A simple bakery.
A small, cozy bakery that you could find anywhere.
Since lunchtime had already passed, the scent of freshly baked bread had long faded, but the lingering aroma of baked goods still hung in the air.
"Baaang! Baaang!"
"…Why are you so excited?"
I followed Sharen as she trotted into the bakery.
I knew she liked snacks and sweets, so it wasn't surprising that she liked bread too.
But was this really something to get so worked up over?
Or maybe she was just happy to be out after spending the last few days confined to the royal palace.
'I haven't been paying much attention to Sharen lately, have I?'
With everything going on with Clarice and Raphael, I had been too preoccupied to take care of Sharen.
She wasn't particularly useful for this operation anyway.
At most, her name carried some weight as a Helmut.
"Welcome."
As we stepped inside, a young woman greeted us with a warm, simple smile.
According to Heirad's investigation, she ran the bakery with her parents, so the woman before me had to be Del.
"Baaang, baaang."
'…This is odd.'
As I casually browsed the selection, I pondered.
I'd heard she was beautiful.
And for a woman running a small bakery, her beauty was certainly excessive.
But was she stunning enough to make a prince abandon everything for her?
'At the very least, she'd have to be on Liana's level.'
I knew my standards for beauty were high, but still, that was how I saw it.
Great men rule nations, and great beauties rule those men.
But was this woman truly worth giving up an entire kingdom?
I wasn't sure what kind of romantic story lay between them, but for now, I simply picked out some bread.
"I want this one too."
Sharen quickly grabbed a piece for herself and dropped it into the basket.
"There aren't that many kinds of bread."
Sharen pouted in disappointment, and Del smiled gently as she approached.
"Sorry, miss. Most of our bread has already been sold."
"Oh? Isaac, should we come back tomorrow then?"
"Sure."
I nodded casually.
Thanks to Sharen, I now had an excuse to return tomorrow.
As I was about to pay,
"Excuse me, sir."
Del spoke hesitantly, her expression darkening slightly.
"You're from the royal palace, aren't you?"
"…Is it that obvious?"
I had dressed in plain clothes to blend in, trying to match the look of my commoner days.
"I heard that the princess of Albion has recently arrived. And since I've never seen you around here before… I figured you might be from the palace."
'The prince really talks too much.'
That aside, Del had sharp instincts.
I already suspected she wasn't an ordinary woman after she managed to capture a prince's heart, but she might be beyond unusual—perhaps even extraordinary.
"Well, since you've figured it out, I'll be honest. I am Baron Logan, a royal knight escorting the princess. I've come here to see you."
"What? We weren't just here to buy bread?"
Sharen looked genuinely shocked.
I shoved a piece of bread into her mouth before she could say anything more, and she simply blinked while chewing.
'I need to be careful with my words.'
Everything I said here would surely reach Prince Raphael's ears.
As far as he was concerned, I was acting under Princess Adeline's orders to solidify their marriage.
That meant I had to speak accordingly.
"Do you really think things will work out between you and Prince Raphael?"
My voice was cold.
Del flinched, her head slowly lowering.
"Your actions are putting the kingdom at risk. Prince Raphael has a duty to fulfill."
"..."
"I know this might sound cruel to you, but it can't be helped. Love isn't something that can be controlled, but—"
My tone remained harsh and unrelenting.
That was the image I needed to maintain here.
"Your love is a sin."
As soon as he declared that, Del's eyes trembled violently.
"H-hic."
Tears began to fall.
Like pearls, they welled up and rolled down her cheeks in drops.
Isaac looked at her calmly. He felt sorry for making her cry, but this was necessary—
Gulp.
"A-Ah, Isaac made a girl cry!"
"..."
He shoved another piece of bread into Sharen's mouth.
"Isaac made a girl cwyuwuhhp—!"
***
Behind the bakery.
After enduring a barrage of sharp glares from Del's parents, Isaac waited by the back door for her to calm down.
"Are you feeling better now?"
One thing to note—
Isaac was weak against crying women.
Because Liana was never one to cry.
'Well, that did change a bit later on.'
By the time their divorce was in progress, he remembered her crying quite often.
Honestly, Isaac had never realized Liana was such a tearful person.
"Y-yes… I'm s-sorry, hic!"
He turned his head and looked at Sharen again.
Munch, munch.
He had stuffed her mouth with an oversized piece of bread on purpose, and now she was chewing furiously while glaring at him.
As if she was watching closely to see how he would handle this situation.
'I shouldn't have brought her.'
He shot Sharen a resentful glance for suddenly siding against him, then turned back to Del.
"Haa… Miss Del, I know my words were harsh. But they were for your sake as well."
"..."
Del, now somewhat calmer, took a deep breath and listened intently.
"I've had a similar experience. I once believed that love could conquer all. But I eventually realized that reality must also be considered."
"A similar experience…?"
Her eyes, still wet with tears, shimmered even more brightly.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Isaac made up his mind and spoke.
"I was born a commoner. I may be a baron now, but I used to be nothing more than a ferryman, rowing boats across the river."
"A… ferryman…?"
"I, too, loved someone beyond my reach."
"..."
"I know how it is. Love comes unexpectedly, shaking your heart. No matter how much you try to control yourself, your emotions are swept away by longing."
"..."
"When she's not around, she's all you think about. When she is, you're already looking forward to the next time you'll see her. I won't deny that I became greedy."
"..."
"But in the end, we divorced. Trying to figure out exactly where things went wrong… it's too late for that now."
And so—
"In the end, we had no choice but to cut the thread."
With sincerity, Isaac looked at Del and spoke.
"Love alone doesn't solve everything. At some point, the wall of reality will stand in your way."
"..."
"Don't become like me."
With that, Isaac patted her shoulder in a comforting gesture and turned away.
She was determined to overcome everything with love.
Watching her now reminded him too much of his own past.
He could no longer bear to look at Del.
***
That night, in the princess's chambers.
Everyone had gathered.
Clarice stood with her arms crossed, staring daggers at Isaac.
"I've received a report."
Heirad and the Grand Master tilted their heads and looked at Isaac.
However, even Isaac had no idea why the princess was so angry.
"I heard that the most insane and worst plan in human history is currently underway—where both sides are trying to seduce and steal each other's lovers."
"Ah, this is a bit…"
"Sir Isaac."
At the sighs of the Grand Master and Heirad, Isaac blinked a few times.
It took him a few seconds to realize that they were talking about him.
Startled, Isaac shot to his feet.
"What are you saying?! No matter what, that's absolutely not true!"
"Sharen said so."
Suddenly, Clarice raised both hands and split her hair into two sections, mimicking Sharen's twin tails.
"Isaac went to that woman named Del and made her cry! He even looked at her deeply and started talking about his past!"
"You're quite good at that impression."
"…While it's not incorrect, I wasn't seducing her."
"The moment you looked at her deeply, you were seducing her. Do you admit it?"
At that, the Grand Master immediately nodded.
"I acknowledge it."
Heirad also scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Well, isn't it the same as when a beautiful woman smiles at a man? Most men would get flustered."
"Sigh, I don't have time for this nonsense."
Realizing they were just teasing him, Isaac sighed, and Clarice chuckled before letting her hair fall back naturally.
"It's fun. Besides, today's operation was a complete success. We should enjoy the moment."
The outing in the garden had gone splendidly. Thanks to it, the distance between them and Prince Raphael had shrunk significantly.
Clarice raised her fingers in a 'V' sign.
"Tomorrow, we're going to the Brentarion Exhibition Hall. Is there anything I should know?"
She pouted slightly and leaned forward, striking an adorable pose.
Recently, she had been practicing these natural displays of charm to help seduce Prince Raphael.
"Artificially crafted naturalness, huh?"
The Grand Master muttered in fascination.
Isaac, watching Clarice's efforts, smiled in satisfaction and started talking about the plan for tomorrow.
"You're already well-versed in the history and artifacts of the Brentarion Kingdom, so there's no need to worry about in that regard."
"Oh, of course."
"But some preparation is still necessary. I've heard that the painting Lemelon's Vase creates an optical illusion."
"I know. It's a painting by Saint Polute, where the image looks different depending on whether you view it from the left or right, right?"
"Exactly. And we're going to use that."
Thus, the practice session began.
Everyone was assigned roles.
Heirad played the role of Baron Logan, who would be glaring from behind.
Clarice, of course, was Clarice.
Isaac took the role of Raphael.
And finally, the Grand Master… was the painting.
"Is a painting role really necessary?"
The Grand Master questioned, sitting on a chair.
But the practice began right away.
"Wow! Look at this! They say it looks different depending on which side you see it from!"
As planned, Clarice positioned herself on the right side. Then, pretending to hurriedly move closer to see better, she "accidentally" stumbled into Raphael's arms.
Fwoomph!
Clarice fell right into Isaac's embrace.
As she looked up at him, she gulped.
Holding her, Isaac clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"That was too staged. It was obvious from the start that you intended to fall into his arms."
"R-Really?"
"Yes. It might be better if you pretended to lose balance slightly to the side, making Raphael instinctively catch you."
"Hmm."
Isaac slowly let go of Clarice.
"But your bashful expression was perfect. Your facial acting is improving by the day."
Giving her a smile and a thumbs-up, Isaac praised her.
Clarice shrugged her shoulders and responded with confidence.
"Well, of course! It's me, after all!"