CH 21

“Hmm, hmm~” Raising the teacup, Frinel hummed. His eyes were on the main mansion.

I hope she received the gold coins well. That should have been enough to hire a few people. Frinel, who had been looking at the mansion for a long time, smirked. She must have seen the note of nonsense.  Just imagining Lobelia’s cold expression made him naturally smile.

“You look in good spirits.”

“Ah, Alter.”

His escort and secretary, dropped a bunch of papers in front of Frinel. “Please check the documents, Your Royal Highness.” He exuded a dark aura as if he had grown a pair of formidable horns.

Even though Frinel was staying at the duchy because of Duke Bonitare’s business, Frinel’s nerves were all focused on other things.

“No. I’m busy.”

“What are you so busy about?” Alter asked indifferently, even though he clearly knew what Frinel was interested in.

“Lady Lobelia will come soon. Thank you.”

It had been a long tie since Frinel had such an interest in another person, and even if Alter wanted to stop him, he couldn’t stop him.

Alter, whom Frinel had been with since childhood, was one of the few people he could trust. Alter was well aware of that fact too. So he couldn’t push Friel to work anymore. Frinel was a person who missed the warmth of people more than anyone, even if he looked fine outside.

Alter bluntly stuck out his lips, despite what he felt. “What about her?”

“I lend her gold and tell where she could use people…”

“…Wait.”

“Hmm?”

At that moment, Alter interrupted him. “If it’s a place where you can use people, do you mean guild?”

“Yes. Why?”

“All guilds in the west all left for the capital. They claimed they were being robbed.”

“Then where they were… Who robbed them?”

“It seemed that some gangsters were taking over.”

“…What?”

Surprised, Frinel jumped out of his seat. He immediately ran to the mansion he saw. Then, before he could catch his breath, he grabbed the maid of the mansion he saw and asked. “Have you seen Lady Lobelia?”

“Ah, my lady went out in the morning, Your Royal Highness.”

“Ha, she acted quickly.” Spitting a laugh, Frinel brushed his hair back.

“Your Royal Highness!”

Later, Alter ran towards him. Frinel wrinkled his brows and shouted like a roar. “Get my horse now. Right now!”

Even though Lobelia took swordsmanship lessons from him, she was just a beginner. He didn’t know what would happen if she met the gangsters with her fragile body.

Please, I hope nothing happens… Please!!  His mistake shouldn’t have hurt her. Losing a person through his own fault was never acceptable.

He rode at once on the horse that Alter had hurriedly brought.  “Giddy up!” Then he drove fast. He sincerely hoped that Lobelia would be safe.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

“Can you listen to me when I’m still talking nicely?” Around me, sparks resembling lightning flashed menacingly.

“What? Are you a magician? It’s obviously fake, Older Brother.”

“Let’s give her a round of applause.”

“Right, applause!”

“Sigh…”

I thought they would listen to me if I showed my power, but they just clapped as if they were watching a performance.

“Old men. I don’t have enough room in my heart to look after anyone. I may be unable to control my power, so don’t resent me if you die.”

“What? Even if it’s a joke—”

I clenched my fists. The light source that floated on the palm of my hand was scattered with pieces of light. The light soon turned towards them quickly.

“He-Heuk!”

The pieces that shone like shards of glass pierced through the air and were sharpened like blades. Pieces of light narrowly missed around the bodies of those bastards. Blood-soaked red lines were carved on their cheeks as the blades of light brushed.

“Uargh!”

“M-mon—”

“Run away!”

Only then did they grasp the situation and start running away without looking back.

“…Where are you going?” I immediately crushed their bodies with my magic.

Under the rock-like gravity, the three of them crumbled like vegetables stuck between sandwich bread. I approached them slowly and flashed my eyes. While completely distorting my face, the leader among them moved his mouth eagerly.

“I will serve you as my older sister!”

“Older sister?”

“Now the boss of our organization is Older Sister.”

“How many members do you have in your organization?”

“Three of us…”

“…Three…?”

It was embarrassing to say that it was an organization for three people, including the leader. As it was ridiculous, one of my eyebrows lifted leisurely.

“P-please have mercy just once…”

They smiled intently over my frowning face. They were bragging, but they didn’t seem like evil people, so I slowly relaxed my face.

“Hu, ha…”

“T-thank you, Older Sister!”

“To think you are such a great magician…”

You still think of me as a magician? What a bunch of idiots. Still, they were moderately stupid.

“Are you going to listen to me from now on?”

“Yes, of course! Of course!”

“It’s a secret that I’m a magician. Got it?”

“Yes, yes, Older Sister!”

“Now, from now on, your names are One, Two, Three.” Pointing one by one with my fingers, I handed over a communication device to them.

“Wait for my call. If… you ever run away…” I summoned the light source again to scare them.

They shook their palms forward and shook their heads vigorously.

“N-no…!”

“…Huh?”

At that moment.

“Lobelia?”

Through the narrow alleyway, Frinel’s startled eyes met my emerald eyes. Startled, I hurriedly beckoned them. “Go, quickly.”

“Yes, yes?”

“Go kuikly (Go quickly).”

“Yes, yep!”

Eventually, after clenching their teeth tightly, One, Two, and Three, who received new names, quickly ran away from the spot. They disappeared, and Frinel soon filled their place. He hurried over to me with a surprised look.

“…How…”

He had rushed to 5th Avenue through a shortcut, worrying that she would encounter gangsters. But what he saw was, obviously,

“The magic now…?”

It was magic. After the Shinsu clan disappeared, magicians were no longer born. It was said that it was because of the curse left by Shinsu. But how could Lobelia use magic? Frinel pursed his lips, unable to speak further.

“What do you mean by magic?” I turned my eyes to the side and lied nonchalantly. However, no one would be fooled by such a lie when I was caught in the act.

He spoke firmly. “Don’t try to fool me, Lady Lobelia. Because I’ve seen it with my own eyes. A light source that shines like the sun on your hand.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“Lady Lobelia.”

Frinel gently grasped my wrist.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

With a deep sigh, I followed him calmly with a face of helplessness.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Frinel took me inside a small cafe. It was a place with several rooms so nobles could have their privacy.

He glared at me after giving me a drink that he and I could drink. I just looked at Frinel’s eyes as if I had made a big mistake. Things were taking a strange turn.

Was it because I was overconfident in my own strength? Should I have been cautious even if all the gold coins were stolen by the gangsters? All sorts of thoughts swirled around my head.

“Lady Lobelia.”

“…Yes.”

“You, are you a descendant of the Shinsu clan?”

My heart dropped with a thud. I had roughly expected those words would come out of his mouth since he had seen me use magic, but the psychological damage was significant.

“My past… the excuse of being a magician won’t work, right?” I smiled bitterly as I recalled the bastards who admired me as a magician.

“I’ve never seen it with my own eyes, so I’m unsure. Certainly everything… but that power must be…” Frinel went on, with a low voice, as if he knew the truth. “Magic power is as blue as the sky, but holy power shines like gold. The only race that can use both of these powers…”

“Sigh…”

“That’s what the Shinsu clan is about.”

His blue eyes stared silently at me. I stared at the glass of drink before me for no reason, then slowly parted my lips. “…You must be wondering how I was able to use magic.”

“…Even if it’s not because of what happened, I’m curious as much as about your true identity.”

“How can I trust Your Highness and tell you about my past?” A cold sneer crept across my lips.

Frinel responded slowly by blinking his eyes and tilting his head. “…Just think of our relationships like debtor and creditor?”

“Pfft.”

Ah, he got involved again. I, who laughed without realizing it, cleared my throat in embarrassment.  “Haa… really…”

There was a look of perplexity on my face. My identity was something I couldn’t reveal to anyone. It could have been a good result, but it was a problem that could threaten my life if I told it to someone with a careless mouth.

When I couldn’t open my mouth easily, Frinel spoke up. “I will make an oath?”

“…Oath?”

“You know that knights can use aura.”

“Yes.”

“You can make an oath with that aura. Knights call it a blood oath.”

He added, staring at me with firm eyes. “Usually, this is the method used to determine the lord, but… I promise that nothing will ever harm you.”

There was a moment of silence between us. The blood oath was absolutely unbreakable. There was nothing I could say if he went that far. Eventually, after much thought, I gave a slight nod.

“I, Frinel von Diamas Tiazen…”

A white aura emanated from Frinel’s body.

“I swear to protect Princess Lobelia Elland Gracie no matter what.”

Although the contents of the oath seemed a little strange, the power of the oath was certain. Eventually, I opened my mouth slowly.

“There was one woman from the Shinsu clan who loved humans..”

“…Loved humans…?”

“That woman’s daughter is me. The last Shinsu clan, though human blood is mixed. The descendant of Shinsu.”

“Shinsu…!”

“It’s going to be a long story.”

I slowly began telling my story.