Chapter 15: Innocence

——“Fate” and “eternity.”
Anyone who believes in things like that is a fool.
If such things really existed, then I would…

“Your Highness, if you expose yourself to too much wind, it will be bad for your health.”
“I feel well today.
I want to walk while I can, and staying in bed all the time is boring.”
“But—”
“If I start feeling unwell, I’ll say so properly.”

Neige had been born with a frail body, and not only his parents but also his brother, who was only a year older than him, always worried about him.
He was especially prone to falling ill during seasonal changes, and sometimes he would catch a cold that lingered for a long time.
There was no point in resenting his weak body.
This constitution he was born with was a neighbor who would stay with him until death.

He took a walk through a sunny, sparsely populated area of the royal castle.
There was only one knight assigned as his guard by Sierra.
Neige sat down on a bench that stood alone.
When the knight hurried over in a panic, Neige smiled wryly.

“It’s not that I’m feeling sick or anything like that.
I just felt like sitting down.”
“I see.
That’s a relief.”
“Hey, could you bring me a warm drink?
I’ll wait right here.”
“I cannot leave Your Highness alone—”
“I won’t move.
See?
Hurry up and go.”

The knight looked at Neige with concern, warned him to stay put, and then returned toward where other people were.

Left alone, Neige looked up.

A cloudless, perfectly clear sky.

Why was a sky without unnecessary colors so beautiful…

“Ah… of course.
It’s because the sky is your color.
Of course it’s beautiful.
A clear sky-blue without any unnecessary white clouds…”

Chuckling softly, Neige stopped looking at the sky and turned his gaze forward.
Ahead stood a large tree.
He approached the thick trunk, large enough to hide a child, and gently placed his hand on it.
He moved around behind it and stared at that spot for a while.
After standing there for some time, he returned to the bench.

Neige laughed quietly once more.

“By now, Faustina is receiving queen consort education from Mother, and Brother is in the middle of sword training.
Brother really never changes, no matter how many times I see him.
I love him for that, but…”

The deep violet eyes that shone more brilliantly than any jewel under the sunlight were wrapped in absolute zero, capable of plunging others into Cocytus.
If one were to meet Neige’s gaze as he was now, their entire body would freeze, and they would be condemned to eternal suffering without even the mercy of death.

Neige loved his brother Bernhard.
He loved him, which was why he did nothing.

“I could never hate a brother who loves someone like me.
Not now, and not ever.”

——Because I know that, in the end, you’ll give me a very special present.

He swung his legs back and forth as he waited for the knight to return.
The knight came back carrying a tea that was good for the body.

Neige accepted the teacup and drank slowly.

“It’s delicious.”

The cook had sweetened it so it would be easy for Neige to drink.
As Neige savored the tea, he made sure to take his bitter medicine and eat even the unpalatable but nutritious meals so that he would not fall ill and miss the upcoming tea party.

The families invited to the tea party would probably be the same as before.

Come to think of it, he pondered while drinking his tea.

‘Faustina probably remembers the previous time.
If she didn’t, that would be a problem, but what should I do?
Predicting Faustina’s actions based on what I hear from Brother, and then recalling what happened before with that la-dy…’

The knight watching over him had no way of knowing that Neige’s thoughts, while he drank his tea so happily, were pitch-black things utterly unimaginable from his adorable appearance.

——Today was even more spartan than usual…

Because the queen consort education was progressing better than expected and Sierra had high expectations for Faustina, she trained her more strictly than ever.
Even Faustina, experienced as she was, felt her eyes grow wet today.
She was not allowed to shed tears, so she tightened her expression.
Faustina knew that Sierra’s satisfied smile afterward meant she placed great expectations and trust in her.
If Faustina were to break off her engagement with Bernhard someday, Sierra would grieve and strongly oppose it.

Even if there was some unhappiness, the happiest ending was for Bernhard and Elvira to be together.

After finishing her lessons, Faustina looked out at the scenery from the carriage on her way home and let out a big yawn.
It was a rare indulgence she could allow herself because she was alone.

“Isn’t there some good way to make His Highness realize that he likes Elvira?”

A small pain ran through her chest.
Even if she was hated, even if killing intent was directed at her, even if she was cast aside, her feelings for Bernhard did not change.
Her affection was no longer as excessive as before, but she could not forget the moment her heart had leapt when he smiled at her.
Still looking outside, Faustina muttered softly.

“If Elvira and I had had our appearances reversed, no one would have been hurt back then.
Fate is cruel.”

She felt like lodging a complaint with the sister goddess who shared her sky-blue hair and pale yellow eyes.
Especially with Fortuna, the goddess of fate.
If only Fortuna’s thread had been tightly tied between Bernhard and Elvira, the tragedy of the previous life would never have happened.

But there was no point in complaining to Fortuna now.

Stretching her body widely, Faustina found herself looking forward to tonight’s dinner.

The carriage stopped in front of the mansion gates.
When Faustina stepped down, Linsy and several other maids bowed deeply.

“Welcome home, Miss.”
“I’m back.
There’s still some time before dinner, so could you prepare the bath first?”
“Yes.”

She soaked in a hot bath to wash away the fatigue of the day.
It might have seemed like something an old person would do, but bathing was one of Faustina’s comforts.
She returned inside with Linsy and began preparing a change of clothes in her room.

“You know, I met Prince Neige today.”
“The second prince, Your Highness?”
“Yes.
I met him when he was asking Her Majesty if he could walk outside.
Her Majesty looked worried the whole time, but in the end she gave in and allowed it with a guard.”
“I have heard that the second prince has been frail since birth.
Her Majesty must have been worried.”
“Probably.
Watching His Highness really made me realize how precious it is to be able to walk around freely on your own feet.”

Known among her family and the servants as a sturdy girl who rarely caught colds, Faustina learned firsthand the value of good health.

After Linsy prepared her clothes, Faustina moved to the bathroom.

——Several dozen minutes later.

With a refreshed face, Faustina returned from the bathroom to her room.
She loosely tied her dried hair behind her.
On her desk lay the notebook with 【Faustina’s This and That】 written boldly on the cover.
She tried hard to remember, but she could not recall anything about the upcoming tea party.
Even after opening the notebook and readying her quill, not a single relevant memory surfaced.

“So I don’t remember everything, then.
If that’s the case, there’s a good chance events I’ve forgotten will happen again.”

She thought about why there were gaps in her memories.

“The last thing I remember is regretting the mistakes I made, apologizing to the people I troubled, and then sleeping in a cheap bed.”

She did not know what came after that.
She fell asleep and died without knowing it.
That was the only conclusion she could reach.

“I wonder if anyone else has memories of the previous life…
No, that’s impossible.”

Even Faustina herself did not know why she had regained her past memories.

Linsy had said she would come call her when dinner was ready.
Citrine would not be at dinner tonight.
He had said in the morning that he had an urgent matter and would be going out with an attendant from midday.

Checking the clock on the wall and seeing that she still had time, Faustina left her desk and hid the notebook under the bed.
When it came to hiding something she did not want others to find, under the bed was effective.

“Fwaaah…”

Perhaps because the bath had relaxed her, a wave of drowsiness suddenly washed over her.

“If I fall asleep, I won’t get dinner, but… I’m sleepy…”

She just wanted to sleep a little.
Surely Linsy would wake her.

Faustina lay down on the bed and, telling herself it would be just for a bit, fell asleep without even pulling up the covers.