CH 126

Attendance at the Castle

It was said that many of the guards guarding the border near the Faril Divine Kingdom were wounded, but they were now on the road to recovery thanks to the efforts of healers.

Currently, the Citadel of Islas, which was the headquarters of the border guards, was busy assessing the damage and repair work.

The fact that there were no casualties despite the scale of the disaster, including the appearance of a 15-meter dragon――was truly a miracle.

◇　◆　◇

The coming-of-age ceremony, which was supposed to be held right after the New Year’s celebration, was postponed for a while.

Rumor had it that it was being considered to be held at the same time as the birth of the Crown Prince’s first child.

Sheila sighed as she slipped into her uniform in her room. It had been a long time since she had dressed like this, partly because she was on winter break.

“It’s too brutal to call us in today after yesterday’s event…”

Even though it was the day after the deadly battle to defend the royal capital, Sheila received an invitation from the royal castle.

According to Clauschezade, it was a kind of debriefing session in the name of gratitude, but to be honest, it was too much for a commoner to handle. What was more, she was going to meet His Majesty the King.

Besides Sheila, Clauschezade, Jornwerner, and Leidyrune were also with her, so she had been told that she didn’t need to open her mouth, but even so, she was nervous.

Also, she really needed some rest.

‘I haven’t even talked to Cody and Zechs yet….’

Because of the hectic schedule along with the request to come to the castle, she hadn’t had a chance to talk to them. That was another factor that weighed on Sheila’s shoulders.

After checking in front of the mirror to ensure nothing was out of place, she sighed once more before leaving the room.

In the common room, Clauschezade and Jornwerner were already there. Leidyrune was departing from his home, so they would meet up with him at the castle.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

Sheila hurriedly bowed her head, but Jornwerner shook his head and said not to worry.

“Good morning, Sheila-kun. Don’t worry, you’re right on time. I’m sure you don’t have the guts to not be on time because of the summon by the royal family.”

“Please stop with the comments. I’m already nervous in case you’re wondering.”

“I’m telling you this because you don’t look nervous.”

Sheila started walking away from Jornwerner’s wry smile.

The two of them were also wearing formal wear today. 

Jornwerner was wearing a bright blue surcoat and a dark blue vest, with multiple layers of dull gold sash wrapped around his waist. Sheila wondered about the whereabouts of his shiny, polished black boots in that cluttered laboratory.

Although his aristocratic appearance was new and unexpected, it was still Clauschezade that caught Sheila’s eyes.

He was wearing the knight’s armor with the silver royal crest, and his sword that was hanging from his sword belt was also silver. Combined with his nearly white silver hair, he looked dignified and commanding, like a sharp blizzard winter.

Only his waist was adorned with scarlet, which added color to his artistic beauty.

Seeing the formal attire of the Order of the Imperial Knights again after a while was too dazzling for Sheila, who was aware of her affectionate feelings for him. She couldn’t look directly at him because her face might turn red.

In any case, those two looked so much more elegant and imposing than Sheila, whose only decent clothing was a uniform.

She was completely overwhelmed and walked a little behind them, feeling self-conscious.

There was a carriage ready to pick them up at the entrance.

The seating order was another vexing issue, but Sheila chose to sit diagonally across from Clauschezade.

Outside the slowly moving carriage, the scenery soon changed to a view of the town near the castle. The lively scene as usual brought a smile to her face.

Although the trip to the royal castle was nothing but dreadful, she had no regrets about being able to protect this view.

“Hah~ If only I could have pretended I wasn’t there, I could have rested.”

Clauschezade sighed at her murmur while looking out the carriage window.

“It can’t be helped. That border guard has testified about you.”

“Right.”

Sheila hung her head in disappointment.

The border guard who came running with the news was currently recuperating at the castle as a sign of appreciation for his service. It seemed that the royal castle side had already heard about the story from him. That’s why she was invited by name.

From the guard’s point of view, it was probably a testimonial from the purely benevolent side that those who played an active role should be honored, even if they were students. However, from the point of view of the person who had done a lot of things, that concern was a pain.

They agreed not to report that it was Sheila who defeated the dragon.

It was obvious that being able to use spirit arts and demonstrating powers that could be called holy arts would become a big problem.

It was also decided in advance by mutual agreement that Sheila would be allowed to say only the bare minimum, out of concern that she would misspeak. She felt so underestimated, but she had no complaints as long as they could help her.

“Anyway, you just have to be careful with your attitude so as not to be rude. We’ll take care of the rest.”

“Yes. I’m really counting on all of you.”

After bowing to Clauschezade, Sheila looked at the man beside her.

Jornwerner noticed her gaze and tilted his head.

“Is something wrong?”

“No…. Up until now, Jornwerner-sensei would have been gleefully pushing for experiments at times like this by taking advantage of the situation.”

“You’re digging your own grave, you know?”

She knew firsthand that it would be terrible if her weaknesses were grasped. Sheila was terrified, but he just laughed softly.

For some reason, she felt that Jornwerner’s atmosphere had mellowed dramatically. Come to think of it, he used to be a man who holed himself up in his laboratory and only showed up when it was time to eat, but yesterday he seemed to be by her side the whole time.

Even the azure eyes that hid their ruthlessness seemed somehow warmer. Even now, his eyes that looked down at Sheila from up close were softly narrowed.

“I won’t ask you to become a test subject from now on. I don’t want you to die.”

Jornwerner caressed her rose-colored hair as if combing it. Sheila pushed his hands away with irritation in her eyes, as he seemed to enjoy the sensation and wouldn’t move away anytime soon.

“If it’s an experiment that puts someone at risk of dying, don’t do it in the first place.”

“Yes. I would never do that to you.”

“In this case, it’s the dangerous experiments that I want you to stop doing, but you don’t understand at all. Also, if you emphasize ‘to you,’ it makes me feel uneasy.”

The carriage was heading toward the castle while they were having a not-so-peaceful conversation.

Meanwhile, Clauschezade was sullenly silent.

Even from below, it was possible to see the royal castle built on high ground.

But this was the first time she had seen it this close up.

“Amazing….”

Sheila was surprised when she first saw Felix’s mansion and the Steitz Academy, but the royal castle was on a different scale.

The white chalk spire piercing the sky looked dazzling and majestic. The marble flooring seemed to absorb the sunlight and let a soft light seep through from the inside. The exquisite carvings on each of the columns and stone steps showed the meticulousness of the craftsmen.

As they got off the carriage, Leidyrune was waiting for them with his arms crossed.

Wearing a deep purple surcoat typical of aristocrats, there was no sign of yesterday’s fatigue on his face.

“Leidyrune-senpai, it’s been a while since we last saw you yesterday.”

“Good morning, Sheila. Did you sleep well?”

Sheila smiled at the concerned look in his eyes.

“I slept so well that I almost overslept.”

“That’s good. It’s not good to oversleep though.”

Leidyrune chuckled faintly.

Sheila and the others began to walk quietly to the audience chamber, guided by the knights. This was now the other party’s domain. No careless blunders were allowed.

Passing through the central archway, they found several huge plaster statues decorating both ends of a corridor with a crimson carpet. The various male and female figures were probably the deities of the Faril religion.

Normally, it would have been a moving scene, but Sheila, who had her own feelings about the place, couldn’t afford to look at it carefreely.

‘I never thought I’d be going up to the castle with such a guilty conscience…..’

She made her way through the long corridors, thinking that she would be disturbed if she saw a plaster statue of Astartute.

They followed the winding path for a while. The directions were very hard to remember, probably from a security point of view.

Finally, they reached the audience chamber.

“Clauschezade-sama and his company are entering the room.”

A guard standing in front of the audience chamber shouted out.

The door, decorated with the royal crest of an eagle and sword, opened with a heavy thud.

And so began Sheila’s first audience.