Please Answer Me - Chapter 95

Rosetta had always felt that Rashid was excessively tight-lipped. He must have been curious about why a princess from Lysa had an arrow wound, yet he never showed any sign of knowing or asking.

“Why didn’t you ask about it? Or why don’t you ask about other things? Aren’t you curious about Iselle?”

If the situation were reversed and he had a fiancée, Rosetta would be dying to know everything about her. What kind of woman she was, how he felt about her, if he still had any lingering feelings.

“If you had a betrothed, I would have tortured you until you confessed everything.”

For a moment, Rashid laughed, but seeing Rosetta’s serious expression, he wiped the smile off his face.

“I didn’t ask about the arrow wound because it seemed you had no memory of it. It wouldn’t have been useful to ask. And as for your betrothed…”

He lifted his hand and caressed her cheek. “My feelings toward him are twofold: jealousy and guilt.”

“You? Jealous?”

It was fascinating to hear someone who seemed far removed from jealousy actually admit it. Rashid smiled, lifting the corners of his mouth.

“If you could see inside my mind, you’d be surprised. Jealousy is the mildest way to put it. And I feel guilty because I took his betrothed from him so close to the wedding.”

“Iselle is like a brother to me, not a lover…” Rosetta clasped his hand. “In fact, I never really understood why Iselle wanted to marry me. I always thought he would marry Tanit someday. They really suited each other.”

“So, it was Iselle who wanted the marriage?”

“I’m not sure. One day, my father suddenly told me to marry Iselle, and everything progressed swiftly. I was upset that I was being married off as soon as I came of age, while Tanit and Arman hadn’t married yet. It made me wonder if I was so useless that marriage was the only thing I was good for.”

“That’s not true. Hezen was the one benefiting from that marriage.” Rashid lightly kissed the corner of her mouth. “Hezen has influence over several small countries around it, but it wouldn’t give up a princess so easily. Even Basque, which is right next to Lysa, is under its control. If I were the king of Lysa and wanted to maximize benefits through a princess’s marriage, I’d rather send her to Toulouse in the east….”

He stopped, seeing Rosetta’s horrified expression.

“I mean, your father probably didn’t intend to use you purely as a political tool.”

“T-that’s a relief.”

The thought of suddenly being sent to a strange place where she couldn’t even understand the language to live with a man she didn’t know was terrifying.

She was grateful her father was someone who cared for his family. But his actions as a king were a different matter altogether.

Rosetta looked at Rashid intently. He met her gaze, knowing she had something to say. “There’s something I haven’t told you. And I don’t know if I ever will.”

Her father needed the Magic Stones, and they were in the Quat tribe’s territory. Smuggling them out secretly wouldn’t be easy anymore, as Rashid was already suspicious.

Who knows what her father might do if he couldn’t get the stones? She couldn’t be sure he wouldn’t harm Rashid or the Quat tribe.

“…You might resent me for this later. So think carefully. It might be better to…”

Rashid suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her close. His face had turned cold, and anger was evident.

“If you’re thinking of asking me to let you go and pretend none of this ever happened, forget it. I might have let you go before, but not now.”

“I…”

“Whatever you’re hiding, I’ll handle it without your help. So don’t even think about using it as an excuse to leave me.”

He embraced her tightly, their bodies pressed together with no space between them. It was hard to breathe.

Rosetta closed her eyes tightly in his arms. She couldn’t imagine living a single day without him anymore.

***

Mark clicked his tongue as he looked at the two who resembled dejected puppies.

[Come on, cheer up. It’s not your fault, alright?]

Ever since Rigaina had seen the dead bird and suddenly fallen ill, Sika and Benny had been wearing gloomy expressions, blaming themselves. Even now, they are the same.

[It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have brought the bird,] Sika said, looking downcast.

Benny, digging her heels in, disagreed. [No, it’s my fault for mentioning it when you were hiding it behind your back. I’m to blame.]

The two embraced each other, apologizing and insisting it was their fault. Watching this scene, Mark grew increasingly annoyed. What are these two doing in front of me?

[Don’t do this in front of me. Go outside! Apologize or hug each other out there, just get out!]

After driving the troublesome pair away, Mark began cleaning the stables. Just as he was nearly finished, Rashid entered.

Mark quickly ran up to him. [Riga, how is Rigaina?]

Rashid responded calmly, [She’s fine. She was just startled by the dead bird.]

[Our dear Rigaina, where and how was she raised that such a thing frightened her? Has she ever stepped on a bug?]

[…You must have heard something from Asion. The more you know, the more careful you should be with your words.]

Mark immediately clamped his mouth shut.

[I only heard up to the part where Rigaina is not the Basque chieftain’s daughter.]

[Indeed.]

Rashid sighed deeply, filled with worry. Mark, standing close, asked, [Is there still an issue with Rigaina’s status?]

[Yes.]

[Why? What’s the problem?]

[Her family doesn’t like me much. And to be honest, I don’t like them either.]

[What does that matter? Rigaina is here with you. As long as she doesn’t want to return to her family, there shouldn’t be an issue.]

Rashid looked at Mark for a moment before speaking. [Mark, does loving someone inherently involve sadistic feelings?]

[…What?]

[I mean, when you love someone, is it normal to get easily angry and find it hard to control your emotions?]

[……]

Seeing Mark’s stunned silence, Rashid shook his head. [Sorry, it wasn’t a question for you.]

Rashid then left the stables with Akal.

Left alone, Mark shouted in frustration, [Why is everyone asking me about love when I’ve never had a proper relationship in all my years?]

As he rode with Akal, Rashid thought about his earlier conversation with Rosetta and his current state.

When Rosetta mentioned it might be better for her to leave, he felt an overwhelming surge of anger and fear. The thought that she might be planning to escape, and that she could disappear suddenly one day, terrified him.

He wasn’t usually someone whose emotions swung so wildly with a single word, but he found it hard to suppress the boiling anger. He held Rosetta close until she fell asleep, not trusting himself to let go.

After confirming she was asleep, he went outside, thinking a ride would calm him. It did help. His mind cleared, and he began to understand Rosetta’s situation.

Unlike him, Rosetta had a loving family she couldn’t ignore. She would always struggle between the two sides. Asking her to choose completely would be like asking her to cut off an arm.

He didn’t expect that. He just needed assurance that she wouldn’t leave him. The thought that she might suddenly decide to leave made him feel he might destroy the tribe even faster than his father.

On his way back to the castle, merchants recognized him and struck up conversations. During these interactions, Rashid felt a piercing gaze and turned to look down an alley. One merchant asked, “Riga, is something wrong?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

The gaze disappeared quickly. Maybe he imagined it, he thought, as a merchant handed him a sack of fruit.

“These are apples freshly harvested this morning. Please give them to Rigaina.”

“For Rigaina?”

It was the first time they had offered something directly to Rosetta.

“We heard Rigaina entered the Monster Forest to save a child. For someone so small, she has great courage. Anyway, we’re glad both of you are safe.”

Rashid smiled and accepted the sack. Despite knowing her as the Basque chieftain’s daughter, it seemed Rosetta had won their favor.