“……Go back first today.”
I need to sort out my thoughts.
That was what Dante Renard had said to Elisha before heading to his office.
Upon hearing those words, Elisha nodded as if she understood, then turned away from her path toward the estate and headed to the library instead.
It wasn’t that she was waiting for Dante Renard, but for some reason, the thought of being alone in the empty estate didn’t sit well with her.
She liked the quiet, but she didn’t like being alone.
The imperial palace was always full of people. No matter how silent a space might be, the fact that people were staying there never changed.
“You’ve come again today.”
As soon as she entered the library, the librarian who was organizing books greeted her warmly. Elisha nodded lightly and returned the greeting.
“I’ve set aside the book you were reading last time. The second-grade reading room doesn’t get many visitors anyway, and among them, the books Ms. Forte reads are the ones no one ever touches, so……”
“Thank you.”
Of course, that wasn’t why she had come today.
Elisha bowed her head once more and began to weave through the bookshelves.
Walking while trailing her fingers along the edges of the shelves often enveloped her in a strange sense of peace. Perhaps it was because this place was the most familiar space she could enter as “Lucy Forte.”
Bowing her head to someone or using honorifics wasn’t particularly difficult. It was something she could easily do as long as she grasped her current position. In the same vein, changing her own clothes or taking care of her own meals was not difficult at all.
Once she learned and mastered something, it was no longer a difficult task. Elisha liked the act of learning.
And because this library was where that learning existed. And because so many memories had accumulated here.
Perhaps her daily visits to the library were closer to a desire to pursue what she liked, rather than simply to gather information.
Elisha took a deep breath and lifted her lowered eyelashes.
Things she liked, places she liked.
And someone she liked…….
“Lucy Forte.”
Elisha blinked blankly at the figure that soon filled her vision.
“……Your Majesty.”
“I heard you hadn’t left work yet.”
To think she would come to the library again.
Erich smiled, his eyes crinkling softly with an expression that seemed entirely unsurprised.
It went without saying, but he had already anticipated that she would come here. That didn’t mean he had come here specifically to meet Elisha, however.
Though not as much as Elisha, Erich also quite liked the library.
It was true that he had come into the second-grade reading room partly because he wanted to run into her.
Still, he didn’t want to be noticed by others, so he had deliberately taken a seat in a secluded spot to read.
‘To think he’d find me right away.’
“What brings you here?”
Erich asked, feigning ignorance. Elisha rolled her eyes and replied.
“Sir Renard said he still has some overtime work left, so I’m waiting for him……”
“Dante Renard.”
That couldn’t be right.
Erich tilted his head slightly, leaving his sentence unfinished.
He certainly hadn’t given Dante any particular tasks. Did Müllen Cassus have something else he’d asked of him?
‘Whatever it is, it’s not my concern.’
Erich soon straightened his head and blinked slowly.
Dante Renard’s affairs were a topic irrelevant to him. The only thing that mattered was the fact that Elisha was standing in front of him right now.
“I’ve readjusted your reading clearance. You don’t have to borrow Dante Renard’s pass anymore.”
He spoke with a gentle smile. Elisha nodded lightly.
He had probably adjusted it to second grade. In any case, it seemed she could just return Dante Renard’s library pass today.
Come to think of it, she had something to say regarding that.
“Your Majesty.”
Elisha opened her mouth with a rather serious expression. Erich raised an eyebrow, taking in every detail of her appearance.
It was a silent invitation to speak her mind.
Elisha did not avoid Erich’s gaze as she continued.
“While using Sir Renard’s pass to access the library, I’ve been thinking about the structure of the barrier.”
“And then?”
“I understand that the current barrier system cannot be deactivated unless the pass is handed over by the owner themselves. I used to think that was the best method, but given the series of incidents we’ve experienced recently, I believe a higher level of security is necessary.”
“Lucy Forte’s” light green eyes sparkled with the fervor of “Elisha.” Erich chewed on her words and nodded slowly.
To think she would talk only about work without a single hint of distraction, even after hearing those words from me earlier today.
Not that there was ever a time he didn’t like that about Elisha.
“Come to think of it, the culprit of this incident used cognitive impairment magic.”
“There is no law stating that those targeting Cardion cannot use the same magic. If someone uses magic to impersonate another and steal a pass, there is effectively no way to stop them.”
“Impersonating someone, you say.”
For a moment, Erich’s gaze pierced through Elisha. Elisha blinked her eyelashes rapidly three times.
Technically, Elisha was using a disguise, not impersonation.
Erich soon withdrew his gaze from her and pulled the corners of his lips into a faint smile.
“Yes, I will keep that in mind.”
“Please do more than just keep it in mind; the barrier must be overhauled as soon as possible.”
“You demand a lot from someone who has only just risen from their sickbed.”
“That is……”
“I didn’t mean it as a reprimand.”
Erich immediately denied it at Elisha’s slightly drooping tone.
I shouldn’t keep talking like this; Elisha might take even this to heart.
It takes quite a lot of effort to break a habit once formed.
He let out a breath and opened his mouth again.
“The barrier modification was something that had to be done anyway. Furthermore, the guards protecting the barrier need to be reorganized as well.”
“Pointing a spear at a mage is not much of a threat.”
“That is exactly why I say so.”
Who would dare threaten anyone with a spear?
Erich let out a dry laugh as he recalled the events of the day.
They say nothing is perfect from the start, but with the allied nations’ conference having just ended, the work only seemed to be piling up, making him feel a bit weary.
His recent illness must have been a side effect of that as well.
“……Please do not overexert yourself.”
Just then, a calm voice drifted into Erich’s ears. Erich snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Elisha, who stood before him.
If a god were to forge lingering attachments into a human, perhaps they would become Elisha.
To think she would worry this much about someone who had never once said a kind word to her. Whatever emotion lay beneath that concern, the fact that she was foolish remained unchanged.
“Lucy Forte.”
Erich called her name cautiously. Elisha, as always, stared intently at him, waiting for the words that would come from his lips.
A brief silence passed, and Erich spoke in a low voice.
“Why is it that humans cannot cherish what is precious to them while they still have it?”
“…….”
“They always realize it and regret it only after they have lost it.”
His signature blue eyes stared directly at Elisha. Elisha did not avoid his gaze this time either, slowly closing and opening her eyes.
Again, that strange, unsettling feeling.
She couldn’t understand why Erich kept bringing up these kinds of topics in front of her. He claimed he didn’t even speak properly to others, so she couldn’t fathom why he was only like this with “Lucy Forte.”
“Your Majesty, why.”
In the end, Elisha, unable to hold it in, asked.
“Why are you telling me these things?”
Erich answered without taking his eyes off her.
“Because I do not wish to repeat the same mistakes.”
It could be called a truly impulsive remark.
The fact that Lucy Forte is Elisha must not be revealed. At least until Elisha had experienced many things and could make her own choices, it was right to keep it hidden.
But even then, there were moments—very rare moments—when his instincts outpaced his reason.
He wanted her to know his feelings and wanted her to notice his desires. Just like now.
‘Did she understand?’
What he meant by those words.
For a moment, Erich stared at Elisha, breathless and intense.
If she understood, what should he do next? Tell her not to mind him and do as she pleases? And what if she left him then?
Could he handle that?
“……I see.”
However, Elisha’s subsequent reaction was quite lukewarm. Erich let out a sigh of relief.
In this regard, it might be fortunate that Elisha was dull. Otherwise, he couldn’t even imagine what might have happened by now.
‘After I am fully prepared.’
It was a matter to be handled only after all misunderstandings were cleared, and only after he knew her true heart. He must not act recklessly, led by his own emotions.
Elisha must not return as “Elisha” just yet.
Having finished his thoughts, Erich finally let out a long, held breath.
Elisha watched him, biting her inner lip slightly.
To say he was bringing this up to Lucy Forte because he “did not wish to repeat the same mistakes.”
Was she a precious person to Erich?
And more than that.
Had Lucy Forte become a precious person to Erich?
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