Chapter 97: |
The Knights of the White Night noticed Haqab’s hot gaze and exchanged glances. Haqab approached them with his arms wide open, but instead of Rosaline, he embraced Raymond, who suddenly appeared in front of her. The men’s iron-hard chest muscles solidly contacted each other. Both Haqab and Raymond frowned.
“Long time no see, Your Highness! I can’t help but rejoice at this welcome!”
Raymond gave him a big hug, then Haqab patted Raymond with a very disappointed look and kissed him on the cheek. Raymond also kissed Haqab on the cheek, but at this point, it was better to say he just exhaled a bit on his skin.
Whenever Haqab turned to go to Rosaline, her senior knight colleagues came forward and exchanged greetings on her behalf. After the fifth time, when he received a rough and long kiss from Pardict and his shaggy beard, Haqab finally raised the white flag.
After the end of the weaponless battle, the men wiped their mouths and cheeks with displeased faces. Ricardis watched the dirty dogfight with a hand over his mouth. He hadn’t wanted to witness it, but it was good to see Haqab, who rarely showed his dissatisfaction, frown for a while. However, the confrontation made even the onlookers feel dismayed.
Haqab looked back at Rosaline several times and continued to show regret, but he had to give up because there were still ten knights left.
A maid soon informed them that the reception room was ready to receive guests.
Rosaline entered and quickly looked around. She assessed the Baltan escorts who had come in beforehand, the nobles who visited with Haqab, the servants who came from Balta, the inanimate objects in the room, and even the walls, ceilings, and floors that made up the space. The Knights of the White Night closely watched as Rosaline looked around. They were poised to take action immediately if she frowned or said a word.
[No problem].
The knights exchanged glances, doubts glinting in their eyes.
Rosaline’s [Problem] signal contained a broader range of information than she actually meant. The knights interpreted it as not only did she detect weak threats like a sharp dagger they could see with their naked eyes but also the dangerous and deadlier Fragment stored in the energy of an artificial mage unit.
[E/N: Rosaline says it’s no problem because she can handle the threats, but the knights focus on the fact that there is a threat.]
He even brought those monsters with him? What kind of guts does Haqab have?
As Ricardis sat down, Haqab followed and sat across from him.
“How was your journey?” Ricardis started.
“I saw a beautiful land where the ground is green, the sky is clear, and the fruits are lush,” Haqab smiled brightly.
The only thing growing on the desolate empire was the smell of rotting corpses. Parents sold their children for two loaves of bread, and even animals could not live in the dead villages. So did it feel like a return home when Illavenia, the country that praised the glory of God, was on the road to doomsday?
“Ah, I immediately knew I was in Illavenia.”
“I’m glad you liked it.”
Ricardis lowered his eyes and picked up the teacup. He could guess what the Baltan delegation had seen on their journey. Yes, what a beautiful land. His thought was not a compliment.
Ricardis strangely stalled when those words came out of Haqab’s mouth, even though he knew it was just a polite opening remark. He wanted to argue, ‘What’s wrong with your eyes?’ but he had never done such a childish thing before, even when he was 10. Ricardis just had to stop thinking.
Ricardis sniffed the familiar aroma of black tea and escaped his thoughts. Aligarte of Lienta. He smiled bitterly. Maybe such a coincidence is a joke from God.
Considering that Rosaline was quiet, Fragment wouldn’t be in the tea, but it was inevitable that drinking it felt strange. Haqab looked at Ricardis with a puzzled look.
“Ah, excuse me. In front of my guests, I became lost in thought for a moment,” Ricardis apologized.
“I wonder what made you laugh. I’m sad that I’m not the reason for that smile.”
Ah… This man is so annoying. Ricardis hid his emotions and smiled.
“There was a time when I almost drank tea poisoned with the Black Moon’s Fragment, and it was the same kind of tea as this one.”
[E/N: See chapters 18-21.]
“Oh, that isn’t such a fun memory.”
“Is that so?”
Ricardis smiled, haha, changing the stale atmosphere. The Knights of White Night straightened their backs. Even though it was an event for boring chit-chat, no one let their guard down. There was no way that the members who survived all kinds of dangers could not read the sharp and fierce tone of the current conversation.
“When I heard that the delegation was attacked on the way back, ah…” Haqab rubbed his chest, several rings gleaming on the man’s hand. “It felt like my heart stopped.”
How nice it would have been if it had really stopped. Ricardis looked at him with icy eyes.
“I am so glad that you are safe, Prince.”
“Thank you for your concern. Yes, we returned safely.”
“Where are my manners? I heard—”
Haqab’s eyes turned to look behind Ricardis. Ricardis didn’t look back, but he was sure Rosaline was right behind him. Haqab opened his mouth, making eye contact with Rosaline.
“—there was a great performance. I’d like to hear it directly from Sir Rosaline if you don’t mind.”
Ricardis smiled brighter than ever.
“Haha, she’s my escort, so she can not recklessly leave her station.”
“But I’m only here for a small amount of time…”
“Hopefully, you’ll have the opportunity to discuss it in the future.”
Haqab hummed and rubbed his chin at Ricardis’ attitude of cutting off nonsense.
“That’s so depressing. Well then, maybe next time.”
His answer sounded very light, but his gaze was persistent and his desire heavy.
When Ricardis looked into Haqab’s eyes, an unknown chill surrounded him. It occurred to him that perhaps the reason Haqab set foot in Illavenia was because of Rosaline.
The country of Idelavhim: Illavenia.
The land of Crean Tidanion: Balta.
Ricardis didn’t think deeply about these two facts as a matter of course. But to those who would sociopathically create mages, what is Rosaline? To a country called Balta that artificially produced mages with forcibly refined crystals of magic, what is Rosaline? To Haqab, who discovered Rosaline’s identity as… someone who destroyed those human weapons with her own hands…
What if Haqab’s purpose entirely focused on Rosaline? It’d put Ricardis in trouble. He would feel better to hear Haqab say he had come to assassinate the Emperor.
The heir of a nation set foot in this dangerous place, risking his safety and all his plans, only for Rosaline?
As his thoughts overlapped, Ricardis began to feel the heavy weight of Haqab’s desire.
***
After parting with Haqab, Ricardis came to see Ganje, the 3rd Princess of Balta. She stayed in a small annex some ways away from the castle where Haqab stayed. Copper-skinned warriors stood guard, walking around with sharp eyes. There were so many of them that it looked more protected than Haqab’s place.
A maid saw Ricardis’ party approach, entered the greeting hall, and immediately opened the door.
[I hope to see you again soon.]
He remembered the farewell they exchanged after a brief meeting. And even the Princess’ last words.
[Till then, take care, Prince.]
It was a conventional parting but a meaningful one because he heard from a high-ranking Baltan.
It sounded like, ‘My brother Haqab is going to attack you on the way home, so you must be careful’. However, due to the previous words, [I hope to see you again soon], he could also interpret it as ‘Let’s survive well and meet again’.
It was too short a time to get to know one person. Also, information about the 3rd Princess Ganje was severely limited, so it was hard to guess her thoughts.
The 3rd Princess Ganje was 21 years old. She was not the type to enjoy banquets and mainly stayed in the palace. That’s all; end of story.
Balta already had a strong successor: Haqab Hwi Livita. The remaining children of Hiksala Adon suffocated under the fiercer successor, more ruthless than his predecessors. That was why information about Ganje and the other children was unknown— nobody needed to know about them.
Haqab’s prominent brothers fell victim to accidents without fail. There used to be many princes and princesses, but only a few remained because their survival rate to adulthood was terrible. One of the few royals left was the 3rd Princess Ganje. The only thing that set her apart from her many siblings was her status as Haqab’s full-blooded sister.
The door opened. Ricardis followed the handmaiden’s guidance and entered the room.
“Princess Ganje.”
“Oh, His Highness Ricardis. You’re here.”
Ganje must have already heard about Ricardis coming to visit, so light refreshments were already on the table. She stood up and slowly approached Ricardis. The scent of the room and her languid eyes made Ganje look even more indolent.
Peck. She kissed Ricardis on the cheek and smiled.
“It’s been so long, and you’re still beautiful. What moonlight can shine purer than this?”
I’m sure I’ve heard something similar before… Ricardis was deeply skeptical. He’d thought the brother and sister were not much alike, but when they opened their mouths, they really resembled each other. Ricardis returned the greeting to the Princess’s cheek.
At the sight of the two sharing a light kiss, Rosaline momentarily stiffened and pressed her lips together. I feel strangely… unwell.