Second Life, I’m Dying Soon Chapter 51

Chapter 51

 

“Even Cecil Adrian makes mistakes like this. So he does have a human side after all.”

Alexis gave a short scoff as he helped Cecil to his feet. By then, Yuria and Claude had also come closer. Yuria brushed the grass off Cecil’s clothes and asked carefully,

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“…No, I’m fine.”

Cecil rubbed his still-burning face and took a long, steady breath. That was when Alexis, who had been watching him intently, crossed his arms and tilted his posture.

“Cecil. Walk.”

“…What?”

“Walk.”

At the abrupt command, Cecil froze for a moment, but did as told and stepped forward. After only two or three steps, however, he stiffened and stopped.

“…Ah.”

A dazed sound slipped from Cecil’s lips. Only now did he feel the dull ache in his left ankle. He had been so embarrassed that he hadn’t even noticed the pain.

“Let me take a look.”

Claude quickly bent down and examined Cecil’s left ankle.

There was slight heat around the ankle bone, and though faint, signs of swelling were visible. Claude pressed gently around the ligament.

“Does it hurt?”

“…A little.”

Leaning on Claude’s shoulder, Cecil frowned slightly. It did hurt when pressed. Still, it wasn’t bad enough that he couldn’t walk at all, just mildly uncomfortable.

“It seems you twisted it when you fell. It’s not a serious injury, but it would be best to call the court physician to have a look.”

“Mm. Once we return to the Peridot Palace, call the court physician—”

“Get on my back.”

Alexis’s stern voice cut the conversation cleanly in half. At the same time, three faces turned toward him. A stunned Claude, a worried Yuria, and a deathly pale Cecil. All of them were visibly shaken by the Crown Prince’s words.

“Your Highness, I will carry him back to the palace.”

Claude strongly objected, saying he could not allow such an irreverent act by the Crown Prince.

Not just him—there were plenty of well-built guards nearby. Carrying Cecil was hardly an issue.

“Do you plan to spread the news throughout the palace that Cecil is injured? If the Empress finds out, do you think she’ll stay quiet? We’ll use the Rias path. Make sure it’s handled that way.”

The Rias path was a secret walkway accessible only to royalty. It connected to seven major palaces through branching paths, but because it required a long detour, it was rarely used.

Tonight’s banquet had also been held in secrecy. With tensions already running high with the Empress, adding an unpleasant incident would only give her leverage. Alexis pointed this out, and Claude had no choice but to agree.

“I’ll escort Yuria back safely.”

“That would be best.”

With his opinion completely ignored as the situation progressed at breakneck speed, Cecil’s complexion grew paler by the second. When Alexis bent down in front of him and offered his broad back, Cecil pressed a hand to his forehead and sighed.

“There’s no need for this. I’m fine. I can walk.”

“The more you insist, the longer I’ll be bent over in front of the guards. Just keep that in mind.”

“……”

Alexis’s broad back showed no sign of retreating. Cecil unconsciously glanced around.

The guards lining the forest path were desperately staring at the ground, doing their utmost not to look at Alexis. Even so, the reality of the empire’s Crown Prince kneeling with his posture lowered could not be hidden.

“…Haah.”

Cecil realized that surrendering was the only way to end this dreadful standoff. He wrapped his arms over Alexis’s squared shoulders and leaned his upper body against him. Even in this situation, his heart was pounding wildly, as if it had no sense of propriety.

“Let’s go.”

As soon as weight settled on his back, Alexis straightened his knees and rose. He adjusted Cecil once, lightly, then started walking. His steps were steady, as though he weren’t carrying a grown man at all.

The Rias path was utterly deserted, without even the shadow of an ant in sight.

On either side, thick wisteria vines towered well above a man’s height, planted densely in place of walls. Above them, pale violet wisteria blossoms hung in clusters like bunches of grapes. Moonlight filtered faintly through the branches and stems.

Had a pair of lovers been walking here, it would have been the height of romance. Unfortunately, the two of them kept their mouths firmly shut. In the heavy silence, only Alexis’s footsteps echoed, crunch, crunch.

Unable to bear the awkwardness, Cecil twisted his waist. With only his arms around Alexis’s shoulders and his upper body lifted, the posture looked uncomfortable to anyone.

“Hold on properly. If you fall from here, it won’t be your ankle next time—it’ll be your head.”

A sharp voice came, right on cue. As if he had eyes on the back of his head, Alexis immediately noticed Cecil’s discomfort.

“…….”

Cecil tightened his grip around Alexis’s shoulders and pressed his chest firmly against his back. Afraid that his pounding heartbeat might carry through, he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to calm himself.

“Come to think of it, I met you here once before.”

Alexis spoke suddenly, still looking ahead as he walked.

“Here? I don’t remember.”

“It was a long time ago. Probably just after you entered the palace. It was the first time I’d ever seen a child younger than me, so I remember being quite surprised.”

If it had been right after he entered the palace, Cecil would have been only five years old. There was no way he could remember it.

“You must’ve been wandering the palace alone and ended up here. Do you know what you said the moment you saw me, crying in fear?”

“…What did I say?”

“Prince.”

Cecil was dumbfounded. His face immediately burst into flames. No matter how childish it had been, the embarrassment was something his present self had to endure in full.

Alexis continued, chuckling low.

“Even back then, you must’ve thought I looked high-ranking. You asked me outright if I was the prince who came to save you. Sniffling, nose running and all.”

“…And what did you do then, Your Highness?”

“I scolded you, told you I wasn’t a prince but the Crown Prince.”

“That was rather cold of you.”

“Well, I disliked you. You and Empress Elizabeth, who appeared out of nowhere, both irritated me. I was a child too, immature. And I took it out on someone even younger.”

“It couldn’t be helped.”

“But you smiled anyway, tears all over your face. You reached out your tiny hands and ran toward me. I think you were scared and wanted me to hold you. You didn’t make it very far before you tripped, though.”

As if recalling the scene, Alexis let out a soft laugh.

Carried on his back, Cecil stared at Alexis’s firm nape and the short-cropped hair at the back of his head, silently pressing his lips together.

“You were cute. The fact that I still remember it must mean it was unforgettable for me too.”

“Please forget it now. I beg you.”

“Who would’ve thought that cute little thing would grow up to be so cold. Though I suppose you still fall over just as easily.”

Alexis adjusted Cecil once more. His lean body lifted briefly, then settled comfortably onto Alexis’s back. It struck him anew how much time had passed. The years had gone by, and both of them had become adults.

“If only we could’ve been like this back then. It feels like a waste of time, now gone.”

“That would have been difficult. Everything that happened back then only served to diminish whatever goodwill there might have been.”

After the death of the late Empress, Crown Prince Alexis had grown up under constant scrutiny and immeasurable anxiety. He had spent well over ten years with his position under threat.

And that wasn’t all. He must have heard news of Empress Elizabeth even while in the Black Forest. While risking his life in battle, the thought of the Empress slowly encroaching on his place must have made every day feel like standing at the edge of a cliff.

Cecil, too, was one of those who had driven Alexis to that cliff. Even if it had stemmed from misguided affection, it was something he would have to atone for and regret for the rest of his life.

“It’s all in the past. Look at us now. Haven’t we grown this close?”

“…I’ll do my best.”

“Of course you will. You like me, don’t you?”

When the joking remark, tinged with laughter, reached his ears, Cecil tightened his arms around Alexis’s solid shoulders. His eyes burned, and he had to bury his face against Alexis’s arm.

This was enough. What more could he ask for? The fact that Alexis had accepted him was more than sufficient for Cecil to live out the rest of his life without regret.

Feeling Alexis’s warmth and living breath with his whole body, he forced out a reply.

“Yes. I do.”