Even Though She Is a Girl of Love Level 0, She’s Stuck Being Asked To Kiss Him

CHAPTER 2.2: I'M TOLD TO FALL IN LOVE

Although she had made a big talk that she would surely break the curse, Doris was at a loss as she had no idea what to do.

"What should I do…"

Ripley had told her that she could break the curse by kissing as if it were easy, but for Doris, the hurdle was higher than a mountain.

The witch Ripley is currently being held in the West Tower; the prison of the court wizarding corps. Execution is pending execution until the curse is lifted.

The white sunlight shining through the window is dazzling. For Doris, who usually closes the curtains of her room as much as possible and lives in the shade, the sun hurts her eyes.

She manages to maintain her composure thanks to the black dress she brought from the mansion. Since she was planning to stay at the royal palace for a few days at Euphemia's request, it was helpful that she had prepared her favorite everyday clothes.

It's almost lunchtime, but Doris's stomach hasn't been able to accept any food since this morning. She had too much on her mind to eat anything. She can't even say hello to Euphemia's portrait (ten years' worth), which is her daily routine every morning, and her heart was restless.

(Within two months, I will kiss someone. Before that, I will be in love with someone. Before that, I will fall in love with someone…)

How?

In the first step of breaking the curse, Doris stumbled drastically.

First of all, she had no idea how to fall in love.

(How do people fall in love?)

If this was the case, she should have read the romance novels my mother would send me from time to time.

She skimmed through them but put them away on the bookshelf because she couldn't get emotionally involved in them.

As she snuck under the table and held her head, there was a knock on the door of her room. While watching Doris's eccentricities curiously, Melinda intercedes and welcomes the guest.

"Doris, you've guests."

"Yes?"

Doris crawled out from the table and quickly adjusted the hem of her disheveled clothes.

Emerging from the open door where the two protagonists of yesterday... or one man and one animal.

"Hello, Doris."

"Good afternoon, Doris, have you calmed down a bit?"

(I see that Mr. Percival and Mr. Euphemia are together…)

When Doris looked up, Percival lowered his eyebrows and smiled.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to meet you last night, even though you came all the way out here."

"No, no! Oh, this is it... that."

When she was confused and unable to choose her words, Percival spoke softly.

"Celeste told me all about it. It must have been hard for you."

Doris shook her head heavily. Long black hair danced.

"I'm sorry, you guys have done so much, but this has happened..."

"Don't blame yourself, it's not your fault."

It must be hard to have your fiancée cursed, but even at a time like this, Percival is kind enough to speak to her.

"I'll try to find out if there's any other way, not as much as Celeste, but I've been exposed to magic to a certain extent."

"Thank you."

I'd like to start with what I can do ......, but I have no idea where to begin.

The tea prepared by Melinda was laid out on the low table surrounded by the two of them and one of the animals. Euphemia was served water in a white porcelain bowl.

"I... Mr. Percival."

After taking a sip of her tea, Doris called out timidly.

"What is it?"

"If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to know how you two met."

"Huh!? Why is that..."

"Yes, sure."

While holding Euphemia, whose fur bristles with biting force, Percival nodded softly like a dandelion swaying in the spring breeze, as if he had guessed something.

"If our story can help you."

Euphemia, who was weak by nature, could rarely leave the room.

That day she was feeling unusually well, so she enjoyed playing by himself in the garden.

She kneaded the soil, which had been softened by the rain the night before and made many mud dumplings.

Euphemia, who had been stressed out from being cooped up in her room, took advantage of the fact that no one was around to throw the mud dumplings at a tree trunk.

Unfortunately, Percival passed by.

Percival was eight years old, and Euphemia was five. It was eleven years ago.

"You were hit with mud dumplings in the face... Is it?"

Percival nodded smilingly and Euphemia turned away.

"Yuffie was so cute back then, she hit me and was so surprised that he cried even though she had hit it herself."

"Percy's muddy face was so terrifying."

Percival lovingly stroked Euphemia's immaculate back as she said awkwardly.

"Then things happened, and here we are."

Personally, I'd like to hear more about 'variety', but Euphemia's mood was about to get worse, so Doris keeps her mouth shut.

"Thank you very much for your valuable information."

"I hope it helps a little ... That's right!"

Percival shouted as if a thought had suddenly occurred to him.

"Why don't you talk to Celeste?"

"Your Highness...?"

I have a feeling that if I asked him, he would kick me out of the room and say, "I don't know".

"If you're looking for a romantic relationship, Celeste is the right person for the job. He's so brusque in front of Doris, but in reality, he's quite popular."

Doris's mind flashed back to last night's engagement party.

Like a beautiful butterfly gathering on a flower, she remembered Celeste responding with a beautiful smile to the young ladies who took turns talking to him.

"Sure... His Highness at the party seemed to be a different person than usual. I am quite disliked by His Highness, aren't I? I think it's good for royalty to show your face and demeanor."

"Oh, no, Celeste doesn't like it... Doris, are you listening?"

"What kind of attitude does your brother usually have with Doris…?"

On Percival's lap, as he tried to explain, Euphemia muttered in a dazed voice.

"I know His Highness will not like it, but it is for the sake of Her Highness Euphemia. I'll take the plunge and talk to him about it."

"Uh, yes, good luck..."

Percival nodded, looking as if he wanted to say something.

"By the way, Doris, I have a favor to ask you. May I?"

"Euphemia-sama... to me? Yes, gladly! I'll do anything for you...!"

Doris crossed her arms in front of her chest and let out an exhale. She is guilty of feeling happy even in this state of emergency.

Euphemia slips out of Percival's arms and, with a light stride, jumps over to the low table and lands in Doris's lap. The tea in his cup ripples slightly.

(Wow, I'm holding Euphemia in my lap right now...!? What a fortuitous…!)

Although she thought it was inappropriate, Doris bites the joy of holding Euphemia in her lap.

I was almost tempted to hug and cuddle the fluffy Euphemia… but I summoned all my rational faculties and held back.

"I spend my days in my own room, but since I am a princess, I need to keep my appearances."

Doris gives a small nod and listens to Euphemia.

"Once a week, I host a tea party for the daughters of the nobility, and I can't entertain them in my condition. So, Doris. Will you take my place and preside over the tea party?"

"What?"

Doris shouted in surprise. She had not expected to be asked to take the place of the princess.

"I wonder if it's impossible…?"

Looking up at me with beautiful eyebrows like treasure balls, I can't say "it's impossible" even if it's a joke."

And no, not at all! If I can be of any help, please contact me…!"

Euphemia smiled, her sky-blue eyes narrowing into the shape of a crescent moon.

"I am so grateful for your help. I was in trouble because I was being accused of having lost my fiancée and all sorts of other accusations. If I were to be absent at a time like this, I would be laughed at as much as I wanted."

Euphemia snorted her pretty pink nose softly.

"Someone was trying to harass me last night, weren't they? I gave them the benefit of the doubt and pretended I didn't know, but there won't be a next time. I will crush them for sure!"

"Oh, Euphemia-sama? Tea party... That's true? It's not a duel, is it?"

Doris asked timidly, and Euphemia raised her jaw.

"In a way, it is a duel. If anyone tries anything, don't hesitate to return the favor."

"…Mr. Percival."

When I looked at him and asked for help, Percival whispered, "Be gentle," and clasped his hands together.

(I didn't know the royal palace was such a bleak place ......)

When she had calmed down to breathe, Doris asked a simple question.

"By the way, Euphemia-sama, perhaps because you have a lot of feelings, you seem to have a fierce temper compared to the neat and pretty Euphemia-sama I know."

Percival replied on Euphemia's behalf.

"This is Yuffie's true nature. Don't tell the others."

Doris was suddenly struck by the beauty and purity of the lily of the valley, the princess she longed to be.

Doris suddenly remembered that the pretty-looking lily flower is poisonous.

Originally, Celeste was supposed to take me to visit the magician's office this afternoon, but we decided to reschedule it for a later date. She told me, "You must be tired after everything that has happened since yesterday". Jared's intention was to give her a good rest for the rest of the day.

For lunch, she managed to eat a scone with apple jam.

"Hey, Doris, why don't you go for a walk for a change of pace? At this time, there shouldn't be many people in the courtyard. I can take you."

Doris doesn't like sunny places, but she accepts the suggestion after being touched by Melinda's kindness in trying to cheer her up.

Most of those who had attended last night's party had apparently left this morning, and the corridor was quiet. All they could hear were their footsteps, the birds, and the wind rustling the greenery.

Stepping into the courtyard with Melinda's guidance, Doris inhaled the smell of dirt and greenery in full.

"The wind feels good."

"Isn't it? Sometimes I skip work and take a nap around there."

Melinda pointed to a spot where she could see Celeste.

He was not alone but was having a conversation with a woman.

Doris and Melinda nodded silently to each other, hiding behind the plants and listening.

(This isn't eavesdropping, but an observation.)

Although they were aware that this was a shameful thing to do, they told themselves in their hearts that it was not a shameful thing.

Celeste was a young lady with beautiful silver hair like moonlight. She was probably about the same age as Doris. Doris thought she looked beautiful standing there with dignity.

"Celeste. It was a shame I couldn't be with you last night."

"I'm sorry, Miss Lobelia, I have something I can't take off."

I can hear their voices in the wind.

"What's more important errand than spending time with me?"

The lady called Lobelia looked up at Celeste with an implicit tone.

"If it were true, I wouldn't have wanted to leave until morning."

(Together until morning... I wonder what you're going to do all night? Playing chess? ）

If it were me, I would definitely fall asleep in the middle. With that thought in mind, Doris watches the two of them.

"Being a night owl is not good, it will damage your good looks."

"Well, you're good at that, are you going to run away from me again?"

Lobelia took Celeste's hand and let him touch her cheek.

"When will you make me yours?"

"Miss Lobelia..."

The atmosphere was somehow unusual, and Doris gasped.

Celeste gently released the hand that had been grasped.

"I think Miss Lobelia is a good friend."

"I am your potential fiancée, you know. I can't be anything more than a friend."

(Potential fiancée...?)

Doris's eyes widened involuntarily as she heard these words for the first time.

Since Euphemia is engaged, it is only natural that Celeste, the Crown Prince, would have such a partner.

"Of course, I know, but I can't live up to your expectations."

"Celeste-sama, do you mean you have a partner in mind?"

"Well? I don't know."

Perhaps thinking that there was no point in pushing Celeste's attitude of dodging lightly any further, Lobelia stopped the conversation there.

"Let me get this far today, and slowly and little by little, I will engrave my presence in Celeste-sama's heart. Good afternoon."

Laughing softly, Lobelia walked away. Alone, Celeste sat down on the spot, "I'm tired..."

(Was that a story I shouldn't have heard...?)

Doris looked at Melinda wordlessly, trying to walk away so as not to make a sound of footsteps.

"Hey, there you two, where are you going?"

Looking up at the sky, Celeste approached us in a soliloquist tone.

With nowhere to run, Doris and Melinda looked frightened.

"Good afternoon... Your Highness."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to peek."

Celeste looked at me with his back leaning against a tree trunk.

"I'm sorry, Melinda. Can you leave me alone with this girl for a minute?"

"Yes sir."

Melinda disappeared from the scene with transfer magic.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness...?"

"I'm not mad at you, come here, I need to talk to you."

The soft manner in which he was talking to the young lady just now is gone, and Celeste called Doris with a sharp look in her eyes.

(It looks like he's angry…)

Doris, fighting back the urge to run away, did as she was told and walked over to Celeste's side.

"Here, put this on."

With that said, Celeste took something glowing out of her pocket.

Doris knelt down and accepted the object.

She was handed a silver bracelet. It is a splendid piece with the elaborate decoration of rose flowers and leaves.

"It's a beautiful bracelet... Is this for me?"

"It's filled with a nullification spell that condenses the boundaries that hang in the castle, and things like last night shouldn't happen again."

After saying this, Celeste turned away. The golden hair that adorned her neat profile fluttered in the wind.

Doris looked at the bracelet and Celeste's profile, alternating between them.

"Did Your Highness make it?"

"I asked the castle craftsmen to carve the carvings. All I did was cast magic."

Doris raised her long eyelashes up and down and stared at Celeste's profile.

He said, "at best," as if it were nothing, but no one can condense magic that surpasses the wards set up by a full team of magicians and put it into a trinket.

"Are these accessories something you can make overnight?"

"I don't think so. It takes six months from order to completion. It doesn't take more than a night to do magic."

"So, you've been preparing it for half a year?"

Suddenly uttering the question that came to mind, Celeste blushed bright red in the cheeks.

"Hey, don't worry about the details! The... I thought it would be okay for you as a hikikomori to wear accessories once in a while. A bracelet wouldn't get in the way."

"What's the purpose...?"

Doris looked into Celeste's face and asked in a hushed voice.

"Huh?"

"I can't imagine your Highness, who hates me, doing anything for me without anything in return, even if it's to curb the outburst of magic... Is there something soulful? Maybe there's more curse on this bracelet...!?"

"There will be enough servility ... Wait. When did I tell you I hated you?"

"You know it when you look at me, you always look like you're looking at your parents' revenge in front of me, and when you open your mouth, you say all sorts of mean things..."

(To smile so happily at the other ladies)

She was about to say that, but Doris stopped talking.

"Is that what I look like in your eyes ......?"

Celeste covered her mouth with one hand and sighed.

"If I really hated you, I wouldn't go to see you every month."

"What?"

"No, I'm not asking for anything in return, if you don't like it, you can throw it away or sell it. Even if there is no such thing, the wizarding division will devise other countermeasures."

"Then..."

Doris looked at the bracelet twinkling in her hand again.

(This is what His Highness really prepared for me...)

"Thank you... Oh, I'm sorry to say something rude. It was the first time in my life that I received such a wonderful present from someone other than my parents... I'm happy."

"If you like it, I'm glad you did."

Celeste sighed at the sight of Doris staring at it with the bracelet in her hands.

"What good is it if you don't wear it? Give it to me, and I'll help you put it on."

Celeste took the bracelet from Doris's palm.

"Which side, the right or the left…? Either one is fine."

Muttering, he gently grabbed Doris's right hand and gently placed the bracelet on her wrist. He adjusts the fittings and asks, "Isn't it tight?"

"It's okay, thank you..."

The large hand that had been wrapped around Doris's wrist parted.

Staring at the bracelet that shone a small, elegant glow, Doris smiled involuntarily.

"You seem to have calmed down a bit."

"What?"

"You… You've been through a lot."

I recall the events of last night's party and this morning's incident.

"Thanks to you, I'm fine."

Suddenly, Doris's eyes fell on Celeste's lips and she quickly averted her gaze.

The idea that she could have almost died at that moment sent shivers down her spine.

(If I had died right in front of him, it would have made his highness' dreaming worse.)

I'm already being taken care of, but I don't want to bother him anymore.

"Doris."

"Yes?"

"About the curse, do you... have any idea?　That... you have a man in mind?"

"No. I don't. I have no such partner at all."

Celeste breathed a sigh of relief, but it didn't catch Doris's eye.

"'I was going to discuss that… matter with His Highness, actually."

"To me?"

Doris nodded curtly.

"I know this is very impolite of me to ask, but could you please tell me what… you mean by the way of love?"

"…I don't really understand what you're saying."

With a suspicious gaze, as if seen by a duck walking on the fence standing upside down, Celeste stared back at Doris.

"I thought about that when I saw you at the party last night and your conversation with the beautiful lady earlier. I thought that if His Highness could be so naturally friendly with the opposite sex, then he must know the secret to fall in love."

Celeste's eyes twitched and she murmured in her mind, "I don't know," but Doris couldn't hear her.

"Please... To get Euphemia back to her original form."

Doris folded her arms in front of her chest and stared into Celeste's eyes, pleading.

"…If you can be ambivalent, can you be anyone?"

"What? Yes."

Doris nodded her head affirmatively, though she wasn't sure of the intent of the question.

"I understand."

"Really!?"

Doris's face lit up.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"Don't run away crying on the way."

"For Euphemia-sama's sake, I will endure any kind of rigorous training...!"

(What shall we do?)

Celeste, who had parted ways with Doris, walked away with his head in his hands.

The 18-year-old young man, who accepted the job on the spur of the moment, but who had a complicated first love, had no tricks of his own that he could teach others.

"Really, you put a curse on me..."

Towards Ripley, who is being held in a dungeon, Celeste spits out a grudge.