“Will you marry me?”
Out of nowhere, I was proposed to by Hagal, the youngest daughter of the Emperor.
“Kuh-ack!”
I choked on my drink.
“Ugh! Eek…!”
I knew it wasn’t polite to react like this in front of a princess, but I couldn’t help it.
“Oh my, I’m sorry. Did I get straight to the point too quickly?”
Hagal laughed lightly and handed me a handkerchief.
It almost felt like she was doing it on purpose, playfully teasing.
Still unable to respond, I could only shake my head in muffled embarrassment.
As I reached for the handkerchief, Eliya grabbed my hand and lowered it.
Her eyes were glaring straight at Hagal.
It was quite an impolite look.
Eliya still held the handkerchief with her eyes locked on Hagal.
A red handkerchief.
The very one I had received from Eliya earlier.
She wiped my mouth with it.
“Thank you… ugh…”
Maybe because she wasn’t even looking, the touch was quite rough.
Hagal looked between Eliya and me, curious.
“Miss, it’s done now…”
Only then did Eliya release her grip.
Her gaze didn’t falter from Hagal.
As I subtly glanced at her, Eliya was the first to speak.
“I can’t understand what your intentions are.”
“Intentions…? I don’t really have any special intentions worth that title.”
“Then why?”
“Why would a lady like you care about that? What kind of relationship do you two have?”
“That’s not important right now.”
“…Do you really think so?”
Hagal crossed her arms and tilted her head.
I couldn’t help but wonder about that question too sometimes.
Are we really just a simple knight and his master?
Meanwhile, Eliya seemed uninterested in the question, still gazing intently at Hagal.
Hagal shrugged her shoulders with a light sigh.
“It’s just, life’s a bit uncertain these days…. I wouldn’t mind if someone kept an eye on me.”
“…?”
Eliya’s eyes were suddenly ablaze with fury.
Unlike the tense me, Hagal found her reaction amusing and chuckled softly.
“As you know, the political climate is quite unstable these days?”
The reason for that instability was right beside her.
Eliya.
The quiet and bizarre tension between Johan, Balak, and Eliya.
Anyone who knows better is already keeping their distance.
And Hagal is one of those who should keep her distance.
Balak seems to be a relatively compassionate father to his children, excluding Eliya.
On the other hand, Emperor Johan is neither kind nor warm to any of his offspring.
He acts like he alone will reign forever.
“It feels a bit suspicious.”
Still, Hagal can’t blindly depend on Johan.
Yet, it was strange.
She wanted someone to protect her?
Hagal had enough strength and resources to defend her power in that triangular conflict.
Even if she were the youngest daughter, a princess is still a princess.
Noticing my curiosity, Hagal grinned.
“I guess I just need a bit more secured protection.”
“Am I that protection?”
“You could be, yes. You’re quite talented and, above all, a favored knight of Lady Eliya, right?”
It sounded like a marriage made for political reasons.
She must want to gain an ally through me—Eliya.
“I just feel like sticking close to her would be the safest option in the long run.”
Emperor, Balak, Eliya.
Hagal seemed to trust Eliya over the other two.
“So, what do you think?”
Hagal asked for my stance.
Eliya still wouldn’t look at me, gazing at Hagal with eyes that seemed like they were about to burst into flames.
Time felt like it froze for her.
I wondered if she was even breathing.
I answered Hagal’s question without hesitation.
“I decline.”
Surprisingly, Hagal nodded and smiled.
“I kinda expected that, but hearing it is a bit shocking. May I ask why? I don’t think I’d make a bad bride.”
She was being a bit annoying, but she had a point.
Hagal was undeniably a fantastic woman in many ways and very objectively so.
But, well.
“I don’t really have a specific reason.”
That was the only answer I could come up with.
I glanced at Eliya.
She was slowly turning to look at me.
Her expression was blank.
But the mad fire in her eyes had transformed into a clear, vivid red.
Hagal murmured as she got up from her seat.
“I thought it was just simple affection…”
The smile on her face was rather mischievous.
As if leaving an intriguing riddle behind.
“This is a secret from here on. It wouldn’t be any fun if someone else told you.”
I raised to bow in courtesy, but I couldn’t manage it.
Eliya still held tightly to my hand.
That grip was solid, keeping me firmly in place.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave. See you next time.”
“…Do take care.”
In the end, I had no choice but to sit and see her off.
Eliya didn’t say a word until the end.
She averted her gaze from me and stared blankly at the spot Hagal had just occupied.
What could she possibly be thinking?
I cautiously called to her.
“Um, Miss….”
“…….”
“Miss?”
“I’m tired.”
Eliya rubbed her forehead and stood up.
“I want to go rest.”
“…Understood.”
I escorted her to the door.
We hadn’t said a single word until then.
I thankfully swallowed the reckless questions that had almost slipped from my lips.
Before entering her room, Eliya spoke without looking at me.
“…Goodnight.”
It was still daytime.
Bedtime was far off still.
Was that greeting meant to imply that we wouldn’t see each other until I sleep?
I simply lowered my head.
And truly, I couldn’t see Eliya until the sun set.
We didn’t even share a meal together.
“Is she eating well?”
By the time it was nearly evening and I had finished washing up,
Knock, knock.
Someone was knocking at the door.
The visitor was an unexpected face.
*
While Eliya and Judas were with the princess,
Ria, who also served Eliya, was alone.
She was busy cleaning Eliya’s room.
Knock, knock.
Someone knocked at the door.
When she opened it, two familiar faces greeted her.
Balak and Narcissi’s child.
Their youngest daughter, Sara.
And their fourth son, Aghan.
Ria greeted them politely.
“Hello. What brings you two here? Lady Eliya has gone to see the princess.”
They didn’t respond right away.
They scanned the room quietly.
Aghan cautiously asked.
“Um, what about that guy Judas?”
“The knight also left with the lady.”
Aghan sighed in relief.
Judas had become a trauma for him since their last encounter.
He sometimes had nightmares.
The broken granite sword haunted his dreams.
“Ria. I need your help.”
“My help?”
“Yeah. You’ve helped us a few times already. Why act like you don’t know?”
“Well… I’m not sure what help I can provide.”
“I want to know the whereabouts of our mother.”
Aghan said, and next to him, Sara looked tearful.
Mother.
Ria rolled the word in her mouth.
A sigh was almost escaping, but she swallowed it.
She was well accustomed to wearing a mask.
Unlike someone.
“You must know.”
“Help us…!”
Sara, teary-eyed, jumped in.
“We can’t leave Mom in that harsh environment…! That’s just too cruel!”
“Well…”
Ria tilted her head slightly and smiled.
“That’s something I can’t just disclose without care.”
“You…! Why are you suddenly like this! You’re still giving information to Cain and Levi!”
“Where did you hear my name?”
A sudden voice interrupted.
All three heads turned in unison.
A man was walking toward them from the hallway.
His curly blonde hair matched his gentle demeanor.
He smiled kindly with big strides.
“Levi brother…”
The second son. Levi de Bevel.
His squinting smiling face showed no sign of tremor.
Sara dashed toward him.
“Levi big brother! You need to talk to us!”
“What do you want to talk about?”
Aghan and Sara rambled on about the issue they were facing.
Ria just stood quietly listening.
“Oh, it’s about your mother. I feel sorry for that too.”
Levi smiled at his two younger siblings and turned to Ria.
“Actually, I came here to talk about something too, so let me handle it. You two go on and rest.”
Levi skillfully soothed the two and sent them away.
Soon, only Levi and Ria remained.
Levi grinned as he watched his siblings leave.
“Though I feel bad about your mother, it’s not something we can just bulldoze through without thinking.”
“Do you not care for the Duchess?”
“Huh? Hmm, well, I guess I do want to get Mom back, but these days things are quite touchy. If I touch Eliya wrong, I feel like something might happen. I can tell you, during that friendship tournament I was really on edge.”
Levi spoke as if that was nothing alarming.
But deep down, he was feeling uneasy, his affect was not as calm as his words suggested.
After the duel, he sold off half of his guards to Judeca right then and there.
If it had been his other siblings, they would have been dead, but Levi didn’t take that route.
Why waste lives when he could just sell them for money?
He figured he’d simply fill in with stronger people if needed.
Though the defeat stung, Levi thought it worked out quite well.
It was better to realize one’s weaknesses in practice rather than afterward.
Levi concluded that sparring with Eliya was worth a shot.
Rumors only said how strong she was, but he had seen Balak’s power firsthand.
He doubted Eliya would stand a chance against that earth-scorching heat.
He believed magic wasn’t just about talent.
“I see…”
Ria observed Levi.
However, she couldn’t gather any clues.
The childish Sara and Aghan.
The scheming Jezebel.
They were all different from him.
Levi was skilled at concealing his true feelings.
He could navigate conversations in the direction he desired and manipulate others against each other.
He was born with illness and that shrewdness.
A man whose true intentions were elusive.
Even now, he posed a greater threat than Cain, the eldest son.
Cain, after all, was a born warrior far removed from politics.
“What do you want from me?”
“Want? Well, it’s something I’m curious about lately.”
“About me?”
“Yeah. You’ve been aiding Eliya for quite some time, haven’t you? Ever since she came to the mansion?”
“Yes.”
“And from then on, you’ve been Mother’s confidante, right? Watching Eliya closely. Since then, you’ve been reporting necessary information to Mother, and after Mother sadly got exiled, you quietly passed along information to our brothers after Eliya captured you…”
Levi stepped forward, overshadowing her with his height and casting a shadow over her face.
Despite the somewhat intimidating atmosphere, Ria didn’t lose her composure.
Her cold black eyes met his unflinchingly.
Through his squinty eyes, his red pupils revealed a glimmer.
“I’m starting to think those pieces of information weren’t all that useful.”
“……”
“People can be wrong sometimes; how can one always be accurate? But, you know, I can’t help but feel… hmmm… they were quite cleverly misleading… deceiving?”
Levi took a step back.
The atmosphere felt testy, as if he was putting her to the test.
“You reported on Eliya, yet important bits were occasionally missing? Whenever you gave us crucial information, something important always seemed to be missing.
Take for instance innocent Jezebel. She believed you, sent out the covert squad, and got wiped out by that knight named Judas, right?”
“That was because I couldn’t accurately gauge Judas’s skill.”
“Yeah, your excuses always sound convincing.”
Levi nodded with a grin and moved to put his hands in his pockets when suddenly he pulled out a dagger.
The blade gleamed dangerously as he extended it.
The sharp dagger halted right in front of Ria’s throat.
“It’s beginning to feel like you’re not genuinely trying to help us. Almost like you were working for Eliya from the start.”
“……”
“Underestimating a mere maid was my mistake. How do you feel now that betrayal has come to light?”
Levi pressed the blade closer as he asked.
Ria didn’t flinch.
Knowing that Levi didn’t intend to kill her immediately, she simply smiled.
Levi looked at her in confusion, and Ria finally spoke.
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