When Rose first came to this castle by carriage.
When she wore a far shabbier, older dress, her hair disheveled and her face dark.
'Really? It's not because I'm ugly?'
Even when she asked with glistening eyes darting about.
Never once had the thought crossed my mind that Rose was ugly.
"I…, that is to say."
The moment Rose gripped her dress so tightly I feared it might crease.
"That's… the first time I've heard something like that."
Rose's chest swelled and subsided. A voice followed, noticeably less trembling than before.
"…Thank you, Your Excellency."
"I merely stated a fact. To receive thanks for it is quite a profitable trade."
I replied casually, and Rose stared at me for a moment before letting out a small puff of laughter.
"You really… haven't changed at all, Your Excellency."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Yes. You were always… someone who had no need to lie, Your Excellency."
The way she said it, Rose seemed to have accepted my words to some degree.
"Phew…."
But her face was still flushed. Along with it, the nape of her neck and the area around her collarbone had grown warm and red.
'As I suspected, this is unacceptable.'
No matter how I looked at it, that dress was far too shameless.
Someone as patient as myself might manage, but a man in the prime of his youth would be unable to tear his eyes away.
The reddened nape and chest area had a way of stimulating the imagination about what lay beneath.
'I absolutely can't let her take off the shawl.'
I resolved this to myself, then suddenly wondered whether such a measure even held any meaning.
The male lead of this world would find the gem-like radiance hidden beneath Rose, no matter how much dust and sand covered her.
In other words, someone discovering Rose's charm and true worth was an inevitability.
"……."
And yet, the personal desire to delay that moment warred fiercely against the greed to restore Rose's confidence.
In the end, the latter won.
She spun around looking at herself in the mirror, and—
"Hehe."
Seeing Rose laugh all by herself, I had no choice but to raise my hand for the latter.
As long as Rose wore a happy smile, I could see myself buying her dresses and jewels to fill her every need.
Rose was no different from a knight marching onto the battlefield called high society. Supporting her was the natural duty of her lord and contractor.
Yes. That was what it was.
"…You like it that much?"
"Ah, yes."
Rose covered her mouth as if embarrassed.
"It's my first time having a dress tailored just for me. The length and the measurements fit perfectly. It feels so wonderful to wear something made to measure."
"I see."
"Thank you, Your Excellency. I'll treasure it."
Rose, who had been bowing toward me through the mirror, paused.
"…Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Am I not allowed to look?"
"Ah, no. It's not that you can't."
Rose muttered, avoiding my gaze.
"It just seemed like you were smiling…. Not that that could be the case, of course."
Then she fanned her flushed face with her hand.
"Why is it so warm?"
Rose raised her hands behind her head as if hot, and—
"Ouch."
She let out a small yelp.
"What happened?"
"My hair…."
Rose turned around and checked the back of her head in the mirror. Her lush, cascading red hair had gotten tangled in the buttons on the back of her dress.
"Ah, this is…."
She tried pulling the hair free with her hands, but there was no sign of it loosening. She wrestled with her hair for a while, but it only tangled more tightly.
In the end, Rose, defeated by her own hair, was on the verge of tears.
"Your Excellency, could you…."
"Alright."
I approached Rose and gestured with my fingers for her to turn around.
"Thank you, Your Excellency."
The tangled section of hair was low on Rose's back, so I had to bend at the waist.
The faint warmth and sweet scent around Rose washed over me. I took a breath, then—
Swish.
I held the remaining hair out of the way with one hand. With the other, I began working the caught strands free from the buttons.
'This isn't easy….'
I moved carefully, afraid that yanking too hard would hurt Rose. The thought crossed my mind that I could just cut it, but I kept that to myself.
Then, when I suddenly lifted my gaze—
"……."
I found Rose's shoulders trembling faintly. I turned slightly to look at the mirror, and—
Squeeze.
Rose had her eyes squeezed shut, both hands clasped tightly together.
'…Hah.'
Here we go again.
She trembled like that every time I came close, so why did she even ask me for help?
Tap.
I brushed Rose's arm slightly as if by accident to see how she would react, and—
"Hik."
She even suppressed a stifled gasp.
'What in the—.'
When had I ever threatened her?
Whenever contact was unavoidable, I always asked for her understanding first, and I made sure never to touch her unnecessarily.
Yet seeing her react like that made me feel as if I were some lecher forcing himself on someone who wanted nothing to do with it. My mood plummeted rapidly.
Swish.
I let go and stepped back from Rose.
"Is it done?"
Seeing Rose turn around with a noticeably brightened face, the speed at which my mood dropped doubled.
"My wife,"
I forced down the fury boiling inside me and asked in return.
"If you dislike touching me so much, why do you make such requests?"
"…Pardon?"
"It's not as though this is some dire matter that requires you to endure something you hate."
I tossed the words out brusquely and whirled around.
"The maids will return shortly. Have them do it."
Then I strode away with long steps.
"Y-Your Excellency!"
Rose's trembling voice reached me from behind.
Right before I turned away, I had caught sight of Rose's wide, startled eyes. They lingered in my memory. Eyes filled with bewilderment and incomprehension.
Recalling that, my temper flared.
"In the first place,"
Unable to hold back, I turned around again.
"Weren't you the one who asked me first? So why are you trembling like that?"
"What?"
"Don't forget our contract. This much contact is perfectly normal between a married couple."
I was unaccountably angry, and the words poured out before I had time to think. Something I had been pressing down all this time had burst open.
"There will be many occasions in the future that require close proximity. Are you planning to cower in fear each and every time?"
"Your Excellency, what in the world—"
"If this is how you behave when it's just the two of us, you'll be weeping in front of others."
That's right. The reason I was angry right now—
Was because we had to act like a loving married couple in front of others, and it seemed like that wouldn't work. Because she wasn't faithfully carrying out her obligations under the contract.
That was why I was angry. There was no other reason.
"No matter how much you dislike it, remember that there are things you must do in the end. That is what the contract means."
I had never spoken this much in my entire life. But if I didn't let out what was boiling inside me, I felt I wouldn't be able to endure it.
"Your Excellency…."
I stared at Rose's eyes, etched with shock, and—
Whirl!
I spun around so hard my clothes billowed. Then I strode away from Rose with quick steps.
"Your Excellency! Wait!"
I ignored Rose's desperate voice and kept walking.
Anger, hurt, and other unfamiliar emotions were tangled together, making it difficult to control myself. The composure that hadn't broken even during an assassin's attack wavered precariously.
I wanted to be alone, truly.
Thud, thud.
I had nearly reached the door in an instant when—
"Wait—agh!"
A scream from Rose was followed by a thud. It seemed she had tripped over her dress while rushing after me.
'…Hah!'
I told myself not to turn around, not to look back.
"Ow…."
But her pitiful groaning reached my ears.
'Damn it.'
I was angry. More so at myself for being unable to just leave Rose like that.
In the end,
'Idiot.'
I reflexively turned back and cursed myself again and again as I walked back to Rose.
"Ugh…."
Rose was lying face down on the floor, groaning.
The dress was so voluminous that she didn't seem to have scraped her knees badly, but she looked like she would struggle to stand on her own.
"……."
Unconsciously, I started to reach for Rose to help her up, then stopped. I realized that grabbing her would mean touching her again.
"…I'd like to help,"
I said in a caustic tone, arms crossed.
"But if I hold you, you'll be terrified again, so I'll refrain."
"What?"
Rose slowly raised her head.
"So this isn't rudeness, it's consideration—"
I stopped mid-sentence.
Rose's eyes were glistening with tears—she must have hit her knees harder than I thought. Seeing that, my resolve weakened again.
"Haa."
Rather than cursing at myself, I blew a sigh into the air, then—
"Bear with it for a moment."
Grab.
I took hold of Rose's waist. Despite having been fed so diligently, her waist was still slender.
Pull.
I pulled Rose up, who had been staring blankly at my face. The dress was heavy—I had no idea how many layers of fabric had been wrapped into it.
"There. That should do."
The moment Rose stood upright, I quickly let go.
"Once the maids arrive, take off that cumbersome dress at once."
"B-but—"
"Have them check if your knees are alright."
I immediately cut off Rose's words and said only what I wanted to say. All while worrying about Rose's knees.
I wondered how many times this had already happened today, and—
Whirl.
I turned my back to Rose.
"Then I'll take my leave."
Just as I was about to take a step—
"Wait!"
Something warm touched my fingertips. The moment I realized it was Rose's hand, my feet stopped dead.
"Your Excellency, wait."
Rose reached out with her other hand as well, unwilling to miss this opening. Warm fingers intertwined one by one, wrapping around my hand like a rope.
"Please wait a moment."
"……."
I stared blankly at my hand caught in Rose's grasp.
It was a first. Rose had reached out to hold me herself.
The body heat that had suddenly closed the distance felt unfamiliar. The soft palm, the sensation tickling the back of my hand—all of it.
Normally, just a casual glance would make Rose gasp and pull her hand away, but—
"Please talk to me."
Right now, Rose only tightened her grip, as if determined never to let go of my hand.
That sight softened my heart for a moment, before—
"I'm terrified? What do you mean by that?"
Rose, asking as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, made my temper flare again.
"Are you seriously asking because you don't know?"
I turned my body fully toward Rose and asked again.