Ch.4949. Thank you. But Clumsy

After quite a while, I was finally able to escape Celia’s assault after receiving a massage from her fists.

She had been swinging so enthusiastically that she even seemed a bit out of breath.

“Working out at this late hour? How diligent of you.”

…Well, I doubt she actually intended to reveal her actions so boldly.

She was probably just sleepy and half-awake at this late hour, and was startled to see me suddenly appearing with injuries from somewhere. Her mouth just moved before her brain could catch up.

The problem was that the truth she blurted out wasn’t something that could be easily overlooked—it was a criminal act.

“What? Why? Is there a problem with the princess wanting to wander around the Imperial Palace?”

She tried to act confident after the fact, but it was already too late.

I was fully prepared to tease her.

“Celia. That’s a crime. Ever heard of stalking?”

“It’s not like that!! I, I just cast the tracking spell for the first time today…!”

“First-time offenders are still criminals.”

“I’m telling you it’s not like that…”

Celia protested to the end, looking wronged.

Eventually, I agreed to let it go—on the condition that she would never cast a tracking spell on me again.

“But I really wasn’t planning to use it again. Just so you know.”

“The first time is always the hardest. The second and third times get easier.”

“What do you take me for?”

“A stalking criminal?”

“You said you’d let it go!”

What a shameless girl. Did she really think her crime would be washed away so easily?

…I should probably stop teasing her now. She seems more concerned about my injuries anyway.

Now, how should I explain this?

I thought about it but couldn’t come up with a perfect lie.

“Why are you being so hesitant? I won’t ask any more questions, so just give me your arm. Let me treat it first.”

Celia spoke up first.

I was momentarily stunned, not understanding what she meant, and she continued indifferently.

“I’ve known all along that you keep many secrets. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice? Don’t take me for a fool…”

…I suppose that’s fair. It would be stranger if she hadn’t noticed, considering the number of odd things I’ve done.

But why would she openly let such a suspicious situation slide? I don’t particularly mind explaining things, but whether she believes me or not is another matter.

“Hurry up and give me your arm.”

She was clearly curious about many things but pretending not to be, and it showed.

With such obvious tells, I’m surprised I never noticed before. What’s wrong with my observation skills?

More importantly, when did she gather the medicine and bandages? Did she just conjure them with magic while we were bickering?

I gave her my arm as instructed, and she began applying medicine and wrapping bandages around it.

But… her technique leaves much to be desired.

“This is your first time doing this, isn’t it?”

“Of course. Normally we heal injuries right away…”

As expected of the Imperial Family, who maintain close relations with the healing-specialized Trier Family.

They probably never leave injuries untreated.

If I asked for healing now, I could receive treatment immediately.

But Celia seems to have noticed that I don’t particularly want that, which is why we’re doing this.

“I wondered why we kept bandages we never use, but I guess this day has come.”

But if she’s going to wrap it like that, I’d prefer she didn’t do it at all.

Your Highness? Bandages aren’t ribbons.

“All done. How is it?”

“Thank you. But it’s quite amateurish.”

“…I’ll unwrap it so you can do it yourself.”

She’s getting defensive after doing a poor job.

In the end, I had to rewrap the bandage myself.

As soon as the treatment was finished, Celia hurriedly left.

“Well then, I’ll be going. Good night, Ludion.”

She seems embarrassed. As if she’s always acted so dignified before.

Somehow, I feel wide awake now.

I might as well read some of the books I borrowed before sleeping.

It would be a waste to leave them untouched after going through the trouble of borrowing them.

So I opened a book… and fell asleep at some point.

Books really are the best sleeping pills. No need for actual medication.

///

“Your Highness. What brings you out at this hour?”

“It’s nothing to worry about. I’m just returning to my room now.”

Click.

By the time she returned to her room, it was well past bedtime.

She lay down on her bed, but her face flushed as she recalled what she had just done.

‘Why did I say that there…’

Thump! Thump!

She took out her frustration on her blanket, but the heat in her face wouldn’t subside.

Of course, it was true that she had used a tracking spell.

But still…

“Mother, why did you teach me such a thing…”

To be honest, it wasn’t entirely her own will, so she couldn’t help but blame the person who caused the incident.

Yes. Everything that happened was because of her mother.

After dinner, she had originally planned to escort Ludion to the guest room.

But a sudden summons from her mother made that impossible.

In the end, she left Ludion in the care of a servant and responded to her mother’s call.

“Mother, why did you call for me?”

“You’re here? Sit down first.”

When she opened the door to the room she was called to, her mother was sitting at a table as if she had been waiting.

The table was filled with desserts that she loved.

There was no reason to refuse, nor any need to, so she sat down as her mother instructed.

“So? How much do you like him?”

“…Pardon?”

It was a trap.

Well, she had somewhat expected this kind of conversation, but…

She didn’t expect such a direct question right as she sat down, before she even had a chance to taste the desserts.

“Ludion, I mean. Though I still don’t want to give my daughter away, I’ve always dreamed of giving love advice to my daughter.”

She couldn’t answer immediately, so her mother added an explanation, but she still couldn’t respond.

How much do I like him?

[Current Favorability: 39/100]

She couldn’t show this to her mother. And it was too embarrassing to simply say “a lot”… it was truly a difficult question.

But perhaps even her silence was an answer. Her mother’s lips curled up slightly.

“Let me give you some advice, Celia. In these matters, you need to take the initiative. Someone like him must have potential rivals, don’t you think?”

…Hearing those words, one person’s face suddenly came to mind.

The Student Council President, Alkine.

The fervor in her eyes whenever she looked at Ludion was certainly not a simple emotion.

Recently, that fervor had grown even more intense.

‘Lilith also talks to him quite frequently…’

But it probably wasn’t her. She didn’t seem particularly interested, and she was too busy teasing Celia by bringing up Ludion.

In the end, there was only one person who could be considered a rival.

“There… is one.”

“I thought so.”

Alkine. If anyone at the Academy deserved to stand beside Ludion, it would surely be her.

Her combat prowess was truly remarkable.

While Celia was always with Ludion now… what if a dangerous situation arose?

What if they had to face a threat that she couldn’t help with?

In that case… those two would likely end up solving the problem together.

She didn’t like that. The thought of them building a bond together made her want to cry.

Although she had confessed her feelings and left the choice to Ludion, she couldn’t help feeling anxious from the moment such thoughts occurred to her.

“Want to know the method I used?”

“…What is it?”

Those words were like a ray of light to her.

So she couldn’t refuse… but the content was so outrageous that her jaw dropped.

“First, use tracking and surveillance spells to figure out everything they do and where they go. You’ll quickly learn what that person wants. Target that, and it’s instant success.”

It wasn’t so much a method as it was a crime committed using magic.

“I know. But it worked, didn’t it? And back then, your father wasn’t even Emperor yet.”

When she pointed this out, her mother replied nonchalantly.

It was so absurd that she couldn’t help but argue back.

“He may not have been Emperor, but he was the Crown Prince.”

“Hmm~ That’s true.”

“That’s not something you can just brush off…”

She knew her mother was extraordinary, but this was beyond her imagination.

In a way, she felt admiration—this method was only possible because no one could oppose her mother.

That thought led her to wonder about herself.

If she, a member of the Imperial Family, were to cast tracking and surveillance spells on Ludion, a commoner… would anyone dare to say anything?

“So? Don’t you need it? I was going to teach you.”

“…”

Though she was clearly conflicted, her heart had already made its decision.

“Are you sure you don’t need it?”

“…Just teach me the tracking spell. That’s enough.”

“Hehe. I’ll teach you both, and you can decide what to use.”

And so, she made that decision.

Her attempt to avoid learning the surveillance spell was her last remaining conscience.

In the end, she was forced to learn it… but she didn’t feel the need to use it.

Things had already gone wrong from the moment she decided to learn the tracking spell, but when doing something bad, one needs some form of rationalization.

She ended up using the tracking spell soon after learning it.

Before bedtime. She could use it while delivering the “Journey of the Stars” series she had promised him.

She had worried that Ludion, who immediately noticed whenever she used magic, would catch on, but for some reason, he didn’t notice anything.

It couldn’t be that he was pretending not to know. He wasn’t very good at acting.

After casting the tracking spell and returning to her room, she could clearly sense Ludion’s location.

Though they were certainly far apart, it somehow felt like… they were sharing the same space.

‘If I stay like this, it feels like we’re always together.’

Of course, Ludion wouldn’t know, but it didn’t matter if only she knew and felt it.

This sensation… was enough for her own satisfaction.

However, she didn’t particularly plan to maintain the tracking spell.

‘Even if he doesn’t notice now, he might find out someday.’

Above all, this felt too perverted.

She admitted to being a bit forward, but she didn’t want to admit to being a pervert.

Well, it’s not like she never had such thoughts… no, she didn’t. Absolutely not.

Whatever the case, this wasn’t right. She needed to cancel the spell quickly…

“Huh?”

It was gone.

More precisely, it had disappeared.

The target of the tracking spell had vanished as if it had never existed, causing the spell to wander, lost without a destination.

Just a moment ago, it felt like they were together, but now that feeling had vanished like an illusion, leaving her with a sense of emptiness.

This wasn’t the spell being broken. The target of the spell had disappeared.

Thinking that something might have happened to Ludion, her body moved before her mind.

Slam!

She opened her door and retraced the path she had just taken.

Upon reaching the guest room, she opened the door without even knocking.

“…Ludion? Where did you go?”

But the room was empty.

Only the few books she had lent him earlier sat lonely on the desk.

She couldn’t sense Ludion’s presence anywhere.

Only the tracking spell she had placed indicated where he had last stood.

…Why had he moved the bookshelf? As always, he remained an incomprehensible person.

But she knew enough to understand that he wasn’t the type to move bookshelves without purpose or disappear without a word.

“You’ll be back soon, right?”

Muttering alone in an empty room, she could only wait for Ludion’s return.

Then, suddenly, numerous words began to appear before her eyes.

[Trusting Wait. Favorability increases by 1!]

[You have achieved Favorability 40!]

[You gain a special reward and exclusive ability stat.]

[You receive the ‘Concept Materialization’ bonus as a favorability reward.]

[The exclusive ability stat ‘Time’ increases.]

[Current Time value: 1]

[Checking changes in Time value.]

[You can partially see the future that the target knows.]

‘…Future?’

After reading all the words and wondering about their meaning… her consciousness began to fade, making it impossible to think deeply.

Feeling like she might collapse if she remained standing, she quickly pulled over a nearby chair and sat down, losing consciousness right there.