In the Garden of the Moonlit Night

Fortunately, there wasn’t any unfortunate incident where I had to lie down using Sylvia’s thigh as a pillow all the way back to the Count’s territory.

After waking up in the village where we stopped to rest, I wasn’t as tired, so I stayed awake the whole carriage ride.

But even so, it doesn’t change the fact that Sylvia stayed by my side the whole time.

Moreover, Sylvia seemed constantly worried about me, repeatedly asking, ‘Lierde Gongja-nim, aren’t you tired?’ while patting her thigh.

I couldn’t bring myself to do such an embarrassing thing twice, so even if I was falling asleep, I endured with superhuman patience.

Somehow, Sylvia seemed a little sulky, but that must have been my imagination.

“Haa, we’ve finally arrived. It felt much longer than when we went to Ruben.”

“Well, it’s a full day’s journey. Thank you for your hard work, Gongnyeo.”

“Lierde Gongja-nim, thank you for your hard work too. I’m sorry for making you take care of me….”

“It’s nothing.”

Sylvia belatedly expressed her apologies for tagging along, but I didn’t particularly mind.

No, in fact, I had quite an enjoyable time.

Originally, it was just a social party I attended to find connections between the Drake family and the Eyes of Dawn, but with her there, it really felt like I was enjoying the party.

Exploring the Duchy with Sylvia in between was also quite a refreshing experience.

Especially riding a wyvern and landing in the Duchy, I think that’s a rare experience that most people would only have once in their lifetime, if ever.

Rather, I should be thanking Sylvia.

“By the way, Hyung-nim hasn’t arrived yet. I wonder if he got lost along the way?”

In the midst of all this, Sylvia, being the kind soul she is, seemed to be worried about Hasel, whom she hadn’t even spoken to much.

Ah, come to think of it, I hadn’t told Sylvia that Hasel wouldn’t be leaving with us today.

“He’s probably spending time with the women he’s become close to.”

“With women?”

“That’s just how he is. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Ah, okay….”

There’s no point in arguing, I’d just be branded as a nasty guy who badmouths his brother, so I cut the conversation short.

Sylvia wasn’t so foolish that she wouldn’t understand the meaning even if I only said this much.

As if she quickly caught on, she let out a small sigh and averted her gaze, so I didn’t add anything more.

“Then let’s go inside quickly. You can use the same room you used last time.”

“Is it okay for me to stay? I feel like I’m imposing twice….”

“It’s fine. Father already gave his permission in advance.”

“Ah…!”

I don’t know why Father is being so kind to Sylvia, but I received a heads-up before leaving for the Duchy.

He told me that when we return, it will be quite late and tiring, so have Sylvia stay in the room she stayed in before for a few more days.

So, even if I don’t ask Father for permission separately today, there shouldn’t be any problem with letting Sylvia stay.

Meanwhile, Sylvia’s expression brightened at my words, and she soon wore a bright smile, skipping ahead of me with the innocent steps of an excited child.

I followed her from behind in silence, with a faint smile on my face.

I hope that smile lasts forever. With that small wish in my heart.

＊＊＊

That night, I couldn’t fall asleep either.

I thought I would be able to sleep soundly on the day I returned to the castle, but suddenly, I had another worry.

This worry started from what I heard from Sylvia in the garden before going to bed.

Considering Sylvia’s personality, I expected her to stay in our family’s castle for a few more days, but unexpectedly, she said she would be returning tomorrow, so I wondered if something had happened.

If it was just because she didn’t want to cause trouble, I was going to tell her to stay a little longer, but then she spoke.

– Actually, Father said he would call someone to fix my Evil Eye soon. I don’t know exactly when, but he said they would be here by the end of the week at the latest, so I’m thinking of going to the castle in advance.

– Then there’s nothing I can do.

When I first heard those words, I accepted them without much thought.

That’s because it was the same thing I heard from Sylvia before my regression.

At that time, she said that it had been about 5 years since she was able to leave her small room and wander around the castle to some extent.

The reason for that was that her father, Creed Elenore, had called someone with knowledge of the Evil Eye to suppress the power of her eyes.

So, until then, I believed that her father hadn’t completely given up on Sylvia either.

But now, I’ve started to have a small doubt about whether that was really an action for Sylvia’s sake.

‘He wouldn’t be that kind of person.’

At least, the Creed Elenore I saw wasn’t a proper father who would embrace his daughter, who was called a witch by the world, and find a solution for her.

From the moment he sold his daughter like an object to someone he had just met, under the pretense of courtship, he was a man who was embarrassing to call a father.

That man went around looking for someone who could solve Sylvia’s Evil Eye and brought them in?

From there, I felt uneasy.

Maybe there’s something I’m missing.

Jiiiing.

While I was racking my brains and worrying, a faint light came on in the crystal ball I had placed on my bedside, and my eyes flashed.

It was none other than the crystal ball I had received from Vermillian for communication.

– Can you hear me?

“Yes.”

I hurriedly approached the bed, placed my hand on the crystal ball, and poured mana into it, and Vermillian’s voice came from the other side.

It might have been just a procedure to check if the communication was working properly, so I first deployed a soundproofing barrier, calmed my tense heart, and asked the reason.

“What’s going on at this late hour?”

– I have a story to tell you urgently. It’s about the witch… no, Elenore Gongnyeo.

“……!”

Before parting with him, I had given him a few instructions, and the most important one was to let me know immediately if he happened to hear anything related to Sylvia.

But even so, I didn’t expect him to bring news so quickly.

It just so happened that I was worrying about Sylvia, so I thought the timing was perfect and waited for Vermillian to continue.

– I only heard bits and pieces of information, so it’s not detailed, but it seems that someone will be contacting her soon.

“Contact?”

– I don’t know the method. However, I vaguely heard them talking about the Evil Eye. I heard them say that the time has come to plant the seed….

“Seed?”

What does that mean? Plant the seed?

Generally, when men say that kind of thing to women, it’s used in a vulgar sense, but since the other party is a member of the Eyes of Dawn, other meanings came to mind first.

Planting a seed means that they will harvest it someday.

And if that’s related to the Evil Eye, then it’s highly likely that they’re targeting Sylvia.

But the timing of the Eyes of Dawn expressing their intention to contact Sylvia and the moment when someone who will touch her right eye appears coincides, is this all just a coincidence?

No, that can’t be. It smells fishy no matter how you look at it.

– I’m sorry for the inaccurate information. But you told me to let you know even the smallest things about her, so I thought it would be better to tell you.

“No, thank you. I was just worrying about something, and thanks to you, I feel like my head is clearer.”

– I’m glad to hear that. Then, since the message is over, I’ll end the call now.

“Okay.”

Soon after the call with Vermillian ended, I got up from the bed after confirming that the crystal ball had lost its light.

Honestly, I didn’t have high expectations, but he brought back something big from the first day.

It seems like I’ve gained a useful pawn.

“Hoo….”

I combined the report I received from Vermillian with the information I knew and started to rack my brains, and I felt my head getting hotter and hotter, so I let out a short sigh.

I should cool my head a bit and continue thinking.

I should go get some fresh air.

Hwiing.

As I left the room and exited the castle, a rather strong wind swept past my body in the middle of the night, even though it was spring.

It’s ironic that I advised Sylvia to bring a coat because it’s still cold at night, but I came out with my bare body, but I didn’t care because I’m not particularly sensitive to the cold.

If it gets too cold, I’ll just have to use a cold protection magic.

By the way, what should I do from now on?

As long as I don’t know what dangers are lurking in the Caintreche Castle, sending Sylvia there alone is not a good choice right now.

But even if I go with her without a plan, a solution won’t just pop out.

The best thing to do is to keep her in this castle for as long as possible to buy time, and come up with a plan in the meantime, but the problem is how to persuade her.

Frankly, from her point of view, a benefactor who might bring a solution to her Evil Eye is coming soon, so it’s like asking her to stay here instead.

“…Hmm?”

As I was worrying and moving my feet, I reached the garden and saw a faint figure under the brilliantly rising full moon in the distance.

It was too blurry to even guess who it was, so it was the moment I narrowed the distance to take a closer look.

“Ah, Lierde Gongja.”

“Gongnyeo? What brings you here at this hour….”

Soon, she recognized me first and waved her hand brightly, and only then could I recognize that the other party was Sylvia.

By the way, like when she stayed at the Duke’s castle, is she a light sleeper?

I was worried about her actions of walking around outside even though it was quite late, but I didn’t show it and approached her to have a conversation.

“The moon is very beautiful. It would be a waste not to take a night walk on a day like this, so I came out for a while.”

“You really like to walk around.”

“Hehe, I guess so. The expression ‘scatterbrained’ is perfect, right?”

She took my words playfully, and she was wearing a thin coat on her shoulders, maybe because of the advice I gave her the other day.

On the other hand, Sylvia noticed that I was only wearing a thin everyday outfit that I was wearing in the room, and she gave me a stern look and spoke to me.

“More than that, Lierde Gongja, how can you come out wearing so little when you were telling me to wear a coat because it’s still cold at night?”

“I’m sorry. I was just walking aimlessly and somehow ended up here.”

I was a little wronged because I only intended to walk around the castle lightly, but it was true that I didn’t keep my word, so I lowered my head obediently.

Then, Sylvia’s eyes, which had been wide open, calmed down, and worry was added to them.

“Aimlessly…? Did you have any worries?”

“…Yes, a little.”

And then, I was going to lie to her when she asked me, but I realized that it was useless in front of her, so I honestly said yes.

In response, Sylvia took another step towards me, placed her hand on her chest, and conveyed her words with an affectionate expression.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Help….”

If it were me in the past, I would have reflexively shaken my head and said, ‘It’s okay,’ as soon as I heard those words.

What would be the point of receiving her help in trying to help her in the first place?

But this time, my lips didn’t part easily.

That’s because it’s a solution that can only be established with Sylvia’s help.

“…Gongnyeo.”

“Yes, Lierde Gongja.”

“Then, can you grant me just one request? You can refuse if it’s an unreasonable request.”

“Anything. Please tell me anything.”

Different colors of light shine in her two eyes.

As if she wanted it the most, I hesitated for a moment at her actions of asking me to ask her for anything, and then opened my mouth.

“I have a request. Can you stay by my side a little longer, just a little longer?”

“…Yes?”

For some reason, I felt like the cold air surrounding me had disappeared for a moment.