“This spot has a nice view. Let’s rest here.”
Around 1:00 PM, Caine and his two companions arrived at a lake with a stunning vista. It was a well-known scenic spot, with a dedicated path connecting it to the main road. Even now, many tourists were by the lakeshore, admiring the scenery.
However, because the three of them had come from the small path near the ruins, they arrived at the opposite side of the lake.
Taking this route required significant physical skill. Experienced adventurers wouldn’t take it just for a stroll; usually, it was used by nobles or wealthy individuals who didn’t want to be disturbed and had hired adventurers to protect them. As a result, there were far fewer people here than on the side connected to the main road.
Today was particularly lucky. Aside from Caine’s group, there was no one else around.
A gentle breeze caused ripples on the lake’s surface, and sunlight poured down from above, saturating the earth. It was incredibly pleasant.
Looking at the scenery, Caine, who had been accumulating stress, couldn’t help but take a few deep breaths. ‘Now this is what I call relaxation,’ he thought.
To be honest, Caine slightly regretted not bringing a fishing rod. With a view like this, even if the fish didn’t bite, it would still be an enjoyment.
…Of course, it would still be better if something bit. Caine didn’t want to go home empty-handed.
Since they hadn’t eaten breakfast, Caine was indeed feeling a bit hungry. He withdrew his gaze and, under the watchful eyes of Corellia and Edwina, pulled out the picnic supplies and food.
Calling them supplies was a bit of an overstatement; it was really just a picnic cloth for them to sit on.
If they were traveling in their royal capacities, they would have brought a large number of attendants and items, such as proper chairs or even a dining table. But since the three of them were here as ordinary people, they only brought the bare minimum: water, food, and a large cloth spread out on the ground.
After smoothing out the cloth, Caine placed the most common picnic food—sandwiches—along with the basket in the center of the cloth. He then gestured for Corellia and Edwina to sit down.
Caine had originally thought that this mother and daughter, a Queen and a Princess, might be uncomfortable sitting directly on the ground, but it turned out he had overthought it. Both of them sat down in their own ways.
Corellia chose to sit sideways, tucking her legs to one side quite naturally. It was a common and ordinary posture, but because it was Corellia doing it, she still appeared elegant and feminine.
Edwina, on the other hand, chose a duck-style sit. If she were in her usual attire, this posture would have been very cute, but with her rebellious outfit today, it felt a little strange.
As for Caine, he almost habitually sat cross-legged. Fortunately, he remembered at the last second that people here probably didn’t sit that way, so he switched to a side-sitting posture similar to Corellia’s. Truthfully, it wasn’t as comfortable as sitting cross-legged, but he had no choice.
Though they were out on a picnic as ordinary people, they weren’t truly ordinary. The best proof of this was the seemingly simple sandwiches. They were made with high-quality ingredients and were very filling. Some were filled with juicy, premium beef, while others featured fried fish cutlets made from expensive fish. Every one of them looked incredibly appetizing.
Naturally, more than half of them were prepared for Caine.
At this point, Caine didn’t need to be polite. He just started eating.
“I’ll start then… Mm, even though it’s a cold meal, the richness of the sauce and the aroma of the beef are evident. Excellent as always, as expected of a professional.”
Under the gaze of Edwina and Corellia, Caine evaluated the sandwich in his hand like a food critic. While there was a bit of exaggeration for the sake of politeness, it was indeed good. Sandwiches were hard to mess up, as long as they weren’t purely vegetarian.
“Actually, I prepared all the sandwiches today. I’m so glad you’re satisfied.”
Hearing Caine’s polite praise, Edwina immediately broke into a happy smile. Having received Caine’s compliment, her mood was visibly improved, and her usual melancholy temperament was significantly diluted.
“Oh? That’s surprising. I didn’t expect your culinary skills to be so high, Edwina.”
“No, no… I’m still far from the level of professional chefs. But I’m honored you’d say that.”
Edwina smiled shyly and politely. Even in such mature clothing, she remained as quiet and ladylike as ever.
“Then I shall have a taste as well.”
While Caine and Edwina were having their father-daughter-like conversation, Corellia picked up a fried fish sandwich and brought it to her lips. Caine’s gaze naturally followed her movement when she spoke.
Because Corellia had been wearing a mask all day, Caine hadn’t actually seen her full face. When eating, she would have to take the mask off.
However, for some reason, Corellia didn’t remove the mask entirely. Instead, while still wearing it, she pulled it down slightly, revealing her delicate and stunning face.
Though it wasn’t the first time he had seen that face, Caine still visibly froze for a moment. He looked as if he had been shocked by something.
“…What is it, Caine? Is something strange? Don’t tell me you thought I wore lip makeup all the time. Rather than worrying about it getting smudged by food, it’s better to apply it after the meal. Although, it doesn’t really matter if I don’t wear it at all, since I’m wearing a mask today anyway.”
Those thin, slightly shimmering lips repeatedly opened and closed. The words spoken were no different from her usual tone, but because she wasn’t wearing her icy blue lip makeup, her lips were a natural pale pink today.
But Caine didn’t freeze because she wasn’t wearing makeup. He froze because the fact that she wasn’t wearing makeup reminded him of something unpleasant.
‘She says she did it on purpose? Then why was she wearing it when I went to her room in the middle of the night? She probably wore it then and left it all over me.’
She must have worn the mask on purpose to temporarily hide this fact, only to give Caine a shock while they were eating. The proof was that after Corellia answered Caine, she didn’t care about his reaction at all. She simply began to eat her sandwich in small, elegant bites.
Her natural and composed appearance was practically designed to annoy Caine.
“…”
Similarly, on the other side, Edwina, who was about to eat, had to first use a napkin to dab her pale purple lip makeup. She was also a bit stunned. She really hadn’t thought of that. To imitate Corellia, she had become accustomed to wearing eyeliner and lip makeup; she hadn’t even considered the option of not wearing it.
She hadn’t expected Corellia to skip it today for the sake of convenience. Because of the mask, she hadn’t realized it until this moment. Since things had already come to this, there was nothing she could do. Edwina could only make do. She had a compact mirror and lipstick in her coat pocket; she would just eat first and touch it up later.
“…”
Because he saw Corellia’s lustrous, makeup-free lips, Caine couldn’t help but think of the events he was trying to forget. In his dissatisfaction, and because Edwina was present, he ultimately said nothing and focused on his food.
Originally, he wanted to eat quietly and not even look at Corellia again. But while eating, he noticed Edwina’s gaze constantly drifting toward Corellia. She was clearly very conscious of Corellia’s presence.
According to Edwina, this was the first time Corellia had ever gone out with her privately in a non-official capacity. It was impossible for a daughter not to care about her mother, especially a mother dressed even more youthfully than herself.
It was obvious Edwina wanted to talk to Corellia but didn’t know how to start.
Noticing this, Caine could only sigh inwardly. For the sake of the daughter, he would suppress his dissatisfaction and initiate the conversation.
“…By the way, Corellia, where did you get such a flashy and flighty outfit? It’s quite surprising. It’s completely different from the impression you usually give.”
While finishing one sandwich and reaching for a second, Caine naturally brought up the topic of her appearance. He believed Edwina would definitely be interested in this as well.
“Of course I didn’t have clothes like this. I borrowed them from Vita for the time being. Caine, you know that Vita’s wardrobe is much more diverse than mine.”
Corellia, who hadn’t even finished half of her sandwich, covered her mouth with her hand. Only after swallowing her food did she slowly respond while looking at Caine’s face. She claimed the clothes were Vita’s.
In fact, she was lying. These clothes weren’t Vita’s; she had seen similar styles in Vita’s closet and had them custom-made while hiding her identity. One could say she wore them specifically for Caine to see.
As for why she didn’t tell the truth, it wasn’t out of some Queen’s pride. It was simply because if Caine found out she was lying later, he would think she was a bad woman full of lies.
“…Vita, huh? That makes sense then. That girl having any kind of clothing wouldn’t be a surprise. Even if she had something even more exaggerated, it wouldn’t be shocking. Don’t you think so, Edwina?”
Hearing they were Vita’s clothes, Caine immediately accepted it. After all, Vita was someone who would deliberately dress up as a country girl; having a ‘landmine girl’ outfit wasn’t strange at all. Other nobles would never be interested in such clothes; they only liked various gowns and long dresses. But if it was the Queen’s sister, Vita, who cared about culture and art, it wasn’t strange for her to come into contact with folk, foreign, or even other-world fashions.
“Yes… Aunt Vita is indeed at the forefront of fashion.”
Edwina, having been brought into the conversation, smiled. She no longer had to worry about being forgotten by the two “mothers” and successfully joined the dialogue.
“Um… Mother, your outfit is very cute. If there’s a chance, could you go clothes shopping with me?”
With Caine’s assist, Edwina gathered her courage and launched a frontal assault on her cold mother. Being able to go to shops with Corellia to buy beautiful clothes and discuss fashion would make her feel loved by her mother.
“I will consider it, provided there really is a chance. It’s just that I rarely wear anything other than formal attire. Opportunities like today are few and far between. You should know that, Edwina.”
“Yes… Mother.”
Predictably, the daughter’s assault crashed into Corellia’s defensive wall, which was colder and harder than steel. The attempt was destroyed without leaving a single mark.
Corellia responded to her daughter’s request in her usual cold tone. Although she didn’t directly refuse, it wasn’t much different from a rejection.
After the failed charge, Edwina couldn’t hide the loneliness on her face. She could only lower her head and continue to take small bites of her sandwich.
Seeing the girl looking so pitiful, how could Caine sit still?
“…Corellia, are you really that busy? Whenever there’s another break like this, you could just go shopping with Edwina. Even if you don’t wear them, wouldn’t it be nice to help Edwina pick some out?”
Caine didn’t use an overtly reproachful tone; he just offered a friendly advice from a distance. He hoped she would care a little more about her daughter.
Hearing Caine say this, the lonely Edwina felt a spark of hope again. She quietly lifted her head, stealing a glance at her mother’s reaction with a probing gaze.
“…I am exactly that busy. If ‘someone’ could share my burden, I would be more than happy to accompany my daughter shopping and enjoy the festive atmosphere with her.”
However, Corellia was impervious. Not only did Caine’s assist have no effect, but she also spoke with hidden meaning. She made it sound as if Caine was the one enjoying himself while ignoring her, leading to the current situation.
This left Caine speechless. ‘What’s going on? Why does she make it sound like I’m a husband who only knows how to care for his daughter but lacks affection for his wife?’
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