#51.
It had been difficult, but it was worth enduring.
Rose would now begin to seriously ponder over those numbers. And she would come to realize that her initial prediction had been wrong from the start.
"Can I take this off now?"
"Ah, just a moment. I'll undo it for you."
Rose removed her glasses and approached. When she pressed a few buttons,
Click.
The device binding his wrists released. His newly freed wrists twitched reflexively.
To have knowingly allowed whatever was going to happen.
It was something he would never have done in the past, something that could never have occurred had he not completely trusted Rose.
"……."
He didn't stand up right away. He stayed still with his eyes closed.
Because he felt he would stagger if he stood now. He couldn't show such an unsightly appearance.
"Your Excellency, are you feeling unwell?"
Rose asked with concern. When he merely waved his hand as if to say he was fine,
"Shall I bring you some honey water?"
Rose's characteristic sweet scent wafted over.
"They say honey water is good for hangovers."
"It's not that bad."
Even without opening his eyes, he could tell Rose had come very close.
"Your Excellency, next time—"
The moment Rose opened her mouth.
Clunk.
The laboratory door opened.
Thud.
At the same time, Rose suddenly grabbed him by the collar.
'Hmm?'
For a moment, he wondered if it was Helena in front of him.
But unlike that time when she had gripped him forcefully, Rose's hold was barely firm.
Suddenly,
Tap.
Something soft and gentle touched his cheek.
"?"
When he opened his eyes, he saw Rose's face right in front of his. In a pose that anyone would immediately mistake for a kiss.
Their lips were separated by no more than the width of a fingernail.
He could see every detail—the reddish tint of Rose's eyelashes, the faint freckles on the bridge of her nose, even the tiny blood vessels in her cheeks.
"……."
Unlike him, who had opened his eyes reflexively, Rose had hers squeezed shut.
She was trembling, yet trying resolutely to maintain that distance, making every effort not to touch him.
'Too close.'
If he turned his head even slightly to the side, their lips would touch.
The tempting option of pretending it was an accident and just moving flashed through his mind.
'Wouldn't it be better to actually do it rather than just pretend?'
The moment that thought crossed his mind, before he could stop himself, his jaw moved.
Brush.
Their lips lightly grazed each other.
"Gasp…!"
As Rose jerked back in shock,
"Oh my goodness!"
The maid screamed.
Crash!
A loud noise followed, as if she had dropped whatever she was carrying.
"…Sonya?"
Rose released his collar and stepped back. She quickly suppressed the panic on her face,
"I told you not to come in when I'm in the laboratory."
She scolded the maid in a frigid voice. It was quite the display of a master's authority.
"I'm sorry……."
"Leave. Put those things down there."
"Yes, ma'am……."
Clatter.
The maid, presumably Sonya, closed the door and disappeared.
"……."
Rose was staring at the door with an unprecedentedly cold expression. It was oddly fascinating to realize she could make that kind of face at her own maid.
Then he realized he was unconsciously touching his own lips.
Swift.
He quickly pulled his hand away and composed his expression.
"Madam."
"Ah."
The moment Rose turned to look at him, her cheeks began to flush red.
"Y-Your Excellency. What was that just now…?"
"What do you mean?"
"No, well. Surely…?"
Rose frantically waved both hands. Then she muttered with a face on the verge of tears.
"I definitely didn't move, but Your Excellency……."
"You must be mistaken."
Did she really have to be that repulsed?
Feeling put off, he tossed out the words without bothering to explain.
"Or perhaps it was an accident."
"Excuse me?"
Rose touched her lips with a devastated expression. Her fingers were as cautious as if she had been burned.
"I should be the one asking."
He gestured at his rumpled shirt front.
"I didn't know you would be so bold as to toy with me."
"T-Toy with you?!"
Rose let out a yelp and jumped on the spot.
"—Th-That does seem to be the case……. I'm sorry."
She finally admitted it meekly. When she covered her face with both hands, only her tearful eyes were visible.
"I thought if I laid down a smokescreen like this, no one would suspect what Your Excellency and I were doing here. You must have been offended……."
He was not offended.
Rose's lips, which had brushed against his for just a moment, were far too sweet. So sweet that he wondered what they would taste like fully.
Had it not been for the dizziness, he would have reached out and grabbed the back of Rose's head.
But instead of saying that, he focused on Rose's words for now.
"Smokescreen?"
"Yes. Joel has already raised suspicions about me, hasn't he? And yet the two of us, um……."
As she paused to search for the right words, Rose's cheeks grew even redder.
"I thought it would be best to show us doing… you know… that kind of thing."
That kind of judgment in such a brief moment? Was she actually a genius of strategy?
When he stared in amazement, Rose answered haltingly.
"I had a feeling Sonya might come, so I left the door unlocked."
In other words, she had anticipated this outcome from the moment she called him to the laboratory. The situation just now had been deliberately staged.
"It's better to hide what we're doing in the laboratory, isn't it? If we do this, they'll think the two of us are just… you know… having a love affair."
It was sound logic. Rose's judgment was a highly rational and strategic choice.
And yet.
'What is this feeling?'
Something squirmed inside his chest.
"I'm sorry. Why would I do something like that to Your Excellency? It was all for a reason."
So she was saying that unless there was a reason like that, she would never lay a hand on him?
"I really tried not to touch you, but Your Excellency moved……."
Was it that displeasing? If she hated touching him that much, she shouldn't have approached in the first place. Wait, wasn't she the one who grabbed his collar and pressed close?
He wanted to grab onto Rose's words and drag them out, but stopped himself, knowing he would only look pathetic. He hadn't known he could be this petty.
"I'm sorry……."
When he only stared at her, Rose became even more at a loss.
"You must have been very offended. I won't do this kind of thing again……."
"You may."
"What?"
"…Never mind. Forget what I just said."
Damn it, why was he getting flustered too?
He rubbed his face with dry hands, disgusted with himself. Unaware that Rose, watching him, had grown even more downcast.
"Anyway, I understand your intentions. Let us put this matter behind us."
"Th-Thank you."
Rose let out an audible sigh of relief. Seeing that only made him feel more frustrated.
'How does she expect to survive being so naive?'
Even knowing full well that he was the one who moved, she immediately withered when he pressed her slightly.
Or, since she had grabbed his buttocks last time, couldn't he demand they call it even?
Using something as leverage to demand a favor was, in fact, something his former wives had done often.
'Back then, I found it so detestable.'
Seeing Rose so excessively honest and innocent made him wish she would at least have the cunning to demand something.
He worried whether she could hold her own against the jaded women of high society.
"……."
Swallowing a sigh, he noticed Rose was watching him cautiously.
"…Anyway, what are the results?"
He stood from the chair and approached Rose.
"Ah, yes. First, let me tell you about the toxic herb reactions."
Rose pointed to a section of the instrument panel and explained.
"I tested about three types, and trace amounts were detected. At this quantity, it's more likely an immune response than poisoning."
"Hm."
"What's stranger is this internal mana graph, though……."
Rose's delicate brow furrowed.
"It's strange. This kind of graph shouldn't appear when foreign mana is injected. I'll need to do more research before I can say anything definitive."
"Is that so. Understood."
"And……."
Rose hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke with a determined voice.
"I was only able to test three types of herbs today, so… I was hoping you could come back every day for a while."
"Every day?"
He had expected this request, but hearing it aloud made him truly reluctant.
"Must I go through this hangover again?"
"Until I find the cause, probably."
Rose tilted her head and looked up at him with bright, eager eyes.
"Is it too much for you……?"
…It was impossible to refuse in front of those eyes.
"…Very well."
In the end, he could only nod while suppressing a sigh that threatened to burst forth.
"Then I shall return tomorrow at this time."
"Yes, Your Excellency!"
Rose answered energetically and clenched her fists.
"I'll work hard! I'll finish the analysis as quickly as possible!"
"Good. I should be going now."
He took a step back,
Pop, pop.
He undid a few buttons on his shirt front. Then grabbed the collar and twisted it into a crumpled mess.
"What are you doing?"
He answered nonchalantly to Rose, whose eyes had gone wide with surprise.
"What does it look like? I'm joining in on your act."
"……."
"After doing 'that kind of thing' with you, my attire can't be perfectly neat, can it?"
"……Ah."
Rose's face turned as red as a tomato about to burst.
Seeing that, he felt as though he had gotten one over on Rose, and his mood suddenly improved. He wondered if he had always been this childish, but it didn't matter.
"Ah, and this."
While disheveling his clothes, he found and pulled out a bundle of invitation letters he had kept inside his coat.
"What is this? Are they letters?"
"Earnest invitations requesting that our illustrious couple attend their humble tea parties."
He said, handing the bundle to Rose.
"Bill has already confirmed there's no poison or explosives."
Rose's hand, which had readily reached for the invitations, suddenly stopped.
"…Has that happened a lot?"
"Well, occasionally. Anyway, they've been inspected, so you can open them without worry."
Swish, swish.
Since he was at it, he tousled his hair wildly. To anyone else, he would look as though he had just engaged in a very passionate tryst.
"Y-You don't need to go that far……."
Unable to watch any longer, Rose mumbled,
"I'm only doing it because it's necessary."
He replied with feigned nonchalance.
It was true. There had been no personal emotion behind his actions just now.
"…Right."
"Anyway, choose one of the places that sent invitations, and we shall attend together."
"Yes……! I'll pick one as quickly as possible and let you know!"
Rose, burning with enthusiasm, gripped the bundle of invitations tightly.
'I should call that person.'
He thought as he watched Rose examine the list of invitations. It would surely be of great help to Rose.