Chapter 20

“Well then, I’m off to the royal palace.”

Today, Solene was heading to the tea party she had been invited to by Her Majesty the Queen.

“…Be sure not to cause any trouble.”

“Take care and have a safe trip.”

“Have a good day.”

Dad, Mom, and I saw Solene off as she boarded the carriage bound for the royal palace.

“…Carlotta, there’s something I want to ask you.”

“What is it?”

“Are you… truly not the Saint?”

“…Fufu, what are you saying, Dad? I’m not the Saint. The Saint is Solene.”

As I answered with a smile, Dad and Mom both showed complicated expressions.
I found it strange how they kept trying to confirm whether I was truly not the Saint, and how they seemed so reluctant to accept that Solene was the Saint.
Back then, they were so happy when Solene was declared the Saint…
Schulvestel too.
He had been like a lover to Solene.
When my engagement was annulled because I was no longer the Saint, he immediately shifted to Solene, and discussions of engagement and even marriage had moved forward.

“…I see…”

I had no idea what they saw in me that made them think I might be the Saint, but Dad looked genuinely dejected.
It was the first time I had seen him look so down because of me.
Even when my engagement was broken, he had been happy because Solene had become the new fiancée.
Mom too, listening to our conversation, looked disheartened.
I silently watched the two of them as they returned inside the mansion.

“…What’s wrong with those two?”

Enjoying a rare moment not being dragged around by Solene, I headed for my personal flowerbed.

“…Huh? What happened here…”

“Carlotta-sama, is something the matter?”

The one who spoke to me was Nozor, the gardener.

“Nozor, the flowers here…”

“Ah, about that… Solene-sama…”

“Solene?”

“Yes, it seems that because she was invited to Her Majesty the Queen’s tea party, and your flowerbed happened to be full of beautiful blooms… Solene-sama said she had your permission and…”

“I see…”

“I’m terribly sorry. I should have confirmed it more properly.”

“It’s fine. No one can stand against Solene’s forcefulness.”

Nozor returned to his work.
The same thing had happened before.
Back then, when I checked, I found that the flowers I had lovingly nurtured had been cut, but I hadn’t known who had done it or why.

I never imagined Solene had taken them to present at the Queen’s tea party…

“Which means, even back then, she had been invited to the Queen’s tea party too…”

Even though my actions this time were different, the result was the same.

“But… the drought in the Skulki region still hasn’t been resolved. And Solene’s abilities seem slow to awaken… What’s really going on…”