Chapter 105

I had only seen it in dramas before, so witnessing such a deep kiss in person was the second time since Seref’s ducal residence. At that time I hadn’t been dating the Duke yet, so it didn’t move me much, but this time it was different. I couldn’t take my eyes off them.

The lovers’ kiss deepened. Their touch escalated as if a button might be undone at any moment.

My heart raced and warmth rose to my face. Unintentionally, the hand holding the Duke tightened.

“This way.”

The Duke murmured softly and led me elsewhere. The night was already deep, but I could clearly feel his embarrassment.

“I didn’t expect to see something like this. It doesn’t look like they’re royalty, though.”

Because the place was secluded, it seemed a man and woman who worked at the palace were secretly displaying affection.

“I’ll make sure to warn the guards properly at dawn.”

The Duke and I met eyes. Startled, we both turned our heads at once. The easygoing joking and conversation were gone, replaced by awkwardness. No question, my face must have been beet-red. My head was a seasoned dater, but my body reacted like a rookie and couldn’t hide it skillfully.

“It’s late. Let’s go.”

In the end, the Duke suggested returning home, and I nodded. Throughout the carriage ride we stared out opposite windows without speaking, but oddly we didn’t let go of the hands we held. Even though the touch felt scorching as if burned.

That night, as expected, I couldn’t sleep a wink.

A few days later we could talk as before. Partly because we often crossed paths for work and partly because neither of us was actually angry. The communication artifact helped a lot too.

Vespera Ariadne (Supreme Justice): The steward brought cake from a famous pastry shop. Would you like to join me for lunch?

He approached me first like that. Fortunately, there was no difficulty in having a meal together.

“What? Lunch with the Supreme Justice? I might choke. Good luck, Chancellor.”

When even aide Illya reacted that way, I could dine with him without any suspicion. The Chancellery’s reaction wasn’t much different.

“Don’t fall for it. You’re now the same rank.”

They warned me to be careful, saying he was laying groundwork to request cooperation. They even said to be wary because of the gruff image the Duke had built up—whether to be happy about that or not was laughable.

I smoothed my clothes with a faint smile and stood up.

“Chancellor, where are you going?”

Lukan asked politely.

“Just out front for a moment. I should be back soon, but if I’m late, everyone go home first.”

“Yes.”

After saying goodbye, I quietly left the central ministry. Usually I’d state my destination when leaving, but this time there was nothing to gain from revealing it.

The reason was—

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

I quietly followed the maid who had come to meet me into the room. There sat Prince Raven, his golden eyes and blond hair shining brilliantly.

Yes. This was the consultation request he hadn’t been able to make in Yuno.

‘I’m giving consultations for free.’

For a moment a wave of reality hit me, but like a seasoned professional I quickly restored a perfect poker face.

“Good day, Your Highness. How have you been?”

The prince nodded and gestured to the tea table opposite.

“The same as always. Nothing happens; every day goes by like a wheel turning.”

“…”

Something was off. Wasn’t he the type who hardly spoke?

“In fact, the interesting events happened to you. When I came back, you had become Chancellor. I was quite surprised.”

“I was surprised too.”

Who else could have been more surprised than me? Thinking back, I could only laugh. I still can’t get used to coming to work. That I’m sitting in the Chancellor’s seat.

Putting feelings aside, I moved straight to the point.

“I don’t know if I can help, but I can listen to Your Highness’s worries without letting them leak. You needn’t worry about that.”

The prince was silent for a moment. Was he wondering where to begin, or testing whether he could trust me?

“Do you remember?”

He rested an arm on the table, propped his chin, and stared at the teacup beside him as he spoke.

“You said you wanted to know how to stop being so conscious of others’ reactions.”

“Yes.”

“I…”

The prince suddenly faltered. I didn’t rush him and waited patiently. After a long while he could continue.

“I lack confidence.”

“…Confidence?”

“I’m… a bit sensitive.”

The prince’s story was veering away from what I had expected.

“I’ve heard that a lot. After doing something I feel no sense of accomplishment, only relief. I make many mistakes and am unnecessarily sensitive, which tires those around me. I heard some people even quit because of me. It was shocking. So I kept watching others’ reactions. I became afraid of being assigned tasks and worried if I could perform as well as others. Eventually I thought it was better not to speak. I just went through the motions of work. After all, even if I don’t do it, everyone else handles things.”

I found myself frowning at how serious it sounded.

“I and those around me thought I could live like that and it wouldn’t be a problem.”

Hearing his story, his face looked neat and polished, but his eyes seemed hollow.

“But why are you telling me this?”

It was far too deep a matter to confide in a bureaucrat he’d just met, and to tell face to face.

Prince Raven looked up and met my eyes.

“After seeing the Chancellor, an uncomfortable question arose about my life. You hadn’t attended the Academy, you’re young, not a proper noble of noble bearing. You were even poor. You had every quality people told me not to associate with.”

“Ah, yes…”

“Yet you shone among people who had everything. Seeing you speak your mind confidently at the conference, uncaring of others’ looks, suddenly made me wonder… I had chosen an easy way to live, so why am I so unhappy, why can’t I be happy? So when I heard about the daily consultation booth, I impulsively requested one.”

Hearing this, it seemed the prince’s self-esteem had nearly hit rock bottom.

‘He seems to feel pressure from both his job and his family…’

It’s the unique downside of royalty: life itself is put on display and judged.

Judging by his behavior, he’d lived like this for a long time. It was enough to make him feel I, someone from the modern world, extremely alien.

The subsequent account of the prince’s life was suffocating even to me. He couldn’t get close to anyone, had to uphold royal dignity, needed good Academy grades, must show filial duty to his parents, and upon adulthood had to prove work competence. Because he struggled, everyone said all royals live like that, that he was just especially sensitive and that’s why his performance was poor. After that, his competence allegedly declined.

‘Given that psychological state, the fact he sought me out for consultation is remarkable.’

I’m not a professional counselor. It’s hard to snap out the perfect advice in one go. So I decided to listen to Raven’s story until a method occurred to me. Just that would give him some breathing room.

Once he opened up, Prince Raven’s hesitation vanished and he poured out more and more words.

“… (omitted) …At that moment I thought so. I seemed to have heard it, but was I imagining it?”

I listened silently as long as needed. I thought this might be the most difficult consultation I’d done so far.

‘This won’t be easy.’

Talking with Prince Raven, I suddenly realized it was well past quitting time. When I went to the Chancellery, everyone had already left and only an empty office remained.

‘I used to be the kind of employee who left right on the dot…’

It felt like only a month ago, but it seemed so distant.

‘Pull yourself together and go home quickly.’

Even with a higher rank, the desire to go home hadn’t changed—no, it had grown—so I hurriedly finished the remaining work and bolted out of the office. The dark sky seemed to sneer, “Did you work late tonight?” but I ignored it. Instinctively I looked back at the central ministry buildings to see which offices still had lights on. As expected, only the Ministry of Justice was lit.

‘Has he been given more strange tasks?’

The Duke wanted to leave with me, but he had a lot of work. I could only hope that the unification of reporting documents and simplification of the reporting system would reduce his overtime.

Anyway, thanks to that, it seemed no one suspected anything between the Duke and me. Of course, the biggest reason was the barrier his crafted image created.

“…”

I had been desperate to go home just a moment ago, but my feet were headed back into the building. In the silent corridor only the sound of my heels echoed. I was glad I could help even like this.

I stood at the door and knocked.

“Come in.”

At the low, deep voice, I opened the Ministry of Justice’s door and stuck my head in. The Duke, who must have been reviewing documents, looked up and his eyes widened when he saw me. It was so cute I laughed.

“Shall I help you a bit?”