Chapter 348

As the light fades, I feel a chill.

It’s natural. Kairis’s capital, Kairisis, was much further north than Secretia, so even though spring had arrived, it was not as warm as Secretia.

Well, this feeling wasn’t unfamiliar. Haven’t you already experienced something similar twice? As I took a step from a place that was only warm, I ended up standing in the middle of the great desert where a biting snowstorm was raging. Memories of that day not that long ago came flooding back to me.

However, what is very different from that time is the fact that it is so mildly cold that it can never be compared to that day. The feeling of being welcomed by the cold. And one more thing.

“Come quickly.”

There are people waiting and welcoming you.

After checking the safety of Calian and Plantz and stopping Hina from scolding the two for being so reckless, Alan returned to Kairis. And on the appointed day, he went back to Secretia and brought everyone with him.

Thanks to this, Lemain, who only knew the approximate time his sons would return today, was there to meet them in front of Arpia Palace. After that, I greeted my sons without telling them how long I had been there or how long I had been waiting.

“It’s a relief to see you back.”

A quiet road.

So the way back wasn’t a grand one either.

Of course, if you ask whether it is true that the King’s personal visit to meet you was not a grand event, it may be difficult to confidently answer yes. However, since the number of people who came out to meet us was smaller than the number of people who returned, it was true that it was not a grand event at first glance.

I liked it better that way.

The day I returned to the royal palace after several months for the prince’s coming-of-age ceremony, Rosellita. This was even more so when I thought about the welcoming crowds that filled the streets of Kairisis, the capital of Kairis. It was not because I felt burdened or disliked the presence of so many people welcoming me, but because I was still very tired and wanted to return quietly.

“I see you, His Majesty the King.”

As soon as their view opened and they confirmed that it was Lemain who had spoken, Calian and Plantz immediately bowed and showed respect.

Lemain, seeing the two standing in front, took a step forward. And, remembering Alan who was greeting Calian who returned from Rosellita, he tried to raise both his arms but soon stopped and stopped.

Because it’s still early.

Didn’t they say that since Lemain had walked away at his own will for over ten years, he couldn’t take the steps to come back all at once, just as Lemain wanted? Therefore, it will still take a lot of time until you can simply reply that you have returned safely, rather than a formal greeting saying you are seeing His Majesty the King. So, so as not to be surprised or scared, I took just one step and stopped.

“okay.”

After hearing Lemain’s answer, the companions straightened their lower backs.

Meanwhile, Lemaine, who checked that Calian seemed to have grown up a bit, nodded and turned his gaze towards Plants. And he looked like he had forgotten everything he had to say.

This is because a thin silver chain was visible between the back of Planz’s neck and collar as he bent down and lifted it up. Because Lemain knows best what is hanging at the end of that necklace string.

“…… okay.”

Plantz, who could not have known what was going on, lowered his gaze without saying another word. Because not all the gaps could be filled with just one locket necklace with a portrait in it.

Calian’s eyes, which were looking at the two, turned to those who were standing behind Lemaine. Three knights from the King’s Guard, including Chamberlain Raoul’s bodyguard, Needlen, a pink-haired wizard who eats things with salt added, and three other division commanders. I can see the faces I haven’t seen in a long time showing happy expressions.

After checking the faces of those present, Kalian’s fingertip drew a small arc.

The one person who should have been standing right behind Lemain and in front of Raoul and Ren. A person who was expected to not be there, but really didn’t show up. It was because of another brother.

‘You’re so heartless.’

How can you not laugh as another war between brothers is about to begin, which will be no less than the Green Pepper War?

“Would you like to stop by for a moment?”

Instead of explaining why Randel did not show up, Lemain asked:

The current Plantz, who was inside Calian, is Calian’s older brother and the crown prince of Kairis. So, for now, I was able to answer Lemain’s question without confirming Calian’s intention. So Plantz shook his head.

The words that followed with that.

Those words really, truly stunned Calian.

“I am sorry, Your Majesty. Your clothes seem to be unkempt, so I would like you to tidy them up again and speak to me at dinner.”

Calian’s finger, which was placed at the end of the line, twitched.

‘Your clothes are not neat.’

And throwing away all the excuses, it’s just clothing. Clothing is not neat. I never dreamed that Plantz, who came out to eat breakfast wearing clothes that I couldn’t tell whether he was wearing or taking them off, would say that he was dressed immodestly. I really didn’t know.

Calian very slowly turned his head.

And then I looked at the ‘Crown Prince’s Livery’ that Reric had put so much effort into since morning and had decorated it so perfectly that it was hard to imagine how it could look any more neat.

“Yes. So be it.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

And Lemain, like a cow, was fooled again.

“It would be nice if Viscount Bern would come too.”

As I returned here with him, I said more words to remind me of a fact I had been trying hard to forget.

ah. right.

Our Hina was still my brother’s fiancée.

Now is the perfect time to stick out a spoon, but Calian smiled with effort, ignoring Arsene’s regret that he couldn’t do it because Lemain was in front of him.

“Then I’ll see you again in the evening.”

“okay.”

Either way, Plantz, who didn’t really care about Calian’s feelings, once again showed respect to Lemain, then turned and climbed onto Estina’s saddle. And with Reric, I leisurely headed towards Chermil Palace.

To be exact, it was towards the 5th floor of Chermil Palace.

* * *

Since I said I would dress neatly, is there anything I can do?

He had no choice but to take off his already neat clothes, take a relaxing bath in his favorite black bathtub, and then put on his new princely uniform.

It’s been a long time since I received help from Merlin. Calian decorated his favorite new cuffs and tie among the items that Merlin had prepared for him while he was away. Calian turned his head as he watched the cuffs made of dark red opal being fastened tightly. And then he opened his mouth to Jan, who was standing next to him.

“Have you contacted the Duke’s residence?”

“Yes. I sent an attendant.”

“What should I do if you don’t open the door because you don’t like me?”

Jan, who was holding a jacket to put on after decorating the cuffs and tie, smiled slightly and answered.

“That won’t happen since Duke Siegfried is with us.”

“Ah, Lord Siegfried, are you at the Duke’s residence now?”

“Yes. Both of you not long ago. This time, I even brought Jan with me to see if I was planning on staying for a long time.”

It was strange that Jan said, ‘I brought Jan,’ but Kalian understood it well. The fact that the youngest member of the family, who was cute and had brown fur and a wagging tail, had the same nickname and name as the eldest son of the family, was a fact that even Merlin, who had long since heard about what kind of noble family Jan was from, knew.

“Hina would be happy to know that a puppy is here.”

“Lord Verne liked it a lot.”

“Hina are you busy today?”

“Yes. The only person who is free today is the prince.”

“…… Okay.”

The knights who followed along for the escort would go to their respective quarters to rest, but others in rank could not. Euria returned to the association immediately, and Rachel stopped by the Wilhelm Pavilion to briefly meet Veronica before heading to the magic school. This is why Vice Principal Rachel had to take care of the backlog of work on behalf of Principal Euria, who had to attend to association work. Arsene and Hina were equally busy.

“I’m not the only one who’s busy. My brother said he was going with me.”

“His Crown Prince Planz decided to hurry up and take care of his busy schedule and come along.”

“Okay.”

Ever since the day when he almost ended up standing in the garden of Secretia’s palace holding a paper sign written by Hina, Jan had been very cold towards Kalian. The guy who said he would teach me how to play the harmonica every day turns out to be a wish for his younger brother to live a short life. I wonder if he could say anything kind about his older brother who took three meals worth of beef jerky and ate it all.

Calian smiled and nodded, knowing full well that if Calian listened well for a day or two, things would resolve on their own.

“Okay. I guess I’ll take Hina with me later.”

“Do by that way.”

– smart.

While we were talking, I put on my cloak and was ready to go out again when there was a quiet knock on the door.

“This is Aila.”

When Calian nodded, Jan and Merlin bowed their heads and went outside. And then Ayla came in. Calian sat comfortably on the black sofa he had not seen in a long time and pointed to the other side.

After a brief greeting, Eila sat down in front of Calian.

“Are they coming from the Wilhelm Pavilion?”

“yes.”

“Is everyone okay?”

“Yes. I think so.”

In fact, Eila was at the Wilhelm Pavilion too briefly to check on everyone’s well-being. Even so, it was difficult for Aila to gauge whether everyone was well or not since she was only by Hina’s side to watch over her escort.

So, after hearing the answer to the question that was just an appropriate first greeting, Kalian smiled slightly and opened his mouth.

“Have you thought about it?”

“You’re talking about intelligence organizations.”

“huh.”

“Before that, I have a question.”

“Talk.”

“Until now, the wizards belonging to the association were responsible for gathering information.”

“yes.”

“That won’t be the case if I take the job.”

“Wizards can help, but it will be the people you gather that will matter.”

“So… will the organization I lead become just another flock of birds?”

“Are you worried that I will treat the birds like Devlan? I will secretly raise the birds, regardless of their age, send them here and there as I please, treat them like limbs, and cut them off if they cause problems?”

The conversation continued right away without even having a cup of tea.

Thanks to that, Aila, who had been looking down at the cleanly empty table for a while, raised her head. And only after his long eyelashes moved several times, as if he was carefully choosing his words, did he open his mouth.

“… That’s right. It’s not easy for people to shake off what they’ve seen and experienced in their lives.”

The added words were both about Kalian and Aela herself. This means that it will not be easy for Calian, who has seen and experienced how Devlan treated the birds, not to follow in Devlan’s footsteps, and on the other hand, it is difficult for Aila, who experienced Devlan like that, to ease her worries.

– Tak.

Instead of answering, Calian took something out of his pocket and put it down.

“I couldn’t wrap it this time either.”

And it sounded a little different like this.

Aila smiled slightly as she looked at the table that had been cleaned up.

“You gave it to me too late.”

It was a hairpin.

I nodded without objecting to Eila’s words that she wanted to see Devlan’s last moments with her own eyes. Instead, I personally handed Devlan the hairpin that I always carried around like a bubble and asked him to make one request for me to come. And Eila presented Devlan with the pretty hairpin containing drop-like beads and poison.

After that, I always wore my hair down.

After Devlan passed away and the sun changed, Secretia’s sea-like head hung down like waves until she returned to Kairis.

“Is it too late?”

“A little. Because it was uncomfortable.”

“sorry.”

Calian, who said this, opened his mouth as he pushed the hairpin on the table a little closer to Aela.

“I was worried. What should I make it out of? How should I make it? What kind of jewelry should I give it? Should I put coral or pearls on it? Should I put flowers on it or butterflies? Should I make it out of platinum or silver? Pretend it was like I gave it to Brother Randel. “I should try to get the expensive mithril again. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time.”

Eila picked up the hairpin on the table.

There was a blue imitation gem made of glass encrusted at the end of a long hairpin made of tin. One pure white fake pearl and two rough blue beads. Those small, round things hung from the end of the hairpin and swayed back and forth.

“I thought it would be best to give you something that was nothing.”

After much thought, I ended up buying an ordinary hairpin.

It was not decorated extravagantly by a craftsman, nor was it studded with jewels or made of gold or silver. Just like I bought Jan’s harmonica. I bought what was sold at the store. I looked around and bought the one I liked the most on the spot.

I bought a hairpin that was nothing.

“If you don’t like it, you can buy it again. Anytime, anywhere.”

Eila’s blue eyes watched Calian for a moment and then turned to the hairpin. A hairpin made of neither platinum, gold nor mithril. Just looking down at the hairpin without any jewels on it.

“I’ll write well.”

On the spot, I twisted my head and put the hairpin on it.

Because I liked a gift that was nothing other than an item that I couldn’t throw away even if my whole life was over, an item that I had to keep until I died, and something that would end up becoming just another cage. It’s a common hairpin that you can buy a new one whenever you want. I bought it without any other meaning, just thinking about what would best suit Aila, because it was so pretty.

“I’ll gather the people I worked with when I worked here. I’ll come back after I organize how to run it.”

“okay.”

A small smile appeared on Calian’s face.

“Do it, Aila.”

Aila, who finally had a hairpin that she could show to Hina, stood up. Then he bowed his head and went out.

You’ll have to be busy from now on.

* * *

After Eila returned.

Before long, I received a call from Relic.

It was a message saying that I would go straight from Wilhelm’s pavilion to Lemain’s office in Arpia Palace, so please come by yourself. Because the meaning of those words was clear, Kalian burst out laughing as if it was amusing and took Jan and Kiriman to the small banquet hall where the dinner would be held.

Thanks to Randel, who refused the king’s dinner invitation, but could easily refuse the crown prince’s visit, Plantz, who could not even see his brother’s shadow, was sitting with an expressionless face.

Calian, who was trying to suppress the fact that our Hina, who always looked so pretty, was sitting next to him, went to sit on the chair that was being pulled out for him. After that, Lemain came and a small dinner began.

Lemain said nothing about the fact that Planz became engaged to Hina without listening to any of the royal family’s opinions. I didn’t ask why they suddenly got engaged and whether they planned to have a civil wedding as is, or whether they planned to break off the engagement someday and do their own thing like Calian and Demirea.

“Did anything inconvenient happen on the way back?”

I just asked them if they had a good time there, if they were sick or injured, and if there was anything I could help them with regarding matters in the Balkans. Hina confidently answered the same questions asked by the crown prince and the prince. The conversation continued for quite a while, sometimes with nods and sometimes with Kalyan or Plantz interpreting Hina’s sign language.

“I briefly met and interacted with the crown prince of Tensil.”

After the conversation with Hina, Plantz opened his mouth like this. And then, Crown Prince Serjane of Tensil asked you to help him find Kairis during Lemaine’s birthday festival.

“Let me think about it.”

And Lemain answered:

If it were a personal request, I would reply that I would do so immediately, but it was not like I could grant Sergein’s visit simply because it was my son’s request.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Plantz, who did not expect to hear an answer right away anyway, answered simply.

Lemaine’s eyes turned to Calian when Calian, who had been paying attention to their conversation, cut a piece of steak that was slightly less seasoned than Secretia’s and put it into his mouth.

“I heard that one of the attendants from the Chermil Palace went to Duke Siegfried’s residence.”

“…Did you hear?”

“Okay. Were you planning on running away again today?”

Calian, whose face looked embarrassed for a moment, nodded and said.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

That answer is very honest.

Lemain laughed slightly, looked at Calian and Plantz in turn, then opened his mouth.

“Go on. I just hope you come back on time.”

“Yes, I will.”

They haven’t even told the nobles yet that the crown prince and the prince have returned. Therefore, Calian, who looked a little embarrassed at Lemain’s cool permission, who had expected him to say no, made a promise. So we finished dinner and went out.

I had Kirie take Hina to the Wilhelm Pavilion. And instead of wearing black robes, which were obviously useless, they both rode on their respective horses with their uniforms still on. After leaving the palace accompanied by Jan and Reric, we picked up the pace a little and headed to Duke Siegfried’s residence.

Before entering the Duke’s residence, Calian paused for a moment. After that, he looked at Planz’s clothes, which were speckled with white and gray fur, and made a small voice.

“Have you not met Brother Randel?”

“I heard you’re in a lot of pain.”

“Are you planning to visit again tomorrow?”

“I’m going.”

“I thought you and Brother Randel had a very bad relationship.”

“It’s not good.”

“But why do you want to meet like that?”

Plantz slowly closed and opened his eyes and answered.

“There’s something I can’t get if I don’t do it now.”

“What.”

“…… apologize.”

“May I ask what kind of apple this is?”

“no.”

“yes.”

Calian nodded without hesitation, stretched out his hand, and moved his magic. The intention is to remove the cat fur from the crown prince’s uniform before entering the duke’s residence.

“Leave it.”

Plantz stopped Kalian’s actions.

Clothes that weren’t unsightly, but didn’t look neat at all. The crown prince’s conquest made it look like he was raising a cat. Planz, who looked down at his clothes for a moment, looked at the huge gate of the Duke’s residence and opened his mouth.

“I’m afraid you might be scared.”

The child that Evan was trying to raise as his successor.

A child who will no longer grow up to be the head of the Marquess of Briesen.

After receiving Lemain’s letter and talking with Alan, I thought a lot. I thought I would like to meet that child whom I thought I would never meet in my life. So I came. I’m a little curious about that child who is both very similar and yet very different.

I was afraid that the crown prince who came to visit like that, who looked flawless, would be scared. I was told to leave the cat hair alone.

“I guess so.”

“okay.”

“yes.”

Calian nodded willingly and smiled slightly.

And he stepped in front of the gate of Duke Siegfried’s residence. Plantz followed suit.

Far, far, far away.

Head towards the place where you can see a young child with green hair pulled back.