Come and Cry at My Funeral - Chapter 51
Raspberries and the line
When the late afternoon sun caressed Deneb’s high castle, a small tea table was prepared in the inner courtyard.
And while Albireo, the son of this family, wore a beaming smile, his counterpart looked somewhat withered.
Ultimately, the duchess agreed to have tea with him at the inner courtyard.
It should be noted that the duchess tried to back out one last time, though.
<Sir Deneb. I am already married, so why must it be just the two of us…>
<You are being too harsh, Madam. What sort of serious thought are you harboring?>
<…>
<I am being sincere in my treatment of a dear guest. To think that not only my forehead but also my dignity are put to shame…>
<No, nevermind. Let’s have tea.>
It was rare for anyone to escape when Albireo set his mind to be mischievously charming. The duchess sighed, removing the veil she wore at the temple from her face.
“Sir Deneb. Are you sure you called me here because of what happened at the spring?”
“Well, that’s one of the reasons.”
“May I ask what the other reasons are?”
The duchess’s tone was cautious, but her eyes were searching as if to ask, ‘Is it about a debt?’
Albireo, with a joyful laugh, sincerely responded.
“I just want to spend some time with you, my lady!”
“In what way…?”
“Well, it’s interesting, isn’t it? We are beneficial to each other.”
“…?”
The duchess seemed not to understand at all. Albireo just laughed to himself upon seeing her puzzled face.
‘Really, all the people from your territory are all too uptight to know about these things.’
Albireo decided to answer very kindly.
“The joy derived from friendship among men and intimacy with ladies is different. And I like receiving ladies’ affections.”
“Umm…”
“I never get tired of praise for my looks and character.”
“What if you receive a challenge to a duel because of that?”
“Oh, that’s fine. I never cross the line.”
Occasionally in the court, there were men who, after throwing flirtatious remarks at ladies, physically crossed the line. Such a man was considered inferior by Albireo’s standards.
And very rarely, there were men whose feelings even became genuinely sincere. Such a man was not just inferior but outright tacky.
Albireo could confidently assert he was neither.
“Ladies seek me out because to have an enjoyable and unburdensome time, and it’s also a good way to provoke their cold husbands.”
“…”
“Their husbands know this, so there’s no bloodshed.”
“Sir, you are really…”
“Really what?”
The duchess frowned, holding her teacup.
“…Like a swan.”
“Oh. Shall I take that as you find my appearance as flawless as a white bird?”
“Please take it in the good sense you wish for.”
“Haha!”
Albireo burst into a hearty laugh at the retort. Coming back home was a whimsical decision, but he found an unexpectedly interesting conversation partner!
‘And really, what beautiful eyes?’
He had thought this before, but being in front of her, he thought it again.
Just now, her flaxen hair and eyelashes subtly sparkled in the sunlight.
‘Not as sophisticated as Princess Atria, who is said to be her half-sister, but…’
If she had been raised as a noble from a young age, perhaps she would have been the first love of many young noblemen.
‘Hmm. But those people who called the Madam ugly, did they actually see her with their own eyes?’
Even at the wedding, all night long was spent critiquing the appearances of the ‘bastard’ against the elegance of the ‘true ducal lady’.
Even now, he had overheard some of the knights from Arcturus muttering as they passed by.
As if it’s such a hardship because of that ‘ugly duckling’ in someone else’s domain.
‘Really now. And monster hunting is originally the duty of their master’s family, isn’t it?’
Albireo snorted and pondered over the ‘ugliness’ that people chewed over.
And looking at the lady again, he figured out why people had given such harsh criticism.
‘It’s because living as a commoner made you look worn out.’
In the Celestica Empire, the life of a commoner is fundamentally arduous.
From drawing water early in the morning, starting fires, to doing all sorts of menial tasks for the domain lord.
The youth of a commoner passes in a flash, and no matter how beautiful, an unmanaged appearance comes off as wild and base.
Thus, to the eyes of the nobles and knights, that woman appeared ‘ugly’.
But whether born a bastard or whatever, this woman was now a lady.
‘Once you have servants and your body eases, that weariness will peel away like a husk, right?’
Albireo smirked to himself, thinking that people’s opinions would change then.
Because he recognized that this woman was a diamond in the rough before they could!
It felt like recognizing the future value of a masterpiece.
‘I wonder how it will feel then. Will the feeling I had at the spring continue?’
Then, wouldn’t the duke suffer quite a bit if Albireo and Freesia were to go to the imperial court as a couple?
Recalling the duke, who was good at keeping a stern face, Albireo laughed to himself.
‘Haha, that would be interesting.’
But his smile faltered as he remembered what he had seen at the spring.
The last scene he saw was indeed marks of injury on her legs.
Certainly, as if someone had whipped her recently…
“……”
Albireo silently drank his tea, looking away.
In general, he enjoyed flirting with women.
And to enjoy it while keeping boundaries, one must not imagine the unspeakable secrets of a woman.
But what could he do, now that it’s right before his eyes…
‘It wasn’t the duke who did that, was it?’
His mother seemed to have some guesses.
When he had casually asked, she complained as if she had been waiting.
<Who else would do such a thing there? Electra Arcturus, that boar of a woman.>
