"Hmmm…"
Alina hummed happily as she watered a cluster of bright pink flowers in full bloom. Just looking at them made anyone feel at ease.
Footsteps sounded behind her, followed by a playful voice.
"Sorry to bother you, but what are you doing, Princess Alina?"
Startled, Alina turned around to see Nolan walking toward her.
"Prince Nolan!" Her eyes sparkled as she explained, "I'm watering these flowers. Look—aren't they beautiful?"
She pointed at the cluster with an expectant gaze.
Nolan looked at the flowers and smiled softly.
"They're very beautiful. Are they yours?"
"Um… more accurately, they belong to my mother." Alina's smile grew nostalgic. "She loved flowers dearly and tended these, hoping I would grow to love them too. But she passed away before she could see them bloom."
Her face darkened with sadness.
Nolan felt a pang of surprise. He knew Alina was likely the daughter of a concubine, yet he hadn't anticipated that her mother was gone.
