"......Lord Clover. Young Master Rest Clover is quite thorough in his work."
"Yes, he really does seem to be a rare find."
After Rest left the tent, Andrew and Rilanda, who remained behind, fell into conversation.
On the table lay a topographic sketch of the central plains that Rest had drawn.
It lacked any artistic flair... but the rises and dips of the terrain, the presence or absence of wetlands, and locations likely to serve as monster nests were all meticulously detailed.
"He most likely sketched it by looking down from above with magic... but yes, it's easy to read."
"Still, Your Highness... what was the intention behind having the young Lady Yuri Cattleya join the exploration of the central region?"
As Andrew gazed at the map Rest had brought, Rilanda suddenly posed the question.
"I can understand Lord Lubeth. Miss Isis as well. Lord Argil and Priest Rail would be fine. But young Lady Yuri... the daughter of Knight Commander Cattleya — what purpose is there in including her?"
Yuri Cattleya was the daughter of Marquis Cattleya, the knight commander.
What's more... only a very select few knew this, but she was a sheltered young lady whom he treasured like a jewel in his palm.
To add such a daughter to the frontier development corps and, on top of that, entrust her with a dangerous mission... that could easily earn him the wrath of Marquis Cattleya.
"Well... one of the reasons is that she volunteered herself."
Andrew lifted his head from the table and answered with a wry smile.
"She... apparently, she's taken a fancy to Lord Clover. She wanted to be of use to him, so she asked to join the frontier development corps. Of course, I asked about her family situation... but she flatly declared it had nothing to do with her father. Seems like quite the complicated household."
"You mean... she ran away from home?"
"Most likely. Since her motivation for joining boils down to Lord Clover, I decided to leave the matter in his hands. Young Lady Yuri also participated in the suppression of the civil war, so I knew she had more than enough ability. I figured she wouldn't be a burden."
"......"
Andrew's reasoning, at least, was sound.
But since he already knew Rilanda well enough...
After staring at him with suspicion for a moment... Andrew raised both hands in surrender.
"...Fine. Stop looking at me like that. I can't hide anything from you, Rilanda."
"Your Highness..."
"I had my reasons for wanting to keep Young Lady Yuri away. I wanted someone — Lord Clover or anyone else — to take her off my hands. That's the honest truth."
Andrew fiddled with a pen in his hand and let out an exasperated sigh.
"Also, there's talk at the royal palace about arranging my marriage again. Since I'll be opening up the plains and gaining a vast domain, they say it's about time I settled down. And... Young Lady Yuri has been put forward as one of the candidates for my fiancée."
"Your Highness and Young Lady Yuri as... a prince who has renounced his royal title and a marquis's young lady. On the surface, they certainly match in status..."
"In status only. Our feelings couldn't be more different."
Andrew tossed the pen onto the table and, for once, wore an expression of genuine anger.
"First, they got engaged to the sisters of House Rosemary, then they tried to steer Celestine toward Lord Clover's leash, and I thought that would buy me some peace and quiet for a while. And now it's Young Lady Yuri! Honestly, I've had enough. I've told them I'm not interested!"
"..."
"You know this, don't you? There's only one person I love. The idea of marrying anyone else is completely out of the question!"
"...For royalty, a political marriage is a duty, isn't it? You could always accept a wife as His Majesty requests and keep a mistress on the side in secret?"
"You've got to be joking. Absolutely not!"
Andrew clicked his tongue loudly, as though the very suggestion were repulsive.
"I'm the type who likes to devote myself to loving one person wholeheartedly. I'm not skilled enough to love two at once... and you of all people should know that very well!"
"..."
Rilanda quietly averted her gaze from her master's passionate outburst.
She understood Andrew's feelings perfectly. It hurt to see it so clearly.
But... she understood, painfully, that those feelings would never be acknowledged by his father the king.
"...Let's leave it here for today. I'll be on my way."
"Hm? Ah, good work. Make sure you get some rest."
"Yes, excuse me..."
Rilanda bowed her head and took her leave of Andrew.
She was about to step out of the tent when she nearly ran into a man coming in from outside.
"Whoops, sorry about that."
"My apologies, Yusgos."
The man who had entered was Yusgos Bethras, the student council secretary.
A long-time friend of Rilanda's, and a fellow colleague who also served under Andrew.
"Rilanda, are you heading back?"
"Yes, it's gotten late. Good night."
"Yeah, good night."
The two exchanged brief greetings and parted ways.
As Rilanda left, Yusgos stepped into Andrew's tent.
"I've returned, Your Highness Andrew."
"Hey, My beloved.
I've been waiting for you!"
Andrew said with delight, rising from his chair.
She approached Yusgos as he was and they exchanged a warm embrace.
"Your Highness, my goodness… that was rather sudden."
"Well, can you blame me? I've been waiting for this for so long… Besides, I made sure no one was around, so you don't need to worry."
"Your Highness…"
"Yuri…"
Andrew's love would never be acknowledged by his father or his brother.
Only a very select few people — Rilanda among them — knew the reason why.