11 – Midnight in the Garden

As July arrived, the real heat of summer began to set in in the Empire.

In this scorching heat, taking a nap in a place where the wind blows cool is the best summer resort.

Glance.

But there are things I said before,

Glance.

There are some guys who keep glancing at me like that, so

Glance.

Don’t keep pressing me like that, you witch.

Go, simple words.

“It’s a good day for a picnic.”

Paaah.

… I have never experienced the monsoon season in this life.

Basically, there are few areas in the Empire where it rains for such a long time.

However, the face of the witch in front of me was a smile that the sun was rising in the summer sky after the rainy season, which I had never experienced before.

… sh*t.

This is the moment when the proverb in the world of Korea, “You can’t spit on a smiling face,” Really comes to mind.

“I can’t go far because I don’t have time. Are you okay?”

“Of course, Maximilian.”

As long as I can go on a picnic, the reaction is that anywhere is fine.

Did you still want to go on a picnic?

‘Does this mean acting?’

Maybe the black hair hanging from the button on my chest that day was an illusion?

If that’s not the case….

‘Shrike… Is it something similar?’

Now, only one strand comes out from time to time, but sooner or later the moment it is engulfed by the shadow of the end, will that ominous black hair cover all of it?

It was a complicated feeling.

“Maximilian?”

“… You look different than usual.”

“Ah….”

Priscilla began to hesitate with an awkward expression.

I slowly looked at Priscilla from top to bottom.

She usually wears her hair in a half ponytail, giving off a graceful impression, but today, she seems to have put her hair to the side as if she was worried that she would sweat due to her outside activities.

It must have been a somewhat ominous name to call short-lived hair.

‘What a strange memory.’

I couldn’t understand the sensibility of people from other worlds why they called such natural and elegant hair that way.

‘Hmm….’

She was also wearing a pure white dress that was lighter than usual and gave off a refreshing feel.

It was a dress that was a bit bolder than usual, but the legs that were as thin and elastic as a deer hidden in the dress were really impressive.

I will definitely go on a picnic today!

… It could be said that it was a decoration that conveyed such an intention.

“I think I would have been cursed if I had canceled it.”

I spit out a bit of thorns in my joke.

But Priscilla just bowed her head in shame and made her blush.

“Did you not think I would cancel the picnic on a whim?”

That’s why I asked him without realizing it.

What on earth did you believe in and worked so hard to prepare for the picnic?

“Yes!”

Priscilla gave a slightly stronger-willed answer than usual, and she smiled warmly.

She had a smile that would blind her eyes if she kept looking at it.

… Tsk.

I licked her tongue inside and then strode out through the hallway of the Dragon Hall, leaving Priscilla there.

“Ah….”

Priscilla started chasing after me, blushing with her slightly flustered eyes.

Maybe it was because it wasn’t the usual corseted clothes, so it didn’t seem too difficult to walk.

From noble mtl dot com

Yeah, so you can skip the escort.

Since it’s summer, it’s hot when your skin touches it, so if you ask why later, you can justify that.

“This is….”

The place I headed to with Priscilla, who was chasing after me like a newborn chick, was the garden of Biryonggwan.

“Are you dissatisfied?”

“No, just….”

“Just?”

“….”

Priscilla glanced at me with a surprising look, then smiled softly as if she was nothing.

“It’s a boring place with not much to enjoy. I don’t have time, so I have nowhere else to go.”

Even if the crown prince wants to go on a picnic in a light mood, a large number of people move in the imperial castle in preparation for an unexpected situation.

So, if you wanted to go on a picnic, you should have mentioned it at least a week in advance.

However, due to the epidemic, there was no accident in that direction.

However, when I saw the guy who had come to me perfectly prepared for the picnic, the words that I would cancel the picnic couldn’t come out of my mouth, so I had no choice but to bring him here.

“I like this place, Maximilian.”

Priscilla said that and began to look around her garden with a warm expression.

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Because this garden is full of love.”

According to Annette’s investigation, Priscilla seems to have a fairly deep knowledge of flowers.

It was a bit of fresh information for me, who had built a wall against flowers.

“Maybe. I don’t know, because I don’t know.”

“… Please forgive me if I’m a little more rowdy than usual today, Maximilian-sama.”

Her mouth is begging for forgiveness, but her eyes are full of starlight.

It seemed to be full of heart to explain the splendor of this garden to me who was not interested.

Okay, let’s hear it sometime.

With that in mind, I lightly nodded her head and accepted her request.

“Whoops.”

Priscilla continued her explanation with a smile that was prettier than most of the flowers blooming nearby.

“This flower is—”

Priscilla followed an encyclopedic-like explanation as to whether she would like to become a botanist in the future, she asked.

What kind of flower is grown in which region, when it blooms, where it is popular, and what kind of flower language it has.

Information that is difficult for most men to hear came pouring out of her mouth like a downpour.

“And that flower— ah.”

When I looked at her with her expression that she was a little fed up with me, Priscilla lowered her head with a red-hot expression, as if she finally noticed her mistake.

“I’m sorry.”

“I said yes, so there is no need to apologize.”

“Ugh….”

Are you the type who gets excited unexpectedly when a topic you like comes up?

It was the first time I got to know her in a different way.

“Yes, I am familiar with the flowers in this garden. But why is there love in this place?”

Basically, I don’t go in or out except for Biryonggwan.

That’s why I don’t know what the gardens in other places are like.

But I don’t think there will be that much of a difference from the garden here.

But why talk about affection?

“The arrangement here is lovely.”

“Are you adorable?”

This is the first time I’ve seen someone use such an expression for an object.

What the hell are you talking about, witch?

“Would you mind if I walk a bit?”

I looked at a nearby lady-in-waiting and handed over the parasol.

Then, naturally, he put a parasol over Priscilla’s head.

“Thank you, Maximilian….”

Don’t look at me with such a moist gaze, witch.

It’s just because the imperial summer is hot.

I started walking slowly through the garden with Priscilla.

“This galderland labyrinth is a simple structure.”

“Yes, it is a bit boring composition. It’s a structure that even children can easily escape from.”

It is said that the garden of the great nobility enjoying banquets is a little more splendid and grand.

“Yes, it is a maze made for children.”

“… For a child?”

“I heard that there was no maze like this in the garden of Biryong Hall.”

From the beginning, I had no interest in gardens like this.

And since there was a maze since I was little, I thought there was a maze here from the beginning.

But you mean there was no maze originally?

‘Did your mother take care of it….’

If you think about it, my mother also liked landscaping and gardening.

I thought it was just an elegant hobby suitable for a mother who is as beautiful as a flower….

As I walked through the small maze while listening to Priscilla’s explanation, I remembered the moment when I was a child and walked through this place holding her mother’s hand.

There are few places that can be called a fork in the road, but I urged her mother with her heart pounding as if she were exploring.

To me at the time, the fence made of this plant was infinitely high, but it must have been a structure that could be seen clearly from my mother’s height.

But you used to laugh and join me in my adventures.

“The trees planted here are naturally integrated so as not to harm the surrounding landscape. Yet it provides a cool shade for visitors.”

There are trees planted in the wide open space that appears after exiting the maze.

At around 3pm, the shade of this tree tilted nicely, creating a nice space to have tea at the table there.

It was the space my mother liked.

“It is a layout that is considerate of children who are tired after coming out of the maze.”

I just thought it was my mother’s taste.

“The plants planted here are not ornamental.”

What is it if it is not ornamental?

“It is an herb that soothes the mind and body.”

It is a plant that is not particularly needed in the garden.

Ah, I see.

I was installed as the Crown Prince from the moment I was born, and since then I have received too much education for a child to handle.

Did my mother worry about me like that?

“The garden of Biryonggwan is not a garden for receiving guests. Just….”

It is a small resting place for the owner staying at Biryonggwan.

“I see….”

This place was managed by my deceased mother, and she has maintained the same appearance.

It’s just that I wasn’t very interested in the garden, and I ordered it to be kept so as not to forget my late mother.

To me, it was just a thorn-like space in my heart….

“I am tired after walking for a long time. Let me have some tea.”

“Yes, Maximilian.”

“I want to drink that herb tea today. Get ready.”

Ah, yes.

Is this the healthy, grass-smelling tea that my mother used to drink?

“… Thank you, Priscilla.”

I said that in a very low voice, then drank my tea and picked up what I had said.

“… No, Maximilian.”

But as if it had reached her, only a calm and gentle smile returned.

It was a smile that made me feel really complicated.

Looking at that smile, I twitched my eyebrows, which kept getting heavier.

Why do I suddenly feel drowsy….

If you fall asleep here, you can’t….

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