“Adjustment… it’s done…”
As the spell of observation was completed, Erica wiped the sweat from her forehead.
A high-magnification spell capable of real-time surveillance of the city.
Of course, if Duke Damien found out, he’d demand its removal, so she had to put in various efforts to conceal the spell.
Schlus, not a novice in spell concealment either, likely decided there was no reason not to leave it to Erica.
“Is that why you brought me here?”
Erica sat down on the floor, tilting her head.
Certainly, Erica’s spell-crafting ability far surpassed Schlus’s.
In terms of speed and mana efficiency.
However, that’s only useful when mana is limited. Why would a monster like Schlus, who can pull out mana endlessly, need to care about efficiency?
Aintz was off being overkill, and Iris was left behind due to the difficulties of escort—so why was I brought along?
Even if unexpected situations were to arise, a Barrier Magician wouldn’t be much help in battle.
Rather, their role was more about preventing damage from spreading during combat.
“Looks like it’s completed?”
“Yeah…”
At that moment, the rooftop door swung open, and Schlus appeared.
He shook a glass bottle filled with ice, smiling, and sat down next to Erica.
“What is that?”
“It’s a drink sold on the street. Jin brought it.”
“Then can I trust it?”
“I drank it, and I didn’t die.”
“Pfft…”
Erica chuckled, accepting the bottle.
She had been sweating like rain while working under the scorching sun.
The moment she saw the icy drink, she instinctively wanted to gulp it down without even asking about its nature—
‘Ah. Isn’t that… an indirect kiss?’
She froze, her face turning red.
The bottle was half-empty already.
It was obvious someone had drunk from it—Schlus, of course.
That meant Schlus’s lips had touched the mouth of this bottle.
As Erica stared at the bottle absentmindedly, she felt dizzy.
“Ugh. How much heat did I take on?”
“Hm…?”
Thump.
As Erica’s head tilted to the side, Schlus supported her with his shoulder.
Then he took out a towel and began to wipe Erica’s forehead and neck.
Submitting her body to his touch without a word, Erica suddenly felt a refreshing coolness.
Schlus had brought the cold bottle to her face.
“Ah. It’s cold…”
“Are you okay? Want to go inside?”
“No. I want to stay like this a bit longer.”
With the canopy overhead, it wasn’t too hot right now.
In fact, a gentle breeze blew, making it feel slightly cool.
The problem was Schlus.
If she leaned against this huge body radiating heat in real-time, it was bound to get hotter, yet she didn’t want to move away.
For some reason, she couldn’t fathom why.
She just wanted to stay here.
“You seem to be pushing yourself too hard. Just rest today. We can manage without you.”
“That’s the problem. That’s…”
“What do you mean?”
“You said it’s fine without me. Then why was I brought along?”
“…”
There was no response.
Erica felt a bit irritated.
“When you asked me to come, I was really happy. There are plenty of more helpful people than me, like the Holy Knight Commander who rolled right out from the battlefield. Why was it specifically me… I thought there might be something only I could do. That’s why I followed. Actually, that was an excuse too.”
“…?”
“Yeah. An excuse. I came because I thought this time with you might happen.”
Her head spun too much.
She was spilling out her words without thinking at all.
Before long, Erica couldn’t even tell what she was saying.
She felt the need to stop, but at the same time, she thought she would regret it if she didn’t confess everything now.
“I think I’m too honest, honestly. You really hate girls like this, don’t you?”
“Not at all.”
“Hmph. Thanks for saying even if it’s just empty words. When you and Julia disappeared, I was seriously worried. I told everyone both would come back safe, but I thought at least one of you might be in trouble… I mentally prepared myself for that. But when you kept Julia safe, I was so thankful… I heard everything that happened. You could have returned if you gave up on Julia. But you didn’t give up until the end. You even sacrificed yourself just to send Julian back…”
“Yeah.”
“I’m really, really grateful for that… but… it shouldn’t have gone like that… Can I be a bit more honest?”
As the wind blew, the thin cloth that covered Schlus’s face was swept aside.
Noticing his serious expression, Erica fell silent for a moment.
This was it.
It was now or never for having this conversation with Schlus.
Taking a deep breath, she spoke again.
“I… was actually jealous. Of Julia.”
“…”
“Funny, right? A kid whose very existence is suffering… I’m jealous that she became just a little happier. I’m a really terrible sister, aren’t I?”
“Not at all.”
“Yes, I am. A really bad sister. But you know what? I might like you enough to… yes, maybe that much…”
“…”
She had said it.
Erica couldn’t look up at Schlus and froze instead.
Her vision cleared and her mind sharpened at that moment.
But there was no way to retract what she had already said.
With a trembling body, Erica slowly lifted her head.
“No, I like you, Schlus. I like you. As a person, and as someone of the opposite sex… I like you.”
“…”
Schlus’s empty gaze was fixed on her.
His expression wasn’t one of confusion.
It wasn’t expressing annoyance either.
Faced with Schlus, who merely stared back silently, Erica felt breathless, not knowing what to say.
“Ugh…”
Schlus’s head slowly tilted toward her.
In that moment, his moist-looking lips caught her attention.
He was just slowly leaning in.
Her mind went blank.
Startled, she almost pulled back but found herself halted by the wall behind her.
What if her breath smells bad?
What if her lips were chapped? Those worries flooded her mind.
With so many thoughts racing, Erica failed to come up with a feasible plan and instead just closed her eyes.
As their lips drew nearer, just before they touched—
“Hey. You’re not Schlus, are you?”
“…”
Erica’s hand gripped Schlus’s shoulder.
At that moment, she noticed the slight tremble in his eyes.
By now, her head was clear enough to grasp the situation fully.
This crafty guy might be good at everything, but when it came to women, he was absurdly hopeless.
Most importantly, Schlus already had a fiancée.
Yet suddenly demanding such physical contact? That just didn’t add up.
Naturally, she concluded this wasn’t Schlus.
“Aha! Did I catch you?”
“Jin… Crow Jin was it…”
Erica gritted her teeth, realizing it was Jin’s cheerful voice coming from that handsome face.
Now she understood why Schlus had such an aversion to Jin.
Jin awkwardly smiled, throwing off the cloth around her body and quickly returning to her original form with crimson hair.
“Don’t worry about it. The things you just said? I’ll keep them a secret. Hehe…”
“Ah.”
Jin waved her hand, still grinning.
The moment Erica remembered everything she had just said in front of Jin, her expression stiffened.
Just as Jin casually grabbed the doorknob and turned it—
“Get over here… I’m gonna kill you… I’m gonna kill you!”
“Ahhh! Save me!!!”
A bolt of lightning struck the dry sky over the development area.
*
“Hm…”
Atatürk, wearing glasses, frowned as he looked over the papers.
It was a document summarizing the every move of Schlus Hainkel and his party.
City tours, visits to churches, university visits, etc…
So far, there had been no significant developments to find meaning in.
Which made it all the more worrisome.
What on earth was the purpose of them lingering in the desert with no sign of leaving…?
“Prime Minister. I just returned from a duel with Schlus Hainkel’s escort.”
“Alright. Return to your duties.”
“I have something to report.”
“…?”
Looking up, he saw the escort commander standing before him, breathing heavily.
If the commander was out of breath, it meant he had run quite a distance.
What could be such an urgent matter?
“What is it?”
“About the escort of Schlus Hainkel… Trie von…”
“Edengard Trie von dem Schulzenburg, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct. I closely observed the swordsmanship she employs. I had to ask for rematches several times to avoid any confusion.”
“Okay. Speak.”
“Her swordsmanship is very similar to that of the Majin traveler. No, in fact, it’s exactly the same. It’s clear that at least one of them has taught the other.”
“…”
Atatürk’s mouth slowly opened.
Long ago, during the holy wars, there was a knight who protected the Aias Kingdom until the very end.
Not only was his power immense, but he also wielded a swordsmanship that flowed like water with natural grace.
After a fierce struggle, the human coalition was successful in bringing down the Aias Kingdom, and that knight vanished without a trace, but it was said he had killed thousands of soldiers.
Later, investigations revealed it was highly likely that the knight was the Majin traveler, and Damien had been pursuing the traveler for a long time.
To kill that Majin.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Yes. I guarantee it, having clashed blades myself.”
The escort commander rolled up his sleeves to reveal a large scar.
He had faced that knight directly during the holy wars and received this wound from a devastating loss.
When he sparred with Schlus’s escort, he simulated the same conditions, and his attack pattern matched that encounter perfectly.
The circumstances were so identical; he didn’t even understand what was happening back then.
“It seems we might be able to locate the traveler sooner…”
Atatürk chuckled, tapping his desk.
However, the reason he sought the traveler differed slightly from Duke Damien’s.
He needed to obtain the final piece from him.
The last piece for the ‘Revolution’.
As he pondered how to pry information about the traveler from Trie, Atatürk felt—
“Hm?”
A slight tremor.
Glancing at the escort commander, he noticed the same reaction from him.
The commander rushed to the window and pulled back the curtain to peek outside.
“Is it a sandworm?”
“I’m not sure. The ground here is firm, so sandworms shouldn’t—”
*KABOOM!*
A loud explosion resounded.
The ceiling shook, and dust rained down.
Atatürk suddenly found the large body of the escort commander covering him.
“Hey! Get out of here!”
“Yes…”
Atatürk, covered in dust, staggered as he walked toward the window.
Pulling back the curtain, his eyes widened in shock.
“Wow! Kill them! Kill!”
“Elf traitor! Let’s eliminate Atatürk!”
Elves armed with torches and clubs were pouring into the residence.
At the center stood a familiar face.
Serika Aias.
The princess of the fallen kingdom stood there.
