Arundel asked. He wondered how much Zion knew about her. Was he pretending not to know even though he knew?
“…No.”
Zion shook his head.
“Aren’t you curious?”
“If I said I wasn’t curious, it would be a lie. But, it’s not important.”
He said, and then he smiled softly.
“What’s important is that you’re by my side.”
****
Today was the National Foundation Day.
Thanks to that, the whole palace was bustling. Hearing that there was a simple ceremony, Arundel started dressing up from the morning.
It felt like a long time since she had dressed up so splendidly. While she was at the palace, she always wore simple clothes with a robe.
“Okay, okay, it’s done.”
As always, the head maid turned Arundel around with sparkling eyes. Arundel looked at herself in the mirror.
Now she was used to the face. Looking at Irina in the mirror, Arundel suddenly became curious.
‘What did I look like?’
When she met Mannheim, she briefly returned to his original form, but she didn’t see her face.
[Liberation]
She knew that this word meant she would return to her original form. Even if she didn’t want to, she would have to see her face soon.
“The Emperor will fall for you all over again!”
The head maid’s boisterous voice rang out. At those words, Arundel’s mouth twitched awkwardly.
When she returns to heaven, Zion will live a happy life with the original Empress Irina.
She felt as if her body was sagging from depressing thoughts.
“Shall we go now?”
“…”
“…Are you okay, Your Majesty the Empress?”
“Huh? Uh-huh!”
At the head maid’s worried words, Arundel nodded her head as if she was calm.
‘Yeah, I have to cheer up.’
As she went outside, Cain and the prime minister appeared. Both were faces she hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Your Majesty the Empress, it’s been a long time.”
As always, the prime minister greeted Arundel with a kind face. Arundel also quickly shook off her gloomy thoughts and smiled.
“Have you been well, Prime Minister?”
“Of course. Thanks to His Majesty the Emperor solving the plague quickly, I was relieved.”
The prime minister really looked relieved. Cain, who was next to him, interrupted.
“The plague was the work of demons, it’s a big deal. We need to form a subjugation team as soon as possible.”
“Probably next week, we plan to gather people to join the subjugation team… They all seem like people who will follow Your Majesty the Empress well.”
As he spoke, the prime minister gave a meaningful smile. Then, as if something came to mind, the prime minister spoke with a surprised expression.
“Come to think of it, today is a sad day for His Majesty the Emperor…”
But the prime minister couldn’t finish his sentence. Because Zion had appeared.
Today, Zion, dressed in dazzling clothes, draped his arm over Arundel’s shoulder. He was shining brightly.
“Well, let’s go now.”
As Arundel nodded, Zion took Arundel’s hand and led her to the main gate.
‘Sad for Zion…?’
What was he trying to say?
Arundel was curious about what the prime minister was going to say, but her thoughts soon scattered. Because the main gate of the palace slowly opened and a fervent cheer was heard.
Many people had gathered. The reaction was definitely different from before.
Cain, who was next to her, hummed and spoke softly.
“I spread the process of solving the plague very quickly.”
No wonder. The expressions of the people varied, but overall, they were filled with faith and hope.
“The demons are rampant! We believe that His Majesty will definitely solve it.”
Among many voices, one stood out strongly. People also nodded their heads and chimed in.
“That’s right! We believe in His Majesty the Emperor!”
“His Majesty the Emperor is the best!”
Arundel stiffened for a moment. Her chest was hot because she now knew that this happened because of her.
Even when Zion mentioned it yesterday and now. It felt as if guilt was choking her throat.
“Today is the founding anniversary of the Croyden Empire. Don’t think about anything else and enjoy today.”
At Zion’s calm words, people burst into cheers. And the palace gate slowly closed.
“Irina, are you okay?”
Zion asked if Arundel, who looked pale, was worried.
“Oh? Uh, I wasn’t feeling well for a moment.”
“You don’t have to push yourself. It’s okay to cancel the schedule in the evening.”
Worry was evident in Zion’s eyes.
Arundel quickly shook her head.
“It’s not that bad. I’ll definitely go.”
Zion smiled faintly and stroked Arundel’s head.
“Okay, rest. I’ll pick you up in the evening. I want to be with you, but I have to meet the envoys.”
Fatigue was evident in Zion’s voice.
He often showed this look these days. Is the unidentified power taking its toll? Or is it tiring to be the emperor, as he said?
There were many questions that came to mind, but not now.
All he could do was smile and comfort him.
“See you later, Zion.”
****
Evening came.
As promised, Zion arrived on time, and as he waved his hand a few times, his appearance transformed.
It was to avoid catching people’s eyes.
Soon the carriage started with a jolt. There was a sense of vitality in the passing scenery. Each person’s face was full of smiles.
Like Zion’s speech in the morning, today seemed to be faithfully enjoying the festival, putting all worries aside.
The noisy outside noise made Arundel feel more and more excited.
“Zion, look over there! The clown…”
Arundel, who was pointing outside with an excited voice, stopped talking. Because he saw Zion’s downcast expression.
“Zion…?”
“Ah, sorry. I was thinking about something else for a moment.”
Fortunately, Zion soon smiled.
‘It must be some kind of day today.’
“Shall we get off?”
As the carriage stopped, Arundel took Zion’s hand and led him. The surroundings were brightly lit with colorful lights.
“Let’s go over there!”
Arundel deliberately raised her voice. It was because she remembered what the prime minister had said.
[Come to think of it, today is a sad day for His Majesty the Emperor…]
It was clear that something had happened to him today, given his strange behavior. She wanted to plant better memories to shake off his depressing thoughts.
Arundel headed towards the game booth that caught her eye.
A round target was standing far away, and people were lining up to throw knives at the red dot drawn in the center of the target.
‘I’m good at this kind of thing.’
Arundel lined up behind the people. Zion silently followed behind Arundel. Arundel turned around and spoke to Zion.
“Let’s make a bet.”
“What do you mean?”
“The winner gets to ask a question and the loser has to answer.”
“Okay.”
“The person who hits the center the most wins.”
Zion nodded his head. He looked quite confident. Fortunately, Zion’s dark mood from earlier had disappeared.
It was Arundel’s turn. Arundel closed her eyes for a moment, took a brief deep breath, and quickly threw the knife.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
“…All four are 10 points.”
The game booth owner clapped his hands with a flustered face.
Arundel looked at Zion with a smug expression. Zion also threw his knife.
The knife stuck sharply into the target.
“Wow, this person also got a perfect score…”
The game booth owner made a dumbfounded expression at the unusual sight.
Arundel and Zion received cheap necklaces as prizes. Zion looked at Arundel with a smile on his lips.
“It’s a tie?”
“…Let’s do it one more time?”
Arundel had a reason for insisting on a rematch. If she won, she planned to ask Zion what happened today.
“Okay.”
Zion accepted the proposal without suspicion.
Next was a bit cheap, but they decided to compete by eating. Arundel knew that Zion was weak when it came to eating.
Rather than being weak, it was closer to eating lightly. And since his taste seemed very picky, he would be vulnerable in a general food eating competition.
Arundel’s gaze stopped as she was looking for suitable food.
“Let’s do a quick eating contest with that!”
Arundel pointed at the food where a vicious-looking lizard was skewered.
Zion frowned at once. But soon he chuckled.
“Okay.”
Just as she wished. As Zion showed a reluctance to lose, Arundel’s desire to win grew.
The two of them held skewers with lizards on them side by side. Despite its appearance, the smell was quite good.
“You have to eat everything.”
Zion nodded his head.
“Start!”
Arundel quickly bit into the lizard. Contrary to its appearance, the flesh was softly chewed.
‘…It’s a delicacy.’
Contrary to expectations, the taste of the lizard was satisfying. And the small lizard soon disappeared into Arundel’s mouth.
“I ate it all!”
Arundel shouted and looked at Zion. Likewise, his skewer was completely empty.
“…Did you eat faster than me?”
“No, we ate similarly.”
As always, Zion elegantly wiped his mouth. And he reached out and wiped Arundel’s mouth in the same way.
Arundel rolled her eyes in dissatisfaction.
“Weren’t you bad at eating this kind of food?”
“I don’t eat it if I don’t have to, but I can eat it if I have to. When I was young, it was a daily routine to eat worse food than this.”
Darn it. She chose the wrong topic.
And even after that, they made bets to decide the winner, but the result was always the same.
Draw, draw, draw.
“…I won’t ask.”
Arundel said, sitting down by the lakeside. There were no more games to play.
Zion was more casual and persistent than she thought.
She thought he might lose once, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of doing so.
Because the final fireworks were coming up, all the shops were closing down.
“Did you want to ask me that much?”
Zion sat next to Arundel and asked.
‘Should I ask?’
Arundel licked her lips and soon closed them.
In fact, she didn’t beat Zion, but it was so much fun. He didn’t have a single depressing or headache-inducing thought. It felt like he had fun like a child.
But it wasn’t right to bring up a depressing story out of her curiosity.
“No.”
Arundel shook her head.
“I have something I want to tell you.”
But unexpectedly, Zion opened his mouth as if confessing. Arundel looked at Zion.
“Actually, today is my mother’s anniversary.”
Arundel’s eyes widened.
“As I said, my mother took her own life and passed away alone. So, other people don’t know how and when my mother passed away. The only people who know are probably me and the prime minister.”
So that’s why the prime minister said that earlier…
“So, I’ve never enjoyed the festival. It’s an old story, but my mother’s death is still vivid to me.”
“…Zion.”
A faint smile crossed Zion’s face.
“But today was different. I think I’ve forgotten it for a moment.”
Zion was calm and composed, as if he had really made up his mind. He put his hand inside his clothes and pulled something out.
“It’s time to let go of my mother.”
In Zion’s hand was a small box. It was the box that was on the fireplace in Zion’s room.
It was a cute box that she was curious about because it didn’t match Zion, but never got the chance to open.
“Wow! Mom, it looks like the fireworks are about to start!”
“Come sit here so you don’t get hurt!”
Then there was a buzz all around. It seemed like the fireworks were about to start.
Arundel, whose attention had been momentarily distracted, focused again on the box in Zion’s hand.
The box slowly opened.
‘…!’
Arundel’s eyes widened as she confirmed the contents. She reached out to the box, hoping that what she saw was false.
Inside was a necklace shaped like a red pearl.
‘This… this is.’
Although she wanted to deny it, Arundel knew the identity of the red pearl as soon as she saw it.
“It’s my mother’s keepsake.”
Zion’s voice seemed to pierce her head.
“My mother said she received this necklace from an angel. As she put it in my hand, she said she hoped that I would meet that angel someday too.”
Bang!
Behind Arundel, who felt like she would shatter like a piece of ice at any moment, the fireworks burst.
