The Reincarnated Villainess Whose Romantic Trauma From Her Past Life Is Too Strong Is Sweetly and Painfully Doted On by the Prince of the Neighboring Country - Chapter 6

At Salute’s words “I want you to come with me as my personal Florist and as my close aide”, the crowd gathered in the hall erupted into a collective stir.

And for good reason.

As mentioned before, in Dortmund, it was not yet considered acceptable for women to rise to prominent professional positions. While “Florist” and “Royal Aide” were established official roles, the idea of a woman occupying such seats was utterly unprecedented.

Generally, women entered the domestic sphere, contributing to the household by utilizing the home economics they studied at the academy. While they did learn about floral pharmacy and flower magic, it was treated as basic knowledge to be kept in mind, almost never to be used as a career.

Therefore, Salute’s declaration before the royalty and nobility of this country that he would “appoint Cherie as his exclusive Florist and value her as a close aide” was a statement that felt impossible to everyone present!

“Is… is this true Lady Mercury…?”

“It is, Your Majesty.”

Questioned by the King of Dortmund, Cherie performed a graceful, customary bow before answering in a voice that rang out with beautiful, dignified clarity. As she spoke, she saw the King out of the corner of her eye, silently questioning her father, Marquess Mercury, with his gaze. Seeing her father frantically shaking his head in response to the King’s silent “Is this true?”, Cherie felt an indescribable emotion swell within her, yet she answered resolutely.

“I have accepted the offer from His Highness, the Second Prince of Trigea, and intend to travel to Trigea. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to ask you to recognize my choice.”

This was the answer Cherie had given to Salute himself when he first asked her to follow him as a personal Florist.

In both her previous life and this one, Cherie had been betrayed twice in a row by those she intended to spend her life with. The partner she dated in her past life, and now, Wraith, who stood before her. Both had ultimately chosen other women over her and walked away.

Cherie simply couldn’t take it anymore. She couldn’t bear a future where, even if she stayed in this country and married some suitable match, she would likely be betrayed in the exact same way again.

That was why Cherie chose a different path.

Not a future of staying in this kingdom to marry, but a future where she would stand alone as a professional woman, living independently, even if it proved difficult and painful.

She had some reservations about relying on Salute so soon after rejecting his proposal. However, without doing so, it would be nearly impossible to carve a path toward independence as a woman in this world. This was the compromise between Salute and Cherie.

This was their conclusion.

“Allow me to add my word as well, King of Dortmund. And you, Marquess Mercury. Won’t you please entrust this wonderful talent to me?”

He spoke with finality.

With Salute putting it that way, there was no one present who could argue. For a while, the King of Dortmund stood with a pained expression, his lips trembling, until he finally opened his mouth.

“…I understand. I shall formally proceed with the annulment of the engagement between Lady Mercury and our First Prince, Wraith. I will also take your request under consideration to ensure it can be met…”

He gave his answer to Salute.

◇◆◇

Just as they had entered, Cherie exited the Great Hall side-by-side with Salute, her hand on his arm. The moment the doors clicked shut, Salute’s body suddenly swayed.

“Are you alright…!?”

“…Ah, sorry. I’ve shown you something unsightly.”

Cherie knew exactly why he was so exhausted. It was the “Flower Magic” he had used in front of everyone earlier. To use flower magic, one must consume “Flora,” the energy stored within the body. It’s the same as what’s often called MP or Magic Power in games. The higher the difficulty of the spell, the more Flora is required. And the spell he had used, [Reminiscence], was a top-tier difficulty technique. Cherie recalled a scene from the original game where a character who used this spell during a puzzle sequence collapsed in exhaustion just as he had.

“…Your Highness, if you would like, shall I prepare some Flower Tea for you?”

“…Flower Tea?”

Salute replied, appearing taken aback by her suggestion.

As you might guess, Flower Tea is a drink that restores MP—Flora. While taking a recovery potion wouldn’t be a problem, Cherie suggested tea because it places less strain on the body.

Recovery potions offer rapid restoration, but the burden they place on the human body is proportionally large. Unless it’s an emergency, such as during a battle, it is better to drink Flower Tea and rest slowly.

When Cherie made her suggestion with that in mind, Salute asked:

“…Will you brew it for me?”

When Cherie replied with a “Yes,” he smiled.

“Well then, I would very much like to be treated to a cup.”

And so, led by the hand, Cherie accompanied Salute to the estate where he was staying in Dortmund. There, on the terrace of his residence, she personally served him Flower Tea. Despite being a guest in a house where she didn’t know the layout, Salute’s servants assisted her helpfully.

As she poured the steaming tea from the teapot into a cup, Salute took a sip with elegant movements.

“…It’s delicious.”

“I’m glad it’s to your liking.”

As she spoke, Cherie took a sip from her own cup.

Salute’s welcome party had begun in the evening. By the time they left the venue, the sun had fully set; while not quite midnight, it was well into the night.

Thinking she should head home before it got too late, Cherie gazed out at the darkening scenery. It was only then that she realized, a moment too late, that Salute was watching her with eyes that seemed strangely heated.