The room was a complete mess.

Broken glass, overturned tables, torn wallpaper… The room reeked of alcohol and was nothing short of chaotic.

The shadow in the room sat on the sofa, clutching its head. It sat so still that one might think a callus had formed on the elbow resting on the thigh.

“Ahaha!”

Suddenly, a clear laughter caught the ear. The sound was not just bright, but refreshing, like the laughter of a very happy and delighted child. The strange thing was, the owner of that voice shouldn’t have made such a sound.

No, to be more precise, they didn’t know that person could laugh like that.

Hithcliff listlessly rose from his seat and headed toward the window. The dried blood on his feet started to leak more as he stepped on deeply embedded glass shards.

Despite the stinging pain that would make anyone collapse, Hithcliff moved his steps unflinchingly and roughly pulled aside the curtains that had been closed all along.

“Ha, haha! Oh, it tickles!”

The laughter from outside grew louder. Hithcliff’s living room terrace had a full view of the royal garden. It puzzled him even more. If it was the person he knew, they wouldn’t be so raucous in the royal garden.

The door to the terrace silently opened, and Hithcliff walked out barefoot, forgetting even to wear his outdoor slippers. The dust that had settled overnight mixed with his blood, staining the terrace floor a dark red. Hithcliff leaned on the railing.

“Your Majesty! Don’t just watch, join us!”

Haha! Laughter burst out again. Hithcliff dropped his gaze downward. A small picnic was taking place in the garden.

“Your Majesty, stop now… ahaha!”

“Lethe, that’s enough. Yurisien is struggling.”

Yurisien. At that name, Hithcliff’s eyebrows twitched. Yes, that crystal-clear voice belonged to none other than Yurisien. Yurisien Agate Windsor, the paragon among aristocrats, the formidable enemy of the great Windsor family!

“…”

Hithcliff was dumbfounded. Not because of her laughter, nor the man she was with.

‘Could she really… have laughed like that?’

For a full 15 years. For 15 years, Hithcliff had known and been with Yurisien. Yet he had never seen her laugh like that. Not even once!

“…”

So Hithcliff couldn’t bring himself to intervene, even though Yurisien was with someone other than Benjamin. He couldn’t even gauge what he wanted to feel. He just… for the moment, he wanted to hear Yurisien’s clear laughter.

“Ah, tickl— Ugh!”

Yurisien was knocked over by the affectionate onslaught of an unusually large dog with fur the color of millet. Her black hair spread widely over the ivory mat.

Benjamin gently touched Yurisien’s ebony hair, above which young leaves shook softly. Glimpses of gold similar to the royal throne were visible in between.

“Lethe, that’s enough… ah!”

“Oh dear. He really likes you.”

“Heh heh, king!”

Finally, Benjamin rose from his seat and pushed the large dog’s body to the side. The dog seemed reluctant but obediently stepped away. Instead, it fetched a ball rolling around nearby and placed it in front of him.

“Fetch!”

Benjamin threw the dirt-stained ball beyond the bushes, and the large dog barked mightily and dashed away. Watching this, Benjamin returned to the mat and sat next to Yurisien, who was still lying down.

“Are you alright?”

“Ahaha, ahahaaa…”
Yurisien sighed, seemingly too weary to laugh or speak. Benjamin chuckled softly enough to tickle his ears, leaned back on his arms for support, and tilted his body toward her.

“Your makeup is almost completely off.”

His teasing voice was affectionate. Sensing her fumbling on the ground, Benjamin discreetly took a small hand mirror out of his bag and handed it to her. Yurisien accepted it with familiarity and burst into laughter.

“Indeed. Daisy put so much effort into it for my first evening event. I should fix it.”

“It’s fine. So don’t get up, just lie down.”

As Benjamin lightly pressed her shoulder to make her lie back down, Yurisien showed reluctance.

“Ah, but…”

“Don’t you want to lie down? If it’s uncomfortable, get up.”

“That’s not it. Actually… it feels strange and nice. I haven’t been lying down outside like this since a very young age, when I went on a picnic with my father.”

“Then there’s no problem.”

“But I am worried about how I look now. What if I don’t look like myself?”

“Hm?”

As if she had said something truly strange, Benjamin chuckled and glanced at the sky.

“Look at the clouds. They’re clouds, no matter what they look like.”

The drifting clouds were light and fluffy, truly beautiful. They represented the very essence of a spring sky with no shadows.

“You should think the same, Yurisien.”

“…”

“Don’t constrain yourself too much. At least you came out not to be like that. What’s the big deal if your eyebrow makeup is smudged, and your face makeup is fading? And then…”

Benjamin leaned in closer to Yurisien and mumbled something. Yurisien, who had been stretching her body comfortably, suddenly tensed up and lightly pushed his shoulder away.

“Ah, really…!”