Chapter 97
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 97
Chapter Title: The Ring of Promise (6)
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“Ah, and the Silver Guard Knight told me the Silver Moon Knight Order pays really well. If you tough it out for a few years, you could basically live off that for life without ever working again.”
Wedin wiped the stern expression he'd had while scolding me clean off his face and spoke with bright anticipation.
That seemed to be part of what had solidified his resolve.
No, isn't that actually a pretty big part of it...? It left me feeling a bit deflated somehow.
“...I was going to say thanks.”
“Then say it.”
Wedin demanded it boldly in a forceful tone.
I let out a sigh and pulled the gift I'd prepared for him out of my pocket.
“Here... I got this ready thinking you'd be heading back to Prion.”
The fist-sized box was wrapped in crinkly paper with a clumsy ribbon tied around it.
Wedin took it with a puzzled look on his face.
“What's this?”
“Even though things turned out this way, it'll still be useful, so take it. As... a thank you.”
Ugh. Saying it out loud is harder than I thought.
Wedin roughly tore off the wrapping I'd painstakingly done and pulled out a necklace with a small, transparent bead from the box.
The bead was about the size of a finger joint. The top had delicate glasswork and was securely attached to a leather cord.
Wedin peered closely at the necklace, then his eyes widened.
“Wait, don't tell me this is...”
“What do you think it is?”
I asked with a smile. He'd probably seen one before, so he might recognize it.
“A Melgram?”
Wedin nailed it right away. I nodded. Yeah.
“For real? Isn't this, uh, super expensive?”
“Hold on, is it really a Melgram? Let me see.”
Shuren snatched the necklace in surprise.
While the two of them crowded around examining it, I cleared my throat with a ahem.
“I made it myself. It just so happened we were at a dragon vein site, and there was some good acronium around...”
Melgrams, which detect magical beasts or demons within a certain range, were tricky to make, so even knight orders only issued them to essential personnel.
I'd gotten one from Dad when I was little and it had given me some peace of mind, so I wanted it to help Wedin too. Now that things had turned out like this, it'd be even more useful.
“That's incredible. Oh, Lib made this one too.”
Clemence proudly showed everyone the glass orb she'd been holding.
“Whoa...”
As everyone let out admiring gasps at the brightly glowing orb, she looked a little embarrassed.
Wedin especially hmmed thoughtfully, eyeing Clemence's orb and his own Melgram intently before muttering under his breath.
“This could fetch a nice price...”
“What was that just now?”
I must not have misheard.
When I asked, Wedin brazenly hung the Melgram around his neck as if he hadn't said a word.
“Anyway, I'll gladly take it. It'll come in handy in all sorts of ways.”
Something about that “all sorts of ways” felt off to me...
Night was deepening.
Wedin suddenly started whining that his whole body ached and hurt, so we decided to head back to our rooms.
Soon after, Grain came by Wedin's room. He'd expected Wedin to be a mess and trusted us to sort out our issues.
After finishing the treatment, Grain left the room with a lighter expression, telling us not to stay up too late.
But we ended up pulling an all-nighter anyway, chatting about all sorts of random things under the excuse of nursing Wedin.
It was far too short a night to make up for the time we'd missed together these past few days and the time we'd be apart going forward.
Time flew by, and the day the delegation was set to return to Prion drew just one day closer.
The White Guard Knight politely declined the palace's offer to host a farewell party and instead held a modest one in the Prius branch's banquet hall.
It was a simple affair, mostly Prius knights, with some kingdom knights from the Royal Order and nobles who'd helped the delegation invited as well.
There were also some special guests.
Duke Lesis and the Duchess. They were still under house arrest, but they'd been granted special permission to go out this once.
The moment the two entered the banquet hall, people who recognized them started buzzing.
Clemence ignored it and led her parents to the White Guard Knight waiting in the VIP room. They spent a while chatting over tea.
“The house arrest will be lifted soon.”
Clemence, who'd returned from seeing her parents off, sighed softly as she plopped down at an empty table looking exhausted. I brought her a cup of hot tea.
“So what happens next?”
“The nobles will support Father even more than before. Prince Raymond, who's basically his only real rival, will be coming to Prion to study once this all wraps up.”
“Ack...”
I choked on my tea in surprise and coughed a few times.
Kalia, standing behind Clemence, quietly offered me a handkerchief, but I said I was fine and pulled out my own from my pocket. I'd been making a point to carry it lately.
“Prince Raymond's studying in Prion?”
“Yeah...”
Clemence glanced at the White Guard Knight with a complicated expression.
He was talking with Duke Lesis near the window, both of them looking quite serious.
“Grandpa suggested it. The nobles wanted to exile Prince Raymond, but the king opposed it since he's his only son.
Grandpa must have been worried that if the prince got banished, there'd be no one left to check Father at all.”
“So, study abroad? What are they even going to teach him?”
“He said he'd discuss it with the Blue Guard Knight. The prince doesn't like other races much, so he probably won't have an easy time in Prion.”
It won't be easy for Prion's people either.
I let out a groan.
I didn't know Prince Raymond well, but remaking him would be incredibly tough for the White Guard Knight and Dad.
“From your father's perspective, it actually worked out well in the end.”
“Mm...”
I thought she'd agree right away, but surprisingly, she just took a sip of tea and fell into thought.
I waited patiently for her answer.
“I thought so too at first, but Father seems to have realized something else.”
“Something else?”
“He saw the nobles who'd followed Prince Raymond and the court mage commander switch sides the instant things looked bad. Can't blame him for feeling mixed about it.”
I recalled Duke Lesis at the trial. Had he looked shocked?
“Father said he'd build his support more carefully and slowly from now on. And he won't weaponize his bloodline anymore. Grandpa told him to work on making the Lesion Kingdom a better place too.”
“Ah, then it really did work out well.”
I smiled in relief.
The White Guard Knight, who'd come as part of the delegation, seemed to have some of his own pent-up feelings eased too.
“The road ahead is still long, but yeah. It is for the best right now.
Oh, and get this. When I said I wanted to be a diplomat, Grandpa was thrilled and said he'd help me all he could.”
Clemence beamed as she said it. Then, as if remembering something funny, her face lit up with amusement.
“But Father was totally against it and told me to think it over. Said stuff like that isn't fun. Guess he really hates my nagging.”
“You'd be great at it.”
Clemence and I burst out laughing at the same time.
I had no doubt she'd make an excellent diplomat. The White Guard Knight would support her fully, and Duke Lesis wouldn't dismiss his daughter.
“What fun conversation are you two having?”
A noblewoman appeared at our table, her fan covering half her face.
I didn't need to see her face. It was Clemence's mother, the Duchess Lesis, with her maid Etna behind her.
The duchess was dressed in the same flashy gown as when we'd first met in Beldaire.
Her posture—head slightly raised, fan hiding her mouth as she looked down at us—was the same too, but her eyes were completely different.
“Ah, Mother...”
“Hello, Madam.”
I greeted her with a slight bow, a bit tense.
The duchess stared down at me silently. Her gaze stung my face.
Did I do something wrong?
Clemence dropped her smile, looking tense as she glanced between me and her mother.
“It might be a bit premature still, but...”
The duchess murmured something cryptic and folded her fan.
The face revealed behind it wore a gentle smile I'd never seen before.
“The Eldrian family would make fine in-laws, wouldn't it?”
“Pardon...?”
What is she talking about?
The duchess let out a soft fu fu laugh and looked at me with strangely warm eyes.
“Young Eldrian, do you have a fiancée already? If not, I'll formally inquire with the Blue Guard Knight. Considering our kingdom's future relations with Prius, it would be ideal if our houses were joined by...”
“Mother!”
Clemence let out a shout so loud it startled everyone nearby.
She shot to her feet, her face beet red like she was about to explode.
“Stop it! That's not what I meant at all...!”
“Not what you meant? Back home, you're always talking about this boy and...”
“Stop!”
Clemence let out a childish shriek, and the duchess's eyes widened in surprise.
She grabbed the duchess—who'd spoken so rudely—with a fierce intensity.
“S-sorry, Lib. We'll talk later. Pretend you didn't hear any of that.”
Face flaming, Clemence couldn't even look me in the eye as she spat it out super fast, then dragged her mother away in a hurry.
I didn't even see where Clemence went. My own face was burning so hot I had my head bowed, hiding it.
My robe's deep hood fell forward naturally to cover my face. It took a while for my pounding heart to calm.
Fiancée? With Clemence? No, no... Stop thinking about it.
I took deep breaths and forced my mind elsewhere.
Like how to quantify the dragon vein's natural mana flow's effect on the barrier.
Once quantified, it could be adjusted via spell formula, making it way easier for resident mages to manage.
To do that, I'd need to observe and analyze how the dragon vein's mana moves. In cases like this, the Contact Method of Mana describes...
“Lib? What was all that commotion?”
“...slightly adapting the observation and recording spell and installing it inside the dragon vein.”
I was muttering to myself with my hood still up over my face.
Shuren was looking down at me with a puzzled expression.