"Your Highness Mirecia is truly beautiful, no matter what you wear, it never gets boring to look at~" Aeciphysis said, picking up her teacup with a playful tone.
"Thank you for the compliment. Miss Aeciphysis is truly a stunning beauty, a sight beyond compare," Mirecia responded politely.
"Oh? You think I'm beautiful, Your Highness Mirecia?" Upon hearing the compliment, Aeciphysis smiled like a flower, moving just a bit closer.
"I think even the most insincere people can’t deny that Miss Aeciphysis’s appearance is extraordinary." Mirecia smiled politely. This was honestly what she thought—Aeciphysis was indeed the most beautiful person she had ever seen, like a fairy, dreamy and ethereal, as if she didn’t belong to this world.
"How charming! When I first saw you, Your Highness Mirecia, I thought you were incredibly beautiful, like an angel descending from the heavens." Aeciphysis let out a melodious laugh, her voice like silver bells.
If a man had said this, it would have seemed rude and frivolous, but when it came from a beautiful woman, it took on an entirely different meaning.
"You flatter me. Miss Aeciphysis, is there something important you need, or are you just here to chat?" Mirecia took a sip of tea.
"Well, it could be both~" Aeciphysis gently pressed her white hand to her lips. "You know, the entrance season for Aeciphysis Academy is coming up soon, and I’m new here. I wanted to learn more about the academy’s matters, so I came to trouble you, Your Highness. I hope you don’t mind."
"By the way, after the entrance season, I might be calling you ‘senior’." Aeciphysis's voice was sweet, like honey. "I hope that’s not disrespectful?"
"Of course not. You can just call me by my name here." Mirecia gave a gentle smile, her expression serene.
"Then, may I call you Mirecia-senpai?" Aeciphysis fluttered her violet eyes playfully.
"If you prefer." Mirecia hesitated for a moment.
"Great, then, Mirecia-senpai~" Aeciphysis smiled, her tone sweet.
Just then, a maid was about to enter the garden but was stopped by Karine. The maid whispered something in Karine’s ear, and Karine frowned deeply.
"The princess has finally had some peace and quiet these days. Don’t bother her with this." Karine whispered to the maid, signaling for her to leave and not inform the princess.
"Karine, is something the matter?" Mirecia, having noticed the maid approaching the garden, called her over.
"This... Your Highness, it’s nothing urgent," Karine said helplessly.
"Let me hear it anyway."
"Very well." Karine reluctantly agreed.
"I’m sorry," Mirecia cast a apologetic glance at Aeciphysis, feeling sorry for the disruption.
"It’s fine, of course, important matters come first~" Aeciphysis smiled and shook her head.
"Please, what is it?" Mirecia asked the maid.
"Your Highness, the situation is like this: it seems that young master Winnie is going to have a one-on-one duel with a squire from the Dragon Knight Order, in the palace’s arena."
"........" At the mention of this name, even Mirecia, whose smile was always calm and composed, couldn’t help but furrow her brows slightly.
"What’s going on?" With a sigh in her heart, Mirecia continued to ask.
Knowing Winnie’s reckless personality, this was likely another mess he had gotten himself into. However, before understanding the situation, Mirecia never judged things based on her own emotions or assumptions. Besides, Winnie had been acting rather unusual these past couple of days.
"I'm not sure, but I heard that young master Winnie has been absorbing Soul Art lately."
Then he became overly confident, trying to show off his "new strength" to others?
Mirecia felt a headache coming on. She really hoped it wasn’t like that. If it was, it would mean that after all this time, he was still as immature and hopeless as ever.
Mirecia wished it wasn’t so, but based on what she knew about him and her past experiences, this possibility seemed very high.
"Your Highness, what do you think?"
"Did he tell you this?" Mirecia asked, referring to 'him' with an unspoken understanding.
"No, I overheard a casual conversation between a squire from the Dragon Knight Order. When I asked, they told me."
Upon hearing this, Mirecia grew confused. If Winnie hadn’t personally told the maid, it meant that he didn’t want her to know or be present at the duel.
For a moment, Mirecia felt uncertain about the cause of this head-scratching duel.
"Oh?~ Is it the same Mr. Winnie from a few days ago?" Aeciphysis, who had been silent until then, suddenly spoke, her expression changing subtly after hearing the maid's words.
"It’s him, as you can see. Looks like he’s causing trouble again."
"Your Highness Mirecia, if you wish to go, then do so."
"No need." Mirecia hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
It wasn’t an important matter, so there was no need to interfere.
"It’s fine. I’d like to see it too. How about this, Mirecia-senpai, you accompany me? You can show me around the palace while we’re at it~?" Aeciphysis, having observed Mirecia’s reaction, expressed her desire to go.
".....Alright, since you’ve said so, Miss Aeciphysis."
Mirecia sighed lightly, thinking that if that person caused trouble again, it would be problematic. She stood up with Aeciphysis and left the garden, surrounded by maids.
In a place where no one could see, a strange gleam flashed in Aeciphysis's eyes.
In her previous life, the devil had indeed clashed with several Dragon Knights, but the timing and many details didn’t match up. If she remembered correctly, this event was supposed to happen much later.
Why did it happen earlier? What caused it to happen prematurely?
...Interesting.
Though spending time with Mirecia was precious, it was also crucial to prevent future threats.
If the event occurred earlier, it didn’t matter. If the evil Soul Art of that future devil was too obvious, she could pretend not to know and expose it, cutting the threat off in its infancy.
———
"Stay calm and perform normally." The two Dragon Knights who had seen Winnie at the palace before patted the squire’s shoulder.
"The opponent is just a one-star Soul Art user, and he’s just a squire with no knightly training—he’s a fluff pillow. If you just perform well, you’ll beat him easily."
"Remember, the princess will be watching later," one of the knights glanced at the large audience. "If your abilities catch her eye, you’ll rise to greatness."
"Yes! Thank you for your guidance!" The young squire with brown hair felt deeply grateful, his eyes filled with appreciation.
"I’m just doing my part as a fellow member of the Dragon Knight Order."
"By the way." One of the knights leaned closer to the young squire’s ear, speaking coldly. "Make sure you hit him as hard as you can. It doesn’t matter."
"Understood!"
"Good." The two knights were satisfied and made their way to the audience seats.
Not long after, just as they had predicted, the princess arrived, accompanied by a stunning silver-haired girl.
The young squire, seeing the princess’s beauty, was momentarily stunned. He quickly remembered the knights’ words and slapped himself to snap back to reality.