I Ran Away And The Reverse Harem Started

Author: Asternkm

Splash, splash.

With a refreshing sound, the waves crashed against the cliffside and broke apart in white foam.

The salty scent of the sea rushed in and tickled my nose. Mixed in with the ocean smell was the fragrance of roses. I took a deep breath, filling my chest with the scent.

It had already been a week since we’d been staying at the hotel in Shamit. The small coastal city, located north of the capital, was famous for its sheer cliffs and the wild roses grown there.

I was leaning against the window frame, gazing for a long while at the blue waves, the greenery on the cliffs, and the soft pink roses, when someone knocked on the door.

“Rosie, can I come in?”

“Come in.”

Still resting my arm on the window frame, I answered. The door opened, and Lucas entered, grinning brightly.

I glanced back over my shoulder, giving him a weary look.

“Don’t tell me… you’re not planning to drag me out again today, are you?”

“What do you mean, again today?”

Lucas widened his eyes, feigning innocence. But that cute act didn’t work on me anymore. His intentions were clear as day.

“What do you mean, what? You’ve dragged me out sightseeing every single day this past week. Don’t tell me you’re going to say we’re going out today too?”

“Mm… did I really?”

“Yes, you did! Let’s rest today. After six straight days of touring and walking nonstop, my legs are killing me. I’m going on strike!”

Even at my whining, Lucas just smirked like he was enjoying himself.

As I said before, Lucas’s ridiculous stamina had tortured me throughout the whole trip. Sure, it was a sightseeing trip, but forcing us to walk all day, every day, for six days straight?

He’d sometimes stuffed delicious meals or snacks into my mouth, but still—the endless walking had left my legs and backside aching.

I can’t take it anymore. This isn’t a vacation—it’s boot camp. It’s like walking a giant dog!

I was slumped against the window frame, worn out from a week of nonstop outings, when Lucas sidled up beside me.

I glared at him right away and grumbled.

“You’re really too much. You said this trip was supposed to be about resting, and yet you plan out six whole days of nonstop outings? Thanks to you, I’m exhausted. Don’t you ever run out of energy?”

“Quit grumbling… when else are we ever going to travel like this? It’s our first trip together! And yesterday, you were so happy to see dolphins for the first time, so why are you saying something different now?”

He was right. Since this was our first group trip, Lucas had put together an intense sightseeing schedule that left no room to breathe.

It is kind of impressive that he planned it all himself…

…The problem was just that he hadn’t considered anyone else’s stamina.

Lucas leaned sideways against the window frame, facing me. The bright midday sunlight glinted off his blond hair.

Today, I just wanted to sprawl out and rest. Surely, he wasn’t planning to drag me out again?

While I eyed him with suspicion, Lucas suddenly reached out, tapped my nose, and then smirked at me like a smug cat.

“If you’re that tired, I’ll let it go just this once. Today we’ll just stay in the hotel, Rosie.”

Phew, saved. Thank heavens.

“Ah, thank you so very much, Lord Lucas…”

“Well, since we’re staying in, should I cook something for you? How about my special toast?”

“Don’t even think about it. You’re banned from the kitchen. Have you even cooked a single meal in your life?”

“Tch. Rosie, don’t you trust me?”

It’s not that I don’t trust you—it’s your cooking I don’t trust.

But if I said that out loud, Lucas, who had been in such high spirits these past six days, might get sulky.

So instead, I just looked at him fondly and gave his cheek a playful pinch.

“Forget cooking. Just order room service. I’ll take a quick morning walk in the meantime.”

“A walk? Where to?”

“The rose farm below. I’ve been smelling the scent all morning, but this time I want to see them up close.”

“Really? Then should I come too?”

Like a loyal puppy, Lucas looked ready to follow me. But I refused. I wanted a little quiet time alone.

Luckily, Lucas didn’t insist. While he went off to order room service, I slipped on a light linen summer coat and left the room.

The suite we were staying in was the largest at the Shamit hotel. With a big living room, four separate bedrooms, and even bathrooms, it was perfect for the four of us to share.

“Just a short walk, then back for pancakes with Lucas.”

I hummed a tune as I pulled my straw hat down tight. It was the hat Lynne’s family had bought and sent for me.

Outside, the sea breeze blew cool and fresh. I tied the chin strap of my hat firmly beneath my jaw and headed toward the rose farm.

It didn’t take long, walking slowly toward the cliff edge, before clusters of wild roses came into view.

They had grown in the salty sea air, their heads peeking out of the bushes. The people of Shamit supplied these roses, which Lucas used as perfume ingredients.

Thanks to that, I even got the chance to look around the nearby farms. I’d heard they grew lavender near the cliffs too…

“The scent is wonderful.”

Beside the farm, there were benches and a small wooden table. It seemed the farm also served as a little walking path for hotel guests.

I sat on a bench and spread out the letters I had brought with me. They were the letters that had arrived for me during this northern retreat, after the urgent matters were settled.

There was Deborah’s letter about preparing to inherit the barony and planning her first trip. There was Lynne’s letter, written after sightseeing in the capital and returning to the restaurant. And there were letters from Marie, Angie, and Mika, the maid friends waiting for my news back at the count’s manor.

Of course, there were also letters from Yvette and my parents. They had come north a few days ago and even walked along the beach with me.

It was the first time our family had taken a walk together without any worries.

I lay over the little table and began writing replies—one for Deborah, one for Lynne, and one for my maid friends at the manor. I also wrote a letter to Sasha, who was still in Hollis.

[…For that reason, there’s someone offering to rent out the old baron’s townhouse at a low price. Would you and the children like to come up to the capital? Of course, only if you’re comfortable with it.]

Deborah had decided to donate almost all of Kazan Louis’s remaining wealth to society. The only thing left was one big, old townhouse, and even that she wanted to use for something meaningful.

Naturally, I thought of Sasha, Ralph, and the children they were raising in the orphanage.

Of course, asking country folk to suddenly set up an orphanage in the capital might feel like too much pressure, so I wrote the letter as gently as possible.

****

I wonder what Sasha will write back? And by the way, I wonder if she ever received the piano we wrung out of Daniel?

After gathering up all the letters I’d written, I weighed them down with a pebble so they wouldn’t blow away in the sea breeze. Propping my elbow on the table, I rested my chin in my hand and looked out at the sea to my right.

The cool, dry sea wind climbed up the cliff, tousling my hair gently. I took a deep breath, drawing the wind deep into my lungs.

I had been staring at the ocean for some time when I saw someone walking toward the hotel from the opposite side.

It was Colin, carrying a box.

He spotted me first and called out.

“Rosie, you’re out here.”

“Mm-hmm. Just out for a little walk. Did you go out early this morning?”

Unlike me, who had slept in until almost noon, Colin had gone down to the village below the hotel early in the morning.

When I looked curiously at the box, he came closer and smiled as he answered.

“Yeah. I thought maybe we could do something together while we’re at the hotel.”

“Together?”

Colin set the box down beside the bench I was sitting on. When he opened the dark wooden packaging, out came small canvases and paints.

“Since we’ll probably be staying here a bit longer, I thought it’d be nice to paint when we get bored.”

“Wow.”

Now that I thought about it, my family had once told me that when I was little, we often went out to the sea near Jensen to paint.

I had no memory of it myself, but Father had mentioned it when we looked out at the sea in Shamit.

“But I’ve never painted before.”

I was excited about trying something new, but when it came to handwork, I was hopeless at anything except chores. I wasn’t too confident.

Colin looked at me and gave an encouraging smile.

“I’ll help you.”

Without much debate, we decided to paint the wild rose bushes and the sea beneath the sheer cliffs spread out before us.

I mixed blue oil paint and spread broad strokes for the sea, dark green for the bushes, and a bright yellow sun at the top. Once I laid down the base, Colin placed his hand over mine, adding colors and shading to bring out the details of the scenery.

Thanks to his help, my first painting turned out rather decent, even if I had no skill of my own.

I especially liked the pale pink wild roses blooming above the bushes.

Thanks to the shade cast by the hotel, it felt pleasantly cool despite being midday.

“It came out really pretty. All thanks to you, Colin.”

At my words, Colin only smiled as he packed up the paints. I watched his profile for a moment before finally speaking up.

“Actually, last time I went into your room, I found a certain painting.”

“A painting?”

Colin turned his head toward me, as if hearing about it for the first time. I hesitated a little before nodding.

“It looked like something drawn a long time ago. A picture of my face…”

“Ah.”

“You drew it after I disappeared, didn’t you?”

On the yellowed, worn paper was a drawing of my young face, along with words saying I was missing.

It showed just how desperately Colin and the others had searched for me for so long. The fact that he hadn’t thrown it away but instead kept it tucked inside a book… That was a depth of feeling I couldn’t even begin to understand.

Of course, there must have been other feelings, too.

Lucas had followed me around like a duckling imprinting on its mother, unable to control the affection he showed. I had always thought of it as love, but more in the way of family than romance.

But what about Colin?

“…”

I gazed at the crashing waves for a moment, then turned my head toward the now-silent Colin.

Sometimes he would jokingly bring up the idea of me becoming a rich man’s wife, and I had laughed it off as just a joke.

But after regaining my memories in Hollis, and later when we had lunch in Rita, I had begun to faintly realize Colin’s true feelings.

“Would it have been better if I’d been greedier? If I hadn’t just teased you with jokes about marriage?”

The sea breeze fluttered between us. Now, only a hand’s span apart, we looked straight at each other.

In the thin shade, Colin stared at me with a slightly startled expression.

“You remember what you used to say sometimes… how if I married you, I could be a rich man’s wife. That wasn’t really a joke, was it…”

I was speaking carefully when—

“Wait.”

“…?”