Ch.55Breaking Off an Engagement Carefully (5)

For a moment, just a brief moment, I thought Aileen had changed.

Unlike before, she was showing a more assertive side, which made me think she had made some kind of decision.

“My lady.”

“……”

“Where did that person who pushed me against the wall earlier go?”

“W-what are you talking about?”

It seemed it had just been a momentary burst of courage.

I couldn’t help but laugh seeing her occasionally squeezing her eyes shut, probably replaying her own words in her head.

Wasn’t it adorable how she was embarrassed by her own actions?

Though her outward expression remained as cold as ever,

I stared intently at Aileen after noticing her reddened ear tips.

“…What are you looking at?”

“You, my lady.”

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

I scratched my cheek at her exasperated glance. It wasn’t wrong, was it?

After all, I had been looking at Aileen,

and after briefly staring at her quickly reddening cheeks, I began to explain why I had been looking at her.

“Didn’t you say you would stay with me? What do you plan to do?”

I knew nothing about the geography of this area.

Unlike when I had previously traveled around the Duke’s territory with Aileen, I had no idea what was famous around here.

I couldn’t take the initiative, and neither could Aileen.

I said this because I had no intention of just staying in our lodgings, but Aileen smiled faintly at my words.

It was a confident smile, as if telling me not to worry about such things.

#

“…Hmm.”

Aileen recalled what she had done a few days ago. Three years of investigation,

the evidence she had gathered couldn’t be considered definitive proof.

And there was only one way to turn that evidence into solid proof.

An artifact.

She knew well that the way to create it was to seek help from Count Kasim,

so Aileen had been contemplating repeatedly. It would draw attention.

Fortunately, she already had an invitation to the regular ball held at Count Kasim’s estate. If so, it would be right to go to the ball with Evan.

“It’s not personal.”

It had become frequent lately for her not to go with Adel Roman, so people didn’t question it much.

There were rumors that their relationship had soured somewhat… but what did that matter?

If this matter ended properly, the result would be the termination of their engagement.

Carefully, and meticulously.

There was no need for Roman to notice the process.

She would maintain her relationship with Roman for the time being, but not advance it any further.

Tap.

After tapping the table with her finger while thinking for a moment, she frowned as Evan’s face came to mind.

Even if things went well with Count Kasim, it was clear they wouldn’t return to the Duke’s territory right away.

They might need to verify the artifact creation process, and leaving immediately after speaking with Count Kasim would look improper.

So what should they do during the remaining time?

While she was contemplating with narrowed eyes, a crunching sound from beside her made Aileen turn her head.

“…Ah.”

“Rofena? How long have you been there?”

“For a while. You looked busy, so I stayed quiet.”

Aileen could only stare blankly at Rofena as she munched on cookies.

It seemed like it had been over ten years since she met Rofena, yet she hadn’t changed at all. Why was that?

But perhaps that was better. If Rofena had changed, it would have felt awkward.

After staring at Rofena for a while, a sudden thought made her sigh.

If they met Count Kasim as planned, they would obviously have to stay cooped up in their lodgings afterward.

After all, unlike the Duke’s territory, they knew nothing about what was around here.

Wouldn’t Evan dislike staying in the lodgings continuously?

…If that was the case, it might be better if she took him out herself.

It would be much better to take a walk outside than to stay in a stuffy room.

With that thought, Aileen opened her mouth toward Rofena.

She ordered her to find out what was in Count Kasim’s territory.

After gathering information over three full days, she had seen enough to feel confident.

Of course, what she said to Evan was partly impulsive,

but at least they had come outside as she had planned.

Looking at Evan who was staring at her, Aileen smiled faintly and slowly opened her mouth.

“I know a bit about this area.”

“Then I just need to follow you, my lady.”

When Evan laughed at that, Aileen frowned as she looked at him.

If only he would actually do that, not just say it.

She wished he wouldn’t look at anyone else and would follow only her.

But lacking the courage to say that out loud, Aileen let out a faint sigh.

#

By the time we had completely left the ballroom, Aileen’s steps were remarkably confident.

As if she knew exactly what was around here,

she would briefly scan the surroundings and then move decisively. It certainly didn’t look like someone who just “knew a bit.”

“She said she knows a bit, but it seems like she thoroughly researched this place.”

However, I pretended not to notice. Pointing it out would only make the atmosphere awkward.

I smiled at her somewhat excited appearance,

and nodded along as she pointed in various directions, moving with her.

The streets, where darkness was slowly settling, seemed a bit more crowded than the Duke’s territory I knew.

Perhaps because of the nearby ball,

stores that remained open hoping to make a profit from the nobles lined the streets, their bright lights illuminating the area like daylight.

In a way, we were lucky.

If it had been any other day, we might have just walked around and returned to our lodgings without seeing anything.

Aileen didn’t seem to be in a bad mood either, so it seemed best to just go along with her today.

It was nice to be out like this. It reminded me of the past.

Was it three years ago? I felt a warm smile forming as I remembered walking through the city streets of the Duke’s territory the day before Aileen’s birthday.

If I hadn’t gone to Seiren that day, I wonder how things would be now.

Perhaps Aileen and I would still have just that kind of relationship. Not like now, where we look at each other so tentatively, almost touching but not quite.

That would have been somewhat bitter. I wouldn’t have seen the charming sides of Aileen that she occasionally shows.

I had long since figured out why Aileen suggested coming out like this.

Whenever I met the Crown Prince, or when we came out to balls like this, she would always lower her eyebrows.

As if something displeased her, her eyes would grow cold when I did such things. I wasn’t unaware of the reason.

I was just ignoring it, wanting to maintain this relationship a little longer.

That’s what these three years had been for. To reveal my feelings to her a bit more quickly,

to prevent her from being branded as a villainess and meeting a tragic end even if the original female lead appeared.

I advised her and asked the Crown Prince to help raise her standing a bit.

I helped her speak softly when conversing with other nobles,

and made sure that forces completely separate from me could be loyal to her.

So now, even if the original female lead came, it was clear she couldn’t easily bring Aileen down.

The head of the Yuris family was still strong, and her mind hadn’t been devastated.

While I couldn’t claim all the credit for that, I certainly had some part in it.

But confessing my feelings was a different matter.

As her knight, sworn to serve her, could I confess my feelings and become her lover?

Even if Aileen and I felt the same way about each other,

it would be quite difficult to connect immediately. Besides, she currently had a fiancé.

“…Roman.”

It would be a lie to say that Aileen wasn’t part of the reason I disliked Adel Roman.

Ideally, Roman would be connected to the black mage,

but truthfully, I hoped Roman was connected to the black mage. That would make breaking off the engagement more natural.

Call me selfish if you will, but when it came to anything related to Aileen,

I didn’t want to give up a single thing.

But my thoughts didn’t linger long. For such thoughts, the time I had alone with Aileen was far too precious.

I briefly shook my head and turned my gaze back to Aileen.

I smiled faintly at the sight of her flowing white hair breaking into fragments as it caught the moonlight.

“What are you looking for?”

“…Just, I think I heard there’s a famous place around here.”

“Taking a slow walk isn’t bad either. Just looking around like this has its own charm.”

I liked this leisure. I liked this time where we could be alone together on this splendid street.

When I said that, Aileen stared at me for a moment before carefully nodding.

I didn’t particularly want to do anything specific.

Though I didn’t know what she wanted, at least what I wanted was time alone with her.

In a month, Roman’s fate would be decided.

Until then, I should enjoy this leisure as much as possible.

If Roman is revealed to be a black mage, things will likely get quite busy in various ways.

For both Aileen and me, this might be the last time we can be together like this.

So we walk through the streets. Matching our steps as if by agreement,

we look at the scenery of the streets where brilliant lights have risen, and the crowds of people moving around.

“Doesn’t it remind you of festival time? Back then, at the Founding Festival.”

“…Yes, it does.”

Comparing the Aileen from then to the Aileen now was almost embarrassing.

She too seemed to recall that memory, glancing at me and moving her lips slightly.

I hadn’t thought about it deeply, but she frowned as if that memory didn’t please her at all.

“Do you dislike being with me?”

When I asked teasingly, Aileen looked at me with a start.

“That’s not it! Why would you suddenly say such a thing? You’re making me feel bad.”

“Then please don’t make such expressions. I’m enjoying myself, but you seem quite displeased.”

“…I was just wondering if it’s okay to just walk like this. I suggested coming out, but we’ve just been walking the whole time.”

“I’m fine with it, but is there somewhere you’d like to go?”

At those words, Aileen stared at me for a moment, then nodded.

After that, there wasn’t much conversation between us. I just followed her in the direction she was heading,

occasionally asking if she was tired, but she would just smile faintly and say she was fine.

I thought we might be going to one of the places she had researched, and after walking for quite some time,

I couldn’t help but open my mouth slightly at the scene before me.

In the darkness that had now completely fallen, what appeared before us was a brilliant mass of light enough to dispel that darkness.

It looked similar to the scene of the forest dispersing at Seiren, that mysterious lakeside.

The falling stars, and the sight that looked as if those stars had been hung on trees, naturally drew an exclamation from me.

“If you were to pick the most beautiful place in Count Kasim’s territory, it would probably be here.”

“Is this some kind of magic? Glowing fruits…”

As I said, what I marveled at were those glowing fruits hanging abundantly on the trees.

On this moonless night, the sight of those fruits emitting a pure white light was truly enough to captivate one’s gaze.

It was a scene I could never have seen in the modern world where I used to live.

Seeing me look at it with such wonder, Aileen looked at me and smiled slightly before speaking.

“These fruits grow only in Count Kasim’s territory. They bloom from flowers that absorb the energy emitted by light spirits, so you can probably only see them around this time.”

“…Spirits.”

I knew spirits existed, but facing their remnants like this gave me an almost sacred feeling.

Was it because of the spirits that they emitted not just white light, but also a faint bluish energy?

It was like stars had been hung on trees. Don’t we all have such fantasies as children? The desire to touch the stars in the sky.

If this place were to be called a garden, “Garden of Stars” would be a fitting name.

Those fruits emitting white and bluish light were certainly beautiful enough to deserve the name “stars.”

As I carefully reached out toward that light,

I suddenly felt a stinging pain in my heart and clutched my chest.

“Evan, what’s wrong?”

“I’m fine. Just, I suddenly felt strange.”

“…You scared me. Be careful.”

Though Aileen asked urgently, I gestured slightly with my hand to indicate I was fine and carefully looked at the fruit.

It felt strange. As if… it was resonating with my mana.

I felt pain in my heart, but more precisely, wasn’t it the mana contained within that was responding?

But feeling Aileen’s worried gaze, I gave an awkward smile as I put aside thoughts of the fruit.

“I’m really fine. It was just a momentary sense of dissonance.”

“Even so… Sigh, never mind. Let’s just walk. Don’t try to touch the fruits.”

How could I refuse when she said that?

Her eyes showed clear concern,

so I reluctantly ended my interest in the fruits and began walking between the trees.

It was still too early in the season for summer to arrive.

A cool breeze came and tickled my cheeks, and occasionally leaves carried by the wind touched my face.

Tap,

Tap.

Our fingertips brushed with each step.

Every time Aileen’s hand brushed against the back of mine, my heart seemed to flutter unnecessarily.

Should I hold it, or should I resist? Various thoughts swirled in my mind.

But I resisted. Because I felt it wasn’t the right time yet.

Telling myself this was just a coincidence,

that our hands were just brushing as we walked, I suppressed the rising impulse.

Nevertheless, Aileen’s hand continued to brush against the back of mine.

The intervals grew shorter, and now quite blatantly, Aileen’s fingers wiggled and tickled the back of my hand.

Really, how was I supposed to resist?

My lips twisted at the sight of Aileen still looking ahead with an indifferent expression.

Her reddened ear tips, her fingers brushing against the back of my hand.

I wasn’t a fool, and soon my hand slowly began to cover hers.

…It was warm.

Unlike when I held her hand during escorts and she wore gloves, Aileen’s bare hand was soft.

I felt that infinitely warm temperature, so different from the cold atmosphere she usually carried.

The pounding heart, the heat rising in my body simultaneously dispersed the cool breeze in an instant.

Even as I grasped her hand, Aileen still maintained her silence. Her already red ear tips grew even redder,

and I noticed a faint blush appearing on her cheeks.

I wanted to say something, but only excited breaths escaped between my parted lips.

But I liked this silence. Just this moment of our hands touching and connecting was so wonderful. So I just stared blankly ahead.

What might Aileen be thinking? Was her heart pounding with excitement like mine?

Was she hoping this moment would last a little longer, that she could remember this connected warmth?

But, for now, such thoughts were the limit.

It was too early to express our feelings to each other.

Just feeling the warmth of our clasped hands and hoping this time would continue for a long while was all.

I, and probably Aileen too, knew that.

That’s why we stood there without saying anything, just looking ahead.

The fruits on the trees sparkled, and their light slowly seemed to envelop our surroundings.

As the night shadows faded and brilliant light gradually surrounded us.

In that garden of stars where no one else was present, I wished for the eternity of this moment.