✦ Chapter 29 – I Will Teach You What Fear Is (3) ✦
On the day of departure for Ruiple and the wager—
In an elegant room of a mansion worthy of being called a castle, Hedera — the Second Imperial Princess, a Lingual Mage, and the Dragon Blood possessor — sipped tea as sunlight streamed through the window. The tea leaves were a rare luxury from the Celestial Realm, said to be worth their weight in gold in the mortal world.
Her gaze was directed outside, where three knights including Valken were training in the practice yard.
Whoosh―!
The knights moved ceaselessly with their swords. Compared to just a week ago, there was a noticeable improvement. While Valken still held the center, the other two knights could now keep up reasonably well; to the point where they were beginning to show some synergy.
All sorts of shouts filled the training ground.
“Give it your all! Her Highness has ordered us to do our best in this wager and not underestimate our opponent!”
“Yes!”
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Indeed, his reputation as a knight was well-deserved.
“Hmm.”
However, Hedera’s thoughts were currently quite complicated.
She put down her teacup with a thud; that’s because she couldn’t smell the fragrance of the tea leaves that were so famous for being so rich. Her thoughts were that complicated.
“…Ezekiel,” she muttered, slightly furrowing her brow.
A week ago, Ezekiel’s presentation was amazing. As she already knew, his magical prowess and potential were not to be underestimated. Still.
So, Princess Solara, the third princess, must have offered him the position of Inspector because she knew that too. It was only natural.
“I expected it.”
It made sense, so she had anticipated it.
Yes, it was something she had clearly expected.
And yet, despite that…
What happened that day was full of questions for Hedera.
It wasn’t a question of others, but a question of herself.
If what she had expected had happened, then she should have only dealt with it according to plan. Hadn’t Hedera always dealt with life’s problems in that way?
Rational thinking. Emotionless.
These were the most important elements to her, the possessor of the Dragon’s Blood and the Lingual Magic. She had always thought of others as mere human beings.
That’s why the memory of that day was just a question.
“Why did I…”
Why had she unknowingly encouraged the wager?
Knowing the time was tight.
Knowing the chances of winning were slim.
Even going so far as to offer the Imperial Treasury as a reward.
“…Why on earth did I suggest the wager?”
She had made a fair judgment in her own way, but it was also true that Hedera had instigated it by promising excessive rewards.
She didn’t expect anything from others, only treating them as humans. She was not interested in them, so she didn’t even consider them as objects of amusement… That’s how it should have been.
…What was she feeling when she did that?
—I’m sincere.
Suddenly, she recalled Ezekiel’s words and she unfolded the letter she had crumpled.
One line stood out conspicuously—
⌠In this short life, I hope at least you find happiness.⌡
“…………”
And next to it, a picture that she had not yet crumpled up.
It was undoubtedly a drawing by Ezekiel’s own hand. A profile of Hedera from the distant past, engrossed in her studies.
…Had there really been days when she wore such an expression?
Had Ezekiel always seen her with this face?
Hedera looked in the mirror, finding it hard to believe. The bright-eyed girl was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a woman with a cold expression.
The picture was absurd, unbelievable.
Yet the reason she hadn’t crumpled this drawing yet was because of the line—
⌠In this short life, I hope at least you find happiness.⌡
Happiness.
The girl in the picture certainly looked happy.
“…Could it be, for my happiness?”
Did he accept the position of Inspector and even agreed to the outrageous terms of this wager purely for Hedera’s happiness?
Was he determined to bring her happiness, whatever it might be?
And at the same time, was she expecting something?
Did she impulsively suggest the wager, hoping Ezekiel would find that happiness for her?
If that were the case…
If it really were so…
“Let’s stop thinking about this.”
Hedera shook her head vigorously.
What was important to her, what was her happiness —
It was now only the Ascension Ceremony. Wasn’t her sole aspiration to be reborn as a member of the dragons in the Celestial Realm?
Emotionless. Hedera had to maintain that state.
She’d just ask him directly why he accepted the wager. He shouldn’t find that suspicious.
“Stop thinking about stopping thinking.”
The woman soon fell into deep meditation.
~~••~~••~~
On the day of departure and the wager.
I started warming up my body from dawn.
Ssss―
The state of my ice-type magic was excellent as usual.
A noticeable improvement in refinement compared to when I was lazing around like a bum in the town. My proficiency has improved again recently as I’ve been using magic a lot more.
Ssss―
I first created a few ice crystals before stopping. I was already confident in my own magic; what I really wanted to check was something else.
I glanced at the pink-haired mage beside me.
“Belka.”
“Ah, y-yes…!”
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Belka hurriedly ran over and stood at attention.
My constitution was unable to withstand the excessive cold of my body and mana. But what if I could get the heat to neutralize it from someone other than a sunstick?
…It would be convenient.
In the first place, it takes a considerable amount of time for my body to absorb the heat of the sunweed. In other words, if I want to use magic at 2 o’clock, I have to start chewing it at 1 o’clock.
But if I got it from someone, it was possible immediately.
I placed the back of my hand on Belka’s forehead. Just that, and steam immediately started to rise.
Hiss―!
“Phew-w-w… it’s cool…!”
Belka stuck out her tongue like a dog on a summer day and wore an expression of bliss. I could also clearly feel heat similar to sunweed.
However.
“─!”
At some point, Belka’s eyes widened.
And snot dripped from Belka’s nose.
“C-c-c-cold…! I’m going to freeze to death…!”
“That’s enough for now.”
I immediately removed my hand.
As expected, the total amount of heat was insignificant compared to sunweed. If I had continued to pour in cold, she would have certainly died of hypothermia.
“The total amount of heat is insufficient, but…”
It was quite satisfactory in that I could obtain heat instantly. If nurtured, the returns will surely be great.
I showed Belka a sunweed.
“Say hello.”
“Ah, h-hello…! But to whom…?”
“To the sunweed. It’s your senior.”
“S-Sunweed senior…! Hello…!”
It was then.
“…What on earth are you doing?”
Agnes appeared at the training ground and as usual, she was expressionless, spinning a cube in one hand.
“It’s time. Are you ready for departure?”
I looked at the clock and saw that it was time to go.
“Let’s get going then.”
“Understood.”
As the three of us started walking, Agnes asked—
“…In the end, we didn’t do any training for a week. Is it really okay to depart like this?”
“No need to ask about everything. You’ll find out soon enough.”
It’s not that I didn’t have any thoughts. I just already had a concrete plan and the confidence to realize it.
After all, this isn’t my first visit to Ruiple.
“I understand.”
Agnes gave up surprisingly quickly. Though she still seemed to have many thoughts, it wasn’t an issue that could be resolved with words. Doubts could only become certainty when addressed on the spot.
As we continued to walk, we soon left the Imperial Magic Tower behind.
The starting point was a large square near the Magic Tower. And two sizable carriages were already waiting.
The three knights on the other side greeted us.
“I’m surprised you didn’t run away, Inspector,” Valken, fully covered in helmet and armor, sneered from the start, but I didn’t bother to engage.
Because there was another, more important person.
Thud―
Someone descended from the enormous carriage and approached.
The Empire’s Second Princess, Dragon Blood possessor, and the wielder of Dragon Speech… It was Hedera. She stood conspicuously between Valken and me, holding a yellow request form.
“As the erosion in the Ruiple region has been severe recently, I am sending the Imperial Magic Tower Inspector and escort knights in person. The two parties should prioritize the safety of the imperial citizens over competition.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Valken shouted loudly and I too just went along with it.
Hedera nodded as well.
“Good. That concludes the oath. Depart immediately.”
The three knights promptly boarded their carriage, and Agnes and Belka also got into the other carriage. I was about to follow them with a nonchalant gait….
…at that very moment, in a split second…
“Shall we talk?”
…Hedera’s voice stopped me.
As I half-turned my head, Hedera had already lowered her mask, her pupils vertically slit.
And in an unexpected moment, the Dragon Speech burst forth.
“Tell me why you accepted the wager.”
Paat!
Immediately after, an absolute force enveloped me.
While I generally had resistance to Dragon Speech, resistance basically requires an immense amount of mana. In simple terms, with only one sunweed left, the cost-effectiveness of high mana-consuming resistance wasn’t great right now.
I thought for a split second.
‘I can answer this question well enough.’
It would be much more beneficial to answer and conserve mana.
And after making my judgment, I only put up minimal resistance. Just enough to make the specific answer sound abstract.
After a while, my mouth uttered a voice—
“There’s a reason I absolutely must win this wager.”
“………..”
And then there was a moment of silence.
“……….?”
However, Hedera’s face was particularly marked with surprise. It was something I couldn’t understand.
“……….”
More than surprise; perhaps an expression close to astonishment.
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But it didn’t matter. I was sure I didn’t misspeak.
“…Let’s continue this conversation after the wager is over.”
I turned my back for now.
But I could feel her gaze boring into the back of my head.
End of Chapter. . . . . . . .Thanks for Reading. . . . . . . . .