Episode 45

 “ . . . . . “

“I like Detrie a lot. But you couldn’t eben eat the chocolet founshain.” (But you couldn’t even eat the chocolate fountain.)

It was in this moment when my great wish of turning the garden of withered roses into a dessert garden was revealed. Dietrich let out a small sigh at what I said and flicked my forehead.

“I don’t need anything like that.”

“And Dahria is powr.” (And Dahlia is poor.)

As I added with tears streaming down my face, Dietrich quickly denied it.

“No. Who the hell said that?”

“That’s what sishter and Yuri said.” 

Dietrich’s fierce eyes turned towards Veronica and Yuric when he heard my answer. Yuric was still being punished so Veronica colyly smiled and stepped forward.

“Isn’t it the truth? Father said he had cut off his support to keep you in check.”

“It’s not to the point where we’re desperate enough for trash like this.”

“Trash, you say? They’re lottery tickets worth 3 Blois. I bought it for her.”

Veronica laughed like she was proud of that fact; however, it seemed that it wasn’t the right time to bring that up. Dietrich’s face contorted in an instant.

“Oh my, don’t you look handsome?” 

But Veronica wasn’t as afraid of Dietrich as Yuric was. She simply responded with a smile.

‘As expected of our sister.’

Veronica, with a smile like a dried rose plastered on her face, touched the shadow of Yuric’s ankle with a fan.

Yuric exhaled and fell on the floor when the pressure was released.

“I’m sorry I took my eyes off of Anissa. Mother’s henchman happened to be here. I had to avoid getting seen.”

“ . . . . . “

“It’s still a secret that we’re cooperating with you in return for the demons you gave us.”

Dietrich turned his back from her without even responding.

I hurriedly grabbed the lottery tickets and tried to follow him, but Charlotte jumped out from the crowd and blocked me with a stiff face. 

“Huh?”

She stood in front of me for a while as if she had forgotten what she was about to say before croaking out her words

“You are a kid from Lagrange?”

It was a question that contained a subtle hint of criticism. I couldn’t believe that such a reaction came out from the woman who was called a wise angel. Taken aback, I looked up at Charlotte with confusion in my round eyes.

“Lagrange is a wicked family that does nothing but evil.”

I rolled my eyes instead of answering her cold words.

‘She’s like this too, huh.’

I wasn’t really hurt. I already knew that Lagrange was not your everyday, normal family, so even if others were to swear at them a hundred times, it didn’t really affect me.

“Well, what abowt it?”

“. . . . . but how come you don’t look bad like them? I can see it.”

‘Ah, she also possesses Eredia’s ability.’

I shrugged off Charlotte who was talking to herself. Perhaps she isn’t as capable of reading other people’s aura as I am.

There were several times when my heart thought of bad things.

“Anyway, a promise is a promise, so I’ll tell you about the prophecy.”

Charlotte leaned towards me and whispered.

“When the woman with blue eyes becomes the bride of the north, comes salvation.”

Charlotte glanced at me who was looking at her with my mouth wide open, dumbfounded by her words.

“It’s a rumored prophecy circling in the temple, so it’s not really a secret.”

My eyes widened at what she had whispered to me.

“Of course you might not know about it, but have you ever heard of anything as of lately? It’s rare to find blue eyes here in the north.”

Well, as a matter of fact, Yuric was the only one in Lagrange who had blue eyes. Yuric couldn’t possibly be a bride though.

I didn’t answer Charlotte’s question immediately and shrugged my shoulders.

“This must be the first time you’ve heard of it since there is no temple here.”

“Yeah.”

“I’m afraid I’ll just have to go back. There are plenty of fake oracles[1] going around.” 

No, it’s not a fake.

If the prophecy was something that even someone with a divine power like Charlotte cared about, it couldn't be a fake. 

I answered earlier that I didn’t know, but it’s actually a prophecy I’ve heard of.

It was mentioned briefly in ‘The Rose War of Men’ and Josef once asked me about it..

When I was reading the book, I thought it was a plot device used to emphasize that the relationship of Dietrich and Charlotte were fated.

Charlotte’s eyes would turn blue whenever she used her divine powers and she became the bride of Dietrich, the North itself, and Lagrange— 

‘Hmm. However, the Lagrange will eventually collapse.’

Well, maybe because there’s no way that oracles would be perfectly correct..

I looked at her, blinking my eyes slowly, and turned my head away.

‘It seems like you don’t know that the prophecy is related to you.’

I shrugged my shoulders as I watched her walk away without even saying goodbye to me. 

────── 〔✿〕──────

“Detrie.”

“ . . . . . “

“Detrie, awe you still mad?”

Dietrich was silent all the way home. I started talking to ease his mood.

“Anissa had a lot of fun today.”

“What did you do?”

“I bought wottery tickets, and looked for balls, and so on.”

I got excited that Dietrich was finally answering.

“It’s really been so long since we last meet. Anissa wanted to see brother.”

 “ . . . . . It’s been a while.”

I rubbed my cheeks at Dietrich’s hand which I was holding tightly. Fortunately, he didn’t let go of mine. He just looked down at me with an indifferent look as I grinned.

“We saw each other a few days ago.”

“But you didn’t play with Anissa bawk then.”

Ever since Derek found out about my existence, he’d been actively avoiding me, so it’s really been a long time since we conversed like this.  I grumbled and shook Dietrich’s hand.

“Detrie avoiwded me.”

“I didn’t.”

“Yea, you liar. Farty.”

“Ha.”

Dietrich finally laughed at what said. Of course, it was a ridiculous laugh, but that small smile made me feel better.

“If I win the wottery, I’ll buy brother something delishous.”

“I don’t need it.”

Dietrich replied coldly but paused for a moment to allow me to catch up with my slow pace. I jumped with a thump at the road paved with red stones and landed next to him.

“Uwaaa.”

As we walked back to the same street that Yuric and I passed, I saw a toy store that I didn’t notice earlier.

There was a sign board decorated with cherry light bulbs, but the dolls displayed on the large show window[2] caught my attention.

‘Cute!’

I stood in place and stuck my feet on the ground as my eyes fixed at the show window.  Of course, Dahlia was supplied with dolls for the children of Lagrange, but they were so old that the ears and eyes were missing.

In addition, the raccoon stuffed doll sitting next to the nutcracker was looking very luxurious, unlike the dolls rolling around Dahlia Palace.

Its soft fur was glossy as if it would melt when it’s touched, and its black eyes shimmered like glass beads.

“What’s wrong?”

Dietrich turned around wondering why I had stopped. I pointed at the tail of the doll and called over in excitement. The chubby striped tail was so adorable that I was unable to suppress my squeal.

“What’s the matter with you? What about it?”

“Ish so cute!!!”

In my past life, when I was young, I asked my mother to buy me a doll just like this.

‘Huh? Dolls?’

‘Un. I wan dat one. Big sishter has one.’

‘Your sister knew multiplication at your age! You’re not even good at addition, are you?’

‘Because addition is hawd . . . . I’m sowry.’

‘Oh you’re making me frustrated! You don’t get to eat today!’ (WTF)

I couldn’t do addition properly on that day, and was starved for two days just because I asked them to buy me a doll. I never told anyone if I wanted something ever since then.

‘Let’s not think about it.’

“. . . . . do you want it?”

At Dietrich’s question, I checked the price tag of the raccoon doll first like a habit. 

[50 Shilling]

‘Oh my god! What kind of doll costs 50 Shillings?’

The desire to get the raccoon doll subsided when I checked the price tag. I shook my head vigorously and looked up to Dietrich who had come to my side.

“No . . . . . “

“Why not? You were drooling at it just now.”

“Dahria is powr.” (Because Dahlia is poor.)

Dietrich lifted a corner of his mouth as if he found my words nonsensical. Then, he struck the show window with his fist before I could stop him.

“Heek!”

The shattering sound of the glass window resounded and the pieces scattered in all directions, but none of them reached Dietrich and me.

‘No, that’s not the problem right now!’

I looked at Dietrich’s fist which was grazed and bleeding. His face still remained blank, as if he didn’t even know he was hurt. 

“B-Brother! Hand! Y-your hand!”

At my cry, Dietrich looked back to his hand. Drops of blood dripped down and stained the floor, but he wiped it off on his pants nonchalantly without even groaning.

He pulled out the raccoon doll by putting his other hand that was not bleeding through the broken window.

“Here.”

“ . . . . . “

I stared up blankly at Dietrich without accepting the raccoon doll that was as big as my body.

‘You’re really looking like a villain . . .’

Where can you find a guy crazy enough to break a shop window and steal a doll in the middle of the day? Dietrich placed one hand in his pocket and began shaking the doll as soon as I didn’t accept it.

“Are you not going to take it? Should I throw it away?”

 

Notes:

[1] Oracle – a female priest who gave people wise but often mysterious advice from god. Prophecy – a statement that says what is going to happen in the future. Just laying it out here in case someone wonders why there’s both the oracle and prophecy in the translation.

[2] A show window is that window you see looking onto the street where goods are displayed.