In the room where Lydith disappeared, as if sucked into the light, I grabbed onto Soleil.
âWhat the hell is going on, Soleil?â
Soleil was slender and, being Lydithâs older brother, he was rather feminine and good-looking.
The butler grabbed my wrist and lightly pulled me away from Soleil.
âMaster Rafael, I cannot overlook your disrespect towards Soleil.â
âShut up. Donât interfere.â
âRafael. Youâre back to using words, arenât you?â
It was not wise to associate with the Dukes.
I distanced myself from Soleil and shook my head to calm down.
âLydith isnât here, so thereâs no point in trying to mend things. Explain, Soleil. Where has Lydith disappeared to?â
âI donât know where the soft-spoken, gentle Crown Prince has gone. I wish you wouldnât stare at me like that. You canât shoot me dead with your gaze, you know.â
Soleil shrugged his shoulders. I didnât like him much to begin with, but heâs still a man who I have no idea what he was thinking.
He let out a deep sigh as he fixed his disheveled collar that had been grabbed by me.
âWell, calm down and listen. Liddy went to a place with big ambitions.â
âBig ambitions?â
âYes.â
âLydith is my fiancee. In three years, sheâs going to be inducted into the royal family. Donât think you can just pretend it didnât happen without me knowing.â
âLiddy told you to wait for her, didnât she?â
She did, but thatâs not reassuring
There is no guarantee that she will come back to me. Originally, Lydith didnât have much interest in me.
âWhat is the ambition? Soleil, depending on the circumstances⊠I judge it to be against the royal family. The AnneMaria family would not want their territory disturbed.â
â⊠You know, Raphael. I donât really understand why Liddy felt that way either. But thatâs a girl who never does anything wrong. If Liddy made that decision, it means you were at fault in some way⊠yes, at fault.â
âEnough of this nonsense, get on with it.â
Soleil gave me a pitying look, not seeming to care that I was glaring at him.
I canât be at fault. Iâve done my official duties, my schoolwork and socialising without a hitch.
Between official duties, I came to see Lydith as much as time allowed, gave her gifts and expressed my love to her.
Never once did Lidith express any negative feelings towards me. I think we were happily engaged.
âSheâs going to marry the King of the demon tribe. Apparently thatâs more important than marrying into the royal familyâ
â⊠Are you joking?â
âIâm not joking. Liddy has gone to the land of the demon tribe, deep in the Lost Forest, which hasnât been opened for a thousand years. Rafael should know. Liddy is not a person who likes to talk. And she wouldnât do anything disloyal to you unless she had a good reason. What have you done to Lydith?â
I didnât do anything.
I shook my head awkwardly.
I couldnât think about anything, my mind wenr blank. I could understand if she fled to another country.
The country of the demon tribe.
The existence that country is only recorded in the royal family records, and only the heads of the royal family, the Amber family and the Annemaria family knew about the fact of the Great War and the existence of the demon tribe.
Lydith  might have known about it, because she was diligent in her studies, but she never brought it up in any conversations with me, and she didnât seem to show any interest in it.
You look like you donât remember anything. Thatâs right, I also donât really understand either. Liddy was behaving normaly yesterday. She looked like she was looking forward to going to the academy with you. And yet, when she woke up in this morning, she seemed to have changed her mind.â
âI donât know why I let her. I donât even know what kind of place it is. Lydith could be in danger!â
âI have faith in Liddy. I trust her, I know sheâll be fine. I believe in her⊠And even if I refused her, she wonât give up once sheâs made up her mind. I figured out that the Lost Forest was the place, and rather than going into the forest alone and lose her life, I thought it would be better to properly send her to the King of the Demon Tribe.â
Soleil glanced at the Butler.
The man, whose name was Clive, I believe, nodded quietly.
âCome to think of it, my father once told me that there is a demon in the Annemaria family. I thought it was a joke.â
âIâm going to pick up Lydith.â
âIâm sorry, we canât do that.â
Clive said in a flat voice.
âThe land of the demons is warded by the king. I have used up most of my magic to interfere. Â I wonât be able to open it for a while.â
âThis is an order.â
âWhat is impossible is impossible. Lydith will be able to subdue the king and force him to open the country from within. Why donât you wait and see?â
âYes, Raphael-Sama. Of course we have our own thoughts on this matter, but we have decided to wait for Liddyâs return.â
Soleil said lazily.
I slammed my fist on the desk beside me in anger.
âI wonât allow Lydith to belong to the king of the demon tribe.â
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