Breaking Off the Engagement… Just as Intended Chapter 27

— The following day

Clear skies.
It would be great if today’s meeting would cause the same level of clearness.
Yesterday I told Father and Mother that I was going to talk to Leon-sama again.
At first they weren’t in favour of it, but by preserving I managed to gain their a.s.sent.

Well then, should I be on my way now.
The last time I just lept myself get swept away and accepted Leon-sama’s declaration like that, but today is going to be different.
I’m going to break off the engagement by my own volition this time around.

“Ririina. If it seems that Prince Leon is going to attack you it’s fine to just do him in.” Said Mother.

“Ririina, do what you want how you want to. I won’t let the King complain afterwards, either.” Said Father.

“Aa–er, no .. it’s nothing.” Said Brother.
It seemed like he had tried to say something but gave upon upon Mother’s cutting glare.

Amongst the ones sending me off there was Chris-sama as well.
But saying nothing in particular he was just smiling.

I see, you’ve got nothing to say, huh~
Rather, why do I act disappointed at that, me.
Right now it’s more important to think of how I am going to approach the talk with Leon-sama.

Now then, I arrived at the castle but where is Leon-sama?
Just as I was troubled at that a single knight walked over to me.

“Ririina-sama, I will guide you to Leon-sama. Please, this way.”

Getting guided we were walking inside the castle.
It would appear we were headed to Leon-sama’s room.
Today it wasn’t the Garden, was it.

So I arrived in front of the room after being guided.
Fuu, as I thought I’m a bit nervous.
The knight that guided me knocked on the door.

“Excuse me. Prince Leon, I have brought Ririina-sama.”

Leon-sama called us in from the inside.
Maa, I guess he would be here, since this is his own room and all.
It also looked like Anjiu-sama wasn’t here today.
He kept his promise.

“Aah, good work. You can step back.”

Upon Leon-sama’s words the knight responded with ‘Yes!’ and left the room.
Normally it would be bad for only us two to be in the same room.
However, the topic being what it is there was nothing to be done about that.

Suddenly our gazes met.
Leon-sama quickly averted his line of sight.
I was a bit bewildered what we should talk about with each other.
There was nothing but to preemptively strike here!

“”Ano!””

Uh, we overlapped.
However, I couldn’t falter here.
Continue the attack.

“Leon-sama ..” “Ririina ..”

Muh, we’d overlap even here, huh.
Understood! Please go first then!

……… .

Ee-i, just what were we doing?
That we earnestly wouldn’t even be able to establish a conversation.
For now, let’s try and go with what Chris-sama said yesterday about Anjiu-sama’s secret.

“Leon-sama .. Thank you very much for making time for me today. I want you to follow along with what I have to say for a bit.”

Leon-sama simply nodded without saying anything.
Yes, I understand, so don’t shake it so much!
You look like a broken toy at this rate.

“Now then .. that’s right, first about Anjiu-sama ..”

“I am very sorry!!”

Uwah, that startled me.
When I mentioned Anjiu-sama’s name he apologized with all his might.
We were talking while sitting around a table
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but he lowered his head with such vigour that he nearly crashed into it.

“A-ano, Leon-sama. Please raise your head. Let’s continue the topic for now.”

Raising his head upon my words he showed a very miserable expression.
That’s not good, you know, showing your retainers a face like that.
I became very worried about that Leon-sama who rarely showed his emotions like that.

“Now then, once again. Where have you gotten aquaintanced with Anjiu-sama? I am not trying to blame you. It is just .. I have heard from Brother that Leon-sama is bad with women so I thought it odd.”

Leon-sama responded with a face as if he had given up.

“Is that so, from Ricardo .. Let’s see, my first meeting with Anjiu-sama should have been 2 years ago. At that time I had been wandering around the city by myself. I had thought it was necessary to find out how the people were living their lifes for the sake of the future, you see. But due to some carelessness on my part I got surrounded by women. I knew that because my face is like that woman flocked to me so I had hidden it, but during a meal I got seen so .. The one who saved me at that time was that person.”

Houhou, isn’t this basically already the beginning of a love story?
Wouldn’t it be fine to just tear apart our engagement here?
Er, more imporantly, this must be the first time I have seen a normally talking Leon-sama from this close up for so long.
However, even now he would absolutely not meet my eyes.

“At that time I said my thanks and we split up right away, however half a year ago we reunited in an unexpected place. That was inside this castle. Moreover, they were introduced as the Duke’s daughter, so I was really suprised.”

Anjiu-sama was the daughter of a Duke, huh.
But, wait a moment.
Chris-sama had said that she was a man.
Could it be .. had Leon-sama been mistaken again!?
While I was in turmoil innerly, Leon-sama continued talking.

“Because that had been far too different from the appearance I had met I was way too bewildered. The one I had met had looked like a man, after all.”

Hhmmh?
What’s that mean.
Whatever you may say, to introduce a man as the daughter of a duke to Leon-sama is bad, isn’t it?
If something like that came out even the duke would be accused.

“Aah, it’s strange, isn’t it? What’s more, when the Duke introduces Anjiu to me she had absolutely no memory of me. At first I thought she was just pretending not to know, but it didn’t really look like she was lying. In addition, when I come in contact with a woman my body starts trembling completely unrelated to my mind. At that time I was trembling from meeting her.”

It’s becoming even more of a riddle.
So in the end was Anjiu-sama a male? Female? Which one?

“The one that had saved me in the city back then had absolutely been a guy. And still, when the Duke introduced as she was a girl. The conclusion I derived from that was .. that there were two Anjius. It was apparent that the Duke, despite knowing that Ririina was already engaged to me, made Anjiu try and get close to me. At first I was trying to avoid that but the Duke, too, didn’t let up and did so many times. He even aimed for times when there was no one else around me. At one certain time by chance there were only me and Anjiu. At that time I resolutely tried asking her. Whether she had a brother that looked just like her.”

“.. And sure enough there was, I take it. I had asked Chris-sama. After Leon-sama had been pulled away by Brother that time, the meaning of why Chris-sama told Anju-sama that she couldn’t marry you. Chris-sama had known that that Anjiu-sama had been a male.”

Leon-sama made a slightly wry face when he heard Chris-sama’s name but he began talking.

“That’s right. The one that had been in that place was the male Anjiu, no, his actual name is Aren [1]. My coorperative worker [2]. After all, I absolutely couldn’t have the real Anjiu-sama pretend to be my new fiancee. [3]”

Is what Leon-sama muttered in self-mockery.