"Our country's 'healing flowers' are really popular! I wanted to come early to see them, so I never expected that both sides of the street would already be filled with people." (Fia)
I looked up at Fabian and gave him a grateful smile.
——The news that Queen Dowager Hyacinthe, mother of Cerulean and Commander Savis, was returning to the royal capital had been known to the people of the royal capital beforehand.
This was because the Queen Dowager was also the current Chief Saint, and was extremely popular, so she was in no position to sneak back to the royal capital.
Therefore, the date and time of the Queen Dowager's return was widely announced, and people lined both sides of the streets waiting for her.
I also wanted to get a glimpse, so I arrived 30 minutes before the scheduled time, but there were already a lot of people in line.
So I managed to squeeze through the gaps between the people and get in the second row, but before I knew it, I was pushed by the wave of people and when I came around, I was standing at the back of the crowd.
"Oh no! I can't see anything from behind like this." (Fia)
I was hopping around, wondering if there was any space up front, when by chance I made eye contact with Fabian, who was standing in the front row.
He then waved at me, lowered his gaze, and flashed a princely smile at the women standing around him.
With just that, a path magically opened up and I was allowed to stand next to Fabian, with everyone's consent.
"Is Fabian a wizard? Or does he have the unique power of a sparkling prince? I can't believe he can make the women around him do what he wants just by smiling." (Fia)
Surrounded by the friendly, smiling women, I was surprised and asked Fabian a question.
Fabian then bursted out in a silly laugh.
"Hehehe, there's no way that's possible. The people around me just happened to be kind and invited you, my friend, to sit next to me." (Fabian)
I wondered if that's the story...
Just as I was scratching my head in confusion, I heard a cheer ring out nearby.
So, startled, I turned towards the voice.
"Oh my, Her Majesty Queen Dowager! Chief Saint—!"
"Oh my goodness, you're so pretty! Look at that red hair! How beautiful!"
"And what's more, her eyes are golden! They are the same color as those of the great saint who once lived before! Ah, how wonderful."
"It really is the return of the Great Saint!!"
Hearing the shouts of people along the road, I looked towards Chief Saint in the distance and saw her red hair shining brightly in the sunlight.
She was riding in an open carriage and waving to people along the way.
She was surrounded by knights dressed in the uniforms of the Black Dragon Knights, and he saw some familiar faces, including Captain Quentin, Captain Clarissa, and Captain Zachary.
As Saint Hyacinthe approached, the excitement of the people along the road grew, and excited shouts could be heard all around.
"Oh my, how wonderful, how wonderful! Chief Saint Hyacinth! My, your hair is truly bright red!"
"I saw it! I saw those golden eyes! Ahh, my hangover from yesterday is now cured!"
I was in the front row, so I was able to see Saint Hyacinthe up close as she passed in front of me, and her hair was indeed a bright, pure red.
Also, the one eye that was peeking out from her eye was golden in color.
As Saint Hyacinthe passed right next to me, Fabian spoke to me excitedly.
"I don't know who it is, but whoever came up with that hairstyle is incredible. I think it's the hairstyle that makes a Chief Saint look the most mysterious. Usually, Her Majesty Hyacinthe covers one of her eyes, but for some reason, at crucial moments during important ceremonies, the wind always blows and both of her eyes become visible. Her golden eyes and red hair are the colors of the legendary Great Saint. So when everyone gets to see all of that, they feel like they've seen something incredibly rare and get very excited. It's an incredible production." (Fabian)
Thinking that such coincidences did happen, I looked at Saint Hyacinthe once more.
And even from up close, there was no doubt that it was red and gold in color.
"Red hair and golden eyes..." (Fia)
"Yes, it's the same as Fia's, right?" (Fabian)
This reminded me of something Commander Savis once told me.
"Your color combination is one of a kind."
"Huh? Previously, Commander Savis pointed to my red hair and golden eyes and said, 'Your color combination is unique.' But it turns out there was another person like me." (Fia)
Moreover, the person I was talking about was his mother, so he must have known that I wasn't the only one who liked the combination of red and gold.
Well, uncharacteristically for Commander, maybe that was just lip service.
As I was thinking that, Fabian picked up on my monologue and started staring at my hair.
"If you said that the color combination is one of a kind, then you're not wrong. There are many different shades of red, and Chief Saint and Fia's red are different shades. They're the same in the sense that they're a combination of red and gold, but with Fia's hair that red, I think the color combination is unique to you." (Fabian)
"I see?" (Fia)
I thought red was all the same, so when I asked Fabian about it, he gave me a wry smile.
Then he leaned down and put his mouth close to my ear and whispered.
"When I met the Chief Saint before, I was impressed by his beautiful red hair, but after seeing Fia's hair, it looks pale and faded. The vividness is completely different. And, this may be an audacious request, but judging from a portrait from 300 years ago, Fia's hair color is the exact same as the Great Saint's." (Fabian)
Come to think of it, Commander Savis also told me that my hair color was the same as the country's flag.
At the time I didn't quite understand what he said, but later a fellow knight told me that our country's national flag was recreated to be the exact same color as the Great Saint's hair.
In other words, even to Commander Savis's eyes, my hair and the Great Saint's hair appeared to be the same color.
——That's true.
Because my hair color had remained the same for the past 300 years.
"Many people probably think that your hair is just red, but it would be a big problem if they found out that it's the same red as the Great Saint's. That alone would surely cause many people to envy and resent you." (Fabian)
Fabian countered, thinking that this was an exaggeration.
"I wonder. I heard that the Saint who Chief Saint keeps by his side also has red hair. She didn't participate in the parade, so I don't know the color, but I think there are a lot of women with red hair like that." (Fia)
Even though I explained it with examples, Fabian visibly shooked his head.
"I'm pretty sure there isn't." (Fabian)
As the Chief Saint passed by, the people who had been lined up on both sides of the street began to disperse.
It seemed like everyone came to see Chief Saint, and I was once again pleased at how popular he was.
"Chief Saint is really popular, isn't she!"
I hope that in this way everyone would feel closer to the Saint and come to like her.
I left the place like everyone else and decided to return to the royal castle with Fabian.
As the two of us walked side by side, Fabian suddenly spoke up, as if he had remembered something.
"That's right, I had a message for Fia from Captain Cyril." (Fabian)
"What?" (Fia)
As I stopped dead, Fabian raised both hands in a reassuring manner.
"But, it’s not an urgent message, just something like ‘If you’re going to see the Chief Saint parade, please let me know after it’s over,’ so there’s no need to rush. When you have some free time, I’d like you to come to the First Knight Captain’s office." (Fabian)
"What?" (Fia)
Shall we pop into the First Knight Captain's room now?
Suddenly, I wondered if I had done something wrong, and recent events flashed through my mind.
However, I quickly concluded with confidence, "I haven't done anything to deserve that!"
So after parting ways with Fabian, I headed to Captain Cyril's place with a sense of ease.
Author's Note
A character popularity vote is being held on the publisher's website until the end of February!
Anyone can participate once a day, so please feel free to vote for your favorite character.
A short story of the character that came in first place will be made available for free on the publisher's website at a later date.
☆Publisher H.P.☆
https://www.es-novel.jp/special/daiseijo/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=seijovote
Thank you very much ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و