I Hope I Can Finally Enjoy Nympée This Time
“I did a terrible thing to them. Being taken away from me... it took time, but they’re apparently starting to recover, little by little.”
“… Is the reason you desire me because I stayed by your side and… no, because even after seeing your dragon form, I didn’t go mad?”
Feeling something catch in my chest, I asked him without hesitation.
I genuinely wanted to know what he truly meant—and I instinctively knew that if I missed this moment, I might never be able to ask again.
And I think I was right.
Lord Runken stopped fastening his cuff button midway, his hand frozen in place.
But only for a moment—he resumed, as if nothing had happened, continuing to fasten his buttons.
“… It might have been the catalyst.”
“That means—”
“I do have feelings for you. But driving you to madness is the last thing I want. So, when I realized you were unaffected... I felt deeply relieved. It felt like I had been granted permission to want you.”
“…!”
Was he finally being open? Or had he never been hiding it at all?
Lord Runken spoke with complete frankness.
I still wasn’t used to that kind of directness.
Every time he said something like that, I couldn’t help but be caught off guard.
Once he finished fastening his cuff buttons, he lifted his face.
And then, he told me why he had shown me that.
“This is a contract.”
“… What?”
“A promise that I will never betray you. But words alone are just that—words. So, to give it weight, I revealed my secret.”
My secret—he meant the dragon scales.
As I blinked in confusion, he smiled wryly, almost apologetically.
“Anyone who sees them would believe it. That Luca Runken is a dragon. As you know, if this truth ever came to light, it would cause an uproar… one big enough to shake the very foundation of the kingdom. That’s why—if I ever betray you, you should report this secret to the House of Lords.”
“That would cause… an enormous scandal.”
“Exactly. And I accept that risk.”
Then, as if in afterthought, Lord Runken added:
“The only people who know this are my late father and mother, and my sister Lucia.”
“… Was it really okay to tell me such a grave secret?”
Did he not consider the risk of me using it against him?
When I asked, Lord Runken tilted his head and smiled gently.
“That’s why I said it—‘Become my accomplice.’”
—So that’s what he meant.
I understood. And at the same time, I couldn’t help but think he was still impossible to deal with.
Thorough, strategic… he always laid the groundwork, making sure I couldn’t escape.
“Well then, until tomorrow. Regarding the situation in Nympée, I’ll coordinate the response on this end and report to you tomorrow morning. I’ll send a maid to you first thing.”
Then, as if it were just a trivial matter, he casually brought up Nympée—something I had been worried about.
That kind of quick switch was so like him, really.
I nodded in reply.
“… Understood, Lord Runken.”
“What is it?”
“May I ask—those earlier words, were they meant as a proposal?”
He clearly thought the conversation was over.
But for me, it wasn’t.
It felt a little unfair, just saying all that and then walking away.
I was this shaken, and he acted like nothing happened.
Looking up at him while doing my best to hide how flustered I felt, I saw his eyes widen slightly in surprise—but then he nodded honestly.
“Yes.”
“Then, what about the ring? I’ve heard that a proposal is incomplete without one.”
I decided to give him an impossible demand.
Extending my left hand toward him, I smiled, almost challengingly.
Yes, I knew I was being petty.
This just happened—of course he wouldn’t have anything prepared.
Still, I was the only one completely thrown off, and he remained calm. That just didn’t sit right with me.
I wanted him to be at least a little flustered, too.
“….”
As expected, Lord Runken fell silent at my words.
“….”
“….”
It was only a few seconds of silence, but it felt longer.
And honestly, I was the first to feel awkward.
(What am I even doing…)
Just because I was upset about being the only one rattled—I’d acted like a child.
“I’m sorry, that was mean—”
I tried to pull back my extended left hand.
But in that moment—
“Excuse me.”
Lord Runken gently took my left hand.
“Eh—?”
“At the moment…”
Our voices overlapped.
He knelt before me, gazing at my fingers as he continued.
“I don’t have a ring, so for now—please accept this.”
His honey-colored eyes, cast downward, were framed by long silver lashes like a fan.
(He has long eyelashes…)
That random thought flashed through my head, right before—
I felt something soft on my left hand.
More precisely—on my ring finger.
“Nngh—!”
A choked, squeaky noise escaped me.
What just… wait, I know what just happened.
No, I mean, yes—but still—
My brain was a total mess.
Realizing what that soft sensation had been, I was left speechless.
As I stood there stunned, Lord Runken rose quietly to his feet.
There was no trace of embarrassment or shame in him.
Once again, it seemed I was the only one flustered.
“… Would you accept this, just for now?”
“──~~~~!!”
I had no idea what to say.
That Lord Runken—he—would do such a thing…
To kiss the ring finger of my extended hand…
It was so respectful, so solemn—it felt almost sacred.
A brief, delicate kiss that barely lingered.
Still clutching my hand to my chest, I blurted out in my flustered state:
“I-It was a joke!! W-What are you doing?! Y-You just kissed my finger—!?”
My words tumbled out, stammering from sheer confusion.
Lord Runken fell silent for a moment, as if contemplating, and then—
He laughed.
A soft, restrained chuckle at first, then more freely.
“Forgive me. You were simply too adorable—I couldn’t help myself.”
And once again, he hit me with such a brutally direct line.
---
☆
“I never imagined it…”
That Lord Runken could say something so sweet—it was unimaginable.
“Is something the matter, Lady Clementina?”
The one responding to my muttered words was Sarasa, sitting across from me.
I shook my head in reply.
“No… I was just thinking—I really do hope I can enjoy Nympée this time.”
Once again, I was riding in a carriage.
What do you think about this chapter?
