Dad is Back From a Deserted Island - Chapter 70

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Father has returned from the Deserted Island
Chapter 70

What was I thinking, returning to my bedroom in such a state?
Vivian lay in bed with her racing heart, pulling the blanket up over her head.
‘Why did he put the flower ring on my left ring finger right there? Why did he smile like that?’
The flower ring adorning her left ring finger—she couldn’t bring herself to remove it. It continued to assert its undeniable presence where it rested.
“Vivi! When did you go to bed so early? What about the Prince? …Are you asleep?”
Ignoring Jean de Lamber’s voice as he returned to the bedroom after finishing his tasks, Vivian squeezed her eyes shut.
Her instincts screamed that dwelling on this feeling would lead nowhere good.
‘Come on, just sleep and everything will be fine in the morning.’
But even as time passed, her heart refused to settle.
After Jean de Lamber returned from dinner and extinguished the lamp to sleep, Vivian lay awake through the entire night, finally collapsing into unconsciousness only as dawn broke.

* * *

“This place….”
It was familiar. The Garden in the Mist where I had met Diti.
I had been startled to see it in ruins not long ago, but now it appeared entirely different.
It wasn’t quite as it had been when I first saw it, but the statues and fountain were in far better condition than when I last visited.
The cobwebs had been cleared away, the cracked statues stood intact, and while the fountain still couldn’t spout water, clear liquid pooled at its base.
“Why do you keep showing me this place? But you won’t show me the person I actually want to see again.”
Yet there was still no trace of Diti. I wandered through the completely deserted garden for a long time.
Perhaps because the garden’s condition had improved so much, I didn’t feel the same sorrow as when I first saw its ruined state. Only a faint bitterness lingered on my tongue.
As I drifted aimlessly, I sensed it was time to wake, and my eyes opened.
Brilliant sunlight greeted me.
“Ugh, I’m terrified to face him….”
The words tumbled out the moment my eyes opened. What did I even say to the Prince yesterday?
That blasted flower ring was still on my left ring finger. It hadn’t broken despite my tossing and turning in sleep—a stubborn thing indeed.
Vivian carefully removed the flower ring and placed it gently on the nightstand beside her bed.

“…Good morning, Your Highness! How are you feeling today?”
Vivian opened the door to Dietrich’s Building with deliberately cheerful energy in her greeting.
Dietrich stood leaning against the stair railing, wearing Jean de Lamber’s coat with Kiki nestled in the front pocket.
“Did Kiki have any trouble last night?”
“There was.”
“There wasn’t. After all these days— Wait? What did you just say?”
“Talking in her sleep. Hmm-nya, hmm-nya. Like this.”
Dietrich’s expressionless face as he uttered “hmm-nya, hmm-nya” was amusing, but Vivian couldn’t afford to dwell on it. In over a month, she’d never once seen Kiki talk in her sleep.
“R-Really? Kiki was talking in her sleep?”
“Yes.”
Vivian flew up the stairs.
The awkwardness she’d felt toward Dietrich yesterday, born from her racing heart, vanished completely as she fixed her gaze intently on Kiki, sleeping peacefully against his chest, standing barely a step away from him.
“She’s not talking in her sleep now though?”
“…Do you normally talk in your sleep continuously while resting?”
“No, it’s not like that. What should we do, Your Highness!”
Vivian’s head snapped up, her eyes sparkling with joy. Faced with that gaze, Dietrich flinched ever so slightly.
“This is the first time Kiki has fallen asleep like this and talked in her sleep. What if she’s actually waking up?”
Vivian’s fresh eyes softened gently, and her lips, flushed with healthy color, parted in a heart shape.
The girl’s face, suffused with happiness, was so lovely that Dietrich found himself unable to tear his gaze away.
“This is all thanks to you, Your Highness. Wait, if Kiki has changed, then perhaps something has changed in your body too— Oh.”
As Vivian stroked Kiki’s small head and looked up again, she belatedly realized she was standing far too close to the prince.
“I-I’m sorry. I got so excited I didn’t notice.”
Their breaths were nearly touching. Vivian’s hair stood on end. As she tried to stumble backward, her feet tangled.
Dietrich instinctively reached for her waist to steady her, but lacking the strength, they both tumbled down together.
“Ow, ow… A-Are you—”
As Vivian, sprawled on the floor, asked after Dietrich’s wellbeing, she caught her breath.
Dietrich was propped up on his elbows above her, looking down at her.
His pristine white hair, grown carelessly long, cascaded down like a curtain, veiling both their faces.
Their eyes met for an instant. Like struck by lightning, they both sprang apart frantically.
“I’m sorry, a-are you hurt anywhere?”
“I…”
“It’s because of me that you, um, t-tried to c-catch me, and I, um, thank you.”
“…You don’t need to say more. I couldn’t even catch you properly.”
“Yes.”
Though they’d pushed themselves up, neither could bring themselves to stand, remaining seated on the floor.
Dietrich seemed shocked that he couldn’t even properly grasp Vivian’s delicate frame, repeatedly clenching and unclenching his hands as he stared at them.
“S-So, um, what’s in that room over there? I’ve never been inside— C-Can I go in?”
Unable to bear the awkward atmosphere, Vivian opened the door to any room in sight and stepped inside.
It was an abandoned room; the moment the door opened, dust from years of neglect swirled up, triggering an involuntary cough.
Though it felt as though her lungs were decaying, it was far better than sitting stupidly in the corridor with Dietrich.
“Achoo, achoo. Ugh, this is really too much.”
After opening the creaking window to air out the room—it had been sealed shut for who knows how long—Vivian could finally take a proper look around.
“There’s a piano?”
The jet-black grand piano was also buried beneath layers of dust. I merely brushed my finger across its surface, and black dust came away on my skin.
“At this rate, I don’t even need to hear it to know the condition is hopeless.”
Still, delighted to have discovered a piano after so long, Vivian opened the firmly closed lid.
“You’re going to play it?”
“Oh! Ah, Your Highness. I, I just opened it because it was here. It looks like it’s been neglected for years, so a piano in this condition won’t produce proper sound.”
“Is that so? That’s a shame. I would have liked to hear you play.”
Dietrich, who had followed Vivian into the room, remained at the doorway rather than stepping fully inside.
I was simply grateful that he was keeping his distance for now.
Ignoring my cheeks, which had begun to burn again, I pressed down on the white keys of the piano.
When I pressed a single key, it seemed to produce a reasonably correct note, but the moment I played a chord, the sound was so discordant that even a non-expert could tell immediately.
“Pianos are instruments that need to be tuned by a professional every few months.”
“You play piano well. Your posture is quite practiced.”
“I’m not terrible at it. When I was young, I fell in love with the piano the moment I saw one, so I practiced quite earnestly.”
The high notes pierced shrilly, while the low notes sank dully as if waterlogged.
Playing a piano in this condition would only produce grating sounds.
Vivian closed the piano again with a disappointed expression.
Even after that, I wandered aimlessly around the room, trying to maintain distance from Dietrich.
Dietrich, who had been staring intently at Vivian as she deliberately avoided his gaze and looked away, suddenly began to cough.
Was he about to cough up blood again? Startled by the sudden sound, Vivian rushed over as if she had never tried to avoid him at all.
“Your Highness! Are you alright? The dust in here really is too much, and—wait. Or has your condition worsened? That doctor said he was leaving right away. I wonder if there’s another physician—”
As Vivian anxiously examined Dietrich’s complexion, she froze when she felt the weight of his head gently rest against her shoulder.
Dietrich had leaned down and placed his head on Vivian’s shoulder.
“Your Highness? What are you doing right now? This is—”
“You seemed to be avoiding me.”
“That wasn’t my intention.”
Dietrich, who had been resting his forehead against her shoulder, turned his head to look at Vivian’s face, his cheek still pressed against the girl’s shoulder.
“Do you dislike me? Are you afraid of me now too?”
“No!”
Even as my heart felt like it might burst, I jumped up and denied it vehemently. I couldn’t allow the prince, who had been rejected by people his entire life, to harbor such a misunderstanding.
“Really?”
“Really! I’m not scared of you at all, Your Highness. Not even a little!”
“That’s a relief….”
Only after hearing my repeated assurances did Dietrich slowly rub his face against Vivian’s shoulder before gradually pulling away.
That fleeting moment felt unbearably long.
I wanted to cry.
‘Dad, what do I do.’

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————