“Why is Your Highness here?”

I haven’t seen Arnold since the evening party a few days ago.

There was still no room for him in the Royal Castle, and she had also heard that he was performing a vast amount of duties in the main castle. So, as far as Rishe knew, Arnold had only been to the Royal Castle once.

Of all days, he came the second time today, when Rishe happened to have slipped out of the castle.

“’–I’m certain merchants of the Aria Company arrived during the day.”

Arnold, his cheekbones on the armrest, said quietly.

The flame of the lamp on the side table beside him flickered and swayed. The room was so dimly lit that it was difficult to see his expression clearly.

“I was looking forward to seeing what you had in store for me, but I haven’t heard from you in a while. I just got a report from your knight guard, saying that you were turned down for business.”

“Uhm…”

Arnold rose from his chair and approached her one step at a time.

“It was strange – strange that a mere merchant would turn down a request from you, the future Crown Princess.

“…”Sensing the instinctive danger, Riese naturally backed away.

But behind her was a wall. At this rate, she’d be trapped in a few more meters or so.

“I expected something to happen to the Aria Trading Company at the time you specified them. It seemed meaningless, since you don’t look like the kind of woman who’d fuss over where to shop.”

Arnold’s collars, which he usually kept neatly fastened, were now loosened around his collarbones.

He appeared defenseless from the way he was dressed, but the air around him wasn’t. The moonlight lit up the old scars on his neck and his expression.

He was smiling cheerfully.

However, his eyes were fiercer than usual, like a wolf trying to hunt down its prey.

“I left work to check on you, but I could tell through the door that your room was empty.”

Rishe remembered. The day Arnold killed her, his eyes once looked similar to this.

She didn’t know whether it was the memories of the past or the future, but she naturally tensed up at the sight of something she was acquainted with.

The air was terribly tense.

The only difference was that Arnold had no killing intent on him.“I was the one who said you can spend your time freely in this castle. I didn’t think it was right to torture your knight guard in the corridor at this late hour, so I let him leave and waited quietly for your return.”

“… Your Highness.”

“I got it.”

Arnold laughed darkly as he peered closer and smiled, bracing his hands on the wall to lock Rishe in.

“Even you would look like that if you were left alone with a man at night.”

“…!”

Rishe somehow felt upset hearing what he said.

Perhaps something like trepidation was on his face. I opened my mouth in frustration at that, but it occured to me that rebuttal was a mistake.

To him, I’ve done something for which I owe an apology.

“Sorry, I’m very sorry.”

“…”

Her heartfelt apology erased the smile on Arnold’s face as he looked down at Rishe.