“Huh.”
It’s a familiar ceiling.
I blinked and looked up at the ceiling of the cruise ship.
I felt the aftereffects of the emotions that had been intensified by the dream of my past life fading away.
When I turned my head, Masera’s artistic profile, with his eyes closed, was very close.
‘His nose is so pretty.’
Lost in admiration, I realized that my head was touching his shoulder and quickly sat up.
At the same time, Masera’s closed eyes opened. He looked like he hadn’t slept a wink.
“Um, do you know if I did anything weird yesterday…?”
I asked cautiously.
I didn’t remember much after hearing the fireworks, except panicking, covering myself with the blanket, and curling up.
“Next time, if there’s something you’re scared of, please tell me in advance.”
He said, looking at the ceiling with hollow eyes.
There’s no way I could have known there were going to be fireworks on a cruise ship! Anyway, it seems I did something that required this man’s care.
“Like gunshots or something exploding, or alarms…”
“And yet you married a soldier. I’ll keep that in mind.”
He was still lying down, just looking at the ceiling. His platinum blonde hair, which was always neatly styled, was disheveled.
“Clean up and change your clothes first.”
He spoke in a more rigid tone than usual.
On the train, he always woke up early and sat neatly and tidily. Is it because of me?
“Okay.”
As I got up, I felt a strange emptiness and looked down, only to be shocked to see that my pajamas were unbuttoned.
“I didn’t do it.”
His tired voice came from behind me as I turned away.
“I know.”
There’s no way a one-night prologue-like situation could happen between us. (TL/N: reference to the morning after regret prologue trope)
“You stayed by my side all night, didn’t you? Thank you.”
I turned around, buttoned up my pajamas, and thanked Masera, but he didn’t say anything.
The one who held me every time I returned to the moment I gave up on life was, paradoxically, a man who doesn’t actually like me.
‘He’s actually a warm-hearted person.’
A warm welcome mat, at least he passed the document screening.
* * *
While Cynthia was tidying up her scandalous attire and entering the bathroom, Masera was still lying in bed, lost in thought.
“Have you forgotten the trials and tribulations we suffered because of the Bariesa Royal Family? In the end, Brigadier General, you’ve become someone blinded by ambition.”
Captain Declan’s agitated voice, who had opposed the marriage to the end and didn’t even attend, echoed in his mind.
“Can that woman, who has been living in the countryside getting treated like a pampered Princess, have any inkling about the pains of war? It’s a horrible discourtesy to the servants in the residence, most of whom are war victims.”
Masera sighed, covering his eyes with the back of his hand.
Before meeting Cynthia, he had intended to be cruel and hurt her.
“Hello, I’m Cynthia Queensguard.”
But when he saw her sweet, innocent smile, he felt like everything he had decided was shaken.
The determination to ruin her, who had always lived brightly, only aroused guilt.
Above all, the terrified look on her face was an expression that only someone who had already been broken could make.
“I’m okay. I feel better when I eat a lot of delicious things.”
The moment he recalled his subordinate, who always smiled brightly but eventually couldn’t overcome his trauma and took his own life, Masera’s eyes flashed open.
“Ha.”
Masera’s pupils trembled slightly.
His subordinate’s suicide became an opportunity to take in and help those struggling with the traumas of the war.
But the person he should hate the most is arousing pity.
Since meeting Cynthia, he had been swept up in emotions that were unlike him.
‘If I can just get through this.’
Once the honeymoon was over, there will be no more times like this, when they have to face each other, except for official events.
They would keep their distance, and when the time came, they would go their separate ways.
‘So, I can’t let myself care about her.’
Beneath the hand covering his face, the corners of Masera’s lips twisted slightly.
***
After many twists and turns, they arrived at the Medea Royal Palace, where we were invited as state guests.
Those who saw Masera’s face, who hadn’t slept a wink, smiled and said that we were in the prime of our lives.
“Welcome to the war hero of the Rutemia Republic and the Princess of Bariesa. I hope you enjoy your stay in Medea.”
We also had an audience with the Queen of Medea, who was a beautiful and alluring woman. Moreover, she possessed intellectual allure, being fluent in six languages, including Rutemian.
Afterwards, Masera, who was assigned a luxurious room where state guests stayed, sighed when he saw that there was only one bed. Then, he eyed the sofa that would become his bed and said.
“So, what are our travel plans? You mentioned making a detailed itinerary.”
“Of course, I prepared it. Here.”
He looked at the itinerary I handed him, then asked with a dumbfounded expression.
“…Does this even count as a plan?”
“What could be even more perfect than that?”
Day 1.
Arrive at the Royal Palace.
Sightseeing around the Royal Palace (*Buy souvenirs for the 20th Anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation)
Visit that one famous river I can’t remember the name of.Day 2.
Visit the highest observatory.
Hit up the Ferris wheel with the primo night view.Day 3.
Visit a cool temple.
Visit a cathedral.
Go on a spiritual journey.
“Is Day 2 an air show, and Day 3 a holy pilgrimage?”
“We can move flexibly in between.”
I’m a bit of and impulsive P-type person.*
He flipped to another page and gestured with his finger.
“The only place you’ve put effort into researching is the food.”
– 73 Blaine Street, House Recellin. A local cuisine restaurant selected by the Royal Family. It has a 100-year history and has been run by House Recellin, who hail from a long history of chefs. Open from 3 PM, closed for a break time, and open again until 24:00. You have to wait in line during dinner.
– 5 Desante Street, Footman Mayfairmaid. A traditional beer restaurant. It is said that a Francia Footman who worked for a Medea noble family opened it after retiring.
……
…
It was a list of about 20 hand selected restaurants.
“When it comes to travel, isn’t it the food what you really remember?”
At my confident attitude, Masera, who was looking at his wife with an incredulous look, sighed.
“Let’s go see the Royal Palace garden first.”
“It’s raining.”
It was a country where it rained all year round and there were few sunny days.
“It’s alright. I’m a weather fairy.”
I went out to the garden with such confidence, but the rain showed no signs of stopping.
“It’ll stop soon if we go outside, right?”
While touring the beautiful garden and even after going to that famous river I forgot the name of, the rain didn’t stop.
‘Welp, looks like the rain here is strong enough to overcome my luck.’
I looked up at the sky, holding an umbrella instead of a parasol.
“It’s romantic because it’s raining. Isn’t that nice?”
“Sure.”
Masera reluctantly answered, looking at the river that had turned muddy due to the heavy rain.
I wanted to ride one of those sightseeing boats… but he’d never agree. That man would never row, and in the end, I would have to do it.
Afterwards, we looked at the yellowish muddy river for a while and headed to the cafe that I had diligently searched for.
<Today, we are closed due to the birth of our dog (name: Ratti).>
“Oh… congratulations, Ratti.”
I, who had confidently promised to take responsibility for this trip, turned to Masera with an embarrassed face.
I’m pretty sure I ruined everything.
But I read in a book that, ‘The fact that the world doesn’t go the way you expect, is really wonderful.’* As a super flexible person, I decided to shift to the plan for Day 2.
That is, go to the highest observatory!
“……”
I dragged Masera to the observatory and was silent for a moment.
<Not open in rainy weather.>
“It’s always raining. So, when do you open…”
In the end, evening came without doing anything, and as soon as we had dinner at the restaurant I had found, the rain stopped.
“See? I’m a weather fairy, right? The previous plans were disrupted because something better was going to happen.”
“Lucky Princess, I think it was just time for the rain to stop.”
I glared at him, who was being sarcastic, and then headed to the Ferris wheel to see the night-time scenery.
I pretended not to hear him say that if we did everything we had planned, what would we do tomorrow. That’s for tomorrow’s me to decide.
Fortunately, the Ferris wheel was operating normally.
I got on the rattling Ferris wheel and admired the night scenery.
The sky, with the clouds cleared, was full of bright moons and stars, and it was like the universe, touching the city with its lights on.
As he sat across from my, I tried my best to hype this up.
“The night sky is so clear. I heard it’s usually hard to see the night-time scenery because of the fog, but I guess the rain was for this. It’s so lucky, right? They say things come true if you say them.”
“I see.”
The man, who didn’t react much, was looking around and lost in thought.
“Come to think of it, what happens if this suddenly stops?”
“You have to live here.”
He gave the most perfunctory answer in the world.
As we reached the top, the Ferris wheel shook and stopped in its place.
“……Huh? Really?”
The Ferris wheel, with even the lights turned off, showed no signs of moving.
I made an uneasy expression, then quickly went and sat next to him. As I clung to him like a whimpering puppy and held his sleeve tightly, his brow furrowed slightly.
“I’m in trouble if you’re going to use your luck, which makes things come true, in this way.”
It’s not my fault!
……But isn’t this a cliché where the male and female leads are trapped in a secret room and exchange their inner thoughts?
💟 Translator Notes 💟
“There’s no way a one-night prologue-like situation could happen between us.” Reference to the oh-so-common morning after awkward/full of regrets rofan prologue trope.
“A warm welcome mat, at least he passed the document screening.” Referencing back to her comments about Masera eventually being her ‘doormat’, but now he’s her warm doormat. ‘Document screening’ is the colloquial equivalent of ‘passed the test/initial interview’.
“I’m a bit of and impulsive P-type person.” MBTI reference drop. P- Perceiving = flexible, spontaneous, not very structured/planned.
“But I read in a book that, ‘The fact that the world doesn’t go the way you expect, is really wonderful.’” Koreans will sometimes say ‘book’ as a generalization, like here, it’s not actually from the book, but the Korean dub of the 1979 Anne of Green Gables anime.
