“Yes? Ah, yes. I have work at home… … .”
The maid named Binka bowed her head, saying she had no idea that the handkerchief was the crown prince’s belongings.
She seemed worried that she might get scolded a lot.
But Winfred didn’t seem to care much. No, on the contrary, he was very happy to receive his handkerchief back.
“Where did you pick it up?”
“Oh, that’s… …. “It was on the floor of the restaurant.”
It was here after all! Winfred’s prediction was not wrong. It was just that Binka, who picked up his handkerchief, left work early and was on vacation for two days, so he could not get it back.
“Thank you so much, Binka…” … ! “Thanks to you, I found my precious item again.”
Winfred smiled brightly and gently held Binka’s hand. There was joy in his eyes.
“Oh, no, your highness. “I didn’t do anything.”
“No, thank you very much! You are my benefactor! “If you have any trouble in the future, let me know, okay?”
Strictly speaking, Binka just picked up things that fell on the floor and stored them, but Winfred felt as if Binka was his benefactor who rescued him from the fire.
The handkerchief containing his memories with Ayla meant so much to him.
Binka, who seemed scared and embarrassed at first, smiled shyly, probably because Winfred’s joy was contagious.
And Winfred, who got his favorite handkerchief back, emptied his plate as if he had never had an appetite.
* * *
Roderick placed the thin report he had just read on top of a pile of thick documents.
The people who reported and the subjects were all different, but the contents were all similar.
This was because it contained the message, ‘I couldn’t find anything special.’
He had planted secret agents around the nobles who had even the slightest affinity with ‘First Prince Byron’ and had them watch to see if they came into contact with Byron.
He didn’t really expect anything in particular to come out. Still, he guessed he couldn’t give up his expectations that something might happen.
He was disappointed that nothing came out like this.
No, He guesses he’s let go of all his expectations. If he hadn’t had any expectations in the first place, he wouldn’t have been so disappointed.
‘How can there be so many clues?’
If he’s hiding in this empire, he’s definitely getting help from someone.
It was a little strange that the tail wasn’t stepped on this much.
Phew. Roderick sighed and lowered his head. His stomach felt clogged and he felt like he couldn’t get anything done.
‘I should cool off for a moment.’
He got up from his desk, lightly stretched his neck, and left the office.
To take a short break, he thought about looking at Ophelia’s face.
She was quite bloated and heavy, so she spent most of her time in the bedroom, so she’s probably still there now.
Arriving in front of the bedroom, he carefully turned the doorknob. He didn’t know if Ophelia was sleeping, so he didn’t want to wake her up with unnecessary noise.
But contrary to his expectations, she was not sleeping. The sound of Ophelia talking to someone could be heard inside the room.
“I keep trying… … . Breaking through the security spell is harder than I thought.”
“… … I’m sorry for asking you a difficult question. And… … thank you so much.”
“There is a need for such words between us. Leave it, leave it.”
When she heard the voice, it seemed like the person she was talking to was Candice.
They’re still trying to track down the magic tool that Ayla has, but it doesn’t seem to be going well.
“Hmm, hmm. “I’m here, Ophelia. Candice was there too.”
Roderick opened the door and pretended to be popular.
“Ah, Roderick! Welcome!”
Candice welcomed Roderick with a lively wave of her hand. It was truly such a joy that even the viewers felt good.
Roderick smiled slightly and sat down next to the bed where Ophelia was leaning against.
“I don’t know if I interrupted my friends’ private time without even realizing it.”
“Hey, what did the room owner say? I was planning to go right away. It’s almost time for a meeting.”
Candice said, tapping Roderick’s side with her sharp elbow as she always did.
While she was in the Empire, she would participate in regular meetings remotely using a video sphere once a week.
“Oh, was today Thursday?”
“yes.”
Candice scratched her messy hair with an annoyed expression and greeted the couple.
As she left the room, Roderick held Ophelia’s hand and briefly kissed the back of it.
When Roderick lay down on the bed, clasped in Ophelia’s hand, she stroked his hair.
He gently closed his eyes and felt her touch.
As soon as her gentle hand touched my hair, the complicated thoughts floating around in my head seemed to disperse and disappear.
“Roderick?”
At that time, Ophelia called his name.
“Ugh, why?”
Roderick slightly lifted his head from his bowed position and looked up at his wife.
She was staring into his eyes. As if she was trying to understand his thoughts.
“Are you worried about something?”
And she ended up reading Roderick’s intentions very easily.
“… … no.”
But Roderick lied shamelessly. He couldn’t help but feel disgusted with himself and became upset again, but there was nothing he could do about it.
“Really? … … “It looks difficult.”
Ophelia brushed his hair behind his ear with a worried expression.
Even though her husband was very blunt and didn’t express herself well even when it was difficult, she could still tell.
Roderick has something big to worry about.
“I’m fine. There’s nothing wrong.”
However, he never confessed his worries.
She wasn’t disappointed. Because she had a strong faith in Roderick.
He was a man who would not lie to her unless he had a good reason to do so.
“… … is it so.”
So Ophelia decided not to ask any more questions.
One day, when Roderick is ready, she will tell you then.
Waiting for Ayla, not knowing when she would return, was a difficult time. Both for Roderick and Ophelia.
And at that time, she felt the baby moving under her stomach.
It’s as if the child inside the womb is trying to comfort its parents.
* * *
As winter passed and the days became warmer, the accumulated snow melted and green grass sprouted.
A roe deer put its head on the ground and was eating the newly sprouted grass when it suddenly raised its head and looked around.
It feels like the roe deer can hear a presence somewhere, so the deer is on high alert.
But it was too late. An arrow flew out of nowhere and took the roe deer’s life.
“… … Well done, lady. “Your skills are improving day by day.”
Cloud praised Ayla for successfully hunting roe deer, but she lowered her bow with a sour expression on her face.
She had no choice but to hunt for food, but no matter how many times she did it, this feeling never became enjoyable.
Ayla looked at Cloud carrying the roe deer with indifferent eyes.
It was covered in dirt here and there, and it was dirty and he couldn’t tell when it had been washed.
And it was probably the same for Ayla.
This was because they were currently moving only on rough roads to avoid inspection.
She was exhausted from the continuous camping, but there was nothing she could do.
In order to catch a ship to the Inselcorp Kingdom, they had to travel for two more days.
“Your master will be pleased, my lady.”
“… … “Yes, I’m glad if my father likes it.”
When Cloud said this, Ayla couldn’t keep her mouth shut.
Because it was unnatural for a girl for whom her father was everything in her life to not respond to such praise.
Even though she reacted no differently than usual, Cloud was still staring at Ayla.
The look in his eyes seemed like he had something he wanted to say.
“why?”
“I thought you had grown up a lot.”
Cloud opened his mouth as if he had a new feeling.
“… … That’s natural. As time goes by, a child grows naturally.”
“Is that so? But… … You have matured a lot in the past year. “It’s like she’s aged about five years in just one year.”
At his next words, Ayla was speechless and kept her mouth shut.
It was as if they had discovered that she had returned back in time.
“… … Let’s go quickly. Father will be waiting.”
Ayla suddenly changed her words and hurried her steps.
It wasn’t wrong. Byron, who was usually sensitive and had a foul temper, was in a much worse condition now.
It was because he hadn’t had a proper meal for several days.
We had to quickly go and cook the roe deer meat and offer it up to prevent Byron’s explosion.
When they returned to the place where they temporarily set up our tent, Capella took the roe deer meat as if she had been waiting for us.
Ayla sat on a chair made from a tree stump and thoughtlessly threw the dagger on her waist into the air and caught it.
It was an award she received thanks to her performance in the previous checkpoint incident.
And soon a delicious smell began to waft out. The meal was ready.
“… … “I feel like I can finally live.”
After eating his fill of soft roe deer meat, Byron returned to his usual relaxed and languid self.
He also praised Ayla, probably because he felt better after eating delicious food for the first time in a long time.
“From what Cloud said, it was the roe deer you caught. So, my daughter?”
“Yes, father.”
“… … Thank you, I had a satisfying meal for the first time in a long time. “She deserves praise for making her father happy.”
Even though he praised her, she was very self-centered. Ayla felt slightly offended, but she swallowed it hard and smiled happily.
She received praise from her father, who loved her so much.
However, following Byron’s words, Ayla had to believe her ears. He was now doubtful as to whether he was dreaming.
“Okay. When you go to the Kingdom of Inselkov… …. “I think I can give you more freedom than you have now. Since it’s a foreign country, it won’t be that dangerous.”
