“I was really shocked because I thought you were actually getting married.”
Luciel let out a sly laugh, brushing his chest as if relieved.
“I have to attend your wedding no matter what. I need to see your husband’s face, too.”
“………?”
“I almost missed out on the fun. That would have been unfair. But at least it turned out okay.”
Seriously?!
All my worries were pointless—his only intention was to tease me.
“Even if it’s a fake marriage, it’s a shame I won’t get to see you in a wedding dress. I wonder how ridiculous you’d look.”
Still, seeing Luciel genuinely enjoying himself was somewhat comforting…
Wait, scratch that!
“Actually, since you’re not Sherina but Violyana now, maybe it’ll suit you better.”
Luciel’s eyes gleamed as he turned to Hiel.
“Hiel, you saw it, right?”
“Of course, I did!”
“How was it?”
“Well, let me tell you—it was…”
Just as Hiel and Luciel got excited and started chatting enthusiastically—
These guys, seriously!
“Hiel.”
With an eerie voice—
“Try saying another word.”
I shot him a warning glare.
“…Ha-ha. Lord Luciel, you should see for yourself.”
Finally realizing he couldn’t say any more, Hiel clamped his mouth shut and turned away.
Luciel nodded firmly and turned his attention back to me.
“By the way, a fake marriage with Prince Serdin? That’s unexpected.”
Thump.
Why did I flinch just now as if I got caught?
Even I didn’t know why I had such a reflexive reaction.
Luciel stared at me silently before speaking with a meaningful tone.
“To go as far as deceiving Ilnord to help you… You must be pretty close to Prince Serdin.”
W-Why was he asking like that?
“We were close before he returned to Ilnord.”
I answered nonchalantly, but for some reason, it still bothered me.
“Hmm. That Prince Serdin…”
Luciel seemed lost in thought, then narrowed his eyes and changed the subject.
“But if you came here using the wedding as an excuse…”
He turned to me, about to ask something he had been curious about from the start.
Since I knew what it was, I answered before he could finish.
“Delight is here, too.”
At my words, Luciel’s eyelids twitched slightly.
“Delight found out that you were captured in Ilnord and insisted on rescuing you himself.”
“…Really?”
Luciel seemed quite intrigued.
“Haha. We fought like that the last time I saw him. I wonder what kind of change of heart that guy Delight had.”
He sneaked a glance at me, pretending to be indifferent.
“That’s touching. Seems like Delight has grown a bit in the meantime?”
“…Yeah.”
“Really?”
“Why didn’t you come to see me even once? You heard about Empress Blueny, right?”
“…I did.”
Luciel’s reaction made it clear—I didn’t even need to ask.
He must have thought there was no need for him to come.
The only reason he kept checking on Delight before was because I had asked him to, to make sure he was okay. But more than that, it was because he was worried about Delight, who had filled himself with nothing but rage.
He must have wanted to remind him that he wasn’t alone.
But after Blueny and I came into Delight’s life, Luciel had stepped back. He must have believed that now that family was by his side, he no longer needed to visit.
Luciel had lived for countless years, meeting many people who passed through his life.
They were all younger than him, and they all died before he did.
Because of that, he always kept his distance, watching from afar—never trying to be a part of their lives.
“I understand why, but…”
That didn’t mean I could just ignore it.
“I waited for you. I wanted to show you how well Delight and Blueny are doing now.”
“It’s nice to hear they’re doing well.”
“Then when we get out of here, see for yourself.”
I made sure to say it in a way that left no room for argument.
But getting Luciel out of here wasn’t the real problem.
The real issue was restoring the abilities of a sealed dragon.
“Is there really no way?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
Luciel spoke quietly.
“A sealed power due to a broken contract cannot be undone unless both parties agree.”
That was the problem.
Even if I took Luciel back to Promian, he still wouldn’t be free.
What should I do?
“If we can’t resolve this contract issue, there will be serious consequences.”
If a dragon’s power was sealed…
“Your body… will become no different from a human’s.”
For a dragon, that was an unfamiliar and uncomfortable state—one he had never experienced before.
And eventually—
“I’m going to die.”
Luciel stated it matter-of-factly.
Becoming human meant aging, and eventually, his life would come to an end.
“I don’t mind. It’s not like the Emperor of Ilnord can do anything to me while I’m here.”
“……….”
“So don’t push yourselves too hard. Just go back.”
What was he even saying to someone who had come all this way?!
I shot him a glare, making it clear that I had no intention of leaving him behind.
Luciel chuckled and spoke again.
“Even if I get out of here, I won’t be of any help to you. What use is a dragon that’s no different from a human?”
“Why do you keep spouting nonsense?”
The more I listened, the more Luciel’s words got on my nerves.
“Who said I needed your help?”
What bothered me wasn’t whether Luciel was useful or not.
It was the fact that he had lost his powers.
“You must be so great that you keep forgetting. But let me remind you—I’ve always been the one protecting you!”
I am the Archmage Sherina!
There was nothing more to think about.
“First, let’s get out of here.”
I said it firmly.
“Then we’ll find a way to resolve the contract issue.”
Leaving Luciel behind was never an option from the start.
Even if I have no choice but to return with Luciel for now.
“Once we bring down Ilnord and put pressure on the Emperor, we’ll find a way.”
When there’s no way, you make one.
If there’s no solution, then create one.
“This just gives me one more reason to destroy Ilnord.”
***
The wedding was now just around the corner.
By the time this night passed, the wedding would take place.
Serdin stood at the meeting place where he had planned to meet Ollia, lost in thought.
Just as there had been a path in Promian where they often met and took walks—
Serdin wanted to show Ollia a place that held significance for him, a space where he had spent a lot of time.
By tomorrow, the act they had been putting on would come to an end.
Once they rescued Luciel, they would all return to Promian.
And after that, Serdin and Ollia would no longer have to pretend to be lovers.
“……Haah.”
A sigh escaped his lips, heavier than expected.
Truthfully, he had enjoyed this.
Even after the wedding… he wished this act could continue.
Serdin fell into deep thought.
At first, he had been counting down the days until he could return to Promian.
Once, it had felt like hell to him.
But at some point, it became the place where Violyana lived.
That was why, when he went there for the founding anniversary, he had felt an unfamiliar excitement.
Yet, he couldn’t find the words to express what he was feeling.
Was it relief? Longing? Or perhaps, something akin to thirst?
And when he finally saw her again after ten years—
Even though it had been so long, she still felt familiar.
Ollia had grown so much in those ten years, changed so much that she was almost unrecognizable—
And yet…
Just being with her, as if he had seen her only yesterday, made him smile.
He felt a mix of emotions, but when they all blended together, he couldn’t define exactly what he was feeling.
However, there was one thing he knew for sure.
When his time as a hostage in Promian ended and he returned to Ilnord, he realized something undeniable.
The Empire of Ilnord was not his home.
Not even for a single moment had it ever been his family or his home.
He had only believed it was—simply because it was the country where he was born.
On the other hand, his time as a hostage in Promian had been a struggle for survival at first.
But in the end, it was what opened his eyes.
It freed him from being manipulated by those who sought to use him, allowing him to live as himself.
And the person who made him realize that—
—was Ollia.
And when she first proposed a fake marriage—
At first, he thought she was truly confessing her feelings, and his heart nearly stopped.
Remembering that moment, a small chuckle escaped his lips.
He had been completely caught off guard.
“Does she actually like me? Or…?”
For a moment, he even recalled how he had approached her as a child with ulterior motives.
Could it be that she mistook her feelings for love simply because he had been kind to her back then?
That thought made him hesitate—just for a moment.
But in the end, he was the one who had misunderstood.
The marriage she had proposed was merely a means to get to Ilnord.
So why did he feel disappointed?
The truth was, he already knew the answer.
In that moment—
Serdin finally understood the feelings that had remained unclear to him all this time.
All the moments that had confused him now had a single explanation.
And as he watched Ollia approaching him with a bright smile—
Serdin made up his mind.
Before it was too late—
Before he reached a point of regret—
No matter how it turned out, he had to tell her.
