kscans

Chapter 197 - Scribblings, Shadela After That

"You have served me well until now, Shadela."

With a faint smile, Romel glanced at the mansion he had used for so long. It had been over ten years since he had taken her into his service. It was a residence where he had found a very peaceful life.

After his marriage to Chihiro took form, and they had skipped the ceremony and reception to exchange vows before the gods, he had been carefully considering a new home and other matters. However, an unexpected report left him utterly astonished, and he hurriedly settled his relationship with Shadela.

The cause was a single letter.

"We have received seasonal greetings and a gift from the young lady of Count Giorgione. How shall we respond?"

Romel’s eyes went wide at the letter from Shadela.

What? Seasonal greetings? A gift? What? Huh?

There was no such custom in Arcadia. Even at the Frontier royal palace, while the current queen was broadminded and it was customary for noblemen to support multiple wives, making them tolerant of mistresses and concubines, there were still conflicts between them. Even in the harems of the past, there was no end to the discord, abuse, and assassinations among the consorts. The wives of ordinary nobles did not get along either. They were all rivals. How to win the favor of their husband. That was the only weapon to solidify one’s own position. Even in Frontier, which was peaceful compared to other countries, the battles between women were fierce. Perhaps because they couldn’t do it openly, their methods were insidious. In the midst of such marital affairs in Arcadia, seasonal greetings to a mistress? ...It was too unbelievable.

Squinting at the letter, Romel suddenly clenched his fist.

...Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait! This is...!!

"It’s not what you think, Chihiro!!"

Romel suddenly shouted and stood up, startling his subordinates who stared at him wide eyed. Leaving them behind, Romel rushed out of his office without grabbing a thing.

He stumbled and tumbled his way toward Count Giorgione’s mansion.

Uwaaaah! To think that Chihiro found out about Shadela! How on earth did she...?!

Fearing all sorts of worst case scenarios in his mind, he burst into the count’s mansion.

"It’s not what you think, Chihiro!!"

Bursting in without any prior notice and not even waiting for Naya’s guidance, Romel came up to the second floor and immediately started making excuses. The Little One was sipping tea at a chabudai she had acquired in Kilfan. A grown man knelt before her, clasping her small hands and bowing his head. It looked almost like a sliding dogeza, and Chihiro, her eyes wide, tilted her head in complete confusion.

"What’s with you all of a sudden?"

"Ah... well... about Shadela."

Romel looked up at the Little One with a fearful expression. At his puppy dog eyes, Chihiro had to suppress a rising laugh.

What is this? He seems so desperate, it's kind of cute.

"Oh, you mean your mistress? I hear you’ve been taking care of her for over ten years. She must be important to you."

Chihiro’s words held no hidden meaning. To her, it wasn't strange for a grown man of his age to have a mistress or two. Moreover, Romel was a royal. She had heard he had a deluge of marriage proposals for official and secondary wives. Considering that, having only one mistress felt quite modest. But the girl’s seemingly indifferent demeanor terrified Romel.

Does she think I’m a heartless man? A faithless man who sees women as objects?

In a way, he wasn't wrong. To him, a royal of Frontier, she was like a lady in waiting in charge of his nightly activities. He had no particular feelings for her, and she was no different from a favorite magical tool. But well, humans are creatures of emotion. Since she was a favorite, he had developed a certain attachment, and he didn't wish for Shadela's unhappiness. He felt conflicting emotions of wanting her to be happy and wanting to make her happy. His thoughts were a complex puzzle. Swallowing hard, a rare occurrence for him, Romel explained in a stammering voice.

"...Noble boys... well... when they come of age, they receive instruction in the bedchamber. Shadela was my partner for that. And... since she wouldn't cause any trouble, I asked her to continue as my lover, as a job. ...Yes."

Instruction in the bedchamber. So they have things like that. Well, it's a male dominated world, and they have their pride to consider. And the women, too, probably hope for a chance. If they have a child, their future is secure, and that’s a win.

It was a common story even in Earth's past. There were cases of force using power, but even more common were those who flattered to get a piece of that power. With parental schemes involved, the honey traps set for important people were innumerable. That’s why the Little One didn’t think anything of Romel having a mistress. If she was a partner hired for money as a job, then all the more so. It was much better than him frequenting brothels with numerous partners. The fear of catching some strange disease was greater.

Still unaware of Chihiro’s calm thoughts, Romel continued to mutter on.

"...So, you see? You and Shadela are two different things. That’s why I had forgotten. ...Could it be that you are concerned about her?"

Behind Romel, who was looking at her with a pathetic expression, the door suddenly opened.

"Welcome, Your Highness the Prince."

There stood Sakura with Sasha. It seemed they had brought tea, and Sasha, holding the tray, stared in astonishment at the scene before her. The Little One sat on a cushion at the chabudai, and Romel was kneeling before her as if in a dogeza.

"...What’s going on?"

To Sakura, who involuntarily made a dubious face, the Little One explained the situation.

"Well, it’s a common story, isn’t it? Is there a problem?"

Sakura tilted her head doubtfully. Romel looked at her with an expression of disbelief and became flustered.

"No, but! ...Isn’t it unpleasant for you that your daughter’s husband is keeping a woman?"

He told them about the letter from Shadela and asked if visiting his mistress’s house for greetings wasn’t a form of checkmate. The two from the count's family stared at the confused Romel with puzzled looks.

"Heh? She’s a mistress, right? It’s only natural for the wife to pay her respects, isn’t it?"

"Well, it’s an old custom, but even the nobles in Kilfan used to do it."

The two of them were acting perfectly normal.

An old custom of Kilfan?

With a long haaaah, Romel exhaled all the stagnant air from his lungs and looked at the Little One with a face that was a mix of crying and laughing.

"...I’m so glad. I was so worried that I might have worsened your distrust of men…"

His gray blue eyes wavered fragilely.

"Of course I wouldn't think that. You’re a healthy man, Romel. You need a woman or two like that, don’t you?"

It was Romel who was about to blush at the girl’s frank words. She was so open that there was no room for doubt. In fact, he felt like he had been caught off guard. ...Which, in fact, he had.

...Wouldn’t a little jealousy be nice?

While sighing in relief, he shook off his selfish thoughts, and a few days later, Romel handed over the villa to Shadela.

"Thank you for everything. Live happily from now on. I will pay for all the expenses of the mansion. Your monthly allowance will remain as a substitute for a pension. I pray that you find a good person to marry."

Smiling so, Romel left the villa.

Watching the carriage disappear into the distance, Shadela sobbed alone.

"...It’s the ending I knew was coming. ...But."

What a cruel man…

And so, the dreamlike days for her came to an end.

"And yet, why...?"

Shadela tilted her head as she prepared tea.

"Don’t mind me, I just stopped by on an errand.♪"

The Little One sat primly in the drawing room of Shadela’s villa. The girl raised her voice innocently.

"I heard from Romel that he dismissed you. It’s so selfish of him, isn’t it? If you’re going to show affection, you should see it through to the end."

Smiling at Shadela who was offering her tea, Chihiro voiced the feelings in her heart. Shadela’s eyes widened in surprise, and a look of understanding dawned on them.

I never thought of it that way. But…

"...You’re right. He is truly a selfish person."

"Men are like that. Let’s just accept it and enjoy what’s to come. Is it alright if I come to visit sometimes?"

Being swayed by the whims of the powerful is the way of the world. But there is no need to blindly obey such things. Cut them off and look forward. That is the Little One quality.

And the Little One quality is contagious.♪

Shadela felt as if a light had shone through the sea of clouds before her.

The despair of being abandoned by Romel. The girl who was the cause of it. The terrible resentment she felt for both. The dark, sticky feeling that had lodged in the back of her throat, even hindering her breathing, slipped smoothly into the pit of her stomach. She had thought it would be presumptuous to complain. She had been ashamed of herself for having such feelings. But the girl said it. That he was selfish. That she should forget such a man and live happily.

It wasn't something she could easily get over. But watching the girl, she strangely began to think that was just the way things were. For the first time since Romel’s visits had stopped, Shadela smiled. It was a faint, fleeting smile, but for some reason, she was able to smile naturally.

"You are right. Shall we go to the park next time? I hear the sakura gifted from Kilfan are in full bloom."

"Sounds great! Let’s ditch Romel and have a girls’ party."

A girls’ party?

Tilting her head at the unfamiliar word, Shadela wondered if this was what it would be like to have a little sister, and her chest grew warm. Bathed in the gentle spring sunlight, the two of them talked about nothing in particular. The ins and outs of daily life, past mistakes, and so on. Among them were Romel’s embarrassing past stories, and a few days later, he came rushing to Shadela’s place with a changed expression.

"Shadela! What have you done?!"

Looking at the half tearful Romel in surprise, she sensed a new relationship with him.

"My? Whatever could you be talking about?"

Shadela chuckled knowingly. Enraged by this, Romel began to shout. It was a given that the Little One, who had chased after Romel, would jump into the fray. And so, weaving a new relationship, Shadela spent a long time playing with Chihiro. Until the day she married a good man and moved far away.

Shadela, who had cut ties with Romel whom she had only ever had feelings for as a lover, naturally settled into a relationship like that of a friend. It was a mysterious connection even to themselves. A friendship that should not exist between a man and a woman who had shared a bed. No, perhaps it was a tranquility born of that knowledge. The two of them settled into a relationship of close friends so naturally that it flustered those around them.

"Friendships can exist between men and women, you know."

The Little One cut down the indecent rumors that were being discreetly spread about the two of them with a single stroke.

"...Should I be happy that she trusts me, or lament that she is too indifferent?"

Romel’s gaze drifted into the distance at the Little One’s usual invincibility.

"That is precisely why you are so devoted to her, is it not? How sweet."

Shadela chuckled. Even in the midst of the rumors, as long as Chihiro and Romel understood, it was fine, and she too joined the Little One’s invincibility.

Shadela’s life, having tasted both the sweet and the sour, was colorfully painted by the Little One, and she met a happy end.

This is Frontier, where only happy endings are prepared for kind people. Indeed, indeed.♪