Interlude: Remias's Lunchbox (Part One)

"I made lunchboxes today!"

That was, let me see, around two years after we first met. A clear spring day when we'd planned a picnic. Remias appeared with a full smile, saying that, and carrying a big basket. The attendant who'd come along with him likewise held a basket in both arms.

"My! You mean Remias made them? Amazing! I didn't know you could cook!"

Since being born into this world, I'd never once seen a noble man cooking. So I'd assumed it was a "men don't set foot in the kitchen" sort of thing, but maybe not.

But for Remias, elegant and lovely, honestly the type you wouldn't blink at being told was secretly a young lady, it somehow made sense.

Surely it would be delicate, refined cooking! Fussy about the sauces, something like French cuisine? Or, against all expectation, ethnic food with herbs and spices! Hmm, stylish!

Just imagining it, the excitement wouldn't stop. Even the bug in my stomach was about to strike up a chorus! It seemed I wasn't the only hopeful one. Georg, already at our house, raised his voice happily too.

"Amazing! I grill a bit of meat at camp, but I've never done proper cooking!"

"Hehe! It's my first try too. I heard Cosette cooks a lot, and it made me want to make something myself. I hope it suits your taste."

"Remias made them. They're bound to be delicious!"

"Right! Remias is deft with his hands! Can't wait!"

Hearts swelling with hope for the lunchboxes, chattering away, the door opened and the crown prince arrived. His fair, lovely looks were the same as ever, but for the picnic he wore fine yet simple clothes, easy to move in.

"Hey, am I a little late? Oh, you all look cheerful."

"Yes, we are! Actually, Remias made us lunchboxes! Let's head out soon and eat somewhere with a nice view!"

"Right! I want to eat soon!"

"Hehe, being expected of so much makes me shy."

"Remias, cooking?! That's intriguing. Then shall we hurry out?"

"Yes!"

In high spirits, our excitement at its peak, we set off on the picnic just as our eager hearts pushed us.

---

Once we'd picked a spot on a hill with a good view, Sissi worked with the attendant Remias had brought to lay out the meal. We waited excitedly, but for some reason the attendant was acting oddly. Tilting his head at it, Remias called to him.

"Hm? That isn't what I made."

"N-no, um. The head chef said, in case there wasn't enough..."

"I see. The head chef worries too much. It's fine. I made plenty."

"No, no, please don't say that..."

"Look, I packed lots into this basket too."

"Ah, no, um, that..."

As Remias moved to open the basket he'd been holding, the attendant, for some reason, tried to block him.

What's the matter... it's the first time I've seen a servant of the Duke Dranju house not obey his master's wishes.

The attendant casually took the basket out of Remias's hands and held it up high, out of reach. Seeing that, even the mild Remias finally frowned.

"What are you doing! Give it back!"

"Lord Remias, please..."

But the attendant, too, looked somehow apologetic, and it was plain he wasn't doing it out of malice.

As we watched, at a loss, a carriage came racing toward us from far off. Raising a cloud of dust, its frame creaking, it sped up to us.

"What's that?! Your Highness, get behind me!"

"Yeah! Cosette, come over here too!"

"Huh? Kyah!"

Georg reacted first. Where he pulled it from, who knows, but he readied a bamboo pole and planted himself in the carriage's path, shielding the prince. And I was pulled in by the arm by the prince. At the same time, the guards who'd been watching from a distance closed around us protectively.

"An attack in broad daylight, hardly peaceful... wait, isn't that carriage the Duke Dranju house's?"

"Huh? You're right. Oh...? That's... Remie's carriage."

"Huh?! Lady Remie's...? In such a hurry, did something happen?"

We'd been wary of an attack, but knowing it was the ducal house's carriage, we relaxed a little and breathed out. Still, at the carriage's frantic state, the guards stayed on guard.

Watching the carriage come toward us in silence, we saw it pull up close and stop. And from the door that flung open, tumbling out in a fluster, was Remie.

"That lunchbox, waaait!!"