At the same time, a heavy tension settled over the room.
—“Al, Rose. Which of you will succeed me?”
But his older sister and brother continued to pretend not to hear, acting as if they knew nothing.
“John! Here, Mother’s glass is empty.”
“My glass too. The wine tastes especially good today.”
—“Don’t pretend you didn’t hear me, you brats! In other households, siblings fight over who gets to become head of the family, but in ours, why are all of you so desperate to avoid it?!”
“But Father, if I become the duke, I won’t have time to read books.”
“I’m physically incapable of sitting at a desk for long periods. I’d go insane and run away from home while handling paperwork.”
—“…You lot…”
Watching his perfectly synchronized older children at times like this, their father covered his face with both hands.
From the viewing orb, it looked like he was crying, so I took out a handkerchief and pretended to wipe the orb for him.
“Please don’t be too sad, Father. After some time, won’t either my sister or brother eventually decide to inherit your position?”
—“Sob… Cecilia… my daughter. Speaking of which, what about you?”
“I’m already engaged to His Highness the Second Prince.”
If Lionel were a powerless prince and could be taken in as a son-in-law by our household, that would be one thing. But as long as he was the so-called candidate for Crown Prince, it was impossible for me to become duke.
—“If you were to become duke, even now we could cancel your engagement…”
“Unfortunately, it’s too late, Father. Mother already finished the paperwork at the imperial palace today.”
—“Really? Is that true, dear?”
“I was about to mention that. The penalty clause we discussed before has been revised… We’ll go over it privately tonight. We’re still eating.”
—“Hm, very well.”
My father had no way of knowing, but that revision of the penalty clause was my work.
Just in case—if things in the novel’s original flow ended with Lionel being exiled to the temple, I made sure there would be no possibility of my engagement shifting to the First Prince.
“Ah, right. There’s something I’d like to learn from you, Mother.”
“Hmm? From me?”
My mother tilted her head, as if she couldn’t imagine what I could possibly want to learn.
“I thought I’d already taught you everything I could… But of course, I’m always happy to help. What is it you want to learn?”
“Well, it’s…”
“Ta-da!”
With a cheerful sound effect, I opened the box lid.
But Lionel, seated across from me, only blinked slowly with his usual expressionless face.
At least he did react after seeing what was inside.
“…Cookies?”
“…They are cookies.”
I mimicked his tone without thinking. Whether he noticed or not, Lionel looked down at the contents of the box and spoke.
They were neatly arranged cookies… though slightly jostled during transport, with some shapes broken and crumbs scattered.
“Interesting.”
“…Right? Wait—what do you mean ‘interesting’? These aren’t fish or meat.”
A “fresh cookie.” What an incredibly strange compliment that I couldn’t tell whether it was praise or criticism.
“They’re so varied in shape and color. I’ve never seen cookies so irregular and diverse. That’s why I called them interesting.”
“That’s just criticism!”
“Pardon?”
He blinked innocently, as if he genuinely didn’t mean it that way.
‘Hmph. Acting all pure like that—who do you think you’re fooling?’
…And yet, just looking at that face softened my irritation a little.
It wasn’t just that he was handsome. There was no trace of malice or mockery in his expression.
‘Come to think of it, he’s nothing like the First Prince. Are they really even brothers?’
If the First Prince took after the maternal side, Lionel clearly took after the paternal side. That might even be one reason the Empress disliked him.
“Well, Your Highness must have only ever eaten perfectly baked cookies, so this kind of irregular shape must be new to you.”
“Yes.”
“Wow, you’re brutally honest…”
A thought suddenly crossed my mind.
‘Has this man ever told a white lie for someone’s sake?’
For some reason, I doubted it.
Lionel felt like someone who had neither malice nor kindness—so empty it was almost like he merely reflected back whatever was said to him.
At this point, I wondered if the smile I had seen last time had even been real.
“Some say cakes that look good taste better, but isn’t taste what really matters?”
I slid the cookie box toward him.
“Please try one.”
“……”
In truth, I had used a mold and baked them properly, so the shapes weren’t that bad. The issue was the crumbs scattered over them, making them look messy.
To someone who called these “interesting,” he must normally only eat flawless sweets.
So I thought he might refuse—but unexpectedly, he took off his gloves and picked up a cookie.
The chocolate-chip-studded cookie looked sweet enough to melt in the mouth.
Watching him put it into his mouth, I swallowed unconsciously.
His jaw moved a few times as he chewed.
“How is it?”
“It’s fine.”
“Be more specific. Do you mean it’s good? Or tolerable?”
“It’s a flavor I’ve never had before, so it’s difficult to describe…”
As he reached for another cookie, he noticed crumbs on his hand.
It seemed like a reflex—he lowered his gaze and licked the crumbs off his finger.
Then his eyes met mine.
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“…It’s not bad. It’s just very sweet, so eating a lot at once would be difficult.”
“Th-then… I see… But, Your Highness… licking crumbs off your fingers like that isn’t very appropriate.”
“I apologize. I’ve shown you something unhygienic.”
“No, it’s not about hygiene…”
More like… a problem with my heart?
I never imagined something like that could be so devastating.
“Ah—right! Dignity! You have royal dignity, Your Highness. Please only do that kind of thing in front of me.”
“Like this kind of behavior?”
Lionel asked back in a puzzled voice, and I had no answer. I awkwardly cleared my throat and changed the subject.
“That cookie—I made it myself.”
“Is that so? Why would you do something the kitchen staff is supposed to handle?”
“Why else? I wanted to build a closer relationship with my fiancé.”
At my words, Lionel frowned slightly, as if I had said something difficult to understand.
“What does baking cookies have to do with building a relationship?”
“What do you mean what does it have to do with it? I baked these for you for the first time three days ago. Only my family has tried them. Even my father hasn’t, since he’s in the territory.”
“……”
“These are very, very special cookies that can’t be obtained anywhere else. From now on, I won’t bake them for anyone except my family and you.”
Even after I said all that, Lionel showed no particular reaction.
‘Sigh. What was I even expecting?’
I looked down at him as he stared at the cookies and continued.
“So this is a gift I’m giving only to you, my fiancé. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
Lionel lifted the cookie box and placed it on his lap.
Then he wrapped both hands around it.
“…So it means something made for me. Something that belongs to me.”
“Yes. Just like the fountain pen I gave you.”
“…Like the fountain pen.”
He murmured the words under his breath.
If I only heard his voice, I might have thought he was moved—but his expression hadn’t changed much, so I couldn’t tell.
‘This is difficult. Really difficult. Should I invent a mind-reading magic tool?’
Even if I were a genius, that seemed impossible.
While I was inwardly groaning, Lionel picked up another cookie and began eating again.
Lost in thought, I didn’t pay much attention—but at some point I noticed he was forcing cookie after cookie into his mouth without even drinking tea.
“Lionel, aren’t you choking? You said earlier it was too sweet to eat a lot at once.”
“……”
He didn’t answer, too full to speak, and simply looked at me while chewing.
After a while, he finally swallowed and instinctively looked down at his hand.
Crumbs were stuck there again. He glanced at me briefly, then took out a handkerchief and wiped his hands.
Then he touched the corner of his lips, cleaned it carefully, and summoned the head servant I had previously sent away.
“You called for me, Your Highness.”
“Bring the item I prepared.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The servant bowed respectfully and left.
A short while later, he returned.
In his arms was an unexpected item