The Bewilderment of the Sacrificial Second Princess

Chapter 28: 1 days of rest

“Here’s the draft!”

As I placed a stack of papers that was about three centimeters thick on the desk, Lord Balk gave a wry smile.

“May I ask, what is the extent of this draft?”

“It’s the complete draft, from start to finish, of everything I could think of!”

I was so excited that I worked on it late into the night and even before going to bed.
Despite this, my dark circles were still visible, even with makeup on, when I submitted the draft three days later.

“I understand.
I’ll go through it and present it to His Highness… So, please take the day off today.
We’ve relied too much on you, Claire-sama.
——Make sure she stays in her room today and eats properly.
Take her away.”

“Uh, but, I wanted to exchange opinions…”

“We can do that after I’ve read it.
It’ll take some time.
In the meantime, you need to rest in your room today.”

Under Lord Balk’s orders, I was escorted to my room by Gwenna.

Aww~! I reached out to grab the door handle again, but a civil servant closed the door of the General Affairs Department.

There was so much I wanted to talk about, but as I realized that it was probably because I was sleep-deprived, I suddenly felt drained.

I am aware of the extent of Lord Balk’s responsibilities, and I know that he is very busy.
However, I shouldn’t interfere with his work and burden him unnecessarily.

I realized that my lack of consideration was a failure of my education as a lady.

Seeing me feeling down, Gwenna brewed some milk tea in the room.

“Claire-sama, is there anything you would like to eat?”

“Something to eat…?”

“Yes, I know the cuisine is different here than in your home country.
I and the kitchen staff would like to prepare some of your favorite dishes, Claire-sama.”

Gwenna added with an apologetic look, “It’s not much, but we’ll do our best.” I gave it some serious thought.

Growing up, I never had a particular interest in food.
With a palate that found everything delicious and a strong stomach, I never gave food much consideration.

I hugged a pillow and leaned awkwardly against the sofa, groaning, “Hmmm…” as I pondered.

It’s tough… To be honest, I prefer the rice dishes here to those in my home country.
Eating meals that are served on big platters or in pots and shared among everyone, rather than following strict etiquette or eating elaborate courses every day, brings me a warm and happy feeling above all else.

I love all kinds of sweets, and the sweets here are delicious too.
The sweets served with tea are a perfect complement to black tea.

“Ah…”

“Any ideas?”

“Well… it might be difficult.
Umm, I’d like to have pudding.”

“Pudding… I’ll ask someone from the kitchen.
There are also descendants of the empire who came during the settlement.”

“I-I know the recipe! I can’t cook at all, but I’ll write it down for you.
Can you make it exactly as written?”

“If you have the recipe, it won’t be a problem.
Please go ahead.”

I wrote the recipe on a piece of paper at my desk and handed it to Gwenna.
Melissa is not here today.

“Please stay in your room.
You can even take a nap if you like.”

“Okay.”

She left, laughing with a tone that reminded me of a mother.

The weather outside the window was beautiful.
This is a warm country, so I opened the window to let in a gentle breeze.

I was staying on the second floor of a building, and a large tree branch loomed in front of me, casting just enough shadow from the sun’s rays.

A man was seated on that branch, and our gazes met.

“Excuse me, young lady, could you keep my presence here a secret?”

“U-Uh, yeah, okay,” I stammered.

“Thanks.
I’m Gauche.
See ya, young lady.”

With an apple in hand, the tanned young man named Gauche moved nimbly from branch to branch like a monkey, and descended the tree.

“…Who was he?”