Chapter 173: Being Called an Idiot!
Chapter 173: Being Called an Idiot!
"You idiot!!"While saying that, the Queen lightly slapped me repeatedly. How cute... I took her hands to stop her and said,
"Your Majesty, let’s prepare to get off. We’ll arrive soon, won’t we?"
"Robin-sama, you idiot..."
With tears welling in her eyes and puffed-up cheeks, the Queen straightened her skirt and fixed her hair while looking in the mirror attached to the carriage. Perhaps because she was angry, her cheeks had turned red as if she had applied blush, looking adorable. Even her lips had become a vivid peach color that made lipstick unnecessary. To think this was the bare face of a woman in her forties — what a terrifying beautiful witch. Anyone who saw the Queen would realize she had become younger, and everyone would suspect she had some secret.
Inside the swaying carriage she finished her makeup (I was surprised she could do it herself!), then sat primly with a cold expression. Conversation ceased, so she was probably still angry inside. At last we arrived at the gate.
The door was opened from outside, and a voice said,
"Please alight."
The Queen stepped down first, and I followed. The tension among the guards was considerable. The three maids with extremely faint presence were scanning the surroundings and paid not the slightest attention to the Queen or me. Would this level of vigilance continue until we returned to the Rear Palace after the restaurant?
I took the Queen’s hand and began walking. The three maids from earlier stood in front. The moment we passed through the gate into the Commoner District, the three maids began walking as if they were good friends. Behind us, Lily and Stevie had appeared at some point and followed.
The three in front never looked back at the Queen’s walking pace, yet they maintained a constant distance while matching her speed. This was impressive. Rather than "the doors have eyes," it was more accurate to say they had eyes on the backs of their heads.
Behind us, Lily and Stevie were complaining about a fictional husband and father, continuing the mother-daughter setting from before. Was there a script? Or was it free talk? I had the feeling they were complaining about me, but maybe it was just my imagination. I wanted to believe it was the universal mother-daughter conversation about a man with bad habits with women or being greedy.
As we walked, first people began walking in the same direction on both sides. A man and a woman pretended to be unrelated while matching our direction and speed. Had the women from the Accounting Bureau been borrowed again and were hanging around near the restaurant?
The Queen’s procession advanced like a U.S. Navy carrier strike group, with the Queen as the aircraft carrier in the center and escorts spread out in an elongated oval around her. With this level of vigilance, and since the return route was different from the outward one, there should be no problem... but was this a flag?