465 - Overconfidence is the Greatest Enemy
...It is more of a miniature garden than a potted plant now.
I look down once more at Enomena's pot, which I have placed by the window so it can get some sunlight. At first, it was just a pot with Enomena's small sprout in the center, but now it is truly lively. The first thing that catches the eye is not Enomena's sprout in the center, but the dollhouse that Rannvald made. It has already deviated from the realm of pot decorations, and as a dollhouse on its own, it is a wonderful piece of work, with the second floor and roof being removable. Recently, he has begun adding to the interior, and miniature furniture has been increasing little by little.
...In terms of atmosphere, it is close to Aurelia-san's house.
Not too spacious, not too narrow, it is a house exactly to my liking. The first floor has a living room with a large fireplace, a bathroom, and a kitchen. There are three private rooms on the second floor, and if the attic were a room, it would be the perfect ideal house. When I said I wanted to live in a house like this, Salisa began talking about building a separate wing for the servants. For my part, I thought one room for the Leonardo doll, one room for my doll, and one room for the Salisa and Mirshe dolls, but it seems that even in a dollhouse, Salisa and the others want to live in a separate wing as servants. When Rannvald built a slightly smaller separate wing in response to Salisa's request, Salisa began striving to create her ideal kitchen, declaring that the cooking area was her domain. Since small metalwork such as frying pans and pots was difficult even for Rannvald, he consulted Leonardo, and it resulted in placing an order with a craftsman. I had started decorating because the pot felt a bit lonely, but I feel that the dollhouse is already becoming the main attraction.
...Well, it is fun, so it is fine.
Since we have come to rely on a craftsman's help, I want to put a bit more effort into it as well. I had Rannvald make something close to a bunk bed with storage, and I will make a full set of bedding to put in that bed. Using bobbin lace for decoration would make it glamorous, but it would not suit the simple atmosphere of the house, so this time I decided to put in patterns with embroidery.
...And as expected, a stuffed toy for the bed.
On my bed at the Grenore mansion, there is a giant bear stuffed toy. On my bed at the detached palace in the royal capital, a slightly smaller black dog stuffed toy was placed. For that reason, I intend to place a stuffed toy in my bed in this dollhouse as well. Conveniently, a small black dog stuffed toy had already been made as a pot decoration.
"With this much liveliness, Kalisa-san will not be lonely, right?"
I place the newly completed bedding on the bed and stack the second floor, which I had removed to touch up the interior. The planned site for the separate wing is empty, but with flowerbeds where miniature flowers are placed, a small home garden watched over by a scarecrow, and even dolls of livestock such as goats and chickens decorated, Enomena's pot is truly lively. Far from being lonely, Kalisa-san might actually be dissatisfied that the top is too heavy.
"...Huh?"
For a moment, I felt as if Enomena's sprout glowed faintly, and thinking it was my imagination, I stare intently at the sprout. As usual, only the sprout is growing larger, but there is no sign of it growing any further.
"My imagination?"
I stared at Enomena's sprout for a while, but there were no changes such as it glowing or suddenly starting to grow. Concluding that it probably just looked like it glowed due to the lighting, today's dollhouse making is finished.
My daily life recently has been truly peaceful.
When I wake up, I first water Enomena and have breakfast with Leonardo. After that, I see Leonardo off at the entrance hall as he leaves for the fortress, and I go out to the backyard to play with Koku-maro, the black shiba inu, while taking him for a walk. After playing, I do translation work for about an hour, and when my concentration runs out, it is snack time. After the snack break, it is time for exercise. Recently, I have become able to continue step-up exercises for five minutes. Since I cannot actually do five minutes continuously with each left and right foot, I insert breaks to catch my breath in between, and then return to translation work.
After lunch, it is hobby time. I spend my time doing various things depending on the mood of the day, such as embroidering, making bobbin lace, modifying the miniature garden, or reading. If the morning translation work ended at a bad spot, I sometimes made a bit of progress during this time. It is hobby time provided because one must not do only work, but since exercise is almost mandatory, time is also taken in the afternoon. I go out to the backyard again to accompany the black shiba inu on a walk, running all over the garden. At the end of winter, I could not even run properly, but now I can run for about two minutes if I am not at full speed, so my physical strength is returning steadily.
"...Yes, finished."
Today's hobby time was making Leonardo's shirt. It serves as both a make-up for the Spring Flower Festival and a birthday present. I felt that sewing a shirt every year was lacking in creativity, so this year I also tried making sleepwear. Since Leonardo seems to be the kind of person who wants to sleep naked on summer nights, I used sleepwear fabric that absorbs sweat to make it even a little more comfortable, and the shape is a jinbei. With short sleeves and short pants, it should have become reasonably comfortable.
"Now I just need to wash it once, and I will ask Tabitha to do the ironing."
It is something for everyday use anyway, but it is a gift for now. I want to give it to Leonardo in a crisp, ironed state.
"It is a bit early, but I will take a nap."
I put the needle and thread away in the sewing box and call out to Aaron, who is standing in front of the room's door. Since Aaron's eyesight is the same as ever, it is easier for Aaron to act if I communicate my actions aloud in advance.
I put away the sewing box, take off my shoes, climb onto the bed, and sit between the legs of the giant bear stuffed toy. I could lie down, but dozing off with the belly of this giant bear stuffed toy as my back is the most comfortable for a nap.
...It will soon be the season for Jinbee to change into a jinbei too.
The giant stuffed toy on the bed, dressed in clothes instead of sheets, is wrapped in various costumes depending on the season. In winter, perhaps to match my costumes, it was given cat or dog ears despite being a bear. Now, since it is spring, it has flower decorations on its ears and is wearing a young-leaf-colored shirt.
...Come to think of it, Curry Rice wore a shirt even in summer at the detached palace.
The variety of clothes was more abundant than at Grenore, but just because it was summer, the black dog stuffed toy never wore a jinbei. Because the detached palace was inside the royal castle, even the everyday clothes were close to the fancy clothes at Grenore. Therefore, it never spent time in a jinbei even in summer. That is probably why the idea of putting a jinbei on the black dog stuffed toy did not occur.
...A sense of season is important for Curry Rice too.
If I make a jinbei and send it now, will it reach the detached palace by summer? What color would suit that black dog stuffed toy? Should I make a red jinbei to match mine?
While thinking about such random things, sleepiness quickly arrived. My head nodded, and I let go of consciousness.
When my consciousness surfaced next, the surroundings had completely changed.
"...Ngh?"
I wake up to my own vacant sleep-talking. Something is strange, there is a sense of incongruity, and I blink a few times and look around, but this is not my room. However, it was a room I remembered, so I felt no need to panic. First, I look up to confirm the identity of what I feel on my back.
"Ah, Curry Rice."
I should have been napping with the giant bear stuffed toy as my back, but before I knew it, what I was using as my back had become the black dog stuffed toy. In my upward field of vision, there is the face of the black dog with the Maro-brows that Kalisa put her whole soul into.
"Um...?"
...Is it because I was thinking about Curry Rice right before I fell asleep?
Since I was thinking about the black dog stuffed toy, the black dog stuffed toy must have appeared in my dream, I conclude. Once the identity of what was on my back was known, the reason why the room looked familiar was also known.
This is my room in the detached palace in the royal capital, which was called the summer room.
My room at Grenore has a slightly subdued color scheme because I rearranged it, but the summer room at the detached palace is arranged exactly like my previous room. It was a room perfect for summer, with a color scheme that overall reminded one of chocolate mint.
Thinking that it is just a dream, I can accept this mysterious situation calmly. Since the black dog stuffed toy went through the trouble of appearing in my dream, I decided to enjoy the feel of the pleasant fabric while taking the measurements necessary to make a jinbei.
"...I might want a measuring tape?"
If it is a dream, I wonder if a measuring tape would conveniently appear in my hand. Thinking so, I look down at my palm, but it seems a measuring tape does not suddenly appear. It cannot be helped, so I will get the measuring tape from the sewing box, and as I get off the bed, after a light knock, Rebecca and Ulrika enter the room pushing a wagon.
"Christina-sama, I have brought snacks."
"Snacks...?"
Wondering if there is snack time even in my dreams, I am amazed at my own appetite and head toward the table where tea is being prepared. My feet feel strangely fluffy, and when I look down, for some reason, I am not wearing shoes.
"Oh? Where are my shoes...?"
I wonder where I took off my shoes, and I look back behind me where I just walked from. My shoes were not rolling around in the short distance from the bed to the table.
...I know the reason why I am not wearing shoes. It is because I was napping in bed, right?
Since I climbed onto the bed to take a nap, I know the reason why I am not wearing shoes. I must have taken off my shoes to get into bed. It is natural. It is natural, but the fact that the shoes I should have taken off are not found around the bed is a bit strange.
"I will look for the shoes."
"Even so, since Christina-sama arrived without prior notice, today's cheesecake was ordered from Christina-sama's favorite shop in the inner city."
Because the return was too sudden, it seems the chef is depressed that he could not serve the cheesecake he has been continuing to improve. It is a strangely realistic dream.
"If we had heard that you were coming today, the chef would have put his heart and soul into making a cheesecake..."
"Instead, the chef was enthusiastic about making the Napaji cuisine that Christina-sama likes for dinner."
"Even so, I wonder if Alfred-sama forgot to contact the detached palace?"
"What happened to Koku-maro, who is always with you? To think the guard dog is not by Christina-sama's side..."
"Is Leonardo-sama staying at the detached palace after all? We also have preparations to make, so we would like to ask Christina-sama for prior notice upon her next return..."
...Huh?
Something is strange, and I tilt my head only in my mind while carrying the cheesecake to my mouth. I feel as if I am worrying about strangely detailed things for a dream. Certainly, if I returned to the detached palace without notice, the maids and servants would be troubled.
But this is a dream.
Even if I wandered back to the detached palace in a dream, receiving a warning to give prior notice feels somewhat incongruous. Since it is inside a dream, I think it is fine not to worry about detailed things.
"Is it true that Christina suddenly returned!?"
"Ah, Alfred-sama."
I did not hear the sound of a carriage, but I heard the sound of fast walking in the hallway. Just as the footsteps stopped in front of the room, Alfred enters the room with his golden hair slightly disheveled. He walks straight across the room to come in front of me, and then he abruptly extends his arm to my cheek.
"It hurts."
"...You are real, then."
Since my cheek was suddenly pulled, I slap his hand away. It is an attitude that makes one wonder about it toward a prince, but it is Alfred's fault for suddenly pulling my cheek. Even I can get angry if my cheek is pulled for no reason during a meal.
"What are you doing all of a sudden? Please do not pull my cheek while I am eating."
"Is that the part you are concerned about? No, certainly I was in the wrong just now. ...No, it is not that."
Seeing Alfred, who unusually shows no sign of hiding his surprise, I straighten my posture, thinking that some emergency has occurred. I still want to eat the cheesecake, but if there is a serious talk, I should listen to it seriously as well.
"So, what happened? To be in such a hurry."
"No, of course I would rush here. An express messenger came to me from Rebecca. 'Christina has suddenly returned to the detached palace, have you received any notice?'"
"...I understand. Because the notice went out, Alfred-sama rushed to the detached palace."
It is a strangely realistic dream, I think, staring at Alfred who brings the cup served by Rebecca to his mouth. His elegant gestures are the same as ever, but now his hair was slightly disheveled. Normally, it would be a disastrous state unbecoming of a prince. The attendant who entered the room late was secretly confirming the location of the comb in the inner pocket behind Alfred.
"...So, what happened all of a sudden. The fact that you could not go out, has that been cured? Where is Leonardo. There should have been no prior notice of coming to the royal capital."
"As for going out, I can still only go out to the backyard. Leonardo-niisama is working at the fortress today as well, since morning. He will not return until night. Since there were no plans to come to the royal capital, it is natural that there is no notice?"
I dutifully answer each of Alfred's questions. Every time I answer, I am met with a new question, and I start to find it troublesome that it is a dream that cares about details to such a strange extent.
"...It is a strange dream. Normally, I thought that when it comes to dreams, the details are haphazard and even with settings full of things to nitpick, everyone proceeds without questioning them."
"Dream...?"
"A dream. Am I not having a dream?"
Otherwise, there is no way Alfred, who returned to the royal capital, would be in front of me. Since for some reason I am at the detached palace now, it is not strange that Alfred is here, but in the first place, I am napping in my own room at Grenore, so there is no way I should be in the royal capital. To make the current situation consistent, judging that this is a dream is the fastest.
"...This is a dream?"
"It hurts."
To the cheek that was pinched again, I complain of dissatisfaction and slap Alfred's hand. I have no memory of having my cheek pinched. It is an interference to enjoying the cheesecake, so I want him to release my cheek promptly.
"Even though it is a dream, it hurts, it is a strangely realistic dream."
"You still will not admit it. I received notice that you suddenly appeared at the detached palace, and I came to confirm."
Since I was calmly stuffing my cheeks with cheesecake when he rushed here just in case, he says he would naturally want to pull my cheek. That I am too carefree.
"...Do you remember what you were doing that led to this?"
"What I was doing... I was trying to take measurements for Curry Rice."
Urged to reflect on my own actions, I look back at my actions. Before I started eating the cheesecake, I should have been trying to take measurements to make a jinbei for the black dog stuffed toy.
"Curry Rice is the stuffed toy at the detached palace. Before that. What were you doing?"
"Before the measurements for Curry Rice... I was sewing Leonardo-niisama's shirt and jinbei."
I remember that since they were finally finished, although it was a bit early for nap time, I put away the sewing tools and entered a break. Using the belly of the giant bear stuffed toy as a pillow, I was thinking that the black dog stuffed toy did not have a jinbei.
"...Right, the story is connecting. For now, I understand that Christina thinks she is 'having a dream', and the reason why there are no shoes."
"You say strange things. If it is not a dream, there is no way Alfred-sama, who returned to the royal capital, would be here."
"Your recognition that this is the detached palace?"
"I have it. If it were not the detached palace, there is no way Rebecca and Ulrika would be here."
"If this is the detached palace, does that not mean this is the royal capital?"
"...It does. In other words, it is a dream after all."
"Why does it become that?"
"It hurts."
To the cheek that was pinched for a third time, I shake off Alfred's hand. I will not let him pinch it easily next time, I hide my cheeks with both hands and watch Alfred's arm movements intently.