Chapter Seventeen: Rosa Wants Rotten Friends (II)

“Your Highness! This is going overboard! Please revoke your dismissal order!”

“It’s too late. Everyone has already started packing their things. I even gave special permission to the Knights Order to come and help the girls carry their stuff out. The dismissal is truly going quite smoothly.”

It was now the morning of the next day. Rosa was anxiously trying to persuade Chris to change his mind, but all Chris did was smile at her.

“Bernando came to see me last evening. After I told him everything, he worked hard and swiftly to persuade the Knights Order to assist with my idea. Your brother is a capable individual. He has a cute face as well.”

“What?!”

Rosa exclaimed.

　

Rosa was intrigued by something other than what Chris had told her brother.

He just called him cute, didn’t he?! HE CALLED HIM CUTE, RIGHT?! An unexpected encounter between His Highness and Moe Bern?! Maybe instead of two bottoms, I’ll get to watch the birth of a switch?!

Rosa lost her calm when she discovered that her two primary interests had crossed paths.

　

Rosa couldn’t ignore the fact that two bottoms of the finest caliber had encountered one other, even though she knew right now wasn’t the right moment.

Chris felt his heart begin to ache as he saw Rosa’s complexion deteriorate.

　

The sight of the ephemeral beauty Rosa experiencing a shock owing to her brother’s involvement in the affair was unfolding before Chris.

She’s just… Despite the fact that she is weaker than most, she tries not to let it affect her.

This was exactly Chris’ impression of Rosa.

A person who is always concerned about the well-being of others and is pleased for them, yet, on the other hand, is unconcerned for herself.

　

Rosa had made it so that Chris wouldn’t see that she had been subjected to the envy and bullying of others because of Chris, and she had even assured him that it didn’t upset her when he questioned her about it.

Rosa had even told him that she’d like to become their friend.

　

Chris hadn’t felt any dishonesty in Rosa’s statements at the time, which had further enraged him.

That’s just the type of person that she is. Despite the fact that she was suffering because of them, she did not despise them… There’s no hate inside of her.

Chris had been taken aback by Bernando’s overprotective behavior during his first meeting with him and Rosa, but he now perfectly understood why Bernando had acted the way he had.

　

One couldn’t help but feel compelled to defend Rosa because she was so pure.

Chris made the choice to present an explanation that he thought would persuade Rosa.

“I am not doing this only for you. Some have been hurt as a result of the bullying that has been going on among the ladies in the detached palace, and some have even gone to the physician despite knowing that it would disgrace them. Arina, the girl who bullied you, is also one of those girls. I can’t stand by and watch these women face any more humiliation inside the detached palace.”

Rosa, whose mind was only thinking about how to secure her recently discovered BL apostle, didn’t know how to react when she heard that.

There is a bullying problem? It is far more humane to release women like Lady Arina in this situation… But if that occurs, I’ll be missing out on a magnificent asset…

In addition, there was one more thing that weighed on Rosa’s mind.

“Um… Is it really that disgraceful to meet that so-called physician?”

Rosa asked, unable to understand why it was so disgraceful to meet with the physician.

　

“Come to think of it, the Royal Palace is the only place that has the notion of a physician, isn’t it?” 

Chris said when he heard Rosa’s question.

“You are aware that last year our kingdom assaulted the little Kingdom of Apt in the south and made it our vassal, aren’t you?” he continued.

“I am. It was one of the military wins that occurred during the United Front that year, from what I recall…”

“On paper that is. In reality, His Majesty ordered an invasion in order to discover a cure for Her Majesty’s illness. The people of Apt, particularly their leader’s lineage, are considered to be proficient in medicine, which is why our kingdom invaded them.”

“Oh my… I wasn’t aware that Her Majesty was sick.”

“Berg is embarrassed by the fact that her disease is not curable with magic power. As a result, we haven’t disclosed it in order to protect the status of individuals who can use Healing Magic. Protecting the kingdom’s people is another of the reasons.”

Chris said.

The Kingdom of Berg had the biggest land and military force of any kingdom on the continent, but this was largely thanks to the nobles’ magic power.

　

Those with magical powers were accorded special treatment throughout the kingdom, and their authority was unquestionable.

However, as a result of this and the fact that Berg had Healing Magic, Berg lagged behind other countries in terms of medical technology.

　

To manage, the kingdom had previously assigned all of its nobles with the power to heal to the churches, but the kingdom had grown much too vast to continue doing so.

This had led the Kingdom of Berg to believe that by bringing over the experienced physicians of Apt, they would be able to acquire their knowledge and skills and treat illnesses that could not be managed with Healing Magic alone. It would also benefit the people.

“His Majesty believed it would be ok If he just brought back exceptional physicians and burned down the rest of their territory, but my Brother disagreed. My bBrother was able to end the conflict without any unnecessary bloodshed by utilizing his powers, and in order to maintain autonomy, he only brought back the Apt’s leader’s son, who is known to be their finest physician. Within the palace, there was, of course, a lot of debate regarding his actions.”

Rosa only nodded with a serious face in response to Chris’s statement.

　

A pagan and a captive.

　

The successor of a great kingdom and the son of a leader. Two princes crossing each other’s paths.

Rosa sensed the potential for court drama to arise from this maelstrom of love and hate.

“However, when that physician saw Her Majesty, he declared her disease incurable and gave up. He was then granted a place within the royal palace in order to pass on his expertise to Berg, but he hasn’t been doing so.”

“Oh my… Why is that?”

“It’s a bit childish, but we see the people of Apt as heretics mostly due to their different beliefs and appearance. Most conservatives refer to them as ‘Brown Physicians’ and avoid interacting with them.”

Different skin color and different language.

　

The noble’ss’ contempt of the people of Apt was further heightened by the instinctive guard that the people of Berg maintained against the people of Apt, which was primarily prompted by the fact that the magic power that nobles possessed was a gift from god.

　

They refused to be touched by heretics who possessed no magic power, let alone consume their dubious remedies.

　

Healing Magic, the nobility felt, could assist them more effectively than any heretic’s medicine.

“I see…”

Rosa gave a slight nod.

Tanned skin.

　

The grave title of Brown Physician.

　

Medical help that could only be provided by touch.

Rosa couldn’t believe the royal palace contained such a seductive element.

“Does that so-called physician have an overbearing demeanor?”

“What? I wonder… He’s around the same age as my brother and has a slim build. However, given his pride, he is likely to have an overbearing personality. He was allegedly incredibly attractive in his kingdom, but to us he just looks different…”

“I see…”

He was unmistakably a bottom, no matter how Rosa regarded him.

　

Rosa frantically counted the stitches on the carpet in an attempt to disperse her attention.

She needed to be completely focused on securing her future apostle right now.

　

Now wasn’t the time to get distracted with other things.

Later, I’ll have to pay a visit to the physician’s office.

Rosa thought to herself as she scribbled a note in her mental to-do list.

“I fully understand the situation. In other words, if we exclude those who cannot be cured with healing magic, the only ones who visit this so-called physician are the poor or suspicious… As a result, it is seen as dishonorable.”

“Precisely. It is critical for those aristocratic ladies who value discretion above all else to avoid being detected seeing the foreign physician. And since Arina was driven to do so, I, as the detached palace’s person in authority, should take steps to rectify the situation.”

“But you haven’t asked how Lady Arina personally feels about th….”

Rosa was attempting to persuade Chris when she was interrupted by someone who walked into Chris’ room without knocking.

Chris and Rosa were both taken aback when they saw that individual.

　

Beige colored hair and dark brown eyes.

　

A small body, similar to a squirrel’s. It was none other than the individual they had just been discussing.

　

It was Arina von Yansen.

“Arina Von Yansen? What do you think you’re doing? Just who gave you permission to enter?!”

“……”

　

Chris yelled out. Arina, on the other hand, didn’t say anything.

　

She simply stood there as her eyes moved restlessly and her body shook.

　

Arina had clearly been frightened, as evidenced by her unusual silence and reactions.

When Chris saw Arina’s cloudy eyes, he instantly thought of one of the medications the physician prescribed.

　

Unlike Healing Magic, which could cure and nourish, that drug had the effect of chemically forcing the mind to calm down, and it could occasionally even destroy the patient’s mind.

　

Chris felt Alice was most likely under the influence of the drug.

He quickly tried to get in front of Rosa to cover her, but Rosa shook her head and stopped him.

　

Rosa, after all, had a habit of exhibiting the same symptoms whenever she read a good novel on Rose Love, so she decided to see what would happen.

“Just what…”

Arina, who had up to now been staring at the carpet below, suddenly spoke.

“Just what did I lack?”

“Excuse me?”

“As my father requested, I arrived at the detached palace to become your conversation partner. My father also added that I shouldn’t come back before producing any results. To avoid being disliked by you, I tried everything I could to approach you politely, yet you still ordered me to return. Because I couldn’t return home, I had to put up with all of the bullying, and I even followed my cousin’s orders and sent Lady Rosa threatening letters… E-Even though I did exactly as I was told, just why…”

Rosa couldn’t make out Arina’s expression since she was looking down, but she could hear Arina’s voice progressively rise.

　

Chris, on the other hand, knit his brows and took a step forward.

“Arina…”

“Even though I did exactly as I was told, just why am I suddenly being dismissed?! How do you expect me to go back with such unsightly results?! Even though… Even though I put up with so much…!”

Arina burst out screaming, her words incomprehensible.

　

Despite this, Rosa still prevented Chris from going any furhterather.

She could relate to Arina’s emotional outburst as well as her incomprehensible rants as a BL fan.

She definitely has a talent as a writer…

Most of Arina’s latter rants had been in a seven-and-five syllable manner. (TL/N: A seven-and-five syllable meter is a form of poem in Japanese which repeats using seven and five syllables in sentences to give a gentle and elegant impression. So it is highly valued in Japanese literature, thus Rosa’s admiration.) 

　

If Arina was doing it unconsciously, she would undoubtedly make a great writer.

　

Rosa was determined to obtain such a promising BL writer.

She swallowed back her saliva and fixed her sight on the next apostle candidate.

　

It was then that Arina suddenly burst into tears and screamed once more.

“You brute! You’re the one who’s to blame for everything! Just what in the world do you want?!”

Arina inquired, her eyes bloodshot and her finger pointing at Chris.

“Rather than waiting until later, it would be preferable if you returned the friends who were imposed upon you right away! If you’re going to constantly make excuses that it was Her Majesty that brought us here, then why don’t you go complain to Her Majesty yourself?!”

“……”

Chris staggered back as a result of Arina’s final comments.

　

Arina had fully overstepped her bounds as Chris’s’ retainer and was uttering obnoxious remarks.

　

If Chris wanted he had both the power and the authority to stop Arina from speaking.

However, he did not do so.

　

That was because Arina words dug straight into Chris’s heart.

“You never see things all the way through. You see, I’ve always thought. You never bring it up with Her Majesty, even if you loathe all of the friends that are sent to you. You simply leave us there, until one day you decide that you’ll forcefully dismiss us. Even though you are sensitive to being hurt, you are completely unconcerned about hurting others!”

Rosa, for the record, was still so engrossed in Arina’s seven-and-five speech pattern that she couldn’t even sympathize with Chris.

“Just look at yourself! Everyone’s laughing at you! Is this half-assed male act of yours some kind of rebellion? In the end, the only things you’ve changed are your clothes and the way you speak. You haven’t even cut your hair. You’ve only made changes to that which you may undo at any time. How ironic.

“……”

As Arina prodded at his most vulnerable areas, Chris bit his lip.

　

Rosa, on the other hand, was still overcome with admiration and simply watched silently.

By this stage, Arina’s cries had become a type of performance.

　

Arina had not only maintained her seven-and-five speech pattern throughout, but she had also demonstrated a thorough comprehension of the other person’s mental process and the ability to choose the most relevant phrases to poke them with.

　

Arina had been bullied by both Barons and Counts up until now, but if her talent was allowed to blossom, she would definitely change dramatically.

Based on her assessment abilities, Lady Arina is clearly the kind to read for the characters rather than the narrative. Ahh… If I could only transfer my rotten cells to her so that I could awaken her to BL… If I did that we could talk about BL all night long…!

Rosa clenched her fist as she couldn’t stop her imagination from running wild, despite the fact that she knew it wasn’t the time for such things.

　

Arina merely grinned wryly and spoke, fully unaware of one of the participant’ss’ peculiar gaze.

“Your Highness, I could help you.”

“What do you mean?”

“As you know I am required to produce results. What my family requires is the royal family’s regard, to be Her Highness’s favorite. The goods bestowed upon you… Or if not those then… Yes, that’s it… That dazzling blond hair, overflowing with magic power…”

It was at this point that Arina’s seven-and-five speech pattern broke.

　

Arina then approached Her Highness and Rosa in an awkward manner.

Her fist, which had been clenched tightly until now, showed a razor buried inside.

“Arina, just what are you!”

“Let me cut that hair for you!”

Arina screamed and with a frenzied speed thrust her arm out like a savage beast.

　

Chris quickly raised his hands and began gathering magic power at his fingertips.

　

He knew, though, that if he used magic at this distance, Arina wouldn’t come out unharmed.

　

Despite also being aware of this, Arina remained indifferent.

　

She’d most certainly lost her mind by this point.

The razor bared its sharp blade and heat began condensing at Chris’s fingertips. Just as Chris was about to send Arina flying, something happened.

A resounding thud rang out!

Something shoved Chris down to the ground just as he was about to use his magic.

Chris felt a strand of blond hair slide down his cheek a split second later.

　

That hair, however, was not his.

It belonged to Rosa. The person who had pushed him to the ground.

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