Chapter 8

The day after arriving at the palace, Sara was led by Richard to a small church at the corner of the palace grounds.

When she was dressed in a white dress by the maid as she was leaving the room, she had thought it was unlikely, but when Sara asked, "What's going on?" Richard looked dejected and said, "…Don’t you want to get married?"

"Huh, no! Of course not! But I didn’t expect you to actually hold a ceremony…"

"I didn’t really care either way. But the maids said it’s a once-in-a-lifetime event, and we should make some memories… I thought that made sense."

Richard, too, was wearing a white tuxedo.

Since Ferrie is warmer than Sarey at this time of year, the design was similar to a tuxedo but made of thinner fabric, with a few layers of the thin material hanging down like a sash, showing a bit of design ingenuity.

The dress Sara was dressed in was also fluffier and lighter than those in Sarey, with a shorter skirt, suggesting this might be a traditional design in Ferrie.

Sara’s hair was tied up, and she wore a necklace, a tiara, and, at her request, a corsage that was a keepsake from her mother. Richard, too, had styled his curly hair, but unfortunately, he still wore the mask.

As they stood in front of the small church, Sara couldn’t help but stare at Richard, and he seemed to notice her gaze, turning his face toward her and then away.

"…I don’t want to take off this mask."

"…I understand. Then, there won’t be a kiss, right?"

"…A kiss?"

Richard looked at her with interest. Realizing that such a custom didn’t exist in Ferrie, she remembered.

"Oh, no, sorry. In Sarey, it’s customary to kiss after the wedding vows. I didn’t know it wasn’t done in Ferrie."

"I’ve never heard of it. ………"

"…Your Highness?"

"…Do you want to?"

"Huh?"

"Never mind. …Let’s go."

Richard abruptly cut off the conversation and took Sara’s hand. It was then that she noticed Richard wasn’t particularly tall for a man, and his chin was at her eye level.

Firman was tall, so if she wanted to kiss his cheek, she would have to stretch up a lot or ask him to crouch—she started to recall this and then shook her head.

"…Princess Hermine?"

"No, no. It’s just that a bug flew by."

She gave a poor excuse and sighed.

(I promised to be happy in this country. I don’t want to dwell on them anymore.)

The wedding ceremony was over in a flash.

Ferrie’s wedding ceremonies are short and sweet, with the real celebration happening at the party afterward. This time, there were no guests. Only a letter of blessing from the king and the empress dowager, Sara, Richard, and the priest attended the small ceremony.

(…But it felt neat and warm, and it’s more than enough for me.)

Hermine, who loved grandeur, would probably be disappointed, but Sara had no complaints. The priest was a kind old man who spoke his blessings gently and carefully.

Richard’s expression was hard to read behind the mask, but even if he was urged by the maid, he had made the dream of a wedding ceremony come true for a bride he didn’t particularly want.

As a baron’s daughter, she had been innocent and dreamed of getting married in a white dress. Her parents weren’t particularly power-hungry, so she had imagined creating a happy family with someone she loved.

After her parents died and she was taken in by Hermine, she had no time to dream. She was just Hermine’s double, and she had to crush her dreams and live in the moment.

Even when she was to marry for political reasons, she had given up on a wedding ceremony. But Richard had held a ceremony for a bride he didn’t particularly want.

(Father, Mother… I got married. There are some circumstances, but… I did.)

In Ferrie’s tradition, at the end of the ceremony, Richard gave Sara a bouquet. It seems the groom picks and arranges the flowers himself.

"…I’m not very good with flowers, so I didn’t know which ones to choose."

The bouquet Richard offered indeed had flowers of various colors and sizes, and there weren’t many. But the stems were neatly trimmed to the same length, and the wrapping paper and ribbons were meticulously tied. The decoration, with three ribbons slightly offset and tied to look like a flower, made her sigh in admiration.

To prevent the flowers from wilting, the maid placed them in a vase in Sara’s room. She also wrapped the ribbons around the vase and tied them into a butterfly, though not as neatly as Richard had.

By the time night fell, Sara had only seen Richard after the ceremony to read the letters from the king and the empress dowager and to inspect the gifts. When she quietly asked Daniel, he said, "His Highness will be reading documents, so please rest, Princess Hermine."

(…That makes sense. Even on our wedding night, we don’t need to pretend to love each other.)

In both Sarey and Ferrie, a newlywed wife would wait for her husband in a beautiful nightgown and share a bed. But Sara and Richard didn’t need to do that. Even so, she should be grateful to Richard for fulfilling her dream of a wedding ceremony.

(…Still)

"…At least, can I say goodnight to him?"

When Sara timidly asked, Daniel’s eyes widened in surprise, then he smiled happily.

"That’s fine. And…"

"Yes?"

"His Highness has been living alone in the palace for nearly fifteen years, and no one has ever exchanged goodnight greetings with him. I’m sure he would be happy to hear goodnight from you, Princess Hermine."

Sara’s chest tightened at Daniel’s kind words.

Fifteen years ago, Richard was less than ten years old. His biological mother had likely passed away by then, and he had been living alone in the palace. Daniel and the others might exchange goodnight greetings, but only as a formality to wish their lord a good night’s sleep.

A genuine "goodnight," wishing someone a good rest, hadn’t been exchanged in over ten years. Perhaps he had never properly said "goodnight" to anyone in his life.

Sara smiled softly, and Daniel returned the smile. He said Richard was still in the study, so she left her room and knocked on the door to Richard’s study.

"…Is it Daniel?"

"No, it’s Hermine."

"…"

(Oh, he’s silent.)

Wondering if she should continue the conversation, she glanced back and saw Daniel nod. She huffed and turned back to the door.

"Um, I’m going to bed… If it’s okay, I wanted to say goodnight."

"…"

Silence.

After a moment, heavy footsteps approached, and the door opened, revealing Richard’s white mask with a puzzled look.

Unlike Sara, who was in a nightgown with a robe, Richard was still in his regular clothes, likely planning to continue his work as Daniel had said.

Richard said nothing, just staring at Sara. His posture suggested he wanted her to speak quickly, so she fidgeted with the fabric of her robe and looked up.

"Um… I’m going to bed first. Please rest before you get too tired, Your Highness."

"…Ah."

"…"

"…"

"…Goodnight, Your Highness!"

She said it boldly, but her voice cracked a bit.

She thought his eyes behind the mask narrowed in confusion, and she lowered her head. But then she heard a quiet "…Goodnight" and the door closed softly.

She looked up, but all she saw was the closed door. There was no sound, so Richard had likely returned to his desk to continue his work.

(…Well, at least we said goodnight to each other… right?)

He didn’t seem as happy as Daniel had suggested, and Richard might have said it reluctantly, but at least they had exchanged goodnight greetings. It was a decent start for interacting with a reclusive prince.

(…If possible, I’d like to get to know His Highness a little more this way.)

Sara believed the face behind the mask was not just that of a reclusive, people-hating prince.