Spring Flowers (3)

– So, will you… stay by my side in the future too?

After offering my sincerest apologies to the two of them, I spent time with them for the first time in a very long while.

A crying party that went on for quite some time.

Thanks to that, we were all completely exhausted, sprawled out side-by-side on the sofa.

Quiet ripples gently.

The peaceful silence that drips down, melts away the languor.

“Haaam… sleepy…”

Ariel even lets out a yawn.

Her crimson eyes blink, repeatedly opening and closing.

The accumulated fatigue faintly colors her.

I offered my shoulder to the girl, swaying as if drunk.

“Just close your eyes for a bit.”

“Uuung…?”

“I’ll be here by your side until the moment you close your eyes, and then open them again.”

“Really…?”

“Of course.”

“Don’t run away… okay…?”

Even in the moment of drifting into sleep, she’s worried about me disappearing.

Such a cute sight made me chuckle.

My hand, moving of its own accord, strokes her flowing crimson hair.

“I told you. I’d stay by your side.”

Of course, it was only natural to have doubts at this flimsy promise.

Because of the past wrongs I’ve committed.

That was something I had to work on.

So that you won’t tremble in anxiety anymore.

So that you won’t fear that everything will vanish like a dream when you wake up in bed tomorrow.

“Rest easy.”

I stretched my arms out to either side.

And then, I placed each girl’s head on my shoulder.

They seemed to hesitate for a moment, but soon relaxed their necks, leaning on me.

A warm weight pressed down.

A gentle serenity knocked softly on the door of my heart.

I willingly answered their call, carefully taking hold of the warm hands that relied on me.

“”……””

For a while, a peaceful air continued.

We were all feeling our consciousness grow dimmer, slowly thinning with heavy eyelids.

Just as we were sinking in, one by one.

-Knock knock…

Someone knocked on the door.

I thought it might be Ariel’s maid, so I quietly tried to wave them away, but the person standing beyond the door was someone far from my expectations.

-Young Master, may I intrude for a moment?

A weighty, seasoned voice.

I recognized the owner of the voice at once, and blankly murmured his name.

“Grandpa…?”

It was none other than Gilbert.

I tilted my head, but gave him a signal that he could enter.

-Click, creeak…

As soon as permission was given, Grandpa turned the doorknob right away.

Behind the somewhat hurried sound of the hinges, a white-haired old man came into view.

Our eyes met.

“Young Master.”

Gilbert immediately approached the sofa where we were sitting.

His movements seemed restless.

Had something happened?

A feeling of unease instinctively flashed through me, and I furrowed my brow.

The two beside me, who had been breathing languidly, had also straightened up and were now gazing at Gilbert.

“You need to go out right now, Young Master.”

“Huh…?”

A word, dropping out of nowhere.

I let out a dazed hum, a question mark hovering above my head.

“What’s going on all of a sudden?”

“Well, it’s…”

Gilbert was sweating, a rare sight indeed.

The old man gathered his breath for a moment, then finally opened his mouth.

“…It seems that Her Highness, the First Princess, is currently at the front gate of the mansion.”

The words that tumbled from his lips, heavy with weight, were nothing short of shocking.

*

A month had already passed since the academy went on early break.

During that time, which could be considered both short and long, Lucy lived through days as black as night.

-Let go of me…! Just let me… Let me die!!

-Please…! Please!!

Perhaps it was because she had so vividly witnessed the tragedy of the person she had relied on so heavily.

Lucy was utterly shell-shocked.

Sitting still, she was plagued by the gruesome scenes that kept flashing back.

Every night, when she closed her eyes, the image of the figure hanging limply, dangling from a crude knot, danced before her.

Tears flowed ceaselessly.

Every meal she ate came right back up.

She was so afraid of the horrific nightmares that she couldn’t even sleep.

The girl who had lost her light grew noticeably gaunt, and with each passing day, she turned more and more into a wretched shell of herself.

‘Raiden… Raiden…’

All she could do was bury herself under the covers and repeat the name she longed for.

She was utterly listless.

It felt as though the world she had once seen with her blue eyes had been completely consumed by black.

-R-Raiden… I’ll get you free soon, p-please… Just hold still…!!

Lucy bit her nails.

The sensation of that day, when she was still trying to untie the knot, remained vivid at her fingertips.

And so, Lucy bit her nails.

Because the horrifying memory that twisted her insides simply wouldn’t fade away.

The girl locked herself in a dark room.

Just like the boy had, she roughly shoved herself into a death-like stillness.

Stillness makes you reflect on life.

Whether it’s a happy memory or an unhappy one, it doesn’t matter.

-Everything…just go away…

-Disappear from my sight, please…it’s my last request…

The memories the girl reflected on were undoubtedly, unequivocally, unhappy.

Tragedy covered the stage of life with a dark curtain.

Lucy remained there, alone.

The curtain fell, and only darkness remained, on a stage that seemed to no longer have any meaning.

‘Raiden…’

Every day, sorrow splashed and surged.

The girl lived like that for a month.

But eventually, the girl too grew tired.

She had reached the limit of her mental strength.

What forcibly held onto her as she crumbled under the weight of resignation, was nothing more than a flimsy wish.

‘It’s okay if Raiden pushes me away…so, just one more time…’

Just one more time was all she needed.

Even if she shattered as a paltry flickering ember, it was fine.

She wanted to see the boy.

She wanted to feel his longed-for face, his longed-for scent, his longed-for warmth again.

Lucy left the despairing room.

She moved with faltering steps, to find her light.

“Please wait here for a moment, Your Highness. I will bring Young Master Lichtt right away.”

“……Yes.”

And so, the girl was here now.

The Lichtt Duke’s mansion.

Lucy, having stepped into the lavishly decorated reception room, was lost in a daze.

Her mind was completely gone, due to not having slept properly for days.

It was pitch black.

The light of the sky went completely dark, as if I couldn’t see an inch ahead.

Lucy continued to wait, with the heart of a candle slowly flickering out with each gust of wind.

‘Scary… and, lonely…’

The girl chewed on that monologue inside.

It was only one person who had drifted away from her, but why did it feel as if the entire world had become opaque?

A terrible nausea blossomed.

While she was groaning with her hand on her brow,

the closed door of the drawing-room burst open, and several sets of footsteps rushed in.

“Your Highness…!!”

Though it was clearly the sound of several people, Lucy could distinguish it precisely.

The presence of the boy she had longed for.

“Ryden…?”

The girl lifted her head and looked forward.

Her wavering gaze wandered here and there for a moment, before black hair, like the night sky, caught her eye.

“I was a bit late because it was so sudden…”

“Ryden!!”

Before the boy could finish his words, Lucy shot up from her place.

Her vision already grew faintly blurred.

She had trouble holding herself up because she was weak, but the girl moved her legs.

She staggered this way and that, like a drunk.

Performing a disheveled gesture, she finally reached out her arm towards Ryden, who had drawn close.

“Ryden…!”

Just as she was about to reach the boy.

Her step faltered, and her upper body’s center of gravity shifted.

Her posture crumbled.

Her twisted ankle landed awkwardly on the ground.

A throbbing pain was immediately followed by a chilling sensation of floating.

‘……Ah.’

She was falling.

With a bland murmur, the girl squeezed her eyes shut.

My body wasn’t in a normal state, so if I’d fallen like that, I’d be injured, almost certainly.

Lucy braced for the impact.

But what met her as she fell wasn’t the cold floor.

It was someone’s warm embrace.

“Are you alright?”

A voice resonated in her ear.

Lucy, her eyes still swimming, blinked and lifted her gaze.

“You almost hurt yourself.”

It was Raiden.

He had caught her as she fell, his arms wrapped around her as if embracing her.

A steady, low-humming sound, breaking through the silence, slowly peeled away the darkness that had filled the girl’s vision.

“You look tired… your face is gaunt, and your complexion is dark.”

“……Raiden.”

“Are you alright, Your Highness?”

The boy looked down at her, his expression full of concern.

In that short phrase, anyone could see the genuine worry he held.

“Why do you look so sad…”

A warm palm caressed the girl’s cheek.

For a moment, Lucy wondered if all of this was a dream.

The Raiden she had last parted with was full of sorrow and venom.

The Raiden now was nothing like that.

He was exactly as she remembered her dear, close friend.

Clearly, the girl had been bracing herself to be coldly rejected, but the situation now was far beyond her expectations.

‘……Is this really a dream?’

A fleeting dream, manifested because of her deep longing.

Lucy suddenly felt afraid.

If all of this was just a dream, she didn’t think she could bear the despair of waking up.

“Your Highness… you’re crying.”

But, contrary to the girl’s worries…

A gentle voice brushing my ear.

A scent that teases my nose.

The warmth that strokes my face.

They made it clear this scene was undeniable reality.

“Ah…”

My tear ducts, long since broken, were pouring rain like a sudden storm.

Lucy, frozen for a moment, then spoke, a trembling call escaping her lips.

“Raiden…”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“It really is you, Raiden…?”

“Yes.”

“Really, really… really… is it you, Raiden…?”

The girl murmured the earnest question.

Raiden answered, his tone softer than before, as if soothing her.

“I am here, Your Highness.”

It was exactly like a memory from a distant childhood.

That voice that would always quietly approach and comfort her when she was bawling over the silliest things.

Only then did Lucy believe that the presence before her wasn’t an illusion.

“Raiden…!!”

Her outstretched arms pulled the boy into an embrace.

Of course, the girl had almost no strength left, so even a simple hug wasn’t easy.

As if aware of Lucy’s heart.

Raiden quietly raised his arms and embraced her as well.

“Hic…! Haa, whaaah!!”

The gentle hand patting her back, and Lucy finally broke down in tears.

The boy stood still for a while, holding the girl.

“It’s alright, Your Highness… It’s alright now…”

He moved his lips as if to calm her trembling shoulders.