Chapter 77
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: The Emperor's Gift Boat
After emptying the bottle completely, Lexion asked Cardin, who had finally been released.
"So, how was it?"
"Uh, yeah. It was pretty tasty? Tasted like lemonade."
Cardin smacked his lips as he spoke.
"Not the taste—the effect."
"Hmm... My head feels all spun around..."
"37 times 9?"
"333."
"Indeed, you've gotten smarter. Our hypothesis seems to be correct."
Lexion concluded firmly.
But even after confirming the hypothesis, the problems remained.
How had Ellensia obtained this potion? Why did Estellion resonate from it?
At this point, though, no one was there to provide answers to those questions.
'It's frustrating.'
In truth, Philomel hadn't been sitting idle all this time either.
On Debutante Day, upon seeing Ellensia with a middle name different from the book, she had formed a hypothesis.
'The soul of the current Ellensia might be different from the one in the book.'
The first thing that came to mind was evil spirit possession.
Philomel had obtained holy water actually used by priests for exorcisms.
And when she was invited to dine with the Emperor and Ellensia again...
"Ah, it's cold!"
She had secretly sprinkled some of the holy water from her glass onto the back of Ellensia's head.
That was the prescribed exorcism ritual.
She had wanted Emily to do it, but figured the maid would face severe repercussions, so she held back.
Even in that small amount, Ellensia naturally noticed.
Until then, she had been chatting exclusively with the Emperor, but now she turned to Philomel.
Before Ellensia could call her out, Philomel took the lead.
"Oh dear! Your Highness, I'm so sorry! My hand just slipped."
"...How does a hand slip onto my head?"
Ellensia asked sharply, her brows furrowing.
"I'm truly sorry."
Philomel pressed on shamelessly.
Her fear of Ellensia had considerably faded ever since Tower Master Rguin had placed an automatic defense spell on her.
"Philomel, you..."
At that moment, Emperor Justis spoke up and reined Ellensia in.
"Ellensia. Philomel has acknowledged her mistake and apologized."
"Daddy!"
"That's enough now."
Ellensia looked deeply aggrieved but fell silent.
In the end, the assumption that an evil spirit had possessed Ellensia turned out to be Philomel's wild guess.
It had been a somewhat unreasonable hypothesis to begin with. Ellensia could wield divine power. She had even demonstrated it publicly on Debutante Day.
How could someone possessed by an evil spirit handle holy power?
Still, it was proof that the search for the book's truth had reached a dead end—enough for Philomel to gamble on even a faint possibility.
As everyone sank into contemplation, Tower Master Rguin picked up the empty bottle.
"I'll take this to the Magic Tower and look into it."
"But the potion's all gone—what's there left to investigate?"
Tower Master Rguin pointed at the bottle in response to Philomel's question.
"For an ordinary magic potion vial, this one's awfully elaborate, don't you think?"
The glass bottle was shaped like a pretty star.
"The fact they put so much care into the exterior suggests a high probability it's a luxury item. A little digging should reveal the seller."
His eyes narrowed.
"Or we might need to analyze the bottle's material composition itself, like with that book."
"You mean the book I gave you?"
"Yes. I hadn't mentioned it since it's not confirmed yet... but that book is likely made from a substance that doesn't exist in this world."
Lexion voiced a reasonable doubt.
"An object made from a material nonexistent in this world—is that even possible?"
"We'll only know for sure after cross-referencing it with other rare substances..."
His golden eyes gleamed.
"But if it's from another world entirely, then yes."
Another world—not this one.
Did such a thing truly exist?
Philomel was skeptical, but surprisingly, the three brothers said nothing.
They each seemed lost in thought.
"It's just a hypothesis, mind you. Still, even I'm getting intrigued. To think we'd uncover a power possibly akin to Estellion right here."
With those final words, Tower Master Rguin vanished via teleportation magic.
The events of that day gave Philomel occasion to ponder the possibility of another world.
Beyond unraveling the book's secrets, Philomel's daily life brimmed with all sorts of incidents.
One day, as the season edged into early summer, an imperial attendant visited Philomel's quarters.
"The gift prepared by His Majesty the Emperor has finally been completed and arrived at the palace. Please come to the lake whenever you're free."
"A gift?"
"The one for Lady Philomel's last birthday."
Ah, she'd completely forgotten. Philomel glanced at the golden model ship adorning one corner of her shelf. Now that she thought about it, Emperor Justis had promised a real ship of the same design.
'He said it was still being built—guess it's done now.'
Honestly, she had no need for a boat.
Philomel wasn't one for boating anyway.
Besides, if one got technical, it was a gift from her princess days, making it awkward for her current self to claim.
Still, it felt impolite to reject a received gift without even laying eyes on it once, so Philomel headed out.
When she arrived at the vast lake within the palace grounds, the pleasure boat caught her eye first.
Indeed, its graceful silhouette was exquisitely refined.
Even Philomel, who already knew its shape from the golden model, let out an involuntary gasp of admiration at the sight.
Her gaze shifted slightly from the boat, landing on a cluster of young ladies.
Ladies dressed for an outing had gathered at the dock by the lake.
Ellensia stood at the forefront, speaking with the attendant.
"Why can't I ride it?"
"I'm sorry, Your Highness. This boat is a gift from His Majesty to Lady Philomel."
"Where does it say that? I have a right to ride it too!"
Just listening already made her head ache.
As Philomel debated slipping away unnoticed, Lexion appeared at her side.
The two relocated to a spot out of others' sight.
"Lexion, what brings you here?"
"I heard the boat was finished, so I came to take a look."
"Lexion's interested in it too?"
"Of course. I helped make it, after all."
"You make boats?"
"To be precise, not the boat itself—I designed the magic incantations fitted to it. It's essentially a magic artifact."
"I see."
Philomel nodded, looking up at Lexion.
"But I thought managing magic artifacts was your job? I didn't realize you handled the creation side too."
"It was such an expensive commission that even I got pulled in."
Emperor Justis must have shelled out quite a sum.
Lexion lowered his gaze and murmured quietly.
"It wasn't slapped together or anything, but knowing you were the owner... I wish I'd put more effort into it."
"It's fine. I'll treasure the thought."
"You're not even planning to take it for a spin?"
"Actually, I was thinking of returning it."
"The boat I made? Without riding it even once? I'd love for you to try it, Phil."
"..."
With him putting it like that, refusing outright felt too guilty.
"Alright. I'll at least take it out once."
In the end, Philomel gave in to Lexion's earnest gaze and approached the dock.
The attendant, who had been at an impasse with Princess Ellensia, lit up at the sight of Philomel.
"See, Your Highness? This boat belongs to Lady Philomel. I can't just let you board without permission."
Ellensia shot back.
"But Daddy gifted this boat back when Philomel was princess. So it wasn't for Philomel—it was for his princess daughter. And now I'm the princess, which makes it basically mine."
She had logic of her own. In a way, it even held water.
The three ladies behind Ellensia shot Philomel unkind glances as well.
With the boat seating a maximum of four, Ellensia had apparently brought exactly three others.
They were all daughters of high nobility, but Philomel had kept her distance from them for various reasons.
Ellensia gazed at Philomel with smug triumph.
"Well? Am I wrong? If you think so, go ahead—convince me."
Philomel felt a profound weariness.
She had no desire to bicker with Ellensia over a mere boat, especially when it had nothing to do with the book's secrets.
Lexion had only hoped she'd ride it—not that she keep it.
So Philomel offered readily.
"I'm fine with it. You can have the boat, Ellensia."
Ellensia blinked in stunned silence.
"You're serious?"
"Yes."
"You mean I can really have it?"
"Yes."
Even after yielding the boat she'd so desperately wanted, Ellensia didn't look pleased. If anything, her hand trembled on her parasol in evident frustration.
'What a truly odd girl.'
One thing was clear: unlike her initial enigmatic smiles, the current Ellensia openly wore her negative emotions.
Shifting tactics, Ellensia declared triumphantly once more.
"Fine then! Since even Philomel says it's okay, I'll be the first to board. That work for you?"
"Do as you like."
With a huff, Ellensia brushed past Philomel and climbed aboard first, the other ladies following suit.
The boat propelled itself via magic, requiring no oarsman.
The attendant hovering near Philomel kept muttering, "This won't do, this really won't..." yet made no bold move to stop the princess and her entourage.
Philomel watched the scene impassively.
'I'll just ask for a ride later. If they say no, I'll sneak on.'
But the instant the final lady stepped aboard—
Weeeng! Weeeng!
A deafening warning siren pierced the air, and the boat lurched violently.