CH 36

After meeting with Reukis, which had a brief commotion, a peaceful weekend passed.

Merria was now leaning against a sofa with a good view out the window, contemplating.

In her hand was a letter from Reukis, written in his familiar handwriting.

Reading letters has become one of my daily routines because it’s Reukis who sends letters even on short days when we couldn’t meet.

“Hmm… We haven’t seen each other for a while.”

The letter was mainly about Reukis’ daily life, and he said in the letter that he was going into the imperial palace.

Some time had passed since the prince and the knights returned to the capital..

Altheon, who needed his own knights in earnest, brought the Knights of Altairs to the Imperial Palace, and gave their captain, Reukis, the title of knight commander.

Such a big task couldn’t be completed quickly, so it was obvious that he would be busier than before.

I stayed there for a long time even after I finished reading the letter.

As I stared out of the window with my complicated mind, some of my thoughts popped out of my mouth.

“It’s probably… I don’t think so.”

“Yes? What?”

Lexie, who was making coffee next to me, answered with her eyes wide open.

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

As Merria answers lightly, Lexie tilts her head. She soon focused on her work.

“Please eat.”

Lexie handed over a mousse cake wrapped in coffee and orange cream that had just been dropped.

“Thanks…”

Merria, who happily took a bite of the cake, continued to drink coffee.

Merria curled some melted ice in her mouth and wiped her lips.

Although it was a short period of time, meeting with Reukis was always sudden.

We suddenly bumped into each other, and suddenly became lovers, and then it’ll be over.

‘We haven’t broken up yet.’

‘But we’re going to break up soon.’

After drawing a conclusion, the relationship that had been built up until now felt so fleeting.

Then, an unfamiliar resentment erupted.

“Hmm?”

Merria felt like she had found a small boulder that appeared on the smooth marble floor.

But before I could take a closer look at the stone, another thought permeated in my head.

[The first thought was the correct answer, and the impulsive change at the end was mostly wrong.]

Merria raised her loose body up and retorted it once again.

‘So, let’s not be deceived by the wrong answer.’

Becoming the lover of Reukis in the first place was to get rid of my misery.

Even if it was more enjoyable than I thought and better than I thought, it didn’t change the essence of it.

It was Shannon’s appearance that had the greatest impact on her sudden decision.

The heroine she knew, but had never met, and she had been avoiding.

Shannon was the one who made Merria feel guilty and anxious just by her very existence.

My guilt struck my heart, at least indirectly, for not letting her meet Altheon, I was deeply sorry.

Even if I said that no one other than me knew the story of Altheon and Shannon, I couldn’t help but feel gritty.

It was an assumption that I didn’t want to run into someone that I feel responsible for their situation.

I didn’t want to run into Shannon because I was ‘Merria’, and I thought I had always been like that.

‘I’ve encountered Shannon twice recently, which I’ve never encountered before.’

And there was something in common between those two meetings.

The existence of Reukis.

When I went out alone, I didn’t even see her passing from afar, let alone meeting Shannon.

To encounter Shannon only when I went out with Reukis, wasn’t it like an unspoken pressure from a dear writer who loves her?

Merria interrupted the first meeting between Altheon and Shannon, and now she interrupted the accidental first meeting between Shannon and Reukis.

Although the former was Merria’s intention, the latter was an unexpected part.

‘The main event was that Reukis helps Shannon who went out secretly. But he was stuck with me, so the progress of their encounter was blocked, right?’

Being sandwiched between the main characters was still an absolute ‘no-no’ specification.

For Merria, it was something she desperately wanted to prioritize above all else.

Then, there’s no need to continue this relationship anymore.

Merria drank her coffee with a half-relieved and half-anxious face.

The ice in her hot coffee melted quickly.

✧✧✧

Since then, Merria has deliberately avoided contact with Reukis.

“I’m glad Altheon called in Reukis just in time.”

Because Reukis went to the Imperial Palace, it was a good thing that I didn’t need to avoid him by making excuses.

In fact, if I wanted to end this relationship at once, I just have to notify him that I want to break up.

I was worried that if I did so without a warning, Reukis would dig into the cave again.

(N: Lock himself again.)

Still, it was unreasonable to continue this relationship.

“There’s no reason.”

During the meeting, I could be confident that I did nothing detrimental to Reukis’ notion of chastity.

The period of validity of the kiss, which she gave at their first meeting, would also be over.

Soon, their shallow relationship would really come to an end.

Merria leaned her head against the wall of the carriage, feeling lost and regretful that she had lost a comrade to eat and share cake together.

She was now on her way to ‘MIRO‘ after hearing from Karina.

“What else are you going to complain about…”

The person who suffered the most from Karina’s recently increased activities was none other than Merria.

Altheon was also busy managing things as the Crown Prince from the palace, and trying to win the support of the nobles from the society.

It was all because of Karina that Merria knew Altheon’s recent life, which she had never seen before.

Merria had to listen to Karina’s innermost thoughts, which she could not reveal to her followers.

‘If I told her the truth about his majesty, it seems like there would be some progress between the two of them.’

Merria got out of her carriage, which had stopped while she was immersed in her thoughts, shook her head and entered the shop.

Clank…

As I opened the door and walked in, I was greeted by the staff who was now accustomed to seeing me.

Naturally, when I entered the window seat, Karina, who had already arrived, was drinking hot coffee with her eyes down.

“I’d like a coffee, too, something cold.”

Merria, who had placed an order with the staff who had followed her, took another step.

I sat down on the other side of Karina as I watched her enjoying her coffee even without me.

I stared at Karina, who sat loftily, regardless of my arrival.

It was clear that she was worrying about something again, seeing the shallow wrinkles on her forehead.

‘Usually the words that come out when you have that kind of expression aren’t good.’

Based on her previous experiences, Merria predicted the topic of conversation Karina would bring up.

Maybe Altheon said something, but it’s useless, such as what do you think it means and what do you think would suit him when she wants to give him a cuff as a gift?

She met Karina’s eyes when Merria, who had prepared her heart to some extent, tapped on the desk.

Karina hurried to talk about the main point without even greeting her.

“Merria, I’m in trouble.”

“Really? I’m curious about that.”

“I need your opinion.”

Well…

If Karina, who was more erudite than Merria in any way, would ask, it was only that way.

Merria nodded her head roughly as the conversation flowed as she expected.

“What’s going on?”

“…I got a letter from his Highness yesterday.”

Again, it was an ‘Altheon issue‘.

Merria nodded as she drank the cold coffee brought by the staff.

It was a silent sign to keep talking.

“He asked me to have a meal in the palace soon…”

The two were walking the path of a fairly faithful prospective fiance.

It meant that they began to engage in a series of activities where they ate together and met regularly.

“That’s great. So, what’s the matter?”

Karina, in her emotional rage, leaned her body forward and her eyes shone.

“Wasn’t it polite to take a small gift with you when you’re invited? Of course, you might say it’s sloppy, but it’s our first time having a meal with just the two of us, so I don’t want to waste any of it.”

Soon after, Karina leaned her head sideways with her palm resting on her chin.

Her expression darkened, and she seemed to be immersed in quite deep thoughts.

‘Wasn’t the Crown Prince very busy? I guess you didn’t even have time to have a romantic dinner together.’

Merria showed her own understanding to convince Karina’s haughty ways.

Even if it’s just an ordinary day, if it’s like that, it’s going to be very difficult for Merria, who has to accept all the nonsense.

Karina asked again to Merria, whose thoughts slipped away for a moment.

“In conclusion, what kind of gift do you think would be good?”

“Well…”

Objectively, Karina’s troubled appearance was as beautiful as a painting, like a very atmospheric masterpiece.

But it was a boring moment for Merria.

‘I don’t know what wealth and glory I’m supposed to do with them, do I even have to give them dating advice?’

No, it’s not.

Wasn’t I already involved in the relationship between Karina and Altheon?

Moreover, it was Karina who accepted Altheon’s fiancée position, which I handed over.

As long as Karina was sincere like that, Merria wanted to support her heart.

Having captured her heart again, Merria began to think seriously.

Usually, aristocrats give gifts such as swords, famous horses, and wine made after their names, but in return for simple invitations to eat was too much.

At that moment, a certain memory flashed through her mind.

– I think you really like flowers. You’re romantic.

– My late mother loved flowers. Enough to send flowers to my palace every morning.

A distant nostalgic memory permeated Altheon’s eyes. Shannon gently patted his arm.

He lifted his eyes and looked at Shannon.

-My mother liked … the most. It’s a pretty flower that looks just like you.

In the original, flowers appeared as a medium representing many things.

Doesn’t the title include “Flower Path“?

The first meeting of the main characters was at the banquet in the imperial palace, and there was also a scene where Shannon indirectly conveyed her affection to Altheon through the flower language.

And among them, there was a flower that symbolizes Altheon’s childhood memories.

Because it was the favorite flower of the deceased Empress, it was treated specially.

“What kind of flower was it…”

Merria frowned and murmured quietly, and Karina answered shrewdly.

“Flowers? That’s good too. As you said, His Highness seems to like flowers…”

“Ah… that’s right!”

Merria, who was struggling regardless of Karina’s answer, lightly tapped her hand.

“Purple tulips.”

A satisfactory smile hung over Merria’s lips.