n

n

n—-----

nThe Next Day

nThe wind softly ruffled the silk curtains hanging on the wide opened windows and sent the leaves of the potted plants littering the sill dancing. The glass clinked clear and in this quiet room, the sound of pouring water was refreshingly loud as a lady prepared tea diligently.

nShe then quietly retreated to the side and let us be, but the silence continued, growing by the second. My eyes are currently focused on the unspeaking woman sitting gracefully in front of me, a cup of tea in hand, drinking it unhurriedly.

nLikewise, her eyes are also on mine, albeit more pensive like she's still deliberating whether me being here is a good idea.

nThe silence stretched. I'm already halfway finished with my tea but nothing has even happened yet. No one wanted to speak first, which is absurd, because the host should always start, shouldn't they? And yet this particular host remained mute.

n

"Are we just going to stare at each other's faces for the rest of the day? Is that why you invited me here?

" I decided to break the silence and berated her, shedding any pretense I have on my body.

nRosamunde flinched, opened her mouth, and then closed it. Now she's just staring at me again.

nSighing, I leaned back on the chair and grumbled,

"Because this is boring. We could at least play some chess, play dress-up, or I don't know– braid each other's hair? Or we could also gossip about thy enemies. Though I don't have any so let's go with yours.

"

nHer eyebrows furrowed.

n

"What do you even mean by that?

"

nShe clearly knew what I meant but still asked nonetheless, so I sipped my tea in response. In all fairness, this tea is good.

nRosa pursed her lips,

"Has anyone told you that you're too much sometimes?

"

n

"No,

" I immediately replied,

"-because I'm not.

"

nRosa rolled her eyes at me. I thought that it was enough to egg her to start the conversation already but, I guess I expected too much because Rosa never opened her lips again. After riling her up, she stays silent afterward?

nGrumbling internally, I placed the cup down and crossed my arms.

n

"So why am I here, Rosa? Ugh… I hate saying that. It reminds me of someone unpleasant.

"

nCalling her Rosa reminds me of Rose, but calling her Rosamunde is a waste of syllables. What to do…

n

"Are you saying I'm unpleasant?

" She grumbled in displeasure.

nMy left brow raised automatically.

n

"Are you?

"

n

"There is no one else named Rosa here except for me,

" she pressed.

n

"What do you know? The world's vast. You could even have a doppelganger,

" I grinned at her,

"And she's worse than you anyway.

"

nRosa let out a tired sigh.

n

"I'm starting to regret inviting you here.

"

nHuh? She has the nerve to say that?

n

"You have already wasted my time, might as well make the most out of it now,

" I fired back at her.

nMy eyes taunted her, daring her to talk now or I would only annoy her more. Seriously, she was the one who called me here and now she's regretting it? What's with this lady's attitude?

nRosa only lamented by herself and started dissociating.

n

"I'm regretting this so much…

"

nThe nerve in my head ticked. In frustration, I glared at her and huffed. Heck, I feel like hot air is blowing out of my ears and nose right now.

n

"Just spill the beans already! What do you want from me?

"

nRosamunde seemed to be startled by my sudden outburst. I think she might have reflected a bit and started doing what she's supposed to do. Opening her damn mouth.

nShe glanced at me before averting her eyes again, staring at the cup of cold tea in front of her, looking wistful.

nI thought she would remain tight-lipped again but after a short while, she finally said her piece.

n

"... I need your help.

"

nIf I was drinking, I would have spit the water out due to shock. Did I hear that right?

n

"... You need my help,

" I echoed her words, staring at her blankly.

nRosa pursed her lips.

n

"Yes.

"

nIt took me a moment but not as long as she did. The sound of the fan loudly spreading open rang. My back rested on the cushion again as I fanned myself, rambling to no one.

n

"Hmmm… Is the world ending? Someone did blast the moon in half last night, so maybe it's really the day of reckoning…

"

nRosamunde looked irritated by my antics and scowled.

n

"Can you be serious for a second?

"

nThe fan stopped as I turned my attention back to her.

n

"Rosamunde Vinea is asking for my help,

" I deadpanned.

"Do you know how absurd that sounds? Let's not even mention that our families are on the opposing sides. You inviting me is already weird!

" I pointed out.

nDid she even know what my brother's face looked like upon hearing that I was going to see her? Those who knew the situation would be very surprised if they saw me willingly entering her space!

nRosamunde got even more annoyed.

n

"What's wrong with me inviting you?!

"

nThere is no point arguing about this now. My eyes narrowed at her, weighing the reasons for this 'help' she's asking.

n

"If this is about the crown princess position then I'm sorry, I am rooting for Bea on this one,

" I declared, not even bothering to sugarcoat it.

nWhy else would she ask me for help? I can't think of anything at all.

n

"It's not that!

" She vehemently denied it.

nOh?

n

"If not for the fact that you're Noah's friend, I wouldn't have even talked to you!

" She added, probably because she was frustrated so it slipped out of her tongue. And she doesn't seem to notice what she just gave away.

nAhhhh… So that was it~

nOhohohoho~

n

"So it's about Noah…

" I hummed, feeling good about myself.

nRosa had gone completely mute again, looking disappointed at herself.

n

"....

"

nSo it's about that. Fufufufufu~ She should have told me sooner then we wouldn't have gone in circles this whole time.

n

"Alright, I get it now. So what do you want me to do?

" I then plastered a friendly smile which made her cringe in disgust.

nI'll let that slide because I'm in a rather good mood right now. What I like most are quality gossip and controversies, you know. And this one is particularly juicy.

nRosamunde saw how pleased and eager I was and immediately regretted it. Her downcast expression only made me happier.

nShe shook her head sadly,

"... This is really a mistake. I'm regretting this now....

"

n