Chapter 20: The Words I Must Say.

「Kuro, feather wand time!」

Ten days have passed since then.
To become closer to Kuro, I’ve been trying out all sorts of toys.

By the way—I used to think spirits didn’t eat.
Yet ever since Samuel started bringing sweets to my room, they mysteriously vanished in the blink of an eye.

And when I looked at Kuro…
There were crumbs stuck around its mouth.

When I asked, “Kuro… did you eat those?”
It only turned its face away with a sulky 『Nya〜n』.
But I was convinced.

The culprit was definitely Kuro.

Spirits don’t need food to survive, but perhaps they eat things they like?
That question arose in my mind.
When I mentioned it to Theodore-sama during one of his visits, he replied as though it were the most ordinary thing in the world:

「Eh? Spirits eat too, you know?
Giving sweets to normal animals might not be good, but for spirits it’s harmless.
They seem to really like tasty things.」

I was utterly shocked.
He said it so casually—but spirits are capricious by nature.
Even contracted ones usually return to the forest quickly.
I had never known anything about their everyday habits.

A spirit that stays constantly by a human’s side like Kuro is probably quite rare.

And that’s when it hit me.
Of course!
I can win Kuro over with treats!

From then on, I made a serious effort to bond through snacks.
But the one Kuro fixated on was actually Samuel—the one making the treats.

Whenever Samuel came to my room, Kuro would immediately trot over and rub itself against his legs.
Unfortunately, Samuel can’t see spirits.
So when I glared resentfully in his direction, he only tilted his head in confusion.

In the end, I decided to go back to basics:
Win Kuro over with toys it might like.

Cats love feather wands, right?!
With that thought, I hold out a stick topped with several fluffy white feathers and wave it in front of Kuro.

「Kuro〜, Kuro〜, let’s play〜」

Kuro glances over once—then pointedly looks away.
But the floating, fluttering thing in the corner of its vision seems to bother it.
The moment the feather wand brushes near its paws, a swift front paw shoots out—shunk!

It misses.

Perhaps frustrated at failing to catch it, Kuro now inches closer, eyes locked intently on the tip.
Bash, bash—
It repeatedly slams its paws down, trying to pin the elusive toy.

The sight is unbearably adorable.

「Looks like it likes it.」

A sudden voice comes from above my head.
Oh no—I was so absorbed in Kuro that I completely forgot.

Beside me stands His Highness—golden hair sparkling in the window light, eyes gently narrowed in a soft smile.

Yes—today, after so long, His Highness has come to the house.

「I didn’t know you liked animals this much, Rachel.」

「…I’m embarrassed you had to see that.」

「No—I’m glad.
You even forgot I was here, didn’t you?
Just watching you like this—so natural—makes all the fatigue of the day disappear.」

「…Ugh. I didn’t forget…」

I break into a cold sweat and answer awkwardly.
His Highness kneels right beside Kuro, lowers his face, and—unable to hold it back—lets his shoulders shake with quiet chuckles.

Then, looking at Kuro, he says with a preface of 「Still…」

「I’ve heard the daily updates from Theodore, but you really do seem much better.」

「Yes—thanks to Theodore-sama’s excellent guidance!
For the past two days, I’ve even been able to walk all the way to the garden for strolls.」

I lean forward excitedly without thinking; my voice gains strength as I speak.
His Highness turns gentle, delighted eyes toward me.
Suddenly realizing how close our faces are, heat rushes to my cheeks.
I clear my throat—cough—and hurriedly straighten my posture.

Then His Highness points at the feather wand in my hand.
「May I?」

Hesitantly I hand it over.
He accepts it with a soft 「Thank you」.

His Highness shifts his gaze to Kuro and begins slowly waving the feather wand.

「Kuro, come here.」

Kuro is once again completely fixated on the dancing feathers.
Who could ever imagine the Crown Prince playing with a cat toy?
If Cyril saw this, would his face freeze in horror?
Or would he smirk and tease His Highness mercilessly?

After a while, Kuro seems to lose interest.
It completely stops reacting to the toy.
Then it slowly walks over to the bed prepared just for it, curls up, closes its eyes, and lies down.

「Adorable.」

「Yes… truly adorable.」

「So it seems.」

His Highness continues watching Kuro with a fond smile.
I find myself smiling too.
Just looking at Kuro fills me with love and affection.

「Still… a dark spirit, huh.
I was surprised when I heard.」

「You couldn’t see it, could you, Your Highness?」

「Of course not.
Theodore is the exception.
Even among royalty, no one currently possesses an ability like his.」

「I see…」

「But this Kuro really is mysterious.」

「…Does it bother you?」

「Yes.
Whether Kuro’s presence will be good for you…
I hope it will.」

「For me…?
I thought you would be more interested in Kuro’s existence itself, Your Highness…」

I stare at him blankly.

Then I startle—realizing my words sounded like I was saying he isn’t the type to worry about others.
Playing with Kuro together had made me far too relaxed.

But… his words just now leave me a little puzzled.

The more time I spend with His Highness, the more I notice—the things that spark light in his eyes, how he keeps distance from people.
I’ve come to realize just how complex he truly is.

Perhaps the “perfect prince” is something he built through effort.
The real him… might be somewhere else entirely.

「Haha… so even you’ve figured out my personality, Rachel.」

「You’re interested in the dark spirit, aren’t you?」

「Of course.
It concerns the country—and I love investigating things I don’t know.
But right now… there’s something I want to cherish even more.」

「Something you want to cherish…?」

「Yes—you.
Lately, I think about you a lot.
What I can do so you can smile and live happily.
That thought keeps coming up more and more.」

His Highness looks straight at me, lets out a soft sigh, then smiles with slightly lowered brows—like he’s troubled.

「So?
Is there something you want to tell me?」

「Why…」

「You’ve been waiting for the right moment this whole time, haven’t you?」

He noticed.

As expected—His Highness has exceptional powers of observation.
Yes… there is something I planned to tell him today.

「Yes… there is something I must tell you, Your Highness.」