Because it was too late today, their duel was postponed until tomorrow.
Thanks to that, I was able to prevent the unfortunate incident of having to watch the Crown Prince raise his sword without even having time to recover from his toxin, but I still couldn't laugh because it wasn't like duels had completely disappeared.
I was sitting alone with a blank expression among them, laughing heartily while passing glasses back and forth. Eventually, I couldn't overcome my frustration and quietly left the place.
I sat quietly crouching a little way away, and only then did I feel like I could breathe a little easier.
As I was taking deep breaths to shake off the anxiety that was constantly weighing on my chest, a soft voice seeped into my ear.
“Why are you doing this?”
He was the Crown Prince.
As I looked up at him without saying anything, he let out a short sigh and put his hand inside his jacket.
“If you sit on the bare floor like that, the cold air will rise up and it’s not good.”
He laid a snow-white handkerchief on the grass and had me sit on it, then plopped down next to me.
His eyes, as black as the night sky, followed the knights sitting in groups of three or four, drinking.
“It’s nice to have time like this after such a long time. I haven’t been able to enjoy this kind of leisure time for a while due to the impatience to collect the holy relics as soon as possible.”
And then he smiles faintly, and his appearance is so amazing.
“That’s not good at all.”
When I saw someone who might die tomorrow spouting such sentiments, I couldn't help but blurt out something sharp.
The Crown Prince, who had been widening his eyes in bewilderment, soon burst into a small laugh.
That sight only made me angrier.
“Are you laughing right now? You have to fight a duel tomorrow morning. Your opponent is the Archangel of the Goddess! What kind of person is so fearless? Be alert!”
In the end, unlike me who suddenly lost my temper, the Crown Prince patted my shoulder with a calm expression.
“...What are you doing?”
“I think the Princess is more nervous than I am.”
He smiled slightly and added to me, trying to calm me down.
“There is no need to worry. We are Saints possessed by the Goddess. If it is the Goddess’ will for us, we will surely win.”
"Ha."
I touched my forehead.
“If the Goddess’s will was that clear, there would have been no need for this duel. Lord Danos would have joined us on his own! Since that didn’t work out, why are you talking so calmly when we ended up having to duel?”
Despite my rebuke, the smile on the Crown Prince's lips did not disappear.
“That must also be the goddess’s will.”
“...Ha, really.”
As I let out a deep sigh, the Crown Prince patted my shoulder again.
“Don’t despair so much. You never know. I might be stronger than you think.”
“What is that...”
Of course, the Crown Prince was strong.
If you limit your opponents to humans, there probably won't be anyone you can't beat.
But even so, he is an archangel known as the Sword of the Goddess, so how could he possibly be an opponent?
But the Crown Prince still kept talking nonsense.
“What you know about me may only be a very small part of me.”
I was so scared that I lost my mind.
Thinking about it like that, my worries doubled and I just sighed deeply, but the Crown Prince slowly got up.
“So, don’t worry about useless things and go inside and get some sleep. Wasn’t the journey here quite tiring?”
Then he said, “I should go home early and get some rest for tomorrow,” and headed to the tent.
I couldn't help but exclaim "Huh" at the sight of his back, which didn't seem to have even the slightest hint of worry.
“This is really fast. Am I the one going to fight?”
I couldn't understand why I was the only one who was having a hard time while the world was at peace, the one who had to risk his life.
I watched his back as he walked away and laughed hysterically.
Thanks to that, I was able to prevent the unfortunate incident of having to watch the Crown Prince raise his sword without even having time to recover from his toxin, but I still couldn't laugh because it wasn't like duels had completely disappeared.
I was sitting alone with a blank expression among them, laughing heartily while passing glasses back and forth. Eventually, I couldn't overcome my frustration and quietly left the place.
I sat quietly crouching a little way away, and only then did I feel like I could breathe a little easier.
As I was taking deep breaths to shake off the anxiety that was constantly weighing on my chest, a soft voice seeped into my ear.
“Why are you doing this?”
He was the Crown Prince.
As I looked up at him without saying anything, he let out a short sigh and put his hand inside his jacket.
“If you sit on the bare floor like that, the cold air will rise up and it’s not good.”
He laid a snow-white handkerchief on the grass and had me sit on it, then plopped down next to me.
His eyes, as black as the night sky, followed the knights sitting in groups of three or four, drinking.
“It’s nice to have time like this after such a long time. I haven’t been able to enjoy this kind of leisure time for a while due to the impatience to collect the holy relics as soon as possible.”
And then he smiles faintly, and his appearance is so amazing.
“That’s not good at all.”
When I saw someone who might die tomorrow spouting such sentiments, I couldn't help but blurt out something sharp.
The Crown Prince, who had been widening his eyes in bewilderment, soon burst into a small laugh.
That sight only made me angrier.
“Are you laughing right now? You have to fight a duel tomorrow morning. Your opponent is the Archangel of the Goddess! What kind of person is so fearless? Be alert!”
In the end, unlike me who suddenly lost my temper, the Crown Prince patted my shoulder with a calm expression.
“...What are you doing?”
“I think the Princess is more nervous than I am.”
He smiled slightly and added to me, trying to calm me down.
“There is no need to worry. We are Saints possessed by the Goddess. If it is the Goddess’ will for us, we will surely win.”
"Ha."
I touched my forehead.
“If the Goddess’s will was that clear, there would have been no need for this duel. Lord Danos would have joined us on his own! Since that didn’t work out, why are you talking so calmly when we ended up having to duel?”
Despite my rebuke, the smile on the Crown Prince's lips did not disappear.
“That must also be the goddess’s will.”
“...Ha, really.”
As I let out a deep sigh, the Crown Prince patted my shoulder again.
“Don’t despair so much. You never know. I might be stronger than you think.”
“What is that...”
Of course, the Crown Prince was strong.
If you limit your opponents to humans, there probably won't be anyone you can't beat.
But even so, he is an archangel known as the Sword of the Goddess, so how could he possibly be an opponent?
But the Crown Prince still kept talking nonsense.
“What you know about me may only be a very small part of me.”
I was so scared that I lost my mind.
Thinking about it like that, my worries doubled and I just sighed deeply, but the Crown Prince slowly got up.
“So, don’t worry about useless things and go inside and get some sleep. Wasn’t the journey here quite tiring?”
Then he said, “I should go home early and get some rest for tomorrow,” and headed to the tent.
I couldn't help but exclaim "Huh" at the sight of his back, which didn't seem to have even the slightest hint of worry.
“This is really fast. Am I the one going to fight?”
I couldn't understand why I was the only one who was having a hard time while the world was at peace, the one who had to risk his life.
I watched his back as he walked away and laughed hysterically.
“What are you doing here alone? Are you uncomfortable with the seat?”
It was Bayen.
“No, that’s not it...”
As I shook my head with a worried expression, he walked forward gracefully, closing the distance between us a little.
“Then. Are you worried about the Crown Prince?”
“Yeah, well. What kind of person can be so calm...”
I grumbled towards the Crown Prince's tent in the distance and asked Bayen cautiously.
“But can he really die? Even so, he is a Saint appointed by the goddess, so he wouldn’t really be killed, right?”
When I asked with a voice full of anxiety, Bayen burst into laughter.
“I guess the life of the Crown Prince is more important to you than not being able to borrow Danos’ power.”
“What kind of obvious thing is that... It’s not like you can’t stand up to Ibis without a single relic, but you only have one life.”
Since you are a being that lives forever, do you not understand the human heart that desperately longs for life?
As I was looking at him with astonished eyes, Bayen turned his gaze straight ahead and opened his mouth.
“Don’t worry. Even though Danos is a hot-tempered person and easily excited, he is not thoughtless. He would not carelessly take the life of an adult.”
“But who knows what will happen in the future? If he gets too absorbed in the duel, he might end up seeing it before he knows it... Ah!”
As I was mumbling, unable to shake off my anxiety despite Bayen's words, a thought suddenly occurred to me and I quickly turned my head.
“Is there any way Your Excellency could help me?”
"I?"
He looked embarrassed for a moment and then made a troubled expression.
“I’m sorry, Princess, but duels are one-on-one. No matter how much of a country you are, you cannot interfere with the test of the holy relic.”
“Of course, I know. What I meant was, if the duel doesn’t end even though the odds are against you, if there comes a time when Your Excellency’s life is in danger, would you be able to help me then?”
Despite my words, the embarrassment on Bayen's face did not go away.
Because that too was an intervention into the inherent authority of the holy relic.
I grabbed Bayen's hand and spoke earnestly.
“I really don’t want much. Just let me live. It would be a shame to end my life in my 20s.”
Bayen's expression became strange at my almost pleading voice.
“You risked your life so carelessly.”
"Yes?"
“When you took the test of Adam. I clearly warned you then. You could be injured or even lose your life. But you insisted on taking the test. But now you are filled with fear. Now that the Crown Prince is risking his life.”
For a moment, my body froze.
It was just as he said.
At that time, even after hearing Bayen's stern warning, I boldly decided to take the test.
Of course, whether I failed the test of the holy relic or failed the verification of the Saintess, I would still die, so I took a gamble to make it a little easier, but it was true that I was more scared now than when my life was on the line.
The current situation is such that the Crown Prince may die.
'Why? No matter how much you love each other, in the end, you're just strangers.'
Why do I feel like the Crown Prince's life is more important than my own?
I was worried, but then I shook my head.
Now was not the time to be lost in such distracting thoughts.
“Well, things are different now than they were back then. I was a life-or-death person, one way or another.”
He nodded with a faint smile as I tried to make an excuse.
“Yes, that’s right. I will at least prevent the Crown Prince’s neck from falling off.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes. Because I owe you something.”
“Debt... is that because of my mother’s death?”
Bayen did not answer.
But no fool could fail to notice that his silence was an affirmation.
I sympathized with his silence for a moment, then soon burst into a big smile.
“Hey, why is that the Marquis’s debt? The Marquis had nothing to do with my mother’s death. It seems like you feel guilty for not being able to protect my mother, who was a candidate for sainthood. You don’t have to. Don’t worry about it.”
I tried to comfort him by reaching out my hand, but he still didn't say anything.
He just gave a bitter smile.
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