To the Hinon Kingdom
Lucius’s head slowly tilted downward, and Pay squeezed her eyes shut.
A moist, soft sensation enveloped her completely, accompanied by the ecstatic, heart-pounding darkness she had chosen for herself.
As their comfort merged and deepened, the pressure on the unfairly restrained Momo intensified as well.
‘Kuuu!’
Yet he dared not drop Pay’s head onto the table to escape, terrified of the retaliation that would surely follow.
All a capable Drakan could do was roll his eyes and endure.
Pay’s breath grew warmer, and only after a satisfying stretch of time did Lucius finally release her.
Both Pay, who had drifted through a dreamy haze, and Momo, who had survived the pressure training, were freed at last.
“Mmm…. Ah.”
“Come here.”
Lucius caught Pay as she tried to rise from the table and leaned back diagonally onto the sofa, as though lying down. She ended up almost draped over his body, her face burning with embarrassment.
“Let go!”
“Why?”
“People… people can see us!”
“Who? There’s no one here but the two of us.”
Her lips, about to protest “Momo…!”, sank helplessly into his shirt.
Another strange silence followed, filled only by the soft rustle of their clothes brushing together.
They had said they were leaving. They had even chosen the Hinon Kingdom as their destination. So what exactly were they doing now?
That was Momo’s honest thought as he watched the pair playing on the sofa.
In the end, they finally left the Magic Tower at three in the afternoon. Even at a reasonable hour, the distance made it quite late.
Lucius shot a displeased glance at Momo tucked inside the basket, then stood up.
“If we’d had more time, we could have flown leisurely from Logia. What a shame.”
“There will be plenty of chances later.”
“True. Let’s go for now.”
At Pay’s words, Lucius smiled and cast a spatial transfer. Only then did Momo let out a long sigh. Finally free… a pitiful sort of freedom!
Whoosh.
Having moved instantly from the Magic Tower, Pay found herself clutching Lucius’s robe sleeve tightly.
It was hard to believe. She had crossed into another country without any permit.
Was this really all right? Would this brief escapade trouble His Highness the Crown Prince?
Though traveling to the distant Shionel territory had been her first such experience, the feeling now was entirely different.
Before leaving, she had asked Lucius to cast a transformation spell so she would look like someone else.
When he saw the result, Lucius broke into a wide grin.
“Cute.”
“Y-you too, Lucius.”
Calling him by name should be fine, shouldn’t it?
Neither Pay nor Lucius had common names, yet they weren’t so unusual as to stand out.
Both chose ordinary brown hair and brown eyes for the transformation.
Looking at Lucius’s subtly altered features, she kept meeting his gaze. Clear, warm eyes.
Wasn’t it strange? Even without the silver hair and black eyes she loved so much, she still couldn’t look away.
Was this what it meant to be smitten?
Lucius’s finger pointed past her shoulder as she stared blankly at him.
“Turn around and look.”
“W-wow!”
Beneath a gentle hill stretched an endless view that felt both familiar and long unseen. Pale green grass swayed endlessly in the wind, painting a single living picture.
When she lived at the monastery, she had often seen such sights on her way to the training grounds for work.
A light bonnet hat settled on Pay’s head as she smiled with crinkled eyes. She had no idea when he had prepared it.
“…Only for me?”
“I don’t wear hats much.”
Come to think of it, she had never seen Lucius with anything on his head, though he sometimes pulled up the hood of his robe.
Well, there was no need to worry about the sun tanning his face.
“Hmm….”
She wanted to prepare something for him too.
“This as well.”
“What? Kyaaah!”
Lucius dropped something onto the ground, pulled her into his arms, and sat down on it. Before she could speak, he kicked off powerfully and they slid down the hill.
A sled in this season, when it wasn’t even winter!
Held in Lucius’s arms, the rich scent of greenery rushed past her nose again and again, different from the refined streets of Lapis.
“Sto… sto… sto…!”
She wanted to tell him to stop, but the speed made it impossible to finish the words.
“We’re almost there.”
Shwaaa.
Lucius slowed their descent with his feet and finally came to a halt.
Pay rose, grateful no large tree trunk had appeared before them. After standing unsteadily, she looked down to find something thick and white spread across the ground. Her mind was too blank to identify it.
“Haa… haa….”
“Were you scared?”
“Sa… say something first next time!”
“Was it not fun?”
Since her reaction to his small surprise was less than enthusiastic, Lucius’s expression turned slightly sour. He hadn’t meant to frighten her.
Pay shook her flushed face.
“It’s not that…! I need time to prepare myself first. Whew…. Actually, I did this a lot when I was young. Once I flew straight into a leafless bush and got scolded by the nuns….”
“You were quite the troublemaker.”
“I was just a child! Hehe, back then I laughed even when branches stuck in my clothes. It’s a little different now.”
Even without shared memories, something connected them.
After tidying their wind-blown brown hair, the two followed a path through the grass toward the castle.
Indeed, Lucius had a reason for suggesting they visit a foreign kingdom.
They hadn’t walked far when countless roses planted along the low wall came into view. Colorful blooms clustered densely under the warm sunlight, truly lovely.
“Wow…!”
Honestly, the rose garden in the imperial palace was far grander, with many more varieties. Yet here, where no one would recognize them, it felt far more comfortable to wander freely.
As they approached the wall, crowds who had come to view the flowers were already strolling about, laughing and chatting.
Lucius spoke in a low voice.
“Originally they charged an entrance fee, but this year it was waived. Not that it matters to us anyway.”
“A nice change.”
“…Actually, the Hinon king’s condition has worsened considerably, so they’re showing mercy. It’s not a pleasant story for the locals, so let’s talk about it later.”
The two entered and stood side by side, admiring the roses. Pay glanced occasionally at the passing citizens of the Hinon Kingdom.
People’s lives seemed much the same everywhere; their clothes showed nothing particularly unusual.
That young lady’s dress pattern…. Huh?
“The crest of the Logia territory…?”
Why would it appear here?
“It’s a region bordering the border. Such things are smuggled across and end up here…. Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the people walking around have crossed paths with your brother’s knights.”
“Surely not.”
Pay found it hard to agree so readily, having always lived by the rules. Lucius merely smiled mischievously.
“Border guards stand right on the line between crossing or not. Forbidden romances probably happen often enough.”
“Lucius!”
“Still, it’s fortunate your brother doesn’t seem the type to abandon his lover and run away.”
“He absolutely wouldn’t!”
Pay was certain. Even before she knew they were blood siblings, Sir Leon’s dignified appearance had kept others at a respectful distance.
Other men might be wolves, but not her brother!
“Let’s just enjoy the view.”
“All right.”
Among all the roses they saw that day, the most beautiful were the wild roses blooming in countless numbers along the wall, barely touched by human hands. Leaning against the large stone barrier, they bloomed endlessly in red and pink, truly breathtaking.
While Pay stood transfixed, Lucius asked seriously, “Shall I make you a wall like that? Square-shaped?”
“No need. Let’s come again next season. Anywhere is fine, as long as we can see flowers together.”
She made a quiet resolution. Once they returned to the Magic Tower, she would mark the date on next year’s calendar. Before the warm spring faded and cool breezes deepened, when the roses bloomed in abundance, she would suggest a spring picnic with Lucius.
Next year, she would be the one to ask first—for him, who had told her to close her books and go play.
Today, too, a bouquet of love bloomed in her heart.
* * *
The tea party held at the Klein ducal residence after a long time was quite splendid. Though the Duke was away as usual and neither the Grand Duke nor Maurice was present, many guests had gathered.
It wasn’t solely because of the Klein daughter who had disappeared from sight after deciding to travel to the capital following the Saintess’s decision. Knowing this, Dot’s mood soured.
‘Hmph.’
She had smiled and fawned before the Duchess, but seeing the guests gather one by one twisted her thoughts.
They had all come pretending to congratulate while secretly laughing at someone else’s misfortune. How noble they pretended to be.
The star of today’s tea party was Barbara Gahel, who had always been insignificant.
‘She said she was going to Shionel? A woman heading to the remote region I risked my life to escape, and through marriage no less…. She won’t be able to return to the capital even after death.’
Just thinking about it was a terrifying fate.
Before that, it seemed she was going somewhere other than Shionel, but since it wasn’t important, Dot couldn’t recall exactly.
It was unfortunate, yet it was clearly someone else’s affair.
Still, the real question was whether one could survive in food-scarce Shionel without catching endemic diseases.
Dot was freely sneering along with the other guests when she felt a sharp gaze.
‘…Huh?’
She lifted her head to find Barbara staring straight at her. There was no humility, admiration, or nervousness—just a direct, unwavering look.
Has this girl lost her mind?
Drunk on the authority of being a duke’s daughter, Dot forgot how desperate Barbara’s situation was and responded with a sharp glare.
Barbara Gahel wore a dark gray dress close to mourning attire. Plain, without lace, and adorned only with simple wrinkle details, it was hardly fitting for a bride-to-be.
Wearing a dress that matched the theme of her own portrait, why was she acting this way?
Soon Barbara approached without hesitation, her face deathly pale.
“My lady….”
“What is it?”
Barbara looked as though she were on the verge of tears.
It was truly unsightly.