"Haha, you really have a knack for taming wild beasts. I can rest assured about the escort."
Wagen's voice sounded strangely excited. I didn't understand what a bodyguard had to do with taming wild beasts, so I just gave an awkward smile and started thinking of how to slowly slip away.
"Ah, I am a little worried that you might end up handling Sir Oscar just as well as you handled Rood. Princess, please, I beg you, go easy on him with the training."
"Why don't you just die right now?"
...Aren’t you guys busy?
***
"I thought you were dead, but you're alive."
A languid yet strangely sharp voice filled the silent office. And in time with the scratching sound of a fountain pen scraping paper, the white shirt wrapped around the elegant, sculpted body of the handsome man was repeatedly pulled taut and loosened.
"Damn it... Are you sending me to the afterlife just because I was away for 30 minutes?"
The atmosphere was chilling enough to make anyone flinch. However, Wagen smiled faintly and continued speaking, as if he were actually accustomed to Thierry's sarcastic behavior the moment he appeared.
"Then, does that mean my companion for the journey to the afterlife will be a Princess?"
Thierry did not react at all to Wagen, who was speaking casually with the usual respectful demeanor nowhere to be seen. Instead, at the sly remarks that followed, he belatedly and slowly lifted his gaze, which had been fixed on the documents the entire time, regardless of whether Wagen came closer.
As a chill seeped into his red eyes, Wagen immediately raised both palms, as if trying to tame a wild beast.
"What's wrong with you? I only met her because of a task Your Majesty ordered."
Thierry dropped the documents he was holding and leaned back against the chair.
"All I ordered was the escort."
"Ah. Just then, Oscar, who was supposed to receive the instructions, was with the Princess."
"...What?"
Wagen picked up the documents Thierry had put down, speaking as if it were no big deal.
"It looks like they met by chance. It wasn't just Oscar, but Rood was there too. They were even lying down comfortably as if it were their own home."
"You mean the two of them were lying down?"
Thierry's face slowly hardened. His voice, lowered to a chilling degree, rang out huskyly as if scraping the inside of his throat.
After checking the documents, Wagen tidied them up to one side and covered his mouth with one hand. It was to hide the corners of his mouth that pouted, contrasting with the serious words he was spitting out while furrowing his brows.
"Hmm, I think the two of them know each other."
“Do you know each other...?”
"They looked so close. It was to the point where I wondered if such a comfortable atmosphere was even possible; it even made me think they might have been a married couple in a past life."
“What? A couple?”
Wagen, who had been gazing intently at Thierry as he kept asking back in disbelief, gave a slight smile.
"Of course, I mean with Rood."
Srrrng, a chilling sound rang out from the sword sheath leaning against the desk.
"...!"
Wagen recoiled in fear at Thierry's demeanor, which looked as if he were about to swing his sword at any moment, and raised both palms once again.
"Sorry."
"You must be free?"
"I'm so busy I don't even have time to sleep."
A sigh was caught at the end of Wagen's reply as he stepped back. Thierry stared at him intently, then lowered his sword as if tossing it down.
"You won't die from not sleeping for a few years."
"Even an elf would die from that."
"Then sleep and die."
"...Come to think of it, I think I'm still okay."
Thierry slowly raised one corner of his mouth in a look of contempt and picked up the documents he had been looking at again. Wagen, who had been sighing again while watching him, finally asked in a low voice.
"Why are you so concerned about that Princess?"
"It's just annoying."
"Because she's similar to your girl?"
"Shut up."
In an instant, an immense sense of intimidation poured out from Thierry. Although his body flinched at the cold glint in his eyes, Wagen endured the intensity and cast a suspicious gaze.
"...You'd better be clear about your course. Don't do anything you'll regret later."
"The only thing I regret is leaving Lari alone. If you have time, go take care of this."
At Thierry's attitude of changing the subject by tossing a bundle of documents onto the desk as if he didn't want to talk about it anymore, Wagen raised his eyebrows as if to say, "Do as you please."
"Ah—the slum fire?"
Wagen rummaged through the documents he had been handed, then narrowed his eyebrows in suspicion.
"This was already suspicious enough, so I decided to go check it out myself. I could tell because of the scale of the fire; otherwise, I wouldn't have known if there was a fire at all given the location. Besides, twelve people burned to death, yet every single one of them has severe injuries on their bodies other than burns? Something smells fishy."
"So go and find out for yourself before you die."
"Hmm... I get it. Come to think of it, Duke Joubert was insisting that we must select an Empress right away in the midst of this, wasn't he? He brilliantly linked this fire incident with the vacancy of the Empress's seat. I mean, he claims the country will only be stable once we have a mistress. Haha, what a man with such consistently transparent motives."
"Tsk, should I just cut him down?"
"Bear with him for now. He's simple, so he's easy to handle. I saw he was secretly gathering nobles to take his side again, so I should eavesdrop on what he's chattering about."
Wagen smiled brightly as if he were extremely satisfied. His sparkling, gracefully curving blue eyes turned toward the separated documents on one side of the desk.
"That's a document that has been reviewed, right? I'm taking it."
"...But did you actually figure something out?"
“Huh? What?”
"..."
"Ah—Princess?"
Wagen's sly smile was reflected in Thierry's blood-red eyes as he stared intently at Wagen, almost glaring at him.
"Haha, I was clueless. I didn't understand it right away. Look, Your Majesty. Could you please put down your sword?"
"Say it."
"No, just. I discovered a strange coincidence..."
"Don't break it up, say it all at once."
"I get it, so put that sword away. It's nothing serious, but remember I mentioned before that I faintly sensed some twisted magical energy."
Wagen, who had once gone near the Kingdom of Ashtad to investigate while trying to pinpoint a country suspected of having a connection with the elves, began to speak while bringing up that incident.
"Back then, the energy wasn't as strong as the day I first met her, so it was vague, but just in case, I checked and found out that day was also the day Princess Elisha opened her eyes."
"The twisted energy of magic felt on the day she woke up..."
Wagen raised the corners of his mouth strangely at the sight of Thierry, who was lost in thought with a serious expression.
"How about that? It's a fascinating coincidence, isn't it?"
***
Because I had spent most of my time lying on the grass with Rood, using it as a carpet, I felt weary from early evening after soaking in the bathtub as soon as I returned to the East Palace. I lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, and slowly closed and opened my eyes.
'Should I just skip dinner and go to bed early?'
The walk itself was fine, but I felt more tired because I met unexpected people.
I wondered what on earth the point of all those sloppy conversations was in front of a foreign Princess. The more I thought about it, the more childish it seemed, making me wonder if they were trying to lull me into a false sense of security.
'...Huh? Is that really the case?'
Getting a personal bodyguard on me all of a sudden basically means they intend to monitor me openly.
Gasp. Are you trying to blackmail Ashtad by exploiting my weakness? Is this some grand scheme to make yourself look like an easy target by bickering in front of me for no reason?!
'...Sigh. No.'
Maybe it's just a warning to stay quiet and not do anything that annoys Thierry. Yeah, that seems to make more sense.
As thoughts kept swirling in my head, I came to the conclusion that, regardless of the intention, everything was bad for me.
"Ugh—why does it feel like things are getting more and more complicated?"
Although it had not been many days since I arrived in Podia, strange things kept happening that contradicted my goal of living quietly, so I naturally began to worry.
This won't do. Even though it's stifling, I'd better not go outside for the time being. If I stay in my room, I won't really run into my personal bodyguards anyway...
Ah. I don't know.
I was lost in thought and running, and my eyes gradually closed. As the view outside the window turned crimson, shadows grew longer inside the room as well.
Knock knock.
"Oh."
I flinched and opened my eyes at the sudden sound of a knock.
"Princess, may I come in?"
"...Come in."
I was about to fall into a deep sleep. Lying down, I secretly swallowed a yawn and looked at Marie as she entered the room.
"I apologize for interrupting you while you are resting. The reason I am writing is that His Majesty has invited you to a formal banquet."
“When?”
“It’s dinner tonight.”
"Ah, so it's this evening. Huh? Today?!"
It was a sound that woke me up instantly. I opened my eyes wide and hurriedly sat up.
"Yes. He said to meet in the main palace's formal dining room in 30 minutes."
Thirty minutes from now? They really let me know quickly. I had vaguely thought that we would have a meal together someday, but to think it’s today! Just thinking about it made me desperately crave an antacid.
'...Wouldn't it be embarrassing?'
I staggered to my feet and looked at Marie, who was bringing the dress, with blurry eyes.
Ugh. I really hate this. I wonder how much more nerve-wracking it will be to talk again.
Hoping that he wouldn't find any fault with me today, and driven solely by the determination not to give him even the slightest pretext, I finished my preparations at the speed of light and headed to the main palace.
"You came quickly."
Sure enough, as soon as I arrived at the main dining room, I heard the sound of the nerve-wracking situation starting. The appointed time hadn't even arrived yet, so I wondered why he was already there so early.
I smiled awkwardly, spread out the hem of my skirt slightly, and greeted.
"Your Majesty, thank you for inviting me to the formal dinner."
Thierry was leaning lazily against the end of the long table. Resting his chin on the armrest and staring intently at me, he gestured toward the nearest seat on the left as if telling me to sit down.
I swallowed dryly as I walked, then stopped briefly in front of a chair.
'...Oh my god.'
I wonder how his attire is getting more and more lax day by day. Was the level of showing cleavage last time just the tip of the iceberg?
Today, Thierry had his black shirt buttons undone down to his sternum.
At this rate, even his lower belly will be visible.
It’s not like I’ve never seen a male body in my entire past life, and I’m not particularly conservative, but...
Strangely enough, even looking at Thierry's body while he was clothed, I felt somewhat embarrassed.
Beneath the broad shoulders, the distinct grooves of the tightly packed pectorals and abdominal muscles were clearly visible. The strange thing was that despite his massive frame and muscles, his body lines looked delicate and sleek.
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