Let’s give her a little space; it seemed like Miragen had moved away from the earlier heat.
She swept her face with her hand, palm shaped like a triangle as she looked at me through the gap.
It was something she used to do a lot in the past, but was it really that embarrassing?
Miragen might not remember, but she was quite the active one when it came to the person she loved.
Of course, that was when we were officially a couple.
Now, since we’re nothing at all, it’s only natural for her to be shy about it. Anyway, seeing this side of Miragen was a rather unique experience.
Even though I’ve seen it more than ten times, Miragen always shows me something new.
When I laughed, Miragen furrowed her brows and glared at me.
Her eyes rolled dramatically for a moment, then paused, hesitating before speaking.
“Excuse me if this is a rude question, but did you happen to have many women in your life?”
“I didn’t think you’d start with that question, but I’ve only had one in my entire life.”
“…I know you had a fiancée. Hah, I’m just surprised.”
I quickly caught on to what she was surprised about, so I just smiled without saying anything.
That was slightly crossing the line just now. It might be because I was reminded of the past.
Even when I get angry, seeing her face makes it all melt away. I may be a real fool for all this.
“I was just kidding around. I was a little mad.”
“I’m not one to talk much, but I’m a princess, you know? You remember that, right?”
“I do, but would you like me to treat you like a princess?”
At that question, Miragen hesitated and then shook her head slightly.
She probably thought this kind of relationship wasn’t too bad.
I felt the same way.
I could treat Miragen like a princess, but if I actually did, I’d probably just feel suffocated.
Anyway, it was time to hear the reason.
What in the world was she looking for, and why did she sneak out of the Imperial Palace?
I thought she wouldn’t come out without any plan, so I asked, and thankfully, Miragen explained the various strategies she had set up.
“First off, I’ve created a clone of myself.”
“A clone…?”
“As you know, I have many close friends in the Mage Tower. Asking the magicians to make a clone of me is pretty simple. I have to stay in my room during the period of confinement anyway, so there’s no special need for it to move.”
“What will you do if His Majesty hears about this?”
“Oh, the other children will handle that. After all, it’s not like they come looking for me that often, and lately, they’ve been rather busy.”
Now that I think about it, the Imperial Palace was in a busy period. Wasn’t the Emperor and Crown Prince discussing territorial expansion seriously?
To think she’d venture all the way to the south during such a time; I really couldn’t fathom where Miragen’s courage came from.
“If I ask about the relic, you wouldn’t tell me, right?”
“No. I can tell you, but the problem is that I haven’t fully grasped it yet.”
“Then why are you here?”
“It’s one of the candidate locations. Originally, I intended to move with a magician, but… it looks like doing that alone will be difficult now.”
“I was planning to keep moving with you, but it seems like doing it alone is going to be tough now.”
I quietly gazed at Miragen, who was subtly watching my reactions.
That’s a given. Just the fact that Miragen is here is astounding; there’s no way I’d let her go off on her own.
The magician part is something I only need to use when she goes back, and at least while we’re in the south, I’ll feel anxious if I don’t keep an eye on her.
As I stared at her, Miragen flinched slightly, brushed down her arms, and spoke up.
“You’re not thinking of watching me continuously, are you?”
“It seems like everyone has taken up mind-reading these days.”
“Everyone? Adrian is just good at reading people’s hearts.”
“I’m talking about Adele. We’ll be meeting her soon, anyway.”
At the mention of Adele, Miragen nodded and then paused, looking at me intently.
Was there something wrong with our previous conversation?
While pondering that, I realized the issue with something Miragen had just said and couldn’t help but chuckle.
“You called the Grand Duke by his name, didn’t you?”
“…Ah, it just happened that way.”
“I’m envious that you’ve made a lot of friends without me knowing. Adrian and Adele too, right? They came here with you?”
Even when I thought about it in my head, it felt like the habit had slipped out in conversation, calling them by their names.
There’s no need to beat around the bush. It’s not something to hide, and what’s the big deal about calling someone by their name?
It was simply evidence that we had grown closer.
However, it seemed Miragen thought it was somewhat special. She stared at me for a moment and said.
“Would you like to call me once?”
“Her Highness the Princess.”
“…You’re not calling me by my name, are you?”
“As you just said, it’s Her Highness the Princess, isn’t it?”
To be precise, Adrian is also a saint, and Adele is a Grand Duke, but neither I nor they cared too much about those statuses.
It was, however, certainly a contradictory feeling.
While trying to distance ourselves, finding satisfaction in getting closer.
I knew there would come a time when it would have to stop, but I couldn’t determine when that would be.
“Well, I think it’s awkward to keep calling you Prince indefinitely.”
Suddenly, hearing her voice made me look up. Miragen was slightly shivering, speaking bashfully.
Was she worried about calling someone by their name?
She had always been the type to stress over the little things, it seems like she was slowly trying to call me by my name.
“From now on, it’s okay to call me by my name. If it was in the Imperial Palace, it would be different, but here, don’t you think it feels uncomfortable to call each other Prince or Princess?”
“It’s not really uncomfortable.”
“…Um, I thought it was uncomfortable, though.”
As the conversation trailed off, I burst out with a soft laugh at her fumbling words.
It might be quite hard for me to call Miragen just “Miragen.”
Calling someone by their name isn’t that hard inherently, but Miragen was… special in many ways.
Because I was a person.
In the past, often calling by name became a problem.
If I hadn’t had such experiences, I would have called her without hesitation, but the name Miragen reminded me of too many things.
For instance, memories I didn’t want to recall. Anyway, I didn’t want to use the name Miragen right now.
After a little more time passed, and once my mind calmed down to some extent…
Then it might be okay to call her by name.
What’s certain is that it’s not now.
As I continued to call her Your Highness, Miragen pouted her lips as if she didn’t like it.
If I eventually called her by name, I was a bit curious about what reaction she would show.
Would she be embarrassed, or would she accept it casually, saying it’s about time?
Of course, if it’s the Miragen I know, she’d pretend to be fine on the outside but be super embarrassed inside.
I liked that aspect about her, I suppose.
That’s just how it was when we were lovers.
#
When Adrian saw Miragen, he began to vent the anger I had intended.
Asking whether she had any thoughts and why she came to such a dangerous place piqued Adele’s interest a bit.
“So you do get angry sometimes.”
“Well, she’s a friend. It seems I can be a little more relaxed with friends.”
“Have you ever gotten angry at her?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure. She hasn’t really done anything worthy of my anger.”
Adrian was especially relaxed around Miragen.
He probably thought it was because they were friends from childhood, but seeing him get angry was quite surprising even to me.
I chuckled a little as I watched Miragen fluster around Adrian.
To see a princess scolded by a saint, where else could you witness such a scene if not here?
“So you really came for the relic? You knew it was dangerous, right?”
“I’m sorry. Still, there’s a record, and we can’t just not try it, right?”
“Knowing that I’m here, you should have just asked directly.”
“Would the Order just sit by and do nothing? If it were the Imperial Family, they wouldn’t say much.”
It was amusing to hear such words directed to the saint, who was the representative of the Order, but Adrian valued Miragen more than the Order itself.
Isn’t it admirable that he showed concern for Miragen even after hearing such remarks?
I thought such a mindset greatly influenced her position as a saint.
Usually, when someone becomes friends with Miragen, they’d think of using her.
Back when she was my lover, I had asked Miragen to introduce me to Adrian.
I thought there might be an alternative if I met a saint, and I remembered that Miragen had pondered a lot over such requests.
I learned later that the biggest reason Adrian didn’t want that was because of those circumstances, but it seemed like Miragen and Adrian were similar, which is why they became friends.
Adele simply watched the two of them quietly.
She had no friends with such a relationship.
Even though there are subordinates like Bunta and Lothos, they’re companions and subordinates, so it can’t be considered an equal relationship.
Maybe I’m feeling a bit envious.
Adele’s true feelings are always hard to grasp, so if I couldn’t figure them out by asking directly, there really wasn’t any way to know.
“So, do we have to stay here?”
Adele turned her gaze to the Paladin nearby.
Setting up the base here was indeed correct, but while other Priests and Paladins were investigating the Magician, there was a moment of respite.
This means we could at least wander around the surroundings a bit.
I was also interested in the relic Miragen mentioned.
Even though it wasn’t a relic I needed to secure, it’s natural to be interested since I’ve used relics before.
“I’m thinking of riding in the wagon and looking around. The tower is nice and all, but there are bound to be several locations deeper inside.”
“Then I should go too. This is getting troublesome.”
“If that’s the case, you don’t have to follow me. I don’t intend to inconvenience anyone.”
As I said this, Adele let out a short laugh, seemingly astonished, and shook her head while her lips twitched.
“I told you earlier. If I don’t keep an eye on you, I’ll feel anxious.”
Her gaze still fell on Miragen and Adrian, who were together.
Just a moment ago, Miragen was getting scolded, but now they seemed to be talking and laughing together.
Adele, observing them with a slightly cold look, blinked her eyes for a moment before murmuring quietly.
“…I suppose I can’t send you off alone.”
“Then we all have to go together.”
Since Adrian had already followed along, it was only natural for him to be with us.
I certainly wasn’t going to leave Miragen behind, and with Adele insisting on coming, we would have to move as a group.
As we walked toward the wagon, Adele suddenly turned to me and asked.
“By the way, how should we sit in the wagon?”
I thought it was a trivial question and was about to open my mouth when, suddenly, the intensity of their gazes made me choke on my words.
Miragen, who was talking to Adrian, was now looking at me.
Even Adrian, whose view was blocked, and Adele.
They all stared at me as if waiting for my answer.
In that delicate silence, feeling a bit flustered, Adele gently smiled and asked again.
“I’m curious about your thoughts. How should we sit?”
Having gone through multiple reincarnations, I thought I had found answers to many questions.
I had figured out solutions to what were considered tricky problems and believed I had reached a level of wisdom.
But it seems that might have been a misconception.
In front of this puzzling question, I found it hard to speak.
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