Chapter 34
Elisha stared at the woman before her, blinking in bewilderment. Black hair
meticulously braided, mysterious pink eyes under thick lashes. An elegance
inherent in her slight smile. The Second Princess of the Kingdom of Nox.
"Primavera Nox."
When I think about it, Dante Renard had mentioned something like this before.
That the Second Princess of Nox had come to Cardion, targeting the position of
Empress.
"...Greetings to the Princess of Nox. I am Lucy Forte."
But this was not something Lucy Forte should concern herself with. Elisha
immediately lowered her gaze and offered her greeting. Gabrielle followed suit,
bowing her head as well, before speaking cautiously.
"This is the garrison of the magic knight squad. Consequently, it is an area
where outsiders are not allowed to enter..."
"That is why I waited here instead of entering further."
The corners of Primavera's eyes, which were fixed on Elisha, curved gently once
more. Elisha blinked, meeting Primavera's gaze. For a brief moment, their gazes
met, almost stubbornly. Nonetheless, neither of them showed any sign of
confusion.
"I wanted to see you. The subject of the rumors currently circulating in the
Imperial Palace."
After a moment, Primavera spoke, her voice as soft as a song. Gabrielle
instinctively took a step back.
So she came looking for Lucy.
"Surely you won't say you don't know about the rumors in the Imperial Palace."
"......"
"I have heard much about the reputation of the First Magic Knight Squad in
Cardion. An elite squad small in numbers led by Dante Renard. I was told that no
one can join it without great skill."
Finally, Primavera turned her gaze to catch a glimpse of Gabrielle. It was for a
fleeting moment, just a blink of an eye. Then, she fixed her eyes on Elisha
again and continued.
"I heard you played a major role in the incident at the Shilan Plains."
At the same time, Gabrielle's eyebrows twitched slightly upward.
Has the rumor spread this far already?
The fact that the Dixion delegation had been attacked at the Shilan Plains would
have spread widely, of course, but the official version should have been that
Dante Renard and his knights had resolved the matter.
"Nox places a particularly high value on information, you see."
Collecting it from everywhere is a hobby of mine.
As if she felt Gabrielle's gaze, Primavera answered with a delicate smile. At
that moment, Gabrielle hurriedly composed herself. There was nothing stupider
than letting one's thoughts be read by another person, especially someone from a
foreign state. She had to be careful, very careful.
At least Lucy is expressionless, which is a relief, but...
While she cast a glance to check on Elisha—
"Huh."
At that moment, Gabrielle could not help but mutter quietly. Even her eyes were
wide with surprise. Fortunately, neither Lucy nor the Princess of Nox seemed to
notice or think much of it...
Lucy's expression...?
She had not known Lucy Forte for long, but Gabrielle was fundamentally good at
reading people's facial expressions. That is why she could be certain. That was
the expression that settles on someone's face when they are extremely displeased
with something.
"She looks more annoyed even than when she heard the Captain's jokes."
Her expression was something else at that time too. Gabrielle thought, unable to
take her eyes off her.
Was it a relief that this was the first time Primavera had seen Lucy Forte? To
anyone else, her face might have seemed merely expressionless. Regardless, her
subordinate was radiating such annoyance. It would not be right for a superior
to ignore her.
"Um, Your Highness the Princess. I apologize for the interruption, but if there
is no great inconvenience, may we be excused? I can also summon someone to
escort you outside the garrison."
Because my team member looks extremely uncomfortable with you...
Gabrielle swallowed the last part of her thought neatly and spoke cautiously.
Then Primavera touched her index finger to her cheek and smiled, her eyes
crinkling.
"I will not go any further, so do not worry too much."
"This—."
"Besides, I was waiting because I have business with this one here."
Now that we've met, it would be a shame to leave, right?
She then turned her gaze to Elisha, still wearing a gentle smile. Gabrielle
could not say anything else and closed her mouth.
I'm sorry, Lucy. I am just a helpless Vice-Captain, so I cannot help you further
than this...
"Thank you for your high regard for me, but."
At that moment, Elisha, who had been silent all the while, opened her mouth. Her
voice was incredibly calm and composed.
"If this is the only reason you came all this way, I find it a bit hard to
understand."
"Oh my."
Regardless of how powerful Cardion was, for a new recruit to say such a thing to
a princess. Gabrielle swallowed hard, her expression more shocked than before.
Primavera simply stared at Elisha for a moment before smiling lightly.
"Isn't it obvious if you think about it for a moment?"
"......"
"The Dixion delegation was nearly wiped out, even though they could not have
lacked escorts. Yet, a few people defeated such a monster. Moreover, you, Lucy
Forte, were named as a key figure."
Primavera's pink eyes stared unblinkingly at Elisha, as if she were trying to
see through her. Elisha met her gaze without flinching. After a moment passed,
Primavera continued.
"On top of all that, the Emperor of Cardion personally brought you to the
Imperial Palace, and there are even rumors that he shows you unprecedented
favor."
Personally, I feel it is less of a rumor and more of a fact.
The corners of Primavera's cat-like eyes drew a perfect arc. Elisha thought
about Primavera's words without responding. The Princess of Nox described the
number of people who defeated the monster as "a few people." Had she known the
situation precisely, she would have said clearly "two people."
"She seems the type who enjoys showing off what she knows."
Her personality was clear after only a few words exchanged. Elisha's gaze
followed Primavera relentlessly. Since she did not know all the information
reported to the Emperor, it seemed she had not planted someone inside the
Imperial Palace.
"She has been gathering scraps of information floating here and there."
I will have to have Dante Renard make sure the squad members keep their mouths
shut. While Elisha finished organizing her thoughts—
"An Emperor showing special favor to young mages. When I think about it, his
fiancée was also a 'Great Mage,' wasn't she."
"......"
"Perhaps His Majesty the Emperor simply has a preferred type."
Primavera uttered the words with a touch of laughter in her voice. At the same
time, Elisha frowned. It happened before Gabrielle could even respond in shock.
"Did I say something rude?"
Then Primavera asked with an innocent smile. Elisha answered without any
hesitation.
"Yes."
Gabrielle's mouth fell open, looking back and forth between the two.
Lucy, that answer seems a bit rude too...
"Did you come here to ask about my relationship with His Majesty the Emperor?"
Taking a step further, Elisha looked directly at Primavera and asked. Primavera
shook her head slowly and let out a hearty laugh.
"I did not come because of His Majesty. Although, of course, there would be
nothing better for me than forming a good relationship with Cardion."
Given the Emperor's reaction in our last meeting, that seems a desperate
prospect.
"I was sincerely curious. About who this character named Lucy Forte is, and how
competent she is."
Then Primavera spoke, the corners of her eyes curving cunningly. Then, with a
gentle smile like a flower petal fluttering on her lips—
"It would have been nice if you were assigned as my escort."
She added in a somewhat sincere voice. Watching this, Gabrielle thought:
"Being too competent is exhausting."
Dim moonlight decorated the corridor leading to the library. Elisha recalled the
day's events as she walked quickly down the hallway.
"Then I will count on you at the meeting as well."
Primavera departed with those words, her eyes never leaving Elisha until the
end. Gabrielle seemed not to think about it, believing that competent people
must face difficulties.
"Nonetheless, it bothers me."
There was no clear reason, but Primavera kept occupying her mind. Not in a good
way, of course. Primavera had not come to evaluate her as a rival, and the
emotion in her eyes was certainly curiosity. But for some reason, it left a bad
taste in her mouth. Although it was something she could overlook. And more than
just being suspicious, it was as if she simply did not like Primavera herself...
"Let's not think about it."
Thinking about unclear feelings would only cause confusion. Elisha shook her
head several times and continued walking. In her hand was Dante Renard's library
entry card.
"Someone of Dante Renard's status should be able to access most of the books."
Graded access restriction magic that exists only in the Cardion Imperial
Library. Publicly, it was known as a spell devised by the Magic Research
Department in Cardion, but this too was ultimately Eric's creation. It restricts
access to books based on a person's importance and trustworthiness within the
Imperial Palace. Until then, soldiers had to guard the library entrance
directly, so it was a very practical spell that reduced manpower and increased
security. He even considered the possibility of an entry card being stolen and
added an anti-theft feature so that the library barrier would only be
deactivated if the owner personally handed it over.
"I will go to the library when I finish. Let's leave together..."
The look on Renard's face as he was dragged away by Mullin Cassus after leaving
her with those words. Elisha recalled Dante Renard's painful expression as she
touched the card to the center of the barrier. A blue light burst from the point
of contact, and soon the barrier opened just enough for one person to pass.
Blue means second level access, I believe.
"As expected, Renard's rank is high."
After all, the third level is where the number of restricted books began to
increase. Level two access was a rank granted only to high-level officials. To
her knowledge, this included Dante Renard, Mullin Cassus, and the captains and
vice-captains of each squad. Level one access was reserved for the Imperial
family and, as an exception, for Elisha. Although she no longer possessed
'Elisha's' entry card, level one was effectively limited to the Imperial family.
At that moment, as she entered the library—
"......?"
Elisha stopped in her tracks, staring in bewilderment at the man who appeared
before her. It was Eric von Cardion.
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