A flash of forgotten memories hit Delight like a spark, almost making him sneeze.
Back then, he thought it was just someone cursing Delight.
But… could it be that even then, that face was genuinely her type?
No, thinking about this now was pointless.
He shouldn’t be misled into giving meaning to just one word.
Delight calmly continued speaking.
“You have never truly liked me.”
It might be confusing for her now, but this was the truth. Her current feelings stemmed from a lie that Delight had told.
“So, are you saying it was all fake?”
“…Yes.”
“Then why did you lie?”
Blueny looked hurt, as if she didn’t want to believe it.
“You didn’t pretend not to know me just by lying.”
There was a sense of hope in her question. Delight hesitated, then slowly opened his mouth.
“…It was a mistake.”
Blueny’s eyes wavered at his answer. Clenching her trembling hands, she spoke with difficulty.
“I understand. I just want to sort out my thoughts.”
Blueny held her head, and as she turned around, she staggered. Her instability made him want to support her, but he knew that, at this point, his touch would be more harmful than helpful.
In the end, he clenched his fists tightly to resist the urge to reach out.
“I’ll take my leave now.”
Delight left quietly after a brief farewell.
Today, the hallway seemed unusually long, and the shadows that covered it stretched endlessly.
“If I could go back to that time, I wouldn’t lie.”
Seeing her losing her memory had shaken him, but he would have found another way.
But he couldn’t undo what was already done.
***
The empress’s presence was suspicious.
She lost her memory and actively tried to get close to Delight, which seemed to suggest she had some kind of hidden agenda.
As an Archmage, she’d seen many cases where a cheerful mask hid one’s true face. For this reason, she doubted the empress.
But suddenly, Jayren appeared, and everything became mixed up.
Was she truly suffering from memory loss?
No, more importantly… since the encounter in the drawing room, there was something she couldn’t stop thinking about.
Delight’s face in that drawing room… why did he look so lonely there?
‘It was as if he feared Blueny might disappear.’
I observed all three of them closely in the drawing room, watching every change in their expressions.
Jayren, filled with longing and awe, Blueny, visibly confused…
…and Delight, repeatedly glancing anxiously at Blueny between them.
“Could it be that Delight likes the empress?”
Goodness.
As soon as I uttered those words, I was startled and covered my mouth with both hands.
But once the thought escaped, it expanded into a vivid picture.
Delight bringing the memory-lost Blueny back to the palace.
The fact that he didn’t doubt her, even when the person thought to be dead was standing alive.
The strange, uneasy behavior whenever he was around Blueny.
If Delight liked Blueny, everything made sense.
“Could it actually be true?”
What should I do now?
“I think Delight might actually be in love!”
As I muttered to myself with a hint of helplessness, Hiel, who had been resting beside me with eyes closed, suddenly squinted and let out a low growl.
“Grrrrrr…”
“Hiel? What’s wrong?”
“There’s a suspicious person lurking nearby. I’ll go chase them off.”
With that, Hiel suddenly dashed out the door.
“A suspicious person? How could someone like that… ah!”
It didn’t make sense for a suspicious person to be near my room.
As I was considering whether it was a misunderstanding, a possible suspect that Hiel might consider suspicious came to mind.
“Hiel. Wait a minute!”
I ran after him, but Hiel was already far ahead.
I turned down the hallway in the direction where Hiel had disappeared and saw…
“Get away. Why are you doing this to me?”
“Grr! Grrr!”
“I just came to see the princess. D-Don’t come any closer!”
As expected, Hiel was intimidating Serdin fiercely.
“Hiel, stop it.”
I grabbed Hiel’s tail and pulled him back.
He resisted slightly, but eventually wrapped his tail around my leg and backed off, still glaring at Serdin.
‘I don’t like him!’
Just from Hiel’s disgruntled gaze, I could sense why he was growling at Serdin.
“That dog is so fake.”
Serdin grumbled sullenly and turned to look at me.
“Ollia.”
“Serdin? Where have you been?”
It was my first time seeing Serdin since the banquet.
I even went a few times to places we used to meet often, but Serdin never showed up.
So, I wondered if he was purposely avoiding me.
“What happened?”
I had been worried since Serdin, who I saw daily, suddenly disappeared.
“Well… I felt like I shouldn’t interfere.”
Serdin muttered quietly, scratching the back of his head.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“This is your first time meeting your mother, right? It’s the first time your whole family has gathered, and I thought I shouldn’t be part of that.”
Serdin avoided my gaze as he spoke. He was nervously kicking at the empty floor with his toe.
For him, the concept of family was a sensitive issue.
When Delight, whom I initially thought had abandoned me, returned and showed me affection, Serdin had reacted sharply.
Back then, he’d even come to see me.
But now, with the empress back, presenting the perfect image of a complete family, Serdin must have felt conflicted.
Especially since his mother had left him with a longing that was also a wound, having been betrayed by the Empress Ilnord.
“So, you were purposely staying hidden?”
“I wasn’t hiding… I figured I’d go unnoticed if I just stayed in my room.”
Serdin stammered as he gave a lame excuse.
“Then why did you come now?”
“I heard the King of Soren wants to take the empress away.”
“Yes.”
“I thought I had to tell you something.”
“To me? What is it?”
Now that I looked at him, Serdin’s face had turned serious.
It was as if he had something to convey secretly, which explained why he was hanging around my room so late at night.
Serdin stepped closer to me.
At the same time, Hiel growled at him warily, but my touch held him back, and he retreated.
Lowering his voice, Hiel finally whispered gravely.
“Don’t trust the King of Soren.”
“Huh?”
“Every word the King of Soren says here is a lie.”
Serdin, who had shown up after so long, made a mysterious statement.
“Especially, all his actions to seem like he cherishes the empress—they’re all an act.”
Serdin emphasized it strongly.
The Jayren I’d seen with my own eyes seemed like someone genuinely moved to be reunited with his sister.
He had shown deep familial affection, even willing to endure losses for her sake.
However, Serdin was firmly convinced that it was all an act.
“What do you mean?”
“You need to trust me.”
Serdin continued, speaking cautiously as if he feared someone might overhear.
“I think the empress’s memory loss incident might be related to the King of Soren.”
“Huh?”
“I saw the King of Soren once in Ilnord. And I heard what he said there.”
That was why he had rushed over to me, shocked by the news that the King of Soren had come in person to take the empress away.
“He intended to kill his sister from the very beginning.”
“…What?”
To reveal his true intentions.
***
Jayren visited Blueny when she was alone.
“I wanted to have a quiet conversation with you.”
“I also had something I wanted to say to you… Brother.”
“Blueny, I’m glad to hear you’ve been comfortable here. But once your memories return, you won’t feel at ease in this place.”
“……..”
“Moreover, the relationship between the Promian Empire and our kingdom isn’t good right now. If I’m to take you away, this is our only chance.”
Jayren was desperately trying to persuade her.
Blueny, who had been silently listening, slowly opened her mouth.
“I… I’ll go back with you.”
“Really? Are you sure?”
“Yes. But not immediately; I’d like at least a week to prepare.”
“I understand. You’ve spent some time here, so it makes sense to tie things up. Let’s do that.”
Jayren, happy with her decision, held her hand tightly.
“You’ve made a good decision. From now on, you can just trust me.”
“……..”
“But, Blueny, are you really sure you remember nothing?”
“Yes.”
“Right. I suppose that’s true.”
That’s a relief.
Blueny could hear him murmur softly.
She looked at Jayren with a curious expression.
But he gave her a warm smile.
“I’ll inform the Emperor of your decision tomorrow. Don’t worry about the rest.”
“Alright.”
“You must be tired today, so get some rest.”
Jayren offered a light farewell and rose from his seat.
Returning to his room, Jayren no longer wore the gentle expression of a caring brother.
“It’s a relief everything went smoothly.”
His aide, who accompanied him, spoke with an air of significance.
“Convincing someone without memories is a simple task.”
Jayren let out a mocking laugh.
“If Blueny stays here and later regains her memory, it would be extremely dangerous for us.”
“We’ll continue to monitor her closely even after returning to the kingdom.”
“Yes, make sure to place her somewhere discreet and keep her under watch.”
Jayren’s purpose in taking Blueny away had its own ulterior motives.
