Sleeplessness Reaches Its Peak

On the third day of continued travel.

The moment I stepped into a café along the highway, I let out a huge yawn.

“Well now, really, how should I put it…”

My adjutant Raul sighed behind me.

When I turned around, I saw Raul and several knights looking at me with sympathy.

“There is really nothing else to call it but pitiful.”

“My heart goes out to you, Commander.”

Thanks, I said, swallowing yet another yawn.

To me like that, Raul handed over a mug filled with coffee.

I slurped it down with manners wholly unbefitting a prince.

We were going to see Vandel.

I had never imagined that something this simple would turn into such an ordeal.

It was the first day.

The first day had been the problem.

That dragon crest.

Or rather, seeing it, or rather, touching it.

To be honest, ever since the day I grabbed Lady Shitoen’s right breast in my hand, I had been completely trapped in fantasies, or rather, unable to stop thinking about Lady Shitoen’s chest, or rather, wishing I had touched it more, or rather, in such a state that I felt like I had stared at her chest so much I might gain x-ray vision.

And every night, we were in the same room.

Of course, I could not lay a hand on her.

Lady Shitoen slept soundly and peacefully, and yesterday, to make matters worse, she had held onto my hand the whole time. Beside her lay me, unable to sleep a wink.

Sleeplessness had here reached its absolute peak.

The lord of the estate where we stayed had even grinned and said things like, “Ah, youth,” which made me idly wonder, in my sleep-addled state, whether I should cut him down.

No, couldn’t I actually do it? Wouldn’t princely privilege let me get away with it? I thought that, but with the knights and Raul there, I could not do any such thing…

I could not leave them cast out into the streets. Besides, Raul was going to get himself a wife one of these days… though he did not have one yet. Apparently he planned to start looking.

At present, it was a question of whether we would reach Vandel’s territory first, or whether I would die of sleep deprivation first.

“While Lady Shitoen is resting at the café, would you like to sleep? If we secure the second floor, it will be possible.”

Raul offered that suggestion, but during that time, everyone in the knight order would be tending to the tack, feeding and watering the horses, checking the route, and so on.

There was no way I alone could sleep.

As it was, I was already grateful just to have coffee brought to me like this.

“No, I’m fine. Where is Lady Shitoen?”

When I shook my head, Raul gave a wry smile.

“Over there. She is with her maid, Eaton.”

Raul indicated the direction with his palm facing upward.

Though we called it a café, they were not inside the shop.

It was the courtyard.

For security reasons, we had reserved the outdoor terrace, and now Lady Shitoen and Eaton were seated in wicker chairs, enjoying tea.

They were in the shade, but Lady Shitoen’s silver hair caught the dappled sunlight and was dazzling.

Lady Shitoen’s expression was the same as always, smiling as she responded to Eaton’s conversation, but it was obvious that she was tired.

For the past few years, she had been all but confined by Crown Prince Arios.

She likely had not gone out from the estate, and it had been a life where even meeting other people was restricted.

And yet now, she was in the exact opposite situation.

Every single night, she met new people for the first time, greeted them, and made polite conversation.

She dealt with them flawlessly, and during the day, she spent the whole time traveling by carriage.

It had to be exhausting, and yet she showed not the slightest sign of it.

At night, when the two of us were alone in the bedroom, she would fall asleep while chatting in Tania language about trifling things, saying, “It relaxes me to speak in a familiar language.”

Yesterday, she had not let go of my hand the whole time.

I imagined there must be a lot putting her on edge as well.

“Would you not join them?”

One of the knights called out to me as I stood there drinking coffee from the mug, but I shook my head and declined.

At least during breaks, I wanted the number of people around her limited, and I wanted her to enjoy the sweets and tea she liked.

Apparently she did not dislike me, but even so, I was still another person. There were surely times when she wanted to be left in peace.

As I was thinking that, I heard the clatter of a door opening.

From the direction of the café, a waiter carrying a silver tray was approaching Lady Shitoen.

On the tray was a splendid tart.

“Any peaches or apples?”

Without thinking, I asked Raul.

“We have already informed them.”

But I still could not relax, and narrowed my eyes to examine the tart’s contents.

Grapes, strawberries, and then what was that yellow-green fruit? Perhaps something had been coated over it, because it glittered in the sunlight.

The waiter gave a bow and presented the tart before Lady Shitoen.

He was probably about to cut it now.

Eaton was saying, “It looks delicious.”

Lady Shitoen nodded with a smile.

The waiter moved his hand toward his waist.

That was strange.

There was a serving knife on the tray. It was reflecting the light.

And yet.

The waiter placed his hand at his own waist.

“Get away from him!”

I shouted on instinct.