Ahin replies as if he’s reading my mind.
“It’s called the white empire because most of the buildings are all white.”
Oh, that’s what he meant. Actually, I asked him what the country was like.
Saying that it’s a white empire because the buildings were all white didn’t really answer my question. What’s this awkward feeling again? I never asked about the appearance… but I couldn’t point that out to him when we’re not that close… I would just let it go.
“Oh, right! I heard you’ll be named the next emperor.”
I said it without thinking, and Ahin stopped right there. After seeing his expression, I realized that I said something wrong. Did I say something careless? I didn’t mean anything by it.
“I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have said that.”
I couldn’t take back what I had already said even with an apology. W-what should I do about it?
I should have just said nothing. Ah, this was bad. I ended up making a huge mistake while trying to lighten up this awkward mood. Ahin soon shook his head as if he finally realized how flustered I had been.
“It’s alright.”
What did he mean by that? I really messed up just now. I bit my lips because I was so sorry to him. Ahin smiled while staring at my face.
“You’re… a very genuine person, Princess.”
“Huh?”
Did I just get praised by a 10-year-old kid?
I was not happy just because this boy complimented me! It sort of felt a bit like he was brushing me off. Great, now I was getting the cold shoulder from a 10-year-old… Of course, he didn’t exactly blow me off. It just felt that way.
Well, it was true… I was a rather genuine person.
Ahin started walking down the hall again. I bit my lip while following him. Although I was the one who made a mistake… it seemed like Ahin didn’t really mind… or maybe he did… oh well, here goes nothing.
“Say, what do your stigmata look like?”
Still, this awkwardness was too heavy for me. I needed to break this awkward silence. When I asked with a smile, Ahin looked back at me for a moment. I smiled awkwardly because it seemed like he couldn’t understand why I would be curious about that based on his facial expression.
“I’m sorry, but I’m just curious…”
“It looks like wings.”
“Wings?”
I thought he wouldn’t tell me, but he did.