Chapter 105

Chapter 105

We stepped out together into the marketplace and began walking through the streets. We spotted fried corn, bought some, and each took a piece in hand.

“This is good, isn’t it?”

The young marquis popped a piece of the white, snowflake-shaped puffed corn into his mouth. I nodded with a quiet swell of pride.

“Right? All my children love these.”

“I like it too. Thank you for recommending it.”

“I thought you would.”

We exchanged conversation that felt almost ordinary. Then we started wandering from stall to stall, browsing the curious wares on display. I’d worried things might grow awkward between us, but the atmosphere remained surprisingly fluid.

“By the way, I see quite a few people wearing masks here and there?”

The young marquis glanced around and spoke up. I followed his gaze. Soon, I spotted several people sporting all kinds of masks as if they’d come straight from a masquerade ball. They were laughing, their gestures so exaggerated and elegant they almost seemed to be actually attending a party.

“Commoners are imitating the nobles’ parties. They wear masks probably because masquerade balls leave the strongest impression. The imperial family does hold them quite often, after all.”

“I see. Hmm… so this is all under His Majesty the Emperor’s influence. He enjoys hiding himself and blending in among the people. That’s often why masquerade balls are held.”

“Ah! So that’s why from the very first time I saw you, you were wearing a mask, and it wasn’t even a masquerade ball then!”

I replayed the Crown Prince’s birthday banquet in my mind and called out as if I’d just realized something. Back then, I’d actually thought the Emperor was pretty peculiar — though I never said it out loud. But still, the fact that a man like that could affect commoners’ lives even this way struck me as strangely fascinating. Truly, the Imperial Family must be an object of admiration for the common people.

“Oh, you know what? At the masquerade ball, most nobles can actually recognize His Majesty the Emperor. But since he’s the Emperor, they tend to pretend not to notice.”

The young marquis kept talking.

“Huh. Really?”

The topic intrigued me, and I shot back with a voice full of curiosity. Then it suddenly hit me — I was getting way too excited. My voice had risen a pitch without thinking, and my hands were making big, sweeping gestures before I even realized it. That realization triggered another: our conversation had become far too natural.

‘Wait… doesn’t this feel exactly like we’re just friends?’

I’d turned him down — indirectly, sure — just a little while ago, and he’d been rejected. If his feelings weren’t just shallow, this situation was bordering on odd. No, maybe the young marquis was straining not to make me uncomfortable.

“…Come to think of it, there are a lot of mask stalls, aren’t there?”

Just look at this moment — the moment I fell silent, he naturally picked up the thread to keep the conversation from dying. This was probably his thoughtfulness. So I played along and answered back, acting like nothing was out of the ordinary.

“Right? Of course they’re not made by professional designers, but there are some pretty ones too. There’s always at least one hidden talent at places like this. If you look at that stall over there…”

Huh?

“…His Highness the Crown Prince is here?”

But the oddest thing caught at the tip of my pointing finger — the Crown Prince’s couple. I’d thought we’d bumped into them at that little teahouse, and now our paths were crossing again. I just blinked, watching the young lovers. They were laughing, ‘Ha ha, ho ho,’ picking out masks for each other.

I know it might be inappropriate to say this about royalty, but the Crown Prince looked pretty adorable. Then again, why wouldn’t he be? He could get the most valuable, rarest masks in the world — not just masks; practically any treasure was within his grasp. Yet he was so delighted by those cheap masks, and that was surely because of his lover. That small happiness seemed to ripple over to me, stirring a pleasant warmth.

“They’re really close, aren’t they?”

I spoke while scooping corn into my mouth, eyes still fixed on them.

“I suppose so. Don’t they make a pretty good match?”

The young marquis followed my lead, popping corn into his own mouth as he answered.

“Yes. I’d say the same.”

There they were, so clearly in love with each other. Not tangled up in misunderstanding like Luka and Madam Bandark. Could this lead to marriage down the line? Hereis had said it would be difficult, but in my honest heart, I could only wish them well.

‘…Wait. Huh? What’s that…?’

Then, suddenly, I caught a silhouette pacing behind the stall where they stood. For a moment I thought, ‘A ghost?’ — but no, it didn’t seem that way. The figure drifted restlessly, then stepped into the lamplight.

A man with hair like spun gold, a sun made incarnate, masked his face with a flamboyant disguise — and I knew him at once.

‘Ah… It’s His Majesty the Emperor.’

The Young Marquis’s words — that most nobles could recognize the Emperor even at a masquerade — suddenly made perfect sense. The mask he wore was extravagant to the point of absurdity, and it overlapped heavily with the image I’d carried of him since our last encounter.

Anyway, he seemed deeply anxious about his minor son’s date. So he’d come to spy — covertly (?). Good heavens. I offered a silent prayer of deep sympathy for His Highness’s private life.

“What do we do now?”

Watching the Crown Prince caught in that awkward situation, I ventured a quiet word to the Young Marquis.

“We pretend we didn’t see. We agreed to do the same at the teahouse, didn’t we?”

He answered as if it were nothing. It was a wise and right thing to say. Meddling in the Imperial House’s family affairs could bring nothing good. So I only stole glances at the hidden Emperor and scooped up another handful of fried corn.

‘What?! His Majesty’s been spotted by His Highness the Crown Prince! His Majesty’s panicking!’

‘His Highness is furious — he’s talking back to his father!’

‘His Majesty just cuffed his son on the head!’

Scene by scene, things played out before us. The Young Marquis and I stayed rooted to our spot, watching it all unfold. And all the while, crispy, crunchy — the fried corn was truly delicious.

‘Ah! His Majesty just pulled out a money pouch. There are gold coins inside. Wow. How much would that even be?’

‘No way. He’s handing it to Young Lady Darlin! That sly little kitten — is this a payoff to make her disappear?!’

The corn crunched, shattering in my mouth. Somehow, I found myself growing angry, projecting my emotions onto His Majesty’s every move. Wasn’t this too much? They were just young lovers… Come to think of it, His Majesty had also arranged a marriage talk for the Duke with another woman. I know it was mere formality, but — I was right there! It simply shouldn’t have happened! (?)

‘Huh? Young Lady Darlin took the money!’

A shocking twist. The play hit its great turning point. I was so startled I couldn’t even chew my corn—it just scattered from my fingers, kernel by kernel. The only sound was the crunching coming from beside me.

‘Huh. So the young lady used that to buy a mask.’

‘Ah. She bought three to share with His Majesty and His Highness. So His Majesty was the one buying the masks.’

Luckily, the misunderstanding cleared up quickly. The emperor started leading the two children out of the marketplace. A hollow but happy ending.

“Shall we go? Let’s head that way.”

As the curtain fell on the play, the young marquis turned to look at me and spoke.

“Yes.”

I turned my steps in the direction he pointed.

“Let’s agree that our little peek into the imperial house’s private affairs stays between us.”

“Of course. Naturally.”

He moved closer, leaning in to whisper, and I nodded deeply in agreement.

After that, we headed to the restaurant district for a meal. Leaving the restaurant, we watched a shell-game hustler and agreed he seemed to be cheating. At the dart game booth, the young marquis won a giant doll and handed it to me. I, on the other hand, could only pull out a single candy ball and pass it to him with embarrassment.

The whole thing was quite fun. An unexpected pleasure on a day I hadn’t planned.

“It’s getting late now. Shall we head back? Young Marquis.”

But it was time to return. Besides, the sun was already sinking low on the horizon.

“Time flew by too fast. I guess that means today was special for me… How was it for you, Laura?”

The young marquis faced me and spoke slowly.

“Thanks to you, I had a wonderful time. Oh! And by the way. I bought a mask earlier. It’s a bit silly now that we’re about to leave, but it’s really pretty. I’ll give it to you as a gift. A token of thanks for winning me that doll.”

I pulled out the white mask I’d hidden in my bosom and held it out to him. I’d bought it when our paths briefly crossed. The clean, minimalist design had caught my eye. It seemed to suit the young marquis’s image well.

“Thank you.”

He reached out and took the mask. And just then, a few children sprinted past us, brushing by.

“I can’t wait for the fireworks!”

“Hurry up! We need a good spot to watch! The sun’s almost down!”

Their voices faded, growing distant.

“…Once the sun sets, the dead will come out. But with so many people here, aren’t ghosts scarce?”

Having apparently overheard them, the young marquis asked me a question.

“No. It’s a dead person, so it looks like a person. That’s why many ghosts like places with lots of people. In fact, they tend to gather in such spots.”

“Then, when the fireworks go off, will they gather beneath them too?”

“Hmm… Usually, they move through the dark, so I don’t think they’d like lights that shine too brightly.”

“I see.”

He nodded at that, then looked at me and gave a light, amused smirk. Not knowing what that smile meant, I could only offer a faint smile in return. The young marquis paused in that state for a moment before speaking again.

“Shall we head back?”