Chapter 38
Some Man Said to Deliver This to the Princess
Seeing her eyes swollen red from crying, Kardin sighed unconsciously, filled with sympathy.
Yet, at the same time, he felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
When had Anette ever cried so freely?
It wasn’t so bad for her to have a good cry, especially if it was beside him.
With that thought, Kardin handed something to Anette.
He had just noticed that he’d forgotten to give her back the handkerchief he had tucked into his coat.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a letter.”
Kardin said in a teasing, almost prim tone.
“A man asked me to deliver it to the princess.”
“A man?”
Startled, Anette blinked in confusion. Kardin gave a disapproving nod.
“Yes. While you were speaking with Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, he asked me to make sure it was delivered to you.”
“Wh-who…?”
Suddenly, the soft sofa in the carriage felt uncomfortably stiff.
Even though she had done nothing wrong, Anette looked nervously at Kardin, as if she had committed some great offense.
She remembered how he had said before that he didn’t want to see her close to other men.
Yet, she could not guess who it could be.
‘Could it be from Hayworth…?’
The diplomatic mission had not returned yet, and no news had arrived, so it was about time to wonder whether the alliance was going smoothly.
But she figured the king, being overly cautious, would not act first for fear of things going wrong.
Moreover, even if he had, he wouldn’t personally deliver a letter to her.
‘…It’s not like the royal knights would have brought it either.’
There was no man in the empire who would hand her a letter.
Anette swallowed hard and took the letter from Kardin.
The pale pink envelope, faintly scented like roses, had her name written neatly on it.
And below that…
“Audrey Merin?”
Murmuring the name in disbelief, Anette saw Kardin, pretending to pout, burst into laughter.
Only then did Anette realize she had been teased and gave him a sharp glare.
“Didn’t you say it was from a man?”
“It was from a man.”
“Lying again…”
“I swear it’s true.”
Kardin shrugged.
“It was the daughter of Marquis Merin, the commander of the royal knights, who asked me. ‘Upon hearing that my daughter is leaving today, I felt so regretful and wanted you to deliver this to the princess, Your Highness.’”
After hearing the whole explanation, Anette could not hide her frustration. For a moment, she even broke into a nervous sweat—despite having done nothing wrong!
Seeing her angry expression, Kardin chuckled quietly.
“Sorry. But I can’t just watch a man with impure intentions approach the princess.”
He wouldn’t just hand over the letter—he wouldn’t even let her meet his gaze.
“…Excuse me?”
“Nothing.”
It didn’t feel like nothing.
It sounded like something huge, but Kardin’s brazen denial left her speechless.
When Anette stared intently at him, he smiled slyly.
“Princess, you should read the letter.”
“Oh.”
At last, Anette realized the object in her hands and, excited, began to open the envelope.
Kardin, equally eager, watched her with expectant eyes.
‘She might cry again.’
Not that he wished for it, but…
Thinking back, it was satisfying that she had buried her face in his shoulder or naturally embraced him to hide her tears from Mikhail.
Of course, Mikhail wasn’t here now, so she wouldn’t cling to him first—but he could at least help wipe her tears or pat her shoulder.
Having just snatched the handkerchief and indulged himself, his anticipation only grew.
But he would never reveal this to Anette.
If she knew even a fraction of his thoughts, she would never show tears in front of him.
Of course, she might call him a pervert for it.
Meanwhile, contrary to Kardin’s expectations, Anette quietly read the letter, her face gradually brightening instead of tearing up.
She spoke, clearly delighted.
“The Marquis’ daughter asked if she could write to me. She said she wants to recommend her favorite book.”
Her eyes sparkled as she asked, “May we exchange letters?”
Kardin was momentarily stunned by how beautiful she looked, then quickly answered.
“Of course. Yes, naturally. If the princess wishes.”
But he soon let out a sigh, looking somewhat sulky.
“Haah… I thought I’d be able to monopolize the princess in the Grand Duchy.”
“Ahem.”
“If the Marquis’ daughter exchanges letters with the princess, our nephew or the Empress herself surely won’t remain idle. She’s so popular.”
Anette pretended not to care, glancing away shyly—both embarrassed and pleased by his words.
Just as Kardin was about to tease her further, a knock sounded at the door.
“Your Highness, we’ve confirmed a clearing and a lake a short distance away,” said Morton, the vice-commander guarding the carriage.
“Princess, we’ll camp here for tonight. Is that alright?”
Anette, holding Kardin’s hand as she stepped down from the carriage, nodded.
With this luxurious carriage and knights nearby, they were bound to attract attention from the local villagers, and people would surely comment.
Still, Anette was accustomed to camping and felt no discomfort.
With her cheerful agreement, Kardin began giving orders to his subordinates.
Meanwhile, Anette quietly looked up at the sky.
When they left the palace, the sun had been high, but now it was dipping below the horizon, painting the sky red with sunset.
Though leaving the palace had been difficult, the journey northward had been smooth.
She realized they had been out of the capital for quite some time.
Then she remembered that she had shown her crying face to the entire Grand Duchy contingent and felt a flush of embarrassment.
‘I thought I had made a dignified first impression… but it’s ruined!’
In reality, her “dignified” look had been far from it, but she had no idea, looking thoroughly flustered.
Beyond the knights gathering firewood and setting up a makeshift camp, a sparkling lake appeared in her view.
She thought to freshen up—wash her face, tidy her hair.
‘Even if I can’t fix my puffy eyes immediately, cold water should help calm them.’
While wiping away tears, blowing her nose, and cleaning the handkerchief, she was interrupted by a sudden realization.
“Oh?”
“Princess, what are you looking for?”
Anette frantically searched, and Kardin tilted his head, curious.
“That princess’ voice…”
“…?”
“Ah, never mind. But didn’t you see my handkerchief?”
She had seemed to be holding it just moments ago.
Kardin flinched at her question, but turned his head quickly enough that she didn’t notice.
“Samuel!”
Kardin called his aide without showing any sign of worry.
Samuel, the clerk watching the knights from a distance, ran over at the call.
“Your Highness, is there something you need?”
With an innocent expression, he asked, and Kardin nodded.
“Keep our princess company for a bit.”
“Huh?”
Samuel was surprised, and so was Anette, who had been about to search the carriage for her handkerchief.
“Your Highness?”
“Princess, are you thirsty? I’ll fetch some water from the lake.”
“No, Your Highness. Why are you asking me to do such a thing…”
“Samuel, stay here.”
With that, Kardin moved swiftly toward the lake, leaving Anette and Samuel alone in the carriage.
An awkward silence fell.
‘He said not to be too close to other men…’
Glancing at Samuel, who looked like a man and was named Samuel, she suddenly wondered…
“A woman?”
“Huh?”
Samuel, confused by Kardin’s command, tilted his head.
“Never mind.”
Anette couldn’t help laughing bitterly at how foolish she felt, hearing a male voice when it turned out Samuel was a woman.
Unconsciously, she followed Kardin’s retreating figure with her eyes.
Sensing her gaze, Kardin turned at the lake and waved.
Startled, Anette quickly looked away, then hurriedly resumed the task she had been doing.
“Your Highness, what are you looking for?”
Samuel asked, peering into the carriage.
Though he couldn’t exactly act as her companion like Kardin commanded, his eyes shone with determination to help.
Anette scratched her cheek awkwardly.
“My handkerchief. I had it just a moment ago, but now it’s suddenly gone…”
Hearing this, Samuel put a hand to his forehead.
“My, what an obsessive collector…”
He realized Kardin had dashed off to avoid the “interrogation.”
