43

“Being engaged means that the marriage is finalized, right? They look friendly, so at least a kiss… … .”

“There’s nothing the little one can’t say!”

Hannette blushed in surprise.

Even Robbens and Yenid didn’t ask that blatantly.

Most of all, since they were secretly gathering funds and plotting an escape, the act was meaningless.

“Nuna, I’m still two years older than your fiancé. I don’t think I’m old enough to be called small.”

“If you’re younger than me, you’re a small beggar!”

“still… Are you an adult?”

“What if you are an adult? He only says weird things.”

“Why is this strange? Hugging and kissing the people you love… … .”

“Hey! Do you want to say that in front of your sister?”

“Well… I think my sister is right… … .”

Dain nodded slowly while puzzled.

Unless one of them was an adult, there was nothing I couldn’t say about the night.

He himself was fully aware of it, and Hannett must have been preparing little by little.

“And why are you interested in my fiance?”

“It is right that you should pay attention. Anyone who marries my older sister would be my brother-in-law… … .”

“You are not married yet!”

“Isn’t there a wedding planned? I don’t think it’s going to break off now.”

“Do you know who got engaged because they liked it? In my mind, I… … .”

Harnette recalls Zion for a moment and blurts out her words.

If he wanted to break off the engagement here, he would have to show disrespectful behavior or make Shion displeased.

But I didn’t want to commit such things regardless of whether or not I broke up.

“It looks like you don’t want to break up. ummm… I understand.”

“… what?”

“Something just felt right. I don’t think she has any intention of breaking up.”

“How do you know what I think?”

“There are things you learn when you spend time with your sister.”

“Are you looking at me right now?”

“not really?”

“No, what isn’t it? Did the head of the household send you?”

“Why would I do that? If it was really like that, I would have told my sister in advance.”

Harnette keeps an eye on Dyne and reluctantly puts her suspicions aside.

Even if others didn’t know, Dain wouldn’t try to deceive him.

It was because he had been close to him for a long time and was also a family member who understood his position well.

“If you want to talk to me… You mean let’s go?”

“Not necessarily. Is there no room for me now?”

“I think you’re misunderstanding something, but you have no choice but to hang out with your fiancé.”

“Looking at the head of the household?”

“Something like that… You have to stay with your fiancé to get more pocket money.”

“Oh, I told you last time.”

Of course, Dyne didn’t believe everything Hannette said.

On the outside, Hannette seems to be irritable, but in reality it was more of a trick to hide her true feelings.

Even a few years ago, it was possible to distinguish them subtly, but now I couldn’t easily detect that they were quite skilled.

“You don’t like your fiancé?”

“No… It’s not that far, but it’s a little unfamiliar. It’s also a marriage I don’t want… In addition… I pretend a lot… A lot of talk… I often do useless things… … .”

Dain is happy inside, but only listens quietly.

Harnette, lost in her thoughts, was trying to point out her fiancé’s flaws.

If she really hated her fiancée, she wouldn’t stretch her words out like that.

“Wouldn’t there be some good points?”

“Good point? Where is that? Even though I was young, I only lived with my mouth.”

“Aren’t you a little handsome? My personality seems to be okay… He even treated the ladies-in-waiting kindly.”

“Is it okay to have a good-looking face? How do you know how to change your personality?”

“I am not a noble with a bad reputation. Oh, should I look good? There is a lot of marriage talk going on in the family of the Marquis Regard. Nobles must have been interested in you because of your sister’s fiancé.”

“… yes?”

Harnette answered calmly, but listened.

Since it was related to Zion, I wondered if I was curious.

It has nothing to do with you, but since it’s already been said, it’s okay to listen to it a little bit.

“My youngest son is engaged to my sister, so now we have two left. They say the eldest son will join the royal knights, and the second son works as an administrator in the palace. At this level, a marriage with an immediate royal family could be concluded.”

“Who is marrying the immediate royal family?”

“I don’t know. If it doesn’t go well, won’t we go ahead with the marriage with another noble family?”

In fact, I wasn’t too curious about Zion’s brother.

I’ve met Calz Reggieard, but I thought it looked a little ordinary compared to Shion.

He could only think of what would happen if Shion broke up with him.

“So what I’m trying to say is, don’t miss your fiancé. How many aristocrats do you think have both family and good looks? You seem to be good at swordsmanship.”

“… Shouldn’t there be something called love before marriage?”

“hahahaha… Sister, can I tell you something interesting?”

“I don’t think it will be fun.”

“They say that a forced marriage is better than a marriage out of love. Do you know why?”

“Did you get married without my knowledge?”

“The joke is a bit bland. The reason why it’s better to force it is because you don’t expect it. Because you get to know each other without expecting it, you can see an unexpected charm. If you stay together like that, you will fall in love and slowly build a family.”

“… … ?”

Hannett is immersed in doubt and agrees little by little.

The premise was wrong, but it didn’t seem very wrong.

Why does that statement sound plausible?

“Oh right. There’s one more. After you get married, it becomes difficult to break off the marriage, so try not to harm each other. Because we don’t know each other well, we become more cautious.”

“Where did you hear that?”

“Well… At a social gathering?”

“Why do you believe what is said at a social gathering?”

“Well? It makes a little sense.”

“It’s nice to go to social events, but skip that… … .”

There was a knock on the door and someone entered the room.

Dain recognizes the person right away and tries to move away.

“My brother-in-law has arrived. Wouldn’t it be better for me to disappear?”

“Hey! What is the mother-in-law! Are you not married yet?”

“Brother-in-law, see you later.”

“uh… … .”

Shion looks at Dain leaving with a little embarrassment.

Hanette is belatedly conscious of Zion and cannot bear to speak.

“Can I just stay still?”

“Sigh… don’t mind. It must have been a joke.”

“It must be so. I’m not even married yet.”

Hannette was relieved only then, and turned her head away.

Did he even know that he would say something like that in front of Zion?

I was so ashamed I couldn’t lift my face.

‘He’s climbing up a lot when he says ‘oh ya oh’. Oh, that’s really… … .’

* * *

The royal palace, the royal sleeping palace.

Brandis barely entered the bedroom until it was midnight.

There were occasional days when the work hours were longer, but it was quite rare to end as late as today.

It would be nice to be able to sleep like this, but the body that was plagued by office work longed for swinging the sword.

‘Tomorrow, I’ll have to warm up my body first.’

Brandis sat down at the table, showing no sign of fatigue.

I sat at my desk every day, so I didn’t have to move my body.

If it had been before he became king, wouldn’t he have always been honing his swordsmanship or cutting down monsters on the battlefield?

‘As the days go by, the alcohol only increases… … .’

At some point, two maids entered the sleeping palace.

One had a bottle and a glass, the other a plate of snacks.

As soon as the bottle was placed, Brandis immediately opened the stopper and poured it into the glass.

‘I don’t have a drinking partner, so it’s a bit lonely.’

Brandis emptied his glass, remembering Glonet.

There weren’t many people who could be a drinking partner in this palace.

Wouldn’t it taste like alcohol only if it was a knight with similar strength to himself or a colleague he had seen often?

‘… Oh, I wonder if there is one.’

Brandis tilts her glass with a smile on her lips.

There were people comparable to the royal knights or the capital’s garrison commanders.

Nominally, they were knights under his direct command, but each had work to do, so he could not be called carelessly.

‘White is in the Church of Kinesien… Gold is… Oh, is it me?’

Brandis smirks and looks out at the bottle.

He hadn’t even emptied half of it yet, but he had already forgotten his own existence.

Since the members of Setinos Quasar are confined only to the royal palace, I wonder if they have fallen into a sense of shame.

‘I should be fighting on the periphery like purple… … .’

One of the Quasars in Setinos, the Purple Shrine, was wandering around the periphery with the Knights under his command, blocking the Demon Beasts.

The blue sage established the Magic Society and has been nurturing talented wizards.

Each of them was faithfully fulfilling their given role, but I wondered if only one of them seemed particularly leisurely.

‘silver… … .’

Brandis lifts the glass and puts it down again.

The silver phantom thief was a knight appointed as a Setinos quasar through a special process.

It wasn’t a knight in the first place, and like other quasars, it couldn’t be seen as superior in force.

However, no one has been able to keep up with the speed, and once the traces have been erased, it was not easy to even track them.

‘Now is the time to come.’

At the same time as I was thinking, I heard the sound of the window shaking.

Brandis laughs and waits for the window to open.

“… Are you here?”

When the window opens, a cool breeze passes by the nape of the neck.

Brandis felt a vague presence and placed another glass on the other side.

“Miss Brandis, you look as beautiful today as ever.”

“Aren’t you tired? Sheep is a title given to a young woman.”

“You always look young in my eyes.”

Brandis was dumbfounded, but he wondered if he was used to that answer now.

After he became king, no one ever mentioned his name.

But he was the only one calling him by his name, calling him sheep.

“after… Would you like a drink?”

“Five… Are you offering me a drink? My sincerity has finally seen the light of day.”

“talk too much. If you’re not going to drink… … .”

At the same time as the answer, something disappeared.

Meanwhile, Brandis was pouring a drink into her own glass.

As I slowly turned my gaze, someone wearing a mask was sitting across from me.

“Are you not taking off the mask?”

“I can even take off your clothes.”

“Enough with the silly jokes.”

“If it’s the king’s order, I’ll have to obey, but if it’s Miss Brandis’s request, I can treat it seriously.”

Caden Aslower, known as the silver phantom thief, takes off his mask and tilts his glass.

A youthful appearance showed through his cool eyes.

Brandis sighed and took a drink after him.

“You remind me of a guy just like you.”

“It can’t be. Are there any other handsome guys like this?”

“… … .”

Brandis stares curtly with her mouth shut.

He was a guy who lived on his pride, but his ability to infiltrate and collect information was quite outstanding.

That’s why it was captured as a Cetinos quasar in order to use it somehow.

“There is a man who risked his life for his fiancé. So I tried to get permission from my fiancé… Oh yeah… … .”

“That fiancé must have risked his life too.”

“You know that. That’s why they say he’s the same guy as you.”

“Miss Brandis is such a great friend to say the least. If you are a friend who knows romance, you can take him as your disciple… I really want to meet you.”