After leaving Nell’s shop, we arrived at the bookstore reputed to be the largest in the commercial district.
"Wow..."
Seeing Cecilia beside me gazing at the books with sparkling eyes, I found myself smiling like a proud father.
"Ah."
Noticing my expression, Cecilia cleared her throat a few times before she began wandering about in search of books. I watched her from a distance—not too far, but not particularly close either—while surveying our surroundings.
Cecilia should be safe inside the Academy.
No matter how much power the people who had attacked Cecilia before wielded, they would never make an enemy of the Academy.
Of course, that did not mean this was a situation where I could let down my guard.
There’s no telling where the crown prince and those male-lead bastards might pop out from...
"Nngh..."
"Hm?"
"I can’t... reach..."
"Pfft."
Cecilia was struggling on tiptoe, trying to pull down a book placed higher than she was tall. It would be all right for her to rely on me a little, but I supposed her habit of trying to solve everything alone was simply part of her personality.
Just like before, honestly...
I stepped behind Cecilia, took the book from the shelf, and handed it to her.
"Is this the one?"
"Ah..."
"Lady Cecilia?"
"Um... you’re... too close..."
"Ah."
It seemed I had misjudged the distance without realizing it, so I quickly stepped back.
"My apologies. You looked as though you were having trouble, and I felt bad for you."
"No... Thank you."
Watching Cecilia run to the counter with her face flushed red, I scratched my head.
"Maintaining the right distance between treatment and our contract is quite difficult."
If I got too close, Cecilia might feel burdened. From now on, I should make a habit of asking first.
"I reserved this book first."
"Hm?"
A somewhat angry male voice came from the counter.
"But there was no mark on the book indicating that..."
"Yes, there is no such reservation listed anywhere..."
"If I say I reserved it, then I did. Lady Cecilia, I believe I told you before. I will never again tolerate someone without talent acting as they please and causing Elysia to be hurt."
"I told you, that is a misunderstanding..."
"What is going on here?"
I came over to see what the fuss was about and found a redhead cornering Cecilia, dressed in robes that all but screamed, I’m a mage.
Boris Pinnel. The Tower Sage’s disciple, and the mage among the male leads.
"Your Grace?"
"Tsk. I heard that as soon as Crown Prince Baron discarded her, she latched onto another man. What a frivolous woman."
Boris came over beside me, wearing a nasty smile.
"You should think carefully too, Your Grace. You stand to lose far more than you could gain from an engagement to that woman."
"...That is not for you to decide."
Even at my warning, Boris did not so much as flinch. He merely shrugged, his smile never fading, as though he found this all immensely amusing.
"Who knows? I know very well just how dangerous that woman is."
"Oh? Then..."
Smiling, I pulled Cecilia into my arms.
"Hic?"
"Take a good look with those magnificent eyes of yours. Is Cecilia still dangerous like this?"
"...Ha. This is exactly why one cannot reason with barbarians. So, right now, she... is... Huh?"
Looking thoroughly flustered, Boris soon began rubbing his eyes.
"This is impossible... How has that violently rampaging mana stabilized like this...? Even my master gave up on..."
"What is it?"
"Tch."
"Answer me. Is she dangerous?"
"...You will regret this."
Apparently having nothing to say, Boris took the book at the counter and left the bookstore.
"Regret, my ass."
"Um... Your Grace? You’re... too close..."
"Ah."
Cecilia’s face, pulled against my chest, had turned a red beyond comparison to before.
"My apologies. I was trying to resolve the situation quickly."
The moment I hurriedly released my arm, Cecilia creakily extricated herself from my embrace like a broken doll. Her head was bowed so low that I could not properly see her face, but I could clearly see that even her ears had turned bright red.
"Are you all right? Has your illness perhaps flared up again...?"
"Hoo... hoo. I’m fine. I think I have more... resistance than before..."
Cecilia was about to say something else, but the instant she met my eyes, she lowered her head again.
"Hic."
Then she began hiccuping adorably.
How cute...
She looked like a startled little rabbit, so flustered that she did not know what to do. She was even fanning her face with her tiny hands to cool it down.
...Haa. I want to hide her away somewhere and keep her by my side for the rest of my life...
The instant that thought crossed my mind, I struck myself on the head.
"Y-Your Grace, why did you suddenly do that?"
"There was a problem while I was sorting out my thoughts."
You crazy bastard. Who do you think you are, taking responsibility for anyone? This is an engagement bound by contract. Get a grip, Viktor Walterheim. Unlike you, a weed meant to be trampled through battlefields all his life, Cecilia is a flower raised in a greenhouse.
Do not be greedy. Focus on what you need to do. Do not put Cecilia in an uncomfortable position. The more you do, the greater the chance that her mana will run wild.
It was truly vicious. Why was I feeling this way now, after my previous life and even as Viktor?
[Listen well, little brother. Love comes upon you suddenly and leaves you confused. So when that happens, be sure to tell me all about how it feels...]
This would be a story Family Registry Mate No. 1 would love to hear.
...How vicious.
To think my first love was an unattainable love, one that was not even allowed to begin.
"This is vicious."
"Pardon?"
"It is nothing. The book... Hah. Did that damned bastard take it?"
"No, it is all right."
"It does not look all right. Clerk."
"Yes."
"Was that the last copy of the book that redheaded punk just bought?"
"Unfortunately, yes. I’m sorry."
"...What book was it?"
"Pardon?"
Cecilia’s eyes widened in surprise at my question.
"I asked what book it was. I can find it somewhere other than the commercial district..."
"No, it’s all right. Now that I think about it, I feel as though I chose that book as if I had been bewitched by something."
"As if bewitched?"
"Yes. As though the book were telling me to take it..."
"Clerk."
"Eek?"
Startled by my sharp gaze, the clerk took a step back. Pressing a hand to my temple, I let out a sigh and spoke.
"What was the title of the book that punk bought?"
"Um... Just a moment. It was [Tuckerun’s Star Magic]."
"What is wrong, Your Grace?"
"It is nothing."
I could not decide whether to laugh or cry at the fact that the redheaded punk had removed a bomb for me before leaving.
The forbidden book mixed in among the magic books Cecilia acquired, [Tuckerun’s Star Magic], was, contrary to its title, a black mage’s grimoire that caused its user’s mana to run wild. I had heard it possessed a power that drew mages toward it, but...
In the novel, Cecilia unknowingly acquired that forbidden book, and as a result, her mana rampage worsened.
To think that redheaded punk removed such a black grimoire for me.
Sorry for insulting you. I hereby appoint you an honorable member of the bomb disposal squad, you redheaded punk.
"Your Grace?"
"Well then, have you bought all the books you wanted?"
"Yes. It is a shame about that book, but..."
"Do not think about that book anymore."
"Uh... all right."
That thing is yucky. Forget it.
"Then, since we have bought everything we needed..."
"Yes."
"It is time for the welcome party."
"It... is, isn’t it?"
"Then."
Intending to put into action the thought I had upon coming to the commercial district, I led Cecilia toward our destination.
"Um, Your Grace, where are we going?"
"You will find out if you follow me."
**
"Huh."
The place Viktor and Cecilia arrived at was the most famous dress shop in the Academy’s commercial district.
"W-Why are we here?"
"Let us go in."
"Pardon? Why..."
"I have not properly given you an engagement gift yet."
"You gave me flowers then..."
"Those do not count."
"But..."
Viktor took the hesitant Cecilia’s hand and opened the door to the dress shop.
"Welcome. Do you have a reservation?"
"It should be under Viktor Walterheim."
"Ah, Grand Duke Walterheim. We have been expecting you."
"Huh?"
Viktor whispered into Cecilia’s ear, which was plainly flushed with surprise.
"Jester made a reservation in advance. Now that you are the grand duchy’s fiancée, should you not wear clothes befitting that position?"
"Ah... You are right. Um, but..."
"Yes?"
"No... It is nothing."
Did they really need to do this much for a relationship formed by contract? The thought crossed her mind.
He is only doing it to show everyone clearly... right?
Cecilia decided to think of it that way. Yet an ache blossomed in one corner of her heart.
But... why... am I so sad? All this kindness and consideration...
The thought that it might all disappear in an instant made Cecilia suddenly afraid. She feared that, intoxicated by Viktor’s gentleness, she would selfishly come to rely on it, selfishly hope for more, and ultimately cross the line.
No... If I do, then I...
Grand Duke Viktor might come to hate me.
I do not want that...
She liked the deep scent that had enveloped her when he held her. She liked his hands, rough yet gentle. She liked that he had come running to protect her.
But all of it might vanish without a trace, like a midsummer night’s dream.
...Ah... I think I understand now why I caught that illness that makes my heart hurt whenever I see Grand Duke Viktor.
Cecilia remembered a story her nanny had told her when she was young. The feeling of wanting to be held in someone’s arms, of wanting to possess them.
To harbor those feelings—that was...
What am I going to do?
What it meant to fall in love. It was a cruel fever.
"Oh my, Lady Cecilia, you are so beautiful! Then..."
Swish!
**
The fitting-room curtain was drawn aside, and Cecilia stood before me in a white dress, her face flushed scarlet.
"Is that all?"
"W-What? No, there are dresses over there as well, or perhaps..."
"All of them."
"Pardon?"
"Try on every single one."
A while later, the curtain opened again, and Cecilia emerged in a pink dress, unlike the one from before. The thought that this was what it would look like if a pink cherry blossom became a person flashed through my mind.
"..."
"Um, Your Grace?"
"Next."
The curtain opened once more. This time, the blue dress made Cecilia’s pale skin and white hair stand out all the more. And when I saw how she shyly tried to hide the delicate line of her exposed shoulders...
"...Hoo."
It was no small ordeal to suppress the urge to immediately cover those shoulders for her.
"I-Is it too much after all? Your Grace, your expression..."
As I watched without saying a word, my face stiff, Cecilia fiddled with the hem of her skirt and looked dejected.
She could not possibly know that the reason for my poor expression was the backlash of forcing down the indecent thoughts boiling up inside me.
"I will buy everything inside, including the outfits you have just worn."
"W-What???"
"Send the bill to Walterheim Estate."
Cecilia blankly watched the employee run off with a delighted cheer, then walked over to me.
"Y-Your Grace, even so, this is far too much..."
"I will not hear your opinion on this. This is a gift from me."
"B-But..."
You are worth it. You have no reason to be disregarded. I will never tolerate it.
Until the day you leave, until the day someone dependable appears to protect you.
Until then, I will stake everything I have on protecting you.
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