Please Answer Me - Chapter 154

[He’s the one who stole Princess Lysa from the palace and ran away. What else would you call him if not crazy?]

[Exactly. I thought his father was crazy about women, but it turns out the son is even crazier!]

At that moment, Rashid quietly set his fork down. In fact, during their journey to this place, they encountered several people who discussed them as a source of gossip, but this was the first time someone openly insulted him like this.

[We were so close to losing the country. What would have happened if Lysa had attacked out of rage for losing the princess? We’re lucky they just let it go.]

[You’re right.]

The lively atmosphere seemed to die down a bit, but the loudest man in the group began talking again.

[Oh, that crazy guy even snuck into the Lysa palace, climbed the walls to the princess’s bedroom window, and sang her a serenade!]

In an instant, Rashid sprang to his feet, but Rosetta urgently stopped him. “Rashid, if you confront them here, our identities might be exposed! Please, just hold back!”

Rashid sat back down, but he couldn’t contain the sound of his angry, labored breathing. He gritted his teeth and growled, “Asion… I’m going to kill him.”

It all started when the bard Asion composed a new song. The problem was that the song was full of exaggerations and clever lies. For example, it claimed that Rashid had sung a serenade to seduce Rosetta or that he had snuck into the Lysa palace and fallen in love with the princess at first sight—all of which were unbearably embarrassing stories.

“We should just go back to our room.”

There was no point in listening to any more of this, so they were about to leave quietly when the man’s voice rang out again.

[But since the princess came to the Quat tribe, everything has been going well! The number of monsters has decreased, business is booming, and the sea is yielding more fish. All thanks to that crazy guy, so let’s drink to the Riga and Rigaina!]

Cheers echoed not just from their group but from other parts of the room as well. Unable to join in, the two hurriedly returned to their room.

Even after they returned, Rosetta couldn’t stop laughing, while Rashid sat with his face buried in his hands, groaning.

“How long do I have to keep hearing things like that? It’s driving me crazy.”

“They’re just saying things they don’t fully understand. Why do you let it bother you so much?”

“Because that song made me look ridiculous.”

Rashid’s deep frustration started to annoy Rosetta.

“Then you should have just married that pretty merchant’s daughter instead of me.”

As she scoffed, Rashid immediately lifted his head, his expression clearly saying, ‘Not this again.’

“If you had, you wouldn’t be teased like this, right?”

The origin of this trouble was Mark’s drunken rambling a few months ago. That day, Mark had been thoroughly drunk and slurred out something strange.

“In fact, Riga almost became the son-in-law of the Artz Merchant Guild when he went to fetch Rigaina.”

At the time, Rosetta, who had been stroking her pregnant belly, was wide-eyed in surprise.

“What do you mean by that?”

“That young lady was so persistent that I really thought Riga would stay there permanently… Mmph!”

Mark was quickly dragged away by Sika. Rashid, genuinely flustered, began to offer all sorts of explanations. Although Rosetta knew it was nothing serious, she couldn’t resist teasing him about it from time to time. It had become a habit, as it wasn’t often that Rashid became so flustered.

Rosetta had hoped to see him in quite a difficult situation this time as well, but oddly enough, he didn’t. Instead, he looked at her with a hard expression.

Under his cold gaze, Rosetta instinctively shrank back.

Was he really angry? She thought she should stop teasing him about that merchant girl from now on.

“…Rosetta.”

“Yes, yes…”

“If you have any other wishes besides seeing the sea, tell me. I’ll grant them.”

Rosetta blinked at the sudden offer. What was he talking about all of a sudden?

“But in return, I’d like you never to mention that woman again.”

Rosetta eventually burst out laughing. She laughed so hard that tears started to form.

Rashid waited patiently until she had calmed down before asking again, “So, what’s your wish?”

“Then, drink with me sometime.”

Rashid stared blankly at her, clearly taken aback. “Drink?”

“Yes, like that whiskey earlier. I’ve always wanted to try it properly, but you keep stopping me. I know you don’t like alcohol, but it’s my wish, so could you drink with me?”

“…Rosetta, a wish is supposed to be something good for you, not something that’s good for me.”

“Why would drinking be good for you and not for me?”

“……”

Rashid didn’t answer that question. Instead, he gave her a mysterious smile and promised that he would.

That night, Rashid gently stroked Rosetta’s body as she lay in his arms. After being with him several times, Rosetta was extremely tired, and he knew she would soon fall asleep.

Just then, in a voice heavy with sleep, Rosetta spoke, “I’m glad the number of monsters is decreasing.”

Recently, something strange had been happening in Arden. The monsters that had once been rampant were gradually diminishing in number. Rosetta speculated that it might have something to do with the waning power of the magic stones. While this wasn’t good news for Lysa, it was a welcome development for the Ardenese.

“It seems like Maiastra is taking back all the power he once gave. I have a feeling that no more beings like me will be born.”

Rashid kissed her hair and whispered, “But who knows? Maybe one day, one of our descendants will benefit from that power.”

Rosetta smiled at him. “Do you think so?”

“I’m sure of it.”

Rosetta smiled warmly before drifting off into a deep sleep. Rashid patted her back, recalling the words Queen Lysa had said to him a year ago.

“Lysa probably won’t last much longer.”

When she first met him, the Queen hadn’t asked many questions. She had simply learned that he was the chieftain of the Quat tribe and then scrutinized him with sharp eyes. Soon after, she nodded, seemingly convinced of something.

In the carriage, the Queen had told him about Rosetta’s past and the hardships she had endured as a child. Then, she said something truly surprising. He had never imagined that the Lysa royal family thought this way.

“For a long time, there has been a saying in Lysa. If the golden bird becomes angry, disaster will strike the world, and the place the golden bird leaves will be destroyed. My husband and I have felt that omen for a while now. In the end, the bird has flown off to find a new nest. That means we can no longer stop it.”

The Queen smiled at him. “Don’t tell Rosetta about this. If she knew, she would feel bound to stay with us forever. Still, even if something were to happen to us, the thought of Rosetta living happily in a new place brings me some comfort.”

Holding the sleeping Rosetta close, Rashid rested his chin on top of her head and let out a small sigh.

He hoped that whatever happened to Lysa, it would occur after the Queen and King had passed away so that Rosetta wouldn’t have to suffer.

But recently, Toulouse had been behaving strangely. More precisely, there had been strange signs within Lysa that were causing unrest even in Toulouse.

Recently, old protective magic in Lysa had begun to fail. Roads that had remained untouched for a thousand years were breaking, and walls were crumbling, filling the people of Lysa with dread.

It seemed that Lysa might fall sooner than expected. The creeping sense of unease would slowly eat away at society, leading to a sudden collapse. If that were to happen, Rosetta’s sorrow would be immense.

…But she would be alright. Rashid was here, and so was their child.

Rashid closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Before long, he started to dream. It was the first dream he had had in a long time. In the dream, he met a mysterious being, something not of this world, and they spoke. As with all dreams, the details of their conversation were hazy upon waking.

However, he felt as though he had glimpsed a far-off future, a place unreachable by mere humans. In that future, he saw a little girl accompanied by a large dog. She was a child raised with boundless love, free to do whatever she wanted. Rashid quickly realized that this girl was no ordinary child. And that girl was…

The barking of the dog faded into the distance. Meanwhile, the sound of waves crashing against the shore outside the window grew clearer.

As he emerged from the dream or vision of the future, Rashid held Rosetta close, falling back into a deep sleep with a smile identical to hers.

The End