“What exactly makes a suitable fiancé?”
“…”
Tears streamed down.
Perhaps even clearer than the tears streaming down were Rebecca’s beautiful eyes.
Slowly, and as if leaving a vivid mark, precisely.
Dew falls.
“…”
The mood was complicated.
Despite vowing not to let any more tears fall.
Despite vowing never to see sadness in those red eyes again.
In the end, all those vows were meaningless.
Seeing my fiancée cry again because of me, not because of anyone else.
She was a princess who clearly said she didn’t like me.
She couldn’t outright deny it, but she outwardly rejected the idea.
And that wasn’t long ago, just less than 5 hours ago.
…It seems my fiancée is better at lying than I thought.
“Why are you crying when I’m the one who’s hurt?”
I boasted, but in truth, I wasn’t entirely confident.
Confident that I’d hear my fiancée say, “…I like you.”
The saying “You can know the depth of water, but not the depth of a person’s heart” exists for a reason.
I couldn’t possibly fully understand Rebecca’s heart.
Even if her tsundere tendencies were becoming more apparent.
Whether it was genuine affection or lingering resentment from three years of fighting, only Rebecca herself could tell.
Well, maybe even Rebecca doesn’t know.
But that wasn’t the important thing right now.
“…Sniff.”
“…”
The important thing was that I had made my overly deserving fiancée cry again.
Looking at what happened today, everything was my fault.
Despite being labeled as her fiancé, I failed to care for her feelings, didn’t send letters, and made her worry.
I let her hear about my illness from her mother.
And then, under the guise of treatment, I showed her another woman in my room.
Even though I had been misunderstood by her before.
I didn’t explain the situation myself, and without her consent, I held her for a long time under the pretense of comforting her.
‘…This is the worst.’
Thinking about it again, I wondered if there was anyone worse than me in the world.
Even the villains in typical fantasy novels wouldn’t stand a chance.
Possessing the body of an extra who didn’t even appear in the original novel, I wondered if this was even acceptable.
“…Cough.”
The cough kept coming out without considering the situation.
The fact that I had to beg for forgiveness from my crying fiancée was daunting enough.
The constant coughing and the rising fever made it even harder to find a solution.
Why is this damn body so useless?
Even after receiving the sacred power of a “Saint,” I still couldn’t recover properly.
The reason I caught a cold in the first place was because I felt inadequate and tried to train too hard.
I sighed at my miserable state.
“…Are you… okay?”
The only helpful thing was that it was easy to gain my fiancée’s sympathy.
Although, if I weren’t sick, I wouldn’t have needed it.
“I’m fine, so please stop crying.”
“…”
“I’m worried.”
At least, it helped in this situation.
Because Rebecca spoke first, I could act as calm as usual.
Because Rebecca spoke first, I could maintain my usual composure.
“Seeing you cry makes me feel like the worst fiancé in the world.”
“…You are.”
“…Huh?”
“You are. The worst fiancé in the world.”
Of course, I didn’t expect Rebecca to agree so readily.
“Albert Zernias. The biggest fool in the world, and the worst fiancé. That’s you.”
“…”
The expression on Rebecca’s face was slightly playful, unlike the serious atmosphere before.
***
Looking at her fiancé, who was staring at her with a dumbfounded expression, wasn’t such a bad feeling.
In fact, it slightly lifted her mood, which had been dampened by the tears she had just shed.
After all, Albert’s stupid expression wasn’t something you could see easily.
What a fool he was.
Hiding his illness, fearing that his fiancée might worry.
Trying to keep up with the talented people around him, yet never showing any signs of struggle to them.
When did he start having such foolish thoughts?
He claimed it was during this hunting competition, but knowing Albert, that was clearly a lie.
He was hiding his true feelings, armed with useless thoughts of not making his fiancée uncomfortable.
The only time her fiancé seemed sincere was when he said embarrassing things to her.
In fact, she knew.
That the compliments and loving words her fiancé whispered to her weren’t just to tease her.
They were genuine, things he truly wanted to say to her.
– Just kidding. Did you really think I’d do that?
– …
…Of course, considering Albert’s usual behavior, it was impossible to completely trust such thoughts.
But at least she knew that those words weren’t just meant to tease her.
She just couldn’t admit it.
That her fiancé, who had been arguing with her since their first meeting, truly liked her.
That her fiancé, who had used a wish ticket for a kiss or a hug, truly wanted those things.
And as those memories piled up, she found herself wanting those memories more and more.
She just couldn’t admit it.
Why else would she not refuse her fiancé’s embrace earlier?
If she truly didn’t like her fiancé, as she had declared when they first met, she would have naturally refused.
But she didn’t.
Because, though she hated to admit it, the presence of “Albert Zernias” in her heart had grown too large.
Slowly, but surely.
However, admitting it wasn’t easy.
She had already said she didn’t like him.
Having already said it, she couldn’t now say she actually liked him.
That was something the pride of the next Duchess of the Valencia Duchy, the highest noble family in the Empire, could never allow.
– You said you didn’t like me, but in the end, you do like me. I knew it.
– …
Admitting it would mean losing to Albert, and she couldn’t let that happen.
This was the pride of the Duchess, her determination to not be an easy woman.
“…”
Her fiancé, who had nothing to say, just rolled his eyes.
Today, his moving black pupils stood out more than usual.
Even in this, he managed to be annoying. It was almost a divine talent.
“…Do you remember what I said earlier?”
“…What are you talking about?”
“I told you to stop messing around and get better quickly.”
“…”
Perhaps that’s why.
“Do you know the fastest way to cure a cold is to pass it to someone else?”
“…I’ve heard that, but…”
“Then that’s enough.”
“…?”
What she was about to do was something she would never normally do.
What she was about to do was something only a healthy fiancé should do.
Thud- thud-
“…Princess?”
“Be quiet.”
“…”
She silenced her fiancé, who looked dumbfounded, not understanding the situation.
Opening his mouth and making noise would only interfere with what she was about to do.
“This is because I don’t like you acting like you deserve special treatment just because you’re sick.”
“…When did I…”
“I clearly told you to be quiet.”
“…”
She shut her fiancé’s mouth, which was about to protest, with a simple sentence.
“…So, don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not doing this because I like it.”
“…!”
Smack-
This time, she silenced her noisy fiancé with her own lips.
And that kiss.
Like the strawberries she loved.
Like a dream she once had.
Was incredibly sweet, she could say.