Chapter 21: Whose story is that?

After seeing off Oliver, Leefe plopped down into a chair.

“As expected… His Highness the sparkling Crown Prince is different… He’s accustomed to everything.”

There’s nothing else to do but to let it all out. Surely, he has never struggled with making friends. Being screamed at and fled from by someone he approached at a social gathering, or not being able to find a lover due to rumors of being an old man’s mistress— “I bet those things never happened to him!”

“Miss, your inner thoughts are leaking out from the second half. I can hear your inner thought and that’s make me feel embarassed and sorry for it.”

“But still! It’s too enviable!”

“Yes, yes, I understand your feelings, Miss.”

Rene handed her a handkerchief. It’s a bit too real for him to only be gentle when talking to friends or lovers, so she wish he’d stop.

“…You two are still the same.”

“Lala-san.”

Looking in the direction of the voice, there stood a displeased-looking beautiful spirit.

Although Oliver had returned to his room, the contracted spirit named Lala seemed to still have something to say. Folding her arms, she delivered her message with an air of importance.

“Leefe-sama. Oliver-sama has someone extremely important to him.”

“Hmm? Yes, I know that’s the reason he visited the Kingdom of Distoria.”

“You can’t just take it so lightly. Everything Oliver-sama does is for that person. That person is so important and precious to him. Understand!?”

“…”

Certainly, Oliver had mentioned that he visited the Kingdom of Distoria to meet someone important.

(“You’ll soon find out who that person is,” he said, but it seems like I haven’t been introduced…)

Even so, he shows interest in Leefe and tries to close the distance between them. It doesn’t make sense. Or perhaps, it does in some way.

“Could it be that the important person he’s talking about is me…!?”

“Oh, Miss, that’s a surprisingly optimistic guess. That’s really great.”

“Hmph. There’s no way that’s true. Don’t take a simple joke so seriously. Just tease me like you always do! It’s making me sad, you know!?”

As Leefe and Rene resumed their usual conversation, Lala grimaced exaggeratedly.

“Hey, don’t ignore my presence and continue the conversation! Anyway, Leefe-sama, don’t misunderstand.”

“Yes… ah.”

Before Leefe could nod in agreement, Lala disappeared with a poof.

“That one seriously has a bad personality…”

Leefe tilted his head at Rene’s mutter.

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, nothing. Miss, in any case, you should stay by Oliver-sama’s side for a while. Even if you get involved in some trouble, if the Miss decides to, you can pretty much erase most things, but what lies beyond that is treated as a first-rate villain… no, a Demon Lord? Ugh, you’ll become even more of a loner.”

“Ugh… I’ll do that. I hate the idea of a lonely life…”

“Then let’s behave ourselves.”

Imagining a lonely life, Leefe, who was leaning on the table, gently looked up at the contracted spirit speaking in a tone as if addressing a small child.

“Hey. What’s the real connection between Rene and Prince Oliver…?”

“Ugh. The chocolate cookies are so crispy. They’re delicious.”

“Come on, Rene!”

—Rene seemed adamant about not revealing anything.