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nIt was fortunate that the snowfall from the morning had piled up gently.

nHe made a miniature snowman in an instant from a ball of snow.

nIt was small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.

nHe then wandered around the garden, looking for decorations that would suit the snowman.

nHe found branches, small stones and a yellow ribbon to tie around what little neck it had.

nWhen he finished it, it looked quite cute and pleasing to the eye.

nHe hurriedly ran to the mansion so that the painstakingly completed snowman he had titled ‘Rieta’s joy’ would not melt.

nAnd without even knocking, Rieta’s door was wide open.

n“Princess! Do you know what I made?!”

nHe shouted with excitement.

nBut what greeted him was not Rieta’s answer.

n“. . . Noel.”

nIt was his father’s stern gaze.

nIn addition, there was the fearful gaze of the doctor.

nNoel had almost taken a step backwards.

nBut he persevered.

nJust because he was afraid of his father, he could not give up on Rieta’s joy.

nHe just realized the true meaning of those words.

n“You must not enter the Princess’s room now. Go back to your room.”

n“Bu, but.”

nAfter Noel stayed on the spot, the Duke continued his explanation.

n“To meet the Princess, you need a justifiable reason. Either a guardian or a doctor.”

n“I have a good reason too!”

nNoel held out a snowman to his father.

n“The Princess likes the little snowman, and I have one. That’s a perfect match between supply and demand.”

nHe recently learned how to use some ‘difficult words’. It sounded pretty plausible.

n“Noel.”

nBut it didn’t seem to work for his father.

nHe kept Noel away from the doorway, blocking him.

n“Supply and demand is not the right phrase to use when handing out gifts.”

n“. . .”

n“I will deliver the snowman to the Princess. Go back and read the section on supply and demand again.”

nIn addition to his failure to deliver the snowman, he received homework.

nIn an instant, Noel was kicked out of the room with the snowman taken away from him.

nThud.

nThe sound of the door closing was unusually loud.

n* * *

nDo you think I’m going to give up?

nAfter a quick study of supply and demand, Noel devised the next plan.

nHe secretly stole a few of the flowers that his father had prepared in the family room and headed for her room.

nRieta really liked flowers.

nHowever, his father said that the flowers were not justifiable, and they were taken away.

nThen, he took out the Duchy’s cherished handkerchief.

nWhen he tried to deliver it to Rieta, it failed.

nThe handkerchief was also taken away by his father, once again saying that it was not a justifiable reason.

nJust then, a letter that Elisha wrote to Rieta was delivered.

nIt was a letter that he would not normally be even a little happy about, but today was different.

nNoel took the letter and ran to Rieta’s room, saying, “I’ll deliver it to her!”

nMail delivery is a ‘public duty’ recognized by the country.

nIt was also stipulated by law that it must be accurately delivered to the recipient.

nNoel was grateful to Elisha and knocked on Rieta’s room.

nWhen his father gave him a look saying, ‘Are you here again?’, he stretched out his chest and proudly held out a letter with Rieta’s name on it.

n“A letter from Elisha Maureen. The recipient is the Princess. I’m here to tell her.”

n“I see.”

nThe Duke nodded his head and picked up the letter, raising it high into the air.

n“Huh?!”

nNoel quickly raised his arms and tried to retrieve, but he was nowhere near his father’s height.

n“I will deliver it when the Princess wakes up.”

nNoel looked at the letter in his father’s hand with a tearful expression.

nHe wanted to deliver it to her directly.

n“And Noel.”

nThe Duke patted his son’s head. Like he was proud of him.

n“You seem to be at a loss for what to do because you are worried about the Princess.”

nNoel was startled by his words and quickly stepped back.

nWith a blushing face.

n“Never!”

n“Hmm?”

n“I’m, I’m not worried about anything like that.”

n“. . . Right.”

nThe Duke nodded his head.

n“Then you should stop looking for things for the Princess for a while. It doesn’t help the patient to keep making a fuss.”

nIt doesn’t help.

nHearing those words, Noel’s heart broke.

n“If you had given it any sincere concern, it would have been a great comfort to the Princess.”

n“Oh. That . . .”

n“Anyway, Noel. I hope you don’t catch a cold. So, promise me you’ll never open this door again.”

nThere was sincere concern in his father’s eyes.

nSo Noel could hardly shake his head.

n“. . . Yes. I understand it, father.”

n“Thank you.”

nThe door closed again.

nNoel glanced at the despicable door that he had never been able to pass that day.

nIt was still the afternoon.

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