Chapter 67
After that day, time passed very quietly.
On the first and second days, there was no contact between them. On the third day, Ren was the one to reach out first.
She asked when they would go hunting again.
The reply to her question, sent in the morning, only arrived the next day.
Undecided.
It was as brief as the time Ren had written to him when she was still learning letters. The only difference was that his handwriting was incredibly elegant.
But even when she looked at the rushed, scrawled script, Ren only nodded.
That was what Mabel, who had personally delivered the letter to Ren, told him. Rix briefly wondered if he should have at least added a belated “sorry for the delay,” but then brushed it off as unnecessary worry.
The truth was, they could schedule a hunt anytime. Ever since word spread that Rix and Ren had gone hunting together, people had been flooding him with pleas to visit their villages.
On top of that, there were financial issues piling up because of his frequent absences. From minor matters in the palace to far-off issues concerning the domain’s taxes—mountains of documents requiring his final approval and signature were stacked high.
So Rix kept putting off meeting Ren, telling himself, I’m busy right now.
If he was honest, he also found it a little awkward to face her.
Wasn’t it possible that, like his mother, she wanted to return to the world she came from? Would she resent him for keeping her here, the same way his mother had resented him?
That’s why it never crossed his mind that Ren would come directly to his palace.
“She says it’s nothing urgent, and that she’s willing to wait until Your Highness finishes your work.”
Scarlet relayed Ren’s words. Rix couldn’t guess why she had come. Still, facing her head-on and breaking through this suffocating wall might be easier than wandering the maze of his own thoughts.
He drew in a deep breath, then let it out slowly, clearing his mind.
Rix nodded.
“No. It’s fine now. Let her in.”
He spoke as he continued reviewing documents in Scarlet’s stead, his pen moving with graceful ease over papers requiring his personal signature. But when he reached the final period, the tip of his hand trembled slightly.
The moment he heard the door open, his fingers twitched.
The quill slipped from his hand and hit the floor with a soft thud.
Ink splattered on his trousers, but what unsettled him more was the utter silence that followed.
Though they were in the same room, it felt like they were breathing different air.
He knew this alien feeling all too well.
It was the same invisible wall he used to feel whenever his mother collapsed in despair, crying that she wanted to go back.
But Ren broke the silence first. She walked toward him, her footsteps steady.
Without hesitation, she bent down, picked up the fallen pen, and carefully placed it back in front of him.
Only then did Rix raise his head to look at her.
Usually, he had to look down at her because of their height difference. But now, as their positions reversed, he found himself frozen in her clear blue eyes.
“…What brings you here?”
Rix asked, lowering his gaze again and picking up the pen. Not a single word on the page before him made sense.
“Do you have time tomorrow?”
“What?”
“Would you come to a ball with me?”
That was the last thing he expected. Before he could even react, Ren pulled something from her bosom and carefully placed it on his desk, sliding it toward him.
Her pale, straight fingers disappeared like dandelion fluff carried away on the wind.
It was a letter.
She delivered it herself? Frowning, Rix looked at the name written on the envelope.
[Sophia]
Sophia?
Viola’s younger sister, and the second daughter of Count Mafla?
Rix opened the letter from this unexpected third party.
He read it far more quickly than his official documents. The content was simple, nothing complicated. Just an ordinary—
“A birthday ball?”
“Yes.”
Rix finally looked Ren in the eyes.
She appeared calm, just like always. Unlike his mother, who sometimes spiraled into despair, starving herself for days on end, Ren looked perfectly composed.
Rix unconsciously felt relieved and handed the letter back. Ren neatly folded it and tucked it away again.
“…So that’s why you came here?”
“Yes.”
Her reply was short and simple.
Rix felt uneasy. It was as if she might turn cold at any moment and walk out.
But Ren seemed unfazed.
“Why?”
“I’d like Your Highness to come with me.”
“Uh…ah… wh—”
Rix nodded vaguely, then widened his eyes and asked again.
“Wait, what?”
Ren didn’t answer. She only stared at him with wide eyes.
One second. Two seconds. Three.
Then, after exactly three seconds, she chuckled behind her hand.
Rix blinked, dazed, at the soft curve of her smiling eyes. Ren looked at him playfully.
“Do you not want to?”
“Huh?”
“Then I’ll leave.”
Suppressing her laughter, she shrugged her shoulders.
“My apologies for stealing Your Highness’s valuable time.”
With exaggerated flourish, she placed a hand over her chest and bowed. She turned to leave, but Rix quickly pushed back from his desk. The heavy, polished chair toppled with a loud crash, but he didn’t care.
In three strides, he caught up to Ren and grabbed her shoulder.
“Wait a moment!”
She turned. Rix quickly let go, as if guilty.
“I didn’t do anything!”
“I didn’t say you did.”
Ren laughed lightly. Watching him avert his eyes, it was like a seven-year-old boy caught misbehaving and insisting he was innocent.
It was a side of him she had never seen before.
But she decided not to toy with a prince any further. Instead, she got straight to the point.
“Would you like to go with me?”
His wandering gaze finally locked with hers. Ren didn’t look away from his golden eyes.
His lips parted, but no words came. So she spoke again.
“Mabel said she never received an invitation.”
“Mabel?”
“Yes.”
Nodding calmly, Ren looked at him steadily.
Rix’s mind felt like it had stalled completely.
Her gaze pierced straight into his heart.
“Would you like to go with me?”
This time, Ren looked away first. Clearing her throat awkwardly, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Well, since it was Sophia who helped me build a connection here, I thought…it would only be polite to go together—”
“Alright.”
Compared to her hesitant words, his reply was blunt and decisive.
Her big eyes blinked in surprise. She hadn’t expected such a quick answer.
It was only then that Rix noticed how long her lashes were. How rosy her cheeks looked. How her lower lip was just a little fuller than the top.
Before he realized it, he was staring at her openly.
“Then, will you come to the temple at six o’clock the day after tomorrow? Or should I—”
“I’ll come.”
“That was quick.”
Ren chuckled softly. Then something else occurred to her, and she made a small ah sound. Though embarrassed to bring it up, she had no choice.
“There’s…um…a dress code.”
Now that she thought about it, he had skimmed past something about colors in the letter.
It was probably—
“Yellow?”
“…Yes.”
Ren let out a helpless laugh. She already sounded resigned.
“I asked if they could let it slide, but they absolutely refused. They said no one gets in unless they match the dress code.”
Honestly, it wouldn’t matter if they didn’t go.
But she swallowed the words.
Glancing at him, she waited for his reaction. She had expected him to throw a fit and refuse. But his calm response surprised her.
“Alright.”
“…That’s it?”
“Why?”
“N-no, nothing!”
His reply was so short and simple that she was the one flustered. She quickly waved her hands before he could change his mind.
“So that means everyone will be wearing yellow, right?”
“Most likely.”
“They’ll look like a bunch of chicks.”
At his offhand remark, Ren laughed despite herself.
He hadn’t meant it as a joke, but watching her laugh gave Rix a strange sense of relief.
It felt as though no time had passed at all, as though they had been talking to each other every day all along.
Suppressing her laughter with a cough, Ren said,
“Then I’ll look forward to it.”
“…Me too.”
Their eyes met. Again, three seconds of awkward silence passed. They hadn’t even done anything—just looked at each other—yet it felt strangely charged.
Almost at the same time, they both looked away.
Ren turned her body, and Rix went back to his desk to set the chair upright.
“See you then.”
“Yeah. Take care on your way back.”
By the time Rix fixed the chair, Ren was already gone.
All the tension in his muscles melted away.
Sinking into the chair, he leaned back, covering his eyes with one hand, sinking into the darkness.
The blackness felt surprisingly cozy.
A smile tugged at his lips.
For the first time, he wondered if he should grant Mabel a day off.
