By Zephyria 
A pretty boy? For a moment, the image of Alexis rolling around in bed with a pretty youth flashed through his mind. The thought of a boy nestled in his arms, rubbing bare skin and sharing secret love, made his stomach churn.
Without realizing it, Cecile’s brow was furrowed in a fierce scowl. The Empress, meanwhile, was busy chatting away with excitement.
“Hmm, who would be best? Regardless, if rumors spread that the Crown Prince is keeping a pretty boy from a brothel, there would be no greater disgrace. I must find someone to use as soon as possible.”
“Stop it. I don’t want to hear this.”
Cecile pushed back his chair and stood up. He glared at the Empress with a cold, merciless gaze.
“Why are you so obsessed with tormenting Alexis?”
“What?”
“I am against this. Mother, please exercise some restraint. Must you always resort to such filthy tricks?”
For the first time, Cecile openly defied the Empress. He had no regrets. He refused to let Alexis be treated with such hostility any longer.
The day of the hunting competition was exceptionally sunny. The cloudless sky seemed unusually blue today.
Cecile lingered aimlessly around the hunting tents. It seemed there were more people with ulterior motives, like himself, than there were actual participants. In particular, a crowd of heads was clustered tightly around Crown Prince Alexis.
They were all young men striving to get on the Crown Prince’s good side. Since the Emperor had declared that same-sex marriage was permissible, rumors that Alexis liked men had spread openly. Furthermore, since he didn’t particularly deny it, the rumors had become an accepted fact.
Since his specific tastes were unknown, all sorts of men flocked to him. From slender, pretty youths to men with a strong masculine aura—it seemed every young and spirited noble of the empire had gathered.
“Is something wrong with their heads? What on earth is the world coming to?”
Cecile’s displeased gaze refused to leave them. He glared at every single face fluttering around the Crown Prince. Finally, his eyes landed on Alexis’s face. Being tall, Alexis stood a head above the others, making him easy to spot even from a distance.
Looking at his dry, expressionless face, it was difficult to gauge his current mood. He merely adjusted the fit of his hunting attire, not responding to a single word from those around him. He was indescribably cold, but then again, that was the Crown Prince’s original personality.
As Cecile stared intently, his eyes met Alexis’s. A smile suddenly spread across the frozen expression. Alexis pushed through the layers of the crowd and walked toward him.
“Cecile. Did you come to see me?”
It was a voice that tickled the heart. Looking at those softly curved eyes, Cecile felt a lump in his throat for some reason. He gave a light cough.
“No. I was just passing by.”
“And you weren’t planning to give me your handkerchief?”
Cecile hid the handkerchief in his hand behind his back. Feeling as though his inner thoughts had been exposed, the tips of his ears burned.
“That’s impossible. This is… just to wipe away sweat because it’s hot…”
Alexis tilted his head. Despite Cecile’s defensive attitude, the smile in his eyes didn’t fade. He spoke softly.
“If you’re just going to use it and throw it away, why not toss it to me? I happened to be needing something to tie around my weapon.”
Those participating in the hunt often wrap a handkerchief received from a precious person around their weapon. It was a wish for victory and a prayer that they would not be injured. Though a superstition, it was a long-standing tradition of the empire.
“Is there a need for you to covet mine? Everyone else seems desperate to give you their handkerchiefs.”
“I have no need for anyone else’s. The only handkerchief I want is yours.”
“…….”
The fingers hidden behind his back fidgeted aimlessly. In truth, he had brought it thinking Alexis might ask, but now that the moment had arrived, he couldn’t bring himself to hand it over.
There were too many eyes watching. At this moment, wasn’t everyone around them looking only at them? How could he give it to him like this… Cecile wasn’t that brazen.
“I don’t want to.”
“Well then, it can’t be helped. I’ll just have to give up on the competition.”
When Alexis so readily expressed his intent to quit, Cecile grabbed his arm.
“Why does it end in that conclusion?”
“I’ve lost my motivation.”
“You’re not a child; does it make sense that you can’t enter a hunting competition without a handkerchief? Do you think I’d fall for such a petty threat?”
“Or, shall we enter together?”
Cecile let out a hollow laugh.
“You’re teasing me, aren’t you? I don’t know how to handle a sword, and my archery skills are terrible.”
“I’ll do the catching. In exchange, I’ll give all the credit to you.”
At the tempting offer, Cecile’s ears twitched. A sparkling light danced in his green eyes.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“You… must keep your promise.”
“Of course.”
Cecile chewed his lip for a moment before finally producing the handkerchief as a reward. At this, Alexis smiled even more brightly.
Deep in the lush forest, while everyone else was in the heat of the hunt, Alexis and Cecile sat leaning against a large tree trunk. In Cecile’s arms was a white rabbit. It was prey caught with Alexis’s help, but since he couldn’t bring himself to kill it, he was treating it with great care.
Cecile stroked the soft fur. He had been spirited at first, but now he didn’t particularly crave victory. Spending time like this wasn’t so bad. He didn’t have to worry about the gaze of others. Here, there was only Alexis and himself.
“I heard a strange rumor recently.”
“What is it?”
“That Your Highness… likes men.”
Alexis let out a short laugh beside him.
“Is it even a rumor? It’s a fact.”
He admitted it with unexpected ease. Then, he turned his head toward Cecile.
“What about you?”
“I have little interest in that area.”
“It seemed so. It was different from what I expected.”
Alexis answered with his arms crossed. His tilted face was staring intently only at Cecile.
Cecile met his gaze. There was no way a look like this was a misunderstanding. Alexis was exceptionally gentle only with him. Perhaps emboldened by that kindness, words that he would normally have kept inside came out without hesitation.
“Your Highness doesn’t seem particularly interested in men either.”
“Does it look that way?”
The corners of Alexis’s mouth twitched.
“I don’t think so. My first love was a man.”
“Your… first love?”
Startled, Cecile tightened his grip. The rabbit in his arms leaped away, but he didn’t even think to catch it.
“Was Your Highness’s first love not the Saintess?”
“Different. Yuria was merely like a cherished younger sister, but that person… was someone I wanted to protect with my very life.”
In this moment, not a trace of playfulness could be felt from Alexis. Perhaps intending to keep the mood light, the corners of his lips were still turned up, but beyond that faint smile, a deep sense of loss was visible.
He was a little—no, to be honest, quite surprised. He didn’t know why he felt such a sense of disappointment that Alexis’s first love had been a man. Perhaps… he had been hoping without realizing it.
“…You must have loved them very much.”
“I still love him.”
Thump. At those final, decisive words, Cecile’s heart plummeted to his feet. He bit his lip. He began to aggressively tear at the innocent blades of grass in his clenched hand.
“May I ask what kind of person he was?”
“…Very beautiful, and intelligent.”
Alexis put sincerity into every single syllable. His voice trembled slightly. Swallowing down his bottled-up emotions, he finished his answer.
“He was prickly, but in truth, he was more fragile and fearful than anyone. I should have held him more; it haunts me that I couldn’t.”
“Why are you speaking in the past tense? If you like him that much… why not go see him now?”
“We promised to be together for a lifetime, but he left me behind and passed away first.”
Alexis gave a bitter smile. Contrary to his calm tone, his heavy mood was transmitted even to the person beside him.
Cecile sank into a sulky mood, imagining Alexis’s first love, whose face he didn’t even know. Just how incredible of a person was he, for Alexis to still be unable to move on?
A fire-like energy surged up from his gut. He felt jealousy toward the existence that had shaken the very foundations of Alexis. Cecile wanted to throw away these hot, pathetic thoughts immediately. He abruptly stood up and walked forward.
“Cecile!”
“I want to be alone for a moment. Don’t follow me.”
Leaving Alexis behind, he headed straight for where the attendants were gathered. Cecile leaped onto a horse. As he pulled the reins sharply, the once-docile horse snorted violently and shifted its legs. Even the horse wouldn’t follow his will today. Cecile frowned in frustration.
“Shh, good boy. Not you too.”
After barely calming the excited horse, he began to gallop through the forest path. As he raced forward without hesitation, the backdrop of the lush forest shifted rapidly. He passed through moss-covered valleys and crossed streams. Moving like this in a hunting ground was dangerous, but the map he had seen earlier was vividly etched in his mind, so he did not trespass into anyone else’s territory.
However, no matter how fast he rode, the suffocating feeling in his chest would not subside.
Should I just keep riding and leave the hunting grounds entirely? Just as he was contemplating this…