I've been reincarnated into another world as a witch

Chapter 63: Bribery

The Royal butler escorted Edna and I through the palace. I knew where we were going long before we reached the destination because I recognised the route. When we arrived I was confirmed right.

The queen's private rose garden. A garden of unequivocal beauty, and the place where prince Alphonse seemed to enjoy spending time.
When I last saw the garden, the roses had all been pink and white, with a few combinations therein. However, today the magnificent garden was blooming exclusively deep red roses.

When I had come with the King and Geoffrey to find Prince Alphonse on my previous visit to this garden, the pink flowers had made it look like a spring fairy garden. The blood-red roses that had bloomed since made the garden look more mature. This place now had a dark beauty to it.

The butler further escorted us through a maze of perfectly manicured rose bushes, until we finally arrived at the podium I had seen last time. There sat Prince Alphonse, my fellow reincarnated person, seated at a dainty table, sipping on a cup of tea. Looking at him it was strange to think that he came from my world since he fitted so perfectly into this one. His golden hair and handsome boyish face made him the perfect fit for the youngest Ambrose prince. It was no wonder that he was able to fool people into believing he was an ordinary prince for so long.

The butler stepped out of my way and bowed. Edna and I stepped towards the arch.

Alphonse's butler alerted him of our presence with a soft whisper. The young prince immediately stood up and flashed me a brilliant smile, one worthy of his older brother prince Charming.

"Welcome, Holy Lady Delton. Please have a seat." He gestured to the cushioned chair across from him. After the tiring morning I had, I gladly took the seat.

"You may all leave." Alphonse commanded. Even though he was a young child, he had all the authority and presence of the royal lineage.

Without a word, all the servants, including Edna, walked away from us. They walked to the very edge of the garden before standing still with their backs facing us.

"You can call me Al if you want. Can I call you Riley?" I felt a sense of whiplash as his personality suddenly did a one-eighty. He had transitioned from firm authoritative prince to a sweet little kid in less than a second.

"Oh cool. Thanks, Al." I replied amused. Although he was a kid, I somehow felt like I was talking to an adult.

"Haha." A wide cheesy smile crowned his cute face. "I haven't heard anyone say 'cool' in a while."

"So you came from an English speaking country? The US?" He asked, eyeing me curiously.

"Yeah, New York." I smiled happily being able to talk about my past world with someone. "And where were you from?" I asked curiously.

"South Korea."

"Oh, no way, so cool!" I wished I had brought some Korean rice cakes from home to give to him. I'm sure he would have liked that.

He looked delighted at my reaction, but then refocused on asking me questions. "So what year did you die in?"

"Late 2019. And you?"

A small frown appeared on his forehead as if my answer was not what he was expecting.

"I died around that time as well. September 2019."

Now it was my turn to frown.

"Huh?" I titled my head feeling perplexed. "I died in October. But then how is it possible that you got reincarnated thirteen years before me when you only died a month before me?"