The Villainess Enjoys Her Seventh Life as a Free-Spirited Bride (hostage) in a Former Enemy Country

Rishe could feel Arnold gasping right beside her.

Thankfully, he released her wrist so she could hug him like this.

Rishe rested her left hand on Arnold’s back and her right hand on his head, stroking his black hair gently.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

“……”

It was a question asked of a child.

But the certainty of her premonition compelled her to ask so.

Rishe wanted to hug Arnold, whether it was impolite or bold of her.

In any case, Arnold would definitely deny it.

Even though Rishe was prepared for it, Arnold, who was at her mercy, lowered his gaze slightly before replying.

“――…It ’s a recurring dream.”

Arnold’s hand wound up Rishe’s back.

“Thanks to you, everything is gone.”

His touch was not strong enough to hug her back, but almost like a garnishing touch.

However, feeling as if her actions were allowed, Rishe strengthened her arms.

“…I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

Her left hand squeezed Arnold tightly, while her right hand continued to gently stroke the back of his head.

“It’s hard for you to sleep with me around, isn’t it?”

Then Arnold briefly exhaled and said.

“This is nothing unusual.”

Afterward, he tenderly added, “So it’s not your fault either.”

“…”

These words reminded Rishe of some days ago.

When they visited the Grand Shrine, and she was injured there, she slept in the same bed with Arnold.

After that, he told her that he hadn’t had any strange dreams.

A horrible “recurring dream” for His Highness Arnold.

Rishe’s heart tightened as she thought about the past he had told her about.

Was it the murders of many of your siblings in front of you?

Arnold actually witnessed scenes that were too painful to imagine.

Or perhaps it was his mother, who said she hated him…

The scars on Arnold’s neck were from his childhood. There must be a lot more to his past than Rishe knew about.

But I can’t touch that field.

The room was filled with the gentle splashes of waves.

It seemed to have made the completely silent room even quieter.

Rishe slipped away and looked at Arnold.

Arnold’s eyes, almost expressionless, looked straight down at Rishe.

His eyes looked more petrified than usual. They seemed to be harboring a lot of thoughts and feelings, but also terribly empty.

His bottomless blue eyes were pale and translucent in the moonlight streaming in through the window.

Rishe stared into his blue eyes and said.

“――…Beach.”

She stroked Arnold’s head in the same way as before.

“We had a lot of fun there, didn’t we?

He must have found the conversation, that had no sense of context, baffling.

There’s really not much I can do right now.

She had no right to know Arnold’s dream nor even enter it.

Still, she wanted to at least take Arnold’s hand and walk far away from that dream.

If only I can erase those abominable memories for His Highness Arnold…

Rishe wanted to drown it out with different emotions, if only a little.

She hoped that one day, his dreams wouldn’t be so horrible.

Using the daytime seaside as a guide, Rishe wished him so.

Then Arnold, whose expression remained unchanged, spoke up.

“When I remembered the existence of that beach…”

Rishe tilted her head, facing the poker-faced Arnold.

“It occurred to me that you might like it.”

“……!”

Rishe blinked involuntarily.

“To me, it’s just scenery.”

Arnold’s tone remained indifferent.

He shared his thoughts as if he were spinning an ordinary tale, yet he spoke clearly.

“I felt that if it were you, you would probably call that beach beautiful.”

“Your Highness…”

“Even if I don’t understand it myself.”

Arnold caressed Rishe’s cheek.

“I felt like I understood a little better when I looked at it from a perspective of ‘what makes you happy.'”

Rishe blinked, feeling as if something incredible had just happened.

“You said you wanted to go, but that’s not the only reason.”

In the moonlight, he told me the answer to the question I had asked him during the day.

“I took you out to that beach because I felt like wanting to show you.”

“…”

Arnold had said it before.

He said that he could not feel the same way about what Rishe valued.

He told Rishe that the fireflies looked like war torches, and the view of the imperial city felt like an abomination.

If he was so inclined, he wouldn’t have wanted to show Rishe the beach.

“――I’m glad you took me there.”

In an almost tremulous voice, Rishe bit one word at a time.

“Really, really glad.”

She couldn’t find the words to express herself, but she searched desperately to offer them.

But in the end, she couldn’t find the right words, so she just repeated her poor words.

“Even now, I’m so happy that it makes me want to cry…”

“……”

Rishe felt an urge to hug Arnold again while looking up at him.

However, she was prevented from doing so.

Before she could put her arms around him, Arnold took her in his arms and trapped her in his embrace.

“Your Highness?”

Rishe was, of course, surprised but did not push him away.

Arnold tightened his arms, moved his head behind her and whispered in Rishe’s ear.

“When someone pushes you down or hugs you against your will, you resist a little more.”

“…”

Rather defeated, Rishe hugged him back, wrapping her arms around Arnold’s back.

“I believe that Your Highness would never do such a thing.”

A self-deprecating smile flooded Arnold’s face.

“I knew you’d trust me at every turn.”

“That’s for sure. Didn’t you say no one would believe something that has no form?”

Rishe still begged to differ.

“I’m afraid of ghosts. I believe in their existence, even if they are formless, and that is why I am seriously scared of them.”

Rishe was quite embarrassed to reveal her weakness to Arnold, but she still admitted it.

Then she continued, “As we saw some time ago in the Holy Kingdom of Domana, those who belong to the Krushade Religion have an unwavering faith, right?”

“……”

Arnold, an entity revered by the Krushade religion and said to have the blood of the Goddess, was silent as if thinking about something.

“The will that made you want to show me the sea is certain, even if it is formless.”

While stroking his head as if to comfort him, she added, “I believe in your feelings…And that is why I will tell you again and again. I want to fulfill your wishes, too.”

Sometimes just making such a vow was enough to support another person.

Hence, Rishe immediately put into action what Harriet had taught her.

“If I do, will you believe me someday?”

“You?”

“Yeah.”

Rishe didn’t care even if he didn’t believe her.

That aside, there was something she wanted Arnold to understand.

“His Highness, Prince Arnold, you may wish something of yourself upon anyone.”

“――……”

Arnold’s breath hitched.

Then, he increased the strength of his arm around Rishe just a little bit.

“…I’ve never asked anything from anyone before.”

His voice in her ear sounds scratchy.

“You’re the one and only one who’s ever moved to pull something out of reach and hold on to it.”

“Your Highness…”

Rishe’s left chest tingled, throbbing sharply as if bashed.

Arnold whispered something without knowing what Rishe’s heart was going through.

“Be my wife.”

He whispered in her ear, like a kiss.

“――I don’t want anything more than that right now.”

“…Gasp.”

Rishe felt so strung out, she desperately wanted to cry, but she held herself back.

T/L: All I can say is, Kyaaaahhhhh! Is our ML finally enlightened? (*⌒∇⌒*)