Chapter 92

That day, Mary woke up unusually early. Not as early as a princess who rises before the rooster crows, but at a time that could generally be called "morning." Of course, the sun was up, and the maids were already at work.

The Albert mansion was already bustling, and the other family members were likely already awake. It was more like "early for Mary."

Still, the early wake-up improved her mood, and she had her caretaker fix her hair. What hairstyle should she choose today... The dark ages of perpetual pigtails were long gone. Flipping through her notebook of hairstyles she wanted to try, she and the maid made a selection.

In the midst of this, Mary suddenly proposed a certain hairstyle.

It would take time, but since she woke up early, it wasn't a problem.

After Mary finished getting ready, there was a light knock on the door.

Addie asked for permission to enter. Of course, Mary gave her consent, and as he entered the room, she greeted him and playfully flicked her hair.

Flick, flick.

Swinging at her shoulders was not the gentle waves of silver hair, but luxurious silver pigtails.

"Miss, that hairstyle..."

"I woke up early and had time. How does it look? It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Mary playfully flicked her silver hair. The pigtails, tightly and firmly curled, had once tormented Mary, the maids, and the hairdressers. It was almost like a curse... a curse she had even resented. But after graduating from high school and after some time, she began to think it was okay to recall and imitate it occasionally. This was no longer a curse. It was a temporary reunion, something she could undo at any time. Despite hating it so much, she now felt a sense of nostalgia as it swung at her shoulders. ——It was a rather grand explanation, but it was just about a hairstyle.

"Despite all the times it was called a drill or an alloy, it's not bad."

"......I won't, okay?"

"What?"

"If Miss's hairstyle changes, I won't cancel our marriage, okay!"

"Addie!?"

What's going on! Mary exclaimed in shock.

Finally coming to his senses, Addie apologized for his sudden outburst. He entered the room, hugged Mary, and gently swung her pigtails.

"I'm sorry. I thought that by changing your hairstyle, you were trying to change our relationship..."

"You're overthinking it. There's no such message in the pigtails."

As she pressed her forehead against Addie's chest, he finally calmed down, and his hands, which had been playing with her hair, moved to her back. He hugged her tightly, as if to confirm something, and a sweet, ticklish sensation arose.

The maid who had fixed her hair giggled and quietly left the room, adding to the sweetness.

"By the way, Alicia and Patrick are here."

"Oh, really? I'm looking forward to their reactions."

"They'll be surprised, I'm sure."

Addie smiled. ...While still hugging Mary.

Mary wriggled in his arms, trying to get him to let go, but he hugged her even tighter.

Even though he said, "We shouldn't keep them waiting," his actions didn't match his words.

"Addie, let's go."

"......Just a little longer."

"If you don't, I'll tell Patrick that 'Addie was hugging me and being clingy, so we're late.'"

"Let's go then!"

Mentioning Patrick's name made Addie let go easily.

His cheeks were red, and as he left the room, he warned, "Don't say it, okay?" He must have known that if he did, he would be teased.

Mary smiled slightly and said, "We'll see," without giving a clear answer, and playfully flicked her pigtails as she left the room.

"Good morning, Miss Mary..."

Alicia stopped mid-sentence, of course, because of Mary's hairstyle. Her sun-like smile turned into a surprised expression with wide eyes.

Patrick, standing next to her, also looked surprised and glanced at Mary's silver pigtails.

Mary smiled smugly at their reactions. She deliberately said, "Good morning," as if nothing had changed, curtsied, and flicked her hair. Flick, flick, the pigtails swung.

"Mary, that hairstyle..."

"I had some time, so I had the maid do it. How does it look?"

"Ah, it's very nostalgic."

Patrick smiled gently, his calm blue eyes narrowing. The calm smile of a prince that would make any woman's heart race if directed at someone else. But Mary didn't feel romantic feelings for him.

Instead, she felt the nostalgia he mentioned. During the time she was tormented by these pigtails, she had complained to him a few times.

"By the way, you once said, 'If I have to escort you every time, I might get pigtails sickness.'"

"Yeah, I remember. ...What did I say back then?"

"Taking advantage of the fact that no one else was around, Addie and I burst out laughing."

"I haven't forgotten," Mary said coldly, and Patrick cleared his throat to cover it up.

He then looked at Mary's hairstyle again, as if to correct himself.

"Escorting... When you held my hand with that hairstyle, we were still carrying the weight of our families. I felt like there was a wall between us."

"Yes, that's true. I was the daughter of the Albert family, and you were the heir of the Dice family, looking at each other through the lens of our family names."

"Now, without the family names, we can call each other friends. ...Is that just my wishful thinking?"

"...Patrick"

Mary looked up at him seriously, responding to his sincere words.

His blue hair swayed, and his blue eyes met hers. She had been escorted by him many times in the past. Even though she knew his heart wasn't directed at her, she had accepted the escort relationship as appropriate and fitting.

Since then, both Mary and Patrick had taken the hands of their beloved ones and worked together to take those hands. What else could this be called if not friendship?

That's why Mary looked at him intently and called his name again.

"Patrick"

"Mary..."

"...What do you want?"

"Addie has always said, 'Miss's pigtails stretch like a spring when you pull them, it's so fun,' and I've always wanted to try it."

How about it? Patrick asked with a bright smile, and Mary shrugged. She could only sigh, but he seemed to take it as a yes and smiled happily.

He then asked Addie, "Which pigtail stretches the most?" The two men moved behind her, making Mary sigh even deeper, but they probably didn't notice.

However, while Mary had reached a state of resignation, it seemed Alicia took this as rudeness.

She scolded them, as if to take Mary's place, "Oh, Patrick and Addie, that's so rude!"

"You two are being rude to Miss Mary. Really!"

"Oh, Alicia, you're unexpectedly proper."

"Of course. By the way, I didn't finish greeting you, good morning, Miss Mary."

"Yes, good morning."

Alicia's unusually calm response made Mary feel good. She had expected Alicia to cling to her, hug her, and play with her pigtails, but the Alicia in front of her was the calmest of everyone. She even gave a beautiful greeting fit for a princess.

After greeting Mary, Alicia turned her gaze elsewhere.

Her purple eyes were directed not at Mary, but at Mary's pigtails.

"It's been a while."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm grateful for your help back then."

"Back then, and every time, it was me who took care of you!"

As Mary shouted and tried to hit Alicia's forehead, a high-pitched scream rang out. Alicia's excuses, like "I forgot" and "I thought it was a different personality," only made Mary angrier.

To make matters worse, her hair was being pulled from behind. Patrick's excited voice, "This is quite something!" could be heard.

Enough! Mary exclaimed in anger.

"I don't have time for this! I have to meet Parfait and Ganes next. Go home quickly!"

"I'm looking forward to their reactions, Miss Mary! Don't you think so?"

"What are you casually planning to join us? And don't ask for my pigtails' approval!"

She shouted and urged Addie to go, walking quickly.

Of course, she told Alicia and Patrick not to follow, but their calm smiles made it clear they wouldn't listen. They walked with her as if it were natural.

Mary glared at them from the corner of her eye. Was Addie's gentle swinging of her pigtails meant to comfort her? It was counterproductive, to say the least.

After waiting in the prepared guest room for a while, a maid announced the arrival of Parfait and Ganes.

Parfait peeked in through the door, her eyes already teary. Despite this, when she saw Mary, her eyes lit up...

"What a wonderful curl... I'm moved to tears..."

...and she teared up for no apparent reason.

Patrick tilted his head in confusion, muttering, "Parfait is always crying," and Addie nodded, saying, "It's a sign of her energy." Alicia looked smug, as if she had been praised.

"Parfait, don't cry like that."

"I've heard about Miss Mary's pigtails. I saw them at the engagement party, but today they are even more... tears..."

"Don't cry. ...So, they're famous in neighboring countries too?"

Was it part of the reputation of "the daughter of the Albert family," or had the pigtails become a separate legend? Mary didn't have the courage to confirm, so she calmed Parfait, who was shaking with emotion. Touching her, the vibration traveled through her body, and her pigtails trembled slightly.

As she was calming Parfait, she heard, "Miss Mary," and turned to see Ganes. He looked at her pigtails with an expression of curiosity, as if he had just seen something rare, and took a step closer...

Then, for some reason, he pulled out a flower from his chest, the emblem of his family, and gently placed it in her pigtails.

At that moment, the flower was sucked into her pigtails with a whoosh.

The flower didn't fall but stuck out from the tip of her pigtails, probably caught on something.

At this moment, Addie and Patrick both covered their mouths and made muffled sounds.

"...Ah, what am I doing!? Miss Mary, I'm terribly sorry. Please forgive me!"

"Yes! This time, I won't say, 'It's fine.' It's very rude, and I'm very sorry!"

Ganes bowed apologetically as Mary expressed her anger. It was the strangest thing he had done today, and it seemed he had done it unconsciously.

It was frustrating, but at least he didn't have any ill intent, Mary thought.

After being misinterpreted, having her pigtails played with, being accused of having a split personality, and being made to cry, she was quite numb. Still, she turned to Ganes again. She looked at him, who looked apologetic, and the flower caught in her pigtails.

"Ganes, giving me a flower in front of Parfait is quite passionate, isn't it?"

"...Huh?"

"This is the flower of the Eldland family, isn't it? What does it mean?"

Mary looked at the flower caught in her pigtails, saying it was meaningful. She sighed dramatically, looking like a young lady confused by a man's gift of flowers.

Adding, "I have Addie, you know..." made it perfect.

Of course, Mary's attitude was just a joke. The others seemed to understand, and even Addie, who was in the position of a husband whose wife had been given flowers, smiled wryly.

...Except for one person,

"Mr. Ganes... How could you, with me as your fiancée...!"

Parfait, trembling at her fiancé's betrayal, cried out.

Mary gently patted her head to comfort her. The whole situation started because of Mary's ambiguous words, but ultimately, it was Ganes' strange behavior that caused it.

Alicia gripped Parfait's hand and guided it to Mary's pigtails. Was she developing a psychological therapy involving pulling pigtails? Parfait did seem to calm down, so it might be effective.

They enjoyed Ganes' flustered state for a while, and then Mary said, "Well," and changed the subject. She took the flower from her pigtails and placed it in Parfait's hair, making her smile happily.

She then gave a subtle look to Alicia, who slowly turned her gaze to Addie and Patrick. They had been trying to stifle their laughter by stepping on each other's feet, but their shoulders were shaking, so they were just as guilty.

Mary's silent command, "Do it," was understood by Alicia, who scolded them, "You two are being rude!"

What a commotion. Just because she had a nostalgic hairstyle, it turned into a bigger commotion than expected.

Mary sighed, trying to suppress her smile, and flicked her pigtails.

"Miss, where are you?"

"Oh, Addie, you can't come over here."

"Can't come? Why not? Wait for me...!"

"Look, you can't ignore the panel."

"What? There's an invisible wall...?"

"It's the panel. The panel is in the way. I'll come to your side in the next panel."

"Panel? What are you talking about?"

"Look, I'm here."

"Huh? The wall from before...?"

"Even the daughter of the Albert family can't defy the panel."

"Panel? What are you talking about? Why is there an invisible wall in the Albert family's garden... mmmph"

"Addie, you can't have a long monologue that goes beyond the speech bubble."

"Speech bubble? I don't understand what's going on... Oh, there's Alicia and Patrick."

"There's! There's something spiky here!"

"Alicia, stop! Don't touch the focus lines!"

"It's coming out! One of the spikes is coming out!"

"Stop! Don't try to pull the focus lines!"

"What's going on...? This must be related to that person... Miss Parfait, if you're here, explain this strange situation... mmmph"

"You have to keep your lines within the speech bubble. Miss Parfait..."

(´；ω；) {Good morning, everyone! I recently realized that vertical text might be causing some issues. I'm Parfait Marquis, the public relations officer...!}

"By the way, that's right."

"If this is vertical text, what's happening to Miss Parfait? No, that's not the point. It's about this state. Panels... mmmph!"

"Addie, you can't have a long monologue beyond the speech bubble."

"I don't understand what you mean by 'this.'"

(´；ω；) {Actually... actually...!!}

(´；ω；) {The manga adaptation of "The Daughter of the Albert Family Wishes for Decline" has been decided!}

(´；ω；) {The manga will be illustrated by Tsukasa Saigetsu. For more details, see the April 1st update!}

"I see, that's why this is in such a state."

"So the focus lines... She pulled one out! She finally pulled out a focus line!"

"She's using it to her advantage."

"Patrick, stop her! Don't let her pull out the second one!"

(´；∀；) {Thank you all for your support. We are planning to resume updates, so please stay tuned!}

...

The manga adaptation of "The Daughter of the Albert Family Wishes for Decline" has been decided!

We are planning to resume updates, so we hope you will continue to follow us.