Chapter 199

Far from the succession ceremony venue, on the roof of the grand mansion. In a blind spot invisible even to the eyes of knights who had reached the level of superhumans, I and Luri in a pink dress appeared.

“Wow!”

I supported Luri, who staggered with her pink eyes wide in surprise.

“Be careful.”

“You surprised me!”

“Then why were you hiding under the table?”

“Hehe.”

Luri, who had been on a forced march preparing for the succession ceremony, needed a rest. At least, that’s how I judged it.

However, as if a seal had been broken, Luri looked at me with sparkling eyes.

“It must be nice to be you, Martin! You can just use this whenever you want to skip class!”

“Anyone hearing that would think I actually skip class.”

“Heehee! It is skipping! I’ll get in trouble if Dad catches me.”

“Shall I take you back down?”

“No! I don’t want to!”

Luri spun around on the roof of the grand mansion. The innocent girl’s dress rotated, showing off its beauty like a blooming tulip.

“I like it here! Just the two of us with Martin!”

Luri didn’t want the public’s attention.

“Do you know how long it’s been since we were alone like this?”

With no one around. Not even a common servant, just the two of them. Two living, beating hearts existed in one space.

Below the roof, the vast mansion and the splendid succession ceremony could be seen. Countless people were gathered. The orchestra music undulated through the air, playing and rising up to ring in our ears.

We only saw each other, as if we were in a separate space. Alone with Luri. She was right. It really had been a long time.

“Aah, really. Even when I go to the café, there are more days when Martin isn’t there.”

For me, it was just another event.

“Even if I want to see you while I’m working, I know you’re busy so I can’t just go and find you.”

How big of an event it must be for Luri.

“Seeing you at the café and the academy isn’t enough, really!”

Actually, I knew it well.

“Cadet Luri, no.”

“Huh?”

The song ended. And, a new song began.

Following the melody of the orchestra, I raised my hand with the utmost courtesy of a nobleman, as if I were a gentleman by birth.

“Lady, would you care to dance a song with me?”

“Ah…!”

Luri’s cheeks flushed red. Her eyes preheated, glowing hotly like heated metal.

She was the very picture of a ‘girl in love.’ With a finely trembling hand, Luri covered my hand.

“Yes, Gentleman…”

I lightly supported Luri’s slender waist. Luri also placed her hand on my broad back. We began to dance, matching our steps.

On the roof of the towering mansion, without anyone watching, just the two of us.

The tempo of the orchestra was slow. Instead, it was a warm harmony that reminded one of a spring park.

I looked down at Luri. Luri was also looking at me. Flushed red like a ripe tomato, her eyes seemed happy, yet they were filled with a film of moisture as if she were about to cry.

She was so happy, joyful, and it felt good. …But she also knew I wasn’t the type of person to do this. It was probably because of the foreboding of what would come after.

“…”

“…”

We danced in silence, matching our steps. Even though it wasn’t passionate, our bodies grew warm from the dedicated movements, and a cool winter wind blew, cooling us down.

My resolve hardened.

“Cadet Luri.”

I was about to commit a terrible act once again.

“Yes? No, u-uh?”

If this world was real. I was doing a terrible thing to two girls. Luri and Adela.

“…Do you remember?”

“What…?”

“At the bank the other day.”

Luri had definitely asked me to ‘go out’ with her then. This was the answer to that question.

“…Yes, I remember.”

“Actually, this isn’t the first time, is it? You’ve asked me several times before, Cadet Luri.”

“…Yes.”

Luri was excited on one hand, but she lacked energy on the other. …She knew it too. What kind of answer would come? What choice would I make?

“I…”

“I know.”

We danced. Tears flowed from Luri’s two eyes.

“I know, Martin. That you like Lilac.”

“…”

“So you can’t go out with me.”

“…”

“Heh…, I’m not a fool. How could I not know?”

“…”

Of course, she must have known. We were just pretending not to know.

Luri had been expressing her love for me for a long time.

The Star Child was worried that my rejection would hurt Luri greatly.

Arnold was also worried, but he respected Luri and even permitted the marriage.

The problem was that I had Lilac.

The end of this one-sided love should have come much sooner.

“I’m sorry…”

“No, it’s okay.”

“…”

We continued to dance. Looking at each other. We had dragged this on for far too long. It shouldn’t have been like this. Had I driven a nail into Luri’s heart?

“Hey, Martin. Why are you so gloomy?”

“Pardon?”

“Shouldn’t I be the one making that face?”

Is that so. Is that how my expression looks? On the other hand, Luri… was smiling as always.

“That’s…”

“Aren’t you underestimating me too much?”

Luri grinned.

“Do you think I approached you without knowing anything? Of course, I knew you liked Lilac! For sure, since I’ve heard these words. Yeah… it’s not like it doesn’t hurt. I’ll be careful in front of Lilac too.”

“…”

“But you know. Have you ever thought about why I keep loving you even though I know that?”

Have I ever thought about it…

Luri’s eyes looked straight at me.

“Martin. I can’t give up on you.”

This was something. It had been a long time since I heard the informal ‘you.’

“Anyone hearing this would think you’re already married to Lilac! You’re not even dating Lilac yet, right?”

“No.”

“When Lilac isn’t around, it’ll be the same! No, I’ll come on even stronger than before! Be prepared! You can call me selfish, but I can’t help it! I can’t yield on this!”

Luri smiled confidently.

“But, that…”

Won’t you be in pain? Before I could even say that, Luri cut me off.

“Aren’t you looking down on a girl’s heart too much?”

So to speak, a ‘what are you going to do about it’ way of talking. She was as bold as if she had put on a thick plate of steel.

“I love you. I can’t even stop that feeling myself, so what right do you have to try and stop it?”

“…”

The song ended. We let go of each other and stood slightly apart. Luri turned her back.

“You go first. I can get down on my own…”

“…”

Having no discretion to do anything more here, I eventually came down, leaving Luri alone.

***

“Haa.”

I lay down on the bed. Until the moment the succession ceremony ended, I had been anxious as if sitting on a bed of thorns.

Luri had performed her role as if nothing had happened, and I… had run away as soon as the festival ended.

- Wild Instinct (Master) is indignant with you. Are you even human?

“Ah, just shut up. My head is a mess too.”

Still, I felt relieved. It was something I had to say. I couldn’t ignore it forever.

…Though I never imagined she would come out so boldly.

“…I want to rest.”

I couldn’t. It would soon get dark. Then… I had to go to the Imperial Palace.

Today was the day Adela would go to see the Emperor. Since she, who hated the Emperor, had used the word ‘gravely ill’ and said she would ‘meet’ him, it was possible that the Emperor’s life was truly coming to an end.

‘It’s faster than the original work…’

The Emperor had never been in good health. The fact that various events had happened earlier than in the original work and had drained his mental strength might have been the cause. This was not good. This was not a light matter.

It was a big deal even if the king of a small country died, so it was certain that the continent would be plunged into grief at the news of the passing of the emperor of the Imperium Empire, who led the continent.

I didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if the continent, already pushed to its limits by the successive attacks of the Demon Lords, received more bad news.

‘If I find the Star Maiden, can she extend his lifespan?’

The need for the Star Maiden became even more desperate. It couldn’t be a direct reason for joining hands with Principal Lukfels and raiding the Humanity Preservation Agency, but for some reason, I had come to hope for it.

‘Let’s put that thought aside for now.’

I got up and went into the bathroom. After washing my body clean in the warm bathwater Lilac had prepared, I put on the formal uniform I had thrown off.

A deep green uniform and robe. The emblem of the hound, symbolizing the Ulvhadin, was brilliant.

‘Let’s go.’

After using Blink several times in a row, I was able to reach the sewers. As if it were natural, a golden carriage greeted me.

I didn't know where the Shadow Knights had gone, but the Golden Sand Knights, risen by the power of the Golden Princess, were escorting the carriage.

‘I don’t feel the presence of the Shadow Knights.’

It was supposed to be the symbol of Adela’s final and greatest power. Even if they had gone to handle another mission under the Princess' command, the fact that all of them had disappeared bothered me.

“What are you doing outside? Come in.”

On the way to the front of the golden carriage, I saw the commander of the Golden Sand Knights sitting in the driver’s seat.

The old knight, Harris. I didn’t know what he was like in life, but the him that Adela had raised was well-built and looked to be over 2 meters tall.

Belatedly, I saw that the horses pulling the carriage were also horses raised by the power of the Golden Sand.

‘Amazing.’

Seeing her maintain such a level of power constantly, it would not be an exaggeration to say that she had now mastered handling the Desert Hierophant.

“Excuse me.”

When I opened the carriage door, I saw Adela. She, with one leg crossed, was still beautiful in her golden dress and golden veil.

“Welcome.”

Adela’s hair was softer and shinier than the dress made of golden thread, and her eyes, visible through the veil, sparkled more than any jewel.

As I took my seat, the horses raised by her power began to run, and the golden carriage started to race through the sewers.

“…”

“…”

We were silent. Actually, it wasn’t that I had nothing I wanted to say. I was going to ask for help in the search for the Star Maiden…

‘Looking at her expression, I don’t think I can.’

Adela’s eyes were sunken. The gold, smeared with love and hate, was dizzying like a deadly poison.

“…Princess Adela, why… did you ask me to come with you?”

So I was curious. Why did she ask me, of all people, to accompany her.

“Just because.”

Silence followed. My chest felt tight.

It would have been less suffocating if she had just said something like her usual, ‘How dare you ask a question? Hound, when your master speaks, just bark, roll over, or show your belly as you’re told.’…

“…”

“…”

Rather than offering empty words of comfort, it would be more helpful to just stay quietly in front of her.

“…”

“…”

After a suffocating time, the carriage arrived at the Imperial Palace. It was quiet outside.

‘This is unfamiliar.’

Was it because every time I came to the Imperial Palace, there was always some banquet, some tournament… it was always noisy and boisterous?

As I waited, the old knight Harris, who had been in the driver’s seat, opened the door for me. I got out silently and extended my hand inside.

“Princess Adela.”

“…Thank you.”

Adela, who took the offered hand with dazed eyes. At this point, I started to worry that she might fall, wondering if she was really okay. …No, there was no way she was okay.

“We pay our respects to the great descendant of gold, Her Highness Princess Adela, and the Guardian of the World Tree, Sir Martin.”

The guard knights at the entrance of the Imperial Palace saluted.

“You cannot enter inside with weapons.”

Knowing that, I had put my weapons in a magic pouch beforehand. Even if they called it disrespectful later, it was better than being caught off guard and unable to do anything in case of an unforeseen incident.

As Adela nodded, the Desert Hierophant floating above her head lost its light. The Golden Sand Knights disappeared like a mirage.

Simultaneously, the huge gate in front split to the left and right and opened.

“Hmm?”

“Ah.”

Adela frowned. It was because of the person who had just come out from inside.

“Is that you, Adela?”

“Kazaks.”

He was standing alone, without Muller or Shuga.

“…”

Kazaks was about to say something, but he just passed by. His retreating back looked lonelier than usual.

“Let’s go.”

Adela’s back was no different. I followed her into the depths of the Imperial Palace.