* * *
“Ah, Elliot!”
I urgently grabbed him as he finished his work and was about to exit the balcony.
“When you go out, could you tell the Healer that the desserts over there are very delicious and that she should try them?”
“…Yes? Me?”
He turned around, the cheerfulness of a moment ago gone, his brow furrowed as if he had swallowed some bitter medicine.
His slightly twitching mouth suggested a desire to complain.
“You could just say Adrian told me to tell you…”
“You should have said that before coming here…”
“Deliver the message. That is an order.”
“……”
The word ‘order,’ uttered like a child by Klen, visibly weighed down Elliot’s shoulders.
He realized that saying anything more would be a waste of time and let out a deep sigh.
“Do I just need to relay the message?”
“Are you going to check up on her too?”
“I will just relay the message…”
And he walked back to the hall with heavy steps.
Elliot clearly didn’t like the order, but I wouldn’t have asked him to deliver the message if there was someone else.
I already knew the two of them didn’t get along well.
However, one of the reasons for calling the Healer was to let her taste those desserts.
I also wanted to send her some later if she found something she liked.
I hid behind the balcony wall and briefly glanced inside.
People were moving restlessly, as if looking for us, who had suddenly disappeared.
Madeline was among them.
Her eyes scrutinized various spots, but she never looked in our direction.
But soon, when the two people, who were completely incompatible, stood facing each other, the interest quickly shifted to that side.
‘I didn’t intend for them to be a spectacle.’
The amount of attention focused on the two of them was surprisingly large, which was rather embarrassing.
“Adrian. Did you confirm the marks?”
Even though Elliot had already left the balcony, the warmth surrounding me from behind remained.
He whispered softly into my ear, even though there was no one to hear.
A shiver ran down my shoulder, which jumped up as his sweet voice entered without warning.
“I confirmed the faces of two people, but I couldn’t see the last one.”
“Who did you see?”
I raised my hand and pointed in that direction.
“The man in the navy-blue clothes over there… and the woman in the green dress visible on this side.”
“The remaining person is that person.”
“……!”
I thought he was just playing tricks and enjoying hindering me.
It seems Klen hadn’t forgotten to confirm the mark even while he was joking around.
Was the reason the glass bead shattered because Klen had confirmed all three people?
If so, the person at his fingertip must be the last person I couldn’t confirm.
Again, it wasn’t a familiar face.
I simply tried to remember his face first, like the other two.
But just as I was about to turn my gaze away, a strange sense of unease enveloped me.
‘…Huh?’
Knights in uniform were gathered around him.
Moreover, judging by the way he was laughing and chatting with the men, he must be a knight like them.
The source of the unease I felt amidst the seemingly amicable atmosphere was his physique.
He was smaller than an average knight.
Standing with them, he looked precarious.
His weak appearance, to the extent that it made me, the supposedly frail one, look stable, stimulated my memories.
His face wasn’t familiar.
But he wasn’t a complete stranger either.
He was… the knight who captured the goblin at the hunting competition and the one who asked to see Levatein.
Dressed up like this, his already frail-looking impression seemed even further from that of a knight.
‘But there are small knights, too.’
I couldn’t pinpoint who among the three was the spy.
They had merely frequented the forest area.
That was just a mark.
I couldn’t accuse them without concrete evidence.
“Can you keep an eye on all three?”
“No matter how capable Ebony is, it would be difficult to monitor three people simultaneously.”
Then, it would be better to monitor the most suspicious person.
Speaking of such a person, it was undeniably that frail-looking knight.
Now that I think about it, it was strange that he first checked if Levatein was infused with magic.
Other knights checked how sharp the ferocious blade was or what its appearance was like.
Could it be that the eyes that carefully observed the blade were trying to confirm the presence of magic?
If the reason for his involvement in spell exploration was because he had magic, it would make sense.
No matter how lazy Elliot was, he probably wouldn’t send someone who couldn’t directly observe it.
‘If he was given many errands because of that, that would be fortunate.’
It was necessary to monitor him, if only to alleviate suspicion.
“Then, find out the identities of those two people, and monitor that knight intensively.”
“Understood.”
Klen’s reply was simple.
He still didn’t ask what I was investigating or why.
I wanted to ask if he wasn’t curious.
Since he trusted me this much, it wouldn’t be polite not to say anything.
Since no sound would leak outside here, it was the perfect place to share secrets.
“What I’m looking for near the forest is… a Teleportation Spell.”
Thanks to not facing his face, the long-held secret easily spilled out of my mouth.
“Teleportation?”
“I can’t give a detailed explanation, but I found out that a teleportation spell would be drawn there. That’s why I was investigating.”
“……”
Klen’s face was out of view.
The arm holding me didn’t tighten or loosen, which made me uneasy.
Was he surprised?
Was he incredulous?
Perhaps he couldn’t understand because the story was too sudden.
As I swallowed the dry saliva in my throat, a faint breathing sound echoed in my ear.
“The investigation seems to have started quite a while ago.”
“Well. That’s because I have a trustworthy source of information, I suppose…”
I couldn’t properly explain that part.
I couldn’t very well say that I suddenly collapsed during the wedding and received a revelation, could I?
The story was that absurd.
Unless I were a priest, no one would believe it.
“Is the opponent the Mariposa Kingdom?”
“…Pardon? You believe me?”
The arm wrapping around me clung a little tighter.
Even though a revelation was a ridiculous explanation, I didn’t think the ‘source of information’ was very credible either.
When and where could I, who couldn’t even bring a single attendant from home, acquire a source of information?
“I know well that you are not a person who would speak nonsense. Besides, that country has an unusual obsession with the Divine Beast, so I thought they wouldn’t give up easily.”
Could it be that his purpose for checking the area near the forest was similar to mine?
“Did you intend to resolve this matter alone?”
“I apologize. I should have told you sooner.”
Despite the low voice, which was not a scolding, my body involuntarily flinched.
I thought I only needed to erase the teleportation spell.
But if I failed, it would be a threat to the territory.
Should I have informed him sooner, even if I was treated like a strange person?
“That’s not it. You have a spouse who will support you at all times; I mean don’t bear it alone. There are few things you can do alone in this castle, aren’t there? I will listen, no matter how nonsensical or absurd it sounds, so please tell me.”
“…Yes. Th-Thank you.”
The sound coming out of my mouth was ticklish, as if it had scratched my throat.
It felt a little refreshing after saying it.
* * *
