Marielle Clarac's Engagement 002.4

 

*Simon’s Pov*

 

2 part 4

 

 

While hiding my worries, I continued to work as an Imperial guard. As I was accompanying His Highness Sevran on the way towards the Duke’s evening party, I ended up getting caught by a woman I don’t really want to associate with.

 

“It seems that tonight you’re alone. Does your fiancé not accompanying you?”

Miss Aurelia that was wrapped in a profound deep red dress, came to talk to me with a confident smile. Along with her came some followers, the young misses that as usual were stuck together. When I was showered by the women’s stares, I began to feel like an animal that was being aimed at as spoils of war.

 

Everyone’s eyes sparkled so much that they didn’t fell behind Marielle’s. Oh, that’s right. I am used to being looked at with those kind of eyes. It was so sparkling before. …….However, it feels like Marielle’s look was somewhat different.

Though Marielle’s enthusiasm doesn’t fall short compared to whomever, it feels different. What was the difference, I wonder.

 

“I came to accompany his Highness as an escort. I am here for work”

 

I wanted His Highness to quickly come back. Even though I’m a guard, I can’t stay here for too long. But if it continued like this, without a doubt Miss Aurelia would follow me. Ever since I got engaged, it seemed like her aim was determined on His Highness alone. I don’t know if I was excluded a long time ago, but she must have aimed for a chance to get closer. I can’t afford to let her bothers His Highness. ‘Do I have to drive her away?’ I worriedly thinking it over.

 

“Ah, that’s right. Recently, I always saw your fiancé being together with you, so I must be forgetting about some things. That’s right. His Highness is more important, right”

Giggles were raised from the young misses. I felt that there was something off, and gave a quick look around the venue.

 

…….Ah, so it’s because of this.

 

I saw Marielle’s figure in the distance. So you were coming. Because today I am working, I naturally haven’t invited her, and the other person hasn’t said anything too, so I was under the impression that she wouldn’t be going. ‘What in the world, even though the fiancés are coming to the same venue, they totally came separately?’ or so they must be thinking.

 

I glanced back at Miss Aurelia and the others; and I saw that they tried to hide their expressions of curiosity and scorn. I would certainly go first to call out to Marielle, I guess they would say a lot of things about me.

 

I wonder what Marielle would think? About the harassment received from Miss Aurelia and the other girls, she’ll be unconcerned and delighted, right. I’m not worried about that. However, would she mind that I haven’t invited her despite the fact that I was going to the same place?

 

Suddenly everything had become complicated, and shortly Miss Aurelia and the other girls left the place. Since holding strange antipathy is also troublesome, I always followed the other party appropriately but, I don’t have such intention right now.

 

When I headed straight to Marielle, while having also noticed me, her eyes under the spectacles blinked.

“Good evening, Simon-sama”

 

She didn’t show a peevish state or anxious feeling, and she greeted me with her usual smile. That calm attitude affected my nerve badly.

 

“I didn’t think that you’ll be coming. I’m really sorry,  I should have told you properly that I would’ve been accompanying His Highness”

 

“Well, you don’t need to fuss over me. I already learnt of it, you know? I was told by your subordinates the other day. Of course, work is more important. Don’t mind it, please”

 

Before I became aware of it, she already heard it from someone else. Without my knowing, it seemed like my subordinates has opened their hearts.

 

“Is it alright if you don’t return to His Highness’ side? If you don’t go back quickly, I think you’ll get scolded”

 

In addition, she’s trying to quickly drive me away. Are you trying to say that if I am here, I am a hindrance to your material-collecting?

 

“You come along too. Since you’re attending, then you should go to do greetings, right. Unlike in the past, now you have the position of being my fiancé.”

 

“Yes, that is the matter of course……but, right now many people are already engaged in talks, they look busy. I thought that it would be fine to greet them at a later time”

 

Her part of never intruding on people that she bears in mind is a praiseworthy behaviour. She didn’t say anything wrong. She’s saying the right thing.

Even though I understood it in my head, it did irritate me very much.

 

“If you say so, no matter how much time will pass, you won’t be able to do the greetings, you know. Since there is no such thing as people not being in His Highness’ surrounding. Come.”

 

I forcibly took Marielle to His Highness. While looking a bit perplexed, Marielle didn’t oppose me further and obediently followed me, and then without slip up greeted His Highness, and quickly left.

 

She was quite curt. There was a great difference with Miss Aurelia, isn’t it? The other person is trying to somehow draw attention to herself, and wouldn’t hesitate in jumping at a chance. Can’t you have at least half of that enthusiasm? Even though you kept looking at me and His Highness with feverish eyes.

 

……But, Miss Aurelia’s and the other girls’ eyes were different. When we compared them, I clearly understood.

In Marielle’s eyes, there wasn’t something like favour and interest towards the opposite sex. The only thing there, was only interest towards human beings or simply towards living things.

 

She doesn’t fall in love.

Even though it’s something I understood, for some reason I was shocked about that truth, and ended up feeling strangely dispirited.

 

I almost had no interaction with her, and it’s an engagement decided only by having a talk with her father. It’s only natural that there isn’t any feeling of love, even though I didn’t seek such a thing.

It’s just that I am seeking someone that would become a wife who would give me peace of mind. I thought that Marielle was just the right person.

Or so she should have been.

 

“Don’t make that depressed face. If you’re that concerned, then quickly chase after Miss Marielle” Said His Highness with a frown.

 

I wonder if it came out on my attitude, my mind stiffened.

 

“No. I won’t abandon my duties to run for my personal affairs. Since she also doesn’t wish for it.”

 

“Having you by my side while you’re all frustrated, would make even I gloomy. I permit you, so go.”

 

“I wasn’t really frustrated……”

 

“Didn’t you notice that your emotions are leaking? I wonder with what kind of eyes you were chasing after her earlier, shall I explain how it looked? It must concerns you, right”

 

“…………”

Was it that obvious? Was I not able to smooth my expression? I ended up receiving another shock with that too.

However, I wouldn’t run to my fiancé just because I was told to. Even if His Highness gave His permission, I must not. I am not so frivolous as to abandon my duties; and separating from His Highness is not good too.

 

No matter how much people in the surroundings are overflowing ――Nay, there is plenty of possibility for someone with ill intention to slip inside the crown. In Marielle’s case, there is no circumstances where she would meet with a person who bears ill intention; then we’ll just have to meet another day.

 

His Highness sighed with a shocked expression.

“So you will suppress yourself and hide your feelings. She won’t notice anything like this, right. How about you face her with more honesty”

 

“Hide it, you say. I don’t particularly have that intention”

 

“‘She concerns me’, ‘I want to pursue her’――telling her this as it is should be fine”

“…….If I were to say that I am not concerned then it would be a lie, but I have no reason to chase after her. To be honest, I think there is no need to worry”

“But, you are concerned right?”

 

“…………”

I gave up and sighed. We knew each other from childhood really well. I couldn’t deceive His Highness.

 

The feelings that I, myself, don’t understand, I honestly confessed them.

 

“Well, I’m curious. What is the thing that concerns me, I myself don’t know either. I have nothing to criticize with having Marielle as a fiancé. She doesn’t behave in a way that will trouble me, she doesn’t complain and she’s not selfish. She doesn’t intrude, and waits until you call out to her. She understood that tonight I’ll be coming here just for work, and she didn’t mind taking separate action. She’s the ideal fiancé. I want to ask myself ‘where is the reason to feel dissatisfied ?’. ‘What is wrong with her?’ ”

 

On the contrary, the me who was light massaging my head tiringly, His Highness had a knowing look.

 

“You…….you seriously didn’t realized?”

 

“What”

 

‘I can’t believe it’, murmured His Highness as he slightly scowled at me. Isn’t it fine to not look so exaggeratedly surprised? It looks as if I am stupid.

 

“It doesn’t look like it. You are stupid”

I protested and he immediately retorted back.

 

“Ah-…….I may be an idiot. Until now, you’ve always been popular with women; and since you were good at dealing with them, I thought you were accustomed to love affairs. It was a big mistake. Now I changed my view. You simply haven’t developed your emotions”

 

“……Is that so?”

 

“Don’t get mad while smiling! It’s the truth”

For some reason His Highness retreated by several meters. I didn’t mean to threaten him though.

 

“Since women thoughtlessly approached you; you yourself didn’t need to spend great efforts. Until now you had never been conscious of it. At twenty seven years old you finally reached puberty, neh. Rather than saying it was amusing, honestly I feel bad”

 

“For someone who’s feeling bad, you speak quite a lot”

 

“A late spring is pleasant to see until you reach twenty years. At that age if I were to show somewhere my first experience, I’ll feel bad”

 

“Since earlier you’ve been saying only strange things……emotion and so forth and first something, what kind of relation does it have with the talk we had just now.”

 

“So listen, that’s why I am saying that your emotion are undeveloped. Ah, it’s a pain so I’ll be straight. Your frustration, comes by the fact that you can’t manage to draw the attention of Miss Marielle. She doesn’t care about you, you’re not been given attention, and that doesn’t make you swallow it right”

 

“…………”

What’s that, I thought. Isn’t that just like a grumbling toddler? I am a kid that wants to be spoiled is what you’re trying to say?

…….but, can I deny it? Somehow I felt like he hits the bullseye, and that ended up giving me another shock about myself once again.

 

“The other person concerns you, and I think you want to look over her yourself. You feel lonely when she’s cold, and it frustrates you, I think. That kind of feeling, people call it “love”.”

 

“…………”

……Love？

 

“You are in love with Miss Marielle. That’s the answer”

 

At His Highness’s words, I ended up at a loss of words. What should I respond with? In a moment I couldn’t find the words.

In love? Me? with Marielle?

Why would it comes to that.

 

“…….Thanks for listening to me”

 

“Aah, don’t blank out and escape! Admit it, you fell in love with her! What else if not that? So far I’ve told you so many times already. That your attitude was completely different with women till now, and that you were lovestruck to a surprising degree! Look back and think about it. You always show Miss Marielle a kind face, she became important to you. No matter how you look at it, you didn’t look at her as just a fiance of obligation. In the first place, why did you get engaged with her? At that time when Viscount Clarac asked you if you could introduce someone to him, why did you present yourself. If you normally think about it, you and her aren’t balanced. It wasn’t just insufficient for the Floubert house, but it’s a betrothal that is a burden for the Clarac house too. But you pushed that out, why’s that”

 

“…..That’s…..”

 

I was pressed for a reply. Marielle was what I was wishing for, I thought she was just right…….but, was it really just that?

If I searched, I could have found other women that were what I wished for right. Not everyone is ill-natured like miss Aurelia. I should have been able to accept a bride from a house that would’ve properly balance it without a problem. I knew that much.

Why did I thought that Marielle was good.

 

“In reality I knew her long before. I thought she was an interesting girl and so I watched her. What is the reason as to why I was keenly observing such a plain and not conspicuous looking girl? It was just just for mere curiosity that continued for years, and in the end I went as far as to get engaged?”

 

“…………”

 

His Highness breathed out a large sigh, and hit my shoulder.

 

“If you consider things one by one, you’ll understand. The rest is just to honestly admit it. If you understand, then even tomorrow would be good to have a proper chat with her”

 

I could not say anything anymore. My head was in disorder, I couldn’t find words. I also couldn’t smooth my expression, so I looked just like an idiot.

That sort of…..I,such a…..?

Is that so?

No, by no means. Certainly not such a thing.

 

No way I thought, I also wonder why I must deny it. Is there a problem with that? No, there’s no problems with that kind of thing. That’s why――Ah mou, I don’t know what to think anymore.

 

“Well, I thought why she was the other party. What kind of charm does she have to make you her’s, that’s a great wonder. Having said this, she doesn’t have eye-catching features, and I have a hard time remembering her face too”

 

That’s just a superficial talk. Her inner self is by no means ordinary or plain, that she drawn my interest is only natural.

――and, I also noticed that in an instant I had no objections, making me confused once again.

Is that so……? I am, really…….?

It’s not like I don’t want to admit it. But, I was so very shocked, that my emotion couldn’t keep up.

 

That night, commotions remained in places, and I wasn’t able to concentrate on my duties. That nothing happened to His Highness’s body was really a blessing.

 

And I passed a sleepless night. So to speak, I was just like a ten years old boy.

 

That is, the beginning of my spring that arrived too late.

 

 

 

TN:Naoriel

ED:Ally-El

Chapter end