Chapter 18 - A Gift Of Macarons (1/2)
Chapter 18 – A Gift Of Macarons
***
Xavier was right—the weather was lovely. If it were Korea, the air on a spring day like this would have been full of dust. Fortunately, there was no such thing here.
As I strolled around the back garden with Xavier, I threw a glance at his handsome face. We somehow held a conversation inside the palace, but neither of us exchanged a word since we stepped outside. I wrung out my brain for a topic of conversation, and opened my mouth to make some small talk about his favorite food. However, Xavier spoke a moment quicker than me.
“Lady Maristella.”
“Oh—yes!” As soon as I heard his voice, I completely forgot what I was just about to say and eagerly nodded my head.
Xavier opened and closed his mouth a few times before speaking. “What do you like, My Lady?”
“Me…?”
His question was more general than what I was about to ask—his favorite food—and I was somewhat taken aback, but I managed to answer normally.
“As I mentioned earlier, I like red roses. I also like macarons.”
“Do you like sweet food?”
“Fairly, yes,” I replied. “Do you also like sweet food, Your Highness?”
“I don’t particularly like or dislike them,” he said noncommittally.
“Oh, I see…”
“B-But I plan to try some later. Sweet things can cheer people up.”
“Cheer people up? Did something happen?”
“No, but…being in a good mood never hurts,” Xavier said.
I nodded. “That’s true. I also like to eat sweets whenever I want to feel better, even if nothing bad has happened to me.”
I smiled shyly and turned towards Xavier. As he stared back at me, I saw that his eyes were wavering for some reason. My smile quickly dropped from my lips.
Ah, did I sound too gluttonous?
“Th-That doesn’t mean I eat it every day. I only eat them every three days,” I quickly added.
Wait… isn’t that also pretty frequent? I seriously began to reconsider my words.
Just then, Xavier spoke in a gentle voice. “Could I offer you some macarons to take back to the Bellafleur Mansion?”
“Pardon me?”
“Since you said that you liked the macarons… the Thurman Palace head chef makes excellent pastries.”
“Wow, really?” Just thinking about being able to eat those wonderful macarons from earlier made my mouth open wide.
Xavier, who was still staring at me, smiled lightly. Then, he blinked as if he just remembered something. “Right, what is your actual relationship with that lady back then?”
“That lady back then?” I inquired.
“The one who was rude to you during the last party. Back then, it felt like you weren’t able to answer properly because there were many prying eyes… including those of that lady.”
“Ah.” Only then did I realize that he was talking about Dorothea. I nodded. “It’s…a little complicated. Well, I suppose we are friends in appearance.”
“I do not intend to overstep into your personal relations, My Lady, but she didn’t seem like a very good person,” Xavier said gravely.
“Do you think so, too?”
How people see others are all similar in the end. But why then, did he end up falling in love with someone like Dorothea in the original novel?!
I guess none of that really matters when you’re blinded by love…
“I am also aware of that,” I said.
“Yet you still choose to stay with her?” Xavier asked.
“There are some loose ends that I must still tie up, and some things that I must pay her back for. But I’m trying my best not to get too involved with her.” An awkward smile twitched on my lips. “Do I seem foolish?”
“Some might think that, yes.” Xavier didn’t deny it, but it didn’t seem like he completely didn’t understand me, either. He seemed lost in thought for a moment before adding, “It’s not that I don’t understand you, My Lady. Cleanly building and breaking off relationships is much easier said than done. There’s a lot to worry about.”
“You must have experienced something similar,” I noted.
“A little different from what you’re going through, but certainly so.”
“It’s quite surprising to know that you go through similar things, Your Highness.”