The Heir I Dragged Into My “He’s My Fiancé!” Lie Is Somehow Playing Along!? - Chapter 2.12

“Thank you very much!”

When Alice was seen off by the staff lined up in front of the store, she was perfectly coordinated in the pale pink dress Kai had chosen for her, complete with diamond earrings and necklace.

(This is my first time wearing a dress. This is for evening parties, right? There’s no chance to wear this in modern Japan.)

Is this cosplay? Alice’s heart was racing, but with Kai standing beside her in his perfectly fitted suit, she still felt plain in comparison—truly fitting for someone called the Prince.

“It looks great on you. Sorry I’m so busy, but I have a restaurant reservation after this, and I need to inspect the dance hall event too. After that, we can go wherever Alice wants.”

“There are so many places I want to go. I’ve been curious about the night pool too,” Alice said, picturing the ship’s map in her mind.

Beside her, Kai held his head in his hands.

“Kai-san?”

“Sorry. I’m interested in the night pool too, but the thought of showing Alice in a swimsuit in public makes me want to act suspicious. No, if you want to go, we’ll go. But…”

He was already acting suspicious, and his distress was so deep it was painful to watch.

Alice hurriedly insisted, “It’s fine! It’s not that serious! I’m just genuinely curious since I thought I’d never get a chance to go in my life! I’m equally interested in the casino and bar lounge as otherworldly experiences too! Personally, I think the library would be nice as well! And since we’re in this premium room, I definitely want to take a bath with an ocean view, but I’d also like to try the public bath!”

“Let’s go to all of them.”

As they headed toward the deck, Kai casually pulled Alice closer whenever they passed people, whispering in her ear.

That’s true… Alice found herself whispering back softly.

“Since I went to the trouble of wearing this dress, I want to keep it on as long as possible.”

Kai tightened his arm around her. Lightly kissing her upswept hair, he breathed out a whisper.

“I want to be the one to take it off.”

“…Y-yes! Then, we won’t go to the public bath today.”

“Yeah. Let’s take it easy in our room tonight. If you can stay awake, I’d like to welcome your birthday together. If you’re sleepy, you can rest. Take care of yourself. There’s no need to rush; we have tomorrow too.”

Kai’s voice was so sweet it sent shivers down her spine.

(I feel like I’m melting from my ears…!)

Thinking of herself turning into a slug with salt poured on it—about as far from romance as one could get—Alice managed to keep from melting completely.

Even with the new “Hakuto” about to enter service, the “Kasuga” remained an active luxury cruise ship representing Japan, and everywhere onboard was dazzling and sophisticated. It was truly a social venue, making Alice want to walk with perfect posture.

“You know, taking a bold trip like this is nice. My body’s been tired from all the recent business trips, but getting to travel around Japan on company expenses and stay at various Karasora properties was really fun. Next time, I want to go with you, Kai-san.”

Naturally holding hands, Kai leaned his shoulder against hers and smiled.

“Maybe I should become vice president then.”

“A coup d’état…!”

“Vice president isn’t enough. There’s still higher up.”

Seeing this glimpse of Kai’s ambition, Alice couldn’t help but offer some cautionary words.

“I think meritocracy is important, but seniority matters too, and I believe the company exists thanks to employees who dedicate themselves long-term. Those in leadership need work experience that convinces those below them, right? In this industry, there are many things you can’t handle without experience. I realized that from receiving service at each property.”

Just as Kai himself had said that luxury only works when you have people who understand what it is, the frontline has hoteliers with overwhelming accumulation of experience.

Alice felt that for such employees to continue working, they need trust in the company.

“Vice President Akatsuki has such superhuman vitality that I can barely keep up, but I understand well that her work ethic keeps the company running. It’s precisely because she values frontline staff that projects come through. Even you, Kai-san, couldn’t easily overthrow her. And I don’t think you should try to. Oh, I’m talking about work again.”

Moreover, she’d dared to lecture the Prince about what Karasora stood for. Alice was surprised at herself, but Kai didn’t seem offended at all and was laughing.

“I’m happy and reassured that you’re trying to understand the vice president’s work. I wasn’t really worried, since my mother and sister are similar types. If you get along well with my aunt, it should be fine.”

“Wait, that’s too acrobatic a topic change from work talk.”

“Not at all. For us, everything’s connected. It might be physically demanding, but in the future, I’d be totally fine with you aiming for vice president too.”

What did he mean by “totally fine”? Alice decided not to pursue it here.

(After all, we’re on the ocean where work can’t physically chase me and I won’t get summoned anywhere.)

Let’s enjoy this, she thought, squeezing Kai’s hand. His eyes widened.

Then, with a melting smile, he squeezed back tightly.

“I want to stir things up.”

It was around the time when the main restaurants onboard were finishing last orders.

From a distance, watching Kai and Alice dancing face-to-face in the dance hall, Ashiya muttered something dangerous.

Beside him, Kido gave him a skeptical look.

“I wouldn’t recommend it. They’re in a pretty delicate period right now; if anything happens, you’ll be hated for life.”

“That just means it’d be super interesting, right? Okay, let’s go.”

Looking even more intrigued, Ashiya strode cheerfully toward the pair.

Kido shrugged and watched him go.