Chapter 43: The Place of Forgetting

The wide streets of Shurium.

Rohan, sitting inside the black carriage, gazed out the window at the passing scenery for a moment.

“Are you talking about a gift for the newborn?”

William, seated across from him, tilted his head and asked.

Rohan quietly answered as he removed his gloves.

“Yes. My younger sibling is expected to be born soon.”

“A younger sibling… Don’t tell me, you mean a birth gift for Empress Emilia?”

Did I mishear?

That was exactly the look on William’s face.

“Well, about that, Your Highness.”

As William’s face turned awkward, Rohan spoke first.

“I know. I’m well aware of how sensitive you are about the situation right now. Empress Emilia and Marquis Fabien’s side are basically my political rivals, so even though it’s another imperial heir, I get it—it’s pretty shocking for me to deliver a gift in person.”

“……”

“But listen.”

Rohan spoke resolutely.

“The child is innocent, after all.”

“Your Highness…”

William started to say something, but, seeing Rohan’s gaze, bowed his head deeply.

“…Yes, understood. If that is Your Highness’s will, I shall obey.”

Had it been Count Nidro, he never would have done such a thing.

But now, William was Rohan’s man.

If the master commanded it, there was nothing more to be said.

After a while, the carriage arrived in Shurium’s upscale shopping district.

The place where Rohan headed after stepping out was ‘Roselyn’.

It was the most famous—and most expensive—baby goods store in the capital.

Ding!

As he opened the door, a gentle scent of roses filled the air, and a clerk greeted him politely.

“Welcome, sir. How may I assist you?”

“I’d like to see clothes for a newborn girl.”

“Oh! This way, please. Let me show you some pretty and adorable outfits.”

Guided by the clerk, Rohan moved to a corner of the shop.

“These days, sky blue is popular for girls’ clothing, but cream and light pink are also in high demand. Those colors never go out of style.”

The clerk, apparently thinking he was just another noble’s child, continued explaining without hesitation.

“Your Highness. But… girl’s clothing?”

William, following quietly, whispered with a puzzled look.

“According to the rumors, the baby to be born this time is a boy, isn’t it?”

At William’s words, Rohan smiled faintly.

“Well, Her Majesty has been making so much noise about it that everyone thinks that way. But isn’t the child’s gender decided by the heavens?”

“Hm, that’s true. But if that’s the case, isn’t it strange for you to pick out girls’ clothes now?”

William’s follow-up question only made Rohan smile, with no further answer.

And then—

“Yellow, I’ll go with yellow.”

When Rohan said this, the clerk quickly grabbed a garment nearby.

“Do you mean this one?”

“No.”

“Then, perhaps this outfit—?”

“I’ll buy all the newborn clothes here that have yellow in them. Ah, and, while we’re at it, please include matching toys suitable for a newborn.”

“…Pardon?”

The clerk’s eyes grew wide.

“Your Highness?”

William, too, widened his eyes and cocked his head in confusion.

He was clearly wondering if this was for real.

“I-I’ll prepare it right away!”

In contrast, the clerk’s cheeks flushed as she hurried off somewhere.

William spoke with an uncomfortable expression.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness. But isn’t this a bit too generous?”

“I told you. The child has done nothing wrong.”

Regardless, Rohan simply smiled gently as he examined the baby clothes hanging on the wall.

“But still… Whether it’s a girl or boy, their family will probably buy plenty and they’ll receive a lot of gifts anyway. Even if the Crown Prince’s budget has tripled, if you spend it all here, it puts me in a bind as your steward…”

“Well, you never know.”

“…Pardon?”

Rohan softly stroked the smooth hem of a garment with his fingertip as he murmured.

“Who knows if I’ll end up buying them by the armful, or not even a single piece. Nothing is certain yet.”

In those words was a subtle sadness, and the faintest trace of pity.

At Rohan’s muttered words—

“…?”

William, not understanding, only furrowed his brow deeper.

---

“Your Majesty!”

“Noah, playing here again today, I see.”

Rohan quietly stopped walking.

He had arrived at the northern outskirts of the Imperial Palace—a small, forgotten rear garden, lost even from people’s memories.

Ivy trailed along the walls, and the pond was filled with dark green moss that seemed to have swallowed the light.

In the midst of that desolate scene, a young girl in a black veil sat quietly.

Noah.

Her name, meaning “the child who swallowed darkness” in the ancient tongue, was none other than Empress Emilia’s second child and Rohan’s half-sister.

“Aren’t you busy…? Is it really alright for you to come?”

Noah asked cautiously.

Through the black veil, a large, dark bruise could be faintly seen.

Noah had been born with one side of her face darkened.

She was always quiet, always alone, and had hardly ever been properly called by name.

Rohan knelt to match the girl’s eye level, smiling softly.

“I had a bit of free time, so I stopped by. What are you doing?”

“Oh, um…”

Noah was holding tiny leaves in her hands.

She had been carefully layering them to form the shape of a flower.

Small, delicate movements.

And a tenderness as if she didn’t want to destroy what she was making.

“This is… a flower.”

“Is that so? There aren’t any flowers in this garden, though.”

“That’s why I was making them. No one ever plants flowers here. Lady Collin told me, ‘All things are one, so if you believe it’s a flower, then it becomes true.’”

Noah spoke matter-of-factly.

She wasn’t sad, nor angry.

Just… as if it were the natural order of things.

A sliver of sunlight fell across her shoulder.

Rohan quietly gazed at the girl’s face.

Empress Emilia had always called the child ‘the cursed one’, kept her hidden from view, and, as she grew, forced a black veil over her face.

No one in the palace spoke of her, and if her name ever came up, it was quickly hushed.

Rohan gently stroked her hair.

“I’ll have this garden refurbished soon.”

“Really?”

The light shining under the veil dimmed quietly.

Noah shook her head, speaking softly.

“No, it’s alright. If flowers bloom… people will come. And then, again…”

She couldn’t finish her sentence, lowering her head.

Her fingers, clutching her left cheek, trembled pale and white.

Rohan watched her for a moment, then placed his hand over the child’s small one.

“Noah. You’re a princess of this empire. If you wish, you can make this garden your very own. No one could enter without your permission. Did you forget? Your brother is the Emperor here.”

“…Your Majesty.”

Noah’s small lips quivered at Rohan’s gentle words.

And very quietly, her eyes grew red.

At that moment, someone called from the entrance to the garden.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress is looking for you!”

Rohan turned his head for a moment, then nodded.

Before standing, he looked at Noah once more.

“I’ll come again. I worry you’ll be here all alone.”

“…”

Noah nodded softly.

Just as Rohan turned to leave, his hem was gently tugged.

“Your Majesty, um…”

Noah spoke hesitantly, as if sharing a secret.

But her next words could not be heard, not even in a dream.

.

.

.

“Gasp.”

Rohan sat up in bed, swallowing his breath.

His sweat-dampened hand ran across his forehead.

“…It’s been a long time since I’ve had that old dream.”

Beyond the bedroom window, the pale light of dawn was just beginning to seep in.

He threw off the covers and slowly got out of bed.

By the time he straightened his collar and fastened the last button—

Knock, knock.

A familiar knock sounded.

“Come in.”

The door opened and William entered.

Catching his breath, he bowed politely.

“Good morning, Your Highness.”

“And to you.”

Rohan finished buttoning up with a faint smile.

“The carriage is ready.”

William always accompanied him to the morning conference.

Usually, palace stewards waited until the meeting ended, then received the details from the secretaries.

Rohan left the palace with William.

“You put the gift in the carriage, right?”

“Of course.”

Satisfied with William’s answer, Rohan walked over to the coachman.

“We’re headed here today.”

He handed the coachman a slip of paper.

“I’ll add another horse.”

After checking the note, the coachman hopped down from the carriage and ran to the stables.

“…?”

William cocked his head.

“Why do we need another horse? Where are we going?”

“We’re not headed to the Main Palace. We’re going to the monastery in southern Shurium.”

“…Pardon?”

At Rohan’s sudden words, William blinked rapidly.

“You’re not attending the morning conference?”

“It’ll be canceled anyway.”

No sooner had Rohan finished speaking—

The Main Palace’s secretary came galloping toward them on horseback.

Whinny!

The horse stopped.

The secretary, who delivered official messages, dismounted and bowed.

“Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“The morning conference has been canceled today, so I was sent to inform you urgently.”

“That can’t be… The morning conference…?”

William’s expression grew strange.

He glanced at Rohan.

It was rare for the morning conference at the Main Palace to be canceled.

But it really had been, just as the Crown Prince had said!

“Has something happened? If that’s true, it can’t be anything ordinary…”

When William asked, the secretary shook his head.

“I’m sorry, but I haven’t been told the exact reason.”

With a dissatisfied expression, William nodded.

“All right… I understand.”

“Then I’ll take my leave, Your Highness.”

The secretary gave his respects and quickly rode off elsewhere.

He was probably on his way to inform the other attendees of the cancellation.

“Your Highness. The conference really has been canceled…”

“Told you it would be.”

“But, how did you know?”

“Who knows. Just a hunch?”

“…Pardon?”

William’s face turned incredulous.

“You don’t expect me to believe that, do you…?”

“Come on, the conference is canceled, so we’re off to the monastery.”

But Rohan cut him off and climbed into the carriage.

“Well? Aren’t you getting in?”

“What’s this monastery trip about, Your Highness?”

“You’ll see when we get there.”

“Heavens…”

From start to finish, his master’s actions were full of mysteries.

William spoke with a sigh of resignation.

“What monastery are we headed to?”

“Elyseon.”

Rohan’s tone was calm, but there was determination in his eyes.

And as William heard the name, his eyes naturally widened.

“That place…”

He knew it well.

Located at the southern tip of the capital, the Elyseon Monastery was also known as the “Place of Forgetting”.

Most who visited were high nobles, staying there for convalescence or to heal from deep sorrow.

“Is there a reason for you to visit that place, Your Highness?”

“There is.”

Rohan nodded toward the tightly packed luggage at the back of the carriage.

“The gifts. I bought a whole bunch—I have to deliver them, don’t I?”

At Rohan’s reply—

“…?”

William now truly had no idea what was going on, and only blinked in confusion.