As expected, Ariel barged into the Second Prince's palace as soon as she received my letter. It had been only 30 minutes since I sent it.
Considering the time it took for the messenger to travel, it was as good as her coming right away. I was glad I had prepared in advance, knowing this would happen.
Guided by a maid, Ariel entered the glass greenhouse and looked around with a fascinated expression.
It was probably because the scenery was a bit unusual for a garden. As expected, Ariel sat down and immediately asked,
"This place is decorated in a very unique way."
"The first time Theo and I met was in the forest, so I decorated it to be similar to that."
"Really? That's so romantic!"
"If you go further inside, there's a pond made like a river. There are fish too, so I'll show you later."
"Okay!"
The fish here probably weren't that different from the ones outside, but Ariel nodded happily nonetheless. Her positive and bright energy, like the heroine in the original story, made the surroundings feel brighter.
"What kind of tea would you like to drink? Or, do you have any favorite snacks?"
"I'll gratefully eat whatever you give me! I eat everything well."
"Anything" is the most difficult thing in the world... Tea was still an area I didn't know much about, so I decided to pass this difficulty on to the maid.
"Give her anything. She eats everything well."
"Y-yes, I understand!"
Sorry. I don't know much either, so I couldn't help it...
A little later, the maid returned and offered the refreshments, subtly watching Ariel's expression. What should I ask first...?
"It's all yours, so eat comfortably."
"Yes, thank you!"
It would be suspicious to pry into something from the beginning, so I decided to start with casual small talk first.
"After you left that time, I got permission from Theo."
"I'm glad he gave you permission."
"Yeah, you said we looked good together back then. When I told him that, he gave me permission."
"Oh my, then I should say it again when I see His Highness next time. I need to earn points so I can be invited to the next tea time!"
"I'll try too."
Ariel giggled, and I couldn't help but smile as if she were my younger sister. On the other hand, I was also genuinely worried. She must be suffering from the conservative nobles and Rosetta's bullying right now.
"How is it living in the Imperial Palace?"
"It's so great. I've lived in the temple since I was young. There are so many amazing and beautiful things that I feel like time is passing too quickly."
"Is there anyone bullying you?"
Ariel hesitated slightly and shook her head. It was the same in the original story. Because of her kind nature, she even hid from Ricardo who was bullying her, fearing that she might receive some kind of disadvantage. So it was natural for her to lie, but that made me feel even more sorry for her.
"Really?"
I hardened my face and asked, hoping it would have some effect. Ariel, who had been watching my expression for a moment, asked worriedly.
"...What happens if you lie to the Divine Beast...?"
Looking at her innocent face, I couldn't help but laugh.
"You don't have to answer if you're worried. I think I heard enough."
"Well... it's not bullying, but there are people who sometimes do difficult things, but it's okay. I think they might be upset that I, a commoner, am staying in the Empress's Palace. Nobles are sensitive to these things. Moreover, those who admire Ricardo probably don't like me. Ricardo is handsome, so it's natural to admire someone like him. I understand."
Her words, spoken with an awkward smile, were probably Ariel's true feelings. For Ariel, who had grown up in the temple since she was young, the teachings of the temple would be everything, and as a devout priestess, she would have learned to always be careful with her mindset and actions.
Understanding and accepting others would also be part of that, but even so, she shouldn't accept discrimination or exclusion.
"Don't accept actions that aren't natural as natural. Even if everyone says it's okay, you, the person involved, should say it's not okay. You have to take care of your own heart."
Ariel, who had been startled and hesitant, blushed and raised the corners of her lips.
"Thank you for saying that. But I'm really okay. Sometimes I'm upset, but I can handle it. Besides, Ricardo takes good care of me."
Come to think of it, she's calling him by his name, not His Highness.
"'Ricardo'?"
"Ah, yes. He said that we'll be seeing each other for a long time, and His Highness is too formal, so he told me to call him by his name to build a closer relationship in the future."
What closer relationship...! Wow, he was a fox too... At this point, isn't it a reasonable suspicion that the blood of a fire fox is mixed in the bloodline of Artes? Ariel, knowing that it was consideration based on affection, blushed and pretended not to notice. No, now is not the time to be impressed.
"How is Ricardo?"
"He's a wonderful person. He's also kind and warm. I'm worried because he seems to be having a hard time these days. I've heard about the terrible things that the wicked people have done. I also heard that Ricardo is investigating it. It seems to be a burden to him."
I didn't have anything to say about that, so I just nodded. It felt like a deception to comfort Ariel by saying that things would be fine when I didn't want him to do well in that matter, and I didn't want to lie to her. So I changed the subject.
"Are things going well with Ricardo?"
"Oh my, is it obvious?"
"Not really, it's probably because I'm a Divine Beast."
"I see..."
Ariel fanned herself with her hand to cool down her bright red face. It must be nice to be young...
"So... I think Ricardo is a good person. It's hard not to admire someone like that. I don't know about Ricardo, but..."
"He probably likes you too."
"R-really?"
"He couldn't take his eyes off you. Didn't you know?"
Ariel's face turned even redder than before. It wouldn't be strange if she exploded soon.
"I, I thought that might be the case, but he's a prince and I'm a priestess of commoner status, so I thought it was a misunderstanding."
"You're not just a priestess, you're a saint. And I don't think Ricardo would discriminate based on status."
"That's true."
"Besides, you're pretty and kind, so why are you worried about that? It seems like the only thing you lack is confidence."
"Do you really think so?"
When I nodded readily, Ariel smiled brightly. In fact, it was no exaggeration to say that Ariel was someone who wouldn't be a waste to put in front of any man in this world. Who else would date Ricardo if not you?
"Thank you. I feel more confident thanks to you. I'll be brave."
"Okay, if it goes well, remember that it's also thanks to me."
"Of course. Oh, are things going well with Shuian-nim?"
"What do you mean?"
"With the Second Prince..."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
Was there anything for me to be doing well? Ariel, who had been staring at my face as if exploring it, suddenly burst into laughter.
"Ah, I see. That's good too. It's said that the more difficult it is, the more it burns. Next time I see the Second Prince, I'll tell him I'm cheering him on, so I can earn some points."
"What are you even saying..."
As we talked, quite a bit of time had already passed. I thought it was time to get to the point, so I subtly brought it up.
"How's the atmosphere in the Empress's Palace these days? Is everything okay? Thanks to you, Ricardo succeeded in contracting with a high-level spirit."
"...Is he okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"Ricardo is competing with the Second Prince, isn't he?"
"What does that matter? You're on Ricardo's side, and I'm on Theo's side, but that doesn't matter between us. As long as we don't do anything shameful to each other."
It was true that Ricardo and Theodore were competing, but I didn't want that to affect the relationship between Ariel and me. Especially if it was a fair competition.
The Empress was the one who was being cowardly, not the competition itself. As long as Ricardo didn't change his mind, my thoughts wouldn't change either.
"Yes, then I'll feel relieved and be on Ricardo's side."
"Yeah, do whatever you want. I'll also tell Theo if there's any useful information from our conversation."
"Then I'll tell him too!"
"Okay."
Ariel smiled brightly, as if relieved by my assertion.
"There haven't been any significant achievements yet. I heard that he's training to increase the total amount of spirit power because he doesn't have enough to contract with the Spirit King. It's a training where he puts spirit power into used magic stones to make spirit stones. By completely consuming the spirit power in his body and recovering it, the total amount increases."
"Oh, really? Training and earning money, it's killing two birds with one stone."
"Earning money?"
"Even though the usability is lower than magic stones, spirit stones are rare because there are few spirit users. So I heard that spirit stones are quite valuable."
"I received a gift from Ricardo, so it was a precious thing."
Ariel smiled shyly, happy at the thought that she had received something precious and meaningful.
"The rest are collected by Duke Raymond when he visits, and I think he takes them for trading."
Raymond collects them? Why? I hid my puzzled expression and asked again.
"Duke Raymond collects them all at once? You don't know where he uses them?"
"No, why?"
"No, I guess the Duke is trading them for him. Ricardo is busy."
"Yes, Duke Raymond seems to be helping the Empress a lot too. He visits the palace often, so they must be very close."
"I guess so."
Raymond even visits the Empress's Palace to collect spirit stones? If he needed them, he could just send the items separately, right? It's a bit suspicious that he would visit separately to take the spirit stones... I calmly sipped my tea. It was fortunate that there was a harvest.
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