.Chapter 17
After a brief silence, Axel finally spoke up.
“…What do you plan to use the photo for?”
Yes! If he was asking about its purpose, it meant he was almost convinced. I beamed with a smile as bright as a fully bloomed flower.
“What for? I just want to keep Your Highness’s photo for myself. So I can take it out and look at it whenever I miss you.”
“…If any issues arise, I can retract my permission, so keep that in mind.”
“Thank you!”
The moment he gave his approval, I grabbed Axel’s hand impulsively.
I was so purely delighted at the thought of having his photo card that I didn’t even notice how he stiffened, and I let go of his hand before rummaging through my bag again.
“Oh, right. I have a gift for you!”
It was a set of ten photo cards I’d taken from last evening until today. Each one featured a different outfit and makeup, like an indirect idol experience.
“These are photos of me taken with that thing! Look at this. Aren’t they totally cute and adorable? Right?”
Come on, say yes quickly. As I pressed him again for agreement, Axel, who had been studying them closely, muttered a single remark.
“So this was an item from the Magic Tower.”
What? After seeing my photo cards, poured with years of know-how, all he says is that it’s from the Magic Tower? Does he not even see me in them?
I was grumbling inwardly when Axel murmured quietly to himself.
“…Is this why you didn’t come yesterday?”
It was such a faint whisper that I didn’t catch it. When I asked him to repeat, his face flushed with momentary embarrassment.
“…Never mind.”
“Anyway, I’m giving you all of these. They’re hidden collections with only one copy each in the world, so take good care of them!”
You get it, right? I’ll check later to make sure you’re keeping them safe!
As I emphasized this earnestly, Axel let out a soft chuckle.
“Alright. I’ll do that.”
His unexpectedly compliant attitude made my eyes widen in surprise.
What’s this? Come to think of it, he seems strangely in a better mood than before…!
In this surprisingly smooth atmosphere, I was grinning from ear to ear when Axel, who had been examining the photo cards I’d given him, suddenly furrowed his brow and asked in a much lower voice.
“…What’s this?”
“Why?”
I looked down curiously, following his gaze. There, slipped in among my photo cards, was a picture of Xenon.
Yesterday, Xenon had taken a photo of himself to test it out, and he’d given it to me. I hadn’t wanted to throw it away, so I’d just kept it, but I never imagined it would end up mixed in here.
Before Axel could examine the photo more closely, I quickly snatched it away with my hand.
“Uh, I must have put it in by mistake! It was just a test shot.”
Haha. How did that end up in there?
I was already under suspicion for my supposed feelings toward the Crown Prince, so I didn’t want to give him any more reasons to doubt my sincerity.
Axel’s sharp gaze turned toward me.
“I’d like to take a closer look at that photo.”
“Come to think of it, isn’t it time for you to clock out, Your Highness? I’m sorry. I’ve kept you too long.”
Pretending not to hear him, I launched into my best acting performance. I hurriedly backed away from Axel toward the door, then opened it and poked my head out to bid him farewell.
“I’ll head out for today and come early tomorrow, Your Highness! See you then!”
Time passed, and soon our second date with Axel approached.
Axel, seated across from me, glanced out the window before asking.
“Where are we headed today?”
Since I decided the location and schedule each time, only I knew where we were going.
“Where do you think? Try guessing!”
“…To see a musical?”
“Hmm, no. We did that last time!”
“…A café?”
“A café sounds nice, but today we’re going somewhere else.”
Still, it was amusing to see Axel making an effort to guess. I burst into giggles and finally told him the answer.
“Today, we’re going to an orphanage.”
Our destination for the day was indeed an orphanage.
It was one I’d started sponsoring after possessing Judith. You could think of it simply as volunteer work.
Upon hearing this, he raised an eyebrow.
“Why an orphanage, of all places?”
“You said before, Your Highness, that you’d prefer someone with a kind heart.”
“Are you saying you’re doing volunteer work just because of that one comment?”
Deep creases formed on his forehead, as if he were looking at a childish fool.
“Yes. That’s exactly it.”
“…How does performative volunteering make someone kind-hearted?”
Axel wore an incredulous expression at my bold response.
“So, is that a bad thing?”
“It seems much better than doing nothing at all. Even if I have other motives, the fact that I’m helping them doesn’t disappear.”
Of course, today’s plan included the motive of earning Axel’s favor. If I were truly just volunteering, I wouldn’t have brought him along; I’d have come alone.
Yet I held my ground. I shrugged my shoulders and gazed at Axel with a relaxed expression.
“And I have no intention of treating this volunteer work lightly.”
Just then, the carriage came to a stop. We’d arrived at the orphanage. Axel stepped out first, and I took his hand to alight onto the ground. The bright, giggling laughter of children reached our ears.
Right before crossing the orphanage’s main gate, I asked Axel a question.
“But did you know this, Your Highness?”
“…Know what?”
He paused and turned to look at me.
“Actually, you shouldn’t start volunteering at an orphanage if you don’t plan to come regularly.”
“Affection can be scary. It ends up hurting the kids even if you don’t mean to. From their perspective, no matter how long they wait, that person never shows up.”
As if this was news to him, Axel’s eyes widened. I smiled at him and cheerfully declared.
“So, I’m going to give you two options, Your Highness! The first is—I’m sorry for wasting your time, but you can turn back and go home right now. The second is to come into the orphanage with me and play with the kids.”
I added one more thing.
“Oh! Of course, even if you choose the first option, today’s meeting will still count toward our quota! After all, you met with me today.”
“If I choose the first, will you come back with me?”
“No way. I told you—I have no intention of taking this lightly.”
With that, I brushed past Axel and crossed through the gate. I spun around to watch him standing there silently.
Suddenly, Axel began striding forward, following me. Startled, I blocked his path just before he could cross the gate.
“Uh, wait a second, Your Highness! If you choose the second option, you’ll have to keep coming to the orphanage from now on!”
“I know.”
With that, he deliberately sidestepped me at an angle and crossed the gate. Unable to suppress the laughter bubbling up, I ended up smiling broadly. I turned toward Axel and said.
“Actually, I knew you’d choose the second one, Your Highness.”
“Why is that?”
“I told you before. From what I’ve seen, you’re a kind person. I figured you’d naturally join me.”
I whispered to him conspiratorially, narrowing my eyes as if sharing a secret.
“You might not have noticed, but you’ve just fallen right into my scheme.”
Our eyes met as Axel looked down at me. He let out a soft laugh.
“I see. Should I call you cunning?”
“If anything, call me clever.”
And so, we headed toward the orphanage building.
