I had just been handed a letter. Across the top of the envelope were the words 'Nobel Michel Design Contest'.
What? This is...
It was the ultimate design contest, which had given birth to many of the greatest designers of the day. Any designer would give their right arm to take part in it. But it could only be entered by invitation, so very few got that chance. I tore the envelope open in a hurry and the most unbelievable words jumped out at me.
"No way... I've been invited to take part..."
"What?" Prince Roberto says. "That's amazing! Just what I'd expect from my dear [Y/N]."
"Congratulations." Alberto and the servant who had brought the letter both congratulated me.
"Thank you... But I really can't believe it. If I won this contest, I would be able to get sponsored by all kinds of companies..."
"That sounds so cool!" Prince Roberto says.
"I see..." Alberto says.
I continued, still caught up in the excitement and joy of being invited.
"All of the previous winners of the contest are working all over the world now! This is basically just an amazing contest to take part in!"
Then Prince Roberto's face clouded over.
"Then I guess you'll be leaving us if you win...?"
His face was tinged with an unusual loneliness. I remembered a conversation we'd once had.
"Is there some time limit?"
"That... I believe that is up to you, Prince Roberto, since you are the one hiring me."
"Then I guess you've got until you ever think that you want to leave."
Alberto also seemed to have noticed the prince's expression.
"Your Highness, you would be quite the boor to try to stop Miss [Y/L/N]."
"And besides, there's no way I'll actually win! I just thought it would be a good chance to compare my current abilities to those of other designers!" I tried to sound as cheery as possible.
"Do your best." He looked straight at me as he said it. "Well, we should be going... Right, Al?"
Prince Roberto left with Alberto as the servants bowed them away.
There's no way... I could actually win.
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After that, I spent every free moment I had in my workroom. Even though I knew I wouldn't win the competition, I wanted to give it everything I had and see how far I could get. The qualifier for the first round was a woman's dress. I'd lost a lot of design sketches when my room had been flooded. I felt that loss even more acutely now, as I struggled to finish even one design before the deadline. I had to start completely from scratch and so I decided to overhaul my lifestyle, as well.
No more playing around. No more slacking off. All free time is for the contest.
I spent every day repeating those words like some kind of charm. My heart and mind may have been willing to do the work, but I still couldn't come up with any good design. My heart and mind may have been willing to do the work, but I still couldn't come up with anything worth keeping. One evening, as I was staring down at the worktable in front of me, there was a knock at the door.
"Come in." I said.
The door opened, and Prince Roberto stuck his head in the room.
"Are you okay? I heard from the maids that you've been cooping yourself up in here all day and don't even come out for lunch."
"Yeah. I don't seem to have an appetite for once."
He walked to my side and said worriedly, "Everything going okay?"
"Yeah... It's going fine." He could see that my words were completely betrayed by the strained expression on my face. Prince Roberto looked at me, his eyes troubled.
"I'm sorry. Your sketchbooks..."
"What?"
"They were all ruined when your room flooded, weren't they?"
"That was no big deal!" He's so nice to feel bad about that. I can't make him worry any more about it. "Don't worry. I'm going to make a design that'll blow your socks off!"
I gave him a cheesy thumbs up. He smiled somewhat bitterly.
"Come on. I can tell in an instant that you're pushing yourself too hard, dear [Y/N]." So it really is obvious...
"But this contest is a really precious opportunity for me to test myself. I think I just have to suck it up and face myself. Like, this is the time for all or nothing."
"[Y/N]..."
"Hm?"
"I feel like you're flying off somewhere far away from me. It's kind of sad..."
"I'm not going anywhere, silly!"
"I'll support you in any way that I can, so just tell me if there's anything I can do."
"I will, thanks. Hearing that from you really gives me courage."
"But I'm kind of happy... It's nice to be able to support someone you love!" Someone you... love...?
"Thanks..." I looked away, feeling flustered, and my eyes dropped back to my worktable. There I saw the absolutely blank paper of my sketchbook, without a single mark on the page.
Ahh... I really haven't gotten anything done.
Prince Roberto noticed the blank paper and looked a bit surprised.
"I feel like I should be able to come up with something, but..."
"Umm..."
"Yeah?"
"Do you wanna ditch?" He grinned wickedly at me. It was the same thing he had said to me on my first day at the villa. I could still remember how shocked I had been by the irresponsible prince as if it had been only yesterday.
I hesitated. I kind of felt like it would be good to shake things up a bit, but at the same time the deadline for the first qualifier was drawing near.
If we go out in the city, I'll see all kinds of different fashions and maybe come up with some fresh ideas.
"Sure, let's go... for just a little while."
"Just a little bit?"
"Well, I still don't have much time till the deadline and I'm pretty stressed. But I do think that I may need a little change of pace."
"Don't get stressed!"
"I know... But I really want to do a good job on this, so I don't want to give up until the very last moment." He smiled kindly at me.
"That's the spirit." I set down my pen and followed the prince from the workroom.
As Prince Roberto walked, he kept checking back on me as if he was concerned.
"You're sure about this? You're not pushing yourself?"
"Yeah. I think going out on the town and seeing different people will really be a boon right now."
"We're not going out to the city, though. Though something like that..."
"Huh?"
"Someplace where you can hopefully feel inspired." Then Prince Roberto stopped in front of a certain room. Prince Roberto pushed the thick door open and gestured me into the room easily. "Come in."
I was held back for a moment by the dignity of the room.
"Are you sure?" Prince Roberto smiled brightly and pointed inside the room. I stepped through the doorway and saw that the room was filled with clothing and jewels. Every single item was stunning and I stared about in wonder. "It's amazing..."
"Right? These all belonged to my mother." Wow...
My feet froze. "Y-You mean the queen's...!? Surely someone like me shouldn't..."
"I suppose you are the first person outside of the family to come in here." He said this as if it was no big deal. Of course no one should be allowed in such a room except the members of the royal family. I felt my whole body recoil from being allowed into such a precious place.
What should I do...I shouldn't go in, right?
I stood stiffly without saying a word to the prince and he looked at me gently.
"There are all sorts of clothes here, so I thought it might help you come up with some ideas."
"Are you sure it's okay? I'm really, really nervous right now..."
"Just look at whatever you want to. Go on." I felt an almost unbearable happiness welling up inside of me when I realized just how far he was going to try to help me when I was stressed. It made my heart ache.
"Thank you..."
I decided to carefully look at every single thing in that fantastic room. While there were cutting-edge and avant-garde designs, there were also classical pieces that would appeal to anyone's sense of fashion. They were all outstanding pieces in terms of shape, color, and patter, and I couldn't help a little envious sigh.
"The queen loved fashion. If she thought something was good, it didn't matter whether it was cheap or some luxury brand. She always said 'whoever said that something had to be expensive to be good?'"
That reminds me of something the prince said at that used clothing shop...
"It doesn't really matter to me if something is brand name or not. If I find something I like and it fits me, then that's what I want. That's all."
I wonder if he thinks like that because of his mother...?
I looked up at him from the side as I considered the idea. Then the prince picked up a certain bag as he said, "If I remember right the queen saw this bag at a flea market in a little town that we went to on some official task. She liked it so much that she bought it on the spot."
It was a woven bag that looked to be made from rattan.
"It's so pretty!" I said.
It may have been inexpensive, but it was artful and obviously made by a skilled craftsman. The bag and the other clothes I saw all made me think that the queen's fashion sense had been quite like my own.
I can't say anything that presumptuous, of course... but it does make me kind of happy!
I slowly walked through the room and looked carefully at each piece of clothing, trying to burn it into my mind. Then my feet stopped in front of a certain dress.
This dress... It's somehow so captivating...
It was a dress of pure white, classic and feminine, clearly molded to show off a woman's curves. As I stared at it, I felt an idea growing in my mind. I happily started trying to make it bloom.
This is it! I can finally see it!
"Finally broke out of your rut?" What?
Prince Roberto looked seriously at me as he walked closer.
"You look like you've figured something out." I nodded quickly.
"I feel like I got a great hint for what I need to do..." Prince Roberto patted me on top of my head as I stared up at him in appreciation.
"That's good. I'm glad I brought you here."
"Yeah. Thank you so much. It really saved me."
"You're very welcome. There's lots of other stuff in here, too, so you should keep on looking around."
"Thanks. I'll do that..."
I went back to wandering around the room. I went around a corner and saw a huge jewelry box with its lid left open. Curious, I walked closer and lying inside of it was a necklace with a huge star sapphire in the middle. It sparkled almost supernaturally, shooting off rays of light in six different directions.
Wow... It's stunning...
I was captivated by the jewel, feeling like this must indeed be the sort of secret that a royal family would keep tucked away. My mouth was hanging open, not that I knew it.
Prince Roberto came over to me and I said, still reeling in amazement, "This necklace... it's amazing..." But the prince looked startled by something.
"Sorry, but this isn't..." He closed the top of the jewelry box as he trailed off.
Huh? What is it?
Prince Roberto looked so unusually upset as he clamped his mouth shut that I didn't even try to ask anything, though. I felt as if I shouldn't say anything more about it unless he brought it up first, so I retreated and turned my attention back to the clothing hanging from every rack.
What was it about that necklace that spooked him so...?
Then I heard him quietly speak from behind me.
"Hey, [Y/N]..." I turned around, surprised how muffled his voice sounded.
"Huh?"
"Do you... have someone you like?"
He looked painfully serious as he muttered the question. I couldn't look at his face after he asked me something like that. I could feel a blush climbing up my cheeks as I tried to answer casually, "No, I don't. Why?"
I felt as if everything froze for a moment. But it didn't take me any time at all to realize that it was just my imagination. Prince Roberto smiled at me like usual.
"I see. Well, if you ever do like someone, you should tell me! I'll definitely cheer you on." Between that smile and those words, my heart seemed on the verge of breaking for a moment.
Why does it shock me so much...?
It's hardly like I had expected anything to happen between us. I couldn't expect anything with someone like him. But when I thought now about the days that I had spent with Prince Roberto, I felt as if that smile and those words were telling me, 'Don't like me. We're nothing more than friends.' And it made me sad.
"Yeah... I will." I turned around, hiding my face so that he wouldn't see how disturbed I was. I lifted my head, expecting to see more clothes, and instead there was only a fire extinguisher hanging on the wall.
Ah... shoot.
"I'll tell you now that didn't ever belong to my mother." I faltered when the prince teased me.
"I knew that!" I squeezed out every last iota of willpower I had to give him a blindingly bright smile.
"Oh, really?"
I'd tried my hardest to be funny, but when he just replied in a normal tone, I felt off balance again.
"I mean, it is a fine fire extinguisher. Don't get me wrong. But it's not exactly the queen's style... For example, the queen would never go for this blue line in the logo. She's want it yellow, for starters, and..." I was suddenly caught in a tight embrace from behind.
"Why are you so..."
"What...?"
"...so much fun?" Huh!? Fun!?
He spoke from right behind my ear as he held me close.
"You're a great designer, my dear [Y/N], but I think you may just be a comedic genius as well." His strained voice didn't match those frivolous words, though.
"Well, thanks..." Then he slapped me on the back and let me go.
What is going on? Seriously...
I couldn't face him again for quite some time.
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When I returned to my workroom, I furiously worked to copy down my ideas into my sketchbook. When I next looked up, it was nearing midnight. I had worked out most of the design and so I gave myself a moment to think back on what had happened.
"I see. Well, if you ever do like someone, you should tell me! I'll definitely cheer you on."
Even remembering it made my heart ache. When I finally accepted just why it hurt so much, it only made the pain worse.
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Nearly a month had passed when one afternoon, there was a knock at my door.
"Yes?"
The door opened, and a servant held out a letter to me.
"Do your best! We're all cheering for you." The servant smiled cheerfully and left.
What...?
I hurriedly tore open the envelope and there... It was a notification of my passing through the first round of qualifiers for the Nobel Michel Design Contest. I thought I might faint as I stared at those words. Honestly, the weeks that I'd spent preparing for the contest had been physically and mentally hellish. I had finally managed to complete my submission on time and feel some relief.
"You have passed the first round..."
Those words tantalized and vexed me. I griped the letter in my hand and ran out of the room. I stopped in front of the door and realized what I was doing.
I couldn't think of anything but telling him, but... Prince Roberto is in the middle of his workday. I shouldn't disturb him.
Trying to rein in my feelings, I turned around to leave. Then a voice stopped me from behind.
"Is that my dear [Y/N]? What's up?" It looked like he was just on his way back to his office.
"O-Oh, um..." My voice sounded high and thin as I showed him the letter I had clenched in my hand. "I made it through the first round!"
"What!? That's amazing..." He was blinking in surprise. "That's just... I'm so happy for you! You worked so hard for this!" He put both his hands on my head and ruffled my hair. "You are great! You worked so hard, I know you did!" He kept patting my head so long that I thought I might sink into the ground.
"Thank you... But it's really all thanks to you."
"No, it's all thanks to your hard work."
"But... the design I submitted was inspired by you taking me to see the queen's belongings. Anyway, I just wanted to come to thank you..." I thought I should leave it at that, but when I said the words aloud they somehow sounded stupid and I felt foolish. But the prince smiled at me, his eyes were twinkling.
"I'm so glad..." he says.
I realized for the first time how precious it was to have someone you loved to share your happiness with. And my heart ached knowing that Prince Roberto was that someone for me.