Chapter 30

"Lord Alexandre, I also admire you. However, there is something I want to talk about."

Marianne carefully chose her words as she spoke about 'the person who disappeared.' She mentioned that this person was one of her own clan, and that she herself had a desire to live freely, away from the power of high society and the royal palace. She also confessed that despite how much she admired Alexandre, she was afraid that one day she might run away in search of freedom.

Alexandre, who had been listening intently, showed a playful expression on his gentle face.

"I see. So that's what you're worried about. Marianne, do you know what happened to 'the person who disappeared' after they left?"

"Huh? Do you know, Lord Alexandre?"

Seeing Marianne lean forward in surprise, Alexandre's smile deepened.

"Right after I crossed into the Kingdom of Holland, I met a friend who was a foreign student at the academy. He had also attended the buckwheat party at the Marie farm. He showed me around the capital of Holland.

I saw the achievements of a genius who knew everyone in his country. His greatest pride was the gas lamps that surrounded the palace.

He explained that when coal is baked, a flammable gas is produced. Burning this gas to light the palace all night was quite a sight."

"Hmm."

Marianne couldn't follow the connection in the story.

"Those gas lamps had two ears of wheat carved diagonally."

"Really? But that's the mark of the person who appeared a hundred years ago, isn't it?"

"Of course, it's not the person themselves. The two ears of wheat indicate their descendant. The person's own mark had one ear of wheat. It's the clan's mark.

'The person who disappeared' left our country and went to the Kingdom of Holland. There, they married the daughter of a merchant and settled down in Holland, making many inventions along the way."

"Is that so... Did the royal family of that time know about the person's whereabouts?"

"Yes, of course. Our country's intelligence department has always been quite excellent. They would have preferred to bring the person back, but the royal family of Holland was shrewd. The intelligence agents who entered the country to retrieve the person came back empty-handed.

Moreover, they knew that our country had failed to keep the person and did not try to tie them down, even though they paid attention to them."

"They didn't try to tie them down?"

"Yes. And 'the person' enriched the lives of the people of Holland with their free and innovative ideas. I think my ancestors were envious.

Holland is a northern country with a harsh climate, and the production of wheat and vegetables was low, making it a poor country at the time. But thanks to 'the person,' the soil was improved, and the livestock industry grew strong. Now it is transforming into an industrial nation."

"Is that how it happened?"

"Yes, members of our royal family are always told the story of 'the person who disappeared' as we grow up.

The story of a king who tried to tie down a person who didn't care about land, titles, or jewels and ended up losing them.

When I told my mother that I had a great time laughing with the young Marianne, she warned me not to become a king like the one who lost 'the person.'"

"Really? The queen knew about me?"

Marianne asked hesitantly, and the prince laughed in response.

"Of course. I didn't know until recently, but my mother used to look forward to reports from my guard knights. She said she almost spat out her tea every time she read your comments."

"Wow. Those knights! They were eavesdropping! And they told the queen!"

"Forgive them. Guarding the royal family is part of their job. My mother is a fan of the Marie farm's baked goods. She also loves the seed-throwing set. She and my father sometimes play with it, saying it's to help with his lack of exercise."

"What! I can't imagine the king and queen eating the farm's baked goods or playing with the seed-throwing set."

"My father and mother highly value Marianne's efforts during the drought. They often say that taking care of the orphans at the farm is a task that the royal family should do.

My greatest achievement in life, my father says, is finding Marianne among many young ladies and not giving up on her, even when she refused my tea party invitations and left the territory."

"Wow. I feel so uncomfortable."

"Marianne, don't compare yourself to that person's past. They lived happily as a citizen of Holland until the end, surrounded by five children and twenty-three grandchildren."

"So they were from a prolific family."

"Are you worried about that now!"

The prince couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes, they were definitely from a prolific family. Among their many descendants were excellent inventors. That's what the two ears of wheat represent.

Marianne, I want you to live with me in this country until death parts us. I want you to become my wife."

"Lord Alexandre... Yes, I am delighted to accept your proposal. And I will make sure to have many children with Lord Alexandre in this country!"

Clasping her hands into fists, she answered, and the prince burst into laughter, saying, "That's Marianne for sure."

"Huh? Was my answer that strange?"

(Maybe the royal family really does have a life with little laughter.)