Chapter 100 - 7
Anna woke to the sensation of someone touching her hand. It seemed she had dozed off for a bit.
When she opened her eyes, Ritz, who had been fast asleep from seasickness until just a moment ago, was now awake.
Perhaps not realizing Anna was awake, Ritz was gently stroking her hand, which had been resting on his forehead, with a dazed look on his face.
Occasionally, he would gently squeeze her hand, softly intertwine his fingers with hers, and caress her hand within his palm. The feel of his large, warm hand was strangely pleasant and comforting.
As she was sleepily thinking this, she finally remembered her current situation.
"Sorry, Ritz! I fell asleep too!"
The moment she spoke, Ritz shot up as if he'd been struck by lightning. Or rather, it might be more accurate to say he leaped up.
With incredible force, he slammed his head into a wooden crate.
There was a tremendous sound, somewhere between a thud and a crack.
"Ritz?"
She cried out in surprise and moved closer to Ritz, who remained seated. It seemed to have hurt so much he could only groan.
They had made a space to sleep by shifting the cargo, yet he did something as dangerous as suddenly jumping up. It was so unlike Ritz.
Unable to stand, Ritz clutched his head and groaned as if squeezing the sound out.
"Ow…"
"Are you okay? That was a huge noise."
It was the kind of sound that made you think either the crate or Ritz had broken.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
He was clearly forcing it. Hitting his head with that much force and making that much noise, the pain had to be extraordinary.
"No you're not, you can't be okay, can you?"
"…I said I'm fine."
Rubbing the spot, Ritz turned around. It was obviously red.
What's more, it looked like he had hit a corner, because there was a straight red line across his forehead, which looked incredibly funny.
"You have a line on your forehead."
"Really?"
Though there was no way he could see it, Ritz tried to look up while touching it. That was so comical she couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Even Ritz, who had been looking grumpy, let out a small sigh and gave a wry smile.
"So you were awake."
Ritz said, looking somewhat troubled for some reason.
"Nope. I just woke up."
"I see."
He still looked like he was in pain. Rubbing his forehead, Ritz took a watch out of his pocket.
"Three o'clock… I slept quite a bit."
"I'm sorry, I should have woken you."
When she said this apologetically, Ritz gave a wry smile.
"It's fine. This is usually when you're asleep, anyway."
"Yeah. I'm never awake at this time."
Perhaps because she'd gotten a little sleep, her head felt clear. Maybe she could stay awake until they reached port tomorrow afternoon.
"I'm going to get back to work. What about you?"
Even as he asked Anna, Ritz had already picked up the crowbar and was heading for the cargo. He probably wanted to make up for the time he'd lost sleeping.
"What should I do? Oh, do you think you'll have enough time?"
She asked worriedly. Ritz replied brusquely as he skillfully opened a wooden crate.
"Plenty."
"Oh, good!"
"If you help me, it'll go even faster. But you can just sleep if you want."
"I'll help!"
She moved to Ritz's side as he continued working hunched over and peered at what he was doing. The nails were being pulled out straight, without bending.
"You're really good with your hands, Ritz."
"…It's not like I chose to be."
Though his words sounded uninterested, his hands worked deftly and smoothly. He was like a craftsman.
"Hey, hey, how's the seasickness?"
She sat down next to him and asked while watching him. Looking closely, she could see he still looked a bit pale.
"Not bad enough to throw up. Thanks, you were a big help."
Answering, Ritz looked up and smiled. Despite his color, he seemed quite energetic.
"Ehehe, you're welcome."
When she'd seen him just a few hours ago, he'd looked like death warmed over, so compared to that, this was great. She decided his pale complexion was just something she'd have to put up with until they were off the ship.
"Let me know if you feel sick again."
"Yeah, I'll count on you."
As he said this, Ritz skillfully closed the box he had just inspected using the back of the crowbar.
Still, Ritz being seasick was unexpected. To Anna, the perfect Ritz having such a normal weakness was just too strange.
It was also surprisingly that he, who hated showing weakness, had collapsed so easily onto her lap.
And for him to just lie still and let her stroke his head without any resistance like a child was unthinkable for the usual Ritz.
But lately, seeing these unexpected sides of him brought Anna an unbearable joy.
If Ritz was too perfect and solved everything by himself, she was afraid there would be nothing left for her to do as his companion.
She wanted to be useful enough for him to feel he needed her, at the very least. Her current goal was to be acknowledged by Ritz as a full-fledged companion.
Perhaps Franz felt the same way about wanting to be trusted by Ritz as a companion. After all, the two of them together were still not even one whole person in his eyes.
"Anna."
Ritz called her name without looking up from his work. She instinctively replied cheerfully.
"Yes!"
"I have two favors to ask of you."
Ritz's serious tone made Anna tilt her head.
"What is it?"
"First… I'll open the boxes, so I need you to check what's inside."
"Is that okay?"
"Yeah. It takes forever on my own."
"Okay!"
Anna joyfully pulled the crate Ritz had pushed towards her with all her might. It was heavier than she thought. She sat on a low crate that Ritz had already checked and was about to start inspecting the contents.
But Ritz's next words made her stop cold.
"The other thing is…"
"Yeah?"
She looked up at Ritz beside her. He was making a complicated face. Thinking it might be best not to rush him, she waited with her hands still.
Finally, as if he had made up his mind, Ritz spoke.
"…Could you keep it quiet from Ed and Franz that I got seasick?"
The request was so unexpected that Anna was at a loss for words.
"Why?"
When she asked, Ritz slumped his shoulders, glanced down at her from the side, and muttered quietly.
"If they find out, they'll definitely give me a hard time…"
"Ed and Franz?"
"Yeah."
Ritz seemed convinced of it, but Anna couldn't believe it. She tilted her head, staring at him intently.
"They wouldn't do something like that, would they?"
But Ritz declared it with a tone full of conviction.
"Oh yes they would, no doubt about it. Franz, maybe not, but Ed, definitely. He's that kind of guy."
"I don't think so…"
As she tilted her head even further, Ritz explained emphatically.
"He absolutely would. No doubt."
She had no idea what that was, so she moved her hands from the crate to her lap and looked up at Ritz again.
"What kind of mean thing would he do?"
Even if Edward found out about Ritz's seasickness, Anna couldn't even imagine how it could be used as material for harassment.
Wasn't it just like the kids at the orphanage teasing a child with a runny nose by chanting, 'Yay, runny nose, runny nose' at them?
But looking at Ritz's face, it seemed that wasn't the case.
"For example, let's say we have the choice between a horse and a ship for travel, right? Up until now, we'd have definitely chosen the cheaper or faster option, yeah?"
After a moment's thought, Ritz began his explanation.
"Yeah."
"But once he knows my weakness, Ed will definitely say, 'You like ships, don't you?' And he'll do it with this… scornful, sarcastic smile. If he says that to me every time, even a broad-minded guy like me will eventually snap."
"…What does that mean?"
She had absolutely no idea why Edward would ask that with such a face, or why it would make him snap.
"Ugh, basically, it's like he's saying to me every time, 'You get seasick, don't you? Well, look, a ship. How about you get on?'"
"Hmm…"
She didn't really get it, but apparently that's what it was.
"If he says that, why don't you just honestly say, 'I don't like ships, so let's go by horse'?"
"I don't want to. I'm not going to admit defeat from the start!"
"Is it losing if you say it?"
"It is."
From what she'd seen, the arguments between Ritz and Edward always seemed to happen in similar situations.
It was so strange that they were always like that, despite being best friends.
And yet, when it came down to it, both Ritz and Edward relied on each other the most. The friendship between men was hard to understand.
If it were Joe and Anna, things would be much simpler.
"So please. Keep it a secret. C'mon?"
Ritz said, pressing his hands together in front of Anna.
She didn't really get his stubbornness on a gut level, but if he was going to ask like that, she had no choice but to nod.
"Okay. I'll try."
She'd do her best to keep quiet for now. But she wasn't confident she could keep it a secret if Edward started asking her a lot of questions.
"But, but, even if I tell Ed and you have to get on a ship again and get seasick, I'll fix it for you, so it's okay. Right?"
When she said that and looked up at Ritz, he fell silent for a moment before suddenly looking away.
"You didn't mind, did you?"
She asked, worried. Ritz stammered.
"Yeah, well, I guess so. I'll take you up on that."
Muttering under his breath, Ritz resumed his work without looking at Anna again. Anna also sat down next to him and began to check the boxes Ritz had opened.
The first box contained plates. One by one, she checked the contents of the boxes that were opened. This might be a more difficult task than she thought.
Ritz, having opened several boxes, began inspecting their contents from the opposite end of where Anna was.
Ritz, who usually joked around in these situations, was unusually quiet, which made her a bit worried.
Maybe he was still feeling unwell. He had been unsteady on his feet earlier, too. And wasn't the spot where he hit his forehead painful?
Perhaps noticing Anna's furtive glances, Ritz looked up.
"What's wrong?"
"Just thinking how quiet you are, Ritz."
When she answered honestly, Ritz gave a wry smile.
"Hey, I'm still seasick, you know? It's not bad enough to throw up, but my head's still spinning. It'd be way too inefficient if I started talking and collapsed again, right?"
So that was it. Worried, she made a suggestion.
"Want me to use my healing magic again?"
"It's not that bad."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Thanks, though."
With that, Ritz went back to his work. Was she getting in his way? Anna silently began to inspect the contents of the umpteenth box in front of her.
This was a box of apples. It smelled nice. Even looking all the way to the bottom, there was nothing but apples. Anna pushed the inspected box towards Ritz.
Ritz would then close it again and put it back where it belonged.
After sealing and restacking the apple box, Ritz suddenly asked.
"Anna, what would you like as thanks?"
"Thanks?"
"…For healing my seasickness. And as hush money to keep Ed quiet."
She was about to reflexively reply, 'I don't need anything,' as she always did, but the words caught in her throat. When she looked up, her eyes met Ritz's gaze.
He had a gentle expression she never saw when everyone else was around. Yes, it was that same smile she saw when Ritz had returned from his near-fatal injury.
Seeing that face made her incredibly happy.
"What would you like?"
He asked again, calmly. Anna panicked. She had been thinking about something completely different. What should she do? She couldn't think of anything.
"Um, well…"
You're not supposed to ask for a reward for helping someone, but for some reason, she felt it was okay if it was Ritz.
Even so, being asked so suddenly, the only thing she could think of was food…
"Ah…"
Suddenly, she remembered.
"Teach me how to dance!"
"Huh? Dance?"
Ritz's eyes narrowed as if he had heard something strange. But undeterred by his gaze, she asked again for emphasis.
"The Queen said the basic one is called a waltz. Can you dance, Ritz?"
With a strange smile that seemed to be a mix of confusion and amusement, Ritz scratched his head.
"…Well, I can dance, I guess…"
"Then that's what I want for my reward!"
"What's that all about?"
"I want you to teach me the waltz."
Anna said, recalling the glamorous scene from the party. She remembered thinking how wonderful it would be to dance like a princess.
She wanted to try dancing in a crowd like that at least once in her life. Just once would be enough. But Anna couldn't think of anyone who could teach her.
Anyone but Ritz.
"The party after the coronation was so beautiful. But I don't know how to dance at all. I might never have a chance to go to a party again, but I want to try dancing like a princess in a dress just once."
After she explained this all in one breath, Ritz looked back at her with an exasperated expression.
"A princess, huh… It's not all it's cracked up to be, you know."
"But I admire them! Princesses!"
When she declared this with all her might, Ritz burst out laughing.
"Alright, alright. I'll teach you that much."
"Really?"
"Yeah. But with the height difference between us, I'll be more like a puppeteer than a dance partner."
"Ah…"
"And if I make you wear high heels, you'll definitely trip."
Ritz teased Anna, suppressing his laughter. Indeed, there was a height difference of over forty centimeters between them.
"Ritz, you're so mean!"
"Well then, hurry up and grow big and strong for me, princess."
Because she'd insisted she wanted to be like a princess, he was teasing her relentlessly.
"So mean, you're making fun of me!"
As Anna pouted, Ritz started working again with a laugh.
"Alright, the reward's decided, so let's get this work done quickly. We won't get anywhere until we find the drugs."
That was certainly true. That was the whole reason Ritz was cooped up in here in the first place.
Besides, if they didn't find the drugs here, they could end up causing trouble for Kenny and Altman.
"Okay, let's do our best!"
When she said that and rolled up her sleeves, Ritz, who had apparently been listening, chuckled without looking up.
"Yeah, you're right. Princess Anna."
"Oh, you!"
This method was the same as Edward's when he cornered Ritz. When it came down to it, weren't they both the same?
She pouted and glared lightly at Ritz. She felt like she was starting to understand why Ritz wanted to keep his seasickness a secret from Edward.
This must be how Ritz felt when Edward was teasing him.
It wasn't that he was truly angry, but rather that he was enjoying the exchange even as he was getting mad.
"Alright, once we've finished everything, let's eat the food you brought and get some sleep. We just have to hold out until noon."
"Okay."
Anna peered into the newly opened wooden box once more.