Chapter 40
A cough burst from my throat. Tears welled up in my eyes.
“Cough… W-What did you just say?”
“The Grand Duke. He’s your real father, right?”
Sion asked again with an innocent expression.
“Then the Emperor is the fake dad?”
I was speechless.
Was it really okay for him to say things so bluntly? More importantly… how did he know something that even I had only recently learned myself?
As if reading my thoughts, Sion shrugged.
“They have the same aura.”
“…Aura?”
“You and the Grand Duke. Your auras are exactly the same. Unless you’re parent and child, that doesn’t happen.”
Is that something Archmages can tell?
I felt cornered.
I had believed that only the Emperor and I knew this secret.
“So… you didn’t come here after fighting with your dad. You came looking for your real father.”
He gently dabbed the corners of my mouth with a handkerchief as he murmured.
“…It’s a secret. Please don’t tell anyone. It can’t become public.”
Unable to find the right words, I simply opened and closed my mouth while quietly accepting his care. After a long pause, I finally managed to whisper.
Sion tilted his head, clearly unable to understand.
“Why?”
“…Because I’m the Imperial Princess.”
“So?”
“The Grand Duke hates the Imperial Family. There’s no way he’d be happy to find out I’m his daughter.”
“Oh, right. You were pretty awful back when you lived in the Imperial Palace.”
Sion nodded casually.
It was almost a talent how naturally he could say something that sounded like criticism without any malice.
“Okay. I won’t tell anyone.”
That was it.
He didn’t ask how I had discovered the truth. He didn’t ask what I planned to do from now on. He didn’t question why I was hiding it.
Because of that, my enormous secret suddenly felt strangely ordinary.
Fidgeting with the banana skewer in my hand, I mumbled,
“…Thank you.”
“For what?”
“You promised to keep it secret.”
Sion rolled his eyes dramatically before smiling.
“I like you more than the Grand Duke. You’re more interesting.”
“So I’ll be on your side.”
Then he gently took my hand.
His hand was warm.
“Come on. Let’s head back. It’s already been an hour.”
* * *
Unfortunately…
When we returned to the Grand Duke’s estate—
“Lorea.”
Carlos was standing there.
He must have been coming from the garden. Our paths crossed at the worst possible moment.
“Where have you been?”
“Out for a walk.”
The one who answered wasn’t me.
Standing beside me, Sion lightly waved the hand he was still holding toward Carlos.
Carlos’s gaze shifted to Sion.
More precisely…
…to our clasped hands.
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
“For an uninvited guest, you’re certainly quite bold. Are all mages from the Magic Tower like this?”
“Not all of them, I guess. I wouldn’t know. I don’t know everyone from the Tower.”
“…Aren’t you leaving?”
“I was just about to.”
Sion answered without the slightest concern.
Reluctantly, he let go of my hand, glanced back and forth between Carlos and me, then suddenly spoke.
“Grand Duke.”
“Be nice to her.”
“Don’t end up regretting it later.”
Carlos looked utterly puzzled.
His face plainly said, What is he talking about?
But Sion offered no explanation.
Instead, he turned toward me and waved cheerfully.
“Bye. See you again.”
“Um…”
“Hm?”
“…I had fun today.”
At my timid confession, Sion blinked in surprise before breaking into a radiant smile.
“Yeah. Me too.”
“Let’s go out again sometime.”
A brilliant flash of light filled the air.
Just as suddenly as he’d appeared before me, Sion vanished without a trace.
Now only Carlos and I remained.
“…”
A silence straight out of hell settled between us.
Carlos looked down at me.
Questions still lingered in his eyes, but I had no answers I could give him.
Unable to meet his gaze, I simply turned my head away.
* * *
Several days after Sion left, Carlos summoned me to his study.
“We’re going to the Eastern Grand Temple.”
He announced it without preamble.
“…The East?”
“Since our letter was blocked, we’ll have to go in person.”
He didn’t explain further, but I immediately understood.
It was about registering him as my guardian.
I bit my lip.
…The Eastern Temple.
Although it lay outside the Grand Duchy, realistically speaking, it was the most practical destination.
The problem was that there were two major risks.
The first was me.
The moment I stepped outside the Grand Duchy’s borders, the Imperial Family could forcibly take me back.
The Grand Duchy’s extraterritorial protection only applied within its own territory.
The second problem was Carlos.
The denser the demonic energy, the more severe his mana collision would become.
Just imagining what might happen if he traveled all the way to the East made my stomach twist.
“…Isn’t there another way?”
“Do you know of one, Princess?”
Instead, he questioned me.
“The Central Temple is practically right in front of the Imperial Palace, so that’s out of the question.”
“The Northern and Southern Temples are two or three times farther than the Eastern Temple.”
“And the longer we remain outside the Grand Duchy’s territory, the greater the chance the Imperial Family will find us.”
“Surely you understand that better than anyone.”
He was right.
The Eastern Temple was about a three-day journey.
Traveling to the Western or Northern Temple would take well over ten days.
As for the nearest Western Temple…
The land had gradually fallen under the influence of the mages, forcing all the priests to leave.
The temple there had become little more than a name.
I know the Eastern Temple is our best option… but…
“…What about your condition?”
I couldn’t help asking.
My own safety was one thing.
But could he really endure that much demonic energy?
Carlos looked down at me.
His eyes were cold.
“That’s not something the Princess needs to concern herself with.”
“But—”
“You asked me to become your guardian.”
“I have an obligation to fulfill that condition.”
“I’m simply carrying out what you wanted.”
“So why this soft-hearted hesitation now?”
His flat, emotionless voice pierced my chest.
How can I not worry?
There were countless things I wanted to say.
But I kept my mouth shut.
I already knew there was no point.
Once Carlos made up his mind, nothing could change it.
“…Understood.”
In the end, I couldn’t say anything.
This was exactly what I had wanted.
So why did my heart feel so heavy?
I could feel Carlos’s gaze lingering on me.
Without looking back at him, I quietly left the study.
* * *
The solution I found…
…was to bury myself in the library.
Ever since that conversation with Carlos, I spent every spare moment there.
Law books.
Historical records about the temples.
Old collections of legal precedents.
I searched through everything I could find.
“There you are again.”
A voice came from behind.
When I turned around, Damian was standing there, carrying a tray with sandwiches and juice.
“You skipped lunch.”
“Are you planning to skip dinner too?”
“…I was just about to eat.”
“That’s a lie.”
Damian set the tray down on the table with a thud.
Anyone could tell Mia had prepared the food.
“Eat.”
“If you collapse, it’ll just become a nuisance.”
“Thank you.”
I took a bite of the sandwich.
Damian dropped into the seat beside me.
“What exactly are you looking for that you’ve stopped coming to the training grounds and locked yourself in here?”
“I doubt you’ve suddenly developed an interest in academics.”
“Could it be…”
“Young Master, are you upset because I haven’t been coming?”
“…Upset?”
“Me?”
“Have you lost your mind?”
I had only asked just in case.
Why was he shouting?
If the answer was no, he could have just said no.
Covering my ears, I shook my head.
“I’m trying to find another way besides going to the Eastern Temple.”
“…I heard you’re going there with Father.”
“Yes.”
“With the Grand Duke’s condition, it’ll be difficult for him to endure an area with such dense demonic energy.”
“Even with purification stones…”
Even if I produced a large supply of purification stones, he could only barely hold on.
The moment he actually used his mana…
…he would be dangerously close to losing control.
Damian fell silent.
A brief silence passed.
“…Should I help look?”
“…What?”
“If two people search, it’ll be faster.”
For a moment, I simply stared at him.
I had never imagined Damian would offer to help.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“If you don’t want my help, just say so.”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Then?”
“If I become Grand Duke Carter’s official ward…”
“I’ll have a legitimate reason to stay in this estate permanently.”
“You know that too, don’t you?”
In other words—
You’re willing to help the Imperial Princess you hated so much stay here forever?
Damian narrowed his eyes.
“Did you think I’d forgotten that when I offered?”
“Weren’t you dying to kick me out before?”
“That was ages ago…”
Damian grumbled as he looked me over.
Apparently, he no longer minded the idea of living under the same roof as me.
I suppose that’s what people mean when they say humans adapt.
I’d spent so much time hanging around Damian that somehow we’d reached this point.
“So?”
“Do you want my help or not?”
“Please help me.”
At this point, I would gladly accept even a cat’s help.
My answer seemed to satisfy him.
“You could’ve just said so from the beginning.”
He turned his head away.
I decided to pretend I hadn’t noticed the tips of his ears turning slightly red.
