Seeing Lumia's face turn deathly pale, I reviewed the situation. No matter how I looked at it, this was close to the end. I had no idea what she meant by a dream.
All that mattered was that, here inside the Imperial Palace, the princess held negative feelings for me. That fact alone was the problem. If the cause was related to my magic— As my mind raced, I bent over and felt the heavy object in my pocket.
Perhaps I should test the waters with this.
"Princess."
So as not to provoke her, I slowly rose and knelt down. But I made sure to speak before Lumia could say anything strange.
"I trust Your Highness has been in good health and your household at peace during these recent times."
"... Uh, uhm?"
I didn't even know what I was saying. My only goal was to confuse Lumia. It seemed to work.
While she tilted her head, I took the opportunity to add a few more facts so the two escort knights behind her would understand my words.
"Ever since the last exam, I have eagerly awaited the day I might see Princess Lumia again. I am most relieved to see that you have been well."
"?"
"It is but a small token, but I have prepared a birthday gift for you."
To ensure it wasn't seen as an attack, I took out the dagger with both hands and placed it on my palms. Only then did Lumia cautiously open her mouth. With a look of disbelief, she said, "...
Jern.
My birthday was five months ago."
"My apologies. I felt it would be improper to request entry to the Imperial Palace for the sole purpose of delivering a gift, so I prepared it in anticipation of a meeting that might never come."
I told the lie without batting an eye. Then, a strange thought suddenly struck me.
"But you remembered my name."
"... How could I possibly forget it?"
I had thought Princess Lumia wouldn't remember my name, recalling me only as 'that arrogant commoner' or perhaps 'the fallen one'. If it was the latter, escape would be impossible, and it would be the end. Black or white.
In this situation, 'arrogant commoner' was white. As I waited anxiously for the verdict, Lumia approached and carefully took the dagger I offered. After looking it over and drawing the blade to inspect it, she looked at me with surprised eyes.
"Lyconian steel... It must have taken you some time to acquire this."
I wasn't sure what that was, but Aletus was the best. The princess still flinched when our eyes met, but the knife seemed to please her, and her gaze softened considerably. I had never met anyone who disliked gifts.
And if a gift was enough to soothe her mood, I could tentatively judge the situation as white.
"I am most relieved that it pleases you."
'Now let me go.' With that meaning in mind, I bowed my head deeply. Lumia looked down at me with a peculiar expression before turning to the guard captain, who was bowing his head so low it nearly touched the ground.
"Why is this... no. Why is this mage here?"
"There was a small, unfortunate incident, and we asked him to act as an observer—" "If it is not urgent, may I take him for a moment?"
"?"
"Yes! Of course."
It didn't even take the guard captain a tenth of a second to betray me. Hey, didn't you have something to hear from me? I looked up at the princess with a smile plastered on my face.
"I have something I must ask you for a moment."
Hmm.
It seemed it was black after all.
The princess walked without a word. I didn't say much either. I could tell she hadn't made a final decision yet, which meant the situation could be salvaged depending on my explanation.
As long as that possibility existed, I didn't want to show any sign of haste. The princess stopped in a garden with a pond and blooming flowers. With a stern expression, she commanded.
"Close your ears."
"Yes."
The command was not for me. The two escort knights immediately knelt and bowed their heads.
"They will not be able to hear our conversation now."
"I see. Is there something you wish to command?"
"You—" The princess paused, choosing her words, before forcing herself to meet my gaze.
Then, she startled herself and quickly looked down again.
"How old are you?"
"... Pardon?"
I had anticipated dozens of questions, but this was so unexpected that I couldn't help but ask back. But I quickly answered.
"I am eleven. Probably."
"Probably?"
"I apologize for not being able to answer with certainty. I grew up in an orphanage, so I do not know my exact birthday. But a year will soon pass, so I should be eleven."
"I-I see."
Lumia nodded and said something strange.
"If you're that young and small, then you're nothing."
Is she schizophrenic? I didn't understand what she was saying. Was she trying to belittle me?
"Then—by any chance, can you sprout tentacles from your back?"
"No." Definitely schizophrenic.
I felt sorry for the Emperor. As I was thinking this, Lumia let out a sigh of relief and muttered to herself.
"You're just a simple child. That's all..."
"Have I done something to displease you? If you tell me, I will correct it."
I asked carefully, so as not to agitate a patient. Lumia glared at me venomously, as if to say 'how dare you say such a thing'.
"You...!"
But as soon as our eyes met, she dodged away as fast as a snail.
"You keep appearing in my dreams!"
I took a moment to process that sentence, then closed my eyes with a grave expression.
"I will choose not to understand what that means. I apologize."
"?"
Lumia tilted her head at my response, then scowled.
"No, that's not what I mean! Not some sweet dream, but a nightmare! From the day you defeated me until today, almost once a week!"
"Ah."
So that's what it was. With a gloomy expression, Lumia made something of a confession.
"... That was my first defeat. I don't know if that's why, but every time I dream, the memory of that day is replayed."
"You appear in them... which is natural, since you were the one who handed me that defeat. There's no other reason. Not a single one."
Losing to me must have been quite a shock. Given how she lost, it was understandable. Still, it seemed she hadn't discovered I was a fallen one, so I could worry less about being killed by the Emperor.
With a much lighter heart, I bowed my head.
"I have caused you great distress. If you wish, you may punish me until your anger subsides. Perhaps then, I will no longer appear in your dreams."
"That will not be necessary. I do not want such a victory..."
Lumia sat down by the pond, looking weary, and let out a sigh.
"I know it is not your fault. It is merely my own weakness. The fault of my weak heart."
I hadn't noticed before because she kept looking away, but I could now see faint dark circles under Lumia's eyes. I was also responsible. I had a goal to achieve, so I cleared my throat and stood up.
"Forgive my audacity, but may I ask a small favor?"
"A favor?"
"Yes. This is my first time in the Imperial Palace, and I find it to be a truly beautiful place. If it is not too much of an imposition, I would like to walk through it, even for just a moment."
Lumia looked at me quizzically for a moment, then nodded.
"That is not a difficult request. I will assign a maid to you, so you may look around."
"No." I shook my head and, while still kneeling respectfully, extended my hand.
"I would like to speak with you, princess."
"... Huh?"
There was something I learned thanks to her permission. Lumia was the perfect access pass.
"So I had no choice but to set the tree on fire."
"Did you not think you would be caught for arson?"
"I was seven at the time. I figured the worst that could happen was a few spankings on my bottom."
"Hah, haah."
Just by walking with her, knights would clear the path and maids would open doors on their own. All I had to do was use Tide Sense to scan for a limping maid. There was nothing easier.
The price was simple, everyday conversation. The main topic was how I had lived, my stories from the orphanage, minus anything related to the Fall. As I walked down a corridor filled with red carpets and warm orange lighting, diligently searching for Ren's mother, Lumia, who had been listening intently, looked at me with a tired expression.
"Hearing your stories, it seems you haven't changed one bit since you were a child."
"I believe I have changed a great deal."
"Yes, I suppose so. But that's not what I mean, uhm..."
Lumia rolled her tongue as if choosing her words.
"From what I've heard so far, you seem like a person who does not know regret."
"I do not understand what you mean..."
"I mean that, given the same amount of information, even if you returned to the past with the experience of the future, you would do the exact same thing."
"Hmm, is that strange?"
"It is. Very. People make choices, and they regret them. They imagine the future that might have been had they chosen differently, assume they were wrong, and suffer for it. But you..."
The princess narrowed her eyes and looked at me.
"Even if you went back, you would only make the same choices. That is something even those who have nothing but arrogance would not do. I am curious as to the reason."
"I do not fully understand Your Highness's words. I, too, feel regret and suffer from the wrong choices I have made. However, I cannot deny the fact that I would choose the same thing even if I went back."
"Why?"
"Because it is a choice I made after already suffering enough. Even if the time of endurance were to be extended, the result would not change."
"... Ah."
At my answer, Lumia let out a gasp as if she had just realized something, and nodded.
"I see... you are not sane."
"Ahem."
"Ah, do not take it too seriously. I have heard stories of those who decide not to doubt their choices instead of trusting them, but this is my first time seeing it in person, so I misspoke."
"What is the difference?"
"Trust requires a reason, but not doubting requires no reason. The latter is the thought process of a madman."
The content of our conversation was sharp, but the atmosphere itself was not bad. The princess still could not meet my eyes. Still, the frequency of her flinching had greatly decreased compared to the beginning.
"... Th-thank you."
"It is I who should be thanking you. Thanks to you, I was able to see the beautiful Imperial Palace."
I had searched the palace thoroughly with Tide Sense but could not find Ren's mother. Instead, I found a way to find her. In many ways, Lumia had been helpful.
"You tried to talk with me to help me realize that you were just a child, someone familiar and not so frightening. Is that not so? I am no fool."
"Your manner of speech is inconsistent."
"... This, too, is your fault."
Lumia shot me a glare and sighed, then snapped her fingers to call a knight.
"I am sorry for keeping you for so long. You must have your own duties to attend to. This knight will guide you."
"Hmm, yes. It was a brief meeting, but I enjoyed it."
What excuse should I make this time to get away? I was pondering this when it happened.
"There is no need for that."
With a cold voice, something suddenly appeared in my Tide Sense. It was a similar principle to what had deleted Linmel's movements. But this time, it was distance that was deleted.
A speed that was like something appearing out of nowhere. I slowly turned around. There, a slender, middle-aged knight in black armor, exuding an aura that was neither too large nor too small, was kneeling before the princess in a calm and courteous manner. ...
He's fast.
No, before that, I couldn't even perceive him. The knight politely introduced himself.
"Hyeon-cheong, a Divine Punishment Knight of the Waxed Wings Division. I greet Her Highness, Princess Lumia."
"Waxed Wings...?"
Lumia naturally accepted the greeting and looked at the kneeling Hyeon-cheong. Her gaze was filled with curiosity.
"I have never heard of such an organization."
"It is a unit recently established to perform specific duties. Its main purpose would be to deal with and prevent fallen ones."
A drawling voice, and 'deal with' coming before 'prevent'. Above all, Waxed Wings. Wings made of wax...
It was a name filled with a dense enmity that it had no intention of hiding. Having fulfilled his duty as a knight greeting the princess, Hyeon-cheong's gaze turned to me.
"I have come looking for this... boy, in relation to my duties."
"Jern? Is he involved with a fallen one?"
"Yes. He claimed to have engaged a fallen one. And there are some suspicions as well."
He heard.
Then naturally, his feelings toward me couldn't be good. I met Hyeon-cheong's gaze directly and replied.
"It was a statement that could certainly be taken as an insult. I apologize if your feelings were hurt. However, I believed the suspicion itself was valid."
"Of course."
Hyeon-cheong replied gently, even to an eleven-year-old boy. But that was only in appearance. His tone was filled with simmering emotion.
"It is a valid question. But I, too, can pose a valid question. About whether a 1-Star mage can survive a battle with a fallen one."
"I was lucky."
"So it would seem."
Hyeon-cheong slowly walked over and lowered his gaze.
"You'll have to keep being lucky."
The pressure was no joke. I forced myself to remain calm and opened my mouth.
"... If there is something you wish to ask, please feel free to speak."
"That fallen one, where did he run?"
"He disappeared into an alley. I apologize for not being able to explain in detail."
"I see. Thank you for your cooperation."
As if that half-hearted answer was enough, Hyeon-cheong stood up from his spot. He turned his body as if to leave, then suddenly turned his gaze back to me.
"But you are truly remarkable."
"... Pardon?"
"I heard. An apprentice of the Black Magic Tower at your age. You are more of a genius than any mage I know."
"Ah, yes. It is thanks to being Dersia's disciple."
"Hmm..."
Hyeon-cheong, who had turned back, approached me again and tossed out a request as if he had no ulterior motives.
"Can you show me your workshop?"
"My workshop, you say?"
"I am curious. What the workshop of a genius like you looks like."
"There's not much to see, so I'm hesitant to show you."
"That 'not much'."
Hyeon-cheong grabbed the door of a nearby empty room and opened it.
"Is what I want to see."
He won't let me escape. It went without saying that if I opened the workshop now, everything would be for naught.
"I'm sorry, but—" Just as I was about to force my way out.
Lumia stepped forward before I could, a slightly displeased expression on her face.
"That is enough."
"Your Highness."
The other knights were busy bowing their heads as soon as they saw Lumia. But a Divine Punishment Knight was certainly different. Even in front of an angry princess, he bowed his head quite calmly and raised an objection.
"Please quell your anger. This is merely a private chat. If the problem was that it was in front of Your Highness, I will take my leave—" "It does not seem like a private chat to me. Even if you are a Divine Punishment Knight with the power of life and death over nobles, you would not intend to flaunt that paltry authority in front of royalty, would you?"
"If you have something to 'interrogate' him about, I will send someone after I am done, so do it then. For now, withdraw."
"Yes."
The authority of a Divine Punishment Knight is immense. But in the end, a princess is a princess, and a knight is a knight. Hyeon-cheong bowed his head without any emotional turmoil and left.
Before he left—our eyes met. I realized then. Hyeon-cheong had no intention of letting me go.
After he left, I bowed my head to Princess Lumia.
"Thank you for getting angry on my behalf."
"... I was not angry for you. He was just acting too sharply in front of me, so I pointed that out."
Lumia explained, her face slightly red. I bowed my head once more and stepped back.
"Whatever the reason, I thank you. It was a brief conversation, but I truly had a wonderful time. I look forward to our reunion."
"Uh, wait—" Before the princess could stop me, I discreetly walked in the opposite direction Hyeon-cheong had gone, and as soon as I was out of sight, I immediately ran.
The reason was simple. '...
He's persistent.'
The Hyeon-cheong caught in my Tide Sense had not left, but was waiting, standing in an alley on the opposite side, out of view. If I had gone back after our conversation, I would have been caught from behind. From now on, it was a race of speed.
I ran down the opposite alley, stopped for a moment to calm my breathing, and then swallowed two pearl-type restorative pills at once. I put every other medicine I had into my mouth as well. Hemostatics, painkillers, whatever.
I had no intention of using Deep Fusion. But I still needed to go a little deeper, so I had to do everything I could.
"Hoo..."
Feeling the effects of the medicine spread, I lifted one foot and tapped it lightly.
Thump.
Riding the sound, my Tide Sense intensified and spread out dozens of times over.
"... Ugh."
I immediately gritted my teeth. My Deep Sea is honest. When I use it after holding it back, the strengthened ability is accompanied by a more severe burden.
Of course, it wasn't that I hadn't used it at all. Just a moment ago, I had scanned the Imperial Palace with Tide Sense, and after a battle using Deep Fusion, scanning the palace was manageable 'while holding back'. However, when used in earnest, it was on a different level.
[...in, you did! That's why—] [Really?]
[...to escort...]
[She is over there.]
In an instant, all the sounds of the Imperial Palace were forcibly understood and hammered into my brain. The movements of tongues and lips, and many other things. It wasn't that I knew, but that I was made to know.
Is this the enhanced ability of my Tide Sense this time?
"Tsk."
A little time passed before I could clear away the miscellaneous sounds and focus on what I wanted to know. As I scanned the palace with a much wider range, I found a sort of sitting room where maids were gathered and chatting. The problem was, most of them were sitting.
To identify the limping maid, I had to make them walk— "... Should I try it." I muttered to myself and clenched my hand in the air.
Clatter!
[Kyaa! What was that?]
[Who knocked that over!]
"Heh."
I myself was dumbfounded by what I had done. It was almost hundreds of meters away—I had found it, sensed it, and affected it. All I had done was knock over a bucket with a mop in it, but even considering that, it was an absurd ability.
If I got stronger from here, could I crush an enemy's head from hundreds of meters away? Of course, a proportional burden would be applied. Feeling my vision turn black, I scanned the maids one by one as they stood up.
Normal, normal, normal.
And.
[Arillen, your leg is bad, you should rest.]
[... Yeah, thanks.]
A limp, and a name that included 'Ren'. The neglectful parent, found. Just before I ran to where the maid was, I checked Hyeon-cheong's location with Tide Sense.
"...?"
He was gone. Where did he go in such a short time? When I spread my Tide Sense around the part of the palace where I was, I witnessed a ridiculous sight.
"That crazy bastard..."
A dry laugh escaped me. After Lumia had left, Hyeon-cheong was walking through every corridor of the Imperial Palace. If I had followed him out, I would have been caught for sure.
His scanning speed was insane. So much so that even with my enhanced Tide Sense, I occasionally lost track of him. If the palace I was in now wasn't built like a maze to account for intruders, I might have already been caught.
It was like a blindfolded queen and a pawn that could see everything on a chessboard. Either I reach the end first, or I get caught.
"... Tsk."
I clenched my jaw and started to run. It seemed there was no time left to delay.