Datasets:

alpindale

/

light-novels

like 20

After gathering sufficient information during her recon laundry duty, Rishe returned to her room by way of the rope still hanging down into the courtyard. Once inside, she changed her clothes and left her chambers. She proceeded to her garden, escorted by her guards. She’d once again tilled the ground Theodore had flattened with her trusty hoe, and today she was finally going to plant her seeds.

Rishe pressed a finger into the moist earth up to her second joint, dropping two seeds into each hole she made. She then gently covered them with dirt and dampened the surface. She figured she should see sprouts within the next few days with the current weather.

Daydreaming about a lovely future lush with herbs, Rishe allowed her guards to escort her back to her chambers. She moved sedately, as a crown princess ought, but on the inside, she was twisting with mounting anxiety.

It’s so late already. I have to scrub off this mud in the bath and come up with a deal for Mr. Tully. I hear there’s a library in the imperial palace—perhaps I can learn something about the populace there. The gender ratio, age brackets, number of shops… And I can gather information about Prince Theodore while I’m at it. She piled more and more things onto her to-do list. Diana asked me to take a look at the new teaching materials she’s come up with. Also, I need to start planning the wedding and putting some strategies in place for dealing with guests from abroad. And then—

“Lady Rishe? Are you quite well?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Rishe’s eyes had gone glassy and faraway as they climbed the stairs to her chambers, but she was determined to conquer her obligations.

I can’t wait to have an empty schedule! I’m going to be lazy and sleep in until noon every day so I can live a long life. All this scheming is to ensure I finally live past twenty. She looked at the floor as she walked.

Before she knew it, they had reached her chambers. She glanced up to see guards flanking the door.

“We shall stand guard here for you, my lady. Please, be at ease.”

“Thank you. I’ll—” Rishe opened the door and stopped short.

An envelope crinkled under her feet. Someone must have slid it underneath the door.

“Is something the matter, my lady?”

“No.” She thought for a moment, then shook her head and stepped inside in a way that kept the curious item hidden from their view.

Alone at last, she picked it up. It bore the seal of the Galkhein imperial family, pressed into red wax. Inside she found a card. Written in a beautiful hand were the words: I’ll tell you my secrets. Meet me in the chapel at nine o’clock tonight. —Arnold Hein

In silence, Rishe put the letter back into its envelope. She then summoned Elsie to help her prepare.

***

Dressed in a black gown, Rishe arrived at the secluded chapel at nine o’clock, just as ordered. When she’d shown them the official seal on her letter, her guards agreed to take up positions outside the chapel walls, understanding that their mistress wished to be alone with her fiancé.

Inside, the only illumination was moonlight through the stained-glass windows. The man behind the letter was already waiting for her. Rishe stood at the entrance and called out a name that did not belong to her future husband.

“Good evening, Prince Theodore.”

A soft laugh reached her. “A good evening to you as well, my lovely sister-in-law.” The boy stood at the end of a long red carpet, just as she had predicted. “You don’t seem surprised to see me. I suppose you knew it was me all along?” Theodore said with a smile.

Rishe gave a shallow sigh. “Your forgery wasn’t very good. Prince Arnold didn’t sign that note.”

“I had assumed you wouldn’t have seen his signature before,” Theodore said. “How odd.”

Theodore was right—she hadn’t seen it in this life. But in previous lives, Arnold had sent declarations of war to each nation. She’d never forget that document after all the times she’d seen it. Arnold’s penmanship was good, but his signature was messy. The signature in the letter she had received had been comparatively too neat.

“Why did you come here if you knew I was the sender? Weren’t you the one who said you wouldn’t put yourself in a position to be alone with another man? Oh, that must be why you haven’t shut the doors.”

“That, and my guards are outside.” She’d taken additional measures too, but he didn’t need to know about those.

Theodore played with a lock of his hair, looking bored. “I was hoping we could be friends, Lady Rishe. I have invaluable information for you. My brother has very strange tastes.”

“Is that what you wanted to tell me?” Rishe said briskly. “Please keep it brief.”

“The other day, you claimed you knew how ruthless my brother could be.” His clear voice took on a sinister note. “But you’re wrong. If you did know, you wouldn’t be so calm.” He took a step toward Rishe. “No one in our family is close, you see. Her Majesty—our father’s current empress—isn’t our biological mother. She’s a second wife.”

“That’s not unusual among royals.”

“Is it not? Is it per the usual, then, for a man’s son to kill his previous wife?” A fierce light shone in his eyes—eyes the same color as Arnold’s. He came closer, a bewitching smile growing on his face. “My brother killed our mother. But, of course, you know that. You know just how ruthless he is. You were enticed here by the title of crown princess, but you’re better off leaving the likes of him. Do you understand? He’s the sort of man who would kill his own mother.”

Rishe was silent.

“The women who marry into our family lead unhappy lives. I hope now you understand better what I meant. This isn’t a mere threat—you may very well be murdered by your husband.”

“I was wondering what you had summoned me here to say.” Rishe stared at him for a few moments, then sighed again. “Is that it?”

Theodore took a stunned step back, panic briefly flickering over his face. “H-he murdered his own mother! How can you be so calm after hearing something so repulsive?!”

Because I’ve already seen his criminal record. I know exactly what he’ll do in the future.

After killing his father and ascending his throne, Arnold would mobilize his nation’s army. He would invade countless nations and murder their royal families as well. He would crush those who opposed him on the front lines, annihilating dissenters. Then, he would kill Rishe.

She’d made her choice with clear eyes. “Come what may, I will marry Prince Arnold.”

Theodore gaped at her.

Now that I think about it, there’s something I’ve only just learned by being here. She’d witnessed Arnold’s nature up close and seen on the outside he at least appeared decent. He was unfriendly and lukewarm, but he had a political mind that he put to work taking care of those who relied on him, as well as his citizens.

And still, she did not have her answer. Why in the world does he start a war? What would go wrong in the next few years that would cause so drastic a change? Or was he just adept at hiding his monstrous nature, which would break free from its cage in five years?

Wait… What if his hand will be forced? What if he’s a pawn in someone else’s game? Rishe grinned. I truly am a fool.

Theodore shrank back from her smile. “Haven’t you noticed how Arnold has no middle name? That’s because my mother and father didn’t bless him at his birth! They didn’t want him—he’s cursed.”

“What use is a middle name, truly? Sure, I have Irmgard, but mine is hardly worth commenting on, Prince Theodore Auguste Hein.”

“What are you—”

“Are you quite finished?” Rishe looked up at him, unblinking. “If so, I’ll be on my way.” Rishe turned back on the threshold. “Instead…”

“Wait!” Theodore cried.

“You brothers have a nice chat,” she finished.

“Oh.” Theodore’s voice died in his throat.

At the door stood Arnold, cold radiating off him in waves.

“Brother.” Theodore gulped. “Why are you here of all places? Wait, did you come here for her?” He rounded on Rishe, taking a stumbling step backward. His expression slipped from annoyance to dismay as he looked up at his brother. “You don’t understand; I wasn’t being serious! It was just a joke. She’s going to be my sister, so I just wanted to scare her a little!”

“Theodore.”

The boy flinched.

“Did I not order you to stay away from Rishe?”

Theodore quailed under Arnold’s gaze, the fathomless cold. His face was utterly blank, but somehow it held so much malice that it was as if a sword were pointed at Theodore’s throat.

Theodore hung his head low, trembling as he forced out the words, “I’m sorry, Brother.”

Arnold looked away with indifference. “Rishe, let’s go.”

“Wait, Your Highness. I think you should speak with your brother a bit longer.”

“There’s no point.”

“But—”

She still didn’t know Theodore’s endgame. What had been the point of this? Arnold’s scolding had turned him into a trembling little boy. Prince Theodore was trying to make me afraid of his brother. But why?

“Rishe.”

“Coming.” Clearly Arnold had no desire to remain, and Rishe turned to follow him, resigned to her ignorance.

Then she heard Theodore whisper, “It’s just as I predicted, Sister.”

A chill ran down her spine. She looked back over her shoulder. Theodore wasn’t trembling.

He’s laughing?

The giggles racked his body as he fought to hold them back, face lit with a bewitching darkness. His beauty made Rishe’s breath catch even as Theodore said in a meek voice, “I’m so sorry, Brother.” When Arnold looked back, Theodore’s expression had returned to one of contrition. “I will go, though I doubt you will forgive me. And, Sister—I’m sorry for frightening you. I promise in the future I will treat you with all the proper respect due to my brother’s wife.”

Theodore bowed deeply to Rishe and smiled at his brother. “Good night, Brother. I’m so glad to speak to you after such a long time.”

Theodore brushed by Arnold on his way out the door, leaving them with nothing but the trembling echoes of that unsettling smile.

The two were alone in the chapel now. Arnold broke the silence first. “I believe I told you the same thing, Rishe.”

That’s right, I wasn’t supposed to talk to Theodore either.

“He used your name to summon me—I couldn’t just ignore it. And I expected that you’d find time in your busy schedule to accompany me.”

“As if I would ignore the reply to a letter I never even sent.”

It made sense. After receiving Theodore’s forged letter, Rishe had summoned Elsie and written a reply. Thank you for the invitation, Your Highness. I shall conduct myself to the chapel at 9:30 tonight, as you have specified.

She’d given herself a half hour alone with Theodore, but Arnold had arrived fifteen minutes early.

I’m thankful he did. I just wish he hadn’t had to hear his brother slander him.

“Something wrong?”

Rishe began to shake her head but stopped. Maybe she could just ask. “Why did he say those things about you? That you’re ruthless.”

Arnold glanced away briefly. “Probably because it’s true. I’ve killed countless people on the battlefield. I am not…delicate in my manner. My brutality is known far and wide.”

I know that. That’s not what I meant. “I could learn that anywhere,” she said.

“Then what is it you want to know?”

She wasn’t sure how to word this. “Your heart.” This was something only Arnold could tell her.

“My…heart?”

“I have heard of your many great feats during the previous war. And I’ve seen what you were like in battle when those bandits attacked our carriage. But you didn’t kill them.”

Rishe’s theory at the time had been that it was because they’d been attacked by foreign countrymen. But she doubted that the diabolical Emperor Arnold Hein of her memory would care about that. But after weeks of observation, she wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

“I was wondering what you were talking about.” A shadow fell over his blue eyes. “It appears I’ve gone too easy on you.”

He reached toward her, and his black-gloved hand slowly wrapped around her neck. “If you want to survive in this palace, you’ll disabuse yourself of this naivete.” His fingers dug into her throat. It was only a threat of pressure, but it would take only a bit more to strangle her.

And yet, Rishe was unafraid. “I believe in my own observations and conclusions.”

“What are you saying? You’ve never seen me on the battlefield.”

“Be that as it may,” Rishe said, “I believe that the person who cares about my desires is the real you.”

“What a foolish thing to say,” he said in a low, husky voice. “I brought you here to use you.”

“All the more so, then, if that’s the case.” Rishe gently placed her hand on top of his. She didn’t try to pull it away—instead she pressed down, exerting pressure on her own throat. “You aren’t ruthless at all, husband.”

Arnold grimaced, breathing out a huff of annoyance. She expected him to push her away, but they just stood there, eyes locked. The moment stretched on, neither of them moving.

It was Arnold who broke the silence. “Where does this confidence come from? This determination?”

Rishe frowned, puzzled. “What do you mean?”

“Sometimes you get this look in your eye. Like you’re meeting me in the field.”

It was as if he were looking through her to the past. Rishe could say nothing.