âYour Highness, do you need anything else? Please just say anything. And again, if you tell me even the approximate destination, I can help somehowâŠâ
Philomel cautiously opened her mouth.
âCould you lend me some money?â
ââŠâ
Philomelâs face flushed a little with embarrassment.
However, the face was ideal, and a slimmer wallet was a reality.
Philomel had lived as frugally as possible for the past few days, but there werenât many gold coins left. She didnât know that maybe she didnât have enough money to rent a communication stone.
âAh, you are talking about money. That⊠because I donât have any money right now.â
Nasar fumbled in his arms, it was unlike him.
I understand, Traditionally, aristocrats often left the trivial tasks of exchanging small amounts of money to attendants.
âIâll borrow it from someone else and give it to you. Sir Aaron, give me all the money. When I return, Iâll return it several times.â
âYou donât have to go that far!â
Philomel politely dissuaded Nassar from trying to rip off another knight next to him.
Iâm afraid Iâve shown you that Iâm incapacitated, forgave meâ
Perhaps embarrassed, Nassar went red up to his neck.
âIs this your original personality?â
This is a fact that I did not know before when we were polite and exchanged routine conversations. Itâs no use trying to find out now.
if, really if.
âIf we had been open to each other a little longer, would we have been able to become friends?â
Philomel looked blankly at Nassar and thought.
At that time, a man who appeared to be Avrydonâs knight rushed out of the hotel.
âLittle Duke! Weâre in trouble!â
âWhatâs going on?â
âThe Emperor is here!â
Philomel doubted her ears.
Wait, wait, wait. What the hell is he saying?
The blue-faced knight rambled.
âHe suddenly appeared a while ago, but strangely, there is no attendant⊠However, it certainly is His Majesty the Emperor. Guys like us have only met from afar, but thatâs for sure!â
Before she could understand the knightâs words, a large figure caught her eye.
âPhilomel.â
It looks like a dot in the bright morning sky with black paint, but the presence of the whole world as if it were turning into the night with one black dot.
It was Eustis.
The Emperor, dressed in acupuncture like a man who had just jumped out of sleep, grabbed Philomel by the shoulder.
âWhere⊠where the hell have you been? Do you know how long Iâve been looking for you?â
It was an unrealistic sight, and Philomelâs thoughts stopped.
âHow could the Emperor be here?â
Even if the letter from Nassar had arrived early, he arrived at Saint-Gen as soon as it was received.
How far is it from the capital to Saint-Gen, that would be impossibleâŠ
No. There is one way. The method used by Philomel to escape.
It was movement magic.
I had never heard of the Emperor being able to use movement magic, but he was the one who breathed divine power into the ring of red flames. There was nothing strange about him using it.
My heart was beating so hard that I couldnât control it. I could feel the blood draining from my face.
Itâs a real dead end now. I canât see any more holes to get out of. The execution was repeated thousands of times, tens of thousands of times in my head.
Iâll die.
â⊠Philomel? Whatâs wrong? You donât look well.â
âYour Highness? Where are you sickâŠâ
Itâs strange.
Eustis and Nassarâs voices grew quieter. It turned into a hum and seemed to be saying something, but I couldnât understand it.
The view was also whitened from the corner. My body was as heavy as wet cotton, so I shivered regardless of my limbs.
I have to run away quickly.
Soon the world turned upside down. No, Philomelâs body was leaning.
âYour Highnessâ
âPhilomel!â
Instead of the surface of the hard and cold floor, a hard but warm feeling wrapped around the whole body.
Finally, Philomelâs consciousness fell into darkness.
* * *
âPhilomel!â
The Emperor embraced the body as it collapsed. The face in his arms was pitifully pale.
âPhilomel, Philomel! Wake up!â
The emperor continued to call out her name and brushed Philomelâs face, but her eyes would not open.
Nassarâs heart felt like it was racing.
âIâll call the doctor!â
He realized the obvious fact that he had to call a doctor at such times after hearing the knight cry.
Before the knight even stepped forward, a dazzling light flowed from the Emperor and enveloped Philomel as well as him.
And in the place where the two of them were, nothing was left. Just like when the Emperor appeared and disappeared with the movement magic.
Nassar stared blankly at his hand.
The hands sticking out of the Emperorâs arms were too white, like her face. I wanted to hold that hand, but I couldnât. I felt guilty that I dared to touch it.
Eventually, the unreachable warmth vanished in vain.
Nassar clenched his fist so hard that his fingernails dug into his skin.
I looked around for the knight that brought a resident doctor to the hotel.
âTheyâre gone.â
Out of his reach.
âWe are heading to the capital.â
âRight now?â
âYes. Are there any wizards from Avrydon whom we brought that can use movement magic right now?â
It was last night that the wizards, who had exhausted their mana in the process of moving to their former lives, rested at a hotel.
âQuickly pack up⊠No, I will leave first, so you guys should come later.â
It would be impossible to fully recover in one night, but only Nassar would be able to move it.
âThatâs⊠ActuallyâŠâ
âWhatâs going on?â
âThe wizards all left early this morning. The Duke sent a message that he needed them for other work, soâŠâ
âDamn it.â
His father, the Duke of Avrydon, was skeptical about finding the missing princess from the beginning.
Even if he didnât oppose it outright, he was dissatisfied with his sonâs actions.
âDonât waste your time and focus on your work.â
The day she disappeared, another princess appeared.
The Duke, who was attending a political meeting and witnessed a girl who suddenly appeared, seemed convinced that the girl was real. She looked a lot like the dead empress.
Still, Nassar did not believe it. Because the princess he served was only one.
âShall we ask other wizards in the city? As soon as the wizard guild opens the door, Iâll come runningâŠâ
âAll right, Iâm going to the Mage Tower. There are more capable wizards in the tower.â
You canât be idle. You need someone who can take not only yourself but also others and go to the capital at one time.
âBring a new horse instead of a horse that runs all night. The fastest one.â
âHow do you eat breakfast? You spent the night in the carriage, too?â
âItâs okay.â
I felt like I couldnât stand it without seeing the face of the person who was fine right away.