Chapter 95
The more she looked at his short hair, the more the past came to mind. Back then, she had been the one to cut it, but why had he cut it now?
She had been so shocked that she hadn’t even thought to wonder why he’d cut his hair. The imperial family of Cantabria had traditionally maintained long hair for generations. If Calix alone had short hair, wouldn’t that spark unnecessary rumors among the nobles?
She looked up at him as he sat her on his thigh, using his wind ability to remove the cherry pits. Lately, he had been taking care of her to an excessive degree.
“Here. Say ‘ah’.”
When she opened her mouth as instructed, the sweet cherry popped in. As she chewed, she saw another cherry split cleanly in half and the pit neatly extracted right in front of her.
Was it really okay to use an Esper’s abilities for something like this?
He couldn’t even receive guiding… Shouldn’t he conserve his energy a little more…?
The thought made her anxious, and without realizing it, her tail twitched in displeasure. At that, his long fingers gently pressed between her brows.
“What, is something bothering you?”
Why did he keep asking questions like that, as if he wanted to understand what a mere fox was thinking? And more importantly, how did he even know she was upset?
She was curious but had no way to ask, so she obediently continued eating the cherry.
“Your Highness.”
At that moment, Daisy burst into the drawing room, looking flustered as she spoke.
“Young Duke Grayson and Young Lord Felitier have requested an audience.”
“Hm, is that so?”
“They came without any prior notice. Should I send them away as is?”
Even among nobles, visiting without notice was a serious breach of etiquette. To do so to royalty went beyond discourtesy. It was outright rude.
But Lea grew nervous. What if those two had acted rashly because of her?
She worried that trouble would land on someone else because of her, so she tried to get down from Calix’s thigh and go down to meet them.
Since she wasn’t wearing her collar right now, maybe if she ran quickly, she could escape.
But though she had risen, her body wouldn’t move. It felt as though invisible ropes were tightly binding her.
“Shh, Luna. No need to be startled. They’re very gentlemanly types, you see.”
Calix calmly soothed Luna and gave Daisy an order.
“Lead them here.”
“…Yes, understood.”
Daisy quickly left the drawing room, and Calix began to hum a tune. He gently stroked Luna’s head as he did.
Footsteps approached. Lea wanted to lift her head to see the two men enter, but she couldn’t. Calix had positioned her so that her head rested on his shoulder and held her tightly in his arms.
“We greet His Highness the Imperial Crown Prince, the small sun of the Cantabria Empire.”
“We greet His Highness, the small sun.”
Zion and Derek bowed deeply in respectful greeting.
“For you to visit me without notice, it must be quite urgent. So then, what business brings you here?”
With those words, Calix subtly pointed out their rudeness. Zion and Derek couldn’t respond immediately because they saw the fox in his arms.
“…We came to consult with Your Highness on a matter,” Zion finally said.
He had only just heard the story from Derek and had been furious. If Derek had told him earlier, things might have gone better.
But the more he listened to Derek’s story, the more concerned he became. What if the Crown Prince had already realized Lea’s true identity?
That worry had brought them here, but in the end, there had been no need to worry at all. Zion saw the faint amusement in the Crown Prince’s narrowed red eyes and became certain.
He already knew.
“What’s the matter that’s made you drag things out like this? Come now, have a seat and speak freely, without holding back.”
“…Yes, understood.”
Zion and Derek sat on the sofa opposite him. Calix remained relaxed and ordered Daisy to bring tea.
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