Chapter 5.
When I couldn’t immediately respond to the rather sharp question, Friedrich turned his head to look at me. “I don’t understand. It’s good for me if you show affection toward me, but for Your Highness, it would only bring harm…….”
“That’s fine, then.”
Friedrich, his words cut off, stared at me with a dazed expression.
“You said it’s good for you. Isn’t that all that matters?”
As I looked at him with eyes that said not to ask any more, Friedrich’s face finally took on a look of realization, as if he’d made a mistake.
“……I apologize. I overstepped my bounds.”
He bowed his head deeply and offered a quiet apology. Seeing him bite down on those cherry-like lips made me feel uneasy inside. ‘Get a hold of yourself.’
Even with such a gentle appearance, there’s no way he doesn’t harbor resentment toward me, the invader from the Kill Kingdom. There’s no need to lay all my cards on the table. It’s problematic to truly see this guy as a companion or partner in my life just because we’ve decided to marry. But…….
“I’ll promise you one thing.”
It should be fine to tell him at least this much. Friedrich slowly lifted his head and looked at me. “Once I’ve achieved my goal, I’ll set you free.”
Friedrich’s eyes widened. On his face, which seemed unbelieving, I raised one corner of my mouth and elaborated. “I mean, I’ll give you a life where you’re bound to no one.”
After I retire to the countryside, I’ll divorce Friedrich.
That way, he can meet the original story’s first love who will lift his curse.
“How about it? Doesn’t sound like a bad deal for you, right? So, I’d appreciate your continued cooperation.” “What should I…….”
“Just like before. Even if I say or do things that make you cringe, endure it.”
“…….”
“If you hate it, you can react honestly. People will just think it’s because you feel humiliated.” Friedrich slowly nodded. I patted his head as if praising him.
He flinched for a moment, but then, remembering what I’d just said, he obediently let me continue.
“Yes, like this.”
I was smiling contentedly at his obedient demeanor when suddenly Friedrich lifted his head slightly and met my eyes.
‘……Huh?’
It wasn’t a gaze of pure defiance or shame, but something strangely indescribable, and without realizing it, I stopped my hand. ‘Using his beauty like that to tell me to stop.’
I suddenly felt a sense of crisis—that if I’m not careful, falling for this guy might not just be an act, but the real thing.
* * *
……Or so I thought, my foot.
“Hello, you’re really cute today too.”
As soon as midnight struck, seeing Friedrich turned into a child again made me burst into laughter without meaning to. Friedrich frowned and glared at me, but a kid’s glare couldn’t possibly affect me. “Did you go to the bathroom? Drink some water? You can’t go outside the tent until dawn breaks.”
To avoid revealing the curse on Friedrich, that tent door had to stay closed all night.
Since we’d established the hot newlywed concept, no one would rudely barge in. “I know that well, so you don’t need to worry.”
The child pouted sullenly as he replied. Without thinking, I almost reached out to pinch those lips, but I stopped, figuring he’d get angry. Strangely, Friedrich seemed even more prickly after midnight than during the day. He doesn’t seem old enough for puberty yet. “Alright, then let’s sleep now.”
I lay down side by side with Friedrich. But when I couldn’t fall asleep and stealthily opened my eyes, our gazes met perfectly. He turned his head away in a flustered expression, and I laughed. “You can’t sleep either? Want me to sing you a lullaby?”
“I’m not a child, Your Highness.”
A kid saying that so solemnly is seriously hilarious.
I bit the inside of my lip hard to keep from laughing, but Friedrich must have noticed, because his face turned bright red. He pulled the blanket over his head to hide his face. He probably doesn’t even realize how incredibly cute that looks. “Isn’t it stuffy?”
When I asked casually, Friedrich slowly pulled the blanket down to just below his nose.
……Am I going crazy? Isn’t this too cute?
I was on the verge of bursting into laughter but managed to stay as calm as possible.
“Good night, my little one. In the front yard and the back hill…….”
“……I told you I don’t need a lullaby.”
“Who said I’m singing it for you? I’m singing because I want to.”
I stubbornly sang the lullaby, and Friedrich didn’t seem to believe me. He glared at me once more before tightly closing his eyes. It worked like a charm. Soon, even breathing sounds came, and I giggled as I stroked Friedrich’s hair.
* * *
The journey back to the capital continued in much the same routine after that.
We knitted together inside the carriage, and when mealtime came, Friedrich Kill would step on my foot before feeding me bites of food. For some reason, that identical scene amused the people in our procession so much that they gathered around to watch us every time we ate. “It’s because his face is entertaining.”
Elsa explained it with a blank expression.
“If they’d put the prince on display as a spectacle instead of hiding him away in the Kill Kingdom, they could’ve made a fortune.” “You’re casually spouting human rights violations, Elsa…….”
“But you agree, don’t you, Your Highness?”
I replied with an arrogant smile, the kind Rene Stade might wear.
“That’s why I demanded him as my war prize. A jewel that precious and expensive is for my eyes only.” Of course, Friedrich Kill wasn’t present for conversations like this.
Even he couldn’t attend to my bath.
“I thought you’d have the prince serve you during your bath.”
“……Are you insane?”
“What’s the big deal? You’ve already seen everything there is to see of each other.”
“Ugh, no way. I’d rather have you…….”
That’s when it happened. A chilling sensation suddenly brushed the back of my neck.
It was different from the chill of drying water.
“What’s wrong?”
Elsa must have noticed the shift in my mood, because she asked cautiously.
My magic was gone, but my ability to sense killing intent remained, as instinctive as ever.
I forced an awkward smile and shook my head.
“Let’s head back. I’m getting cold.”
There were fools bold enough to try killing the princess during a triumphal procession with Emperor Otto.
With so many enemies, it wasn’t surprising. They probably thought I’d be defenseless while bathing.
The problem was that if I faced an enemy here and got caught off guard, even if I survived, the fact that I have no magic would be revealed to the world. And that would mean my days were numbered.
‘Avoid them!’
I quickly threw on my robe and stepped out from the stream. That’s when I felt a fierce energy from afar. Two killing intents were clashing.
‘……What?’
Confused, I stood frozen in place. Then, all at once, neither energy could be felt anymore. And after some time had passed.
Someone pushed through the underbrush in the forest and approached this way. I tensed up completely, glaring toward the sound……. “……Fritz?”
It was Friedrich Kill. I stared at him in stunned silence as he approached, a wound on his cheek.
He, too, paused for a moment upon seeing me in my robe and stood there.
“Come here.”
After a brief, strange standoff, I spoke first. Friedrich Kill hesitated before coming closer. But he stopped short, keeping a slight distance. I gestured for him to come nearer. He did, and I examined the wound on his cheek.
A scratch on this national treasure of a face! I was sighing inwardly as I cupped his face in my hands.
“……That was.”
Friedrich Kill hesitated before speaking.
“I didn’t mean to come here, but some suspicious people were heading toward where Your Highness was.”
“You came because you were worried about me?”
Friedrich Kill didn’t answer. Still, I smiled as if I’d already heard his response.
“You know how strong I am.”
I couldn’t hide my fondness as I asked.
“And yet you came to protect me?”
“I didn’t come to protect…….”
“Friedrich.”
I cut off Friedrich Kill as he fumbled for a plausible excuse, looking embarrassed.
“You did very well.”
My hand slid slowly up from his cheek until it rested on top of his head. I stroked his hair like praising a puppy. “Keep protecting me from now on. That’s your duty as my husband.”
“…….”
“Understand?”
Friedrich Kill spoke with a puzzled expression.
“But Your Highness doesn’t need my protection.”
“I do.”
I said immediately.
“You protecting me. I need that, Fritz.”
