer!
What did he take me for! I’m still a pure mai—hmm.
“By the way, Miss Crowell, you said you’re from Dmitri—where did you meet my brother?”
“I ran into him once when I came to Elan a long time ago. Ah, and more recently, too.”
“My brother rarely attends parties.”
“Same here. We didn’t meet at a party, but somewhere else. And I can promise you, there’s never been a more miserable day in my life than the day I met Rovenin Fedri.”
Maybe because I’d talked so much behind his back.
Rashamu stared at me. At first, I thought it was because he didn’t like hearing me talk badly about his brother, but on closer inspection, that wasn’t it.
“…I don’t know why, but talking about you and my brother, it doesn’t feel like we’re meeting for the first time.”
Oh, is he remembering a bit?
“Somehow you feel familiar.”
I could tell that longing look in his eyes resembled Bright’s a little.
It was the gaze of a man desperate for my attention.
“Maybe you’re not a complete idiot. Yes, we’ve met before.”
“What? Are you telling me I actually committed the unforgivable sin of forgetting you?”
Rashamu seemed surprised even as he said it himself.
“I won’t blame you. I didn’t remember right away, either.
But when I heard your name, it all came back. It’s a rather unique name. Rashamu.”
While pronouncing his short name, I could feel his eyes glued to my lips.
If I smiled, he looked a bit shaken; if I licked my lips, he froze.
Men really are cute sometimes.
“Where was it? Where did we first meet?”
“You really can’t remember on your own?”
“…I’m sorry.”
Among the nobility, blond hair is especially common. Blue eyes, too, so my looks weren’t all that unique.
“So you only pretended to be interested in me? It was all a lie.”
“No! There must be something inside me that remembers you—how else could I be so helplessly drawn to you?”
“You do talk well.”
“Miss Crowell, I mean it. From the moment I first saw you, my heart was pounding like crazy. Even now, in this moment.”
He looked at me so earnestly and pressed my hand to his chest.
His heart was really pounding hard.
Just like someone who’d just been pulled from the water.
“Maybe so. Maybe your body remembers that we met before.”
“Miss Crowell…”
He smiled softly, whispered gently, and traced his hand from my chest to my shoulder.
Even just a light touch revealed how well-trained his body was.
When I looked up, Rashamu was looking down at me with trembling eyes.
At some point, we’d gotten very close.
“I swear, I’ve never felt this way for a woman before.”
“Hmm, what kind of feeling?”
“The closer you get… the more my heart trembles, the more nervous I get. My mind goes blank, and I wonder if I was always this stupid.”
“Really? You seem pretty popular. You’re smooth with women, too…”
“Please, Miss Crowell. Tell me where we met.”
As if he couldn’t take it anymore, Rashamu grabbed the hand I was running over his body and stared at me with burning eyes.
I didn’t dislike a person who looked straight at me.
Being the focus of such intense attention was exhilarating.
“The first time we met, you yelled at me.”
“No way. I couldn’t have yelled at a lady…”
“You even said someone like me wasn’t a lady.”
“I would never have made you sad…”
“Oh, right. You also called me a coward. You openly looked down on me for being from a small country. I remember getting so mad because I was so sad…”
Pretending to be pitiful was actually pretty fun.
When I lowered my gaze in a show of sadness, Rashamu panicked.
He looked at me with disbelief, as if he couldn’t believe what he’d done, and squeezed my hand even tighter.
“Miss Crowell… I’ll apologize for everything. If it will make you feel better, I’ll do anything.”
“What’s the point of apologizing if you can’t even remember?”
“I…”
“Come on, try to remember that day. Take a closer look at me, Prince Fedri.”
Hey, who said you could try to kiss me?
I stopped Rashamu’s lips with my hand and frowned.
Enough with the games—before Rashamu tried to apologize with his body.
“Undine.”
I had almost forgotten. I should have remembered how men in this world comfort women who act sad.
Undine appeared, rippling the air, her blue body swaying gently over my shoulder.
That’s when Rashamu seemed to remember something.
In his eyes, now wide open, Undine was reflected.
“This is…!”
“Well? Are all our memories coming back to you?”
As expected, the spirit’s presence was much more striking than mine.
“The Spirit Mage from the tournament finals!”
Rashamu pointed at Undine in shock, stumbling back as he shouted.
Judging by how his feet tangled, he was genuinely startled.
“Ding-dong!”
When I gave a small clap, Undine formed a massive glob of water.
It was just the right size to trap Rashamu beside him.
Rashamu looked back and forth between the huge, undulating water sphere and me with visible unease.
“No way…”
“I wonder if you know how to swim now.”
“Wait, wait!”
As the not-so-small water bubble drifted toward him, Rashamu seemed to realize what I was up to and patted his side.
Probably looking for his sword out of habit, but weapons weren’t allowed at parties.
“Too bad.”
You can’t take a spirit away.
Rashamu was swiftly submerged in the water, while I rested my chin in my hand and nodded with a satisfied look, reminiscing about old times.
“At least you won’t forget our memories now. Aren’t I kind?”
“Urrgh!”
He seemed to be saying something from inside the water, but I couldn’t hear a thing.
