My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage Chapter 83
Translated by d6y (ko-fi)
Chapter 83
"And to answer your question, Princess, it wasn't very cold, squirrels are very furry," Prince Cade says cheerfully, pulling on the shawl I gave him. "So, what took you so long?"
"What?"
"I've been waiting for you for three days, Princess, so you'd better explain why you're late."
Despite his playful tone, Prince Cade is taking this situation quite seriously.
‘Could it be… that there's been an emergency in the empire, or that Lord Lancer has gotten into trouble again…? Or worse, that damn Dandelion has been bothering Princess to sabotage my relationship with her…!’
"...."
Actually, I didn't even realise you were gone.
But I don't dare answer him honestly.
I pull out the handy all-purpose spell for when the situation gets tough.
"I had a personal emergency."
This arbitrary excuse is well-received by the Prince. "I see, but I'm glad you didn't forget me and came to see me. In fact, I was going to wait a week before leaving."
"...."
It hasn't occurred to this guy that if the person doesn't show up on the day of the appointment, he should just leave.
Royals seem to have a different mindset….
Whether or not Prince Cade thinks of that, he continues. "It was so cold the first night. I realised that I would die of hypothermia if I stayed here, so I used magic to transform myself into a squirrel."
Wait a minute. Prince Cade once said he hated squirrels.
I narrow my eyes at him in his human form.
He goes on. "Then later, around three in the morning, I was so hungry that I tried to sneak into the mansion's kitchen, but I thought the Princess might be coming, so I waited patiently."
"Why did you wait?"
"Because I didn't know when you would come."
"...."
As I listen to him, my heart aches.
Why did he go through all this trouble? Just because I wasn't interested in him?
No. When I think about it, it's not my fault. I never asked him to wait in the first place, and it was his choice to wait for me for three days, so there's no reason for me to feel guilty….
"Then, on the second day, I got dizzy and couldn't stand it anymore."
I'm sorry, please stop. It's my bad.
"So I changed into a squirrel and went over to that acorn tree over there and ate some acorns, and they were delicious. Princess, have you ever eaten raw acorns? They're a little squishy, but they're good."
Now please stop. Don't increase my guilt any more than this.
I bow my head low towards Prince Cade. "I apologise."
"What? Why are you apologising, Princess?"
"I should have come sooner…, because I was late, you were hungry and shivering in this cold."
He chuckles. "What? Princess, you said you had a personal emergency, I understand."
I stammer. "But…, Prince, you said you didn't like squirrels…."
As I stumble over my words, I have a sudden thought.
Why am I making excuses now? Because I'm sorry? Sorry for what exactly? For making him wait for me outside in the cold? That I didn't have feelings for him and didn't really care about him?
I try to infer as accurately as I can what I'm feeling right now.
Is it purely a feeling of remorse out of compassion for others, or is it a feeling of guilt that comes from the realisation that I have failed to give someone else what they want from me?
Hoping it's the former, I force myself to speak. "I mean, it's cold out, and you even turned into a squirrel to keep warm, so...."
My voice trails off into a stutter. My shoulders sag in the same way. Not knowing what more to add after that, I shut my mouth tight.
"...."
Prince Cade stares at me for a moment. His gaze is piercing, as if trying to penetrate the meaning beyond my words.
He smiles wryly. "You remembered."
"What?"
"My dislike of squirrels." He places his hands on both of my shoulders. At the same time, something lands lightly on my shoulders.
It's his robe, which was draped over his shoulders.
"Don't feel sorry for me. It was always my choice to wait for you, Princess."
"...."
"You don't have to be nice to me because you feel sorry for me, and if that's what you're thinking in your head right now, stop it right now." He lets out a small chuckle as he fastens the robe over me. "You don't have to show goodwill to others for a guilt you don't have to take responsibility for."
"Viscount...."
"I, for one, hate the idea of a woman being pushed around by a man just because he helped her out once."
"...."
"So you don't have to be extra nice to me over this, either, because I didn't do it in the hopes that it would change things between us, okay?"
"...I wasn't going to be nice to you, anyway."
"Good, now you're the Princess I know." He smirks, then winks at me.
Maybe it's because he's a mage skilled in healing magic, or maybe it's because he's been turning into a squirrel all this time, but he doesn't look too bad for someone who's been outdoors for days.
That's a relief.
"Anyway, now that I've met you, I'll say what I want to say." The Viscount's tone turns back to one of Prince Cade’s.
"As I said in my letter, I will be returning to my native kingdom for a short time."
"So you won't be attending the birthday party for Princess Julia?”
"Yes. I apologise to the little princess, but I have more important matters to attend to."
As he says that, Prince Cade glares at me.
Then, in an instant, his words rang out clearly in my ears.
‘I'm going to find a way to remove the Princess's curse of hearing other people's thoughts.’
"Really?!" I exclaim, the words coming out of my mouth without thinking.
Oops!
I clamp my mouth shut afterwards and quickly look around.
My voice is louder than I thought, and I'm beginning to worry that someone might have heard me.
Prince Cade nods and leisurely crosses his arms.
"You heard me right. Anyway, with that said, I plan to return to the Hebnia Kingdom because of that."
“But in order to get rid of the curse, you need to know how to break the curse that was set in advance by the person who placed it, so what are you planning to do?" I remember what I have learnt when I was studying about the Hebnia Kingdom.
"I'm going to find the person who placed the curse and ask them."
"You know them?"
"Yes, I know them very well."
The next words in his mind are shocking.
‘It was my grandmother who put the curse on the princess.’
I instinctively shout again. "What the...!"
"I'll be going now." Prince Cade stops me with a gentle smile. Like he's telling me he can't possibly answer all the questions I have right now. "I must go now to catch the carriage that will take me from here to the outskirts, so I will depart now."
With that, he bows low to me. He still has the feminine shawl I gave him wrapped around him, and he looks ridiculous.
"Please keep this a secret between us. A secret even from the Crown Prince. Understood?"
"...." I nod, not saying a word.
There are so many things I want to ask him right now, but I don't want to stop him if he wants to leave.
Most of all, I'm worried about his physical condition, having waited for three long days to tell me this.
"When will you be back?"
"Well, Princess, when you can't bear to miss me?"
"You mean you're not coming back forever?"
"That's too much to ask…. I think it will be a few weeks, especially while making sure I don't get detected by my father, the King." Saying that, he holds out his hand to me.
I only stare at the hand that's suddenly outstretched towards me. "What do you want me to do?"
"A handshake. I would have preferred a hug, but that doesn't seem possible— eek!"
A screech erupted from his mouth, I ignored his request for a handshake and hugged him instead.
I can see his eyes spinning like pinwheels.
"Princess, if you do this, my heart will try to escape from the prison of you by itself. No, no, no, that can't happen. Princess, you're not normally like this, why did you suddenly have a personality change…."
"To repay the favour," I grunt. "The Viscount said he'd grant me a lifetime wish, and I'd like to grant him one of my own, however small."
"...Did you hate hearing other people's thoughts so much?" He asks me in a small voice, having finally calmed down a bit.
Instead of answering, I nod and pull my arm back around him.
"By the way, don't you think you should get some rest before you set off on a long journey?"
The Viscount grins. "My dear, you seem to have forgotten that my speciality is healing magic. The magic that flows through my body is like a drug, so I'll be fine. My nickname was once a junkie."
"What?"
"Not narcotics drugs, but magic drugs!"
With those words, Viscount Artisina whirls around.
A small sparrow appears where he stands.
With a chirp, the sparrow flaps its wings and soars into the air. The sparrow turns into a tiny dot in the dark night sky.
"...."
I stare at Viscount Artisina as he disappears into the distance.
I can't believe what he told me.
The person who put the curse on me was… his grandmother?
Wait a minute.
If it's Viscount's grandmother… then she's a witch.
All this time, I have assumed that the person who had granted me this ability was a mage, as is common in the Hebnia Kingdom.
But a witch.
Does that mean I've been under a witch's curse all this time?
No, more than that…
If my powers are gone…. What would happen to me?
I won't be able to hear Phoebe bustle about anymore.
I wouldn't have to listen to my parents asking me when I was getting married.
I'll be able to ignore Viscount Artisina, who's been watching me and building his own internal intimacy and love narrative.
I'll be able to ignore the Crown Prince who sometimes surprises me by hearing his thoughts unannounced.
I'd be able to block out the thoughts of those who laughed and gossiped at me.
If my powers are truly gone, I will no longer be able to return to the life I once knew.
But.
But….
"Skyla?"
It was then.
A familiar voice comes from behind me. I turn my head in the direction of the sound.
Lancer stands in the doorway leading to the mansion.
He's wearing a coat that would have been appropriate for an evening out. It seems like he has come from the Soli Duchy to meet me.
After a moment of stunned silence, I slowly walk towards Lancer.
"How did you know to come here?"
I ask him, but there's no answer.
Lancer soon speaks up. "I heard your voice and came looking for you."
Without that answer, I wouldn't have known what you were gonna say.
I have no idea what you're thinking or feeling.
I was never able to hear you in the first place.
Lancer.
Did you know?
That what I wanted to know in the first place was yours, Lancer, not anyone else's.
That it was only because of you that I begged the witch I met that day to grant me the ability to hear others' thoughts.
