Little Pink Starfish

There were more guards than usual stationed in front of Queen Angela’s chamber. When they noticed Asher’s presence, they greeted him with tense expressions.

“Prince Asher, Lady Angela is expecting you.”
“Understood.”

The one who received him was a maid who had long served Queen Angela. She bowed her head to Asher, then politely knocked on the door and raised her voice so that those inside could hear.

“Lady Angela, Prince Asher has arrived.”

Soon, Angela’s voice came from within, granting permission for him to enter.

As the door slowly opened, Asher gazed inside. Sitting on the sofa in the depths of the room, dressed in a red gown, Queen Angela glanced at him for a brief moment—before quickly looking away.

“…Mother, excuse me.”
“……”
“Mother?”
“Everyone else, leave the room. I wish to speak with my son alone.”

Her words, spoken without even looking at him, left Asher bewildered. However, the others obeyed, bowing their heads as they exited the room. Naturally, Theodore followed suit, exchanging a brief glance with Asher before stepping out.

Now, only Asher and Angela remained.

Yet, silence filled the room. Neither spoke as time slowly passed.

Asher found it strange that Angela would not look at him even once. Just as he gathered the courage to speak, Angela snapped her fan shut with a sharp clack and finally broke the silence.

“…I’ve heard about Clark. I know what he did to you.”
“…Yes.”
“And I’ve heard that His Majesty has stripped you of your right to the throne as a result. This must be corrected…”

Suddenly, she crushed her fan with a loud crack, stood up, and trembled with rage as she shouted.

“That man…! Because I trusted that man, you were deprived of your right to the throne!!”
“Mother!”
“You did nothing wrong!! Yet I was fooled by him… I put my beloved son in danger…! I was the one who told Clark about the secret passage, and now—!”
“Please, calm down!”

At Asher’s outburst, Angela flinched as if frightened. But it was only for a moment before she quickly regained her composure. Still, she refused to meet his gaze.

“…Mother.”
“……”

Though she kept her gaze averted, she remained silent, waiting for Asher to speak.

“I… I have returned to the castle safely. Isn’t that enough?”
“What did you just say?”
“Besides… I never wanted the right to the throne in the first place.”
“What nonsense are you saying?”
“I never wanted to be king.”
“Asher! Don’t be foolish!”
“Mother… I cannot become king.”
“No! I will fix this. I will make His Majesty reconsider—”
“Mother!!”

Asher grabbed Angela’s shoulders. For the first time, she finally looked him in the eyes.

“I gave birth to you to make you king!?”

Tears spilled from the same blue eyes they shared. Asher could only stare at her in stunned silence.

“A princess born into royalty… her duty is to bear the heir… Yes… I swore it…”

Angela collapsed as if her strength had left her, and Asher quickly caught her.

“Mother!”
“I swore it… To Fred… We swore it together…”
“Fred…?”

Angela buried her face in Asher’s chest, sobbing uncontrollably.

Asher, overwhelmed by her sudden tears, couldn’t move. At that moment, commotion erupted outside the door.

Then, with force, the door was thrown open.

The one who appeared was none other than King Augustin.

“Stay out of this room, all of you. That’s an order.”
“But, Your Majesty—”

Slamming the door shut, he strode directly toward Asher.

“Ah… Father—”
“Angela…”
“…The vow I made with Fred…”

Ignoring the stunned Asher, Augustin gently lifted Angela into his arms and carried her toward the adjoining bedroom.

For a brief moment, Asher stood frozen in confusion before quickly following after them.

Augustin carefully laid Angela onto the bed, then picked up a small vial from the bedside table and opened the lid. He brought it to her lips, but she refused it.

“…There’s no helping it.”

With that, Augustin drank the contents himself and then forcefully transferred it into Angela’s mouth through a kiss.

“…Ngh… mm…”
“Father! What are you doing!?”

Asher grabbed his father’s shoulder, trying to pull him away, but Augustin didn’t budge.

Soon, Angela, who had been struggling, relaxed and drifted into sleep.

“Mother!”
“…Don’t worry. It’s an anti-anxiety sedative with a sleep effect.”
“A sedative…?”
“She’s been in turmoil ever since you were kidnapped. Even after you returned, she never truly calmed down. Just when I thought she was getting better, this happened.”

Asher had overheard the soldiers murmuring about Angela earlier, but he hadn’t known the full extent.

He had never imagined it had gotten bad enough to require medication.

Augustin quietly gazed down at the sleeping Angela and gently stroked her hair.

“…She is truly a pitiable woman, your mother.”

He withdrew his hand from her hair and turned to Asher.

Golden eyes.

Asher had always found them terrifying, but strangely, he felt no fear now.

“What do you mean?”
“…She was born into royalty and thoroughly indoctrinated to produce an heir. She is obsessed with making you king.”
“…Earlier… Mother said it was a vow between her and Queen Fred. Father, do you know anything about that?”
“……”

Augustin fell silent, his gaze wandering.

Then, noticing a small jeweled box by the bedside, he picked it up and opened it. Inside was a silver pendant.

He stared at it for a moment, then let out a faint smile.

“Father?”
“Fred had feelings for Angela.”

Asher was left speechless by the unexpected response.

“But I was the one who wanted Fred as my queen. As a prince from a small kingdom, Fred had no choice but to comply.”
“…Queen Fred had feelings for Mother…? And Mother…?”

Augustin opened the pendant.

“I never asked Angela about her feelings. But she still keeps the pendant Fred gave her. That’s your answer.”

Asher accepted the pendant and looked inside.

There, within the locket, was a faded portrait of a young boy with red hair and green eyes, smiling gently.

“…Prince Jeffrey?”

The boy in the picture bore a striking resemblance to Queen Jeffrey. However, upon noticing the engraved inscription, Asher realized his mistake.

─── Angela, please don’t forget me. —Fred.

“…That is Fred. Jeffrey resembles him greatly. That pendant was a gift from Fred to Angela before marrying me. Even though their countries were at odds at the time… quite the man, wouldn’t you say?”

Augustin chuckled as if he truly found it amusing, then sat down in a nearby chair.

“I don’t know how they met, but Fred and Angela must have cared for each other.”
“…Is that why, Father… back then, when Clark accused Mother of killing Queen Fred—”

Augustin had neither been surprised nor outraged by Clark’s accusation. Instead, he had laughed and dismissed it outright.

Had he known all along that Angela would never harm Fred?

“When Fred was on his deathbed, I was the one who summoned Angela. It was Fred’s request… Clark saw it, misunderstood, and that misunderstanding turned into resentment… and eventually, his execution.”

“…At that time… Queen Fred suffered in labor for hours. He was already on the verge of death.”

Closing his eyes, Augustin recounted the scene in vivid detail.

---

The sound of agony, drenched in sweat and tears—

The sight of a beloved person, desperately battling to bring their child into the world—

Augustin had stood there, helpless, crushed by the weight of his own powerlessness.

All he had wanted was to hold his beloved’s hand, to offer words of encouragement, to stay by their side more than anyone else.

But he had not been allowed to be there.

『A-Angela… I don’t want to die… I want to stay by your side… always…』
『Don’t be foolish, Fred. What are you saying? We’ll be together from now on. You are the queen, and I am the consort—』
『…I don’t… want to bear this child… I don’t care about an heir…』
『What nonsense! Ah, Fred… You must give birth to the next king. There is no greater honor—』
『Angela… you haven’t changed at all… Even when I proposed to you… you said you would bear an heir… but you wouldn’t marry me because I wasn’t the crown prince, only the second prince…』
『That was… that was something I said when we were children…! And you left me behind to become the queen of this country, and now you are—』

Fred coughed violently, and Angela quickly rubbed their back.

The one by Fred’s side was not Augustin.

The person they had wished for was Angela.

『Angela… I wanted to have your child… A child who would be like an angel, just like you…』
『Fred… don’t say such things.』
『You rejected my proposal… because you were determined to bear the heir of a king…』
『That’s ridiculous…』
『You are marrying Augustin, aren’t you? That’s the king you wanted, isn’t it?』
『No, Fred, that’s not—』
『You told me you wouldn’t marry me because I wasn’t the heir! That’s why I gave up on you!! That’s why I chose to leave!! So why— why now— why am I—!』

Perhaps it was the pain of labor, or perhaps the anguish had reached its peak—Fred let out a sudden, heart-wrenching scream before their consciousness faded.

A doctor, pale with panic, rushed forward.

『Step back! This is bad… At this rate—』
『Fred!? Fred!! I swear! Please, Fred—』

Angela’s screams echoed through the chamber, but she was forcibly pulled away.

『The attendants are standing by! Step aside at once!』
『Fred!』
『Princess, this way—』

In the chaos, neither Augustin nor Angela could do anything but watch.

The midwives and attendants who had been waiting outside rushed in, their faces going pale at the sight before them.

『Lady Fred!? But just moments ago, he was—』
『If we don’t act fast, he’ll die before the child is even born!』
『Hurry!!』

And then—

A baby’s first cry rang through the air.

At the very moment of their child’s birth, Fred’s heart ceased to beat.

Augustin could not bear to stay in that room any longer.

The moment he witnessed the birth of his child and the death of the one he loved, he fled.

His heart felt as though it had been torn apart.

The words of the dying, spoken to someone else—

Those words had cut into him like a dagger, deeper than any physical wound.

In the end, Fred had left this world without sparing a thought for Augustin.

The man he loved had vanished.

---

“Father…?”

Asher called out hesitantly when Augustin fell silent, his eyes still closed.

After a pause, Augustin opened them and looked straight at Asher.

“…It’s nothing. Pay it no mind. As I said, just before Fred died, Angela swore to him that she would bear the next king. That is why she is so fixated on making you king.”

“……”

If what Augustin was saying was true… then what had he felt upon hearing that vow?

Asher studied his father’s expression, but as always, Augustin’s face remained unreadable.

“Father… You were there? You saw it happen with your own eyes?”
“…I did.”
“……”

Asher wanted to ask more, but he lacked the courage.

Red hair and green eyes—

If Queen Jeffrey, who became a concubine after Angela, resembled Fred, then Asher could faintly guess what Augustin must have felt.

“…Fred was not the only reason. I, too, bear responsibility for what Angela has become… I was too consumed by myself to see anything else.”
“Father…”
“……Back then, I found it unbearable to spend time with Angela. I… ran away. To a place where no one knew me… And that is where I met Jeffrey, who looked so much like Fred.”
“Eh…?”
“I had no intention of having a child with Jeffrey. But in the end, he conceived, and I could not simply abandon them. I asked Angela’s permission to bring them into the royal family… She agreed, but only on the condition that the child be excluded from the line of succession. However, when she saw Jeffrey’s face… her expression changed.”

Angela’s heart, unnoticed by all, had slowly but surely warped over time.

But Augustin, who was desperately trying to accept Angela—the woman Fred had loved—had not realized it.

He had only become aware of it when Angela became pregnant with Asher.